MTG Foundations is a very powerful set that has brought a lot of potent designs to Standard. From new cards like Boltwave to potent reprints such as Burst Lightning, this set has had a major impact on the format.
This has given rise to a handful of brews and unique decks that didn’t exist prior to the release of MTG Foundations. For example, we recently discussed a strange Maze’s End strategy that made some noise on the MTG Arena ladder.
Well, today, we have another sweet one to dive into. This Jeskai value deck that made top 32 of a Magic Online Standard Challenge is capable of drawing a ton of cards. At the center of the card draw engine is none other than Arcanis the Omnipotent. In conjunction with an elite Wilds of Eldraine artifact, you’ll be able to churn through your library in no time. Let’s take a closer look at what this deck is all about.
Card Draw Galore
- Mana Value: 1U
- Rarity: Rare
- Card Type: Legendary Enchantment
- MTG Sets: Murders at Karlov Manor
- Card Text: When Proft’s Eidetic Memory enters the battlefield, draw a card. You have no maximum hand size. At the beginning of combat on your turn, if you’ve draw more than one card this turn, put X +1/+1 counters on target creature you control, where X is the number of cards you’ve draw this turn minus one.
At its core, this deck is looking to draw a bunch of cards over the course of the game. This deck is chock full of creatures that allow you to draw cards when they enter. This alets you fully maximize Proft’s Eidetic Memory, which you’ll find as a four-of in the decklist above.
Even though Kiora, the Rising Tide and Fear of Missing Out don’t technically generate card advantage because they force you to discard cards too, Proft’s Eidetic Memory doesn’t care. With the enchantment in play, all you have to do is play one of these creatures and you’ll get to accrue counters on it to make it that much more threatening.
Steamcore Scholar is another creature that works perfectly with Proft’s Eidetic Memory. As an evasive threat, this is a great place to put your +1/+1 counters.
Notably, between all of these discard outlets, it’s surprisingly easy to enable Threshold for Kiora or Delirium for Fear of Missing Out. This deck is quite synergistic, and we’re just getting started.
The Cauldron Package
- Mana Value: 3UUU
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 3/4
- Card Type: Legendary Creature- Wizard
- MTG Sets: Onslaught, Tenth Edition, Eternal Masters, Commander 2017, Dominaria Remastered, MTG Foundations
- Card Text: Tap: Draw three cards. 2UU: Return Arcani ro its owner’s hand.
Where things get really interesting is when you have access to Agatha’s Soul Cauldron. All of the cards mentioned above that let you draw and discard cards not only trigger Proft’s Eidetic Memory, but also let you discard cards to fuel Cauldron.
Worst case scenario, you can use Cauldron as a means of simply growing your creatures even further every turn cycle. Once you throw in Arcanis, the Omnipotent, though, things start to get out of hand.
The goal is to get Arcanis into your graveyard, then exile it with Cauldron. Then, every creature you control with a +1/+1 counter on it lets you Ancestral Recall turn after turn. This only makes Proft’s Eidetic Memory a bigger threat than it already was.
Beyond Arcanis, Cauldron combos nicely with Voldaren Thrillseeker as well. By exiling Voldaren Thrillseeker, you can start flinging your huge creatures to finish the opponent off. Of course, simply casting Voldaren Thrillseeker can be effective in some spots all the same.
Strengths and Weaknesses
- Mana Value: R
- Rarity: Uncommon
- Stats: 1/2
- Card Type: Creature- Human Monk
- MTG Sets: Khans of Tarkir, Iconic Masters, Time Spiral Remastered, Double Masters 2022, The Brother’s War
- Card Text: Haste. Prowess (Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, this creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn.)
Overall, this archetype has some pretty clear strengths and weaknesses. Its biggest strength comes from its ability to win the long game. Every single creature you play is a massive threat to the opponent thanks to Proft’s Eidetic Memory and Agatha’s Soul Cauldron. As such, outvaluing the opponent is trivial.
In matchups where you have time to set everything up, you’re in great shape. Midrange decks like Golgari Demons can have trouble pressuring you in the early game. Once you get Cauldron+Arcanis going, any incremental advantage the opponent has gained up to that point becomes quickly overshadowed.
This deck is also capable of putting a surprising amount of pressure on the opponent in short order. All the +1/+1 counter distribution adds up, especially when you have a turn one Spyglass Siren that can start growing as early as turn two.
The biggest problem this deck can run into, though, is in matchups where you aren’t given enough time. This deck is simply not well-suited to play from behind. Sure, you have Torch the Tower and Lightning Helix to buy time, but this often isn’t enough versus mono-red Prowess.
Creatures like Kiora and Spyglass Siren make for poor blockers against opposing Prowess beaters. Simultaneously, as good as Proft’s Eidetic Memory and Agatha’s Soul Cauldron are, they don’t help stabilize by themselves. It’s tough to find a window to play one of these cards without directly impacting the board.
So, an aggressive draw backed up by some removal spells is usually enough to get the job done versus this strategy. Nonetheless, this deck can make a great metacall if you expect to play against a ton of black midrange shells. There’s no denying how awesome it feels to draw a ton of extra cards, either, making it a neat option to break out at your next FNM.
