Cycles of life and death

Commander / EDH* Cycling Discard WUB (Esper)

Anabasis

Creature (26)

• 1x Angel of the Ruins
• 1x Archaeomancer
• 1x Archfiend of Ifnir
• 1x Cloud of Faeries
• 1x Curator of Mysteries
• 1x Forgotten Creation
• 1x Herald of the Forgotten
• 1x Jace's Archivist
• 1x Jhessian Zombies
• 1x Marauding Blight-Priest
• 1x Moon-Blessed Cleric
• 1x Mulldrifter
• 1x Nimble Obstructionist
• 1x Peregrine Drake
• 1x Sanctum Plowbeast
• 1x Shriekmaw
• 1x Street Wraith
• 1x Striped Riverwinder
• 1x Syr Konrad, the Grim
• 1x Timeless Dragon
• 1x Tribute Mage
• 1x Valiant Rescuer
• 1x Vile Manifestation
• 1x Void Beckoner
• 1x Wasteland Scorpion
• 1x Windcaller Aven

Sorcery (6)

• 1x Approach of the Second Sun
• 1x Boon of the Wish-Giver
• 1x Peer into the Abyss
• 1x Razaketh's Rite
• 1x Twilight's Call
• 1x Unearth

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Teferi, Master of Time

Land (35)

• 1x Barren Moor
• 1x Blasted Landscape
• 1x Caves of Koilos
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Desert of the Glorified
• 1x Desert of the Mindful
• 1x Desert of the True
• 1x Drifting Meadow
• 1x Exotic Orchard
• 1x Fetid Pools
• 1x Grand Coliseum
• 1x Irrigated Farmland
• 6x Island
• 1x Lonely Sandbar
• 1x Myriad Landscape
• 1x Obscura Storefront
• 5x Plains
• 1x Polluted Mire
• 1x Remote Isle
• 1x Secluded Steppe
• 5x Swamp
• 1x Tainted Field

Enchantment (10)

• 1x Astral Drift
• 1x Astral Slide
• 1x Cast Out
• 1x Escape Protocol
• 1x Faith of the Devoted
• 1x Lich's Mastery
• 1x New Perspectives
• 1x Reconnaissance Mission
• 1x Teferi's Ageless Insight
• 1x Wizard Class

Commander (1)

Instant (12)

• 1x Ancient Excavation
• 1x Angelsong
• 1x Clear
• 1x Complicate
• 1x Countervailing Winds
• 1x Expunge
• 1x Forsake the Worldly
• 1x Miscalculation
• 1x Necrologia
• 1x Neutralize
• 1x Radiant's Judgment
• 1x Shadow of the Grave

Artifact (9)

• 1x Arcane Signet
• 1x Azorius Signet
• 1x Elixir of Immortality
• 1x Fellwar Stone
• 1x Fluctuator
• 1x Orzhov Signet
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Spellbook
• 1x Well of Lost Dreams

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Sideboard

Enchantment (1)

• 1x Cleric Class

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Maybeboard

Creature (9)

• 1x Bone Miser
• 1x Cliffhaven Vampire
• 1x Containment Construct
• 1x Containment Priest
• 1x Crested Sunmare
• 1x Drannith Healer
• 1x Flourishing Fox
• 1x Psychosis Crawler
• 1x Vizier of Tumbling Sands

Instant (1)

• 1x Change of Plans

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Mordenkainen

Land (6)

• 1x Bonders' Enclave
• 1x Hall of Heliod's Generosity
• 1x Opal Palace
• 1x Raffine's Tower
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Tainted Isle

Sorcery (3)

• 1x Cut of the Profits
• 1x Idyllic Tutor
• 1x Sevinne's Reclamation

Enchantment (4)

• 1x Crystalline Resonance
• 1x Drake Haven
• 1x Ominous Seas
• 1x Psychic Corrosion

Artifact (4)

• 1x Alhammarret's Archive
• 1x Feldon's Cane
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Venser's Journal

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Budget Queza, Augur of Agonies deck focused on cycling. There is an infinite combo with Lich's Mastery and Queza (but be careful if it's somehow exiled or destroyed, you lose). Approach of the Second Sun is an alternate wincon. Winning through creature damage is also possible, but not the goal necessarily. This is an aristocrats-like deck, but you're sacrificing your hand for value, not creatures. The nice thing about this deck is there's more than one way to win. With cards like Jace's Archivist and spells like Peer into the Abyss, you may be able to draw one person to death while milling someone else out of the game. This is why artifacts like Feldon's Cane and Elixer of Immortality come in clutch. Though, again, milling isn't really the goal.

Upgrades and alternatives in the Maybeboard.

Below are some swaps I’m considering. I’ll do some play testing and then decide. I don’t want to stray too far from the cycling theme, there’s good synergy here, but these cards seem like they would help build a stronger board presence and support the three main wincons – life drain, creature damage, mill.

Swaps/Upgrades I’m considering:

Bone Miser, Crested Sunmare, or Drake Haven for Curator of Mysteries (token creation, i.e. chump blockers)

Cliffhaven Vampire for Void Beckoner

Drannith Healer for Valiant Rescuer

Vizier of Tumbling Sands for Windcaller Aven

Alhammarret's Archive for Well of Lost Dreams

Elixer of Immortality for Feldon's Cane

Reliquary Tower for Exotic Orchard

Crystalline Resonance for Cast Out (the idea being to target things like Cliffhaven Vampire, Crested Sunmare or Faith of the Devoted to double up triggers)

Psychic Corrosion for Forgotten Creation with Psychic Corrosion it seems likely that you’ll be able to mill out an opponent or three.

Ominous Seas for Reconnaissance Mission

Cut of the Profits for Boon of the Wish-Giver or Approach of the Second Sun

This is heavily inspired by the deck Shroom played on MTG the Stack (https://youtu.be/o6Ab9JyEkMw)

Date added	1 year
Last updated	1 year
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	1 - 0 Mythic Rares 22 - 0 Rares 33 - 1 Uncommons 28 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.78
Tokens	Human Soldier 1/1 W, Timeless Dragon 4/4 B