Overview:

This Grixis (UBR) deck leverages Sauron, the Dark Lord as a resilient card advantage engine and army generator, but the core strategy revolves around aristocrats, graveyard recursion, and Nazgûl synergy. Sauron enables explosive draw via Ring temptations (discard hand → draw 4) and passively grows armies, yet the deck functions effectively without him. Key themes include sacrificing creatures for value, reanimating threats, and overwhelming opponents with Nazgûl/+1 counters or drain effects. "Hidden commanders" like Pitiless Plunderer and Phyrexian Altar enable critical combos.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-3): Play mana rocks (Sol Ring, Signets), self-mill/discard enablers (Consider, Entomb), or cheap sacrifice fodder (Gravecrawler, Reassembling Skeleton). Use Toxic Deluge or Snuff Out to disrupt opponents.
2. Engine Assembly (Turns 4-6): Deploy key pieces: Pitiless Plunderer, Phyrexian Altar, Bastion of Remembrance, or Blood Artist. Reanimate bombs like Razaketh, the Foulblooded or Rune-Scarred Demon using Animate Dead, Reanimate, or Living Death. Cast Nazgûl to amass counters via Ring temptations.
3. Win Condition Execution (Turns 5-8):
   • Aristocrats Combo: Loop Gravecrawler with Phyrexian Altar/Pitiless Plunderer + sacrifice outlet (Viscera Seer, Attrition) + drainer (Blood Artist, Bastion of Remembrance) for infinite death triggers.
   • Army Beatdown: Attack with massive Nazgûl (boosted by Ring temptations) or reanimated threats. Use Rogue's Passage for unblockable damage.
   • Mass Reanimation: Cast Living Death with stocked graveyard to overwhelm the board.
   • Sauron Draw Engine: Tempt the Ring repeatedly (via Nazgûl ETBs, Call of the Ring, or combat) and discard your hand to draw 4, digging for win conditions.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands, including untapped duals.
• Prioritize early ramp (Signets, Mind Stone), a sacrifice outlet, or graveyard setup (Entomb, Consider).
• Hands with a Nazgûl + Ring-tempting effect (e.g., Call of the Ring) or a key combo piece (Pitiless Plunderer) are ideal.
• Avoid hands lacking mana sources or with only high-CMC spells.

Key Tips:

• Leverage the Graveyard: Use Underworld Breach for recursion loops. Entomb key creatures like Wonder (flying) or Anger (haste) to enhance your board.
• Protect Combos: Sacrifice outlets like Viscera Seer enable instant-speed responses to removal. Counterspell and Rakdos Charm protect critical turns.
• Maximize Ring Tempts: Each temptation grows Nazgûl and fuels Sauron's draw. Gollum, Patient Plotter and Sam's Desperate Rescue provide repeatable tempts.
• Tutor Wisely: Razaketh, Rune-Scarred Demon, and Wishclaw Talisman fetch combo pieces or answers. Opposition Agent steals opponents' searches.
• Manage Resources: Use Windfall/Dark Deal to refill and disrupt opponents. Teferi's Ageless Insight doubles Sauron's draw triggers.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Graveyard hate (Rest in Peace, Leyline of the Void) cripples recursion, combos, and Underworld Breach.
• Enchantment/artifact removal targeting Phyrexian Altar, Bastion, or Call of the Ring disrupts engines.
• Board wipes devastate the army/aristocrat strategy due to low creature toughness.

Moderate

• Anti-sacrifice effects (Tajuru Preserver) halt combo lines.
• Counter-heavy decks can interrupt key sorceries/reanimation spells.
• Land destruction exploits the slow mana base (9 taplands).

Minor

• Single-target removal is mitigated by recursion and redundancy.
• Life gain strategies can outpace drain effects without combo.

Most Important Cards:

• Phyrexian Altar (Combo enabler: infinite sacrifice loops)
• Pitiless Plunderer (Combo enabler: generates mana/Treasures on death)
• Gravecrawler (Recurrable combo piece/sacrifice fodder)
• Underworld Breach (Recursion engine for combo reassembly)
• Blood Artist (Primary aristocrats payoff)
• Bastion of Remembrance (Drain effect and token generation)
• Living Death (Mass reanimation/board reset)
• Entomb (Sets up graveyard for reanimation/combos)
• Razaketh, the Foulblooded (Tutor engine and win condition)
• Nazgûl (Scalable threat and Ring-tempting synergy)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10

• Capable of T7-8 wins via combo or reanimation, but slowed by taplands and high-CMC enablers. Fastest wins require perfect draws (T5-6).

Resilience: 5/10

• Recursion (Breach, Gravecrawler) and redundancy (multiple drainers) aid recovery, but heavily reliant on graveyard and vulnerable to hate.

Consistency: 7/10

• Abundant tutors (Razaketh, Wishclaw, Entomb) and card draw (Sauron, Windfall) reliably find key pieces despite the 9x Nazgûl slot cost.

Interaction: 6/10

• Efficient removal (Toxic Deluge, Bedevil, Snuff Out) and counterspounds cover most threats, but lacks stack control beyond Counterspell.

Rating Justification:

The deck achieves T7-8 wins through efficient combos and tutors, aligning with the "Focused" tier (6.0), but its vulnerability to graveyard hate and slower mana base prevent higher optimization. Resilience issues cap its ceiling despite strong consistency.

Power level: 6.0 - 6.5