Overview:

This Heliod, Sun-Crowned deck utilizes a "forced draw" strategy to leverage Heliod's transformed cost reduction ability. The primary game plan forces opponents to draw excessive cards through symmetrical draw engines (Font of Mythos, Howling Mine) and wheel effects (Windfall, Day's Undoing), then deploys win conditions like Approach of the Second Sun or Psychosis Crawler at heavily discounted costs. Secondary threats include Eldrazi titans (Kozilek, Butcher of Truth, Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger) and stax pieces to survive the early game. Heliod enables explosive turns by reducing spell costs by {1} per opponent draw, acting as both an enabler and value engine.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Setup (Turns 1-4): Deploy mana rocks (Sol Ring, Talisman of Progress, Thran Dynamo) and symmetrical draw engines (Kami of the Crescent Moon, Rhystic Study). Protect life total with Ghostly Prison/Propaganda. Hold interaction like Fierce Guardianship for critical threats.
2. Transform Heliod (Turn 4-5): Cast Heliod using ramp, then activate transform ability (paying life if needed). Prioritize protection (Lightning Greaves, March of Swirling Mist) before transforming.
3. Force Mass Draw (Turn 5+): With transformed Heliod active, cast wheel spells (Windfall, Echo of Eons) or forced draw (Forced Fruition, Prosperity). These trigger cost reduction for win conditions.
4. Win Condition Execution:
   • Approach of the Second Sun: Cast for cheap (potentially {W}), then redraw/recast with library manipulation (Finale of Revelation, tutors).
   • Psychosis Crawler/Scrawling Crawler: Kill opponents via life loss during their draw steps.
   • Eldrazi/Stax Lock: Deploy discounted titans or Mycosynth Lattice + Darksteel Forge for indestructible artifacts.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands including color sources.
• Prioritize early ramp (Sol Ring, Azorius Signet) or a draw engine (Rhystic Study, Mystic Remora).
• Include at least one piece of interaction (Path to Exile, Arcane Denial) or protection.
• Avoid hands lacking ramp or with only high-cost win conditions.

Key Tips:

• Sequence Draw Engines: Deploy Smothering Tithe before symmetrical draw to generate Treasures.
• Leverage Cost Reduction: Cast Emergency Powers/Finale of Revelation with Heliod transformed for massive discounts.
• Protect Critical Turns: Use Fierce Guardianship and March of Swirling Mist to defend during combo setup.
• Recurse Wins: Commit // Memory and Echo of Eons can rebuy Approach of the Second Sun.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Enchantment removal (Nature's Claim, Disenchant) cripples key engines like Smothering Tithe, Forced Fruition, and Rhystic Study.
• Notion Thief or Narset, Parter of Veils nullifies forced-draw strategies and halts cost reduction.
• Aggressive decks can overrun defenses before stax/ramp stabilizes.

Moderate

• Graveyard hate disrupts Echo of Eons and Commit // Memory recursion.
• Rule of Law effects limit ability to chain draw spells/combo in one turn.
• Discard spells can strip win conditions from hand pre-combo.

Minor

• Land destruction slows ramp-dependent strategy but recoverable via Land Tax.
• Countermagic on key draw spells delays but doesn't permanently stop the engine.

Most Important Cards:

• Approach of the Second Sun (Primary win condition)
• Smothering Tithe (Generates mana from forced draw, enables big turns)
• Rhystic Study (Early draw engine, pressures opponents)
• Forced Fruition (Forces mass draw for cost reduction/life loss)
• Heliod, the Warped Eclipse (Cost reduction engine for entire strategy)
• Psychosis Crawler (Win condition leveraging forced draw)
• Windfall/Echo of Eons (Resets hands, enables cost reduction)
• Darksteel Forge (Protects artifact-based stax/ramp)
• Fierce Guardianship (Free protection for combo turns)
• Finale of Revelation (Draws into win conditions, enables Approach recursion)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10

• Can win via Approach or Crawler as early as turn 6-7 with perfect ramp/draw sequencing, but typically threatens wins turns 7-9.

Resilience: 5/10

• Has protection and recursion but heavily reliant on enchantments/artifacts vulnerable to removal. Recovers poorly from multiple board wipes.

Consistency: 8/10

• High density of tutors (Enlightened Tutor, Mystical Tutor), card draw, and redundant draw engines ensure reliable access to strategy pieces.

Interaction: 7/10

• Efficient counterspells (Fierce Guardianship, Arcane Denial), targeted removal (Path to Exile, Oblation), and stax (Aura of Silence) disrupt opponents effectively.

Rating Justification:

This deck achieves focused T7-8 wins through efficient cost-reduction combos and possesses strong consistency/tutoring, but its vulnerability to enchantment removal and slower setup compared to top-tier combos caps its power. Resilience issues prevent higher optimization.

Power level: 6.0 - 6.5