Casting spells for free is pretty much never going to result in fair games of Magic. From Show and Tell, to Aluren, to Shelldock Isle, if a player is able to circumvent a spell's cost, you can be sure that some pretty crazy things are about to happen. This mindset is what directed the design of today's list, a combo deck based on a rare from Strixhaven: Efreet Flamepainter.

Flamepainter Combo| Casual | James Heslip

• Creatures (8)
• 4 Efreet Flamepainter
• 4 Living Lore

• Instants (4)
• 4 Otherworldly Gaze

• Sorceries (25)
• 1 Crush of Wurms
• 1 Volley of Boulders
• 2 Artful Dodge
• 2 Deep Analysis
• 3 Army of the Damned
• 4 Faithless Looting
• 4 Firebolt
• 4 Flame Slash
• 4 Quiet Speculation

• Lands (23)
• 9 Island
• 7 Mountain
• 3 Swiftwater Cliffs
• 4 Temple of Epiphany

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Cost: 15.00$ at the time of publication

The Core

It may be surprising to hear, but I consider Quiet Speculation to be the other half of the core of this list. This two-mana sorcery not only ensures that we will have multiple viable targets for our creatures to cast, but it also allows us to pick and choose the best choices for the situation at hand. Even if we're not at the point where we're ready to be slinging the huge spells, Speculation still finds smaller targets that we can actually pay for and cast from the graveyard, as you'll soon see.

The Backup

With Quiet Speculation ensuring there are large spells worthy of cheat-casting in the graveyard, we are limited to choosing only spells with flashback as win conditions. That being said, it doesn't mean we don't have some absolutely back-breaking choices. Army of the Damned is my favorite, as thirteen 2/2 zombies on turn five is very difficult for most casual strategies to deal with. If Flamepainter was the caster, then the opponent will usually be looking at twenty-six zombies instead. Of course, the silver bullet potential is also there, so we've got some interesting one-ofs to find. Crush of Wurms summons fewer-but-larger threats than Army and is sometimes relevant as a way to create blockers. Meanwhile, Volley of Boulders clears the board or smacks the opponent for some hefty burn damage. While it will almost never happen, Boulders is notable as the only big flashback spell that we can potentially hard cast.

Faithless Looting and Otherworldly Gaze are our card draw and selection. Both come with flashback, which means we could search them out with Speculation if we wanted to. Most often, however, they will serve as additional ways to bury our game-ending spells while also digging for a combo creature or land drop. Faithless Looting specifically is a perfect fit for the deck, as so many of your spells have flashback that you'll rarely find yourself in a situation where you don't have discard fodder available for it.

Firebolt and Flame Slash are the deck's removal. They protect you in the early turns, keeping your life total safe while you make your land drops, fill your graveyard, and dig for Efreet or Lore. Once you've accomplished your combo, their role shifts from defensive to offensive, clearing the way of blockers for your zombies and wurms to get the job done.

Artful Dodge and Deep Analysis are additional silver-bullet options for Speculation to bury. Dodge helps ensure Flamepainter hits her mark, while Deep Analysis draws us into lands and combo creatures. Both are great discard targets for Looting and Gaze, too.

Tips and Tricks

What cards you grab with Quiet Speculation are often situational, but I found myself going for the same few groups of three almost every time. If my available combo creature was Efreet, then two Army of the Damned (or one Army and one Crush of Wurms) paired with Artful Dodge was my choice 99% of the time. With this pile, I could flashback Dodge on the next turn and spew out twenty-six zombies without worrying about blockers.

If Dodge was in my hand or graveyard already, or I was planning on playing Living Lore instead, then Deep Analysis usually found its way into the pile, as it would ideally be cast on turn three to dig for my fourth land drop.

Both core creatures have fairly high mana costs, and they are susceptible to removal. However, I personally feel that in some ways this is a plus. In casual environments, combo decks tend to not be all that exciting to play against, especially if they are too fast or resilient. If a casual opponent feels like they have ways to interact with the combo player, then both players can still get a meaningful experience out of the match. So, being a little slower or weaker to removal could be argued to make this deck's games a bit more fun for everyone involved.

Additional Options

Additional Options | James Heslip

• Creatures (3)
• 1 Izzet Chemister
• 1 Merfolk Looter
• 1 Torrent Sculptor

• Instants (11)
• 1 Cathartic Pyre
• 1 Creative Outburst
• 1 Defy Gravity
• 1 Desperate Ravings
• 1 Galvanic Iteration
• 1 Increasing Vengeance
• 1 Izzet Charm
• 1 Magma Opus
• 1 Spell Pierce
• 1 Thrill of Possibility
• 1 Turn Aside

• Sorceries (9)
• 1 Careful Study
• 1 Elemental Masterpiece
• 1 Increasing Devotion
• 1 Increasing Savagery
• 1 Ignite the Future
• 1 Reckless Charge
• 1 Rolling Temblor
• 1 Spelltwine
• 1 Strategic Planning

• Lands (1)
• 1 Desolate Lighthouse

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Izzet Chemister is a viable alternative to either Living Lore or Efreet Flamepainter. He still requires a turn to set up his cheat-cast, but he doesn't require you to throw him into combat, and he comes down a turn earlier, which is certainly a plus.

If you want even more card draw, you could shell out a couple extra dollars for Careful Study, which would likely replace Gaze. doing so would reduce the number of flashback card sin the list, which would limit the effective discard targets available to you. If you don't want to spend the money on Studies, Thrill of Possibility and its various functional reprints could be played, too.

Increasing Devotion, Savagery, and Vengeance are alternative win conditions from the same family to consider. Each is more powerful when cast from the graveyard, which is exactly what Flamepainter accomplishes for us. Sadly, none of them work the same way with Living Lore. While Devotion has some real potential, I don't think it's better than Army of the Damned, as you get smaller creatures in fewer number. The only real plus is that they come into play untapped, so you have the potential to block aggression. Savagery looks fun, but is only really viable with Efreet, since Lore must sacrifice itself to cast whatever spell is attached to it.

In terms of other win condition options, Creative Outburst, Elemental Masterpiece, and Magma Opus have tons of potential. We can't search them out with Quiet Speculation, but they do discard themselves easily while also providing some helpful mana ramp. Hitting one won't necessarily win the game, but their effects are powerful and when doubled or combined with our other sizeable spells they're a force to respect.

As previously mentioned, the deck is definitely susceptible to removal. If desired, one could try to find room for some protection or counter magic. Spell Pierce is a sort of catch-all, while Turn Aside is a little more certain. Izzet Charm could also work, and fits well with the rest of the shell, too.