Overview:

This Gruul deck leverages Tovolar, Dire Overlord as a card draw engine but operates primarily as a high-powered combo deck utilizing explosive artifact mana and creature synergies. While featuring Werewolf tribal elements, its core strategy revolves around assembling instant-win combos like Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Hyrax Tower Scout or Splinter Twin + Dualcaster Mage, supported by potent tutors and recursion. Tovolar enables incidental value but isn't essential to the primary win conditions, making the deck resilient to commander removal.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Explosive Start (Turns 0-2): Deploy fast mana (Mox Diamond, Chrome Mox, Lotus Petal, Simian Spirit Guide, Elvish Spirit Guide, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, Grim Monolith) to accelerate. Use land tutors (Wrenn and Six, fetches) to find Gaea's Cradle or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Exploration enables extra land drops.
2. Setup & Tutor (Turns 2-4): Cast card advantage engines (Sylvan Library, Wheel of Fortune, Jeska's Will) or tutors (Survival of the Fittest, Gamble, Worldly Tutor, Green Sun's Zenith, Imperial Recruiter, Birthing Pod) to assemble combo pieces. Underworld Breach enables graveyard recursion.
3. Win Condition Execution (Turns 3-5):
   • Kiki-Jiki Lines: Pair with Hyrax Tower Scout (untaps Kiki for infinite hasty tokens) or Combat Celebrant (infinite combat phases).
   • Splinter Twin Lines: Enchant Dualcaster Mage to create infinite hasty copies (copy Twin's ability).
   • Selvala/Staff: Generate infinite mana with Selvala, Heart of the Wilds + Staff of Domination + a creature with power ≥3, then draw deck/cast Walking Ballista.
   • Breach Loops: Recur rituals (Desperate Ritual, Rite of Flame) and tutors with Underworld Breach + Lion's Eye Diamond for storm kills or combo assembly.
   • Backup: Craterhoof Behemoth or Finale of Devastation (X≥10) for combat wins.

Mulligan Priorities:

• Essential: 2-3 lands (prioritize green sources) OR 1 land + multiple 0-1 mana accelerants.
• High Priority: Fast mana (Mox Diamond, Mana Vault, Lotus Petal), tutors (Gamble, Worldly Tutor), or combo enablers (Underworld Breach, Birthing Pod).
• Keepable: Hands with Sol Ring, dorks (Birds of Paradise, Llanowar Elves), or card selection (Sylvan Library, Faithless Looting).
• Mulligan: Slow hands lacking acceleration or combo potential.

Key Tips:

• Protect Combos: Use free interaction (Deflecting Swat, Red Elemental Blast, Veil of Summer, Autumn's Veil) or Heroic Intervention to shield key pieces during combo turns.
• Breach Sequencing: Exile lands/rituals first with Underworld Breach to fuel longer chains. Lion's Eye Diamond enables massive Breach turns by discarding hand for mana.
• Tutor Flexibility: Survival of the Fittest can find Kiki-Jiki, Hyrax Tower Scout, Dualcaster Mage, or Selvala. Gamble prioritizes Underworld Breach or critical combo pieces.
• Leverage Artifacts: Goblin Welder/Goblin Engineer recur Lion's Eye Diamond, Mana Vault, or combo artifacts. Urza's Saga fetches Lotus Petal or Shadowspear.
• Alternative Wins: Harmonic Prodigy doubles Tovolar's draw triggers. Concordant Crossroads gives all creatures haste for surprise combat kills.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Graveyard Hate: Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void cripples Underworld Breach, reanimation, and escape costs.
• Cursed Totem/Null Rod Effects: Shut down mana dorks, Selvala, Heart of the Wilds, Staff of Domination, Gaea's Cradle, and Kiki-Jiki.
• Rule of Law Effects: Prevent casting multiple spells per turn, disrupting combo assembly and Breach loops.

Moderate

• Board Wipes: Toxic Deluge or Fire Covenant can clear mana dorks/combo creatures, slowing setup.
• Artifact Destruction: Mass artifact removal (Vandalblast) disrupts fast mana and combos relying on Staff of Domination/Splinter Twin.
• Stack Interaction: Counterspells targeting key combo pieces or tutors can delay wins significantly.

Minor

• Tax Effects: Thalia, Guardian of Thraben or Trinisphere slightly slow the deck but are often outpaced by fast mana.
• Land Destruction: Nonbasic land hate (Blood Moon) is mitigated by basic-fetching lands and Boseiju, Who Endures.

Most Important Cards:

• Underworld Breach (Recursion engine enabling combo reassembly)
• Gaea's Cradle (Explosive mana for creature-based combos)
• Survival of the Fittest (Tutor any creature/combo piece)
• Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker (Primary combo piece)
• Lion's Eye Diamond (Mana source for Breach loops)
• Gamble (Efficient tutor for critical spells)
• Selvala, Heart of the Wilds (Mana generator/combo piece)
• Mox Diamond (Free mana acceleration)
• Hyrax Tower Scout (Kiki combo enabler)
• Deflecting Swat (Free protection for combos)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 9/10

• Capable of T1-3 wins with perfect draws (e.g., fast mana into Breach + LED + Tutor) and consistently threatens T3-5 wins via multiple combo lines.

Resilience: 7/10

• Extensive tutors, free protection spells, and Underworld Breach recursion provide recovery paths, but heavy reliance on creatures/artifacts creates fragility against specific hate.

Consistency: 9/10

• 15+ tutors, powerful card selection (Sylvan Library, Wheel), and functional redundancy in combo pieces ensure high reliability in finding win conditions.

Interaction: 7/10

• Efficient targeted removal (Force of Vigor, Nature's Claim, Chaos Warp), free counters (Deflecting Swat, REB), and protection (Veils) are present but lack broad stack control outside red.

Rating Justification:

This deck achieves cEDH-viable speed with consistent T2-4 win potential through multiple protected combos and extreme mana acceleration, aligning with the 8.5-9.0 tier. Its vulnerability to graveyard/artifact hate and lower stack interaction density compared to top-tier cEDH lists prevents a higher rating.

Power level: 8.5 - 9.0