TES Infernal Tutoring #67

Ethan Formichella

My first thought here is to think about whether or not this [[Tendrils of Agony]] can be lethal this turn. The Storm> checks out — we have seven spells in hand, and the copies of [[Infernal Tutor]] and [[Burning Wish]] are worth two Storm each (either they resolve and get another spell, or the opponent adds a Storm by countering them). The mana seems to check out — casting [[Tendrils of Agony]], [[Burning Wish]] and the cheapest spell that [[Burning Wish]] can get ([[Thoughtseize]]) costs seven mana, the first [[Infernal Tutor]] costs net zero mana and the second adds one mana (assuming each [[Infernal Tutor]] gets a copy of [[Rite of Flame]]) and we have nine mana available without [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] (five lands + [[Lotus Petal]] + [[Mox Opal]] + [[Mox Opal]] + first [[Rite of Flame]]) and we have available for [[Tendrils of Agony]]+[[Infernal Tutor]]+[[Infernal Tutor]]+[[Thoughtseize]]. Even if the first [[Infernal Tutor]] gets countered, the second is still mana‐neutral which means we have exact mana. If both copies of [[Infernal Tutor]] get countered, we’ll be short mana for [[Tendrils of Agony]], but we can use the [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] with [[Burning Wish]] to get [[Empty the Warrens]]]. We also likely need to use [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] with [[Burning Wish]] if the opponent has graveyard hate to cut off two of the [[Rite of Flame]] mana. One thing to keep in mind is that I don’t want to play the second [[Mox Opal]] until after I resolve my second [[Infernal Tutor]] because I want to be able to get [[Mox Opal]] if [[Rite of Flame]] is the target of a [[Surgical Extraction]]. This line is a disaster if we [[Burning Wish]] into [[Thoughtseize]] and see two copies of [[Force of Negation]], because we’ll be at exactly ten spells with [[Tendrils of Agony]] and they’ll be able to counter a copy and survive at one life, but I don’t think I’m interested in trying to play in a way that beats that hand.

Jordan Karim

With [[Infernal Tutor]] replacing [[Wishclaw Talisman]] for the time being, the mana production of [[Rite of Flame]] can be exploited more effectively. This should work out nicely for a natural Storm win. Let’s play it out step by step.

I would like to start with playing the land and casting [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] to provide Metalcraft]] and potentially bait out early countermagic. Next is an [[Infernal Tutor]] that (if it resolves) can find another copy of [[Rite of Flame]]. It can be cast now, followed up with the second copy of [[Infernal Tutor]] for an additional [[Rite of Flame]] that is cast along with the original from the floating mana (Storm 6 | ). We then can tap the [[Mox Opal]] for and cast the additional copy (Storm 7 | ). [[Burning Wish]] should be used now to either bait interaction or find a [[Thoughtseize]] to disrupt possible interaction from our opponent. We’ll assume we cast the discard spell for simplicity of mana tracking (Storm 9 | and available from [[Lotus Petal]] and [[Mox Opal]]). [[Tendrils of Agony]] is Storm ten that will be lethal. The only thing we would need to ensure is that a [[Force of Negation]] is discarded with our [[Thoughtseize]]. The life loss from [[Force of Will]] would take them to 18 life, so even if they removed a copy of [[Tendrils of Agony]], the other nine would still be lethal.

The potential for interaction on non‐Hellbent copies of [[Infernal Tutor]] exists. I think it would be very unlikely that our opponent chooses to interact at this stage of a combo turn. This is why leaning into using [[Burning Wish]] as the bait spell is where I would hope to find the most success. If they do chose to interact with one of them, pivoting into an [[Empty the Warrens]] strategy is possible. I would first like to play into a potentially lethal line.

Bryant Cook

Play [[Bloodstained Mire]] and then search out [[Underground Sea]].

I generally try to think of, “what could go, wrong?” While unlikely, our opponent could be reckless and just [[Force of Will]] our [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] out of the blue. Can we afford to play around that? In this scenario, the answer is yes. We should start by casting [[Infernal Tutor]] for a second copy of [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] and then playing both artifacts (Storm 3).

Tap [[Mox Opal]] for and then play the second copy of [[Mox Opal]] (Storm 4 — in mana pool). I would then use the floating mana and [[Volcanic Island]] to cast a second copy of [[Infernal Tutor]] revealing [[Rite of Flame]] (Storm 5). We’ll then tap the [[Taiga]] to cast both copies of Rite of Flame (Storm 7 — in mana pool).

Cast [[Burning Wish]] (Storm 8 — in mana pool). Our opponent likely has SOMETHING, but if they don’t, you can cast [[Grapeshot]] (Storm 9) followed by [[Tendrils of Agony]] (Storm 10).

Alex McKinley

This is quite a direct tutoring line! I would start by casting the [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]], then the [[Mox Opal]]. Making sure to tap only one black source, I would cast [[Infernal Tutor]] for [[Rite of Flame]]. Then cast one of the copies of [[Rite of Flame]], the other [[Infernal Tutor]] for another [[Rite of Flame]] and play the [[Bloodstained Mire]]. Cast both copies of [[Rite of Flame]], [[Burning Wish]] for [[Thoughtseize]], then cast the [[Tendrils of Agony]] from hand for lethal!

Alex Poling

I would lead off by playing [[Rite of Flame]] and then [[Infernal Tutor]] for [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]]. I could then play out both copies of [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]] to turn on [[Mox Opal]]. I would then use the second and the [[Mox Opal]] for [[Burning Wish]]. If all of this resolves I could get and cast [[Thoughtseize]]. This leaves the door open to [[Infernal Tutor]] for [[Ad Nauseam]] and try to [[Burning Wish]] for the [[Grapeshot]] or the [[Empty the Warrens]] since the [[Tendrils of Agony]] would go to the graveyard.

Oliver Everhard

I think we are 100 percent safe to assume our opponent isn’t on [[Daze]] (our [[Veil of Summer]] last turn would have been too good of a target). If they’ve got permission, it’s [[Force of Will]]. I want to play this in a way where something other than the [[Burning Wish]] eats the [[Force of Will]] if they’ve got it (I’m not playing around two [[Force of Will]] plus two extra Blue cards out of BUG Scam — sorry not sorry).

What I like about this position is, with [[Grapeshot]] still in the sideboard, we’re free to pivot to a [[Peer into the Abyss]] line if we eat a [[Force of Will]] early in the combo (and should always have the mana to do so). By the time we have all of our mana online late in the combo, that [[Force of Will]] should give us the mana we need to cast [[Tendrils of Agony]] for lethal from hand.

Ethan Formichella

This is another game where I think [[Tendrils of Agony]] is likely going to be lethal. I’m willing to be convinced that this is too bold of a play, but I’m thinking of leading on [[Burning Wish]] off of [[Underground Sea]] + [[Taiga]]. I think it’s pretty reasonable to say that we win this game if [[Burning Wish]] resolves at any point during this turn and we lose if not. I believe that the likelihood [[Burning Wish]] resolves is highest the earlier in the turn it’s cast.

Note: I don’t believe that the opponent’s deck is likely to be playing [[Daze]] or [[Spell Pierce]], and my sequencing would change if I were anticipating these cards.

I’ll cast [[Burning Wish]] and hope it resolves (and get [[Tendrils of Agony]] if it does). If the opponent counters with [[Force of Will]], I’ll cast [[Veil of Summer]], and if they have another response I’ll be passing feeling not great about my prospects in this game but thankful I at least didn’t commit all the copies of [[Dark Ritual]]. If [[Burning Wish]] does resolve, I’ll cast [[Lotus Petal]] — I don’t expect [[Lotus Petal]] to get countered but it is possible, and this is a case where once again I’ll [[Veil of Summer]] in response and have to pass if they have a second counter. I’m not feeling so defeated if I’m passing with six spells including [[Tendrils of Agony]] in hand. If the opponent is sitting on two counters, however, and let’s [[Burning Wish]] and [[Lotus Petal]] resolve, now they’re in trouble. Even if both get countered, I have five mana from artifacts (minus two mana for countered rituals and plus two mana for the successful one), meaning I’m beating two counters. The opponent can’t save their two counters to get two copies of [[Tendrils of Agony]] because I’ll cast [[Veil of Summer]] once my mana is set and they’ll have to fight over that and increase the Storm.

It’s worth noting that I’m losing on the spot to a [[Nimble Obstructionist]] activation here — I think it’s pretty unlikely that this is a card that my opponent is playing many copies of. I also think it’s pretty unlikely that they have a way of bouncing the one in play back to their hand. It’s possible that I should read the fact that they were willing to run one out into play as a sign that they have a backup copy, but I’m not convinced.

Jordan Karim

There is a lethal line here (actually several based on my fellow writer’s responses) that could play around the known [[Force of Will]]. We could even play something that leans more into the strengths of [[Galvanic Relay]]. I am a little concerned about the aggressive way that our opponent played out their [[Nimble Obstructionist]]. The [[Stifle]] effect would render any line moot. Because of that, I’m content actually not convoluting a winning position into a losing one because we were too hasty. Let’s allow the game to develop a little more first.

Bryant Cook

I would exercise patience here. We have [[Galvanic Relay]], [[Infernal Tutor]], and then additional copies of [[Burning Wish]] as well as [[Veil of Summer]] as incredible draws. Our life total is high, we don’t need to jam.

Alex McKinley

I would just start on [[Veil of Summer]] here. There is not a huge reason to invest heavily into going off this turn with this much life to play with and the opponent not having any obvious way of pushing forward. We are not color restricted and just have the one tutor effect in [[Burning Wish]]. If the [[Veil of Summer]] resolves, I would push hard into [[Galvanic Relay]]. [[Empty the Warrens]] is likely too answerable by something like [[Hidetsugu Consumes All]]. If the [[Veil of Summer]] does not resolve, I would not want to expose the [[Burning Wish]] to something like [[Hydroblast]].

Alex Poling

I would play out the [[Lotus Petal]] and then tap [[Mox Opal]] for red and play out the other two copies for more red mana and use two copies of [[Dark Ritual]] in order to [[Burning Wish]] for [[Galvanic Relay]] with [[Veil of Summer]] protection. I see no point in trying to go for a win here, but rather getting enough card advantage to win over multiple turns.

Oliver Everhard

I like jamming here. Three big reasons:

1. Our opponent has the five lands to hard‐cast [[Force of Will]], but is tapped out of it at present. This isn’t something we can guarantee ourselves in future turn. Meanwhile, we have plenty of mana to play around [[Daze]], [[Spell Pierce]] and other soft permission, perhaps even catching our opponent off guard with copies of [[Dark Ritual]].
2. [[Narset, Parter of Veils]] shuts off [[Brainstorm]], multiple [[Mishra’s Bauble]]/[[Urza’s Bauble]] activations in the same turn, and other paths to an extra out (either an extra payoff or another [[Veil of Summer]]) and every turn we give our opponent is a chance for them to draw into more [[Stifle]] effects or a [[Day’s Undoing]]
3. Because this hand isn’t reliant on [[Lion’s Eye Diamond]], we can actually save some of our resources for a future turn even if we fizzle.

Here’s how I’d play it out:

• Play your first [[Lotus Petal]]. Metalcraft is now active — float with the [[Mox Opal]]. (Storm 1 | Floating)
• Play another [[Mox Opal]] from hand and keep the untapped copy. (Storm 2 | Floating)
• Use the floating and your [[Underground Sea]] to attempt [[Burning Wish]] — when this inevitably eats a counterspell of some kind, use your [[Taiga]] to cast [[Veil of Summer]]. If facing any kind of soft permission, crack a [[Lotus Petal]] to fire off one or more copies of [[Dark Ritual]]. (Storm 5, assuming your opponent deploys [[Force of Will]] and no other spells)
• Assuming [[Veil of Summer]] resolves, you can get [[Tendrils of Agony]] with the [[Burning Wish]], and generate enough mana and Storm from the remaining cards in your hand for a kill. If it doesn’t, your opponent is down two [[Force of Will]] effects, is likely at a single card in hand, and you’ve got plenty of mana to turn an [[Ad Nauseam]] or another [[Burning Wish]] off the top into action.

Ethan Formichella

I believe that it’s a requirement here to use [[Chain of Vapor]] to bounce one of the copies of [[Narcomoeba]] while at least one of the other triggers is on the stack, otherwise we are just dead to [[Dread Return]] on [[Thassa’s Oracle]]. Unfortunately, I think we’re still pretty unlikely to win this game. Looking at the opponent’s graveyard, I suspect that their last card in hand is an [[Elvish Spirit Guide]] for their [[Memory’s Journey]], and they’re going to be able to [[Cabal Therapy]] us twice this turn. Even if the first copy misses, the second can take [[Infernal Tutor]] and leave us needing to top-deck a win or another [[Chain of Vapor]] to buy another turn. There’s some potential that the opponent casts their discard and [[Memory’s Journey]] in such a way that they reanimate a [[Thassa’s Oracle]] with cards left in library and lose to a top‐decked [[Chain of Vapor]] on the [[Thassa’s Oracle]], or don’t shuffle in any additional copies of [[Narcomoeba]] and lose to a top‐decked [[Thoughtseize]] on the one we bounced or to a top‐decked [[Chain of Vapor]] on a zombie token. Be aware that this is a possibility, and if we are in a position to [[Infernal Tutor]] with little mana left over, finding another [[Chain of Vapor]] and hoping they play into it may be a way forward.

Jordan Karim

First, I’m guessing at least one person will make a comment about [[Chain of Vapor]] needing to feature in any Infernal Tutoring article I write (perks of being the person that types this all up is that I know Bryant thinks so). This situation is a little more complicated than it may seem at first!

Of course, the first level of this situation is that with only three copies of [[Narcomoeba]] being returned to the battlefield (the fourth is underneath the [[Chrome Mox]]) and the Spy used being [[Undercity Informer]], they will only have three creatures on the battlefield — the minimum number to Flashback [[Dread Return]]. Because we have access to [[Chain of Vapor]] off of an [[Underground Sea]], we can strand one of these creatures in their hand! This would mean they can’t cast their game‐winning spell, losing to drawing from an empty library at the beginning of their next draw step. If only it were so simple.

The next level of this situation is the copy of [[Memory’s Journey]] in their graveyard. On the surface, they don’t have the mana required to use this tool designed to protect from exactly this situation. A more thorough glance through their graveyard shows the lack of a fourth copy of [[Elvish Spirit Guide]]. This is not likely a card they boarded out, so we can operate under the assumption that it is the unknown card in their hand. This would allow them to Flashback the [[Memory’s Journey]] and rebuy the [[Thassa’s Oracle]]. This seemingly simple puzzle has fangs.

If our opponent choses to Flashback their copies of [[Cabal Therapy]] with the two remaining copies of [[Narcomoeba]], they will likely strip the [[Infernal Tutor]] from our hand (if they’re lucky or skilled, they can hit two cards but I doubt this). From there, we have to start thinking about the cards they would rebuy with [[Memory’s Journey]]. [[Thassa’s Oracle]] and [[Lotus Petal]] are the cards that make the most sense — the win condition and the second Blue mana to cast it. Adding a [[Thoughtseize]] to the mix would allow for more variance in their draw and a higher likelihood we could assemble a Storm win. Because of the randomness of the shuffle, there is a 50%chance they draw the [[Thassa’s Oracle]] on their next turn and have to pass. We of course have a turn between then and now, drawing a random card off the top with our opponent’s hand being [[Elvish Spirit Guide]] and [[Narcomoeba]]. Our opponent will likely wait to Flashback [[Memory’s Journey]] until they absolutely need to, doing to in their Upkeep seems reasonable. Let’s look at a few situations that could occur based on what card they draw:

• Draw [[Lotus Petal]]: they cannot attempt a win here, but they can play out the [[Lotus Petal]] to play around discard. The goal here would be to play towards drawing a [[Burning Wish]] and a dual land that would allow us to cast [[Pulverize]]. Drawing another [[Chain of Vapor]] to bounce their [[Chrome Mox]] doesn’t work here because they have a [[Narcomoeba]] to exile to [[Chrome Mox]] to pay for the cost for [[Thassa’s Oracle]].
• Draw [[Thassa’s Oracle]]: the win condition will be stranded in their hand without the available to cast it. We can attempt to draw into a [[Thoughtseize]] and win the game through decking. Not the most exciting victory, but it would still count.

Either way, our outs are drawing to increasingly narrow odds. In fact, outside of the initial [[Chain of Vapor]] bounce, the majority of our gameplan is hoping that our opponent either makes a mistake or that we draw extremely well. Such is life! There’s still game to play in this situation, and it’s not over until it’s over. We could still win against a very poor matchup here in a very exciting way.

Bryant Cook

A classic Jordan “let me brag about this sick [[Chain of Vapor]]” scenario. We just [[Chain of Vapor]] a [[Narcomoeba]] before the final copy resolves and then our opponent loses the game to them decking themselves.

Alex McKinley

After the first [[Narcomoeba]] trigger resolves, I would cast [[Chain of Vapor]] targeting it. This prevents the opponent from flashing back [[Dread Return]]. With only one [[Bridge from Below]] in the graveyard, the opponent cannot generate more creatures. This leaves [[Memory’s Journey]] as the only way the opponent has to prevent themselves from losing the game. In their graveyard there are only three copies of [[Elvish Spirit Guide]], meaning that they can flashback the [[Memory’s Journey]]. It takes at least two turns after flashing it back, which should give us some draw steps to convert this [[Infernal Tutor]] into a win, assuming that the opponent does not completely strip our hand with their two copies of [[Cabal Therapy]].

Alex Poling

This is a great one! We can allow one [[Narcomoeba]] to enter play and while the other two are on the stack we can cast [[Chain of Vapor]] on the one in play to not allow the opponent to flashback [[Dread Return]]. The opponent does have the [[Memory’s Journey]], but no green mana, and would therefore lose on their next turn.

Oliver Everhard

[[Chain of Vapor]] the first [[Narcomoeba]] with the triggers for the other two still on the stack (the fourth is sitting under [[Chrome Mox]]). Our opponent won’t have the requisite creatures in play to Flashback> [[Dread Return]].

Notably, the last card in our opponent’s hand is almost certainly [[Elvish Spirit Guide]], as there are three currently in the graveyard alongside four [[Simian Spirit Guide]]. In a deck like this with no red pips, [[Simian Spirit Guide]] is an objectively inferior mana source, and it would have been sideboarded out before any copies of [[Elvish Spirit Guide]] were. We have outs though. A topdecked mana source of any kind ([[Lotus Petal]], [[Dark Ritual]], [[Rite of Flame]], or any land) means we’ll be able to deploy our entire hand and cast [[Infernal Tutor]] to get a [[Burning Wish]] for [[Grapeshot]], taking out the copies of [[Narcomoeba]] and shutting down our opponent’s plan.