Overview:

This Selesnya (GW) deck revolves around Sergeant John Benton, leveraging aggressive ramp to deploy Benton early and utilizing an extensive suite of pump/protection spells to maximize his combat damage triggers. The primary strategy involves enhancing Benton's power to draw massive amounts of cards while threatening commander damage kills or enabling secondary beaters. Benton acts as the linchpin for card advantage and win acceleration, though the deck lacks redundancy if he's repeatedly removed. Secondary themes include land acceleration and combat-trick-based removal.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Ramp (Turns 1-3): Prioritize mana dorks (Arbor Elf, Llanowar Elves, Fyndhorn Elves) or land accelerators (Arboreal Grazer, Sakura-Tribe Scout). Use Sol Ring, Utopia Sprawl, or Wild Growth for explosive starts. Aim to cast Benton by turn 2-3.
2. Commander Setup (Turns 3-4): Deploy Benton with protection backup (Tamiyo's Safekeeping, Snakeskin Veil). Equip haste enablers if needed (Benton has native haste).
3. Draw Engine Activation (Turns 4-6): Attack with Benton, using pump spells (Might of Oaks, Titanic Growth, Exponential Growth) to maximize damage and card draw. Prioritize hexproof/indestructible (Tyvar's Stand, Overprotect) when attacking into open mana.
4. Win Condition Execution:
   • Commander Damage: Pump Benton to 11+ power quickly for two-hit kills. Use evasion grants (Wing It) if blocked.
   • Combat Overflow: Draw into finishers like Choose Your Weapon or Indomitable Might on secondary creatures. Leverage double-strike enablers (Duelist's Heritage, Twinblade Blessing) for burst damage.
   • Politicized Draw: Force opponents to draw excessively, leveraging your protection to out-resource them.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (including GW sources), 1-2 ramp pieces, and Benton + 1 protection/pump spell.
• Prioritize hands with Sol Ring, Arbor Elf, or Utopia Sprawl for T2 Benton.
• Avoid hands lacking ramp, protection, or Benton.

Key Tips:

• Protect Aggressively: Cast Benton only with backup (e.g., Blossoming Defense). Use Crop Rotation for Sejiri Shelter if needed.
• Pump Sequencing: Stack multiple pumps pre-combat (e.g., Mutagenic Growth + Giant Growth) to surprise opponents and maximize draw.
• Recursion: Use Nostalgic Dreams/Noxious Revival to rebuy key pumps or protection.
• Land Acceleration: Summer Bloom enables explosive turns with land-fetchers like Sakura-Tribe Scout.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Commander Dependency: Benton removal cripples card draw/win conditions. Limited recursion/protection redundancy.
• Minimal Interaction: Lacks board wipes, artifact/enchantment removal (only Fragmentize/Nature's Claim), and counterspells.
• Weak to Stax: Rule of Law/Eidolon of Rhetoric prevent pump stacking; Cursed Totem shuts down dorks.

Moderate

• Board Wipe Vulnerability: Low creature count (only 10 non-ramp) and no mass recursion make recovery difficult.
• Graveyard Reliance: Recursion spells (Nostalgic Dreams) are easily disrupted by common hate.

Minor

• Life Loss: Pain lands (Brushland) and depletion lands (Remote Farm) add up in prolonged games.
• Fliers: Limited reach options beyond Gift of the Viper.

Most Important Cards:

• Sergeant John Benton (Card draw engine/win con)
• Tyvar's Stand (Scaling protection/pump)
• Exponential Growth (Massive power boost for lethal/card draw)
• Duelist's Heritage (Double strike enabler)
• Sol Ring (Early ramp)
• Utopia Sprawl (Mana acceleration)
• Tamiyo's Safekeeping (Protection + lifegain)
• Crop Rotation (Tutor land-based protection/ramp)
• Summer Bloom (Explosive land drops)
• Nostalgic Dreams (Graveyard recursion)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10

• Can deploy Benton T2-3 and threaten lethal commander damage by T5-6 with ideal pumps, but relies on combat and lacks combos.

Resilience: 3/10

• Protection spells offer temporary safety, but Benton's centrality and minimal recursion make the deck fold to repeated removal or board wipes.

Consistency: 5/10

• Abundant ramp ensures early Benton, and pump density supports the game plan, but lacks tutors for key protection or finishers.

Interaction: 2/10

• Almost no removal beyond combat tricks (Ram Through) and 2-3 targeted spells. Relies on protection to stall rather than disrupt opponents.

Rating Justification:

The deck achieves T5-6 wins with Benton pumps but crumbles to interaction due to low resilience and minimal protection redundancy. Its speed aligns with Focused (6.0), but critical weaknesses and inconsistency place it lower.

Power level: 4.0 - 4.5