Erebos vs Lazav vs Gonti vs Riku EDH / CMDR game play for Magic: The Gathering

Deck Strategies

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  Erebos, God of the Dead

  Utilizes a mono-black devotion theme with life manipulation, graveyard recursion, and weaponizing swamps to build powerful creatures and control the board. The deck aims to leverage synergies with swamps and sacrifice outlets to grind out value and deliver large damage bursts.

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  Lazav, Dimir Mastermind

  Focuses on copying opponents' creatures and gaining incremental value through milling and control elements. The deck aims to disrupt opponents and generate card advantage through clever impersonator and other deceptive plays, eventually setting up combos.

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  Gonti, Lord of Luxury

  A mono-black control and value deck that steals cards from opponents’ libraries to generate advantage. It uses early threats like Inferno Titan and powerful removal to dominate the board while slowly draining opponents’ resources.

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  Riku of Two Reflections

  A green-blue-red deck focused on doubling tokens and spells with effects like Doubling Season and Parallel Lives. The deck aims to ramp aggressively, create multiple threats, and overwhelm opponents with value and repeated spell effects.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Kevin's early casting of Gonti allowed him to exile and steal powerful cards like Inferno Titan, providing a strong early advantage and board presence.

• 2

  Jason's use of Clever Impersonator to copy Gonti and his subsequent combo with Triskelion and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed, was the key to securing the win despite earlier setbacks.

• 3

  The narrator's decision to build a huge Overseer of the Damned with multiple swamps and equipment led to a massive combat damage swing that severely damaged Brian’s position.

• 4

  Tectonic Edge's destruction of Cabal Coffers was a significant disruption to Kevin's mana base, showing the importance of land destruction in hindering mono-black strategies reliant on Cabal Coffers.

• 5

  Massacre Worm and Butcher of Malakir provided board control and creature sacrifice effects that influenced combat and removal decisions throughout the game.

• 6

  Jason’s combo execution prompted a discussion about whether he would survive the infinite loop, highlighting the nuances of combo interactions involving sacrifice and life loss.

Notable Cards

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  Gonti, Lord of Luxury

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  Inferno Titan

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  Cabal Coffers

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  Liliana of the Dark Realms

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  Strata Scythe

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  Lash of the Whip

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  Overseer of the Damned

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  Butcher of Malakir

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  Clever Impersonator

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  Triskelion

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  Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Summary

A turning point occurred when the narrator, playing Erebos, God of the Dead, used Liliana of the Dark Realms and equipment like Strata Scythe and Lash of the Whip to create a massive Overseer of the Damned, leveraging the many swamps on the field to ramp their board presence and deliver a decisive 21 damage hit to Brian. The game culminated with Jason assembling an infinite combo with Triskelion and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed, enabling him to eliminate all opponents despite the presence of Massacre Worm and Butcher of Malakir on the battlefield. Ultimately, Jason's infinite combo secured the win, showcasing how a well-timed combo can overcome early aggression and board control.