I received some rather unexpected, but welcome feedback on this deck when I saw that someone posted to /r/EDH on Reddit that they used my deck as a base for theirs, but were getting dismantled fairly early. This section of the primer is intended for newer players and players that may be newer to playing Aggro.

Disclaimer: I play with a fairly consistent play-group, so a lot of my approach is informed by those experiences, and my occasional visit to LGSs in my area. When I play this deck, I tend to look for a couple of things in opening hands, especially in context of the other decks around the table:

• I tend to swing at whichever board I think will provide the least resistance, whether it means smaller creatures or total bodies on board, and/or are tapped out for mana for possible removal/interaction. On occasion this may mean swinging out at other token strats that are behind on board development, or more combo/spell-slinger based strategies that will have fewer and smaller creatures.

• When playing against other token strategies, I tend to keep hands that are heavier on removal and ramp, but have at least 1 token producing creature that I can start building my own presence with once boards are cleared.

• If I'm playing against spell-slingers or other strategies that may commit to a squishier creature board, I will try to keep hands with a couple more creatures and an anthem if possible.

• Starting with some kind of board protection spell, whether it's Teferi's Protection, Clever Concealment, Dolmen Gate, or even just a Tibalt's Trickery are all very helpful to maintaining momentum. I try to keep hands that have at least 1 protection effect.

• If I am one of the more aggressive decks at the table, I will tend to lean into that and build as much momentum as possible. Either I become the Big Bad and get focused, or I gain too much momentum to meaningfully interact with.

• If I am not the only token strat at the table, I may slow roll my board deployment a bit and accelerate once a few removal spells have hit around the table.

• I try to keep the curve for this deck as low as possible so I can: muscle out early aggro momentum, rebuild my board quickly and efficiently in the event of wipes and removal, and hold mana up for cheap removal and interaction.

• The deck utilizes various forms of group slug effects such as Impact Tremors or Mishra, Claimed by Gix   as a means of squeezing out damage from token swarms entering the battlefield, or swarming as declared attackers. Having group slug helps take some of the pressure off combat damage being the primary means of closing out games.

I think it is cool that others have used this deck as a primer for their own, but I highly encourage people to tune to their metas and play-groups. This deck is not intended to be a "Be-All, End-All" for Isshin token strats, but is hopefully a helpful starting point.

• Connecting the Dots - Has a high ceiling to impulse draw a decent chunk of cards, & quickly replenish once our hand is light.

• Sword of the Animist - Cut as of October 2023 for Fellwar Stone. The total of 4 mana to cast, equip, then swing felt very telegraphed the more I played it. This was in the deck since some of its earliest iterations, but felt slower and less useful as I removed more basics from the deck.

• Cunning Rhetoric - The effect wasn't much of a deterrant in my meta, especially since it triggered per opponent, instead of per creature attacking.

• Florian, Voldaren Scion - Florian could be great card advantage for a deck that aims to play aggressively and throw a lot of combat damage around, or Isshin builds that utilize more Group Slug effects like Vicious Conquistador.

• Guardian of Faith - Flexible board protection. Definitely a budget option for players who may not want to pick up a copy of Terferi's Protection yet.

• Phyrexian Arena - Something I had in initial drafts of the deck. The more I play tested it, and played the deck, the more I felt that it was out of place pacing-wise. In early game it competed with ramp, getting Isshin online, or curving into a creature for Isshin to improve on Turn 3 or 4. Beyond a Turn 4 play, this felt clunky and slow.

• Shared Animosity - A board full of tokens gets that much scarier. Would be more useful for smashing through other board states, especially if my creatures lack evasion.

• Decadent Dragon - Some might say it's "Goldspan at home", but the adventure provides some additional utility.

• Faith's Reward - Boardwipe insurance that hits all my permanents. I'd like to include it, but 4 cmc kinda sucks to hold up, and creatures are more vulnerable to board wipes than other permanents in my meta.

• Fireflux Squad - A card I had a lot of fun playing for a decent chunk of this deck's initial 4-5 months. It shined best with a token producing attacker on board, but benefits from having a "may ability" trigger. As fun as it was, felt very Boom or Bust in terms of what it would dig out. I finally cut it for more consistency at the 4 drop slot.

• Kardur, Doomscourge

• Mangara, the Diplomat - Dissuades attacks, since it could lead to drawing 2 cards. Also gives spell-slingers something to pause and consider. Swapped out since it my opponents typically removed him or found ways to play around him. Could be great in metas with a greater abundance of spell slinger strategies.

• Marton Stromgald - I swapped him out for Purphoros, God of the Forge. I figured that Purphoros has the upside of being Indestructible, is a beefier Impact Tremors, can add some Firebreathing if I have the mana up, and is a much beefier body than Marton when it is a creature.

• Smothering TitheGC - It's good. That much is obvious and not much else needs to be said lol. If I'm lacking for mana or taxing effects, then I know what could help fix that.

• Etali, Primal Storm

• Sun Titan - I had this in the initial build, but eventually cut it for some other effect around 5cmc. It's slower than Custodi Soulcaller in some ways, but has the upside of recurring other permanents in addition to creatures.

Eldrazi Titans and Annihilator Drazis are obviously worth mentioning, but are not my personal playstyle, and are cards I wouldn't pick up. Additionally, I think the steep CMCs of most Eldrazi aren't worth it, especially in Mardu colors.

• As of Modern Horizons 3, I'm now breaking this rule for Hideous Taskmaster specifically lol. Taskmaster seems like a great top-end finisher. If it didn't have Haste, I probably wouldn't have considered it as much.

Rocks

The deck is fairly low to the ground, and in post-Dragonstorm updates is now leaner than it was at any point in the past 3 years. I've found that I prefer having a T2 creature a bit more than a mana rock in most cases, since I don't feel I get mana-screwed with this deck often. If I do, I'll lean into the cheaper & least multi-color intensive options I have a available to me.

• Sol Ring
• Arcane Signet
• Talisman of Conviction

The Treasure Purse

These cards aren't ramp in the traditional sense, but have an even higher ceiling thanks to Isshin. This is better named the "Treasure Purse". Although Treasure is helpful for mana acceleration at any point of the game, the Treasure producers all do some extra work with Professional Face-Breaker's impulse draw ability.

• Deadly Dispute
• Generous Plunderer - An excellent recent addition, especially as more artifact heavy strategies become prevalent in the metas I play in.
• Kellogg, Dangerous Mind - Pumping out 2 treasures per swing with Isshin active will be spicy. Treasures can be utilized for creature theft if needed.
• Professional Face-Breaker - Complimentary to Fable of the Mirror-Breaker, Captain Lannery Storm, and Battle Angels of Tyr since it can pump out Treasures with them.
• Battle Angels of Tyr - More so of a "catch up" mechanic than ramp, but does help generate a bit of Treasure. Will most likely be used against whomever is running the most Green ramp.
• Rev, Tithe Extractor - Kinda like another Professional Face-Breaker with different upside.
• Goldlust Triad
• Goldspan Dragon - A card that essentially pays for itself the turn that it swings with Isshin on board. It really takes the top off the Treasure production by making all my Treasures tap for an additional mana.

Value Ramp

• Land Tax - After playing the deck for three years, I decided this was a much needed upgrade in the ramp department. I play in a meta where Green is very prevalent, so it's not uncommon to be behind on a land drop or two by comparison. As of March 2024, the deck runs 9 basics to enable a few activations.

I could split hairs a bit, but this is my umbrella for "burst" draw (2 or more cards in 1 instance), Cantrips (1 for 1), and repeated Draw:

• Minas Tirith
• Savai Triome
• Silent Clearing
• Sunbaked Canyon
• Skullclamp - This deck aims to create a bunch of creature tokens, so might as well get some extra mileage out of them.
• Deadly Dispute
• Plumb the Forbidden - "Oh you're going to Rakdos Charm me? Oh you're going to board wipe with Living Death? What if I just-".
• Braids, Arisen Nightmare - I like that Braids can force opponents to a potentially tough scenario of letting me draw and getting drained, or sacrificing their resources to prevent my draw. Since it is a "may ability", this can be scaled back if needed.
• Breena, the Demagogue - A political draw piece that can allow opponents to draw, but will grow threats on our board as we do so.
• Commissar Severina Raine - A slightly worse Skullclamp, which should be right at home in a deck full of token producers.
• Professional Face-Breaker - Can turn treasures into additional "draw" if needed. If you squint hard enough, Face-Breaker is kinda like Tymna the Weaver *f-etch*.
• Zurgo Stormrender - Tokens get chump blocked all the time, or leave the battlefield via Myriad.
• Battle Angels of Tyr - More of a "catch up" draw, but will still be useful in closing the gap when needed.
• Caesar, Legion's Emperor
• Aurelia, the Law Above
• Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant - Also allows opponents to draw, but will hopefully redirect attacks away with Goad.

Under Consideration

• Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor - A group hug/slug. Gives my opponents the option to attack each other and benefit from it at a cost. Could be a potential swap with Tymna. TBD.
• Necropotence
• Painful Truths
• Tocasia's Welcome - Complimentary to all of the token creature production. Recently swapped out to try Braids, Arisen Nightmare.
• Tymna the Weaver *f-etch* - Tymna synergizes with swinging at multiple opponents, which will become easier with token swarms. Early on she may help us draw off attacking the least defended opponent(s). Swapped with Hellrider as of 2/13/23. Wanted one more damage dealing attack trigger.

Removal

Board wipes and spells that destroy or exile single to multiple targets. When possible, I try to make the wipe and multi-target removal be as asymmetrical as possible:

• Strip Mine
• Swords to Plowshares
• Rakdos Charm - Forreals, I love modal spells.
• Soul Partition - Pulls double duty as removal or a protection spell if needed.
• Anguished Unmaking
• Braids, Arisen Nightmare - Her trigger can force opponents into removing their own resources if they want to prevent me from drawing.
• Generous Gift
• Will of the Mardu - The majority of the time, I'm going to want the instant speed token creation. Having the conditional spot removal as an option is also nice.
• Final Showdown - An instant speed board wipe with additional upside is pretty nutty.
• Farewell - I prefer to use Exile based removal as much as possible, given the number of graveyard strategies in my meta, also making the mass graveyard exile relevant.

Under Consideration

• Galadriel's Dismissal - Can pull double duty as single target or board protection or removal.
• Grasp of Fate
• Retribution of the Meek
• Slaughter the Strong - A boardwipe that Isshin can dodge, and also helps get rid of bigger creatures that may be Hexproof and/or Indestructible. Replaced with Retribution of the Meek because it was 1 white pip less intensive to cast.
• Promise of Loyalty
• Austere Command
• Ruinous Ultimatum - Had it in the deck for a bit, but the very specific mana cost felt annoying.

Interaction

I tend to think of "Interaction" as any effects that prevent opponents from interacting with my board, spells being cast, or their own resources as intended.

• Scavenger Grounds - This replaced Bojuka Bog. Even though it's generic mana, I wanted the option have it come in untapped, and I can keep Scavenger Grounds around until I need to activate it most.
• Deflecting Swat
• Authority of the Consuls - Great early-mid game play, as it can leave potential blockers tapped down for a turn. The incremental lifegain has helped me before.
• Final Showdown -Being able to blank creature abilities has incredible flexibility
• Charismatic Conqueror
• Voice of Victory
• Rakdos Charm - I love modal spells. I can see how graveyard removal could be lumped in with removal, but I tend to see it more as a flavor of resource denial.
• Tibalt's Trickery
• Braids, Arisen Nightmare - Most of the time I will sacrifice creature tokens to Braids, or even herself to her own ability. I like the flexibility that I can also sacrifice Treasure tokens
• Kambal, Profiteering Mayor - Gives other token based strategies some pause on board state advancement.
• Myrel, Shield of Argive - Helps to blank removal and interaction on our turn, especially when wading into combat.

Under consideration

• Mana Tithe - Who ever expects a white counter spell? Just gotta hope they're tapped out for follow up responses.

• Pyroblast - Blue Mages Hate This One Weird Trick

• Reprieve

• Smothering TitheGC - I have a copy. It's an obvious include because it's so good. Will wait and see which 4-5cmc creature or enchantment feels most lackluster as a potential swap.

Here are the meat and potatoes of Isshin's attack trigger doubling for offense and defense

Offense - The Katana

Creature Token creation

• Den of the Bugbear
• Ainok Strike Leader
• Charismatic Conqueror
• Sinkhole Surveyor
• Voice of Victory
• Anim Pakal, Thousandth Moon - Awesome that she doesn't need to attack, and can benefit from other +1/+1 counter anthems.
• Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
• General Kreat, the Boltbringer
• Kambal, Profiteering Mayor
• Will of the Mardu
• Zurgo Stormrender
• Battle Angels of Tyr
• Hero of Bladehold
• Mondrak, Glory Dominus - Replacing Leonin Warleader. I figured being able to double my token production on a self-protecting body would be a bit more useful than producing a few cat tokens with Lifelink. Also acts as a bit of redundancy with Isshin on token production in case he is taken out, and really pushes things over the edge with Isshin out.
• Myrel, Shield of Argive - The deck currently has 5 other soldiers in the 99, and 3 other effects that produce Solider Creature tokens of some kind. It can produce a decent amount of Soldier tokens on its own with Isshin on board.
• Goldlust Triad
• Otharri, Suns' Glory - A flying and hasty body that will make a growing swarm of tokens each combat, and can potentially resurrect itself? A lot to like here so far.

Painful slices

Cards that punch heavily on their own, or frontload a lot of damage before blocks. Helps make combat damage more viable by softening up opponents.

• Generous Plunderer
• Impact Tremors
• Commissar Severina Raine
• General Kreat, the Boltbringer
• Kambal, Profiteering Mayor
• Warleader's Call
• Zurgo Stormrender
• Mishra, Claimed by Gix  
• Aurelia, the Law Above

Anthems and Buffs

• Vault of the Archangel
• Legion Loyalist - Provides relevant keywords, but more importantly helps get past other token creature heavy boards.
• Reconnaissance -Acts as a pseudo-Vigilance anthem. A brief explanation from the Ask a Magic Judge Tumblr
• Flowering of the White Tree
• MacCready, Lamplight Mayor - A cheap means of getting an evasion anthem for token swarms and other small creatures in the deck.
• Breena, the Demagogue
• Rising of the Day
• Skyhunter Strike Force - Recently replaced Adriana, Captain of the Guard. Helpful to have another flyer in deck, and has the additional upside of being only 1 color and 2 mana cheaper in comparison to Adriana. Some lists may want to run both.
• Warleader's Call
• Akroma's Will - Useful for Alpha Strikes, as well as board protection or defense against Alpha Strikes.
• Hero of Bladehold
• Iroas, God of Victory *list*
• Rev, Tithe Extractor
• Karlach, Fury of Avernus - A sprinkling of First Strike on your extra combats.

Defense - the Wakizashi

This is a section that originally consisted of pillow-fort effects, but I've since shifted to focus more on board and creature protection.

• Clever Concealment - Another piece of Phase protection that has a decent likelihood of being played for a reduced cost.
• Deflecting Swat
• Final Showdown - Look, it's Final Showdown for the 3rd time. Single target protection with upside lol. Awesome flexibility.
• Reconnaissance - Pseudo Vigilance that also removes combat damage after combat is pretty damn great every time I've played it.
• Ainok Strike Leader
• Dolmen Gate - Help my dudes swing away (relatively) unscathed.
• Flowering of the White Tree
• Lightning Greaves
• Soul Partition - Can be used either as removal, or as a protection effect in a pinch.
• Voice of Victory
• Teferi's Protection
• Akroma's Will - Very versatile, but ideally used for finishing swings.
• Iroas, God of Victory *list*
• Myrel, Shield of Argive - Helps blank instant speed removal and interaction on our turns.

These are all routes for Isshin that I think are cool and worth mentioning. This is not a comprehensive list of additional archetypes, but may be expanded upon as newer variants solidify.

More Musashi quotes that lend themselves to the concepts for brewing with Isshin-

• "In battle, if you you make your opponent flinch, you have already won."

• “If you do not control the enemy, the enemy will control you”

• “The important thing in strategy is to suppress the enemy's useful actions but allow his useless actions”