veles-content/strategies/oathbreaker/oathbreaker_hautli_aggro/1/guide.md

Strategy Specifications

Deck Name And Archetype

Hautli Aggro is a green-white Oathbreaker toughness-aggro strategy built around Huatli, the Sun's Heart, Assault Formation, and Tower Defense. The repaired source registers 60 main-deck cards and 0 sideboard cards. Treat unusual creatures such as PuPu UFO, Turtle-Duck, and Maned Serval as text-check cards when Forge exposes legal actions.

Thesis

The deck wins by turning cheap high-toughness bodies into real attackers while using selective hatebears to slow the opponent. It should build mana, land a toughness-conversion engine, and then convert board width into lethal pressure with Tower Defense or repeated attacks.

Role Package

Threat bodies include Yoked Ox, Giant Ox, Tasseled Dromedary, Nyx-Fleece Ram, Grizzled Leotau, Lagonna-Band Trailblazer, Armored Armadillo, Ornithopter, and Phyrexian Walker. Engines are Huatli, the Sun's Heart, Assault Formation, Tower Defense, and Eladamri's Call. Disruption comes from Drannith Magistrate, Gaddock Teeg, Hushbringer, Tocatli Honor Guard, Strict Proctor, Dauntless Dismantler, Thrashing Brontodon, Path to Exile, and Silence.

Primary Win Conditions

Primary wins come from a board of cheap high-toughness creatures plus Huatli, the Sun's Heart or Assault Formation. Once the opponent is pressured, Tower Defense creates the decisive damage burst. Eladamri's Call should find the missing engine, hatebear, or closer based on visible board state.

Secondary Win Conditions

Secondary wins come from disruptive creature beats. Gaddock Teeg, Drannith Magistrate, Strict Proctor, Hushbringer, and Tocatli Honor Guard can buy enough time for modest attackers to matter. Tower Defense can also act as a survival trick when blocking preserves a future lethal turn.

Emergency Lines

When behind on board, use Path to Exile, Thrashing Brontodon, Dauntless Dismantler, or blocker density before committing another engine. When behind on cards, use Runic Armasaur, Mirri's Guile, and Eladamri's Call to recover purpose. When behind on mana, prioritize green-white sources and mana creatures over speculative zero-power bodies.

Resource Model

Life total is a staging resource because many creatures block well before they attack well. Board count matters more than individual card quality once an engine is present. Mana must support green acceleration, white interaction, and timely command-zone plays. Information matters because hatebears are excellent only when their text matches the opponent's plan.

Mana Guide

The mana base uses Command Tower, Temple Garden, Savannah, Bountiful Promenade, Brushland, Canopy Vista, Horizon Canopy, fetchlands, Forest, and Plains. Early green enables Birds of Paradise, Avacyn's Pilgrim, Llanowar Elves, Gilded Goose, and Arboreal Grazer; early white keeps Path to Exile and hatebears available. Avoid painful lands when life total is already the opponent's easiest route. Command Tower, Temple Garden, and Savannah are priority two-color sources; Brushland and Horizon Canopy trade life for flexibility; fetchlands should find the color pair that lets the current hand cast either the toughness engine or Path to Exile on time. Gemstone Caverns and Chrome Mox are acceleration only when the lost card still leaves an engine path.

Mulligan Guide

Keep hands with mana plus either an engine or a tutor. A hand full of high-toughness bodies but no Huatli, Assault Formation, Tower Defense, or Eladamri's Call is risky. Against combo, keep hatebear pressure. Against aggro, keep blockers plus a path to convert them. Against control, keep engine redundancy and Silence when available.

Turn Arc

Turns 1-2 deploy mana and bodies. Turns 2-3 seek Assault Formation, Huatli, or a relevant hatebear. Turns 4-5 threaten a large attack, hold Tower Defense, or use Eladamri's Call for the missing role. Late turns should force lethal combat rather than add low-impact creatures.

Card Roles

Huatli and Assault Formation convert toughness to pressure. Tower Defense is the burst finisher and occasional defensive trick. Eladamri's Call selects missing roles. Path to Exile answers the creature that breaks combat. Silence protects the decisive turn. Hatebears are matchup tools, not automatic curve plays.

Interaction Priorities

Use Path to Exile on creatures that ignore blocks, kill the engine, or race the burst turn. Use Thrashing Brontodon and Dauntless Dismantler on artifacts or enchantments that stop attacks, mana, or command-zone access. Deploy hatebears when they change the visible opponent plan.

Combat And Trading Rules

Do not attack with key blockers if the counterattack threatens lethal. Attack when an engine converts toughness into meaningful damage or when Tower Defense creates a near-lethal line. Block aggressively when the deck needs one more turn to assemble an engine.

Selection And Tutor Rules

Use Eladamri's Call for the missing piece: engine when bodies are ready, body when engine is present, hatebear when matchup text matters, or answer creature when combat is failing. Use Mirri's Guile to find land, engine, or interaction before committing to a line.

Priority And Stack Rules

Hold Silence for the decisive protected turn or the opponent's combo turn. Use instant-speed Path to Exile only when waiting risks losing the target window. Pass empty windows quickly unless Tower Defense, Silence, or a removal action changes combat or stack math.

Sideboard Map

This repaired Oathbreaker source has 0 registered sideboard cards. Preserve the main deck between games and change only mulligans, tutor priorities, hatebear timing, and attack discipline. Future reserve cards require a new source.

Matchup Guidance

Against aggro, defend first and turn the corner with Tower Defense. Against control, avoid relying on one engine and use Silence to protect the lethal turn. Against combo, prioritize Drannith Magistrate, Gaddock Teeg, Strict Proctor, Silence, and fast pressure. Against tempo, build a board before risking the engine. Against midrange, make each body relevant through Huatli effects. Against big mana, race while using hatebears only when text matters. Against graveyard decks, pressure quickly because no registered graveyard reserve exists. Against artifact and enchantment engines, save Thrashing Brontodon and Dauntless Dismantler for the permanent that changes combat or mana.

Specific Matchup Notes

No exact opposing list was supplied. Use public permanents, revealed cards, command-zone status, and legal action labels as the source of truth.

Risk Summary

Risks are engine-light hands, hatebears that do not affect the matchup, life lost to painful mana, all-in attacks that leave no defense, and relying on unusual card text before Forge shows it.

Test Feedback Checklist

Record whether the opener had engine access, which hatebear mattered, whether Tower Defense ended the game, whether Eladamri's Call chose the right role, and whether painful lands changed the race.

First Tuning Questions

Does the repaired source need more engine redundancy, fewer narrow hatebears, more removal, or a lower curve? Which high-toughness bodies actually converted into wins?

Veles Tactical Policy

Policy: Registration And Pregame Legality Gate

• Priority: High
• Decision families: pregame
• Cards: none
• Phase windows: before match creation; opening hand validation
• Runtime cues: deck_validation:ok; main_count:60; sideboard_count:0
• Use when: Veles asks for pregame validation or match creation with the repaired Oathbreaker source.
• Avoid when: the runtime reports a different deck count or any sideboard cards.
• Instructions: Treat the repaired source as legal when Veles confirms 60 main cards and 0 sideboard cards; do not invent reserve cards or hidden command-zone cards.
• Pilot skill floor: low
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Opening Hand Keep Gate

• Priority: High
• Decision families: mulligan
• Cards: Forest; Plains; Command Tower; Temple Garden; Savannah; Birds of Paradise; Avacyn's Pilgrim; Llanowar Elves; Delighted Halfling; Assault Formation; Huatli, the Sun's Heart; Eladamri's Call
• Phase windows: opening hand; mulligan decisions
• Runtime cues: prompt:mulligan; hand; lands; available colors
• Use when: choosing keep or mulligan from visible opener only.
• Avoid when: hand contents are incomplete or legality prompt is stale.
• Instructions: keep functional green mana plus either early acceleration or an engine route; ship hands with bodies only and no credible Assault Formation, Huatli, the Sun's Heart, or Eladamri's Call path.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: London Mulligan Bottoms

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: mulligan, selection
• Cards: Assault Formation; Huatli, the Sun's Heart; Tower Defense; Path to Exile; Silence; Ornithopter; Phyrexian Walker
• Phase windows: post-mulligan bottom selection
• Runtime cues: prompt:bottom; mulligan_count; visible hand
• Use when: selecting cards to put on bottom after a mulligan.
• Avoid when: the prompt offers hidden or unlisted candidates.
• Instructions: preserve mana, an engine, and one pressure body before narrow interaction; bottom redundant low-impact bodies or timing-sensitive cards when the hand lacks setup.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Early Setup Creature And Engine Curve

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: mana, priority
• Cards: Birds of Paradise; Avacyn's Pilgrim; Llanowar Elves; Delighted Halfling; Gilded Goose; Arboreal Grazer; Assault Formation; Huatli, the Sun's Heart; Giant Ox; Yoked Ox; Tasseled Dromedary; Lagonna-Band Trailblazer; Nyx-Fleece Ram; Grizzled Leotau; Maned Serval; Armored Armadillo
• Phase windows: turns 1-3 main phases
• Runtime cues: phase:main; legal casts; available mana
• Use when: choosing the first development spell.
• Avoid when: opponent has an immediate visible threat requiring interaction.
• Instructions: deploy mana first when it accelerates engine access; deploy Assault Formation or Huatli, the Sun's Heart before loading extra toughness creatures when the curve permits.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Green-White Mana Sequencing

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: mana
• Cards: Misty Rainforest; Arid Mesa; Windswept Heath; Flooded Strand; Verdant Catacombs; Wooded Foothills; Marsh Flats; Prismatic Vista; Temple Garden; Savannah; Canopy Vista; Bountiful Promenade; Brushland; Horizon Canopy; Command Tower; Gemstone Caverns; Chrome Mox
• Phase windows: pregame; main phases; fetch activation windows
• Runtime cues: land_play; fetch_activation; color_requirement
• Use when: selecting land drops, fetch targets, or payment colors.
• Avoid when: a deterministic engine payment is already uniquely legal.
• Instructions: prioritize untapped green early, white for hatebears and Path to Exile, and avoid unnecessary life loss when the same colors are available from painless sources.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Chrome Mox And Gemstone Caverns Commitment

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: pregame, mana, selection
• Cards: Chrome Mox; Gemstone Caverns
• Phase windows: pregame; opening turns; imprint or luck-counter prompts
• Runtime cues: action:imprint; action:put Gemstone Caverns; prompt:exile
• Use when: acceleration decisions affect turn-one or turn-two engine access.
• Avoid when: exiling the card removes the only engine, white answer, or functional threat.
• Instructions: use acceleration to create a real tempo jump into engine, hatebear, or pressure; do not spend unique tactical cards for mana without a specific next-turn payoff.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Engine Commitment Gate

• Priority: High
• Decision families: priority, mana
• Cards: Assault Formation; Huatli, the Sun's Heart
• Phase windows: main phases; post-combat main when mana remains
• Runtime cues: action:cast Assault Formation; action:cast Huatli, the Sun's Heart; board:toughness_creatures
• Use when: deciding whether to commit the toughness-damage engine.
• Avoid when: visible pressure demands survival interaction this turn or mana cannot support follow-up pressure.
• Instructions: commit when it converts existing bodies into a clock, unlocks attacks next combat, or forces the opponent to answer; delay if casting a hatebear or removal spell is visibly more urgent.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Tower Defense Finish Or Survival Gate

• Priority: High
• Decision families: combat, priority
• Cards: Tower Defense; Huatli, the Sun's Heart; Assault Formation
• Phase windows: declare blockers; before combat damage; lethal attack setup
• Runtime cues: action:cast Tower Defense; combat_damage_possible; lethal_candidate
• Use when: deciding whether Tower Defense changes lethal math or prevents lethal damage.
• Avoid when: it only adds minor damage and the opponent is not under decisive pressure.
• Instructions: save Tower Defense for lethal, survival, or a combat that wins material while preserving the engine; account for legal attackers, blockers, and visible removal before committing.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Sidar Evasion Combat Gate

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: combat
• Cards: Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa; Ornithopter; Phyrexian Walker; Giant Ox; Yoked Ox; Nyx-Fleece Ram; Grizzled Leotau; Maned Serval; Turtle-Duck; PuPu UFO
• Phase windows: beginning of combat; declare attackers
• Runtime cues: action:attack; battlefield:Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa; legal attackers
• Use when: choosing attacks with small-power or toughness-converted creatures.
• Avoid when: attackers are needed as blockers against a visible crack-back or card text is uncertain.
• Instructions: exploit legal evasion only when the engine and visible blockers make damage reliable; for Turtle-Duck and PuPu UFO, use Card text check required before assigning special roles.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Survival Blocking With Toughness Bodies

• Priority: High
• Decision families: combat
• Cards: Giant Ox; Yoked Ox; Tasseled Dromedary; Lagonna-Band Trailblazer; Nyx-Fleece Ram; Grizzled Leotau; Maned Serval; Armored Armadillo; Turtle-Duck
• Phase windows: declare blockers; combat damage
• Runtime cues: action:block; opponent_attackers; life_total
• Use when: choosing blocks under meaningful visible pressure.
• Avoid when: blocking sacrifices the only engine-enabled lethal attacker and life total is not threatened.
• Instructions: preserve life against short clocks, trade low-value bodies for high-impact attackers, and keep the minimum engine board needed to threaten the next attack.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Path To Exile Target Discipline

• Priority: High
• Decision families: interaction
• Cards: Path to Exile
• Phase windows: opponent combat; end step; stack windows; own main phase only when necessary
• Runtime cues: action:cast Path to Exile; action:target
• Use when: a visible creature threatens lethal, blocks a decisive attack, or enables an opposing engine.
• Avoid when: the target is replaceable and giving the opponent a land materially improves their next turn.
• Instructions: spend Path to Exile on the creature that changes survival or lethal math; do not fire it at generic pressure without checking board state and mana consequences.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Silence Timing Gate

• Priority: High
• Decision families: priority, interaction
• Cards: Silence
• Phase windows: upkeep; pre-combat main; combo or lethal setup turn; opponent upkeep against known instant-speed plan
• Runtime cues: action:cast Silence; stack_empty; planned_attack_or_engine
• Use when: protecting a decisive Tower Defense turn, forcing through engine commitment, or preventing an opponent turn that visibly relies on casting spells.
• Avoid when: no follow-up pressure or survival purpose exists.
• Instructions: cast Silence only with a concrete turn objective; prefer preemptive timing before the opponent can deploy interaction if the rules engine exposes that window.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Hatebear Deployment By Visible Relevance

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: priority, interaction
• Cards: Gaddock Teeg; Drannith Magistrate; Strict Proctor; Hushbringer; Tocatli Honor Guard; Drannith Magistrate; Strict Proctor
• Phase windows: main phases; post-mulligan development
• Runtime cues: action:cast; opponent:public_zone; matchup_tags
• Use when: a hatebear text appears relevant to visible opposing cards, command-zone behavior, graveyard/exile play, triggered abilities, or spell-size constraints.
• Avoid when: casting it delays engine pressure and no affected opposing line is visible or known from matchup context.
• Instructions: treat hatebears as tempo plays with a job; choose the one that disrupts the next opposing turn rather than the one with the broadest text.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Artifact And Enchantment Answer Gate

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: interaction, priority
• Cards: Dauntless Dismantler; Thrashing Brontodon; Thrashing Brontodon
• Phase windows: main phases; end steps; activated ability windows
• Runtime cues: action:destroy target artifact; action:destroy target enchantment; action:activate
• Use when: a visible artifact or enchantment blocks combat, enables an opponent engine, or threatens immediate advantage.
• Avoid when: the target is low impact and the body is needed for pressure or blocking.
• Instructions: prefer Thrashing Brontodon when the body matters before sacrifice; use Dauntless Dismantler proactively against artifact boards; use Thrashing Brontodon only after checking its full cost and opponent resource return.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Eladamri's Call Selection

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: selection, priority
• Cards: Eladamri's Call; Hushbringer; Gaddock Teeg; Drannith Magistrate; Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa; Runic Armasaur; Thrashing Brontodon; Giant Ox; Armored Armadillo
• Phase windows: end step; main phase before land or mana commitment; response windows when legal
• Runtime cues: action:cast Eladamri's Call; prompt:choose creature
• Use when: selecting a creature from visible legal candidates.
• Avoid when: casting now gives away information without changing the next turn.
• Instructions: choose engine pressure, hatebear, answer, or card-advantage creature according to visible need; route the target choice through light-model because the correct creature depends on matchup and board texture.
• Pilot skill floor: high
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Mirri's Guile Topdeck Selection

• Priority: Medium
• Decision families: selection
• Cards: Mirri's Guile
• Phase windows: upkeep selection
• Runtime cues: prompt:reorder; action:top; action:bottom
• Use when: ordering known top cards before draw.
• Avoid when: the rules engine hides card identities or prompt candidates are incomplete.
• Instructions: put immediate mana or engine access first when missing; put interaction first only when a visible threat must be answered before combat or combo.
• Pilot skill floor: medium
• No-API allowed: no
• Light-model allowed: yes

Policy: Deterministic Sideboard No-Change

• Priority: Low
• Decision families: sideboard
• Cards: none
• Phase windows: between games; sideboard submission
• Runtime cues: action:no sideboard changes
• Use when: the legal sideboard action text offers no sideboard changes and registered sideboard count is zero.
• Avoid when: any nonempty sideboard card list is supplied by the rules layer.
• Instructions: submit the no-change sideboard action; do not name add from reserve: cards or trims because the registered sideboard contains none.
• Pilot skill floor: low
• No-API allowed: yes
• Light-model allowed: yes