Overview:

This Gruul deck helmed by Etali, Primal Conqueror employs a high-velocity "cheat and clone" strategy, leveraging explosive ramp to deploy Etali early and amplify its enter/combat triggers through token duplication. The deck wins through overwhelming value generation from stolen spells, poison counters via transformed Etali, and multiple infinite combos. Etali serves as both a value engine and win condition, with backup plans using Food Chain/Squee, the Immortal for infinite mana recursion and Dualcaster Mage/Twinflame for token swarms.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Explosive Ramp (Turns 1-3): Deploy 1-2 mana accelerants (Llanowar Elves, Wild Growth, Orcish Lumberjack), followed by 3-mana turbochargers (Goblin Anarchomancer, Food Chain, Seething Song). Target: 7+ mana by turn 3-4.
2. Etali Deployment (Turns 3-5): Cast Etali using cost reducers like Goreclaw, Terror of Qal Sisma or Rhythm of the Wild, triggering its cascade effect. Protect with Swiftfoot Boots or Heroic Intervention.
3. Value Amplification: Use Blade of Selves, Delina, Wild Mage, and Helm of the Host to create multiple Etali copies. Pair with Nalfeshnee for spell duplication and Panharmonicon for doubled triggers.
4. Win Conditions:
   • Poison Kill: Transform Etali (via Food Chain mana) for 7-poison combat hits
   • Infinite Mana Combos: Food Chain + Squee, the Immortal enables infinite Etali casts
   • Token Swarms: Dualcaster Mage + Twinflame or Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink creates lethal armies
   • Stolen Spells: Cumulative value from 3+ Etali triggers per combat

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2 lands + 2 ramp pieces (prioritize Food Chain, Orcish Lumberjack, or Selvala, Heart of the Wilds)
• Favor hands containing Cavern of Souls or Delighted Halfling against blue decks
• Reject hands without green mana sources or payoff enablers

Key Tips:

• Use Temur Sabertooth to bounce Etali before transformation to reset commander tax
• Hellkite Courser cheats Etali into play without tax increases
• Rogue's Passage ensures poison damage connects
• Jeska's Will provides burst mana/card advantage when cast post-Etali trigger

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Crippled by Drannith Magistrate/Archon of Emeria shutting off Etali's casting-from-exile
• Rest in Peace/Leyline of the Void disrupts Food Chain/Squee recursion
• Heavy reliance on commander makes Darksteel Mutation effects devastating

Moderate

• Board wipes reset cloned Etali armies (mitigated by Heroic Intervention)
• Torpor Orb nullifies Etali's cascade trigger
• Struggles against fast combo decks pre-turn 6

Minor

• Limited stack interaction beyond Red Elemental Blast/Deflecting Swat
• Color-intensive requirements strain mana base under Blood Moon

Most Important Cards:

• Food Chain (Infinite mana/combo enabler)
• Etali, Primal Conqueror (Value engine + alt win con)
• Squee, the Immortal (Combo piece with Food Chain)
• Blade of Selves (Multiplies Etali triggers)
• Helm of the Host (Persistent cloning engine)
• Dualcaster Mage (Combo finisher with Twinflame)
• Goblin Anarchomancer (Critical cost reduction)
• Delighted Halfling (Uncounterable Etali casts)
• Heroic Intervention (Key protection spell)
• Jeska's Will (Burst mana/card advantage)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 7/10
Capable of T3 Etali casts with perfect ramp, T5-6 infinite combos through Food Chain. Poison kills possible T4-5 with haste enablers.

Resilience: 5/10
Moderate protection suite and creature recursion via Eternal Witness, but over-reliance on Etali makes it vulnerable to repeated removal.

Consistency: 7/10
12 ramp pieces, 6 tutors (Worldly Tutor, Finale of Devastation), and strong card selection via Sylvan Library ensure key combo pieces are accessible.

Interaction: 4/10
Limited to targeted removal (Beast Within, Chaos Warp) and protection spells. Lacks board wipes beyond Blasphemous Act.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates at high-powered casual levels with T5-6 win potential through multiple avenues, but lacks the interaction density and compact combos of true cEDH builds. Its reliance on the commander and vulnerability to common stax pieces place it just below optimized competitive tiers.

Power level: 6.5 - 7.0