Yes, that's right, a new Legacy deck! This does feature Ad Nauseam and Angel's Grace, like a currently existing Modern deck, but they are more of an alternate win condition. The real star here is Lich, and not just because you don't lose from being at 0 life, but actually because of that nifty card draw and the life loss. Once you drop Lich and lose all of your life, which is hopefully ~20, Children of Korlis suddenly lets you draw ~20 cards! From there, it's game over for your opponent. With nearly 20 cards in hand, Simian Spirit Guide or Lotus Petal are bound to show up and they let you cast ramp spells like Rite of Flame until you get enough mana to cast Ad Nauseam to find that Burning Wish or just draw it up with another Children of Korlis. Obviously, with Burning Wish and all this draw/mana ramp, I can choose to end the game in a number of ways. If Lich doesn't show up, Angel's Grace and Ad Nauseam can get the win instead, and visa versa. Children of Korlis can also counteract the life loss of Ad Nauseam, so it can be cast with nothing else in hand to find combo pieces. With that description out of the way, let's get into the breakdown!
[Game Enders]
Since Legacy is the famous format of turn 2 wins, every deck needs that kind of spice, so here it is!
Lich: What is this card doing for the deck? Duh, winning! This is the bomb of the deck; not only does it let me go below 0 life, which is perfect for Ad Nauseam, but it also lets me draw a card for every life I would gain. It's perfect with Children of Korlis, since Lich makes me lose all of my life when it enters the battlefield. One way or another, I'm winning when this hits the field.
Ad Nauseam: This one is a little more dependent on other factors, but still a nice win condition. I can ramp up the mana very quickly with rituals, and Children of Korlis can counter the life loss if I just need more cards in hand. The real combo, obviously, is to cast Lich or Angel's Grace so that I can draw as many cards as I want and then use Simian Spirit Guides to cast Burning Wish and grab any of a number of kill options from my sideboard.
Angel's Grace: Not an actual game ender by itself, but wins instantly when paired with Ad Nauseam. Also saves me from losing if my opponent tries to remove Lich or if I have to sacrifice Lich.
Children of Korlis: Also not a game ender by itself, but certainly the star of the deck. It can combo with Lich for massive card draw, or with Ad Nauseam for slightly less card draw. This card not only enables me to win faster and more reliably, but also to avoid death in a lot of situations.
Burning Wish: This is what allows me to get my finishers once I've drawn my way through enough ramp spells. I can grab different finishers based on the board situation, and I can also grab responses to many different situations if necessary.
Conflagrate: An obvious finisher, you cast this after you get 20+ cards in hand. First cast you make X = 0 and only pay 1 red, then you cast it from your graveyard for 2 red using its flashback and discard your hand for game over. I would normally love to run Tendrils of Agony as the finisher, but it doesn't work with Lich since you'll also end up drawing your deck and ending the game as a draw. This is grabbed from the sideboard by Burning Wish.
Grapeshot: Just in case your opponent has some stupid graveyard hate like Grafdigger's Cage. This is grabbed from the sideboard by Burning Wish.
Repay in Kind: Just in case your opponent is pulling some kind of Shroud/Hexproof shenanigans. This is grabbed from the sideboard by Burning Wish.
Banefire: Just in case your opponent likes to counter your spells. This is grabbed from the sideboard by Burning Wish.
[Mana Ramp]
These cards are what allow me to win so quickly, or at all, in fact. Necessary for getting mana after that mana exhausting Lich or Ad Nauseam.
Lotus Petal: One of my favorite cards ever printed, this little guy single-handedly turned back the win clock by one turn for every Legacy combo deck or possibly every Legacy deck. It does that here too, and it also gives me mana to ramp into other spells after an Ad Nauseam or Lich, or gives me emergency mana for Angel's Grace.
Simian Spirit Guide: Another incredible ramp spell, this turned back the win clock for every Modern deck and made Legacy decks more consistent. It helps me get spells like Rite of Flame going, which can later be Manamorphosed into black or white if needed.
Rite of Flame: Maximizes the efficiency of those Simian Spirit Guides and provides heaps of mana when you cast more than one.
Seething Song: Whee, lots of mana!
Dark Ritual: Another star of the deck, this is the only reason a turn 2 win is even possible.
Cabal Ritual: The threshold is easy to achieve when casting so many ramp spells, so this produces a massive mana boost.
Manamorphose: Doesn't actually produce any extra mana, but it turns red mana produced into black mana for Lich and Ad Nauseam, or even white mana for Angel's Grace. It also replaces itself by letting you draw a card, so win-win.
That's all there is to it, a one-two punch of win and win harder! Fun to play no matter how the match goes, so feel free to test it out and let me know what you think! Check out my other Legacy creation; ReanimaZur.
