Overview:

This Orzhov Knight tribal deck leverages Aryel, Knight of Windgrace as a central engine for token generation and targeted removal. The primary strategy involves deploying Knight lords and anthem effects to build a formidable board presence, overwhelming opponents through combat damage amplified by finishers like Moonshaker Cavalry and True Conviction. Secondary win conditions include incremental life drain via Corpse Knight and Knights' Charge, alongside commander damage potential with Blackblade Reforged. Aryel acts as both a token generator and interactive piece, enabling the deck's go-wide strategy while providing removal. However, the deck heavily relies on its creature base, making it vulnerable to board wipes. Haakon, Stromgald Scourge serves as a "hidden commander," enabling graveyard recursion for Knights.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-4): Prioritize mana acceleration (Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Sword of the Animist) and foundational Knights like Knight Exemplar, Benalish Marshal, or Corpse Knight. Use Aryel's token generation ability ({2}{W}) to build board presence if mana permits.
2. Board Development (Turns 3-6): Deploy key anthem effects (Glorious Anthem, Vanquisher's Banner, Door of Destinies) and card advantage engines (Herald's Horn, Smothering Tithe). Utilize tutors like Thalia's Lancers to find critical pieces like Moonshaker Cavalry or Haakon. Leverage Haakon to recur Knights from the graveyard.
3. Win Condition Execution (Turns 6-9):
   • Combat Overrun: Cast Moonshaker Cavalry for a massive alpha strike, often lethal with a wide board. Alternatively, use True Conviction for double strike/lifelink or Valiant Knight's activated ability for double strike.
   • Incremental Drain: Leverage Corpse Knight, Knights' Charge, and Locthwain Lancer to chip away at opponents' life totals.
   • Commander Damage: Equip Aryel with Blackblade Reforged for potential 2-hit kills.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (including color fixing) and at least one early play: ramp artifact, low-cost Knight, or card advantage piece (Herald's Horn).
• Prioritize hands containing Knight Exemplar, Haakon, or a critical anthem effect.
• Avoid hands lacking early plays or reliant solely on high-cost finishers without ramp.

Key Tips:

• Protect Key Pieces: Use Swiftfoot Boots and Flare of Fortitude to shield Knight Exemplar, Aryel, or Moonshaker Cavalry. Teferi's Protection serves as a panic button against wipes.
• Maximize Haakon: Cast Haakon from the graveyard to enable recursive Knight casting. Pair with Skullclamp for card draw or Village Rites for instant-speed sacrifice.
• Leverage Synergies: Aryel's removal ability scales with Knight count—tap tokens to destroy larger threats. Use The Circle of Loyalty's affinity discount for explosive turns.
• Recover from Setbacks: Marshal's Anthem and Knights' Charge provide graveyard recursion. Liliana's Standard Bearer refills your hand after board wipes.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Severe vulnerability to board wipes (e.g., Blasphemous Act, Toxic Deluge) due to reliance on creature-based anthems and lack of mass recursion beyond conditional cards. Recovery is slow without Haakon.
• Graveyard hate (Rest in Peace, Leyline of the Void) cripples Haakon recursion, Marshal's Anthem, Knights' Charge, and Order of Midnight.

Moderate

• Anti-token strategies (Cursed Totem, Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite) shut down Aryel's primary ability and token synergies.
• Artifact/Enchantment removal disrupts key engines (Vanquisher's Banner, Door of Destinies, Skullclamp).
• Mana constraints for high-impact spells (Moonshaker Cavalry, Kindred Dominance) due to limited ramp.

Minor

• Flyers can chump-block effectively without consistent evasion beyond Moonshaker Cavalry.
• Combo decks can outpace this deck's combat-focused win attempts without sufficient stack interaction.

Most Important Cards:

• Knight Exemplar (Indestructible lord enabling board resilience)
• Moonshaker Cavalry (Primary combat finisher)
• Haakon, Stromgald Scourge (Graveyard recursion engine)
• Vanquisher's Banner (Card draw and anthem effect)
• Aryel, Knight of Windgrace (Token generation and removal)
• Corpse Knight (Incremental life drain)
• Skullclamp (Card draw engine with tokens)
• Benalish Marshal (Key anthem effect)
• Thalia's Lancers (Tutor for legends like Haakon or finishers)
• True Conviction (Combat finisher with lifelink/double strike)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 5/10

• Wins typically occur around turns 9-11 via combat overruns or incremental drain. High-cost finishers (Moonshaker Cavalry, Kindred Dominance) and reliance on board development slow the clock.

Resilience: 4/10

• Limited protection (Flare of Fortitude, Teferi's Protection) and conditional recursion (Haakon, Knights' Charge) offer some recovery, but board wipes often cripple the strategy due to anthem dependency.

Consistency: 6/10

• Tribal synergy cards (Herald's Horn, Thalia's Lancers) and card draw (Vanquisher's Banner, Skullclamp) provide reliable access to Knights and anthems, but lacks universal tutors for key non-Knight pieces.

Interaction: 6/10

• Targeted removal (Damn, Mortify, Fracture) and board wipes (Kaya's Wrath, Vanquish the Horde) are solid, but lacks counterspells and struggles against non-creature permanents. Aryel's ability offers scalable creature control.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates as a focused tribal strategy with clear combat/drain win conditions but lacks the speed, protection, and redundancy needed for faster metas. Its T9-11 win benchmark and vulnerability to common disruption align with the "Focused Casual" tier. Resilience issues prevent higher optimization.

Power level: 4.5 - 5.0