Top 10 Infinite Mana Combos

Mono-Green Burn with Mona Lisa, Science Geek

<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.robinhar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Robin Har</a></em></p>
<p>Do you like creature toolbox decks? How about low-color challenges in a format teaming with high-color piles? Last but not least, are you a fan of Pauper all-star <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Basking Broodscale" href="#" target="_blank">Basking Broodscale</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>?</p>
<p>Well then boy oh boy do I have a deck for you; let's talk about how to build <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> in cEDH.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat"></div></div>
<h2>What Does <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Do?</h2>
<p>For <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-1" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-bg" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-bg" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>, Long Feng, Grand Secretariat is a 2/3 legendary Human Advisor creature with "Whenever a creature or land card you control is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature you control."</p>
<p>On its face, Long Feng doesn't do terribly much. Competitive Commander isn't exactly stuffed full of +1/+1 counter synergies, save for a small handful of cards. Fortunately, that handful can be turned into brutally effective cards when put to good use, and Long Feng helps us do exactly that.</p>
<p>So, while playing a low-color deck can feel like a liability these days, Long Feng goes a long way towards allowing you to extract all the value possible from the Golgari value pile it assembles.</p>
<h2>Key Cards for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></h2>
<h3>Sacrifice Triggers</h3>
<p>First off, we need a way to actually trigger Long Feng. Fortunately for us, this can be done through two different ways: isolated instances, and outlets.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Verdant Catacombs"></div></div>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>An auto-include that also synergizes.</em></p>
<p>Starting with the isolated instances, the first batch of cards on our list are the fetch lands. Long Feng triggers whenever a creature or land is put into a graveyard, a notable addition to the common trigger condition of creatures dying.</p>
<p>In order to make the most of this (and to streamline our mana base), it goes without saying that this deck runs every fetch land it can get its hands on, plus <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="City of Traitors" href="#" target="_blank">City of Traitors</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> - a land that sacrifices itself when you play another land. Similarly, value pieces like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dauthi Voidwalker" href="#" target="_blank">Dauthi Voidwalker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can, in a pinch, turn themselves into that much-needed death trigger.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Yawgmoth, Thran Physician"></div></div>
<p>Looking at outlets, this deck includes value engines like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Yawgmoth, Thran Physician" href="#" target="_blank">Yawgmoth, Thran Physician</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Razaketh, the Foulblooded" href="#" target="_blank">Razaketh, the Foulblooded</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, each of which gain new life thanks to their costs of sacrificing creatures. On top of already being pretty excellent cards in their own rights, both also serve to place a +1/+1 counter at instant speed.</p>
<h3>Payoffs</h3>
<p>Once we get the +1/+1 counter engine going, two payoffs immediately pop out: mana and card advantage.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Basking Broodscale"></div></div>
<p>Starting with the premier mana advantage in the deck (and also a combo piece), we first come to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Basking Broodscale" href="#" target="_blank">Basking Broodscale</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Importantly, whenever this creature gets a +1/+1 counter placed on it, you'll create an Eldrazi Spawn token, which has "Sacrifice this creature: Add <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-c" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>."</p>
<p>Pair that with Long Feng's trigger, and suddenly you have an infinite mana engine. Sacrifice the Spawn, put the resulting counter on Broodscale, create a Spawn, then rinse and repeat.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Evolution Witness"></div></div>
<p>Next up, while it may not be a loop, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Evolution Witness" href="#" target="_blank">Evolution Witness</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> presents this deck with an excellent opportunity to recur cards repeatedly as the game goes on. A 2/1 for <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-2" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-g" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>, this creature has allows you to return a permanent card from your graveyard to your hand whenever one or more +1/+1 counters are placed on it.</p>
<p>Crack a fetch land? That lets you get a card back. Activate Razaketh? You can get a card back. Best of all, because of the way triggers can be stacked, you can return the same card you sacrificed with Evolution Witness's ability. (<em>The card will be put into a graveyard as part of the sacrifice cost, then Long Feng Will trigger, placing a counter. Last but not least, Evolution Witness will trigger, with the sacrificed card being in the graveyard and thus a valid target.</em>)</p>
<h2>How Does <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Win?</h2>
<p>Ultimately, winning the game with Long Feng comes down to one key card: Basking Broodscale. Like I mentioned before, this card, when paired with the deck's commander, produces infinite colorless mana, infinite enters triggers, and infinite leaves triggers.</p>
<p>So, without an infinite mana outlet in the command zone, how do we make use of this? There are two possible routes.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Walking Ballista"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Glaring Fleshraker"></div></div>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Walking Ballista" href="#" target="_blank">Walking Ballista</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is the most straightforward. Make an arbitrarily large amount of mana, pour the mana into an arbitrarily large Walking Ballista, then remove enough counters from Walking Ballista to deal sufficient damage to the rest of the table.</p>
<p>As for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Glaring Fleshraker" href="#" target="_blank">Glaring Fleshraker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, things are slightly more complicated, as the damage here is caused by having colorless creatures entering the battlefield (remember, the Eldrazi Spawn are colorless).</p>
<p>While both Walking Ballista and Glaring Fleshraker serve as two-card combos (not counting Long Feng), Glaring Fleshraker does have the slight downside of being stoppable by cards which prevent enters-the-battlefield triggers, a decently common stax effect in cEDH (whenever stax rears its head, that is).</p>
<p>Both of these combos are compact, cost effective (once you have infinite mana, the rest pretty readily falls into place), and, best of all, solely creature based.</p>
<p>cEDH is awash with noncreature interaction, but the suite of creature-counters (especially for nonblue creatures) is pretty limited.</p>
<h2><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Long Feng, Grand Secretariat" href="#" target="_blank">Long Feng, Grand Secretariat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> cEDH Deck List</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="There Are Lizards in Ba Sing Se" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Long Feng, Grand Secretariat
[/Commander]
[Instants]
*1 Ad Nauseam
*1 Cabal Ritual
*1 Chord of Calling
*1 Crop Rotation
*1 Culling the Weak
*1 Dark Ritual
*1 Deadly Rollick
*1 Entomb
*1 Force of Vigor
*1 Noxious Revival
*1 Rain of Filth
*1 Tainted Pact
*1 Vampiric Tutor
*1 Veil of Summer
*1 Worldly Tutor
[/Instants]
[Artifacts]
*1 Agatha&#039;s Soul Cauldron
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Blade of the Bloodchief
*1 Bolas&#039;s Citadel
*1 Chrome Mox
*1 Defense Grid
*1 Expedition Map
*1 Fellwar Stone
*1 Grim Monolith
*1 Lotus Petal
*1 Mana Vault
*1 Manifold Key
*1 Mox Amber
*1 Mox Diamond
*1 Mox Opal
*1 Sol Ring
*1 The One Ring
*1 Vexing Bauble
*1 Voltaic Key
*1 Wishclaw Talisman
*1 World Map
[/Artifacts]
[Enchantments]
*1 Animate Dead
*1 Carpet of Flowers
*1 Necropotence
*1 Survival of the Fittest
*1 Wild Growth
[/Enchantments]
[Creatures]
*1 Basking Broodscale
*1 Birds of Paradise
*1 Dauthi Voidwalker
*1 Deathrite Shaman
*1 Delighted Halfling
*1 Elves of Deep Shadow
*1 Elvish Mystic
*1 Elvish Spirit Guide
*1 Enduring Vitality
*1 Eternal Witness
*1 Evolution Witness
*1 Fyndhorn Elves
*1 Glaring Fleshraker
*1 Llanowar Elves
*1 Opposition Agent
*1 Orcish Bowmasters
*1 Razaketh, the Foulblooded
*1 Sylvan Safekeeper
*1 Walking Ballista
*1 Yawgmoth, Thran Physician
[/Creatures]
[Sorceries]
*1 Culling Ritual
*1 Demonic Tutor
*1 Diabolic Intent
*1 Eldritch Evolution
*1 Finale of Devastation
*1 Imperial Seal
*1 Nature&#039;s Rhythm
*1 Praetor&#039;s Grasp
*1 Reanimate
*1 Yawgmoth&#039;s Will
[/Sorceries]
[Planeswalkers]
*1 Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
[/Planeswalkers]
[Lands]
*1 Ancient Tomb
*1 Bayou
*1 Bloodstained Mire
*1 Boseiju, Who Endures
*1 Cavern of Souls
*1 City of Traitors
*1 Command Tower
*1 Deserted Temple
*1 Emergence Zone
*1 Forest
*1 Gaea&#039;s Cradle
*1 Gemstone Caverns
*1 Llanowar Wastes
*1 Marsh Flats
*1 Misty Rainforest
*1 Overgrown Tomb
*1 Phyrexian Tower
*1 Polluted Delta
*1 Shifting Woodland
*1 Spire of Industry
*1 Starting Town
*1 Swamp
*1 Talon Gates of Madara
*1 Urza&#039;s Saga
*1 Verdant Catacombs
*1 Windswept Heath
*1 Wooded Foothills
[/Lands]"></span></div>
<h2>Wrap Up</h2>
<p>Is Long Feng going to be the next top tier cEDH deck? No, definitely not. Is it a unique puzzle box of creature value that can readily create infinite mana with nothing but a two-mana Lizard and its commander? Yes, and that cost-effective exploit is something to keep an eye on.</p>
<h3>Read More:</h3>
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