So, a four-drop 7/7 doesn't sound half bad, right?
And it can cast an instant or sorcery for free when it deals combat damage?
Wait.
Not combat damage to a player? Just plain combat damage?
Welcome to Living Lore. The best creature in standard... Well, maybe. It dies to removal... If only there was a way you could give it hexproof or indestructible?
... Fated Return?
All nonsense aside, this is my favorite combo deck in Standard. Sure, it can't create an infinite loop like Jeskai Ascendancy and Temur Ascendancy can, but who needs an infinite loop?
If you cast Living Lore and exile Fated Return, you have a 4-mana 7/7 with no other abilities. But if you block a creature on your opponent's turn or even just attack and it survives, you have a 4-mana 7/7 with vigilance and indestructible. Oh, and you get to scry 2 every time it attacks.
How does this work?
When you sacrifice Living Lore, there is no time restriction to cast Fated Return. Therefore, the sacrifice resolves first. Then, you cast Fated Return targeting your freshly dead Living Lore (don't forget to scry 2!). Fated Return hits the yard before Lore's ETB effect, so you just return the Return to your Living Lore. Now, you have an untapped, indestructible 7/7. Much better than Erebos' Titan in my opinion.
Except it can still die to removal...
So naturally, the best way to deal with removal in Standard is control. It's convenient because Living Lore is blue.
Calculated Dismissal, Dissolve, and Clash of Wills keep removal effects from hitting the board, and Ultimate Price and Murderous Cut provide their own removal. Languish, Crux of Fate, and Foul-Tongue Invocation are in the sideboard for a little bit more versatility.
Satyr Wayfinder, Artificer's Epiphany, and Gather the Pack (along with See the Unwritten) puts those big spells in the graveyard so Living Lore can target it. We certainly aren't going to be hardcasting them.
Speaking of big spells, Fated Return is the main powerhouse here. However, an aforementioned See the Unwritten can still work effectively with Living Lore if necessary. More effective spells in the sideboard, Dig Through Time and Volcanic Vision, provide different and more brutal finishers if needed.
I'd love comments and suggestions!
