Overview:

Varina, Lich Queen leads a Zombie tribal deck focused on generating massive zombie armies through token doubling, discard synergies, and graveyard recursion. The deck wins by overwhelming opponents with zombie hordes, draining life via ETB/death triggers, and leveraging powerful value engines like Anointed Procession and The Scarab God. While it lacks infinite combos, it can create explosive turns with Rooftop Storm and Necroduality.

Primer:

Core Strategy: The deck aims to flood the board with Zombies using Varina’s attack-triggered draw/discard engine, then amplify token production with Anointed Procession and Necroduality. Key phases:

1. Early Setup: Ramp with signets and lands like Cabal Coffers, then deploy zombie lords (Diregraf Captain, Undead Warchief) to buff tokens.
2. Token Swarm: Attack with Varina to draw/discard, triggering Bone Miser (tokens/mana), Dying to Serve (tokens), and Wayward Servant (life drain). Double tokens with Roaming Throne (Zombie type) and Anointed Procession.
3. Finishers: Overwhelm with zombie armies enhanced by flying (Geralf, Visionary Stitcher), drain via Corpse Knight, or recur threats with Gisa and Geralf. Rooftop Storm enables free zombie casting for explosive plays.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 3 lands, 1–2 ramp pieces (e.g., Sol Ring, Arcane Signet), and a zombie lord or token generator.
• Prioritize Varina-protection tools (Lightning Greaves, Swiftfoot Boots) in removal-heavy metas.
• Avoid hands without early zombie synergy or graveyard enablers.

Key Tips:

• Discard Strategically: Use Varina’s triggers to fuel Bone Miser, From Under the Floorboards, and graveyard recursion (Relentless Dead).
• Protect Engines: Save counterspells (Fierce Guardianship) for board wipes targeting your token doublers.
• Leverage Stax: Roaming Throne doubles death triggers from Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver and Headless Rider for exponential value.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Graveyard Reliance: Foldsto Rest in Peace or Dauthi Voidwalker, disabling Bone Miser, recursion, and Varina’s token ability.
• No Infinite Combos: Lacks deterministic wincons, relying on combat/grind.

Moderate

• Commander Dependency: Multiple Varina removals slow the engine despite zombie redundancy.
• Slow Recovery: Limited mass recursion outside Zombie Apocalypse.

Minor

• Mana Base Fragility: Cabal Coffers/Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth weak to Blood Moon/Field of Ruin.

Most Important Cards:

• Anointed Procession
• Necroduality
• Rooftop Storm
• The Scarab God
• Bone Miser
• Diregraf Captain
• Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver
• Smothering Tithe
• Roaming Throne
• Grave Scrabbler

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10
Can swarm 10+ Zombies by T6–7 but lacks T3–4 explosive combos. Fast mana (Sol Ring) enables early Varina casts.

Resilience: 6/10
Recursion (Relentless Dead, Unholy Grotto) and counterspells mitigate disruption, but graveyard reliance remains a vulnerability.

Consistency: 7/10
12+ zombie lords, 6 token doublers, and Varina’s draw engine ensure steady threats. Limited tutors for key enchantments.

Interaction: 7/10
Runs S-tier counters (Fierce Guardianship), targeted removal (Swords to Plowshares), and board wipes (Cyclonic Rift).

Rating Justification:

The deck executes a focused Zombie tribal plan with strong synergy and interaction but lacks cEDH-speed combos or stax locks. Its resilience to mid-power disruption and ability to generate overwhelming board states align with optimized casual play.

Power level: 5.5 - 6.5