*Credit to Jester831
Ideal Cost Breakdown
Net FourPeregrin Drake
Net OneCloud of FaeriesFathom SeerTinder Wall
Net ZeroWood ElvesWild CantorQuirion SentinelWall of RootsSpellskiteScarecroneUlamog, the Infinite GyreKozilek, Butcher of TruthArtisan of KozilekPhyrexian Metamorph
Auxiliary Cards
EarthcraftUtopia SprawlWild GrowthPhrexian MetamorphDream StalkerMan-O'-WarShrieking DrakeArctic MerfolkCrop RotationGushChord of CallingGaea's CradleSylvan TutorWorldly Tutor
Utility Creatures
Eternal WitnessFlamekin HarbingerFierce EmpathElvish VisionaryHapless ResearcherImperial RecruiterOwl FamiliarPrimeval TitanSlithermuseSea Gate OracleSylvan RangerFathom SeerKozilek, Butcher of TruthTrinket MageArtisan of KozilekWall of BlossomsCoiling Oracle
Overview of Primary Combos
Imperial/Vindicate
The namesake combo, and by far the most volatile and lease resource intensive combo animar offers. In a situation with 2 counters on an active Animar, it costs RUG and 28 life for a 21/21 animar with ulamog spot removal off of recruiter. Of course, when you add in other resources the life cost severely decreases.
- Imperial Recruiter THEN Phyrexian Metamorph.
- Phyrexian Metamorph copying Imperial Recruiter for Shrieking Drake
- Shrieking Drake returning Phyrexian Metamorph
- Phyrexian Metamorph copying Shrieking drake and returning itself looping up to 7/8/9/17 counters
- Phyrexian Metamorph copying Imperial Recruiter for Fierce Empath
- Fierce Empath for some Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Skullclamp T.0
By far the most complicated combo, the Skullclamp T.0 combo revolves around using clamp conversions to dig into landmarks with the sole purpose of hitting a hard finisher. Generally, it's a same turn kill ultimately focused on creating a Cloudstone Curio Ulamog loop with the intense of locking the game out before passing the turn.
The big landmarks are: - Survival of the Fittest- Crop Rotation- Gaea's Cradle- Earthcraft- Cloudstone Curio- Sylvan Tutor - as well as most auxiliary amplifiers.
The idea is utilize Gaea's Cradle in addition to Peregrin Drake and Cloud of Faeries with bounce effects to perpetuate skull clamp until it's viable to indefinitely loop with Curio.
Cloudstone Curio
The goal of a curio room is to go infinite via net 0+ creatures, and to simply recast utility creatures indefinitely, hopefully resulting in an eldrazi loop.
In an animar-less situation, cloudstone combos are still viable via:- Peregrin Drake- Phyrexian Metamorph- Cloud of Faeries- Earthcraft.
After cloudstone is active, should you be running a mana deficit and have fierce empath, but not the mana to cast him twice, tutoring artisan of kozilek over Kozilek lets you return any number of key cards from your graveyard, namely wild cantor, cloud of faeries, peregrin drake, quirion sentinel, wall of roots, phantasmal image or phyrexian metamorph. All of which allow you to recast fierce empath into kozilek, and ultimately ulamog. Wild Cantor + Artisan + a utility creature is a notable albeit overlooked cloudstone loop.
Earthcraft
Earthcraft increases the ideal net mana for any creature by one, potentially two with utopia sprawl or wild growth. At that point, your entire deck just became free and it's simply a matter of digging with utility creatures until you draw a finisher.
Primeval Titan
The pure act of casting prime time for Gaea's Cradle and Eye of Ugin can easily seal any game, animar or no. Very often, Cradle taps for enough to single handily activate Eye of Ugin, at which point the resulting eldrazi is often free. Add in an untap effect, and all of a sudden you'll likely be sporting a Kozilek with Ulamog on standby. Even in the presence of a sweeper, the Eye/Cradle package remains as an easy bounce back outlet.
Survival of the Fittest
Aside from the obvious ability to start the mentioned combos, Survival gets really interesting when you're attempting to do an infinite loop into cloudstone curio Ulamog. One mentionable tactic is to use Primeval Titan to setup gaea's cradle and eye of ugin, at which point you can use peregrine drake (potentially off of Artisan of kozilek) to generate infinite resets via Phantasmal Image, a targeting effect (skull clamp), and pitching Ulamog or Kozilek off of survival to shuffle. Generally, you'd use this tactic with intermediary clones, faeries etc off of survival to generate card advantage without committing blue mana or requiring excessive survival fodder. I'm fairly sure there is a way to do infinite ulamogs with cloudstone curio RFG with survival, purely by fueling ulamog/bouncers off of creatures drawn from intermediary skullclamp triggers. The most efficient way? Up for discussion.
Cards excluded
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker - Triple red is a deal breaker, and in any scenario in which you have a creature tutor, it's always more efficient to grab imperial recruiter, Cloud of Faeries, Fierce Empath, Trinket Mage etc.
Aluren - four mana is really awkward in this deck. For the most part, Aluren is card disadvantage that sets you back a turn, gives your opponent outs to eldrazi, and doesn't really even put you ahead mana wise.
Food Chain - Creatures are very relevant after being cast. With so many effects utilizing creatures beyond their initial ETB, food chain just doesn't make sense.
Palinchron - The blue mana investment is too substantial to warrant using Palinchron, and fierce empath into Primeval Titan, or an eldrazi, leaves you in a better board position for the most part.
Tidespout Tyrant - Too much blue. Sure he's a decent pseudo cloudstone curio, but for the most part he's a dead card in your opening hand that rarely will see any play, and is comparatively clunky and slow.
Momir Vig - Curve issues.Regal Force - Curve issues.Primordial Sage - Curve issues.
Sol Ring - Colorless Mana is largely irrelevant.Mana Crypt - Colorless Mana is largely irrelevant. Vodalian Merchant/Merfolk Traders - Notable potential entries that loses out to Owl Familiar / Hapless Researcher purely because they aren't skull clampable.
Solemn Simulacrum - At 4 mana, Solemn strictly losses out to Scarecrone as a segue into Peregrin Drake and Primeval Titan.
Whirlpool Rider - It's a cool effect, but 2CC creatures serve as a segue into critical 3 drop utility creatures. As such, quite frequently whirlpool rider either doesn't curve out, or pitches away critical cards.
Snap - As much as I love snap, it's very conditional. In far too many of the situations in which you'd want to use snap, you're stuck casting it on a filler creature rather than a utility creature strictly because of the 1 mana difference it would take to cast said creature before snap. Being as it takes up a card in your hand, there is a very good chance it will inhibit your ability to curve out ideally.
Duplicant - As a fierce empath target, Duplicant looses out to Primeval Titan or any Eldrazi. In this format, Ulamog, Phantasmal Image, Phyrexian Metamorph and Gilded Drake are all better solutions. Outside of the spot removal case, Duplicant doesn't work with cloudstone curio, and is an auto mulligan.
Atypical Inclusions
Flamekin Harbinger - Perhaps one of my favorite animar gems, as a one drop he contributes to a much better curve, and the ability to top Slithermuse or Mulldrifter generates a tidy card/tempo advantage.
Hapless Researcher - Simply amazing in Animar. Qualified one drops are few and far between, and this guy serves to smooth over the curve as well as act as a cycler. Despite the 32 land count, the deck requires so few lands in action that it's often useful to cycle them, especially with effects like Gush, Fathom Seer, Quirion Ranger and Sylvan ranger to push more lands into the grip. Works nicely with Worldy Tutor, Flamekin Harbinger, Sylvan Tutor.
Owl Familiar - Curves out nicely, cycles lands, and is skull clamp-able. The deck wants to dig, and every digger is appreciated.
Scarecrone - Peregrin Drakes and Primeval Titan's best friend. Scarecrone serves as a much needed freebie counter, and has the added bonus of cycling/skull clamping on demand. Every once in a while, he'll return Phyrexian Metamorph and shoot down an opposing general. Hello mirror match?
Tinder Wall - T2 Animar with a flame kin harbinger to boot? Seems decent. Add in skull clamp or cloudstone curio + Artisan of Kozilek and he really shines.
Gush - Even better than free card draw; after casting you can shamelessly replay Tropical Island.
Eye of Ugin - 7 mana sounds like a lot, but when you're sporting a gaea's cradle or bloom tender it really isn't, and the follow up on-demand Eldrazi is a scary prospect.
Utopia Sprawl - T2 Animar, enough said? Toss in Cloud of Faeries, Earthcraft or Peregrin Drake, and Uptopia Sprawl means business.
Wild Growth - Same as Utopia Sprawl.Wild Cantor - Aside from the obvious T2 Animar, Wild Cantor combos out insanely with Cloudstone Curio and Artisan of Kozilek, adds a much needed free counter to animar, and enables Peregrin Drake and Cloud of Faeries off of a skull clamp/Gaea's Cradle combo when otherwise not possible.
Slithermuse - Ever played Ancestral Recall? Well, Slithermuse is quite often better. One blue for a new hand will win a lot of games, and he's even tutor-able with Flamekin Harbinger.
Potential Additions
Council of AdvisorsGoblin MatronSkirk ProspectorChangeling BerserkerMerchant of SecretsSnapWirewood HeraldVodalian MerchantTower GeistMerfolk Traders
Cards I wish were legal
Court HussarNoble Hierarch
