Overview:

This 5-color Reaper King deck focuses on Scarecrow tribal synergies and Changeling creatures to repeatedly trigger Reaper King's permanent-destruction effect. The strategy revolves around deploying cheap Scarecrows and Changelings (which count as Scarecrows) to control the board while leveraging flicker effects like Cloudshift and Momentary Blink to reset triggers. The deck aims to grind opponents out through attrition, with secondary win conditions including combat damage from buffed Changelings and saga payoffs like The Bears of Littjara. Reaper King serves as both the primary value engine and win condition, but its prohibitive 10 MV (even with cost reduction) creates significant tempo challenges.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-4): Prioritize mana fixing with lands like Command Tower and artifacts like Scuttlemutt. Deploy low-cost Changelings (Changeling Outcast, Mothdust Changeling) to start building board presence.
2. Midgame Control (Turns 5-8): Cast Reaper King using mana from Darksteel Ingot/Wild-Field Scarecrow, then chain Scarecrow/Changeling ETBs to destroy key permanents. Use Scaretiller and Blighted Woodland for land ramp.
3. Value Loops: Flicker Reaper King or key creatures with Otherworldly Journey/Flicker of Fate to reset destruction triggers. Recur creatures with Graveshifter and Thwart the Grave.
4. Win Conditions:
   • Grind opponents out of resources via repeated destruction triggers.
   • Swing with buffed Changelings enhanced by Drogskol Captain or Cairn Wanderer.
   • Resolve Duneblast or The Bears of Littjara (Stage III) for combat finishes.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 3+ lands including color-fixing (e.g., Opulent Palace, Command Tower).
• Prioritize early Scarecrows/Changelings (e.g., Scarecrow Guide, Changeling Berserker).
• Look for flicker spells or recursion to protect Reaper King.
• Avoid hands with only high-CMC cards or no mana fixing.

Key Tips:

• Use Scuttlemutt to enable all Reaper King's color requirements or disrupt opponents' creature colors.
• Crib Swap doubles as removal and a Scarecrow trigger.
• Chainbreaker synergizes with -1/-1 counters from cards like Blazethorn Scarecrow.
• Irregular Cohort creates two Scarecrow triggers for one card.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Extreme vulnerability to commander tax: Reaper King's 10 MV makes recasting prohibitive after 1-2 removals.
• Severely slow mana base: 19/38 lands enter tapped, delaying critical turns.
• Lacks win acceleration: No infinite combos or efficient combat finishers.

Moderate

• Fragile board state: Minimal protection spells and weak recovery from board wipes.
• Over-reliance on Reaper King: 70% of destruction triggers require the commander in play.
• Limited interaction: Only 5 counterspells/removal spells for non-creature threats.

Minor

• Party mechanic conflicts: Coveted Prize/Spoils of Adventure rarely achieve full value in this tribal build.
• Weak card advantage: Draw engines like Rush of Knowledge are situational.

Most Important Cards:

• Reaper King (Primary engine/win condition)
• Scuttlemutt (Mana fixing + Reaper King trigger enabler)
• Cloudshift (Protection + trigger reset)
• Crib Swap (Removal + Scarecrow token generator)
• The Bears of Littjara (Token generation + late-game damage)
• Scaretiller (Land ramp + synergy with tap effects)
• Cairn Wanderer (Adaptive threat with graveyard keywords)
• Duneblast (Board wipe that preserves your key creatures)
• Graveshifter (Recursion for Changelings/Scarecrows)
• Wild-Field Scarecrow (Mana fixing + land tutoring)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 3/10

• Wins rarely before turn 10+ due to slow mana, high commander cost, and incremental win conditions.

Resilience: 4/10

• Limited protection for Reaper King and few ways to recover from repeated board wipes, though flicker effects provide some redundancy.

Consistency: 5/10

• Tribal synergies create predictable plays, but lack of tutors and slow draw engines hinder game plan execution.

Interaction: 5/10

• Moderate permanent removal via Reaper King triggers but minimal stack interaction beyond Dispel/Negate.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates as Structured Jank (2.5-3.0) with a coherent theme but critical flaws in speed and resilience. While it can establish board control by turn 8-10, the lack of fast mana, commander dependency, and weak win conditions prevent higher competitiveness.

Power level: 2.5 - 3.0