Drink Up Me Hearties! MTG cEDH Gameplay ft. Francisco/Malcolm v Dihada v Talion v Tymna/Kraum

Deck Strategies

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  Francisco, Fowl Marauder / Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

  This deck leverages pirate tribal synergies combined with artifact ramp and treasure generation to accelerate mana and apply pressure through repeated exploration and card advantage from attacking.

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  Talion, the Kindly Lord

  Talion’s deck focuses on a control and aristocrat strategy that generates card draw and life drain through combat damage triggers, leveraging sacrifice outlets and incremental value creatures to wear down opponents.

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  Tymna the Weaver / Kraum, Ludevic's Opus

  This deck employs efficient card draw from combat damage, combined with disruption and interaction to maintain board control while building resources to close out the game with incremental advantage.

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  Dihada, Binder of Wills

  Dihada’s strategy centers on flicker and sacrifice synergies to repeatedly trigger value engines like Mayhem Devil and Walking Ballista, controlling the board state while draining opponents' life totals.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Players carefully coordinated damage assignment to Talion’s recurring life loss triggers to avoid excessive attrition early in the game.

• 2

  The flicker and sacrifice engine around Dihada enabled repeated removal and value generation, significantly impacting board state.

• 3

  A Brain Freeze and Dark Ritual combo was used to refill a player’s hand, enabling more plays but did not immediately secure a win condition.

• 4

  Talion’s Bloodchief’s Ascension was used effectively to convert combat damage into card draw and life drain, pressuring opponents steadily.

• 5

  Artifact ramp cards like Fellwar Stone and Spring Leaf Drum accelerated mana development, allowing explosive mid-game turns.

• 6

  Interaction spells like Force of Negation and Diabolic Intent were pivotal in countering key threats and maintaining tempo.

Notable Cards

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  Talion, the Kindly Lord

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  Mayhem Devil

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  Fellwar Stone

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  Dark Ritual

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  Brain Freeze

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  Diabolic Intent

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  Walking Ballista

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  Flickerwisp

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  Orcish Bowmasters

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  Molten Duplication

Summary

The game started with all four players establishing early ramp and mana bases, with Francisco/Malcolm focusing on a Pirate tribal synergy and artifact ramp, Talion developing a control-focused board with card draw triggers, Tymna/Kraum utilizing card draw and interaction, and Dihada ramping into value creatures and disruption. Early combat exchanges triggered life loss and card draw effects, with players carefully marking damage to avoid early elimination. A key turning point occurred when multiple players deployed powerful artifact ramp cards like Fellwar Stone and Spring Leaf Drum, enabling explosive mana acceleration. Talion established a board presence with Aristocrat-style creatures and utilized Bloodchief's Ascension to generate incremental card advantage and life drain effects. Dihada’s flicker and sacrifice interactions allowed for recurring value and repeated triggers, which synergized with Mayhem Devil and other sacrifice outlets to control the board and apply pressure. A critical moment was when a player executed a Brain Freeze and Dark Ritual combo to refill their hand and set up further plays, but lacked a direct win condition. Throughout, players used interaction spells like Diabolic Intent and Force of Negation to respond to threats and maintain control. The game revolved around life loss from incremental triggers, recurring sacrifice synergies, and mana ramp enabling high-impact spells, with no definitive winner shown but clear momentum from Dihada’s flicker-sacrifice engine and Talion’s attrition strategy.