{"ops":[{"insert":"Squall Leonhart"},{"attributes":{"header":1},"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"“Whatever happens, I'll be ready.”"},{"insert":"\n\nThis is a "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Bracket 2 Orzhov Voltron deck"},{"insert":" built around "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Squall, SeeD Mercenary"},{"insert":". The primary win condition is straightforward: build Squall into a lethal attacker, make sure he can connect, and take advantage of the double strike he gains when attacking alone. The twist—and the reason the deck is much more resilient than a typical Voltron deck—is Squall's ability to return a permanent with mana value 3 or less from your graveyard whenever he deals combat damage to a player. \n\nThat ability makes the graveyard an extension of the Voltron package. If an opponent destroys "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Phyresis, All That Glitters, Idolized, Super-Soldier Serum"},{"insert":", or one of the deck's many Equipment and Auras, those cards can eventually be recovered by Squall himself. This means removing Squall after you've invested heavily into him is often less effective than it would be against a conventional Voltron commander. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Mantle of the Ancients"},{"insert":" takes the idea even further, allowing an entire pile of Auras and Equipment to return to the battlefield attached to Squall at once. \n\nThe recursion package isn't limited to Voltron pieces. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Plaguecrafter, Fleshbag Marauder, Demon's Disciple, and Accursed Marauder"},{"insert":" function as reusable removal because they can sacrifice themselves and later be returned by Squall. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Twilight Diviner"},{"insert":" can then turn creatures returning from the graveyard into additional bodies, allowing one recursion trigger to generate even more value. \nSquall can even recover "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"lands"},{"insert":". A discarded land can be replayed later, while "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Urza's Saga"},{"insert":" can return from the graveyard after completing its chapters and begin generating Constructs and tutoring another artifact. This makes Squall's combat trigger a general-purpose recursion engine rather than a narrow Equipment ability.\n\nThe deck also uses cards such as "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Entomb"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Buried Alive"},{"insert":" to deliberately stock the graveyard with whatever Squall will need later. Instead of thinking of the graveyard as a place where cards go when they are lost, think of it as a toolbox that Squall can access one successful attack at a time. \n\nThe Voltron package itself focuses on three things: "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"power, evasion, and protection"},{"insert":". Colossus Hammer and All That Glitters provide enormous scaling, while Brotherhood Regalia, Zephyr Boots, Key to the City, and Trailblazer's Boots make sure Squall actually connects. Swiftfoot Boots, Lightning Greaves, Mithril Coat, and similar cards keep him alive when you need him to survive. \n\nThe result is a Voltron deck that is comfortable playing a longer game than its strategy might suggest. You can build Squall, let opponents answer him, rebuild the pieces, and attack again. Every successful attack advances your board regardless of what the opponent did to you previously. PlayGroup's current sample reflects that plan: across 10 games, Squall averages "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"18.1 commander damage per game"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1.7 commander casts per game"},{"insert":", while combat damage is the deck's dominant win condition. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"The goal isn't to make Squall impossible to kill. It's to make killing Squall insufficient."},{"insert":"\n\n"}]}