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COMMANDER(S)
Teval, the Balanced Scale
QR Code
B G U
- Sultai
Created by  StormNRG
Info
Bracket
6.5 - 7.0
Bracket 3
Combo Combo(s) Found: Loading...
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Average CMC Average CMC
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ANALYSIS

Overview:

This Sultai graveyard/combo deck leverages Teval's milling and token generation to fuel recursive value engines and explosive combo finishes. It combines zombie synergies, land recursion, and multiple infinite loops to overwhelm opponents through attrition or sudden wins.

Primer:

Core Strategy: The deck operates in three phases:

  1. Graveyard Setup: Use self-mill (Sidisi, Brood Tyrant, Underrealm Lich) and entomb effects (Entomb, Buried Alive) to stock the yard with key creatures and combo pieces.
  2. Engine Activation: Deploy recursion engines (Muldrotha, Conduit of Worlds) and token generators (Parallel Lives, Wilhelt) while assembling infinite combos:
    • Phyrexian Altar + Gravecrawler + Teval = Infinite mana/zombies
    • Altar of Dementia + Reassembling Skeleton = Infinite mill
  3. Win Conversion: Convert resources into victory via Torment of Hailfire, Craterhoof Behemoth, or Syr Konrad triggers.

Mulligan Priorities:

  • Keep hands ent entomb/self-mill effects or combo enablers
  • Ensure land recursion (Witch's Cottage, Undergrowth Recon) to enable Teval triggers
  • Prioritize early Sol Ring/Arcane Signet for explosive starts

Key Tips:

  • Use Teval's attack trigger to recur utility lands like Glacial Chasm for protection
  • Chain zombie tokens into Ashnod's Altar for explosive mana
  • Protect combo turns with Heroic Intervention and Constant Mists

Weaknesses:

Critical:

  • Graveyard hate (Rest in Peace) completely dismantles the strategy
  • Relies on 0-protection artifacts for combos (Altars)

Moderate:

  • Slow recovery from board wipes
  • Limited stack interaction for protecting combos

Minor:

  • Some mana-intensive pieces (Sheoldred)

Most Important Cards:

  • Phyrexian Altar
  • Gravecrawler
  • Altar of Dementia
  • Torment of Hailfire
  • Entomb
  • Buried Alive
  • Parallel Lives
  • Craterhoof Behemoth
  • Syr Konrad, the Grim
  • Muldrotha, the Gravetide

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 7/10

  • Can goldfish T5 wins via Altar combos
  • Multiple X-spell finishers scale with game length

Resilience: 6/10

  • Redundant recursion engines but vulnerable to grave hate
  • Limited protection for combo pieces

Consistency: 7/10

  • 8+ tutors and extensive card selection
  • Multiple overlapping combo lines

Interaction: 5/10

  • Minimal stack interaction (Soul Manipulation only)
  • Strong board control via Sheoldred/sacrifice effects

Rating Justification:

This deck sits between Optimized (6.5) and Focused Competitive (7.0) tiers. While it lacks free interaction and has graveyard vulnerabilities, its redundant combo lines and T5 goldfish potential exceed typical Optimized decks. The presence of cEDH-adjacent combos (Altar/Gravecrawler) and high tutor density push it toward the upper end of optimized builds, but reliance on sorcery-speed setups keeps it below true cEDH viability.

Power level: 6.5 - 7.0

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DECK LIST
Teval, the Balanced Scale
Creature: 22
($60.99)
1
Bloodghast
B B
1
Craterhoof Behemoth
5 G G G
1
Eternal Witness
1 G G
1
Genesis
4 G
1
Gravecrawler
B
1
Lost Monarch of Ifnir
3 B
1
Master of Death
1 U B
1
Muldrotha, the Gravetide
3 B G U
1
Narcomoeba
1 U
1
Prized Amalgam
1 U B
1
Reassembling Skeleton
1 B
1
Scourge of Nel Toth
5 B B
1
Scute Swarm
2 G
1
Sheoldred, Whispering One
5 B B
1
Sidisi, Brood Tyrant
1 B G U
1
Skull Prophet
B G
1
Snarling Gorehound
B
1
Syr Konrad, the Grim
3 B B
1
The Scarab God
3 U B
1
Tormod, the Desecrator
3 B
1
Underrealm Lich
3 B G
1
Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver
2 U B
Artifact: 9
($100.93)
1
Altar of Dementia
2
1
Amulet of Vigor
1
1
Arcane Signet
2
1
Ashnod's Altar
3
1
Conduit of Worlds
2 G G
1
Hedge Shredder
2 G G
1
Lightning Greaves
2
1
Phyrexian Altar
3
1
Sol Ring
1
Enchantment: 11
($98.53)
1
Curse of the Restless Dead
2 B
1
Doubling Season
4 G
1
Insidious Roots
B G
1
Out of the Tombs
2 B
1
Oversold Cemetery
1 B
1
Parallel Lives
3 G
1
Path of Discovery
3 G
1
Search for Azcanta // Azcanta, the Sunken Ruin
1 U
1
Spelunking
2 G
1
Sultai Ascendancy
B G U
1
Undergrowth Recon
1 G G
Instant: 6
($33.88)
1
Constant Mists
1 G
1
Crop Rotation
G
1
Entomb
B
1
Heroic Intervention
1 G
1
Noxious Revival
G/P
1
Soul Manipulation
1 U B
Sorcery: 16
($76.51)
1
Bala Ged Recovery // Bala Ged Sanctuary
2 G
1
Buried Alive
2 B
1
Deadly Brew
B G
1
Dread Return
2 B B
1
Exsanguinate
X B B
1
Farseek
1 G
1
Finale of Devastation
X G G
1
Nature's Lore
1 G
1
Reanimate
B
1
Rise of the Witch-king
2 B G
1
Stitch Together
B B
1
Three Visits
1 G
1
Torment of Hailfire
X B B
1
Unmarked Grave
1 B
1
Urborg Repossession
B
1
Victimize
2 B
Land: 35
($393.23)
1
Breeding Pool
1
Command Tower
1
Drownyard Temple
1
Fabled Passage
1
Field of the Dead
1
Forest
1
Glacial Chasm
1
Haunted Fengraf
1
Hedge Maze
1
Island
1
Lotus Field
1
Misty Rainforest
1
Morphic Pool
1
Mortuary Mire
1
Mystic Sanctuary
1
Overgrown Tomb
1
Path of Ancestry
1
Polluted Delta
1
Port of Karfell
1
Reflecting Pool
1
Rejuvenating Springs
1
Strip Mine
1
Swamp
1
Tomb Fortress
1
Undercity Sewers
1
Underground Mortuary
1
Undergrowth Stadium
1
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1
Urza's Saga
1
Verdant Catacombs
1
Wasteland
1
Watery Grave
1
Witch's Cottage
1
Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth
1
Zagoth Triome

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