Overview:

This Orzhov lifegain/drain deck leverages Liesa, Shroud of Dusk's passive life loss effect and life manipulation synergies to pressure opponents. The primary win conditions are infinite combos using Exquisite Blood paired with Sanguine Bond/Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose, big mana spells like Debt to the Deathless, and incremental drain through cards like Marauding Blight-Priest. The deck features strong card advantage engines and lifegain redundancy but lacks consistent combo tutoring.

Primer:

Core Strategy:

1. Lifegain Engine Setup: Deploy early lifegain triggers (Soul Warden, Authority of the Consuls) and doubling effects (Rhox Faithmender, Boon Reflection).
2. Drain Conversion: Use payoff cards like Sanguine Bond and Vito to turn life advantage into opponent damage.
3. Combo Finish: Assemble Exquisite Blood + drain enabler for instant win or leverage massive Aetherflux Reservoir/Exsanguinate casts.

Key Lines:

• T2 Smothering Tithe into T3 Necropotence creates explosive card advantage.
• Bolas's Citadel enables topdeck plays while Archfiend of Despair amplifies life loss triggers.
• Celestine, the Living Saint and Veinwitch Coven provide graveyard recursion.

Mulligan Priorities:

1. Ensure 3 lands with WB access
2. Early lifegain engine (Soul Warden/Authority of the Consuls)
3. Card advantage piece (Black Market Connections, Dark Confidant)
   Avoid hands without lifegain triggers or mana acceleration.

Critical Sequencing:
Prioritize casting Liesa after establishing lifegain triggers to offset her life payment cost. Use Crypt Ghast/Mana Crypt to power out high-impact 6+ MV spells.

Weaknesses:

Critical:

• Relies on 2-card combos with limited tutors (only 3 combo pieces)
• Vulnerable to enchantment removal (Exquisite Blood is irreplaceable)

Moderate:

• Slow recovery from board wipes
• Life payment mechanics risky vs aggro

Minor:

• Graveyard recursion mitigated by multiple engines

Most Important Cards:

• Exquisite Blood
• Sanguine Bond
• Necropotence
• Smothering Tithe
• Debt to the Deathless
• Aetherflux Reservoir
• Bolas's Citadel
• Rhox Faithmender
• Archfiend of Despair
• Beacon of Immortality

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 7/10

• Can assemble T4-5 wins with perfect draws (Dark Ritual into early Exquisite Blood + Vito)
• Average goldfish win ~T7 via incremental drain

Resilience: 5/10

• Multiple recursion engines (Celestine, Veinwitch Coven)
• Folds to early combo piece removal
• No counterspell protection

Consistency: 6/10

• Strong card draw (Necropotence, Phyrexian Arena)
• Limited combo tutors (only Black Market Connections)
• 8 redundant lifegain triggers

Interaction: 5/10

• B-tier removal (Path to Exile, Toxic Deluge, Farewell)
• No stack interaction or protection

Rating Justification:

This deck sits between Optimized Casual (5.5) and Focused (6.0). While capable of explosive wins, its reliance on 2-card combos without free protection and limited tutors prevents higher optimization. It outpaces precons through lifegain synergies but struggles against tuned combo decks. The 7-speed/5-resilience balance aligns with 6.0-6.5 tier.

Power level: 6.0 - 6.5