Under Construction

>Introduction

The first thing anyone says after seeing Mishra is "How are you supposed to use him?" I said it when I first saw him, you said it when you first saw him, and if you're seeing this card for the first time, you just said it. It seems like that in order for Mishra to work you need to have multiple copies of the same artifacts in your decks; something that isn't allowed in commander. Instead, you do something really weird; you play with the timing of triggers on the stack. If you cast an artifact spell, that same card will end up in your deck or library by the time Mishra's ability resolves. See if you can figure out the interaction between Mishra and Possibility Storm. If you can't, I explain it later. Just know that weird interactions is what this deck is all about.

I usually don't like jank decks, but this is one that I just keep coming back to, time and time again. This is a storm deck, it's just not a very good one. You can expect to cast lots of spells in one turn and nuke people with Aetherflux Reservoir, but it will happen later in the game. It also doesn't work every game. Such is the curse of jank combo decks. But if you like wild interactions where you won't know what will happen next, this deck will serve you well. Now then, let's go over how Mishra works.

>Mishra's Toys

As I already mentioned, Mishra, Artificer Prodigy is all about interacting with the stack. When you cast an artifact spell, a bunch of different abilities will trigger from various sources (Vedalken Archmage, Aetherflux Reservoir, Nullstone Gargoyle, among others). The order that you choose to resolve these abilities is very important, and it's the core of how this deck functions. As a general rule, you want Mishra's ability to resolve last (so place it on the stack first). This way no matter what weird things happen, your artifact will be on the battlefield. There are a lot of strange ways to generate value off of Mishra, so let's go over his key synergy cards.

>Possibility Storm

This is the secret commander of the deck. Imagine you have Mishra and Possibility Storm on the battlefield, and you cast Arcane Signet. Resolve the Possibility Storm trigger first, then Mishra. Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal another artifact. Cast that spell. Then put all the revealed cards and Arcane Signet on the bottom of your library in a random order. Now resolve Mishra's ability. Search your library for a card named "Arcane Signet" and put it on the battlefield. You just received two artifacts for the price of one, and two cast triggers. That's two cards drawn with Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain and/or 4 life gained with Aetherflux Reservoir (assuming those were your first two spells of the turn). Now that's value. This deck pretty much revolves around Possibility Storm, so you want to try to get it every game.

>Self-counter

Here's something fun: if a triggered ability that you controls counters an artifact spell, Mishra's ability will resolve after, so you get to grab that artifact from your graveyard and put it on the battlefield anyway. The self-counters that this deck includes are Planar Chaos and Nullstone Gargoyle. These will mess up your opponents, while leaving you virtually untouched. I used Blood Funnel for a while, but the upside of artifacts costing 2 less didn't make up for the downside of hardly being able to cast instants, sorceries, and enchantments. Then there is Null Void. I would gladly play this card if it's price tag wasn't so damn high. Curse the reserved list. I should see what my playgroup thinks about proxying this card.

>Casting Opponents Cards

So here's the last trick of Mishra. Using either Praetor's Grasp, Opposition Agent, or Thada Adel, Acquisitor, exile an opponent's artifact that you also have in your deck. Common choices are Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, the Talismans, and Sensei's Divining Top. That way, when you cast your opponent's Sol Ring, Mishra will then search your library for a card named "Sol Ring". Two for the price of one. While this is a cool trick, it's not exactly game winning, so it is the more lackluster of things Mishra can do.

>Playing the Deck

>Starting Hand

>Early Turns

And by early, I mean turns 1 to 5. This in not a fast deck.

> Storming off

>Winning the Game

>Aetherflux Reservoir

>Time Sieve + Thopter Assembly

>Bolas's Citadel

>Hellkite Tyrant

>Single Card Discussion

>Synergy cards

>Finishers

>Mana Ramp

>Card Draw

>Tutors

>Interaction