Upvote if you like cats! As the punny title might have suggested, this is a cat deck. FELINE PAWsitive? Give me a constructive CLAWment! This deck is CATastrophic for your opponent.
Regal Caracal may have a relatively high mana cost, but the value is insane, and it can hold its own for a fair amount of time if needed. First, paying for a total of 7 power and 7 toughness is already pretty nice. Then, it allows all your cats to gain lifelink and +1/+1, meaning that every card in the deck receives a substantial boost. Loam Lion is now a 3/4 with lifelink for only ! Adorned Pouncer also receives double the benefit, because now if they don't block, instead of them just losing 2 life, they lose 4 life, and you gain 4 life. Felidar Sovereign is in the maybeboard because of this card, since with all your cats getting stronger and gaining lifelink if your opponent can't quickly eliminate Regal Caracal, your life total will skyrocket, providing you with an alternate win condition. And, if you decide to sideboard in an Anointed Procession, things just got a whole lot crazier.
Brimaz, King of Oreskos, one of my favorite cards (thus the name), works perfectly with this deck. Whenever he attacks or blocks, Pride Sovereign receives a boost, and whenever he creates a cat, Metallic Mimic doubles its power and toughness. He has vigilance, which also makes him a lot more versatile. He can attack and block in the same turn, meaning he has the power to create twice as many tokens! And when blocking, that extra cat warrior can often work with Brimaz, King of Oreskos to deal lethal damage to the creature, effectively killing it. And similarly to Regal Caracal, combining Brimaz, King of Oreskos with Anointed Procession can prove to be a game-winning play.
Fleecemane Lion is arguably one of the best cats ever printed. A 3/3 for is already nice value, and that's before you factor in the boosts from Metallic Mimic, Regal Caracal, and Qasali Pridemage (if it attacks alone). As if putting another +1/+1 counter on Fleecemane Lion is nice, but it's not usually the main reason you would want to activate its monstrosity ability. Giving it hexproof and indestructible practically makes it invincible, because it can't be dealt lethal damage or exiled by an opponent. Pair this with Regal Caracal and you're consistently gaining 4 life and dealing up to 4 damage every turn with this one creature. Fleecemane Lion provides significant pressure starting on turn 2, but it really becomes scary on turn 5, once it becomes monstrous.
Last but not least, Pride Sovereign. Yes, it can hold the line in the early game, but it really shines when you combine it with fellow felines. Like most kings, it has incredible synergy with the rest of the deck. Brimaz, King of Oreskos can provide it with an additional +2/+2 boost every turn, and Metallic Mimic makes those 2 1/1's both 2/2's, meaning they're now a lot more powerful. These tokens can team up to block and take down a big creature if it comes to it, and Regal Caracal provides them with additional boosts. Anointed Procession and Rootborn Defenses can prove to be deadly to your opponent when combined with Pride Sovereign.
Metallic Mimic is probably my favorite support card in the deck since the boosts it provides are permanent. While cards like Regal Caracal do provide an augmentation to the power and toughness of cats, those effects disappear if you kill the support unit. So, by targeting the support card, you cut off the boosts of the entire army. This is a problem. The solution? Metallic Mimic, as it provides cats with +1/+1 counters, a much more permanent aid. The only problem with this is all cats already on the battlefield do not recieve the +1/+1 counter. So, to maximize this card's effect on the outcome of the game, play it as soon as you, preferably on turn 2. This way, every single cat will enter the battlefield with an additional +1/+1 counter. And, if you're wondering about the confusing way Metallic Mimic's third ability is worded, let me explain. Wizards of the Coast would have just made it say, "Each other creature you control of the chosen type enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter," but the problem is, this would override previous abilities. For example, if you have 5 instants in your graveyard, Academy Elite would enter with 5 +1/+1 counters. But, you played your Metallic Mimic on turn 2 and chose human as the desired creature type. Now, your Academy Elite will enter as a 1/1 instead of a 5/5. Hence, the word additional, in order to ensure all other abilities aren't ignored.
Prowling Serpopard is another example of a value cat. for a 4/3 is already pretty nice, and it can become so much more when you account for boosts from all other support cards. Then, the by protecting you from countering, it effectively renders cards like Chalice of the Void useless. In addition, it is important to use every bit of mana wisely in the heavy deck. Having your Regal Caracal countered on turn 5 by a Censor means you just wasted precious mana. This provides the extra insurance against blue control decks with lots of countermagic.
Qasali Pridemage, also known as the legal and less overpowered version of Qasali Slingers. for a 2/2 with exalted already provides reasonable value, especially for a common. But, the main reason this guy made the deck was his ability. For , you can sacrifice him to destroy any artifact or enchantment. isn't a lot of mana, in fact, it's the cheapest and easiest mana cost possible (not including ). This means that you can use his ability and still have enough mana to cast one of the kings (see above). You can save him, and when there an opportune moment, simply pay to blow up cards like Platinum Emperion, Eldrazi Conscription, and Spawning Grounds. Not only are you up on mana, you hopefully destroyed a key spell in their deck. In one word: value.
Dromoka's Command doesn't really fit into any other category, so I'm just going to put it here because its last option is technically removal. With a mana cost of , it's not terribly expensive. You can play it when the game is still developing to have an advantage in the early game, or you can save it for an opportune time in the late stages of the game. Since it has a converted mana cost of only 2, you can still play it and have enough mana to play one of the kings (see above). It's convenient to have such a versatile card that doesn't soak up mana. Against burn decks, use the first ability, maybe to neutralize spells like Comet Storm. The second ability works best if you both have cards with identical power and toughness. When he swings with his, let's say, 1/1, he expects you to block with your 1/1, and for the two to trade. Enter Dromaka's Command:, allowing your 1/1 to unexpectedly grow into a 2/2, dealing lethal damage while still surviving. If you just aren't drawing or you already used the ability of Qasali Pridemage, the third ability can come in handy. If you're targeting a specific enchantment, make sure to destroy all their other ones first, otherwise, they'll just sacrifice the weaker one. The last ability is great for eliminating weak creatures with powerful abilities, such as Noble Hierarch. Also, if you're trying to trigger the ability of Felidar Sovereign, having your excessively boosted Pride Sovereign (with lifelink from Regal Caracal as well) fight one of their creatures will eliminate it while allowing you to gain ridiculous amounts of life.
Path to Exile, one of the 2 best white removal spells (the other is Swords to Plowshares). Exiling any creature for just is really broken since in the late-game, an extra land is nothing compared to your super expensive win-condition. But, don't get me wrong, lands are always nice. It is also really, really cheap, meaning that casting it won't soak up your mana for the turn. This is always nice because you can exile their huge creature and still have enough mana to follow up with your own king (see above). Everyone loves a removal spell that doesn't soak up mana.
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