Dralnu, Lich Lord

$0.36

Dralnu taps to give an instant or sorcery in your graveyard flashback until end of turn, with the flashback cost equal to its mana cost. Every removal spell, counterspell and draw spell becomes two uses, though the second cast exiles the card. Damage that would hit Dralnu instead makes you sacrifice that many permanents, so burn and combat are rarely worth pointing at it unless the attacker is happy to trade board for board. The deck fills up on cheap interaction, card draw and self-mill so there is always something good to tap Dralnu for.

In the recorded games, Toxic Deluge was the reset button the deck reached for most, and Thought Scour and Deep Analysis kept cards flowing. After a wipe, Rise from the Tides or Living Death rebuilt a board, and Cabal Coffers paid for big turns. One list stacked Swarm Intelligence, Notion Thief and Clever Impersonator to bury the table in cards, and another used Paradox Engine to untap mana and chain spells toward a combo finish. Counterspells slowed down aggressive starts. The weak spot was sequencing: the deck has to protect key spells while it sets up, and an opponent who stayed under its sweepers or forced it to sacrifice permanents could get ahead.