Have you tried Dramatic Reversal with Isochron Scepter ? Typically you'll have the rocks out to make it an instant win. I think this combo is likely more competitive than Palinchron loops, if only because it's cheaper mana-wise and blue has more tutors for its parts. Whir of Invention is a personal favorite, and Fabricate is similar. Mystical Tutor , Muddle the Mixture , Personal Tutor and Spellseeker also tutor for the combo parts. Even if you choose not to run the Dramatic Scepter Combo, I think the tutors are worth running.

Other infinite mana CI=U combos include Rings of Brighthearth with your Basalt Monolith or Grim Monolith , and Metalworker with Staff of Domination . If you want to keep the Palinchron loops, try High Tide .

Manifold Key is another copy of Voltaic Key .

Mana Vault is good, if you have access to it.

Ponder , Preordain and Impulse are all cantrips worth considering. I like that you're running Fact or Fiction ; have you considered Glimmer of Genius , Thirst for Knowledge , Chemister's Insight and Windfall ? Running Narset, Parter of Veils with Windfall can produce an insta-win.

Why're you running Unknown Shores ? I think just a basic Island is better, and Ancient Tomb is GREAT in artifact-decks. Similarly, if you're not running Mox Opal , I think Seat of the Synod and Darksteel Citadel are worse than basic Island s. They die to Null Rod / Stony Silence effects, and they're soft to Blood Moon and Back to Basics . If you choose to make your land-base more basic-heavy, you can run Back to Basics yourself, likely to great effect.

Consider Mystic Remora : especially in more inexperienced metas, this card can easily be an Ancestral Recall . In my experience, it is better than Rhystic Study .

Creature-stealing effects can be good in EDH, especially since they can remove threats as well as produce them; I like your running Desertion . Sower of Temptation , Vedalken Shackles , Control Magic and Treachery are also worth considering.

Instant-speed bounce effects can help fight Stony Silence and Null Rod on the other side of the table, as well as control opposing pressure. Chain of Vapor , Cyclonic Rift , Winds of Rebuke and/or Boomerang ?

Lodestone Golem is a stax piece you should consider. Depending on which combo you want to run, Arcane Laboratory is worth considering. Running Clock of Omens with Winter Orb , Howling Mine or Static Orb is also a way to control the game. Counterbalance with your Sensei's Divining Top -- just saying.

Swan Song and Dispel are counters worth considering.

Good luck, man!

@SideBae Thank you for all the feedback. I have just recently added Phyrexian Metamorph , Swan Song , Disallow , and Rite of Replication to the deck.

I am going to make my land base more basic- focused for sure. The times I have played it so far I've realized that the colorless mana sources do me no good so I'm axing them. I'm also going to make it all Snow-Covered Island too for better usage of Extraplanar Lens .

The point you made of needing more artifact tutoring is very true. What would you recommend removing to put it in?

I have had an idea - perhaps you could give your opinion on it - I'm considering taking out the removal stuff I have (Nev's Disk, Hellkite, and All is Dust) because perhaps its more to my benefit to gain control of threats rather than destroy them? What's your take on that?

Is there anything in the deck that you see as having no real purpose towards attaining my goals? My problem right now is that I know I need Isochron Scepter , Dramatic Reversal , the tutors, etc. but I'm not sure what's best to remove.

I'm still working on learning the deck and it's very different from the way I've played EDH in the past (ramp into big scary stuff like a caveman) so I'm not sure how to best optimize it. I'm trying to make my way into more "elegant" ways of winning games than smashing face :D

I think the Phyrexian Metamorph and the Swan Song are good includes; consider Sculpting Steel .

Changing to all your Island s to Snow-Covered Island s is a good idea, if you want to keep the Extraplanar Lens . I don't think it's good enough, though. It costs you a land to imprint when it comes in, meaning it is fundamentally a source of card advantage. And, especially if you're the only one benefiting from Extraplanar Lens due to snow shenanigans, it has a massive target on its face and will usually be removed fast. That has been my experience with the card -- if yours is different, disregard this part of my comment.

With regard to the cutting of mass removal, I think it is an idea in the right direction. However, I think removal in general isn't a bad idea. I think you should be buying time in the early game until your general comes down, trying to avoid getting killed. Spot removal like Winds of Rebuke , Chain of Vapor , Cyclonic Rift , Rapid Hybridization and Reality Shift are all worth considering. Bounce has an interesting bonus in that it often wastes an opponent's turn to recast whatever you bounced. Most of these spells are less mana than Nevinyrral's Disk , All Is Dust , etc., which means they shouldn't compete with casting your general too often. Theoretically, you'd turn 1 - 2.5 ramp, turn 3 - 4 ramp/remove, turn 5+ cast general and try to win. Notice that this brings up one of the issues with mono-blue: removal, at least in a permanent sense like Swords to Plowshares , is relatively hard to come by.

With regard to cuts, I think it's worth thinking of the tutors as 'Wild Cards.' Tutors act as any combo piece they can fetch -- for instance, Muddle the Mixture can be thought of as a slower copy of either Isochron Scepter OR Dramatic Reversal . Seeing the tutors in this light helps show that you only really need to run one or two loops, as drawing the 'second part' of the combo becomes more and more likely with more and more tutors.

If you want to run the Dramatic Scepter combo, I suggest cutting a bunch of the Palinchron loops. Palinchron is a huge spell to cast, meaning it is difficult to cast. Running Isochron Scepter with Dramatic Reversal and another infinite-mana combo (I suggest Grand Architect with Pili-Pala or Basalt Monolith with Rings of Brighthearth ) is likely enough, and all these combos are less mana intense than the Palinchron loops.

Cuts I suggest are as follows:

• Thwart : Both costs on this card are prohibitive. Leaving four mana up in order to hardcast it means using four less mana on your turn, which can leave a major dent in your available resources. Returning three Island s is the antithesis of ramp, and sets you way back.
• Rite of Replication : Unless I am missing something, this is in the deck for value. However, it is nine mana to cast in a way that is better than Stunt Double , and because tokens stop existing when they're bounced, the creature it makes is less durable than other Clone effects. Rite of Replication is a good card, but I don't think it is good enough to make it in a cEDH deck.
• Heartstone : This is a card I'm not sure either way about. Once you make infinite mana, its cost-reducing effect is irrelevant; before, it may be worse than just a Ponder or Preordain . Depending on how often you want to use a non-combo win, it may be worth cutting. Playtesting will iron this out.
• Swiftfoot Boots : I don't think you need both this AND Lightning Greaves . I think Lightning Greaves is straight better, if only because it costs no mana to equip.
• Darksteel Forge : By the time you've gotten to nine-mana, you should be threatening to win the game any turn. If this is meant to make your blockers better-off in combat, Propaganda is a straight better choice.
• Treasure Mage : If you take my advise and go with combo pieces with lower costs, this card won't fetch enough to justify its inclusion.
• Alloy Myr : In this list, Alloy Myr is just a worse Silver Myr .
• Ring of Three Wishes : The tutors I suggested are much cheaper than this card. Five mana to cast and five to activate is too much, most of the time; you'd be better off with Whir of Invention , which has the added bonus of being instant-speed.

@SideBae Once again, thank you for the suggestions. I really appreciate you taking the time to spell out these ideas. I need to pick up a copy of Rings of Brighthearth still. Not cheap!

I have a copy of Padeem, Consul of Innovation That I’m going to include. Seems like a good guaranteed source of card draw and protection.

Darksteel Forge Was actually included as a potential win condition in conjunction with Nevinyrral's Disk and Mycosynth Lattice However the combo seems pretty weak in retrospect because of how much setup and mana it requires.

I am going to snag copies Of the tutors that you have mentioned and replace Some of the suggested cuts with them. I agree they will make the deck a lot faster and more reliable.

Awesome deck, but my main reason for commenting is to thank you for referencing one of my favourite films!

Thanks @Ashmed it’s one of my favorites too!