Overview:

This Xantcha, Sleeper Agent deck focuses on political manipulation and forced combat, leveraging curses, goad effects, and Xantcha's life-drain ability. The primary win conditions involve incremental life loss through Xantcha's activated ability, amplified damage via curses, and explosive finishers like Torment of Hailfire or Insurrection. A secondary infinite mana combo with Basalt Monolith + Rings of Brighthearth enables unlimited Xantcha activations for instant kills.

Primer:

Core Strategy:
Deploy Xantcha early (T3-4) via rituals (Dark Ritual) and mana rocks (Sol Ring), then force opponents to attack each other with goad (Bloodthirsty Blade) while amplifying damage via Curse of Bloodletting. Use stax pieces (Meekstone, Smoke) to limit opponents' responses. Generate infinite colorless mana with Basalt Monolith + Rings of Brighthearth to activate Xantcha's ability repeatedly, draining opponents to death. Back this up with forced combat tokens (Rite of the Raging Storm) and theft effects (Captivating Crew).

Mulligan Priorities:

• 3+ lands (prioritize untapped BR sources)
• 1-2 ramp pieces (Sol Ring, Fellwar Stone)
• Early interaction (Go for the Throat) or curse (Curse of Opulence)
  Avoid hands without colored mana or slow starts (e.g., multiple 4+ CMC cards).

Key Tips:

• Activate Xantcha's ability on opponents' turns via Unwinding Clock/Voltaic Key.
• Use Heartstone to reduce Xantcha's activation cost to {2}.
• Protect infinite mana pieces with Red Elemental Blast or Rakdos Charm.
• Cast Insurrection as a surprise finisher when opponents have lethal boards.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Commander Dependency: Loses momentum after 3+ Xantcha removals
• Artifact Vulnerability: Key combo/stax pieces (Basalt Monolith, Rings) lack hexproof

Moderate

• Slow Recovery: Limited card draw outside Xantcha activations
• Stax Gaps: No Rule of Law effects to counter spell-based combos

Minor

• Mana Base: 12 ETB-tapped lands delay early plays

Most Important Cards:

• Basalt Monolith
• Rings of Brighthearth
• Torment of Hailfire
• Curse of Bloodletting
• Insurrection
• Unwinding Clock
• Heartstone
• Dark Ritual
• Demonic Tutor
• Rite of the Raging Storm

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10
Infinite mana combo enables T5-6 kills with protection, but requires 3 specific pieces.

Resilience: 4/10
Folds to repeated commander removal; limited free protection (only Red Elemental Blast).

Consistency: 5/10
2 tutors (Demonic/Diabolic) and artifact recursion (Buried Ruin), but no redundancy for key curses.

Interaction: 6/10
Efficient spot removal (Terminate, Go for the Throat) but lacks board wipes beyond Toxic Deluge/Storm's Wrath.

Rating Justification:

The deck has a cEDH-adjacent combo (Basalt+Rings+Xantcha) but lacks the speed, protection, and tutor density to compete above optimized casual levels. Its stax elements are situational, and reliance on Xantcha makes it vulnerable to focused removal.

Power level: 5.5 - 6.5