Magic Deck Vortex: Onslaught Block Combos

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Onslaught Block Combos. last updated 9/6/04
Long-Term Plans - Brainstorm
Was Wizards of the Coast thinking when they gave blue this card? I don't know. Well, with brainstorm, you can retrieve your investment that same turn. The Long-Term Plans only makes the card third from the top, so you can cast Brainstorm and draw three cards and put any two from your hand back on top of your library. How's that for a blue demonic tutor (for 2UU)?
Did you know...?
Did you know the MDV DECK LINK, if located on the left of the description, will take you to a deck using the combo. Not all decks are centered around that particular combo. This offers you the quickest way to find a deck to help you out with your own deck list. If the MDV DECK LINK is to the right this means I am searching for a deck for that combo or I am in the process of adding it to the database. I encourage you not to copy any deck on Magic Deck Vortex, but to use it as a reference for your own playing style and group. Thanks for visiting magicdeckvortex.com.
Skirk Fire Marshall - Spirit Link
Talk about major life gaining. Say you have 10 creatures on the board in a multiplayer game and Spirit Link on your Skirk Fire Marshall. For each point of damage dealt, you gain that much damage. So 10 damage to yourself+10 damage to each other player+ so much damage to 10 creatures (lets assume each actually takes 3)... then you gain like 70 life (assuming about 4 players in the game). Nice, eh?
False Cure - Congregate
The basic combo is False Cure - Congregate. Any other card that generates creatures helps the concept out. Basically, Cast the False Cure followed by a Congregate and target your opponent. Watch them quickly wither in life as you deal 2 damage to them for each creature in play. Talk about a dangerous combo. With the Breeding Pit or Nuisance Engine, you can increase the number of creatures in play which thus increases the damage you deal with the combo.
Rotlung Reanimator - Gravespawn Sovereign
Rotlung Animator is amazing. He aids your Sovereign Zombie Lord by feeding his ability with Zombies. I would list the cleric to use in this combo, but the only obvious one I will list is the Cabal Archon. He is one the best controllable clerics with Rotlung Animator.
Sneak Attack - Symbiotic Wurm
Sneak attack you Wurm and get a plethora of little insect critters.. and it doesn't hurt that the Wurm is a 7/7 creature.
Biorhythm - Evacuation
During your opponent's turn, evacuate all creatures. Then on your turn cast a creature and play Biorhythm... your opponent dies and then you survive with one life. If you don't know what it does, click on the card!
Death Match - Symbiotic Creatures
With the Symbiotic Creatures like the Wurm, Elf and Beast you can sack them (controllably with the Death Match) or with the advantage of your opponent trying to rid you of your creatures. Then BAM! You drop X Insect tokens into play and throw it back in their face. Other creatures that work well with Death Match include Tetravus and Pentavus.
Wrath of God - Mobilization
Remember Counter-Post? Using this combo you are on your way to Counter Post all over again.. but instead it would be called Counter-Mobilization. Check out this deck submission found on brainburst.com using this concept. Lots of blue - lots of control!
Weathered Wayfarer - Fetch lands or Urza's lands
Weathered Wayfarer is like the new Land Tax creature. Although you have to tap it and pay a white mana, its still great. Use the pain lands to keep your land count low in the beginning and keep using your Wayfarer to keep fetching them. Note that you can search for any land, not just basic land. Particularly, this works REALLY well with the Urza's lands from Eighth Edition.
Erratic Explosion - Draco / Worldly Tutor
When I first saw this card, I though EWW! That's stupid. When I say this card I mean Kaboom or Erratic Explosion. Well... with the proper spells you can search through you library for one of the most expensive cards ever (like Draco) or the Winds... and then KABOOM! You opponent won't know what hit him/her!!! Cards like Sage Aven and Soothsaying help to find that expensive card too. Erratic Explosion is like the deck version of random hand card: Pyromancy. I like it a lot (Think English accent). =)
Astral Slide - Cartographer
Cycle land... phase out Cartographer... at end of turn, return cycling land back to hand.. cycle land during your opponent's turn... phase out cartographer... repeat. This isn't the actual use of the card, but the concept is there. Find creatures with cool comes into play effects like Keldon Champion or the like and use this great card, Astral Slide to combo with it!
Enchantress's Presence - Words of Wind
Play an enchantment draw a card. Instead of drawing a card, return the enchantment back to you hand or return an opponent's card to their hand... repeat and rinse.
Mistform Ultimus - Tribal Golem
Would you like to get the most use out of your Golem.. aka junk rare in my eyes? Put him in a deck with the Mistform Ultimus. The Golem's requirements are thus all checked ok for, and you now have a 4/4 trampling, hasty, first striking, flying and regenerating golem!
Kilnmouth Dragon - Temper
I can't say the Kilnmouth dragon is my favorite, but he definitely is a big league contender in an all dragon deck. Splash a little white and tap the Dragon to damage to itself. Then, temper it. Add that many counters on it and start targeting your opponent on the next turn. The deck link here links to a deck from the Temper Temper deck building contest is 2003.
Stoic Champion - Astral Slide
This is a no brainer if I ever saw one. Astral Slide may be good at flipping over your Blistering Firecats or your Angels... but it works well at the same time with the beloved Stoic Champion (which has awesome artwork in my opinion).
Cloudreach Cavalry - Suntail Hawk
This isn't really a combo as it is a synergy thing. First drop Suntail Hawk. Second turn drop Cloudreach Calvary. It's nice on turn two to get a 3/3 flyer in any game.
Caller of the Claw - Wrath of God
Wrath of God and sweep the board clean (except indestructible) and then cast a Caller of the Claw. All of a sudden you have a mini army of bears for each creature destroyed. Not bad.
Withered Wretch - Gravestorm
It's always nice to have two cards in the same deck that help each other. Or sometimes it's good to just have a chump blocker or beatstick on your side that assists another card drawing engine.. like Gravestorm. Withered Wretch is the best.. and even better with the storm.
White Knight - Mind Bend
Sleight Knight is deck that revolves around the concept of this combo. It is quite crippling against any mono-color deck. Your opponent is playing green... cast mind bend on the Knight to give it Protection from Green. Same for red, blue, white, black.. etc. Any color. Any protection.
Stifle - Final Fortune
Since Stifle can counter all triggered abilities and the delayed ones, this little combo gives you an extra turn for a net mana of three (converted, of course). Its a Time Walk for three times the mana. I think combined with some card drawing spells and some damage dealing spells, you could have a basis for a great deck. Combine it with Paradigm Shift and Soldevi Dagger... you could possible get infinite turns. I'll have to work on that one.
Sphere of Law - Sulfuric Vortex
Any card that says Vortex is a favorite of mine (a.k.a. Mana Vortex, Energy Vortex, and now Sulfuric Vortex). Anyway, a good way to keep the Vortex on your side is to have Sphere of Law in play. Suddenly you have a stable combo that deals 2 damage to your opponent every turn... and they can't do anything about it since they can't gain any life either. You just have to figure out a way to keep the creatures from attacking if they are not red.
Ark of Blight - Junk Diver or Goblin Welder
Land destruction has never been any more accessible to all the colors. You can use Ark of Blight in white, blue, green, red AND black. Want a control white land destruction deck.. add Ark of Blight. Or, you could just use maybe an all artifact deck and recursive cards like Junk Diver to retrieve it again and again.. or in a red deck using Goblin Welder and Thopter Squadron to use it over and over. Ark of Blight could be one of the more useful artifacts found in the Onslaught block (not including Slate of Ancestry, of course!)
Pariah - Dawn Elemental or Zealous Inquisitor
Lockdown at its best. You don't want to take damage from anything, eh? Lay down a 4 mana creature with flying (and which is an Elemental mind you) and enchant him with Pariah. You have a damage lockdown. All damage is prevented on the Dawn Elemental and yet all damage dealt to you is now dealt to the Dawn Guy. If you want something a little more versatile, throw the Pariah on a Zealous Inquisitor. They won't ask any questions when you throw it back to your opponent for just two mana.
Reward the Faithful - False Cure
Scenario: You have Akroma out in play. That's what, eight mana? Now you cast False Cure. Okay.. typically your opponent would expect to see Congregate or something else like Life Burst. No, you have something even cheaper. And let's also say in this scenario that you are playing a group game against 3 others. For only ONE MANA, you can now cast Reward the Faithful and target all three of your opponents and deal 8 damage to each of them! Nice.
Treetop Scout or River Boa - One with Nature
Green beatdown has become a little more efficient. Imagine if you had One with Nature back in the days of the River Boa. I think those damn blue control freaks would have had to deal with a bit more speed than they ever anticipated. A good mix in the current scene is the Treetop Scout and One with Nature. Many opponent's won't have that flyer they need in the first few turns. In return, you deal your damage since the Scout can only be blocked by flyers and your opponent watches you accelerate your mana base.
Wirewood Channeler - Ambush Commander (Pemmin's Aura)
Warning! Warning! This combo will cause you many mana aches if you can't use it (unless of course you have Upwelling in play). Watch your Priest of Titania and/or Wirewood Channeler get a shot of Ephedrine as you cast Ambush Commander. Essentially, all of your forests are now Elves.. so your Mana Channeler now produce that much more mana with a tap (equal to all your forests in play and you natural elf creatures). What's not to like about this one.. except for an Engineered Plague.
Sneak Attack - Torrent of Fire - Dragon Tyrant
Sneak Attack was a great card. It's equivalents in the current scene aren't as efficient. But picture this combo. You have Sneak Attack in play and six mana available to you. Your opponent is tapped out and you use the Sneak Attack to bring your 10 mana Dragon Tyrant into play. Then you cast Torrent of Fire and deal 10 damage (since the Tyrant is obviously your most expensive card in play) to your opponent. True, you have to sac your Dragon but 10 damage for technically six mana is nothing to ignore. Of course, Draco would be 16 damage.
Carrion Feeder - No Rest for the Wicked
This little combo is similar to the Nantuko Husk combo with No Rest for the Wicked. Beaf up your little carrion Zombie with your other creatures in play and then use the No Rest for the Wicked to return all those creatures back to your hand. Good card advantage I think. Then, you can make your deck a Zombie deck and add Ghastly Remains for even more fun. Watch your opponent cringe as you cast a 6/6 Ghastly Remains for only three mana (as you just revealed the 6 cards your sacked to the Carrion Feeder...)
Forgotten Ancient - Triskelion
I cannot begin to tell you how excited I was about the Forgotten Ancient card when I first saw it designed by Wizards and the masses of people who flock to their site. Forgotten Ancient is like gas to a car (which is the Triskelion). You and your opponent(s) cast spells and your Forgotten Ancient gets bigger. During your upkeep, transfer some of those cards to the Triskelion and now you have a mini-machine gun. I would love to see what a Triskelion looks like with 10 +1/+1 counters on it... does that mean it would have 10 arms?
Silver Knight - Aether Flash or Powerstone Minefield
Silver Knight is the better creature to add to your white-red Aether Flash or Powerstone Minefield deck. With regard to the Silver Knight, I am very surprised to see that Wizards of the Coast didn't print this guy sooner?! I mean, come on, what made red so much better than black where white got a knight against black and not against red? Well, anyway, what's nice about this combo is that the Silver Knight is impervious to the damage dealt by the Flash or the Field since it is a red source of damage in both cases.
Alpha Status - Squirrel Nest or Breeding Pit
To show how good of a card Alpha Status can be, check out Squirrel Nest and Breeding Pit. Say you have one of these guys in play several turns, and you have say 7 Thrulls or squirrels in play. Your opponent won't know what's coming until you cast Alpha Status on one of your little 0/1 or 1/1 creatures and all of a sudden they could take on the Krosan Cloudscraper becoming a 12/13 or 13/13 creature! Throw in the Rootwater shaman and you have some extreme surprise tactics.
Chain of Smog - Metrognome or Dodecapod
With this combo, your opponent won't know what hit him.. until the next game. Anyway, your opponent is clueless until he throws the Chain of Smog effect back at you and walla... instant Gnome generation on your side of the board. Now, those little gnomes are extremely valuable.. but with the right cards to back up this combo.. you could be in business. This concept works well with Dodecapod as well.
Wheel and Deal - Phyrexian Tyranny - Megrim
Here is a combo submitted by Alexander Wiseman. Wheel and Deal can do more than make you an ally or two in a massive chaos game. Played with Tyranny on the table and a bunch of tapped-out enemies, the light beer ---- read "watered down" ---- Wheel of Fortune wannabe can deal up to 14 damage to each player. Then, why not add Megrim into the scene and deal two damage for each card they discard. Talk about a nasty discard engine. What's nice about the Megrim is that it shares a color with the Phyrexian Tyranny (black). Thanks Alexander for the bonus card in this combo!
Read the Runes - Abundance
Read the Runes is a great card. In combination with Abundance, you wouldn't have to discard a card or sacrifice a permanent because the ability on Abundance is a replacement effect. Let's go to Rune Horvik's column on www.magicthegathering.com where he explains simply in one sentence. "The "for each card drawn"-clause means you won't have to discard or sacrifice unless you did actually draw a card (Abundance and the Words from Onslaught can replace "draw" with another effect)." -- Quoted
Dreamborn Muse - Upheaval
You want to have a lot of mana available for this one. Have both cards in your hand and cast Upheaval. But, before you do float enough mana to cast the Muse. Once Upheaval resolves, cast the Muse. During your opponent's turn he will be shocked to see half or more of his or her library go to the graveyard.
Sulfuric Vortex - Transcendence submitted by Draw1Jeff via email
Since you can't gain life with the Sulfuric Vortex, you cannot be killed by losing life with the transcendence card. Hence, with that card you would gain life instead of losing it whenever you would lose life. Basically, unless your opponent can disenchant one of both of them, this combo spells 'you lose' for its controller as the vortex will keep plugging away at your opponents. Thanks, Jeff, for the excellent lockdown combo. Now I have to start working on a deck for this one.
Seedborn Muse - Words of Worship
This Muse is a beauty.. or at least a good card drawing engine. Unfortunately, it is not optional and you pay life for each card you draw. Why not replace a few draws with the Words of Worship ability and gain life to compensate. It's swell.
Day of the Dragons - Disenchant
According to www.magicthegathering.com, if you disenchant the Day of the Dragons as the card goes on the stack, all of your creatures are removed from the game and you get to keep your 5/5 flying dragons. Let's say you have 10 Saproling creatures in play and you pull this combo off. Now you have 10 5/5 red flying dragons... too bad they don't have haste.
Weaver of Lies - Aphetto Runecaster - Master of the Veil
Find some cheap morph costed creatures and use the Weaver of Lies to turn them face down (assuming they were face up before). Then, use your Master of the Veil to turn the Weaver of Lies down again. Repeat over and over and watch your Runecaster draw you many many cards. The Aphetto Runecaster is also a solid 2/3... so he can dodge the damage of a shock or Firebolt.
Sliver Overlord - Imagecrafter
The ultimate control combo. Sliver Overlord must be one of the most expensive cards in the set (in terms of how much money you will have to pay to get your hands on one outside of getting him in a new pack). Use the Imagecrafter to turn one of your opponent's creatures into a sliver and then pay three colorless mana to take control of it. Any you can do this as many times as your can Imagecraft your opponent's creatures. Did I mention this ability doesn't end at the end of the turn?
Pemmin's Aura - Arcanis the Omnipotent
Pemmin's Aura is a broken card already. One suggested use for it would be Arcanis. It's been a long time since you could draw three cards for one blue mana. This combo could net you a win or two or three or more. Other cards that would work well with the Aura are Kamahl (red), Prodigal Sorcerer, Aphetto Alchemist, and even Visara the Dreadful. Have fun!
Imagecrafter - Misery Charm
Does your opponent have that Krosan Colossus out? Can't get rid of him. How about a one point terror? If you have Imagecrafter out, change his creature type from beast to cleric and BAM! Cast misery charm and he is DEAD as can be. On a another note, the Imagecrafter works wonders with the Riptide Biologist and non-flying creature.
Seedborn Muse - Pingers
A weaker version of Intruder Alarm but better because it only affects permanents you control, is the Seedborn Muse. Combines with cards like Prodigal Sorcerer, Jeska, Warrior Adept and Kamahl, Pit Fighter... you are in business. You are now able to accelerate you win rate by doubling the damage each round (or sooner if you are playing a multiple player game). Think of the possibilities in a 6 player group!
Unstable Hulk - Final Fortune
This combo works similar to the Final Fortune - Eater of Days combo. Say you flip over your Hulk to make it an 8/8 trampling fool. Cast Final Fortune to take an extra turn after this one but since you skip it, you don't lose the game. This is a really bad combo since it's costing you 7 mana to give your Hulk +6/+6 and trample.. but hey.. it's still a combo!
Fierce Empath - Pyromancy
Train of thought... I cast Fierce Empath. I search library for Draco. I cycle card (assuming I have astral slide) and then slide the Empath. I spend three mana and discard my one card randomly to the Pyromancy and deal 16 damage. When the Empath comes back into play, I do the same thing except this time I search my library for Dragon Tyrant. I spend three mana and Pyromancy the Tyrant for 10 damage to my opponent. I win.
Life/Death - Aggravated Assault
Okay... you have Aggravated Assault in play and you draw Life/Death. Cast Life Death and attack with all but five lands. Tap your five lands to untap all creatures and attack again... then attack with all but five lands. Repeat this wonderful cycle until you've won. Fun stuff.
Grafted Skullcap - Dreamborn Muse
This was submitted differently, but I really liked the synergy of these two cards. Keep yourself from suffering the effects of the mill-deadly Muse by keeping your hand empty. If you want to make this an even deadlier combo add Pulsemage Advocate to the mix to not only increase your creature count, but to watch cards fly from your opponent's library into his or her graveyard. Thanks Craig Walmlsey.
Grand Melee - Wave of Indifference
Grand Melee and Wave of Indifference are a nice little team for mono red decks. Grand Melee forces all creatures to attack and all creatures to block (if able). You have to attack on your turn if Melee is in play.. so attack. But before you do... cast Wave of Indifference on all of your opponent's creatures making them 'unable' to block. We'll call this combo: "Tidal-Krakeness".
Convalescent Care - Necropotence
Necropotence yourself down to say 5. Then at the beginning of your next upkeep you gain 5 life and draw another card. Do it again. Convalescent Care is like Unleaded Gasoline for your deck... kind of expensive, but keeps you moving.
Aurification - Grand Melee
Here is a combo submitted by "Hacker". With Grand Melee out your opponent is forced to attack with everything. When he/she does, take the damage (assuming you can) and then all of your opponent's creatures become tapped and are no longer attackers (since they are turned into walls). You attack all out next turn and deal your damage and now your opponent cannot attack you with anything since their creatures are all walls. Nifty but expensive.
Overwhelming Instinct - Gustcloak creatures
Attack... don't attack.... Attack... don't attack... but draw a card every time. Nice little white - green combo using the new mechanic of green's (taken from blue). Onslaught has yet to not amaze me (aside from the Break Open card in red)!
Ironfist Crusher - Sandskin
Here's another obvious one. I am sure you all picked this up at the Sealed Drafts at your local hobby shop when Onslaught first came out. Nonetheless... it is extremely useful. Your Ironfist Crusher can block any number of creatures and none of them can kill him (unless they got some burn). To really make him useful give him flying too. Then you have a barrier that is almost unstoppable.
Shifty Doppelganger - Symbiotic Wurm (Overrun)
This combination of cards would most likely be found in a UG deck with hopefully a first turn birds. If so, on turn two you can cast your Shifty Doppelganger, then next turn use it for a Symbiotic Wurm. At the end of that turn, you sack the Wurm for the Doppelganger again... and then you have seven(7) 1/1 creatures in play. Nice. Follow-up with an overrun or something similar and you most likely have the game. Thank you for the combo submission, David!