This deck is not entirely of my design: I grabbed it from somewhere to test out, and by the time I realized I loved it, I'd lost the original place in which I found it. The changes I'd made (largely to account for cards I didn't have) meant I couldn't simply Google the card list! If you know the source on which I based this deck, please let me know so I can give proper credit!
Introduction
First time I took this deck out for a spin, I noticed something: It has no win conditions. It has no creatures to speak of, no "win the game" Enchantments; hell, it doesn't even let you proactively mill your opponent's library! And that's when I saw the beauty of it, the singular, pristine focus of a deck wherein literally every single card is there for one job and one job only:
To suffocate, immobilize and constrain your opponent to such a degree that you can sit back and patiently wait for his or her library to empty on its own.
It is, unquestionably, the most evil deck I have ever played in my life.
And it works. It works really well.
The Big Players
The star of the show is, undoubtedly, Teferi, Hero of Dominaria. Unless you fear a counterspell or some high-octane burn to his face, there's no reason not to tap out and drop him on turn 5: His +1 ability ensures you'll begin your opponent's turn with two mana up, and this deck is designed to do a lot with two mana: Essence Scatter, Negate, Seal Away, Blink of an Eye; even Syncopate or Censor in a pinch.
With Teferi on the board, ideally alongside a Search for Azcanta
(ට), you'll have such easy control over your draws, you'll feel a pang of nostalgia for Sensei's Divining Top --- and it's all free! Bottom line, you'll be drawing more and better cards than your opponent. And if things don't go your way? You have some big guns in Settle the Wreckage and Fumigate, a really nice reset in Memory and a wonderful instant-speed hand-refiller in Pull from Tomorrow.
Your Goal
Once you've survived into the midgame, your focus becomes triggering Teferi, Hero of Dominaria's ultimate -8 ability: an emblem that grants you the power to exile a permanent for every card you draw. If you lose a game after firing off this bad boy, you were either already against the ropes as the result of early aggression, or you did something wrong and hurtful to someone in the recent past and karma has come to call. Whether you rely on the emblem all by itself to steadily erode your opponent's board position, or if you speed the process along with a huge Pull from Tomorrow (or even Memory), your opponent will soon realize that their days of casting spells are all but over.
Now, it's just a matter of waiting until they run out of cards.
But... How Do I Avoid Running Out of Cards?
One of the things I love about this deck is how absolutely critical all three of Teferi, Hero of Dominaria's loyalty abilities are, each one having its moment to shine at different stages of the game:
- The Early Game? You're drawing cards and untapping lands with his +1.
- The Late Game? You're blowing that -8 ultimate.
- The Oh-God-When-Will-It-End Game? You're recycling Teferi back into your library with his -3 ability... then drawing and recasting him on the next turn. Rinse and repeat, and repeat, and repeat.
I mean, it worked for Doctor Strange against Dormamu... and in my playtesting, I can confirm the Sorcerer Supreme really knew what he was doing.
Dear ... Dear GOD, that's... that's HORRIBLE! How Do You Sleep at Night?
I'm serenaded into dreamland by the sweet music of all the misery I've caused. (I mean, how do you do it? You got a better way of sleeping?)
