Overview:

This mono-black deck leverages Gollum, Obsessed Stalker as a persistent life-drain engine, combining lifegain triggers, mass life loss, and big mana synergies. The strategy revolves around dealing combat damage with Gollum (enabled by skulk/unblockable effects) to amplify end-step life loss based on gained life. Secondary paths include explosive X-spells (Exsanguinate, Torment of Hailfire), infinite combos with Exquisite Blood, and value engines like Bolas's Citadel. Gollum acts as an enabler rather than the core win condition, making the deck less vulnerable to commander removal but reliant on synergistic lifegain payoffs.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-4): Deploy mana accelerants (Sol Ring, Crypt Ghast, Cabal Coffers), Gollum protection (Lightning Greaves, Bilbo's Ring), and incremental lifegain/drain (Creeping Bloodsucker, Revenge of Ravens). Prioritize untapped Swamps and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth.
2. Midgame Amplification (Turns 5-7): Resolve key engines: Exquisite Blood (combo piece), Necropotence/The One Ring (card advantage), Bloodletter of Aclazotz (life-loss doubler). Attack with Gollum to enable end-step triggers. Tutor for combo pieces or Gray Merchant of Asphodel using Demonic Tutor equivalents (not listed but implied in strategy).
3. Win Condition Execution:
   • Infinite Combo: Pair Exquisite Blood with any lifegain trigger (e.g., Blood Artist, Gollum's end step) for an instant win.
   • X-Spell Finishers: Generate massive mana via Cabal Coffers/Nirkana Revenant to cast Torment of Hailfire or Exsanguinate for lethal.
   • Combat/Value Drain: Use Pestilence/Crypt Rats with lifelink creatures or The Meathook Massacre to whittle opponents while gaining life to fuel Gollum.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 3+ lands (including Bojuka Bog/Urborg if possible), early ramp (Sol Ring, Arcane Signet), and at least one lifegain/drain source.
• Prioritize hands containing Gollum + evasion (Access Tunnel, Bilbo's Ring) or a key engine (Exquisite Blood, Bolas's Citadel).
• Avoid hands lacking Swamp synergy, card draw, or proactive plays.

Key Tips:

• Evasion Is Critical: Ensure Gollum connects via Rogue's Passage, Access Tunnel, or Bilbo's Ring to enable the end-step trigger.
• Sequence Lifegain: Time lifegain (e.g., Revenge of Ravens triggers, Whip of Erebos activations) to maximize Gollum's end-step damage.
• Protect Combos: Deploy Exquisite Blood only when you can immediately trigger it or with backup (Darkness for combat protection).
• Leverage Citadel: Use Bolas's Citadel with top-deck manipulation (Lembas) and life-payment offset (lifegain) to cheat threats.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• No graveyard protection: Lacks Bojuka Bog immunity or recursion shields; exiled combo pieces cripple the deck.
• Minimal stack interaction: Cannot counter enchantment/artifact removal targeting Exquisite Blood or Necropotence.
• Board wipe vulnerability: Heavy reliance on creatures for lifegain/drain; recovery is slow outside Sheoldred, Whispering One.

Moderate

• Artifact/Enchantment dependence: Exquisite Blood, Necropotence, and mana doublers are prime removal targets.
• Life-total pressure: Aggressive decks can outpace lifegain, negating Gollum's damage potential.

Minor

• Limited creature removal: Relies on Toxic Deluge/Pestilence for wide boards; struggles with indestructible threats.

Most Important Cards:

• Exquisite Blood (Primary infinite combo piece)
• Cabal Coffers (Mana amplification for X-spells)
• Bolas's Citadel (Cheats mana costs, fuels wins)
• Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth (Enables Coffers/Stronghold, fixes mana)
• Necropotence (Unmatched card advantage)
• Torment of Hailfire (Scalable finisher)
• Gray Merchant of Asphodel (Life-swing devotion bomb)
• Bloodletter of Aclazotz (Doubles life-loss triggers)
• Crypt Ghast (Mana doubling, extort value)
• The One Ring (Card draw, temporary protection)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10

• Can win via infinite combo or X-spells as early as T5-6 with optimal ramp, but requires setup for Gollum triggers.

Resilience: 5/10

• Recursion (Whip of Erebos, Reanimate) and protection (The One Ring) exist, but core combos are fragile to targeted removal and lack redundancy.

Consistency: 6/10

• Strong draw engines (Necropotence, The One Ring) offset limited tutors; Swamp synergy ensures mana stability.

Interaction: 4/10

• Spot removal (Feed the Swarm, Defile) and board wipes (Toxic Deluge) are present but lack versatility and stack interaction.

Rating Justification:

This deck achieves focused T7-8 wins through combos and big mana but lacks the speed, protection, and redundancy for higher tiers. Its resilience is hampered by vulnerability to graveyard hate and key piece removal, placing it in the optimized casual range.

Power level: 5.5 - 6.0