Compared to the new mechanics that get released every set, many of MTG’s old mechanics seem laughably bad. Phasing, Cumulative Upkeep, and Echo, for example, generally add drastic downsides to cards that are already subpar. That said, there are a few old cards that turn these bizarre mechanics into upsides, making them both unique and powerful. Chronozoa, for example, can win games on its own thanks to flipping Vanishing on its head.
MTG Chronozoa
Unlike most cards that have Vanishing, Chronozoa doesn’t have a limited lifespan. Instead of the Illusion leaving play with no Time Counters, it essentially gets to replicate itself instead.
This turns the creature into a long-term win condition, slowly multiplying itself over time. However, it takes Chronozoa three turns to do this naturally, which is too slow for any format. Fortunately, manipulating Time Counters with the Time Travel mechanic can speed up this process, making Chronozoa a great addition to The Tenth Doctor decks. Other counter-removal mechanics, like those from Chisei, Heart of Oceans and Xavier Sal, Infested Captain, can also make Chronozoa a much more timely threat.
If you want to remove all of your Time Counters in one shot, turning towards Upkeep manipulation Commanders is your best bet. If Obeka, Splitter of Seconds connects with an opponent, for example, you can cycle through three Time Counters every turn. Speed this process up with cards like Paradox Haze and Extravagant Replication, and you can quickly swarm the board with Chronozoa tokens.
Even without tons of extra synergy, Chronozoa is simply a useful MTG card alongside Minn, Wily Illusionist. Not only will Chronozoa help you create a massive board of beefy Illusions, but you can cheat a bunch of cards into play, too. As if all this wasn’t enough, you can even make infinite Chronozoas with a couple of extra cards.
Making Infinite Chronozoas
If you don't want to wait multiple turns to amass your Chronozoa army, you can create infinite Chronozoas with Solemnity and Phyrexian Altar. Since Solemnity keeps Chronozoa from ever getting Time Counters, you'll always get token copies whenever you sacrifice it. Not only will this get you an infinitely wide board of illusions, but also infinite colored mana, making winning trivial. For a more direct win, Altar of Dementia can mill an opponent out, while Blasting Station is infinite damage.
If you want to go in a different direction, you can also get infinite Chronozoas by using The Tenth Doctor and Mana Echoes. Since Mana Echoes will provide eight mana when the new Chronozoas appear, you can easily activate The Tenth Doctor’s ability to remove the Time Counters. Since this will get you even more Chronozoas, this combo quickly creates infinite mana and bodies, enabling tons of win conditions.
Surprisingly Expensive
So long as you can speed up Chronozoa’s copy condition, the card can win games of Commander on its own. Despite this, however, Chronozoa doesn’t even see consistent play with the Commanders it works best with. Thanks to this, the card appears in just 7,920 decks according to EDHREC, which seems low for a semi-self-contained win condition.
Sadly, unlike most underplayed cards, Chronozoa isn’t exactly a budget option. Only printed in Planar Chaos, the cheapest copies of Chronozoa that are currently available go for $5, including shipping. Even at this price, however, the card can definitely do work, and is well worth considering for your deck.
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