Overview:

This mono-black artifact combo deck leverages King Macar, the Gold-Cursed as a central untap engine to exile opponents' creatures, generate Treasure tokens, and fuel intricate artifact synergies. The primary strategy involves assembling untap loops (e.g., Thornbite Staff, Umbral Mantle) with Macar to produce massive mana via Treasure or cards like Krark-Clan Ironworks, enabling game-ending plays through Torment of Hailfire, Aetherflux Reservoir, or Bolas's Citadel. Macar acts as both an enabler and removal tool, while "hidden commanders" like Staff of Domination and Clock of Omens drive combo finishers. The deck heavily relies on artifacts, with secondary themes of sacrifice payoffs (Marionette Apprentice) and cost reduction (Semblance Anvil).

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-3): Play mana rocks (Sol Ring, Arcane Signet), untap enablers (Springleaf Drum, Manifold Key), or value artifacts (Idol of Oblivion). Cast Macar turn 3 if possible.
2. Engine Assembly (Turns 4-5): Deploy key untappers like Thornbite Staff (equip to Macar), Umbral Mantle, or Mobile Garrison. Use Liquimetal Coating/Torque to turn Macar into an artifact for synergies. Activate Macar to exile threats and stockpile Treasures.
3. Combo/Finisher (Turns 5-7):
   • Infinite Mana: Basalt Monolith + Rings of Brighthearth or Staff of Domination + Magus of the Coffers/Relic of Legends.
   • Win: Cast Torment of Hailfire (X=20+), activate Aetherflux Reservoir 50+ times, or chain Bolas's Citadel spells.
   • Alternate: Overwhelm with Marionette Apprentice/Braids, Arisen Nightmare drain or equipped Macar commander damage.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (including utility like Buried Ruin), 1-2 ramp artifacts, and an untap piece or Macar.
• Prioritize combo starters: Thornbite Staff, Krark-Clan Ironworks, or tutors (Demonic Tutor, Beseech the Queen).
• Avoid hands lacking black mana, ramp, or Macar synergy.

Key Tips:

• Untap Synergies: Use Unwinding Clock to untap artifacts during opponents' turns. Clock of Omens taps Treasures/vehicles to untap Macar or combo pieces.
• Protection: Equip Swiftfoot Boots to Macar. Malakir Rebirth saves him from removal. Arguel's Blood Fast provides draw if life is high.
• Value & Recursion: Scrap Trawler retrieves artifacts. Trading Post sacrifices tokens for cards/life. Necropotence digs for combo pieces.
• Tutor Targets: Fetch Staff of Domination for infinite mana, Bolas's Citadel for lifeloss storm, or Inspiring Statuary to cheat costs.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Artifact Destruction: Mass artifact hate (Vandalblast, Null Rod) cripples mana, combos, and untap engines.
• Graveyard Reliance: Limited recursion for exiled artifacts/combo pieces via Buried Ruin only.
• Commander Dependency: Macar is essential for early control and treasure generation; repeated removal stalls the deck.

Moderate

• Life Total Pressure: Bolas's Citadel, Necropotence, and Black Market Connections drain life rapidly, making aggro problematic.
• Stack Interaction: Minimal counterspells; relies on preemptive Maze of Ith-style effects for protection.
• Board Wipes: Creature-based untappers (e.g., vehicles) are vulnerable, though less critical than artifacts.

Minor

• Enchantment Removal: Struggles to answer resolved noncreature permanents beyond Feed the Swarm.
• Colorless Mana Constraints: Utility lands (e.g., Detection Tower) enter tapped, slowing multicolor artifact activations.

Most Important Cards:

• King Macar, the Gold-Cursed (Treasure generation, removal, combo enabler)
• Staff of Domination (Infinite mana outlet, untapper)
• Krark-Clan Ironworks (Sacrifice artifacts for mana, combo fuel)
• Clock of Omens (Untaps Macar/artifacts by tapping tokens)
• Bolas's Citadel (Life-based storm win condition)
• Necropotence (Card draw to assemble combos)
• Demonic Tutor (Fetches critical combo pieces)
• Basalt Monolith (Infinite mana with Rings/Staff)
• Thornbite Staff (Repeated Macar untaps on creature death)
• Aetherflux Reservoir (Wincon with spell chains/lifegain)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 8/10

• Capable of T4-5 wins with ideal draws (e.g., Macar + Thornbite + sacrifice outlet), though typically threatens T5-7 kills via combo storms.

Resilience: 5/10

• Recursion (Scrap Trawler, Buried Ruin) and protection (boots, Malakir) exist, but combos are fragile to artifact hate or Macar removal.

Consistency: 7/10

• Strong tutor density (7+), card draw (Necropotence, Idol), and redundant untap effects mitigate variance.

Interaction: 3/10

• Limited to targeted removal (Feed the Swarm, Spine of Ish Sah) and combat tricks; lacks stack interaction outside narrow land abilities.

Rating Justification:

The deck achieves T5-7 wins through efficient artifact combos and high tutor density, aligning with the "Focused Competitive" tier (7.0). However, its vulnerability to artifact/commander disruption and low interaction prevent higher resilience scores, capping it at 7.0.

Power level: 7.0 - 7.0