# Strategy Specifications
## Deck Name And Archetype

Eldrazi is a Vintage 60-card main deck with a 15-card sideboard, registered under stompy and prison tags. The supplied validation contract reports the deck as format-valid for Vintage with 60 main-deck cards and 15 sideboard cards, so runtime decisions should treat the registration as legal unless the rules engine later reports a specific legality or deck-construction issue.

- Identity: Use this as a hybrid Eldrazi stompy, artifact-prison, and compact artifact-combo deck rather than as a stock Eldrazi aggro list. The deck can win by early creature pressure from Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, and token pressure, but it also has prison pressure from Vexing Bauble, land denial from Strip Mine and Wasteland, and high-ceiling artifact lines involving Time Vault, Manifold Key, Mystic Forge, Sensei's Divining Top, Karn, the Great Creator, and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain.

- Stock/Rogue Status: Treat the list as a rogue-hybrid Vintage Eldrazi shell. It contains recognizable Vintage fast-mana and prison elements, but the density of Glaring Fleshraker, Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, four Sensei's Divining Top, four Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and a Karn, the Great Creator sideboard package means a pilot should not assume normal Workshop, Initiative, or colorless Eldrazi heuristics transfer cleanly.

- Mana Concern: Respect that the mana base is explosive but uneven. Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Sol Ring, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Mox Opal, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Urza's Saga can create fast starts, but several sources are conditional, painful, legendary, artifact-count dependent, creature-count dependent, or colorless-only in practical sequencing. Runtime choices must read the legal mana actions from the engine before assuming a spell can be cast or a cost can be paid.

- Color And Creature Concern: Cavern of Souls is a major part of creature deployment and counterplay resilience, but its chosen type and available colored mana are rules-engine facts, not strategic guesses. Use legal-action text and visible mana-source annotations to decide whether Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, Sensei's Divining Top, Time Vault, Manifold Key, and sideboard artifacts are actually castable or activatable.

- Role Concern: Default to proactive pressure plus disruption, then pivot when a visible artifact-engine or lock path is stronger. The deck should often force the opponent to answer an early board, mana denial, or prison piece, but it must avoid spending premium fast mana on low-impact actions when a visible higher-leverage legal action exists.

- Opponent Info Status: No opponent decklist or matchup label is supplied for this batch. Use only public game information, visible board state, revealed cards, logged matchup context, and rules-engine legal actions at runtime; do not infer hidden counterspells, removal, graveyard hate, artifact hate, or combo pieces unless Veles exposes them as known information.

- Card Text Status: This batch does not rely on exact Oracle text for tactical commitments. Any later policy that depends on the detailed text of Glaring Fleshraker, Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Talon Gates of Madara, or a sideboard card should use rules-engine output first and mark "Card text check required" if the engine or guide source does not expose the relevant mode, target, cost, or timing detail.

## Thesis

This Eldrazi deck assembles fast colorless mana, early board pressure, prison friction, and compact artifact-engine wins. Prioritize hands and lines that convert Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Sol Ring, the five Moxen, Mox Opal, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Urza's Saga into a turn-one or turn-two permanent that changes the opponent's legal-action space, then follow with pressure from Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, or Karn, the Great Creator.

Win by forcing the opponent to answer multiple different axes before they can stabilize. The main axes are creature and token pressure, land or mana pressure from Strip Mine, Wasteland, Sowing Mycospawn, and Wastescape Battlemage when legal, artifact prison pressure from Vexing Bauble and sideboard hate, and artifact-combo pressure from Time Vault plus Manifold Key or from Karn, the Great Creator finding a decisive sideboard artifact such as Mycosynth Lattice when the rules engine exposes that line.

Do not pilot this deck as a pure control deck, a pure prison deck, or a pure combo deck. It should not hold fast mana indefinitely for theoretical future value when a legal high-impact threat or lock piece is available, and it should not spend its explosive resources on low-impact filtering when the visible game demands pressure, hate, or a commitment gate.

Prioritize visible, legal, resilient actions over assumed hidden-card reads. Use Cavern of Souls, Vexing Bauble, and disruptive sideboard cards to push important plays through known or likely interaction only when the engine shows the required mana, timing, and targets; do not assume uncounterability, tax effects, or lock coverage beyond rules-engine output.

## Role Package

- Threats: Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Urza's Saga constructs if produced by the engine, and creature tokens from registered cards are the pressure package. Lead with the threat that creates the fastest meaningful clock while also constraining the opponent; when a choice exists between similar pressure and pressure plus disruption, favor the disruptive body unless racing math or mana efficiency clearly points elsewhere.

- Payoffs: Time Vault plus Manifold Key is the compact artifact payoff, Karn, the Great Creator plus Mycosynth Lattice is the sideboard lock payoff when legal, Mystic Forge plus Sensei's Divining Top is the card-flow payoff, and Glaring Fleshraker plus repeated colorless or artifact action is a board-scaling payoff. Card text check required for exact trigger timing and damage/token details on Glaring Fleshraker; trust runtime triggers and legal choices rather than guide memory.

- Engines: Sensei's Divining Top, Mystic Forge, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Urza's Saga, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Eye of Ugin are the repeatable advantage engines. Use them when the board is stable enough to spend mana on setup, but pivot to pressure or interaction when the opponent's visible clock, stack, graveyard, or mana development makes durdling dangerous.

- Velocity: Black Lotus, Mox Jet, Mox Sapphire, Mox Pearl, Mox Emerald, Mox Ruby, Mox Opal, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Sol Ring, Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, and Kozilek's Command provide burst or flexible acceleration. Spend burst mana on a permanent that keeps producing advantage, denies opponent development, or presents a fast clock; avoid using it only to spin Sensei's Divining Top unless the engine exposes no better material play.

- Interaction: Strip Mine, Wasteland, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command, Vexing Bauble, Karn, the Great Creator, and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain are the main-deck interaction cluster. Card text check required for exact modes on Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command, and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain; choose interaction modes only from visible legal prompts and prioritize stopping mana, stack-based combo, graveyard conversion, or a lethal board over marginal value.

- Protection: Cavern of Souls protects creature deployment only according to its chosen type and engine-visible mana rules, while Vexing Bauble and sideboard Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Pithing Needle, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, and Bojuka Bog protect against specific opposing action families. Do not treat protection as generic; deploy the hate piece that matches the visible opponent plan or matchup context.

- Recursion: The registered main deck has no broad graveyard-recursion plan. Treat the graveyard as a public resource for replay, sideboard hate, and opponent monitoring, not as a planned source of repeatable card advantage unless the rules engine exposes a specific legal action from a registered card.

- Mana: Cavern of Souls, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Ancient Tomb, Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth, Gaea's Cradle, Tolarian Academy, Urza's Saga, Talon Gates of Madara, Strip Mine, Wasteland, all five Moxen, Mox Opal, Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, and Sol Ring form an explosive but conditional base. Read legal mana prompts carefully because legendary lands, artifact count, creature count, pain from Ancient Tomb, conditional color, and colorless restrictions all change sequencing.

- Sideboard Modules: Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Dismember, Maze of Ith, and Mycosynth Lattice cover graveyard, stack, spell-cost, activated-ability, creature, combat, and Karn payoff roles. Use sideboard cards as narrow tools tied to matchup evidence, not as automatic upgrades over main-deck pressure.

## Primary Win Conditions

- Glaring Fleshraker pressure wins by turning fast colorless deployment into a creature-token clock and incidental opponent damage when the rules engine confirms those triggers. Setup with Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Sol Ring, Mox Opal, or the five Moxen, then cast Glaring Fleshraker before chaining colorless permanents or Kozilek's Command. Prioritize this path when the hand contains both acceleration and multiple follow-up colorless spells, or when the opponent is likely to punish a slower Mystic Forge, Karn, the Great Creator, or Time Vault setup. Disruption risk is removal on Glaring Fleshraker or stack interaction before the engine is online, so use Cavern of Souls when legal and do not delay a second threat if visible mana suggests the opponent can answer one permanent.

- Time Vault plus Manifold Key wins by converting artifact assembly into repeated turns only when Forge exposes the legal untap and activation sequence. Setup requires both Time Vault and Manifold Key on the battlefield, enough mana to use the Key line, and no visible opposing effect stopping artifact activation. Execute only through legal actions shown by Veles; do not assume the combo is active if Time Vault is tapped, summoning-style restrictions do not apply, or another engine-visible condition blocks activation. Prioritize this path over combat when the opponent has a faster visible clock, a stable board against creatures, or a narrow window before artifact hate or discard can break the pair.

- Karn, the Great Creator wins by becoming a prison tutor and finisher gateway, especially with Mycosynth Lattice from the sideboard when that wish/action is legal. Setup requires enough mana to resolve Karn, the Great Creator and protect or immediately use the relevant loyalty action. Execute by selecting the sideboard artifact that constrains the current matchup, with Mycosynth Lattice reserved for lock commitment when the board, loyalty, mana, and opponent pressure allow it. Prioritize this path when creature pressure is stalled, the opponent relies on artifact or activated-resource development, or a single hate artifact is more decisive than another body. Disruption risk is Karn dying before value, so avoid tapping out for a low-loyalty Karn into a visible lethal attack unless the fetched card prevents that loss.

- Sowing Mycospawn and Wastescape Battlemage win by combining real bodies with mana or permanent disruption when their legal modes are exposed. Card text check required for exact mode and target text; choose only engine-visible options. Prioritize this path when the opponent's mana is fragile, when stripping a key land or permanent creates a tempo lock with Strip Mine or Wasteland, or when a medium attacker plus disruption beats a pure setup spell.

## Secondary Win Conditions

- Tezzeret, Cruel Captain is a secondary engine-win and pressure bridge when the battlefield contains artifacts or when the legal loyalty/action text produces material advantage. Card text check required for exact abilities; use Veles output to identify whether Tezzeret, Cruel Captain is making threats, finding artifacts, draining, or otherwise advancing the board. Prioritize it when the hand has artifact density but no assembled Time Vault line, or when a planeswalker is harder for the opponent to answer than another creature.

- Mystic Forge plus Sensei's Divining Top wins long games by converting mana into repeated card access and artifact/colorless velocity. Setup Mystic Forge when life total and board pressure allow spending mana on selection instead of immediate defense. Execute Sensei's Divining Top actions only when the legal action improves access, sets up a castable top card, or digs for Time Vault, Manifold Key, Karn, the Great Creator, Glaring Fleshraker, or disruption. Do not spin Top over deploying a threat if the opponent has a visible short clock.

- Urza's Saga, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Eye of Ugin provide fallback inevitability through constructs, large mana, or search/selection when the engine exposes those actions. Card text check required for exact Urza's Saga chapter and Eye of Ugin action availability. Prioritize these lands when the game slows, but protect against Wasteland-style exchanges by using mana before exposing a critical legendary or saga land if another legal sequence is equivalent.

- Backup combat wins through Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command tokens, and any Urza's Saga constructs shown by the engine. Attack when the clock meaningfully shortens and blocks are unfavorable for the opponent; hold back when preserving a mana creature, token resource, or planeswalker defense is more valuable than chip damage.

## Emergency Lines

- Behind on life, spend Ancient Tomb and Mana Crypt resources only for actions that stabilize, kill quickly, or lock the opponent out before the life loss matters. Prefer Dismember after sideboard only when the target changes lethal math or removes a must-answer creature; otherwise preserve life and race with board presence.

- Behind on board, prioritize legal interaction or bodies over Mystic Forge and Sensei's Divining Top setup. Use Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Karn, the Great Creator, Maze of Ith after sideboard, or Dismember after sideboard only according to visible legal targets and modes.

- Behind on cards, turn to Mystic Forge, Sensei's Divining Top, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Urza's Saga, Eye of Ugin, or Karn, the Great Creator rather than trading fast mana for a single low-impact play. Do not keep activating selection if the opponent already has lethal pressure and the current legal actions include stabilization.

- Behind on mana, use Strip Mine and Wasteland defensively only when denying the opponent is better than advancing your own mana. Keep hands or lines that still cast spells through Eldrazi Temple, Ancient Tomb, Moxen, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, or Mana Crypt; avoid sacrificing tempo lands if doing so strands Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, or Karn, the Great Creator.

- Behind against graveyard recursion, shift from racing to hate deployment after sideboard with Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, and Bojuka Bog when legal. Do not fire graveyard hate into an empty or low-value graveyard unless the opponent's visible next action will otherwise convert it.

- Behind against combo, prioritize Vexing Bauble, Karn, the Great Creator, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Strip Mine, Wasteland, and fast lethal pressure by matchup and legal timing. Choose stack interaction only from engine-visible legal actions; do not assume a hate card covers a combo line without rules output.

- If primary win conditions are removed, pivot to layered pressure instead of waiting for the same piece. Use remaining creatures, tokens, planeswalker value, Urza's Saga constructs, land denial, and sideboard hate to create a game where any topdecked Time Vault, Manifold Key, Glaring Fleshraker, Mystic Forge, or Karn, the Great Creator becomes decisive.

## Resource Model

- Life is a spendable clock, not a cushion, because Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, and post-board Dismember can trade life or delayed damage for decisive tempo. Spend life aggressively for Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Time Vault, Manifold Key, or a hate piece when the play changes the opponent's next turn; slow down when the opponent has visible lethal pressure or repeated small attacks already make Ancient Tomb and Mana Crypt dangerous.

- Hand size matters less than deployable mana plus one high-impact action, because Black Lotus, Mox Emerald, Mox Jet, Mox Opal, Mox Pearl, Mox Ruby, Mox Sapphire, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, and lands can compress multiple turns into one. Keep hands that turn cards into board, lock pieces, or selection immediately; mulligan hands that only contain expensive payoffs without Eldrazi Temple, Ancient Tomb, artifact acceleration, or a clear Sensei's Divining Top or Mystic Forge bridge.

- Mana is the primary resource and the main prison axis, because Eldrazi Temple, Ancient Tomb, Eye of Ugin, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, Black Lotus, and Moxen let the deck act before normal Vintage pacing. Convert mana into pressure first, then selection, then redundant utility; avoid spending a whole turn on Sensei's Divining Top if the same mana can create a threatening battlefield or cast a hate permanent.

- Board presence is both pressure and protection, because Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Kozilek's Command bodies or tokens, and Urza's Saga constructs can attack life totals while defending Karn, the Great Creator or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain. Treat creatures as damage sources first against combo and as stabilizers first against creature pressure.

- Lands are spells in this deck, because Strip Mine, Wasteland, Urza's Saga, Eye of Ugin, Talon Gates of Madara, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth, and Cavern of Souls all carry strategic text or constraints. Card text check required for Talon Gates of Madara and exact Urza's Saga or Eye of Ugin actions; use only legal engine actions, and weigh land denial against whether sacrificing or exposing a land strands the next main spell.

- Graveyard and exile are mostly opponent-facing resources until sideboard cards or engine actions say otherwise. Use Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, and Karn, the Great Creator wish access only when the opponent's visible graveyard, known deck plan, or current legal action makes graveyard denial matter; do not spend a hate bullet just to use mana.

- Sacrifice fodder is limited and should be treated as tactical material only when the rules engine exposes a cost or token decision. Kozilek's Command tokens, Urza's Saga constructs, and other visible expendable permanents can become payment or combat resources, but do not assume they can be sacrificed unless Veles shows that legal action.

- Information is a resource from Sensei's Divining Top, Mystic Forge, visible stack actions, revealed cards, known sideboard plans, and public zones. Let visible information break ties between a lock piece, a threat, and selection; never infer exact hidden cards from archetype knowledge when Veles has not revealed them.

- Sideboard bullets convert one card into a matchup rule, so their value is highest when they are drawn, wished, or deployed before the opponent converts their own engine. Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, Bojuka Bog, Maze of Ith, Dismember, and Mycosynth Lattice each need matchup and board context; do not treat them as interchangeable interaction.

## Mana Guide

- Keep mana hands that produce an immediate two-mana or better action, especially Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, Moxen, or Cavern of Souls plus a castable creature. A hand with only utility lands and expensive spells needs Sensei's Divining Top, Black Lotus, or another visible path to function; otherwise it is a mulligan candidate.

- Prioritize colorless acceleration before colored utility unless the legal spell requires colored mana. Most primary threats and artifacts lean on colorless or artifact mana, while Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and sideboard cards may impose exact costs shown by Veles. Card text check required for Tezzeret, Cruel Captain color requirements; obey the engine's payment prompts rather than assuming generic artifact mana covers every cost.

- Sequence Cavern of Souls according to the creature you must resolve through permission, not as a generic color source. If the hand's first decisive creature is Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, or Wastescape Battlemage, use Cavern of Souls only when the declared type and legal payment support that spell; otherwise preserve flexible lands for artifact, planeswalker, or selection turns.

- Use Ancient Tomb early for decisive tempo, but count the damage before repeating it. Ancient Tomb into Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Sensei's Divining Top plus another spell, Karn, the Great Creator, or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain can justify life loss; Ancient Tomb for low-impact Top activations is weak when the opponent has attackers.

- Deploy Mox Opal only with metalcraft expectations grounded in visible permanents and legal mana output. If Veles does not show Mox Opal producing mana, treat it as an artifact count for Tolarian Academy, Urza's Saga constructs, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Mystic Forge, or other visible synergies rather than a guaranteed source.

- Play lands before draw or selection when the land is needed for current legal mana, Urza's Saga progress, Tolarian Academy scaling, Gaea's Cradle scaling, or a post-draw cast. Hold the land until after Sensei's Divining Top, Mystic Forge, or another selection action when land identity matters, when a fetch/search decision from Sowing Mycospawn or Eye of Ugin may change sequencing, or when exposing Strip Mine, Wasteland, Eye of Ugin, Gaea's Cradle, or Tolarian Academy invites immediate loss of a key resource.

- Use Strip Mine and Wasteland as tempo plays only when the denial changes the opponent's next legal turn more than your own lost mana matters. Prefer developing Eldrazi Temple, Ancient Tomb, Urza's Saga, Tolarian Academy, or Gaea's Cradle if sacrificing a land delays the threat or lock piece in hand.

- Treat Mana Vault and Mana Crypt as burst mana with debt. Use them to cast a permanent that stabilizes, locks, or wins quickly; avoid lines where the only payoff is extra unused mana or a slow selection loop while life total is under pressure.

## Mulligan Guide

- Strong keep: Keep hands with Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple plus a castable pressure piece, especially Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Kozilek's Command, or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain. A strong seven usually has one burst source such as Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, or an exact Mox, plus either pressure, Sensei's Divining Top, Vexing Bauble, Time Vault plus Manifold Key, Karn, the Great Creator, or Mystic Forge.

- Medium keep: Keep slower hands when Sensei's Divining Top or Mystic Forge is backed by two functional mana sources and at least one payoff. Cavern of Souls plus Eldrazi Temple and a creature is acceptable even without artifact acceleration; Ancient Tomb plus Sensei's Divining Top plus any of Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, or Kozilek's Command is keepable if life pressure is not already the matchup's main threat.

- Risky keep: Treat one-land hands as conditional keeps only when the land is Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, or Cavern of Souls and the hand has Black Lotus, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, or multiple exact Moxen to produce a turn-one action. A one-land hand with Sensei's Divining Top but no immediate pressure is risky on the draw and weak against fast combo.

- Automatic ship: Mulligan hands with no land and no Black Lotus or artifact acceleration that produces a legal first action. Ship hands that only contain Eye of Ugin, Strip Mine, Wasteland, Talon Gates of Madara, Gaea's Cradle, Tolarian Academy, or Urza's Saga as mana without support, because those hands can fail to cast the first spell.

- Trap hand: Do not keep hands that look powerful but cannot spend mana coherently, such as Time Vault plus Manifold Key with no acceleration and no selection, multiple Sensei's Divining Top with no pressure, or Karn, the Great Creator plus Tezzeret, Cruel Captain plus Sowing Mycospawn with only utility lands. Card text check required for Talon Gates of Madara; do not treat it as a guaranteed stabilizer or mana fixer unless Veles exposes that legal function.

- Matchup-dependent keep: Against fast spell-combo, value Vexing Bauble, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Disruptor Flute, or fast Karn, the Great Creator lines more than slow combat pressure. Against creature pressure, keep Dismember, Maze of Ith, Wastescape Battlemage, Kozilek's Command, or early bodies higher than Mystic Forge-only engines.

- Play/draw rule: On the play, prioritize a disruptive or threatening turn-one battlefield even if the hand is lighter on selection. On the draw, require either resilient mana plus Sensei's Divining Top, a hate piece, or a hand that still acts through one opposing piece of disruption; a hand relying on a single Ancient Tomb or Mana Crypt deserves extra scrutiny.

## Turn Arc

- Turn 1 priority: Convert fast mana into a permanent that changes the game immediately. Preferred starts are Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple into Glaring Fleshraker, Wastescape Battlemage, Kozilek's Command when legal, Vexing Bauble against spell-heavy opponents, Sensei's Divining Top plus another action, Time Vault plus Manifold Key only when the engine is actually legal and safe, or Karn, the Great Creator when acceleration supports it.

- Turn 1 deviation: Use Strip Mine or Wasteland early only when the opponent's visible land is clearly more important than your next cast. Use Cavern of Souls when the key creature must resolve; use Black Lotus for Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, or multiple-spell pressure only when the follow-up justifies spending the one-shot resource.

- Turn 2 priority: Add a second threat, lock piece, or selection engine before activating slow value. Glaring Fleshraker plus Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage plus Sensei's Divining Top, Sowing Mycospawn after acceleration, Mystic Forge with enough artifact mana, or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain with artifact support are the preferred consolidating plays.

- Turn 2 deviation: If the opponent is faster, favor Vexing Bauble, Karn, the Great Creator for a visible sideboard bullet, Dismember after sideboarding, or Wastescape Battlemage interaction over extra selection. If the opponent is constrained, spend mana on Urza's Saga development, Sensei's Divining Top filtering, or Eye of Ugin only when Veles shows a legal search or mana action that does not skip pressure.

- Turn 3 priority: Push from development into a closing structure. Attack with early creatures when the race favors you, deploy Tezzeret, Cruel Captain or Karn, the Great Creator behind bodies, cast Sowing Mycospawn to widen mana and pressure, or use Kozilek's Command to make the board and hand better according to legal modes.

- Turn 3 deviation: Hold interaction or mana when the stack, visible graveyard, or opponent battlefield suggests an immediate loss if you tap out. Use Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, Pithing Needle, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, or Chalice of the Void only when sideboarded or wished and the visible matchup context makes the card active.

- Turns 4-5 priority: Convert mana superiority into inevitability. Karn, the Great Creator plus Mycosynth Lattice is a decisive plan when both pieces are legal and the board allows the commitment; Mystic Forge plus Sensei's Divining Top turns spare mana into more spells; Urza's Saga constructs and Eldrazi bodies should force combat math while planeswalkers generate advantage.

- Turns 4-5 deviation: If life loss from Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, or Mana Vault matters, stop paying life or taking debt for minor selection. Stabilize with Wastescape Battlemage, Dismember, Maze of Ith, Kozilek's Command bodies, or defensive attacks only when the legal actions and visible combat state support survival.

- Late-game priority: Use Eye of Ugin, Mystic Forge, Sensei's Divining Top, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Urza's Saga to keep producing real actions after both players trade resources. Prefer closing lines that present lethal, a lock, or multiple must-answer permanents over low-impact Top loops.

- Late-game deviation: Do not assume hidden interaction is absent just because the opponent has few cards. Before committing Time Vault plus Manifold Key, Karn, the Great Creator plus Mycosynth Lattice, or the last large Kozilek's Command, check visible mana, stack actions, public graveyards, known revealed cards, and whether waiting improves or worsens the clock.

## Card Roles

- Glaring Fleshraker: Treat Glaring Fleshraker as the primary early pressure and colorless-spell payoff, not a disposable body. Cast it before chaining artifacts, Kozilek's Command, Sensei's Divining Top, or other colorless follow-ups when the legal mana sequence allows, because the deck often wins by turning normal development into damage and extra battlefield material. Do not hold it for perfect value if the opponent is a fast combo or tempo deck; a resolved turn-one or turn-two Glaring Fleshraker is often the clock that makes prison pieces lethal. Avoid attacking it into obvious bad trades unless the opponent's life total, planeswalker pressure, or combat math makes the trade advance the race.

- Kozilek's Command: Use Kozilek's Command as the flexible glue card that turns excess mana into board presence, card selection, removal, or graveyard disruption when Veles exposes legal modes. Choose modes from the visible problem first: answer a must-kill small creature or graveyard line before taking speculative value, make bodies when Glaring Fleshraker is active or combat pressure matters, and select cards when the board is stable. Do not assume all modes are legal in every board state; follow the rules-engine mode and target prompts exactly.

- Wastescape Battlemage: Use Wastescape Battlemage as a creature that also gives the deck maindeck interaction when its kicker or triggered options are legal. Cast it early as a body when pressure is required, but hold it when the opponent is likely to present a key artifact, enchantment, creature, or tempo target and the hand can still function without spending it. Card text check required for exact kicker costs and legal target classes; choose only targets Veles exposes, and do not name a target class that is not present in the prompt.

- Sowing Mycospawn: Treat Sowing Mycospawn as the bridge from fast start to overwhelming mana and pressure. Prioritize casting it when the hand needs a land, when Eye of Ugin, Eldrazi Temple, Ancient Tomb, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, or Urza's Saga will convert into a stronger next turn, or when a larger body stabilizes combat. Card text check required for exact search, cast trigger, and kicked interaction details; if Veles exposes a land-selection prompt, pick the land that solves the next turn's visible bottleneck rather than a generic highest-ceiling land.

- Sensei's Divining Top: Use Sensei's Divining Top to turn explosive but uneven mana into stable decisions. Cast it early when the hand lacks a clear second spell, when Mystic Forge is present or likely, or when the deck needs to find action after spending one-shot mana. Do not spend repeated mana spinning Top while behind on board if a legal creature, lock piece, removal spell, or planeswalker materially changes the battlefield. With Mystic Forge, respect the engine line only when the visible top-card and mana actions are legal; do not invent a draw loop.

- Tezzeret, Cruel Captain: Treat Tezzeret, Cruel Captain as a high-impact planeswalker or artifact-engine payoff that deserves a commitment check before tapping out. Card text check required for exact loyalty abilities, artifact synergies, and win conditions. Cast Tezzeret, Cruel Captain when artifact mana, Sensei's Divining Top, Time Vault, Manifold Key, Mystic Forge, or token pressure can protect or exploit it; avoid deploying it into a visible board that can immediately remove it unless the ability used that turn still advances the game decisively.

- Karn, the Great Creator: Use Karn, the Great Creator as the deck's lock, tutor, and artifact-hate pivot. Cast Karn when it can immediately find a relevant sideboard card, pressure opposing artifacts, or threaten Mycosynth Lattice on a stable board. Do not default to Mycosynth Lattice if the opponent can kill Karn, attack it down, or win before the lock matters; fetch Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Pithing Needle, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Dismember, Maze of Ith, or other legal sideboard cards only when the visible matchup and prompt make that card active.

- Mystic Forge: Use Mystic Forge as a late-game engine, not as a substitute for early pressure against fast decks. Deploy it when artifact mana or Ancient Tomb can leave follow-up mana available, when Sensei's Divining Top is present, or when the hand is low on threats and the board is not collapsing. Avoid spending Black Lotus solely on Mystic Forge if the next legal plays are unknown and the opponent is threatening an immediate win.

- Time Vault and Manifold Key: Treat Time Vault plus Manifold Key as a fragile deterministic engine only after Veles confirms the legal activation sequence. Assemble the pair when the opponent is constrained, Karn, the Great Creator or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain supports the line, or taking extra turns ends the game quickly. Do not commit the pair into obvious artifact removal, Null Rod-style public effects, or a board where passing the turn after a failed attempt is lethal. Card text check required for any changed Oracle wording or replacement effects in the runtime environment.

- Vexing Bauble: Use Vexing Bauble as a main-deck pressure valve against free-spell and fast-combo starts. Cast it early when the opponent's archetype or visible actions suggest zero-mana interaction, free countermagic, or explosive stack turns; hold or deprioritize it when your own immediate acceleration and board development are more important. Do not sacrifice or trade it for a minor card unless the current stack or hand texture makes the card draw better than the hate effect.

- Black Lotus, Mox Emerald, Mox Jet, Mox Opal, Mox Pearl, Mox Ruby, Mox Sapphire, Sol Ring, Mana Crypt, and Mana Vault: Use fast mana to create a battlefield that matters immediately. Spend one-shot or painful mana on Glaring Fleshraker, Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Sowing Mycospawn, Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Mystic Forge, or Time Vault lines when the follow-up is clear. Do not burn Black Lotus or expose Mana Crypt and Mana Vault damage debt for low-impact Sensei's Divining Top activations unless the hand otherwise does nothing.

- Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Cavern of Souls, Eye of Ugin, and Urza's Saga: Treat these lands as the core structural mana package. Ancient Tomb and Eldrazi Temple enable the fastest creature and command starts; Cavern of Souls protects key Eldrazi creature casts when countermagic is likely; Eye of Ugin is a slower scaling land or tutor engine when Veles exposes legal actions; Urza's Saga is a threat and artifact-selection land that should be sequenced before it is needed, not after the hand empties. Do not keep hands where these lands fail to cast the first real spell.

- Strip Mine, Wasteland, Talon Gates of Madara, Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth, Gaea's Cradle, and Tolarian Academy: Use utility lands to convert board texture into tempo or mana, not as generic keeps by themselves. Strip Mine and Wasteland should attack visible key lands when doing so does not strand your own hand; Tolarian Academy and Gaea's Cradle are explosive only with enough artifacts or creatures already present; Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth can fix awkward green requirements for Sowing Mycospawn or Wastescape Battlemage lines. Card text check required for Talon Gates of Madara; use it only according to legal runtime actions and visible tactical need.

## Interaction Priorities

- Priority: Use interaction to stop the opponent's decisive engine before protecting marginal damage. In Vintage, the first target is a visible permanent, spell, graveyard, or mana source that converts this turn or next turn into a win, lock, or overwhelming card flow; do not spend Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Strip Mine, Wasteland, or Karn, the Great Creator on a low-impact object while the opponent's core engine remains active.

- Removal: Use Kozilek's Command first on creatures that either kill you quickly, enable combo mana, protect a stack line, or invalidate your combat math. Card text check required for exact modes and target limits; choose a creature or graveyard mode only when Veles exposes that legal mode and the visible target materially changes survival, lethal pressure, or the opponent's next-turn engine.

- Bounce or destroy effects: Use Wastescape Battlemage as tactical interaction, not just as a body, when the kicked prompt exposes a target that unlocks attacks, breaks a prison effect, removes a combo artifact or enchantment, or resets a creature with counters/equipment/value. Card text check required for exact kicker costs and target classes; if the legal prompt offers only a minor target, prefer developing pressure unless the body is needed now.

- Land interaction: Use Strip Mine and Wasteland on lands that clearly supply restricted colors, explosive mana, Bazaar-style graveyard velocity, Workshop-style artifact mana, or a land combo line; preserve them when the opponent is merely making normal land drops and your hand needs mana to cast Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, or Karn, the Great Creator. Do not sacrifice your only functional land if the follow-up hand becomes stranded.

- Stack pressure: Use Vexing Bauble early against opponents whose visible play pattern depends on free spells or zero-mana stack interaction. Once Vexing Bauble is on board, avoid cashing it in for a card unless the current stack makes the hate effect irrelevant or the hand is out of action and the opponent is not threatening a free-spell turn.

- Karn priorities: Use Karn, the Great Creator to answer opposing artifact boards or fetch the sideboard artifact that solves the current visible problem. Mycosynth Lattice is a commitment target, not the default; take Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Pithing Needle, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Dismember, Maze of Ith, or Mindbreak Trap only when the legal choice and matchup context make that card immediately relevant.

- Bait cards: Lead with redundant artifacts, Sensei's Divining Top, or a nonessential threat when the opponent is representing countermagic and the hand contains a stronger payoff. Preserve Cavern of Souls for creature lines through countermagic when possible, and avoid using Black Lotus to bait unless the resulting board still matters if the payoff is countered.

- Ignore list: Ignore small blockers, chip-damage creatures, and low-impact utility permanents when Glaring Fleshraker triggers, Sowing Mycospawn bodies, or a planeswalker can outscale them. Change this rule when your life total is pressured by Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, or visible combat damage; survival then outranks engine greed.

- Archetype shift: Against fast combo, interact with mana, graveyard, stack enablers, and free-spell infrastructure before creature combat. Against fair creature decks, prioritize battlefield stabilizers and attack lanes. Against prison or artifact mirrors, preserve Wastescape Battlemage, Karn, the Great Creator, and mana-denial lands for the permanent that actually prevents your hand from functioning.

## Combat And Trading Rules

- Attack rule: Attack when pressure shortens the opponent's window without exposing a key engine creature to a clean block. Glaring Fleshraker is more than damage; preserve it when future colorless spells will create a lethal or stabilizing trigger chain, and trade it only if the exchange prevents a faster opposing kill or protects a planeswalker that is taking over.

- Block rule: Block to preserve life when Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, or opponent pressure puts you near a two-turn clock. Do not take optional damage to protect a replaceable creature if the hand already has Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Kozilek's Command, Karn, the Great Creator, or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain as the next stabilizer.

- Trade rule: Trade Eldrazi bodies for creatures that carry equipment, enable combo, pressure planeswalkers, or represent lethal next turn. Decline trades with irrelevant small creatures when Glaring Fleshraker triggers, Sensei's Divining Top selection, Mystic Forge, or planeswalker actions can produce a stronger board next turn.

- Token rule: Use Glaring Fleshraker-generated bodies as expendable blockers, mana, and pressure according to visible legal actions. Do not sacrifice or trade token material automatically if Gaea's Cradle, Tolarian Academy, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, or follow-up colorless spells make the board count tactically important.

- Planeswalker protection: Protect Karn, the Great Creator and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain when their next activation creates a lock, tutor, artifact advantage, or immediate win path. If the planeswalker has already produced the key effect and the opponent's attack would cost you the board, allow damage to the planeswalker instead of making bad creature trades.

- Race thresholds: Switch from racing to stabilizing when visible attacks plus your own pain sources threaten lethal within two opponent turns. Switch back to racing when Time Vault plus Manifold Key, Glaring Fleshraker triggers, Sowing Mycospawn pressure, or planeswalker advantage gives a faster deterministic or near-deterministic clock that Veles confirms through legal actions.

- Archetype differences: Against combo, combat exists to close the game after disruption; keep the fastest clock unless blocking prevents a decisive creature-based combo. Against creature decks, make conservative blocks once life is low and preserve interaction for the creature that breaks parity. Against control, attack planeswalkers and life totals aggressively, but do not overcommit every threat into visible sweepers or artifact hate when Sensei's Divining Top or Mystic Forge can rebuild.

## Selection And Tutor Rules

- Top selection: Use Sensei's Divining Top before committing a scarce mana source, sacrifice land, or one-shot artifact when the hand has multiple possible lines. Prioritize finding a functional land, Cavern of Souls for creature-heavy hands, Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple for fast Eldrazi, a zero-mana artifact for explosive starts, or the specific payoff that converts mana into pressure.

- Top draw timing: Activate Sensei's Divining Top to draw only when the card seen on top changes the current turn or protects against discard before the opponent untaps. Preserve Sensei's Divining Top on the battlefield when repeated filtering matters more than one extra card, especially with Mystic Forge, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and artifact-count incentives.

- Mystic Forge sequencing: Use Mystic Forge after cheap artifacts and lands have clarified available mana, then cast visible top-deck artifacts or colorless spells when Veles exposes legal actions. Exile the top card only when it is uncastable from the top, blocks continued casting, and the life payment is acceptable under the visible clock; do not pay life casually when Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, or Mana Vault already creates a survival risk.

- Urza's Saga search: Use Urza's Saga chapter search for the artifact that solves the current bottleneck. Choose Black Lotus or a Mox when immediate mana converts into a decisive spell, Sensei's Divining Top when the game is about selection, Vexing Bauble when free spells matter, Manifold Key when Time Vault or mana-rock untapping is relevant, Mana Vault or Sol Ring when acceleration is the constraint, and Mana Crypt only when damage risk is acceptable.

- Karn selection: Use Karn, the Great Creator as a wish effect only after identifying the visible problem. Fetch Mycosynth Lattice when the lock is protected enough and the opponent cannot immediately win through it; fetch Tormod's Crypt or Grafdigger's Cage against graveyard engines, Pithing Needle against a known activated permanent, Chalice of the Void or Trinisphere against low-curve spell chains, Disruptor Flute against a named spell pattern, and Maze of Ith or Dismember when survival depends on a creature answer.

- Eye of Ugin selection: Use Eye of Ugin search only when Veles exposes the legal search action and the game has slowed enough for a large mana activation. Find Sowing Mycospawn when board and mana development are needed, Wastescape Battlemage when its legal kicker or body answers a visible permanent, or Glaring Fleshraker when the hand can chain colorless spells into pressure; Card text check required for exact search constraints.

- Land-drop timing: Delay the land drop until after Sensei's Divining Top, Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga search, or Karn, the Great Creator reveals the turn's mana needs, unless playing the land first unlocks those actions. Lead Cavern of Souls before creature spells through countermagic, lead Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple when speed is decisive, and preserve Strip Mine or Wasteland until the target is visible and the sacrifice does not strand the hand.

## Priority And Stack Rules

- Default priority: Pass priority when no legal action improves the board, protects a key spell, advances Time Vault plus Manifold Key, or answers a visible threat. Do not spend Sensei's Divining Top, Vexing Bauble, Manifold Key, Strip Mine, Wasteland, or Kozilek's Command just because priority is available.

- Commitment gate: Think before tapping out for Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Mystic Forge, Time Vault, or a large Eldrazi turn. Commit when the visible clock, known disruption, Cavern of Souls protection, Vexing Bauble pressure, or redundant follow-up makes waiting worse; wait when the opponent can punish the tap-out and the current board is stable.

- Free-spell stack control: Keep Vexing Bauble active while the opponent is likely to use free spells or zero-mana interaction. Sacrifice it for a card only when the stack context makes the hate effect irrelevant, the opponent is constrained by other prison pieces, or digging now is more important than future prevention.

- Time Vault line: Use Manifold Key with Time Vault only when Veles exposes the legal activation sequence and the current board can exploit extra turns or prevent an immediate loss. Do not spend Manifold Key on a minor mana-rock untap if Time Vault is present or likely to become active this turn.

- Mana-rock activations: Activate Black Lotus, Mana Vault, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mox Emerald, Mox Jet, Mox Opal, Mox Pearl, Mox Ruby, and Mox Sapphire only for a known legal spell, ability, or floating-mana plan. Avoid floating mana across uncertain priority windows unless Veles shows the follow-up action that will consume it.

- Kozilek's Command timing: Use Kozilek's Command at instant speed when the legal mode answers a stack-adjacent threat, removes a creature before combat damage, disrupts graveyard use, or creates a better end-step line than main-phase casting. Card text check required for exact modes; never assume a mode or target is legal unless Forge presents it.

- Wastescape Battlemage timing: Cast Wastescape Battlemage with kicker when the prompted target changes the present turn, breaks a lock, answers a combo permanent, or opens a lethal attack. Cast it without kicker only when pressure or blocking matters more than saving it for a target; Card text check required for exact kicker effects.

- Land destruction window: Use Strip Mine and Wasteland before the opponent can use a visible land for a decisive activation or color requirement. Prefer end-step or upkeep timing only when it denies more mana without giving up your own development, and do not fire them into replaceable lands while your hand needs land count.

- Optional payments and triggers: Pay optional costs only when the payoff is visible and the mana will not be needed for a higher-priority spell, tax, or activated ability. Treat Glaring Fleshraker triggers and colorless-spell chains as pressure tools, but let Forge define exact trigger choices and legal payments at runtime.

- Let-resolve rule: Let opposing spells resolve when they are low impact compared to your board, when responding would consume a scarce answer needed for a known threat, or when Karn, the Great Creator, Glaring Fleshraker pressure, or Time Vault setup can win faster. Respond immediately to spells that remove your only engine, unlock the opponent's combo, or make your next legal line impossible.

## Sideboard Map

- Graveyard engines: Add role cards: Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, and sometimes Mindbreak Trap. Prioritize free or one-mana hate that preserves the deck's fast mana curve, then use Karn, the Great Creator to find the missing hate piece when the main hand already has pressure. Tormod's Crypt is strongest when the opposing graveyard must be cleared at a precise moment; Grafdigger's Cage is strongest when preventing graveyard or library creature-entry lines matters across multiple turns; Bojuka Bog is strongest when a land slot can answer a graveyard without spending a spell. These cards are weaker when the opponent's graveyard is incidental and the game is about battlefield pressure, artifact mana, or planeswalker tempo.

- Fast spell-combo: Add role cards: Mindbreak Trap, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Mental Misstep, and Vexing Bauble from the main deck as the existing overlap piece. Mindbreak Trap is the cleanest emergency answer when the opponent chains spells; Chalice of the Void and Trinisphere are lock pieces that should be deployed before committing Mystic Forge or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain if the hand supports both. Disruptor Flute is best when visible or known patterns make a name meaningful; do not guess a name from fear alone if another legal action develops mana or pressure. Mental Misstep is narrow and should come in mainly when one-mana spells decide the first turns.

- Artifact, mana, and activated-ability decks: Add role cards: Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Dismember when creatures matter, and Mycosynth Lattice as Karn, the Great Creator's lock payoff. Pithing Needle should name a visible permanent, a public companion to the opponent's plan, or a card revealed by legal information; avoid speculative names when the hand can instead cast pressure. Mycosynth Lattice is primarily a Karn target, not a normal sideboard card to dilute the opening hand; board it into the main deck only when the match is expected to revolve around resolving Karn and hard-casting or drawing the lock piece is acceptable.

- Creature pressure: Add role cards: Dismember and Maze of Ith, with Bojuka Bog only when graveyard recursion is also part of the creature plan. Dismember answers early creatures that race Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, and Mana Vault damage; use it before combat when removing the creature changes blocks, life total math, or planeswalker survival. Maze of Ith is best against one large attacker or a battlefield where one prevented attack buys time for Karn, the Great Creator, Time Vault, or large Eldrazi turns. Maze of Ith is weaker when the opponent goes wide, when land drops are needed for Sowing Mycospawn and Wastescape Battlemage, or when noncombat combo is the real threat.

- Fair blue control: Add role cards: Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Trinisphere, Chalice of the Void, and Mycosynth Lattice as a Karn endgame. Cavern of Souls makes creature pressure resilient, so avoid overboarding into reactive cards that slow Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain. Disruptor Flute should tax the specific card or effect pattern that stops the current hand, while Pithing Needle should answer a visible planeswalker, artifact, or land activation. Mental Misstep is only for builds where one-mana interaction is known to matter.

- Mirror and workshop-style prison: Add role cards: Dismember, Pithing Needle, Maze of Ith, Disruptor Flute, and Mycosynth Lattice for Karn mirrors. Dismember changes creature combat and removes key bodies without requiring colored mana; Pithing Needle can constrain activated engines, but should not shut off your own plan unless the named permanent is asymmetric in the visible game. Trinisphere and Chalice of the Void can be poor when both decks already operate through artifact mana, Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, and expensive threats; use them only when the opponent's visible curve is lower than yours.

Fast graveyard combo plan
Side in: Tormod's Crypt; Grafdigger's Cage; Grafdigger's Cage; Bojuka Bog; Mindbreak Trap; Mindbreak Trap
Cut: Mystic Forge; Manifold Key; Time Vault; Wastescape Battlemage; Wastescape Battlemage; Sensei's Divining Top

- Plan logic: This plan maximizes immediate graveyard interruption and keeps the deck capable of presenting Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and Karn, the Great Creator. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow selection, fragile two-card setup, and nonessential utility bodies. Keep Vexing Bauble because free spells and zero-mana interaction still matter, and keep mana density because graveyard hate plus pressure must arrive before the opponent rebuilds.

Fast spell-combo plan
Side in: Mindbreak Trap; Mindbreak Trap; Trinisphere; Chalice of the Void; Disruptor Flute; Mental Misstep
Cut: Dismember? no registered main-deck Dismember; Sensei's Divining Top; Sensei's Divining Top; Mystic Forge; Wastescape Battlemage; Wastescape Battlemage; Manifold Key

- Correction rule: Do not use the fast spell-combo plan above if the deck registration tool rejects any name or count; the legal executable version is below.

Fast spell-combo executable plan
Side in: Mindbreak Trap; Mindbreak Trap; Trinisphere; Chalice of the Void; Disruptor Flute; Mental Misstep
Cut: Sensei's Divining Top; Sensei's Divining Top; Mystic Forge; Wastescape Battlemage; Wastescape Battlemage; Manifold Key

- Plan logic: This plan raises the density of turn-one disruption without removing the core Sol land, Mox, Glaring Fleshraker, Kozilek's Command, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and Karn, the Great Creator structure. Reduce main-deck emphasis: repeated top-deck smoothing and slower utility creature lines. Keep Time Vault if Manifold Key remains available through Urza's Saga or Karn access is not enough; if Manifold Key leaves the main deck, treat Time Vault as a lower-priority draw unless the game is going long.

Creature-tempo plan
Side in: Dismember; Dismember; Maze of Ith; Pithing Needle
Cut: Vexing Bauble; Mystic Forge; Sensei's Divining Top; Manifold Key

- Plan logic: This plan trades a small amount of selection and stack hate for survival against fast attackers. Reduce main-deck emphasis: card-flow engines that cost life or time before affecting combat. Keep Kozilek's Command and Wastescape Battlemage because they may answer creatures or permanents when Forge exposes legal modes and targets; Card text check required for exact mode coverage.

Karn-lock control plan
Side in: Mycosynth Lattice; Disruptor Flute; Pithing Needle; Trinisphere
Cut: Wastescape Battlemage; Wastescape Battlemage; Sensei's Divining Top; Mana Vault

- Plan logic: This plan makes Karn, the Great Creator more decisive while reducing cards that are less reliable against removal-heavy or permission-heavy games. Mycosynth Lattice is acceptable in the main deck only when drawing it is not catastrophic and the game is expected to center on Karn. Reduce main-deck emphasis: excess utility bodies and painful temporary acceleration when the matchup slows down.

- Sideboard discipline: Preserve the prison-pressure identity after every plan. The deck should still open on fast mana, Cavern of Souls creature pressure, Eldrazi Temple acceleration, Glaring Fleshraker chains, Sowing Mycospawn development, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain pressure, and Karn, the Great Creator selection. Avoid turning into a hand of disconnected answers; each added role card should either buy a turn, stop a known axis, or make Karn immediately threatening.

## Matchup Guidance

- Aggro: Race with prison pressure only after stabilizing the first combat turns. Keep hands that can deploy Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Moxen, Black Lotus, Sol Ring, Mana Crypt, or Mana Vault into Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, or Karn, the Great Creator before life loss from your own mana becomes the opponent's best card. Add role cards: Dismember and Maze of Ith. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge, extra Sensei's Divining Top time, and fragile Time Vault setup when the opponent is attacking immediately. Prioritize Dismember when removing one creature preserves a planeswalker, enables an attack, or prevents Ancient Tomb and Mana Crypt damage from becoming lethal. Use Maze of Ith when one large attacker dominates combat; do not overvalue it against wide boards where it costs a land drop without reducing enough damage.

- Control: Lead with Cavern of Souls pressure and force the opponent to answer permanents rather than sculpting forever. Glaring Fleshraker and Sowing Mycospawn are important because they make the control player spend answers during your proactive turns, while Tezzeret, Cruel Captain and Karn, the Great Creator threaten engines that can outscale spot removal. Add role cards: Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Trinisphere, Chalice of the Void, and Mycosynth Lattice as the Karn, the Great Creator endgame. Reduce main-deck emphasis: excess Wastescape Battlemage bodies only when the opponent presents few legal targets; Card text check required for exact mode coverage. Do not fire Strip Mine or Wasteland automatically; use land destruction when it denies a visible color, cuts the opponent off a critical mana threshold, or protects a resolved threat from a known activation.

- Combo: Treat the first two turns as a commitment race between pressure and disruption. Mulligan more aggressively for mana plus Vexing Bauble, Karn, the Great Creator, fast Glaring Fleshraker pressure, Kozilek's Command, or a sideboard hate card if post-board. Add role cards: Mindbreak Trap, Trinisphere, Chalice of the Void, Disruptor Flute, Mental Misstep, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, and Pithing Needle according to the visible axis. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge, repeated Sensei's Divining Top activations, Manifold Key, and Time Vault when the combo deck is faster than your setup. Use Mindbreak Trap only when the rules engine exposes a legal stack action; do not assume it can answer every combo state. Use Disruptor Flute or Pithing Needle only on visible or strategically identified axes, not speculative names when a board-advancing play is available.

- Tempo: Value mana efficiency and uncounterable creature pressure over slow card selection. Cavern of Souls naming the correct creature type is often more important than holding up a fancy line, and Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple hands should convert mana into battlefield presence before the opponent can turn small threats into a clock. Add role cards: Dismember, Mental Misstep, Maze of Ith, and Pithing Needle when the opponent relies on one-mana interaction, activated threats, or a single evasive attacker. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge and slow Sensei's Divining Top loops when tapped mana and life payment give the opponent a clean tempo window. Do not overpay optional costs or activate Sensei's Divining Top if the same mana can cast a threat or preserve interaction.

- Midrange: Build inevitability through redundant threats and lands that create mana advantage. Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, and Sensei's Divining Top matter more in midrange than in pure race matchups because each can generate a different angle of pressure. Add role cards: Dismember, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, and Mycosynth Lattice if games reliably go long. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Vexing Bauble or narrow stack pressure when the opponent mostly answers with permanents and combat. Avoid spending Strip Mine or Wasteland on low-value lands if Eye of Ugin, Urza's Saga, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, or Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth can instead support a bigger turn.

- Big mana: Attack mana before attacking life totals when the opponent's payoff is larger than yours. Strip Mine, Wasteland, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Trinisphere, and Karn, the Great Creator can all matter if the legal action text shows a way to constrain mana or activated engines; Card text check required for exact Sowing Mycospawn and Wastescape Battlemage mode coverage. Add role cards: Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Trinisphere, and Mycosynth Lattice. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Dismember-style creature answers unless the opponent's mana engine is creature-based. Commit to Time Vault plus Manifold Key only when the opponent cannot visibly race or disrupt the setup faster than Karn or creature pressure would.

- Graveyard: Present a clock while using hate as a tempo tool, not a substitute for winning. Add role cards: Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, Mindbreak Trap, and sometimes Pithing Needle if the graveyard deck depends on an activated permanent. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge, Manifold Key, Time Vault, and slow Sensei's Divining Top turns. Use Tormod's Crypt when the graveyard is already relevant or when the opponent must commit into it; avoid cracking it before the visible graveyard matters. Use Bojuka Bog when the land drop does not cripple your own development or when the graveyard reset is worth delaying a threat. Grafdigger's Cage should be prioritized when the opponent's public plan uses library or graveyard casting/entry patterns; Card text check required for exact affected actions.

- Artifact/enchantment: Use Karn, the Great Creator and Wastescape Battlemage as the main pressure points, with Pithing Needle and Disruptor Flute for specific activated or castable problems. Add role cards: Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, and Mycosynth Lattice in slower games. Reduce main-deck emphasis: creature removal unless artifacts or enchantments are attached to a creature combat plan. Do not assume Wastescape Battlemage can answer every permanent; choose its mode only from Forge-exposed legal actions. Karn, the Great Creator should retrieve or pressure based on the visible battlefield: lock when ahead, answer when behind, and avoid Mycosynth Lattice if casting it gives the opponent a better immediate attack window.

- Go-wide: Stabilize life total and board width before spending mana on selection. Glaring Fleshraker can create material that changes combat math, while Kozilek's Command and Wastescape Battlemage may provide interaction if legal modes appear; Card text check required for exact mode and target coverage. Add role cards: Dismember only when it removes a lord, payoff, or attacker that changes the race; Maze of Ith is lower value unless one attacker carries most damage. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Time Vault setup and repeated Sensei's Divining Top activations. Attack only when leaving back blockers does not expose Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, or your life total to a lethal swing.

- Single-threat: Make one creature or one permanent irrelevant, then pivot back to pressure. Add role cards: Dismember, Maze of Ith, Pithing Needle, and Disruptor Flute. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Chalice of the Void and Trinisphere unless the threat is backed by cheap spells. Use Maze of Ith to buy repeated turns against one attacker, but prefer Dismember when removing the threat permanently protects a planeswalker or enables a winning attack. Pithing Needle should name a visible activated permanent or one revealed by public information; do not blind-name when Karn, the Great Creator or a threat advances the board.

- Burn: Respect your own mana damage as part of the opponent's clock. Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, and aggressive optional activations can shorten the game against you, so convert painful mana into immediate pressure or disruption rather than incremental smoothing. Add role cards: Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mental Misstep, Mindbreak Trap when legal against stack-heavy turns, and Maze of Ith only if creature damage is a major component. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge, slow Sensei's Divining Top loops, and unnecessary Mana Vault activations. Race with Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, and Tezzeret, Cruel Captain when the hand can close quickly; otherwise prioritize lock pieces that reduce spell volume.

- Removal-heavy: Diversify threat types and avoid committing every engine into the same answer window. Cavern of Souls creatures, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga, Eye of Ugin, and Sensei's Divining Top attack from different angles, so sequence to make the opponent answer the current permanent before revealing the next important one. Add role cards: Disruptor Flute, Pithing Needle, Mycosynth Lattice, Trinisphere, and Chalice of the Void when removal is spell-dense. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Dismember and Maze of Ith unless the opponent also wins through creatures. Protect Karn, the Great Creator turns by choosing the sideboard artifact that matters immediately; do not spend Karn on Mycosynth Lattice if a narrower card keeps Karn alive and preserves the lock threat for later.

## Specific Matchup Notes

- General/archetype-only notes: Treat every matchup label as a starting heuristic, and let revealed cards, public zones, legal actions, and Forge prompts override assumptions. Prioritize visible pressure, known lock pieces, and immediate lethal/survival math over pregame archetype guesses.

- Fast combo: Keep hands that produce an immediate constraint plus a clock. Likely sideboarding posture: Add role cards: Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Disruptor Flute, Grafdigger's Cage, Tormod's Crypt, and Pithing Needle according to the visible engine. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow Sensei's Divining Top turns, Mystic Forge, Time Vault, Manifold Key, and creature-only pressure when it does not disrupt. Priority targets are the first spell-chain enabler, graveyard engine, activated permanent, or tutor-like action revealed by legal text; do not spend Karn, the Great Creator on Mycosynth Lattice unless the game state shows the lock matters before the opponent can win.

- Blue stack decks: Make Cavern of Souls, Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, and artifact acceleration convert into uncounterable or tax-backed threats. Likely sideboarding posture: Add role cards: Vexing Bauble already matters from the main deck; add Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, and Mycosynth Lattice for longer games. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Dismember-style creature interaction unless a revealed creature is the actual clock. Priority targets are counter-heavy windows, cheap selection chains, planeswalker pressure points, and visible artifact answers; force them to answer Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and Karn, the Great Creator on different axes.

- Creature pressure decks: Stabilize combat before spending mana on smoothing or slow locks. Likely sideboarding posture: Add role cards: Dismember, Maze of Ith, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, and sometimes Pithing Needle if a visible activated permanent drives damage. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Mystic Forge, Time Vault, Manifold Key, and repeated Sensei's Divining Top activations unless protected by board presence. Priority targets are the largest immediate attacker, a lord or combat multiplier, and any permanent that lets the opponent ignore blockers; Card text check required for exact Kozilek's Command and Wastescape Battlemage mode choices.

- Graveyard decks: Deploy hate only when it changes the next relevant graveyard exchange or forces the opponent to rebuild. Likely sideboarding posture: Add role cards: Tormod's Crypt, Grafdigger's Cage, Bojuka Bog, Mindbreak Trap, and Pithing Needle when the visible plan uses an activated permanent. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow card selection, Time Vault setup, and mana that does not produce a fast lock or threat. Priority targets are committed graveyard resources, public recursion engines, and legal actions that put cards directly from graveyard or library into play; Card text check required for exact Grafdigger's Cage coverage.

- Workshop/artifact/prison mirrors: Fight over mana, activated permanents, and planeswalker snowballing rather than pure life total. Likely sideboarding posture: Add role cards: Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Dismember when creatures matter, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, and Mycosynth Lattice for Karn, the Great Creator endgames. Reduce main-deck emphasis: graveyard-only cards and narrow stack interaction unless public information shows spell-chain risk. Priority targets are opposing mana artifacts, creature mana engines, lock pieces that strand your hand, and threats that pressure Karn, the Great Creator or Tezzeret, Cruel Captain.

## Risk Summary

- Mana risk: Ancient Tomb, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Black Lotus, Sol Ring, Mox Opal, the five Moxen, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, and Cavern of Souls create explosive but uneven hands. Mulligan hands that make mana without a payoff, hands that cast only artifacts into known artifact hate, or hands that need Ancient Tomb damage for multiple turns without a fast clock.

- Matchup risk: The deck can mis-role itself by racing when it should lock, or locking when it should attack. Use Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, and Karn, the Great Creator as role signals: pressure when ahead, constrain mana or stack when behind, and avoid slow Mystic Forge or Sensei's Divining Top lines under a short clock.

- Draw risk: Sensei's Divining Top and Mystic Forge can spend turns without changing the board. Activate them when mana would otherwise be unused, when looking for a specific legal answer, or when the battlefield is stable enough that selection beats deployment.

- Over-sideboarding risk: Do not dilute the artifact-Eldrazi pressure shell with too many narrow cards. Tormod's Crypt, Bojuka Bog, Grafdigger's Cage, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Maze of Ith, and Dismember should answer a visible or strongly inferred axis, not replace the core plan by default.

- Graveyard risk: Graveyard hate can be low impact when the opponent wins through battlefield, stack, or mana denial instead. Hold Tormod's Crypt until the graveyard matters, choose Bojuka Bog only when the land-drop cost is acceptable, and prefer pressure if Grafdigger's Cage text is not clearly relevant.

- Sweeper/removal risk: Removal-heavy opponents punish overcommitting Glaring Fleshraker tokens, Sowing Mycospawn, and Wastescape Battlemage into one answer. Diversify with Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga, Eye of Ugin, Time Vault, and Manifold Key when the public game pace allows.

- Closer risk: Time Vault plus Manifold Key and Karn, the Great Creator plus Mycosynth Lattice are powerful but fragile commitments. Commit only when legal actions and visible board state show the setup is faster or safer than attacking with creatures or advancing Tezzeret, Cruel Captain.

- Interaction risk: Strip Mine, Wasteland, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, and Mental Misstep are timing-sensitive. Aim them at the public card or action that changes the next turn cycle, and do not fire them just because mana is available.

- Sequencing risk: Land choice and artifact order can lock your own hand. Play Cavern of Souls when a creature must resolve, preserve Eye of Ugin for longer games, sequence Urza's Saga and Talon Gates of Madara around colorless needs, and confirm each Forge legal action before assuming a line is payable.

## Test Feedback Checklist

- Deciding factor: Record whether each win or loss was driven by mana acceleration, prison pressure, creature combat, Time Vault plus Manifold Key, Karn, the Great Creator, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga, sideboard interaction, or an opponent axis the deck failed to answer.

- Mulligans: Note whether kept hands had a castable payoff instead of only Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, Moxen, Sol Ring, Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, or Black Lotus. Flag keeps that made fast mana but produced no pressure, no lock, or no meaningful selection.

- Mana: Track games where Cavern of Souls made Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, or another creature resolve through interaction, and track games where colorless-heavy mana stranded Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, Vexing Bauble, or Sensei's Divining Top lines.

- Velocity: Check whether Sensei's Divining Top and Mystic Forge increased decision quality or merely spent mana while the opponent advanced. Record any turn where activating Top delayed a threat, lock piece, Wastescape Battlemage action, or Kozilek's Command action that legal text made available.

- Engines: Record whether Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Time Vault, Manifold Key, Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga, Eye of Ugin, and Tolarian Academy created compounding advantage or sat exposed without affecting the next turn cycle.

- Removal and interaction: For Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, Dismember, Mental Misstep, Mindbreak Trap, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Vexing Bauble, Strip Mine, and Wasteland, record the public target or spell family answered and whether waiting one turn would have improved or worsened the exchange. Card text check required for exact modal and replacement-effect assumptions.

- Sideboard: Track whether Tormod's Crypt, Bojuka Bog, Grafdigger's Cage, Mindbreak Trap, Mental Misstep, Maze of Ith, Dismember, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, and Mycosynth Lattice addressed visible matchup pressure or diluted the main Eldrazi-artifact plan.

- Closing: Record every game where the deck stabilized but failed to close with Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Time Vault plus Manifold Key, Urza's Saga, or Mycosynth Lattice.

- Role mistakes: Flag turns where the pilot attacked when it needed to lock, locked when it needed to attack, spent mana on selection under a short clock, or held Strip Mine, Wasteland, Pithing Needle, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mindbreak Trap, or Mental Misstep past the public window they were meant to cover.

- Stranded cards: List cards stuck in hand because of mana, timing, board state, or legal-action gaps, especially Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, Time Vault, Manifold Key, Kozilek's Command, Wastescape Battlemage, and sideboard cards.

- Overperformers and underperformers: Separate cards that won games from cards that only looked powerful in theory. Pay special attention to Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Sensei's Divining Top, Mystic Forge, Vexing Bauble, and each one-copy sideboard card.

## First Tuning Questions

- Card quantities: Does the deck want the full 4 Sensei's Divining Top if Top repeatedly spends early mana without stabilizing, or is Top essential to make Mystic Forge, Urza's Saga, artifact mana, and threat-heavy hands coherent?

- Threat density: Are 4 Glaring Fleshraker, 4 Sowing Mycospawn, 4 Wastescape Battlemage, and 4 Tezzeret, Cruel Captain enough pressure, or do losses show too many hands where prison cards and mana appear without a closing body?

- Mana shape: Are Ancient Tomb, Eldrazi Temple, Eye of Ugin, Cavern of Souls, Tolarian Academy, Gaea's Cradle, Urza's Saga, Talon Gates of Madara, Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth, Strip Mine, and Wasteland producing the right mix, or do colorless and specialty lands strand key noncreature spells too often?

- Fast mana risk: Do Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, Sol Ring, Black Lotus, Mox Opal, and the five Moxen produce decisive starts, or do they create keepable-looking hands that lose to one answered threat?

- Aggro plan: Against creature pressure, are Dismember and Maze of Ith enough help, or does the main deck need a clearer stabilization plan that does not depend on drawing Wastescape Battlemage or resolving a timely Kozilek's Command?

- Control plan: Against blue stack decks, are Vexing Bauble, Cavern of Souls, Disruptor Flute, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, Mental Misstep, Mindbreak Trap, and Mycosynth Lattice the right pressure mix, or does the deck sideboard into too many non-closing cards?

- Graveyard plan: Are Tormod's Crypt, Bojuka Bog, and Grafdigger's Cage all necessary, or do logs show one graveyard angle matters more than the others and another sideboard slot should answer battlefield or stack pressure?

- Closer package: Does Time Vault plus Manifold Key win enough games to justify both main-deck slots, or is the combo too often stranded, disrupted, or worse than attacking with Eldrazi threats and planeswalkers?

- Karn package: Is Mycosynth Lattice a realistic Karn, the Great Creator payoff in tested games, or does Karn more often need sideboard utility such as Tormod's Crypt, Pithing Needle, Chalice of the Void, Trinisphere, or Grafdigger's Cage?

- Role conflict: Does the deck lose more often from being too slow and controlling, or from committing too hard into removal and disruption? Use that answer before changing single-card quantities.

## Veles Tactical Policy

### Policy: Opening Hand Keep Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: mulligan
Cards: Ancient Tomb; Eldrazi Temple; Cavern of Souls; Black Lotus; Mana Crypt; Sol Ring; Glaring Fleshraker; Sowing Mycospawn; Wastescape Battlemage; Tezzeret, Cruel Captain; Karn, the Great Creator
Phase windows: pregame mulligan decisions.
Runtime cues: prompt:mulligan; action:keep; action:mulligan
Use when: decide whether the visible seven or smaller hand has mana plus a castable pressure, lock, engine, or selection plan.
Avoid when: the hand only makes mana and has no legal early spell path, or relies on unknown draws to function.
Instructions: Keep hands with fast mana plus Glaring Fleshraker, Sowing Mycospawn, Wastescape Battlemage, Tezzeret, Cruel Captain, Karn, the Great Creator, Mystic Forge, or a lock piece backed by pressure. Mulligan hands with only specialty lands, only artifacts, or no clear first two turns.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: London Bottom Selection
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mulligan; selection
Cards: Sensei's Divining Top; Time Vault; Manifold Key; Mystic Forge; Karn, the Great Creator; Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
Phase windows: post-mulligan bottom prompts.
Runtime cues: prompt:bottom; action:put on bottom
Use when: choosing bottom cards from the visible kept hand.
Avoid when: card identities or counts are not exposed by the rules engine.
Instructions: Preserve the minimum mana needed for the first threat, then preserve the threat or lock piece that defines the keep. Bottom redundant Sensei's Divining Top, stranded combo halves, extra legendary/specialty lands, or expensive engines before cutting functional mana.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: First Permanent Setup
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mana; priority
Cards: Cavern of Souls; Ancient Tomb; Eldrazi Temple; Glaring Fleshraker; Sowing Mycospawn; Wastescape Battlemage; Vexing Bauble; Sensei's Divining Top
Phase windows: turns 1-2 main phases.
Runtime cues: action:cast; action:play
Use when: multiple legal early plays exist and no urgent opposing stack or battlefield threat is visible.
Avoid when: a visible opposing permanent, lethal clock, or stack object requires immediate interaction.
Instructions: Lead with a castable creature or prison piece before pure selection. Name or use Cavern of Souls for the creature line the hand actually supports; prefer Ancient Tomb or Eldrazi Temple starts that deploy pressure over passive Top-only turns.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Exact Fast-Mana Payment
Priority: Low
Decision families: mana
Cards: Black Lotus; Mox Jet; Mox Sapphire; Mox Pearl; Mox Emerald; Mox Ruby; Mox Opal; Mana Crypt; Mana Vault; Sol Ring
Phase windows: any payment prompt.
Runtime cues: action:pay; action:activate mana ability
Use when: one legal payment action visibly pays the current spell or ability without sacrificing Black Lotus.
Avoid when: several legal payment actions differ by preserving colors, artifacts, or future mana.
Instructions: Execute the visible exact payment only when the legal action text uniquely satisfies the cost. Preserve Black Lotus and colored Moxen when another visible mana source pays the same colorless cost.
Pilot skill floor: low
No-API allowed: yes
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Prison Commitment Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; interaction
Cards: Vexing Bauble; Chalice of the Void; Trinisphere; Disruptor Flute; Karn, the Great Creator; Mycosynth Lattice
Phase windows: main phase, opponent setup turns, stack-light windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Vexing Bauble; action:cast Chalice of the Void; action:cast Trinisphere; action:cast Disruptor Flute; action:activate Karn, the Great Creator
Use when: deciding whether to spend a turn or major mana on a lock instead of deploying pressure.
Avoid when: the opponent already presents lethal or the lock does not affect visible legal opponent patterns.
Instructions: Commit lock pieces when they restrict the opponent's visible axis and the deck still has a clock or Karn follow-up. Do not tap out for a prison piece that leaves a known board unanswered unless waiting is worse.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Time Vault Combo Commitment
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Time Vault; Manifold Key; Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
Phase windows: main phase, activated-ability windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Time Vault; action:cast Manifold Key; action:activate Manifold Key; action:activate Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
Use when: deciding whether to assemble or expose Time Vault plus Manifold Key.
Avoid when: one piece is exposed without payoff and the opponent has visible pressure or interaction that makes creature/planeswalker development safer.
Instructions: Start the combo line when both pieces or a clear Tezzeret, Cruel Captain access line are visible and the line advances toward immediate extra turns. Treat lone Time Vault as a fragile commitment, not a default play.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Deterministic Manifold Key Untap
Priority: Medium
Decision families: priority
Cards: Manifold Key; Time Vault
Phase windows: activated-ability priority windows.
Runtime cues: action:activate Manifold Key targeting Time Vault
Use when: the legal action text explicitly activates Manifold Key targeting Time Vault and Time Vault is visible on the battlefield.
Avoid when: Manifold Key has multiple visible targets or the action text does not name Time Vault.
Instructions: Choose the exact Manifold Key targeting Time Vault action after the combo commitment is already selected by a reasoning policy.
Pilot skill floor: low
No-API allowed: yes
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Tezzeret Engine Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Tezzeret, Cruel Captain; Time Vault; Manifold Key; Sensei's Divining Top; Mystic Forge; Mana Vault; Sol Ring
Phase windows: main phase and planeswalker activation windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Tezzeret, Cruel Captain; action:activate Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
Use when: choosing whether Tezzeret should be cast or activated over board pressure or prison.
Avoid when: Tezzeret cannot be protected from visible attackers or the needed artifact line is not visible.
Instructions: Use Tezzeret as an engine or combo access point when artifacts are already present and the board can absorb the tempo. Do not expose it into obvious attacks without stabilizing value.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Mystic Forge And Top Velocity Gate
Priority: Medium
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Mystic Forge; Sensei's Divining Top; Tolarian Academy; Mana Crypt; Mana Vault; Sol Ring
Phase windows: main phase, end step, selection windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Mystic Forge; action:activate Sensei's Divining Top; action:cast Sensei's Divining Top
Use when: deciding whether to spend mana on card flow instead of advancing board or lock pressure.
Avoid when: under a short visible clock or when legal creature, lock, or interaction actions address the current board.
Instructions: Use Top and Mystic Forge to convert excess artifact mana into action, especially with Tolarian Academy. Prefer board-affecting spells when the opponent is attacking or threatening a decisive stack turn.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Karn Wish And Lock Choice
Priority: High
Decision families: selection; interaction; priority
Cards: Karn, the Great Creator; Mycosynth Lattice; Tormod's Crypt; Grafdigger's Cage; Pithing Needle; Chalice of the Void; Trinisphere; Dismember; Maze of Ith
Phase windows: main phase and Karn activation windows.
Runtime cues: action:activate Karn, the Great Creator
Use when: choosing a sideboard artifact or lock target through a visible Karn action.
Avoid when: the rules engine does not expose candidate card names or the battlefield requires a different legal action first.
Instructions: Select Mycosynth Lattice only when Karn is likely to survive and the lock matters immediately. Select hate, removal, or prison pieces when their named function answers the visible opponent axis.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Land Disruption Timing
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mana; interaction
Cards: Strip Mine; Wasteland; Sowing Mycospawn
Phase windows: main phase, opponent mana development windows.
Runtime cues: action:activate Strip Mine; action:activate Wasteland; action:cast Sowing Mycospawn
Use when: deciding whether land denial improves the current race or lock.
Avoid when: sacrificing the land prevents casting the hand's decisive spell this turn or next turn.
Instructions: Use land disruption to cut off visible key mana, Bazaar-style engines, Workshop-style mana, or colors needed for known actions. Preserve mana when the deck needs to deploy pressure first.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Creature Pressure Sequencing
Priority: Medium
Decision families: priority; combat
Cards: Glaring Fleshraker; Sowing Mycospawn; Wastescape Battlemage; Kozilek's Command
Phase windows: main phase before combat, combat declaration.
Runtime cues: action:cast Glaring Fleshraker; action:cast Sowing Mycospawn; action:cast Wastescape Battlemage; action:cast Kozilek's Command
Use when: choosing which visible threat to deploy before attacking or passing.
Avoid when: a prison or removal action prevents a more immediate loss.
Instructions: Deploy the threat that creates the fastest clock while preserving follow-up mana. Prefer creatures that add board impact over speculative selection when pressure is required.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Attack And Block Judgment
Priority: Medium
Decision families: combat
Cards: Glaring Fleshraker; Sowing Mycospawn; Wastescape Battlemage
Phase windows: declare attackers, declare blockers, combat damage setup.
Runtime cues: prompt:attackers; prompt:blockers
Use when: multiple combat declarations are legal.
Avoid when: exactly one no-attack or forced-block action is legal and the rules engine has no strategic choice.
Instructions: Attack when the clock advances without exposing key creatures to unfavorable visible trades. Block to preserve life against short clocks, protect planeswalkers when they are generating a decisive line, and avoid trading engine creatures for low-impact damage.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Kozilek's Command Modal Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: interaction; selection; priority
Cards: Kozilek's Command
Phase windows: main phase, combat, stack interaction windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Kozilek's Command; prompt:choose mode
Use when: selecting modes, targets, or timing for Kozilek's Command from visible legal options.
Avoid when: exact card text or mode legality is unclear; Card text check required.
Instructions: Treat Kozilek's Command as flexible interaction or board development only according to exposed legal modes. Prioritize survival, removing decisive visible threats, and advancing a lethal or locking board.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Wastescape Battlemage Use Gate
Priority: Medium
Decision families: interaction; selection; priority
Cards: Wastescape Battlemage
Phase windows: main phase and triggered/target prompts.
Runtime cues: action:cast Wastescape Battlemage; prompt:choose target Wastescape Battlemage
Use when: Wastescape Battlemage presents visible kicked, triggered, or target choices.
Avoid when: the action text does not reveal the relevant mode or target; Card text check required.
Instructions: Use Wastescape Battlemage for a visible disruptive effect when it answers a public permanent or stack-adjacent problem. Otherwise cast it as pressure only when the curve needs a body.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Sideboard Hate Selection
Priority: High
Decision families: sideboard
Cards: Tormod's Crypt; Bojuka Bog; Grafdigger's Cage; Mindbreak Trap; Mental Misstep; Dismember; Maze of Ith; Pithing Needle; Disruptor Flute; Chalice of the Void; Trinisphere; Mycosynth Lattice
Phase windows: between games.
Runtime cues: prompt:sideboard; action:submit sideboard
Use when: choosing a legal sideboard plan after seeing the opponent's archetype and Game 1 or Game 2 public evidence.
Avoid when: the proposed plan cuts more main-deck pressure than it adds relevant interaction.
Instructions: Add graveyard hate against graveyard engines, stack hate against fast spell chains, Dismember or Maze of Ith against creature pressure, and lock/name effects against visible activated or spell patterns. Keep enough Eldrazi and artifact engine cards to close.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Free Interaction Timing
Priority: High
Decision families: interaction; priority
Cards: Mindbreak Trap; Mental Misstep; Dismember
Phase windows: opponent spell windows, combat, emergency stack windows.
Runtime cues: action:cast Mindbreak Trap; action:cast Mental Misstep; action:cast Dismember
Use when: deciding whether to spend sideboard interaction on a visible spell or creature.
Avoid when: the target is low-impact and a more decisive threat is likely from public context.
Instructions: Spend free or cheap interaction on spells and creatures that beat the current lock, kill the pilot before pressure matters, or break a combo/engine turn. Do not use it merely because it is legal.
Pilot skill floor: high
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Named-Hate Commitment
Priority: Medium
Decision families: interaction; selection
Cards: Pithing Needle; Disruptor Flute; Chalice of the Void; Trinisphere; Vexing Bauble
Phase windows: main phase, sideboarded setup turns.
Runtime cues: action:cast Pithing Needle; action:cast Disruptor Flute; action:cast Chalice of the Void
Use when: choosing a name, number, or timing for a visible hate permanent.
Avoid when: the legal prompt lacks candidate names or numbers tied to public information.
Instructions: Name or set hate using only visible cards, revealed information, matchup guide context, and public game actions. Prefer hate that blocks the opponent's next decisive action while leaving Eldrazi pressure intact.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Urza's Saga And Utility Land Sequencing
Priority: Low
Decision families: mana; selection
Cards: Urza's Saga; Talon Gates of Madara; Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth; Gaea's Cradle; Tolarian Academy; Eye of Ugin
Phase windows: land play, main phase, tutor/trigger windows.
Runtime cues: action:play Urza's Saga; action:activate Urza's Saga; action:activate Eye of Ugin
Use when: choosing between utility land development and immediate spell casting.
Avoid when: playing a utility land prevents casting the visible primary threat or interaction.
Instructions: Use utility lands when they improve the next two turns without stranding colored or colorless requirements. Treat Eye of Ugin and Urza's Saga choices as selection decisions that must respect exposed legal candidates.
Pilot skill floor: medium
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes
