"Gee Billy, just how many squids did your mom let you have!?"
oodles
noun, informal
a very great number or amount of something.
"if only I had oodles of squids."
Chasm Skulker. I draw a card, he gets a +1/+1 counter. I draw 2 cards, he gets 2 of them. Throw him in a deck with a butt-ton of draw power, and he gets very beefy, very quickly. Opponent kills him? I kill him myself? Each of those +1/+1 counters becomes a 1/1 Blue Islandwalk Squid Token. Get oodles of draws to get oodles of counters, and send our horror to the graveyard to creates Oodles of Squids.
"But Rayze," I pretend to hear you say, "Summoning Oodles of Squids is fine and all, amazing in fact, but how can you turn this one concept into an intricately assembled deck with multiple feasible win conditions?" Well I'm glad I pretended you asked!
First, let's look at our draw power. Baral, Chief of Compliance makes my Instants and Sorceries cheaper, and should he be used in conjuncture with Remand or Cryptic Command, I'll be allowed to draw not one, but TWO cards, in addition to countering whatever my opponent wanted to throw at me. Phyrexian Arena doubles my turn's natural draw power, at the cost of a smidge of life. Forgotten Creation lets me ditch all of those cards I've drawn for a brand new hand, and a heck of a lot of drawing involved. Deck getting too low? Save that Day's Undoing for just that situation, recycling everything back into my deck and giving me 7 new draws. Now that our Chasm Skulker is massive, Slip Through Space makes him unblockable, and even gives me another draw. Merrow Reejerey and Cryptic Command can be used alternatively to simply tap everything my opponent could block with.
Murderous Cut is a nice kill spell, and my graveyard fills up very quickly for that Delve effect, but it can also be used to kill my Chasm Skulker for the Squid Summoning. This is largely a last-ditch effort, however, as
Perilous Research
lets me do the same thing, but not before throwing 2 more counters on him. The Squids having Islandwalk doesn't do me any good if my opponent doesn't have any Islands, though, which is where Aquitect's Will comes in. What's that, Merfolk support? Why yes, we'll get to our fishy friends in just a moment. Well, let's talk about one right now:
Inkfathom Witch
. All of those now unblockable Squid Tokens? Pay 4 mana with Witch's effect, and each of them becomes a 4/1 for the turn. We're talking potential damage in the 100-range comfortably. The Oodles of Squids, though, aren't the only things that can benefit from this, though, as Triton Shorestalker, Inkfathom Infiltrator, and Creeping Tar Pit are also all unblockable. If Bident of Thassa is out as well, then each of these Unblockable Beauties also grants me an additional draw. Throw in Merrow Reejerey to buff up the fishmen, and tap opposing creatures to support those of mine that aren't unblockable, and the Merfolk more than earn their place, worshiping their tendrilled god.
Some final cards of interest. Psychosis Crawler adds in some raw power, while also throwing some solid burn damage into the deck. Phyrexian Arena costing me 1 life per turn? No problem, it's costing my opponent some too thanks to my Crawler. Even more once my main draw comes. Reliquary Tower is a bit risky, being completely colorless, but the loss of a hand size limit keeps my options open, helps boost Crawler's upper potential, and makes Forgotten Creation even more potentially insane. Finally, Dimir Machinations comes in as one of the most versatile cards in the deck. Target my opponent and mess up their next few draws? Can do. Target myself to help me draw what I need next more easily? Checkerino. Transmute it to easily search out a Chasm Skulker, Merrow Reejerey, or my Day's Undoing? Why the heck not?
Will the Chasm Skulker himself get you, or shower you with Squiddy goodness? Will Psychosis Crawler burn you down, or will Merrow Reejerey lead the Merfolks in an all-out offensive beatdown? From a $50, gimmicky Legacy deck to a $250 piece of Modern art (no not like that), Oodles of Squids has evolved greatly over the past year, and its many arms are pointed right at you!
... no not you, Damien. YOU. Yes you, Dylan. I'm coming for you.
