The Pretender (EDH / Commander) [Revision 14]

▬▬Win Con - Ballista Counters▬▬
► With Endling, Blood Vassal and Walking Balista Caged
→Use Endling to giving Undying to Mairsil, the Pretender
→Use Blood Vassal to sac Mairsil, the Pretender, which gives you BB mana
→Undying triggers and Mairsil, the Pretender comes back with a +1/+1 counter
→Remove the counter with Walking Ballista to ping an opponent
→Repeat the loop. (netting B)
▬▬Sent to Sidboard▬▬
► Anthroplasm needs 5 mana free to produce Extra turns / Infinite mana to kill with Walking Ballista
► Phyrexian Devourer to exile cards to get counters so the result had diminishing returns
► Anthroplasm does not have be Caged for these to work:
→Anthroplasm/Phyrexian Devourer + Sage of Hours = extra turns
→Anthroplasm/Phyrexian Devourer + Walking Ballista = Lots of Damage

▬▬Win Con - Tree Death▬▬
► With Tree of Perdition and Hateflayer in cages with (2)R free will remove one opponent (Blink / recast Mairsil to reset its toughness)
→Tree of Perdition + Hateflayer = add 2R to Kill one opponent

▬▬Win Con - Infect ▬▬
► With Pestilent Souleater and Heartless Hidetsugu in cages reduce your life total to 19 or less. Then give Mairsil infect with Pestilent Souleater and tap using Heartless Hidetsugu activation kills everyone with life over 20 and cuts everyone else (including you) in half
→Pestilent Souleater + Heartless Hidetsugu + LifeTotal while <20 = Infect kill all Opp with life >19

▬▬Win Con - Too Much Mana▬▬
► Quicksilver Elemental 's interaction with Mairsil is complicated and will require explanation to/trust from your pod
► Every time you spend U and target Mairsil you get a fresh set of activations
► With Gilded Lotus/Coveted Jewel caged, taping Mairsil produces 3 of one color untapping Mairsil and spending a U on Quicksilver Elemental's ability allows Mairsil to tap with Gilded Lotus/Coveted Jewel again.
→Quicksilver Elemental + Gilded Lotus/Coveted Jewel + Morphling / Torchling + Torment of Hailfire / Exsanguinate

▬▬Win Con - Mill▬▬
► Not a Mairsil cage win but is fast. With UUB available, cast Thassa's Oracle
→Thassa's Oracle + Demonic Consultation = Cast TO when resolve, with ETB trigger on the stack, cast DC naming card not in deck and exile Lib, resolve TO ETB for the win
▬▬OR▬▬
► Mirror-Mad Phantasm chain to Thassa’s Oracle – Needs 2B and 2UB with 1 devotion to U to pull off
→With Mirror-Mad Phantasm + Pack Rat/Myr Propagator in cages
→Activate the Pack Rat/Myr Propagator
→Then in response activate the Mirror-Mad Phantasm. Shuffle the real Mairsil, the Pretender into your library and mill your entire library
→Then the Pack Rat/Myr Propagator ability will resolve Cage The Scarab God
→Then use The Scarab God's ability to Eternalize Thassa's Oracle FTW.

▬▬Win Con - Blood Bond▬▬
► Not a Mairsil cage win but no one expect it
→Exquisite Blood + Sanguine Bond + an Opponent takes damage and loops until all are dead

Caged Wipe(S)
► Nevinyrral's Disk destroys everything but allows regeneration (this doesn't allow recage but does tap) and reponse to its activation
→Nevinyrral's Disk / Oblivion Stone + Will-o'-the-Wisp = Boardwipe with Mairsil Returning
→Hold Priority activate AEtherling (Blink), Ovinmancer / Crystal Shard (Bounce)

Caged More Cages
► Aetherling Blinks / Pack Rat/Myr Propagator copy / Ovinomancer/Crystal Shard returns to hand / Sensei's Divining Top moves to top of lib
→Aetherling = Number One Card in Deck - U to blink Aetherling for new cages and alternate source of unblockable damage for Tree Death
→Pack Rat/Myr Propagator = Creates a copy of Mairsil that dies to legendary rule but still provides cage
→Ovinomancer + Target Creature = SheepRay a creature, provides protection for Mairsil and new cages by recasting
→Crystal Shard = 3 or U to return Mairsil to hand providing protection for Mairsil and new cages by recasting
→Sensei's Divining Top = when caged provides protection for Mairsil and new cages by recasting

More Cages
► Do not cage Panharmonicon and Riptide Laboratory is a land
→Panharmonicon will trigger Maisil's Caging ETB twice
→Riptide Laboratory return Mairsil to hand providing protection and new cages by recasting

Caged Removal
► With Avatar of Woe/Minion of Leshrac in a cage this is a Once Per Turn tap to destroy.
→Avatar of Woe = Tap to destroy target creature
→Minion of Leshrac = Tap to destroy target creature or land

Haste Enablers
► Only Skyship Stalker works in a cage. Hanweir Battlements is a Land and Anger must be in the Graveyard
→Skyship Stalker = R for Haste or Pump up Mairsil and First Strike
→Hanweir Battlements = R for Haste
→Anger once in the Yard all your creature have haste.

No Cage Removal
→Cyclonic Rift for value
→Strip Mine for the Cradle/Coffers
→Field of Ruin for the Cradle/Coffers also fixes everyones mana

No Cage Control/Counter Magic
→Arcane Denial - 1U - counter then card draw next upkeep
→Counterspell - UU - the classic
→Flusterstorm - U - counter instant or sorcery with Storm
→Narset's Reversal - UU - Copy Instant or Sorcery return to owners hand choose new targets
→Pyroblast/Red Elemental Blast - R - Counter blue spell or destroy blue permanent
→Sinister Sabotage - 1UU - Counter Spell then Surveil 1
→Swan Song - U - Counter target enchantment, instant, or sorcery spell. Controller creates a 2/2 blue Bird

Caged Untap
→Eater of the Dead = Exile Creature from Graveyard to Untap Mairsil
→Morphling = U to Untap Mairsil (also give Mairsil Shroud / Flying / Buffs)
→Pili-Pala = 2 to Untap Mairsil (But you get 1 of any color in exchange)
→Torchling = R to Untap Mairsil (also make something block Mairsil / Change target of a spell that targets Mairsil / Buffs)

Card Advantage Draw (2)
→Necropotence - No Draw phase - pay 1 life exile top card of library, beginning of end step put cards to hand
→Wheel of Fortune - All Players Discard hand and draw 7

Card Advantage Tutor (9)
→Buried Alive - 2B - S, put three creature cards from library to graveyard
→Demonic Tutor - 1B - S, put card from library to hand
→Entomb - B - I, put card from library to graveyard
→Final Parting - 3BB - S, put 1 card from library to hand put 1 card from library to graveyard
→Gamble - R - S, put card from library to hand, then discard a card at random
→Intuition - 2U - I, reveal 3 cards from library, opponent chooses one. that card to hand rest to graveyard
→Mausoleum Secrets - 1B - I, Black card from library CMC <= creatures in graveyard, reveal it, put to hand
→Scheming Symmetry - B - S, you and opponent put card from library on top of library
→Vampiric Tutor - B - I, put card from library on top of library