ARE CREATURE COMBOS VIABLE?! cEDH Gameplay: Talion v Animar v Urza V Blue Farm

Deck Strategies

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  Animar, Soul of Elements

  A creature combo deck that leverages casting multiple creatures to grow Animar and generate card advantage, aiming to combo out quickly with spells like Demonic Consultation and Mental Blast.

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  Talion, the Kindly Lord

  A midrange/control hybrid that utilizes life payment for card draw and disruption, applying pressure through versatile creatures and interaction to maintain tempo.

• 

  Urza, Chief Artificer

  Artifact-based control and value engine deck that uses artifact mana acceleration and recursion to control the board and assemble combo pieces or overwhelming threats.

• 

  Kraum, Ludevic's Opus

  A tempo and spell-slinging deck that uses card draw on dealing combat damage and disruption spells to maintain board presence and pressure opponents.

• 

  Tymna the Weaver

  A political and value-oriented deck that gains incremental advantage through combat damage and card draw, complemented with disruption and removal.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Animar’s use of Demonic Consultation combined with Mental Blast was a critical combo sequence that enabled a swift and difficult-to-interrupt win.

• 2

  The interaction between bounce effects (like Hoarderbreaker and Imp Recruiter) and creatures with ETB triggers generated significant card advantage and tempo swings.

• 3

  Players frequently leveraged artifact mana (Chrome Mox, Mox Amber) to accelerate their combos and cast multiple spells in a single turn, increasing pressure.

• 4

  Talion’s life payment for card draw and disruption allowed for sustained interaction but struggled against Animar’s explosive card advantage and combo potential.

• 5

  Counterspell battles and resource management were central to the game flow, with players needing to decide when to pay for spells like Esper Sentinel triggers or hold mana for interaction.

Notable Cards

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  Demonic Consultation

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  Beast Whisperer

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  Walking Ballista

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  Eternal Scourge

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  Manglehorn

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  Chrome Mox

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  Tidebinder Mage

Summary

The game featured a dynamic clash between five competitive cEDH decks led by Talion, Animar, Urza, Kraum, and Tymna. Early turns saw players setting up mana bases and deploying key creatures like Ranger Captain and Birds of Paradise to accelerate their strategies. Animar focused on casting creatures to grow counters while interacting with opponents through tempo plays involving creatures like Beast Whisperer and Imp Recruiter, generating card advantage. Talion leveraged life payment and card draw synergies to maintain pressure, while Urza established artifact mana and board presence to control the pace. Throughout midgame, multiple counterspell interactions and bounce effects kept the board in flux, with players carefully managing resources and disruption. A pivotal moment occurred when Animar cast Demonic Consultation, naming a critical card to exile a large portion of the library and setting up a combo kill; this was accompanied by a Mental Blast to clear the path. The game’s tempo swung with counterspell battles and artifact recursion, notably with Walking Ballista and Eternal Scourge enabling repeated threats. Talion and Urza attempted to stabilize but were outpaced by Animar’s explosive draws and efficient spells. Eventually, Animar’s combo-driven strategy prevailed, demonstrating that creature-based combo decks can indeed be viable in cEDH despite heavy interaction and control elements present in the field.