Overview:

This Jund (B/R/G) deck helmed by Ziatora, the Incinerator focuses on high-power creature synergies and sacrifice outlets to dominate through direct damage and overwhelming board presence. The strategy leverages massive creatures like Malignus, Yargle and Multani, and Daemogoth Titan as both threats and fuel for Ziatora's sacrifice ability, generating Treasure tokens for explosive plays. Secondary win conditions include damage amplification via Fiery Emancipation, City on Fire, and Warstorm Surge, alongside recursion engines like Meren of Clan Nel Toth and Feldon of the Third Path. Ziatora acts as a key enabler but isn't strictly essential, as the deck includes redundancy through cards like Greater Good and Sneak Attack.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-4): Prioritize ramp (Ignoble Hierarch, Farseek, Cultivate) and value engines (Phyrexian Arena, Garruk's Uprising). Deploy high-power/low-CMC creatures like Shakedown Heavy or Gwenna, Eyes of Gaea to enable early The Great Henge discounts.
2. Midgame Sacrifice Loops (Turns 5-7): Cast Ziatora or use Sneak Attack/Feldon of the Third Path to cheat out creatures. Sacrifice high-power targets to Ziatora, Brash Taunter, or Fling effects while triggering Mirkwood Bats and Stalking Vengeance. Use Treasures to fuel Fiery Emancipation or City on Fire.
3. Finishing Moves (Turns 6-8): Amplify damage with Solphim, Mayhem Dominus or Dictate of the Twin Gods. Recur threats via Slimefoot and Squee or Journey to Eternity. Close with combat damage using Kessig Wolf Run-boosted creatures or Chandra's Ignition on a massive Malignus.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 3+ lands (including color-fixing like Command Tower).
• Prioritize early ramp (1-3 CMC) and at least one high-power creature or sacrifice outlet.
• Favor cards that enable card draw (Greater Good, Rishkar's Expertise) in slower matchups.

Key Tips:

• Use Flameshadow Conjuring to copy creatures before sacrificing them for double triggers.
• Riveteers Ascendancy turns sacrifice fodder into recurring threats.
• Korvold, Fae-Cursed King provides both card draw and a win condition if left unchecked.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Graveyard Reliance: Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void cripples recursion from Meren, Feldon, and Bala Ged Recovery.
• Artifact/Enchantment Vulnerability: Key damage multipliers (Fiery Emancipation, City on Fire) and engines (The Great Henge) are soft to removal.

Moderate

• Board Wipe Sensitivity: Lacks mass recursion outside Junji, the Midnight Sky; struggles to rebuild after Damnation.
• Commander Dependency: While not essential, Ziatora removal slows Treasure generation and forces reliance on clunkier sac outlets.

Minor

• Limited Stack Interaction: Only Assassin's Trophy and Riveteers Charm handle noncreature threats efficiently.
• Mana Base Clunkiness: Multiple taplands (e.g., Ziatora's Proving Ground) can delay key plays.

Most Important Cards:

• Fiery Emancipation (Triples damage output for all sac/combat wins)
• The Great Henge (Ramp, card draw, and +1/+1 counters)
• Sneak Attack (Cheats in high-power creatures for instant sac fodder)
• Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Recurrence engine for sacrifice loops)
• Terror of the Peaks (Converts creature ETBs into direct damage)
• Yargle and Multani (18-power one-shot sac target for Ziatora)
• Korvold, Fae-Cursed King (Draw engine and alt-win threat)
• Daemogoth Titan (Recurring 11-power sacrifice outlet)
• Feldon of the Third Path (Reanimates key creatures for ETB/sac effects)
• Malignus (Scales with opponents' life totals for massive damage)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 6/10
Can threaten wins via amplified sac damage or combat as early as T5-7, but requires setup for multipliers.

Resilience: 5/10
Moderate recursion and protection (e.g., Bala Ged Recovery), but key pieces remain vulnerable to targeted removal.

Consistency: 7/10
Strong card draw (Greater Good, Rishkar's Expertise) and creature tutors (Eldritch Evolution) ensure access to core components.

Interaction: 5/10
Limited removal suite focused on permanents (Decimate, Assassin's Trophy); minimal stack interaction.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates in the T7-8 win range with robust value engines and multiple damage amplifiers but lacks the speed and interaction density of higher-tier lists. Its reliance on combat/sacrifice synergies and vulnerability to common hate cards place it in the optimized casual tier.

Power level: 5.0 - 5.5