Overview:

This Orzhov control deck helmed by Ketramose, the New Dawn focuses on exiling permanents and graveyard cards to generate card advantage while disrupting opponents. The strategy leverages efficient removal, stax-like exile effects, and discard to control the board while building toward incremental wins through value engines like Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines. Ketramose serves as a resilient card-draw engine once the exile threshold is met, but the deck doesn't rely on it as a primary win condition.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Disruption (Turns 1-3): Deploy land-based exile effects (Hive of the Eye Tyrant, Bojuka Bog), targeted removal (Swords to Plowshares, Portable Hole), and discard (Thoughtseize, Inquisition of Kozilek). Use tutors (Demonic Tutor, Enlightened Tutor) to find key pieces like Urza's Saga or Relic of Progenitus.
2. Mid-Game Control (Turns 4-6): Activate mass exile/removal (Toxic Deluge, Cataclysm), deploy value engines (Dauthi Voidwalker, The Wandering Emperor), and lock down threats with exile auras (Ossification, On Thin Ice). Maintain card flow with Ketramose's draw triggers and Sheoldred, the Apocalypse.
3. Late-Game Closure (Turns 7+): Overwhelm with planeswalker ultimatums (Liliana of the Veil), stolen threats via Dauthi Voidwalker, or combat pressure from enhanced creatures (Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines). Use Tainted Pact to find silver bullets.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (including color-fixing like Scrubland or fetch lands).
• Prioritize early interaction (removal, discard) and at least one card-draw engine (Phyrexian Furnace, Relic of Progenitus).
• Value hands containing Ketramose, the New Dawn with early exile enablers.
• Avoid hands lacking removal or ways to trigger Ketramose's draw.

Key Tips:

• Exile Sequencing: Time graveyard exiles (Go Blank, Kaya's Guile) to maximize Ketramose triggers.
• Stax Synergy: Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines doubles ETB exiles from Skyclave Apparition and Solitude.
• Politics: Use Council's Judgment and Parallax Wave to leverage multiplayer dynamics.
• Dauthi Voidwalker can steal opponents' win cons – hold instant-speed sac outlets to bypass timing restrictions.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Struggles against go-wide token strategies lacking key board wipes (only 4 mass removals).
• Heavily reliant on Ketramose for sustained card advantage; repeated commander tax cripples the engine.

Moderate

• Limited protection for key pieces beyond Eiganjo Castle; vulnerable to artifact/enchantment hate.
• Minimal ramp beyond land tutors; struggles to recover from Armageddon-effects.

Minor

• Exile-focused strategy underperforms against decks with low graveyard reliance.
• Some enters-tapped lands (Concealed Courtyard, Shattered Sanctum) slow early plays.

Most Important Cards:

• Demonic Tutor (Universal consistency)
• Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines (ETB amplifier/anti-synergy lockdown)
• Sheoldred, the Apocalypse (Life swing engine)
• Dauthi Voidwalker (Graveyard hate + threat theft)
• Urza's Saga (Tutor for key artifacts)
• Tainted Pact (Precision tutoring)
• Cataclysm (Asymmetric board reset)
• The Wandering Emperor (Flexible removal/value)
• Toxic Deluge (Precision board wipe)
• Parallax Wave (Repeatable exile engine)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 5/10
Primarily aims to win through attrition in later turns (T8+), though can steal games earlier with Dauthi Voidwalker or Sheoldred lifedrain.

Resilience: 7/10
Multiple recursion tools (Takenuma, Eternal Witness in exile theme), indestructible commander, and robust removal suite provide recovery paths.

Consistency: 8/10
11 tutors (including land-based), 14 card-draw engines, and redundant exile effects ensure key pieces are accessible.

Interaction: 9/10
27 targeted removal spells, 4 board wipes, and 8 graveyard hate cards make this one of the format's most disruptive lists.

Rating Justification:

The deck combines cEDH-level interaction density with a midrange Orzhov control plan, capable of locking games by T7-8 but lacking fast combo finishers. Its resilience and consistency elevate it above casual tiers, while speed limitations prevent higher rankings.

Power level: 6.0 - 6.5