Overview:

This Sultai (BUG) graveyard synergy deck helmed by Teval, the Balanced Scale focuses on self-mill, land recursion, and Zombie token generation. Teval serves as a key engine, enabling land ramp via its attack trigger while populating the graveyard for reanimation targets and fueling token production. The deck leverages recursive creatures (e.g., Gravecrawler, Timeless Witness), land-based value engines (Life from the Loam, Conduit of Worlds), and midrange threats (Avenger of Zendikar, Colossal Grave-Reaver) to grind out value. While lacking infinite combos, it aims to win through incremental board presence, token swarms, and reanimated beaters.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-4):
   • Deploy self-mill enablers (Hedron Crab, Skull Prophet, Crawling Sensation) and ramp (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Cultivate).
   • Use Phyrexian Reclamation or Memorial to Folly to recover key creatures.
2. Midgame Value (Turns 5-7):
   • Attack with Teval to mill 3, recur lands (e.g., Drownyard Temple), and generate Zombies via graveyard exile triggers.
   • Reanimate threats like Avenger of Zendikar with Victimize or Meren of Clan Nel Toth.
   • Leverage Conduit of Worlds to replay lands and cast spells from the graveyard.
3. Late-Game Closers (Turns 8+):
   • Overwhelm with Zombie tokens from Dread Summons/Teval and boosted by Lord of the Forsaken.
   • Recur Noxious Gearhulk or Colossal Grave-Reaver for repeated removal/value.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (including color-fixing), a self-mill or ramp piece, and at least one recursion engine (e.g., Life from the Loam, Phyrexian Reclamation).
• Prioritize early plays like Hedron Crab or Skull Prophet to fuel the graveyard.
• Avoid hands with only high-CMC threats and no setup.

Key Tips:

• Use Dauthi Voidwalker to exile opponents’ key creatures and cast them for free.
• Wonder in the graveyard grants flying to your Zombie army.
• Conduit of Worlds enables land drops from the graveyard to fuel Avenger of Zendikar.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Graveyard Reliance: Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void cripples recursion, token generation, and key engines.
• Slow Setup: Limited fast mana and clunky land base (10+ tapped lands) delay critical turns.

Moderate

• Commander Dependency: Teval’s attack trigger is vital for land recursion; repeated removal stalls the engine.
• Board Wipes: Struggles to rebuild quickly after mass removal (e.g., Damnation).

Minor

• Limited Stack Interaction: Only 3 counterspells/spot removal spells (e.g., Counterspell, Putrefy).
• Inefficient Token Payoffs: No Craterhoof Behemoth or Coat of Arms to close games.

Most Important Cards:

• Conduit of Worlds (Recur lands/spells, enables graveyard casting)
• Life from the Loam (Land recursion, fuels dredge)
• Phyrexian Reclamation (Repeatable creature recursion)
• Avenger of Zendikar (Primary board presence generator)
• Dauthi Voidwalker (Graveyard hate + threat theft)
• Teval, the Balanced Scale (Engine for mill, land recursion, tokens)
• Colossal Grave-Reaver (Recurrable threat with built-in reanimation)
• Dread Summons (Scales into late-game token swarm)
• Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Incremental reanimation engine)
• Lord of the Forsaken (Mills opponents, mana for graveyard casts)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 4/10

• Wins via combat typically around T8-10. No fast combos; relies on incremental value and midrange threats.

Resilience: 6/10

• Multiple recursion engines (Conduit of Worlds, Timeless Witness) mitigate removal but fold to graveyard exile.

Consistency: 5/10

• Moderate self-mill and land tutors (Cultivate, Farseek), but lacks high-impact card draw or combo redundancy.

Interaction: 5/10

• Limited but efficient removal (Putrefy, Tear Asunder). Few counterspells leave planeswalkers/unanswered threats problematic.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates as a midrange graveyard engine with slow but inevitable value, typically threatening wins via combat around T8-10. While resilient to single-target removal, its critical weakness to graveyard hate and clunky mana base cap its power at the upper end of casual play.

Power level: 4.0 - 4.5