Overview:

This WUBRG Assassin tribal deck leverages Ezio Auditore da Firenze's freerunning mechanic and lethal 10-life threshold ability to execute a multi-pronged strategy. The deck combines aggressive combat synergies with life-halving effects (e.g., Virtus the Veiled, Unstoppable Slasher), alternate win conditions (Ramses, Assassin Lord, Etrata, the Silencer), and high-quality stax/tax pieces (Opposition Agent, Esper Sentinel). Ezio serves as both an enabler for casting Assassins at reduced costs and a game-ending threat when opponents dip below 10 life. The deck's mana base and ramp suite enable explosive starts, while tutors and card draw engines ensure consistent access to key pieces.

Primer:

Core Strategy Execution:

1. Early Setup (Turns 1-3): Deploy fast mana (Mana Vault, Chrome Mox, Sol Ring) and Assassin enablers like Cover of Darkness or Rooftop Bypass. Use Ignoble Hierarch/Noble Hierarch for colored ramp.
2. Mid-Game Pressure (Turns 4-6): Cast Ezio with protection (Lightning Greaves, Heroic Intervention) and deploy life-halving threats (Virtus the Veiled, Quietus Spike). Activate freerunning costs on Assassin spells post-combat damage.
3. Win Condition Triggers:
   • Ezio's 10-Life Kill: Use Tree of Perdition, Sorin Markov, or combat damage to reduce opponents to ≤10 life, then trigger Ezio's ability.
   • Ramses Alt Win: Eliminate any player via combat/effects after attacking them with Assassins.
   • Etrata Exile Lock: Connect with Etrata, the Silencer 3x through evasion (Whispersilk Cloak, Brotherhood Regalia).

Mulligan Priorities:

• Keep hands with 2-3 lands (prioritize untapped duals/fetches).
• Ensure early ramp (≥1 mana rock/dork) and at least 1 evasion enabler (Cover of Darkness, Changeling Outcast).
• Value hands containing Rhystic Study, Black Market Connections, or Smothering Tithe for sustained value.

Key Tips:

• Use The One Ring and Eagle Vision (via freerunning) for explosive card draw.
• Opposition Agent + Demonic Tutor can steal opponents' key spells.
• Cyclonic Rift overloaded during combat phase ensures lethal Ezio triggers.

Weaknesses:

Critical

• Reliant on maintaining Assassin board presence – folds to repeated board wipes (Toxic Deluge is sole sweeper).
• Cursed Totem/Linvala, Keeper of Silence disable critical mana dorks and Deathrite Shaman.

Moderate

• Limited instant-speed interaction outside counterspells (relies on Force of Will, Fierce Guardianship).
• Life-halving effects lose potency in 40-life format without backup pressure.

Minor

• High life payment cards (Black Market Connections, Mana Confluence) compound damage from aggressive strategies.

Most Important Cards:

• Cover of Darkness (Evasion enabler for Assassins)
• Etrata, the Silencer (Alternate win condition)
• Ramses, Assassin Lord (Game-ending trigger)
• Opposition Agent (Disruption + resource theft)
• Virtus the Veiled (Life-halving engine)
• Smothering Tithe (Mana generation in WUBRG)
• Demonic Tutor (Tutoring flexibility)
• Mana Vault (Explosive ramp)
• The One Ring (Card advantage engine)
• Quietus Spike (Life reduction amplifier)

Attribute Ratings:

Speed: 8/10
Capable of T4-5 kills via Ezio's ability with optimal ramp into Tree of Perdition or Sorin Markov, accelerated by fast mana and tutors.

Resilience: 6/10
Protection spells (Teferi's Protection, Deflecting Swat) and hexproof equipment mitigate removal, but creature-heavy strategy remains vulnerable to sweepers.

Consistency: 7/10
11 tutors and robust card draw ensure key pieces are accessible, but WUBRG mana demands can cause occasional stumbles.

Interaction: 7/10
High-quality counterspells (Force of Will, Mana Drain) and targeted removal (Swords to Plowshares, Assassin's Trophy), but lacks permanent-based stax.

Rating Justification:

This deck operates at cEDH-adjacent speed with T4-5 win potential through optimized mana and tutors, but its combat-dependent win conditions and vulnerability to disruption place it just below tiered cEDH decks. The combination of explosive starts and layered threats aligns with High Power tiers.

Power level: 8.0 - 8.5