{"ops":[{"insert":"\tWhen I saw "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow"}},{"insert":" in the Subjective Reality precon deck back in C18 I was fully on board. I find top-deck strategies particularly interesting, because the gamble of seeing what you flip off the top is always exciting and it's a very unique mechanic. She obviously has a reputation as being an incredibly powerful commander--and for good reason. Her ability to dodge commander tax and hit every player for huge chunks of direct damage are both very strong and enticing mechanics. \n\n\tMy version of this deck is probably not that far off from other deck lists, but I will break down by basic game plan. The mana base needs to be tight so that we can always play a T1 evasive one drop creature in order to cheat out Yuriko via Ninjutsu on T2 and draw a card with her triggered ability. That first flip is always fun, because you may accidentally stumble into a big spell and then the table will have it out for you (if they don't already). I recommend taking a mulligan as needed to ensure that you follow this pattern. T3 replay the bounced evasive 1 drop and any others in your hand. T4 we want to ninjutsu as many of our evasive 1 drops as possible. After this, we can continue this play pattern while keeping up mana to interact as needed while we dig (and ping) with Yuriko's triggered ability. Stacking the top of the deck with instant speed tutors such as "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Vampiric Tutor"}},{"insert":" or "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mystical Tutor"}},{"insert":" is the next part of the plan; often we want to wait until a Yuriko trigger is on the stack so that we get the trigger even if an opponent kills her in response to casting these. This deck plays like a blue deck for the most part, while black is secondary; we want to control with counter spells and spot removal until we can pull out a combo to win. \n\n\tAn important aspect of the deck is understanding how to use the stack with Yuriko's ability. Whenever you connect with more than one Ninja that many Yuriko triggers will go on the stack. The card you reveal will be put into your hand as part of the resolution of that trigger. This means that we can cast spells in between these triggers--including a card that was put into our hand from the previous trigger. My favorite example of this is a key way to win with the deck: if you have three triggers on the stack and cast a "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mystical Tutor"}},{"insert":" and tutor "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Insidious Dreams"}},{"insert":" to the top of your library, then the first Yuriko trigger will put Insidious Dreams into your hand (pinging your opponents for 4 damage) and you can then cast it before the next two triggers resolve. Then you can tutor the next two cards you'll reveal with the subsequent Yuriko triggers, and hopefully close out the game on the spot by revealing two high CMC cards. \n\n\tIt is also worth noting that we are often discarding cards to hand size and we run none of the options to increase hand size. This is on purpose! We want to have cards in the yard so that we can discount cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dig Through Time"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Temporal Trespass"}},{"insert":", which we will often tutor for big Yuriko pings. And, being at maximum hand size can sometimes allow for interesting interactions, such as flipping a "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Draco"}},{"insert":" and then discarding it at end step, only to put it back on top of the library with "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Academy Ruins"}},{"insert":" next turn for another Yuriko trigger. \n\nEvasive 1 Drops:\n\tThis deck runs on small evasive creatures to use as Ninjutsu fodder. This is a pretty self-evident category, and the number that we run is mostly so that we have a high probability of getting one in our opening hand. Notable cards include "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Gingerbrute"}},{"insert":", because the haste allows us to play it and swing unblockable the turn it comes down. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Changeling Outcast"}},{"insert":" is also a Ninja, which is excellent. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mausoleum Wanderer"}},{"insert":" can counter a spell in a pinch. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Faerie Seer"}},{"insert":" gives lets us Scry which is excellent for the deck. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ornithopter"}},{"insert":" costs 0 mana so it is an easy one to swing with every turn to Ninjutsu in a Ninja and then simply cast again after combat for free. \n\tObviously unblockable creatures are better than flying creatures, but some of the flyers I chose are just too good to pass on and there is always at least one player at the table with no flying blockers. It's also worth noting that a few creatures in the Ninjas category can play double duty and act as 1 drop evasive creatures as well. \n\nNinjas:\n\tThis category received a significant boost in Kamigawa Neon Dynasty. I tried to lean toward Ninjas with a low cost Ninjutsu ability, so many of these are simply the best options available while being otherwise mid, although some have some nice utility stapled on. Here's a break down of my choices:\n\t"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Azra Smokeshaper"}},{"insert":" can come. in and give indestructible to whichever of our creatures got blocked this turn. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Covert Technician"}},{"insert":" can allow us to drop something like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Scroll Rack"}},{"insert":" for free. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dokuchi Silencer"}},{"insert":" is excellent spot removal on a stick, and we will always have some evasive creatures in hand to pitch to his ability. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Higure, the Still Wind"}},{"insert":" has excellent triggered and activated abilities for our purposes even though his costs are high. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ingenious Infiltrator"}},{"insert":" has a low Ninjutsu cost and excellent card draw stapled on. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Inkrise Infiltrator"}},{"insert":" doesn’t have a Ninjutsu ability but it gets easy Yuriko triggers. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mist-Syndicate Naga"}},{"insert":" has an absurd triggered ability, and when paired with "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive"}},{"insert":" things can get out of hand. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mistblade Shinobi"}},{"insert":" has a 1 cost Ninjutsu with a decent triggered ability to boot. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Moon-Circuit Hacker"}},{"insert":" also costs 1 to Ninjutsu and nets us a free card the turn it comes down. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mothdust Changeling"}},{"insert":" could be in the Evasive 1 Drop category but it isn’t quite right; tapping Yuriko to give it flying when it isn’t safe to swing with her is solid though. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nashi, Moon Sage's Scion"}},{"insert":" is a cool card with an interesting ability, so he makes the cut. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nezumi Prowler"}},{"insert":" is like a removal combat trick since you can kill an opponents’ unsuspecting blocker. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Prosperous Thief"}},{"insert":" is fantastic for making treasures, and is one of the only sources of ramp in the deck. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sakashima's Student"}},{"insert":" is simply busted and can copy the best creature on the board; bonus points if that creature has an ETB or combat damage trigger, or massive power if she comes out with Ninjutsu. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Silver-Fur Master"}},{"insert":" makes Ninjutsu cheaper and buffs our Ninjas; however, it is worth noting that he is a non-bo with "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive"}},{"insert":" who otherwise gives half of the Ninjas in the deck unblockable so he can definitely muck up the game plan. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Skullsnatcher"}},{"insert":" has a 1 cost Ninjutsu and gives us a little dash of graveyard hate. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Thousand-Faced Shadow"}},{"insert":" is one of the best Ninjas in the deck: it can act as an Evasive 1 Drop in a pinch, has a busted triggered ability off of the Ninjutsu, and is hard to block if it sticks around which can help us rack up Yuriko triggers. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Throat Slitter"}},{"insert":" is removal on a stick. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Walker of Secret Ways"}},{"insert":" is a fun Ninja because it has a cool triggered ability and also a useful activated ability. Note that "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Kaito Shizuki"}},{"insert":" will always -2 immediately to give us an unblockable Ninja unless we really need the card draw. \n\tThat's all for this category. Balancing between useful abilities and low Ninjutsu costs led me to this handful of Ninjas, but some of the higher cost or lower impact cards could be swapped out for better options (if there are any). I tried to be thorough while choosing these Ninjas, but I may have missed something; if so, feel free to comment below and point out my mistake! \n\nControl:\n\tAs a somewhat-fragile combo deck we need to be able to control the tempo of the game until we can make our move. Counterspells are key here, as is spot removal. As such, this category should be self-explanatory and while I may be missing some of the best options (such as "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Swan Song"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Force of Will"}},{"insert":") if you have any better options around feel free to slot them in! This is an expensive category, mostly because I have these cards in my collection, but swapping those out for more budget-friendly options is totally doable. \n\nUtility Lands:\n\tSome of the lands in this deck are worth a special mention. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Academy Ruins"}},{"insert":" can stack "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Draco"}},{"insert":" back on top of the library if we have discarded it to hand size. This means we can reuse him off the top for Yuriko's triggered ability. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Access Tunnel"}},{"insert":" can let us sneak in a Ninja for a desperate Yuriko trigger. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Shizo, Death's Storehouse"}},{"insert":" can make Yuriko unblockable for an extra trigger as well. \n\nExtra Turns: \n\tThese cards are all high CMC and as such make for solid tutors to put on top of the library for a big Yuriko trigger. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Temporal Trespass"}},{"insert":" is one of the best options in the deck for this purpose as it chunks everyone for 11 and can then be cast typically for a big discount giving us another turn to try and finish off our opponents. The other two are great surprises to flip off the top, and just solid cards to draw and cast. \n\nTutors: \n\tBoth "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Muddle the Mixture"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dimir Infiltrator"}},{"insert":" are doing double duty in this deck. While they can simply be cast as they both serve functions for which we want plenty of redundancy, they also transmute into other 2 CMC cards and we have some key options in that slot. These are, in no particular order, as follows: "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Cyclonic Rift"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Lim-Dûl's Vault"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Scroll Rack"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Demonic Tutor"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Cunning Evasion"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mana Drain"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Feed the Swarm"}},{"insert":", and some of our Ninjas. These are all excellent cards, and in the right situation are absolutely worth Transmuting into. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Demonic Tutor"}},{"insert":" is simply used for whatever you need most. Sometimes that's removal, an extra turn spell, or a counterspell if you are ready to win and want some protection; but if you want to go for the win then "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Insidious Dreams"}},{"insert":" is an excellent choice; or, if you have high CMC cards in hand, then "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Scroll Rack"}},{"insert":" or "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Brainstorm"}},{"insert":" are solid picks as well. I will break these choices down more in the next category. \n\nTop Deck:\n\tClearly this category includes the best tutors in the deck, but since tutoring to the top of the library for a deadly Yuriko trigger is their main purpose they belong here while the tutors to hand have been separated into the previous category. When going for the win, "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Vampiric Tutor"}},{"insert":" will often grab "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Draco"}},{"insert":" while "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mystical Tutor"}},{"insert":" wants to grab "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Temporal Trespass"}},{"insert":"; hopefully you can follow this up by casting the Temporal Trespass for another turn. Since these two tutors are instant speed they can be cast with Yuriko triggers on the stack, resulting in a massive guaranteed chunk of damage to our opponents. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Imperial Seal"}},{"insert":" functions similarly, but it can't be done at instant speed so it needs to be cast before combat, which gives our opponents to opportunity to remove Yuriko (although this is often futile if she can come right back via Ninjutsu). "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Lim-Dûl's Vault"}},{"insert":" can act similarly to Vampiric or Mystical Tutor, except you have to dig for the best combination of cards to leave on top and order them accordingly. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Insidious Dreams"}},{"insert":" might just be the best card in the deck; casting at instant speed with several Yuriko triggers on the stack to grab several big CMC cards is a reliable way to end the game. Snagging this with another tutor is always worth considering, especially in the way I described above in the third paragraph. And, if you don't have enough triggers to win on the spot, then grabbing Temporal Trespass and Lim Dul's Vault can work to give you another shot on the extra turn, or potentially Draco and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Brainstorm"}},{"insert":" can do the trick if you have three or more triggers. You can also play this on the end step before your turn, to set up not only your draw (perhaps Brainstorm) but also the cards you will reveal with Yuriko's triggers. \n\tSpeaking of "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Brainstorm"}},{"insert":", here is how that previous interaction works as well as the best way to use Brainstorm in general. If you have more than one Yuriko trigger on the stack and you reveal a card off the top such as "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Draco"}},{"insert":" you can actually \"weave\" Brainstorm in between Yuriko triggers in order to flip Draco again. After the first trigger where you reveal Draco it is put into your hand. Then, with the next Yuriko trigger still on the stack, you can cast Brainstorm and then put Draco back on top of your deck so that it gets revealed on the subsequent Yuriko trigger. This is an excellent way to win the game with Insidious Dreams if you have three of more Yuriko triggers on the stack, although simply grabbing Draco and then two other high CMC cards is a viable option as well, assuming they are still in your deck.\n\tOn that note, if you get stuck with some high CMC cards in your hand then "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Scroll Rack"}},{"insert":" is your friend. Scroll rack can weave between Yuriko triggers in the exact same way as Brainstorm, and it can really bail us out if we end up with all of our high cmc cards in our hand. Since this deck draws most of its cards with Yuriko triggers hopefully this means that you chunked everyone for damage when you drew them, but sometimes we just get unlucky. This is the primary reason for Brainstorm and Scroll Rack in the deck. \n\nSynergy: \n\tThis section has some fun cards that we are always happy to draw. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Arcane Adaptation"}},{"insert":" is an excellent card in the deck as it makes all of our evasive creatures into Ninjas which gives us an insane number of Yuriko triggers if it manages to stick around. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Crystal Shard"}},{"insert":" lets us bounce key Ninjas back to our hand to reuse their Ninjutsu abilities and get Ninjas past blockers using our evasive 1 drops. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Cunning Evasion"}},{"insert":" is similar but much more potent. We can swing out with 4 Ninjas into 2 blockers and scoop the two that get blocked, so we can save them from dying in combat and even reuse Ninjutsu triggers. And, since having Ninjas back in hand is problematic for our opponents, they have to decide whether to let them through or give us more Ninjutsu triggers. Making your opponents make these decisions is always a good strategy so that we can capitalize on any mistakes they make. The best card in this category, however, is "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive"}},{"insert":" because she makes about half of our Ninjas unblockable, including Yuriko herself. She is one that I will often Transmute into if I have a board of several Ninjas with power or toughness 1 and I want to get a handful of Yuriko triggers in one go. \n\nWin Condition:\n\tFor once I didn't include the tutors in the win condition category, and that was mostly because I want to show how small this category is. We do not want to overload the deck with do-nothing cards that have a high CMC; it is much better to simply run a lot of top deck manipulation so that we can get these big pieces on top and then reuse them as necessary. There are plenty of other cards in the deck for big Yuriko triggers, such as "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Temporal Trespass"}},{"insert":", but these are strong cards for other reasons and so I categorized them as such. The three here are in the deck for the sole purpose of ripping the highest numbers off the top of the deck as possible. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dig Through Time"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Shadow of Mortality"}},{"insert":" can be cast on occasion, but "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Draco"}},{"insert":" never will be. I won't go into more detail here as most of the combos we can accomplish with these cards are listed above in the Top Deck section. \n\n\n\tThis deck is one of the first higher power lists that I brewed myself. Clearly this is not a cutthroat combo version, as you can see by the exclusion of "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ad Nauseam"}},{"insert":" etc., but rather the highest power \"fair\" Yuriko list that I could put together. The high price tag is mostly because the top deck tutors and good counterspells are all expensive, but this was my favorite deck for several years and I built it up slowly over time. It is possible to build a solid Yuriko list on a budget, and then my primer will be better used as an upgrade guide if you want to start more budget-friendly. \n\n\tThis deck is always a blast to play, especially when you want to be the archenemy from the beginning of the game. For a few years this was a boogieman in my play group, until other decks caught up and my friends figured out how to play around it more effectively. I eventually retired this deck because I would get hard focused early and left unable to recover consistently, so it felt like I would either win or not get to play the game--either because I was eliminated early or my board was never allowed to develop enough to make fun plays.\n\n\tThat being said, I loved playing and tweaking this deck over several years and it still holds a special place in my heart. I learned a lot about playing EDH more effectively and optimally by piloting this deck, and it had some incredibly explosive wins that were oh so satisfying. If you are looking for a creature based combo deck with a heavy dose of control that requires a solid understanding of the stack then I highly recommend giving Yuriko a try; even on a budget she is both fun and powerful. As always, please leave any comments, questions or suggestions you may have down below! Cheers \n"}]}