Deck Strategies
Edgar Markov
Aggressive vampire tribal deck that generates tokens on creature casts and attacks, aiming to overwhelm opponents with multiple creatures and life gain synergies.
Elenda, the Dusk Rose
Vampire tribal focused on creating tokens when creatures die and growing Elenda herself, leveraging sacrifice and recursion for board presence.
Bontu the Glorified
Sacrifice-themed deck that drains life from opponents through repeated sacrifices, combined with artifact and creature recursion to generate value and control the board.
Zacama, Primal Calamity
Ramp deck that accelerates mana quickly to cast powerful spells and creatures, enabling board wipes and combo setups using land untapping and infinite mana generation.
The Ur-Dragon
Dragon tribal ramp deck focusing on casting high-cost dragons supported by mana acceleration and powerful artifacts to dominate late game with overwhelming threats.
Dralnu, Lich Lord
Control and spellslinger deck that uses instant and sorcery spells with recursion and counterspells to maintain board control and generate card advantage.
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun
Token and exalted synergy deck that creates numerous tokens and buffs them with exalted triggers, aiming for wide boards and strong combat phases.
Ikra Shidiqi, the Usurper
Life gain and drain-focused deck that leverages opponent life loss to gain advantages and control the board.
Vial Smasher the Fierce
Aggressive spellslinger deck that deals damage when casting noncreature spells, aiming to control the board and chip away at opponents through direct damage effects.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
The early vampire tribal aggression set the pace with token generation and life gain, forcing opponents to respond quickly or be overwhelmed.
- 2
Zacama's ramp and untap abilities enabled a massive card draw and mana acceleration turn, facilitating a board wipe and combo setup.
- 3
Tony's use of Panharmonicon and Core Skyfisher with Zacama created infinite mana loops by bouncing creatures repeatedly, allowing systematic targeting and elimination of opponents.
- 4
Grave Shot was effectively used as a mass removal to clear vampire tokens, disrupting aggressive strategies.
- 5
In the second game, Dralnu's control elements like counterspells and card draw slowed down aggressive plays and allowed for maintaining board control.
- 6
The Temmet deck maximized exalted triggers to boost tokens into significant threats, dominating combat phases.
- 7
Mana acceleration artifacts and spells like Soul Ring, Chromatic Lantern, and Boundless Realms were critical in enabling large plays and casting high-cost threats.
- 8
Use of life drain and sacrifice effects from Bontu created incremental advantage and pressured opponents' life totals steadily.
- 9
Recruiter of the Guard was used to tutor key hate cards like Stuffy Doll, enabling targeted disruption against opponents.
- 10
Players carefully managed card advantage spells and cycling to maintain resources and respond to threats throughout the game.
Notable Cards
Legion's Landing // Adanto, the First Fort
Captivating Vampire
Bontu's Monument
Chromatic Lantern
Soul of the Harvest
Primordial Sage
Ashnod's Altar
Boundless Realms
Mana Geyser
Panharmonicon
Stuffy Doll
Throne of the God-Pharaoh
Sublime Archangel
Tainted Isle
Forbidden Alchemy
Dark Petition
Arcane Denial
Recruiter of the Guard
Summary
In the first game, the table featured aggressive vampire tribal strategies alongside ramp and control elements. Early plays centered on building board presence with Legion's Landing and Captivating Vampire, generating tokens and life gain. Zacama's ramp deck accelerated mana and card draw, culminating in a powerful board wipe using Grave Shot to clear many creatures, resetting the board state temporarily. Tony's Bontu deck capitalized on sacrifice synergies and creature recursion, assembling infinite mana combos with Zacama by repeatedly bouncing and recasting creatures like Stuffy Doll to systematically eliminate opponents. This combo control ultimately secured the win after clearing the table multiple times. The second game shifted to a more drawn-out battle featuring dragons, spellslinger, and token strategies. Dralnu's control elements were evident through counterspells and card draw, while the Ur-Dragon deck focused on ramping into big threats like Thunderbreak Regent and using powerful artifacts. Temmet's token synergy was showcased by pumping tokens into large attackers boosted by exalted triggers. The game had a strong emphasis on resource management, with players juggling card advantage, mana acceleration, and board control. Key plays included countering critical threats and maximizing the value of token buffs, leading to high-impact combat phases. The gameplay highlighted intricate interactions among ramp, control, and token strategies, with a steady build toward overwhelming board presence and lethal damage.