Overview:

This Sultai (BGU) deck leverages Kotis, the Fangkeeper's combat damage trigger to exile and cast opponents' spells, supported by evasive creatures, +1/+1 counter synergies, and theft effects. The strategy focuses on ramping into commander-centric voltron elements while disrupting opponents through targeted removal and resource denial.

Primer:

Core Strategy:
Deploy Kotis by turn 3-4 using efficient ramp (Birds of Paradise, Sol Ring), then amplify its damage output via equipment (Blackblade Reforged, Inquisitor's Flail). Use evasion enablers like Shizo, Death's Storehouse and Brotherhood Regalia to connect for critical damage triggers. Secondary theft engines (Brainstealer Dragon, Thief of Sanity) provide alternative value streams. The deck aims to overwhelm opponents with stolen resources while protecting its engine through free counterspells (Fierce Guardianship) and hexproof grants.

Key Lines:

1. Early Game: Prioritize mana acceleration and protection (T1 Sol Ring → T2 Swiftfoot Boots → T3 Kotis).
2. Midgame: Equip Kotis with Power Fist/Bear Umbra to enable large damage triggers. Use The Ozolith to preserve counters through removal.
3. Late Game: Cast high-impact stolen spells via Kotis triggers or Villainous Wealth, leveraging Gonti, Canny Acquisitor's cost reduction.

Mulligan Priorities:

• 3 lands with at least two colors
• 1 ramp piece (Birds of Paradise > Cultivate)
• 1 protection/evasion enabler (Guardian Augmenter, Shizo)
  Reject hands without early mana development or commander protection.

Critical Interactions:

• Kodama of the West Tree turns modified Kotis into a land-searching trampler
• Felix Five-Boots doubles Kotis' damage-trigger value
• Mercurial Spelldancer copies key stolen instants/sorceries

Avoid Traps:

• Overcommitting to non-evasion creatures before establishing Kotis
• Holding interaction too long - prioritize protecting Kotis over disrupting opponents

Weaknesses:

Critical:

• Heavy commander dependency (60% of cards require Kotis triggers)
• Limited board wipe recovery (only 3 mass removal spells)

Moderate:

• Vulnerable to sacrifice effects bypassing indestructible
• Theft strategy inconsistency against creature-light decks

Minor:

• Basic-heavy manabase weak to Blood Moon
• Some high-CMC spells conflict with Kotis' X restriction

Most Important Cards:

• Blackblade Reforged
• Demonic Tutor
• Fierce Guardianship
• Vampiric Tutor
• Bear Umbra
• Swiftfoot Boots
• Inquisitor's Flail
• Opposition Agent
• The Ozolith
• Bribery

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10
Can establish game-winning theft engines by T6-7 through Kotis triggers. Lacks T3-4 combo potential but accelerates into impactful midgame turns.

Resilience: 5/10
While Kotis is indestructible, the deck struggles after 2+ removals. Limited recursion outside Reanimate. Free counterspells provide some protection.

Consistency: 7/10
10 tutors (including Imperial Seal, Demonic Tutor) and 6 card draw engines enable reliable access to key pieces. Theft effects provide inherent redundancy.

Interaction: 7/10
14 targeted removals (Assassin's Trophy, Deadly Rollick) and 8 counterspells (Mana Drain, Swan Song) with S-tier efficiency. Lacks board wipe redundancy.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates at the upper end of optimized casual (5.0) through its tutor density and efficient interaction, but commander dependency and midrange speed prevent higher rankings. It consistently threatens wins via stolen resources T8-10 but falters against early stax. Comparable to rubric's 5.5 (High-Power Casual) in threat quality but lacks the speed of true cEDH.

Power level: 5.5 - 6.0