Endless Ultimatums | Living Lore "Combo"

Modern Combo Competitive Cruel Control Midrange

JDMCRIB

Creature (10)

• 4x Living Lore
• 4x Simian Spirit Guide
• 2x Tasigur, the Golden Fang

Land (20)

• 1x Blood Crypt
• 1x Blood Crypt
• 3x Bloodstained Mire
• 2x Creeping Tar Pit
• 2x Hall of the Bandit Lord
• 1x Island
• 1x Mountain
• 2x Polluted Delta
• 2x Scalding Tarn
• 2x Steam Vents
• 1x Swamp
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 1x Watery Grave

Artifact (8)

• 4x Expedition Map
• 4x Pentad Prism

Instant (8)

• 4x Izzet Charm
• 2x Kolaghan's Command
• 1x Lightning Storm
• 1x Noxious Revival

Sorcery (14)

• 4x Cruel Ultimatum
• 2x Enter the Infinite
• 4x Faithless Looting
• 2x Lingering Souls
• 2x Thoughtseize

---

Sideboard

Creature (2)

• 2x Fulminator Mage

Land (2)

• 2x Cavern of Souls

Artifact (2)

• 2x Pithing Needle

Instant (6)

• 2x Echoing Truth
• 2x Hurkyl's Recall
• 1x Kolaghan's Command
• 1x Negate

Sorcery (3)

• 1x Damnation
• 2x Thoughtseize

---

This deck has recently went through some pretty big changes (see Updates), so I thought I'd rewrite the description.

This deck aims to do one of two things: Enter the Infinite + Lightning Storm + Living Lore or Cruel Ultimatum + Living Lore . Both of these combos grant us some serious advantage, and the former combo wins us the game (unless the opponent has a really high life total). Here's a card-by-card analysis:

THE COMBO(S):

• Living Lore : The thing that makes this deck work. We slap a discarded Enter the Infinite, Cruel Ultimatum, or Kolaghan's Command on it and combo off for days. It also becomes an arbitrarily large creature as well; a 12/12. 7/7, and 3/3 respectively.

• Enter the Infinite + Lightning Storm : This is our combo that wins us the game. Once we swing with Living Lore with this thing on its back, we essentially win the game. Of course there are some things that can get in our way, like a counterspell or some other dastardly trick, but we try to use this route only if they're tapped out.

• Simian Spirit Guide: Allows us to cast Lightning Storm while we're tapped out after casting a hasty Living Lore .

• Cruel Ultimatum: This card is an "infinite" loop with Living Lore . Basically, the "return a creature from your graveyard to your hand" effect on the Ultimatum can target our sacrificed Living Lore , so we can recast it and, as a result, cast Cruel Ultimatum as much as we want. Sometimes I win games with nothing but loops of this card.

• Hall of the Bandit Lord: Technically this is a land, but it's important to the viability of the entire deck. Giving Living Lore haste is huge. Being able to not worry about spot removal on their turn following the turn you play Lore is awesome. The 3 life and only colorless is, however, a pretty big downside.

FINDING THE COMBO(S):

• Faithless Looting: Digs for Living Lore and dumps our big sorceries at the same time. Also has Flashback, so you can get double the useage.

• Izzet Charm : Harder to cast than Looting, but has three different modes that can be used when they need to be. We can protect our Living Lore with the counter mode and we can burn away a small threat like Goblin Guide or Snapcaster Mage with the other mode.

• Expedition Map: Searches up any of our lands. Specifically Hall of the Bandit Lord, Cavern of Souls out of sideboard, Creeping Tar Pit, and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth.

• Cruel Ultimatum: Technically a combo piece itself, but the "draw 3 cards" on loop is bound to find us all of our other combo pieces.

SUPPORTING CAST:

• Kolaghan's Command: A 2-for-1 every time we cast it. It also loops with Living Lore (fun fact: recursion mode + destroy artifact mode = Affinity rekt).

• Lingering Souls: We don't run , but it does have a Flashback cost we can manage. Combined with Faithless Looting and Izzet Charm , we can get some bodies on the ground while we find our combo pieces.

• Tasigur, the Golden Fang: Speaking of bodies on the ground, Tasigur is a really solid creature in this deck. We can Delve away all the crap we discard to put a 4/5 into play. Pretty strong imo.

• Noxious Revival: In the event that we have to discard something we like to Looting or Charm, this 2-life spell gets it back. It can also bring back anything that gets destroyed that we like.

• Thoughtseize: Allows it to pick out any removal, countermagic, or other pesky threats to our combo right out of our opponent's hand, all at the cost of 2 life.

• Pentad Prism: Fast mana is awesome, and acts kinda like a battery. It can also help us cast some of the more awkward cards to cast.

I hope the LANDS are self-explanatory.

EARLIEST POSSIBLE WIN:

T1: Land, Faithless Looting, pitch Enter the Infinite and another thing.

T2: Land, Expedition Map (optional Simian Spirit Guide to go fetch Hall of the Bandit Lord into hand)

T3: Use Map to get Hall of the Bandit Lord, cast it, do some stuff (Lingering Souls flashback, Thoughtseize, etc.)

T4: Cast a Living Lore with haste from Hall, exile Enter the Infinite with it, attack, sacrifice Lore, and combo off from there.

:)

Date added	9 years
Last updated	9 years
Key combos	Cruel Ultimatum + Living Lore Enter the Infinite + Lightning Storm + Living Lore Enter the Infinite + Lightning Storm
Legality	This deck is not Modern legal.
Rarity (main - side)	8 - 4 Mythic Rares 21 - 8 Rares 16 - 0 Uncommons 12 - 3 Commons
Cards	60
Avg. CMC	3.35
Tokens	Spirit 1/1 W
Folders	interesting deck types, stuff i like, Interesting Decks, Ideas, Modern decks, stuff, Modern (Lore)