why an engineers wet dream you may ask? well engineers love having to do math calculations that end with stuff exploding. this deck does just that with x costed spells for days.
I am an Izzet player at heart, so naturally i looked for a deck to build with all the crazy science i could. I did not want a combo deck since those tend to get you focused early when you have no defenses. Instead i looked for as many multiple target damage spells as i could. Preferably, spells with X in them since i want to be able to maximize on the mana and artifacts that i put down early and late.
A friend traded me Nin just as i was interested in making an EDH deck, and she seemed perfect for being both powerful, and political. Sometimes i can wipe out creatures and the person i did it to is happy to have been targeted.
The main concept of the deck is to use burn spells to clear the board and hit creatures that are very important. The couple counter spells are intended as last minute answers to anything that poses a true threat to everyone(i.e. keep me in a politically positive light to most of the table.) Should i get a combo that can win me the game, the counter spells can stave off opposition mid combo. Most of the creatures are intended to either be unassuming utility creatures, or massive powerhouses that i use as theoretical protection from someone noticing i dont have any threats and hitting me for no reason. I try to play the deck as politically as i can in order to leech off the stronger players to get around my weaknesses, which can be massive. This deck has a ton of potential to wreck face at almost all times. I hope you enjoy reading the list and my explanation of the combos!
Combos:
infinite mana - Pili-Pala + Grand Architect
steal any creature - Realmwright (choose island) + Vedalken Shackles
i draw for damage to you - Nin, the Pain Artist + Stuffy Dolldouble stack damage -
Mizzium Transreliquat
copies Sphinx-Bone Wand
Steal and draw - Vedalken Shackles to steal a creature at instant speed then follow up by shooting the stolen creature, either immediately, or in response to a removal effect, with Nin, the Pain Artist. This makes it possible to even steal commanders with enough islands(which all lands can become islands with the help of Realmwright ).
Gary the goat - Trading Post can generate goat tokens that act as chump blockers, and useless tokens to either sack to Trading Post the next turn to revive an arifact... or as a fleshy body for Nin, the Pain Artist to practice on.
18 turns in a row - Play the Lighthouse Chronologist at some point and get him to give you extra turns. At the end of the turn right before your own, he triggers and gives you a turn(turn 1, with turn 2 being your regular turn.) During this first turn, cast Time Stretch, copy it with Increasing Vengeance and Wild Ricochet (adding turns 3 to 8). Then, cast Past in Flames allowing you to flashback this combo again, but with a twist; recast Time Stretch and copy it a first time with Increasing Vengeance. The flashback causes two copies to be added instead of just one. Then recast Wild Ricochet now targeting Increasing Vengeance, to add two more copies of Time Stretch to the stack.
--mana costs: first instance costs (10)(R)(R)(R)(R)(U)(U)=16 mana; second instance costs (13)(R)(R)(R)(R)(R)(U)(U)=20 mana; this can be paid with either the infinite mana combo, or by playing regular lands and properly situated artifacts(preferrably with Astral Cornucopia doing most of the lifting.).
--complicate things further by adding Ral Zarek -7's to add more and more turns. My calculation with getting him to -7 down to 1 loyalty on the chronologist turn, and balancing him -7ing only when at 8 loyalty, ended up with 49 turns in total. This is all for a reasonable amount of mana considering the effect, and 6 necessary cards including Ral Zarek.