Overview:

This Meren of Clan Nel Toth deck leverages graveyard recursion, sacrifice synergies, and attrition-based win conditions. It combines value engines like Grave Pact, Zulaport Cutthroat, and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed with reanimation loops and combo potential. While lacking cEDH-level speed or protection, it can generate overwhelming board states through persistent recursion and drain effects.

Primer:

Core Strategy: Grind opponents down via incremental value from death triggers and reanimation. Key lines include:

• Sacrifice Loops: Fleshbag Marauder/Plaguecrafter + recursion engines force repeated sacrifices.
• Combo Finishers: Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Ashnod's Altar + Blood Artist/Zulaport Cutthroat for infinite drain (undying non-Human creature loops).
• Mass Reanimation: Rise of the Dark Realms/Breach the Multiverse as late-game closers.
• Value Engines: Skullclamp/Grim Haruspex convert tokens into card draw, while Insidious Roots generates mana dorks.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Ensure early ramp (Birds of Paradise, Sakura-Tribe Elder) and a sac outlet (Viscera Seer, Woe Strider).
• Keep hands with at least one recursion tool (Animate Dead, Persist) or tutor (Diabolic Intent).
• Avoid slow starts reliant solely on Meren.

Key Tips:

• Use Protean Hulk to fetch Viscera Seer + Mikaeus, the Unhallowed for immediate combo setup.
• Prioritize Heroic Intervention when assembling critical pieces.
• Buried Alive can dump Kokusho, the Evening Star, Gray Merchant of Asphodel, and combo enablers.

Avoid Traps:

• Overextending before securing graveyard protection (Dauthi Voidwalker helps but isn’t sufficient).
• Casting Meren without sac fodder to protect her from removal.

Weaknesses:

• Critical: Graveyard hate (Rest in Peace, Leyline of the Void) cripples the strategy.
• Moderate: Heavy commander removal (3+ kills) stalls the engine.
• Minor: Limited counterspells for stack interaction.

Most Important Cards:

• Ashnod's Altar
• Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
• Protean Hulk
• Grave Pact
• Buried Alive
• Diabolic Intent
• Rise of the Dark Realms
• Animate Dead
• Skullclamp
• Heroic Intervention

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10
Can assemble combos by T6-7 with optimal draws. Early turns focus on setup rather than aggression.

Resilience: 5/10
Recursion provides recovery, but graveyard dependency creates fragility. Limited protection outside Heroic Intervention.

Consistency: 6/10
4 tutors and robust draw engines (Guardian Project, Midnight Reaper) provide redundancy. Sacrifice outlets and recursion are plentiful.

Interaction: 6/10
Efficient removal (Assassin’s Trophy, Toxic Deluge) and board control (Massacre Wurm), but lacks counterspells.

Rating Justification:

The deck outperforms optimized casual decks (5.0) with combo potential and tutor density but lacks the speed/protection of high-power builds. It stalls against fast combo decks but dominates midrange battles. Comparable to upgraded precons with focused synergies but not cEDH-viable.

Power level: 5.5 - 6.0