MTG Combo: Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion

ThousandOaks on Elenda - Life After Death

3 years ago

iplayBANJO provides a lot of good feedback. In many instances, I agree with the feedback provided.

I see two main items that need to be improved. First, your deck is very unfocused. Second, you don't have much interaction.

*Adding Focus*

You have too many themes. It's unclear if you want to go Vampire Tribal, Aristocrats, Graveyard, Tokens, or Recursion. As a starting place for your first build, it's not a bad starting place, but we can definitely tighten up your direction. The best next step for you is to pick one theme and building around that. You can "splash" some other themes by adding utility cards like Priest of Forgotten Gods that contribute to your main theme, but dips into other themes consequentially.

ARISTOCRATS

I'm going to assume you're building aristocrats. For any build, it's very important to figure out your mana base. Some may disagree with me, but the utility of the mana base is one of the most important starting places when building any new deck. So for each build you make, identify at least your utility lands that support your build. Then use basic lands as place holders.

If you are running aristocrats, consider the following feedback.

Utility Lands: High Market and Phyrexian Tower . These are great sac outlets that can provide you added value. Command Beacon and Memorial to Folly are cheap utility lands that will help you avoid commander tax later in the game.

Value Engines: Take advantage of death triggers. (Death triggers are triggered abilities when a creature dies; e.g., hits the graveyard.) As the previous post discuss, you need to demand value from things dying. Ask your self the question "what value am I getting" when something dies. A few items I don't see above:

Grave Pact is great for you. With your aristocrats package out, you're generating value and removing your opponents board. It also gets around indestructible and hexproof.

Razaketh, the Foulblooded . This is an "I-Win" card in an aristocrats deck. It allows you to tutor and find answers as soon as it resolves.

Skullclamp will allow you to draw a metric butt-load of cards.

Teysa Karlov doubles the value of your death triggers.

Kokusho, the Evening Star is a great nuclear deterrent. It gives you a flyer, solid 5/5 body, and in a pinch, you can sacrifice it to get 15 life and deal out 15 damage.

*Interaction*

Interaction refers to your ability to respond to threats at instant speed. Currently, this is very crucial weak point in your build. This partially goes back to Focusing the deck. I would recommend first picking a single theme and rebuilding around that theme. Then, as you're rebuilding, as yourself the following questions for EVERY card you add:

Does this card do something when it resolves?

Identify what value the card gives you as it resolves. There's no right or wrong answer here, but we want to know what we're getting out of the mana we spend. Is it a 1/1 body I get? Or is it a 1/1 body with a trigger of some sort?

Keep in mind. Every time a card resolves (for example a combo piece), if it doesn't give you immediate value when it resolves, it's an opportunity for your opponents to remove it. How will you protect those combo pieces from removal? Teferi's Protection , Flawless Maneuver , Cosmic Intervention .

Does this card, by itself, have synergy with my theme or commander?

With Elenda at the helm, sometimes you're just putting fodder on the field for her. And that's perfectly okay, so long as you're playing at the broader synergy. Remember, with Aristocrats, you're probably not going to win by swinging a big beefy 50/50 Elenda, the Dusk Rose at someone's face. (She doesn't even have trample.) You're most likely going to win by all the triggers from Blood Artist , Cruel Celebrant , Falkenrath Noble , Zulaport Cutthroat , Bastion of Remembrance , Syr Konrad, the Grim , and Vindictive Vampire .

What value do I want out of this card, and how many other pieces do I need to get that value?

Again. No right or wrong answer here. Sometimes, it's just fun to play a card for the hell of it. Looking at you Choice of Damnations .

What is the range of the card? (Early/Opener, Mid-Range, Late Game/Close)

Have an idea of when you plan for a card to be most impactful. Is it a card that is strong early game, mid-game, or late game? How will it impact your state or the overall board when it resolves?

FINAL THOUGHTS

My immediate recommendation is to pick a single theme. I would move away from "perfect world" value situations. This refers to those situations where you're convincing yourself of value. For example, if you want to play Card X because you'll win if you also have Card Y on the field, and Card Z in your graveyard, then I wouldn't play Card X.

Next, I wouldn't run a single combo besides the following: Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion or Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Walking Ballista . Mikeaus by himself brings so much value to an aristocrats build. It essentially allows you to sacrifice each of your non-token creatures twice, including Elenda. With Triskelion or Walking Ballista, Mikaeus creates an infinite damage combo and wins you the game... also infinitely triggering your aristocrat triggers.

Finally, I would remove all the "lord" effects. Lord effects refer to effects that buff a certain creature type. Again, if you're running Aristocrats, you're not going to win because you have big creatures, you're going to win because you're forcing the most value from the death of your creatures.

All food for thought. Feel free to take or decline any suggestions. Happy brewing!

MrKillStar on The Horned King

3 years ago

First of all, no creature in commander is too expensive, unless you have enough ramp or ways to cheat it out.
( There is an infinite combo of Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion . There is fairly a lot of ramp in black, if you really need it, like Black Market; Songs of the Damned; Bubbling Muck; Magus of the Coffers, etc.
I use some basic black ramp cards in my For the Void and it works just fine, nothing extra :D

Something to protect Mikaeus and other creatures, like Lightning Greaves and Malakir Rebirth  ^Flip is very nice. Or just Reanimate whatever dies.. which can even draw you cards if you would control Vilis, Broker of Blood.

If your opponents somehow won't die to Mikaes+Triskleion damage, Altar of the Brood or Bitter Ordeal is an option.

Swampwalk is fine, definitely if with Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth on board.

Landbase look fine, maybe Emergence Zone is really nice utility land, so you can cast anything at instant speed after you sac it.

Gidgetimer on Ramp for Gruul deck?

4 years ago

The most common use of Defense you are going to find is to grab two card creature combos like Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion or Emrakul, the Aeons Torn + Xenagos, God of Revels .

Jobiji on Jarad vod Savo

4 years ago

Necrotic Ooze + Phyrexian Devourer + Triskelion combo win!

or the classic Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion

Bazzul on Belzenlok, Godo's Ugly Cousin

4 years ago

Lord0fHam Regarding your 1st question, there are two more combo finishers besides Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion . They are listed in the Maybeboard ( Repay in Kind + Lich or Sanguine Bond + Exquisite Blood + Soul Spike ). Although these combos are not graveyard based per se, they are very mana intensive and Skirge Familiar is pretty much mandatory to execute them. The Main combo line requires Skirge Familiar to be revived with Dread Return so it's hard to avoid being graveyard dependent. I think Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion is the most resilient of the combos since multiple cards can execute the combo in case you get countered ( Ever After , Living Death , or even Twilight's Call ).

Regarding you second question the deck doesn't have a good way to protect itself from being interrupted (due to being mono black and having the 4cmc+ condition). That being said, there are two scenarios

-Interruption before Belz's ETB: simply ramp until 8 and try again...

-Interruption after Belz's ETB: Discarding Dread provides you multiple chances to revive the duo in the following turns. Basically you can attempt a win one per turn for the following 2 turns (sometimes even more because Ever After goes to the top of your library if it resolves..) More details are given at the end of the "combo" section of the primer.

Finally, there is Geode Golem , which allows you to pay for Skirge Familiar directly, if interrupted, simply do the main combo line.

FireZombie1134 on Too much value to shake your stick at! - Yarok EDH

4 years ago

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed doesn't combo off with Walking Ballista . Mikaeus, the Unhallowed has a static ability that gives Walking Ballista a +1/+1. So you're better off running Triskelion . It's a combo called "Mike and Trike".

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion

However, Walking Ballista is a mana sink so if you have infinite mana it's another way to win

imjustabill on Rakdos EDH

5 years ago

There is a lot here. It is not that I think your deck is bad, just some options. Rakdos is my favorite guild and I have been considering a Rakdos deck for a while now.

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion combo is pretty good in this deck. Both cards help a lot on their own, Triskelion is colorless so you can potentially cast him for free on top of being able to trigger damage to cast Rakdos. Mikaeus can help recur you Eldrazi. If you do 6 damage in a turn ( 1 swing with you commander ) you can cast the combo for 3 black.

If you don't want to combo. You still may want to pick up more targeted clear. Bedevil and Unlicensed Disintegration . Kaervek's Purge is potentially another good one if a player is buffing their creatures.

Illicit Auction can generate a ton of value, either stealing good creature or getting an opponent to spend a lot of life.

You may also want to throw in a Burnished Hart . You can potentially use it as a turn 2/3 creature to get a swing in turn 3/4 to allow Rakdos cast. It also has the added benefit of potentially being cast for free.

Neheb, the Eternal also has some good synergy considering you have several X cost spells.

I forget the names but there are several lands that do damage upon entering.

Mogis doesn't especially synergize with the deck as his damage is during other players turns and you have so much colorless it will be difficult to get him to 7. ( Commander + Mogis does get 6 though )

Ramp: Maybe replace some of your lands with ramp. Tutors/Draw: I would try to squeeze in 2/3 more tutors and 2/3 more draw cards. Behold the Beyond can cause scoops if used on a turn where you have done ~10 damage. And 10 damage isn't too much in this deck.

A lot of this also depends on your play group.

Gidgetimer on Which bg combo do u …

5 years ago

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Triskelion

For three main reasons. Mikaeus is just so useful outside the combo; two card instead of three; not reliant upon having cards in your library.