Introduction
Have you ever stared in disbelief as your opponent, seemingly out of nowhere, generated an infinite stream of creatures and overwhelmed you in a single turn? The chances are, you’ve encountered the dreaded Food Chain combo. Food Chain is a powerful, often game-winning strategy in Magic: The Gathering, celebrated for its explosive potential and the sheer inevitability it can bring to a game. Its reputation precedes it – the mere mention of Food Chain is enough to make opponents wary. This article serves as a comprehensive guide to understanding this iconic combo, delving into its history, essential components, various deck constructions, strengths, weaknesses, and the intricate strategies that underpin its success. Whether you are a novice Magic player looking to expand your knowledge or an experienced strategist seeking to master a new combo, this guide will equip you with the insights needed to harness the devastating power of the Food Chain.
Understanding the Core Components of Food Chain
The Food Chain combo, at its heart, is relatively straightforward, but mastering its nuances requires understanding the critical elements that make it function.
Food Chain: The Backbone of the Combo
The card that gives the combo its name, Food Chain, is an enchantment that allows you to exile a creature you control and, in return, generate mana equal to that creature’s converted mana cost. Crucially, this mana can only be used to cast creature spells. This restriction is what makes finding the right partners so essential.
Imagine you have Food Chain on the battlefield. You exile a creature with a converted mana cost of three. You now have three mana available, but remember, these three mana can only be spent on casting creature spells. This seemingly simple ability becomes incredibly potent when combined with the right creatures. The key is generating more mana than you spend to keep the engine going. Food Chain’s strength lies in its ability to generate effectively infinite creature mana, paving the way for game-ending plays.
The Infinite Mana Engine: A Rebuyable Creature
The linchpin of the Food Chain combo is a creature that, when cast from exile using Food Chain mana, generates more mana than its own converted mana cost. This allows you to repeatedly exile and recast the creature, generating an ever-increasing pool of mana.
Squee, the Immortal: Squee, the Immortal stands as a classic and incredibly resilient example of a rebuyable creature. Squee’s unique ability allows it to return to your hand during your upkeep if it’s in your graveyard. This characteristic makes it exceedingly difficult to permanently remove, as it effectively dodges most forms of creature removal. Because it costs three mana to cast from your hand, it works perfectly with Food Chain as you net one mana each time you exile and recast it. The inevitability of Squee combined with Food Chain is one of the reasons it remains a popular choice. Its very existence on the battlefield is a ticking time bomb for your opponents.
Eternal Scourge and Misthollow Griffin: Eternal Scourge and Misthollow Griffin both have abilities that allow you to cast them from exile. They also each cost three mana, netting you one mana each time they are cast, similar to Squee. This redundancy can be incredibly helpful.
The importance of redundancy in this role cannot be overstated. Having multiple creatures capable of fueling the mana engine ensures that the combo remains viable even if one piece is removed or disrupted. Deck construction must account for this possibility, incorporating backup options to maintain consistency.
The Mana Outlet and Win Condition
Having infinite creature mana is useless without a way to translate it into victory. A mana outlet is the card or combination of cards that allows you to convert this infinite mana into a tangible, game-winning advantage.
Commander-Specific Win Conditions: Many Food Chain decks leverage their commander as the primary win condition. Prossh, Skyraider of Kher, for example, generates a horde of Kobold tokens when it enters the battlefield. With infinite mana, you can repeatedly cast Prossh, creating an overwhelming army of tokens and often overwhelming your opponents in a single attack. The Ur-Dragon can also be recast to pump your other dragons to massive sizes. This reliance on the commander simplifies the win condition and streamlines deck construction.
Creature-Based Win Conditions:
Walking Ballista: Walking Ballista is a versatile and widely used finisher. With infinite mana, you can cast Walking Ballista for an arbitrarily large number of counters, then remove those counters to deal direct damage to your opponents, effectively eliminating them from the game. Its simplicity and efficiency make it a staple in Food Chain decks.
Beast Whisperer and Primordial Sage: Beast Whisperer and Primordial Sage can draw your deck with the infinite mana to play your creature spells, you will draw cards each time you play creatures. Allowing you to find more win conditions.
Endbringer: Allows you to tap down all of your opponents permanents to alpha strike into them with your creatures.
Spell-Based Win Conditions: (Requires creatures to draw into spells). Thassa’s Oracle, a creature that grants you victory if your devotion to blue is greater or equal to the number of cards in your library when it enters the battlefield. Laboratory Maniac fulfills a similar win condition.
Utilizing a win condition within the command zone is a popular strategy. Commanders like Prossh or The Ur-Dragon can serve as both mana outlets and win conditions, providing a direct path to victory once the combo is assembled.
Food Chain Commanders and Archetypes
The Food Chain combo is not a monolithic strategy; it can be adapted and integrated into various deck archetypes, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher: Explosive Token Swarms
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher, is arguably the most iconic Food Chain commander. Its ability to generate Kobold tokens upon entering the battlefield makes it an ideal win condition. With Food Chain, you can repeatedly cast Prossh, creating an exponentially growing army of tokens that overwhelm your opponents in a single, devastating attack. Prossh Food Chain decks typically focus on ramp and protection, ensuring that the combo can be assembled quickly and safely. Sample deck lists often include cards like Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, and various green ramp spells to accelerate mana production.
First Sliver: Cascade Value Engine
The First Sliver leverages Food Chain in a slightly different manner. The First Sliver’s cascade ability allows you to chain into Food Chain or other creatures, creating a cascade of value. This advantage allows you to build a massive board presence and overwhelm your opponents with sheer card advantage. First Sliver decks commonly include a mix of creatures and support spells to maximize the cascade effect. A sample deck list might contain cards like Sliver Overlord, Sliver Hivelord, and various cascade enablers.
Niv-Mizzet, Parun: Izzet Spellslinger
Niv-Mizzet, Parun, synergizes with Food Chain by providing card draw and direct damage. By repeatedly casting and recasting creatures, you can trigger Niv-Mizzet’s ability, drawing cards and dealing damage to your opponents. This combination can quickly decimate opponents and allow you to dig for additional win conditions. Niv-Mizzet Food Chain decks often incorporate a spellslinger theme, using instants and sorceries to control the board and protect the combo. A sample deck list might include cards like Brainstorm, Counterspell, and various card draw spells.
The Ur-Dragon: Dragon Tribal Domination
The Ur-Dragon can use Food Chain by reducing dragon costs, creating a large board state, and buffing your dragons.
Variations in deckbuilding strategies further diversify the Food Chain combo. Incorporating stax elements, such as Rule of Law or Drannith Magistrate, can disrupt opponents and protect the combo. Integrating value engines like Sylvan Library or Rhystic Study provides card advantage and consistency. Building resilience against removal and counterspells is crucial, often involving cards like Swiftfoot Boots or countermagic of your own. Finally, budget considerations can guide card choices, with cheaper alternatives available for players on a tighter budget.
Playing the Food Chain Combo: Strategy and Tactics
Mastering the Food Chain combo requires strategic decision-making and tactical execution.
When mulliganing, prioritize hands containing Food Chain, ramp spells, and protection. Ramp and mana acceleration are essential for quickly reaching the mana required to cast Food Chain. Protecting the combo involves utilizing counterspells, creature protection, and discard spells to clear the way. Playing around disruption means recognizing common hate cards and having backup plans. Political considerations in multiplayer games involve knowing when to announce your intentions and who to target. Understanding your role in a pod – whether as an aggressor, control player, or value engine – informs your overall strategy.
Strengths and Weaknesses of Food Chain
The Food Chain combo boasts several strengths. It can be assembled relatively quickly, especially with good ramp. Resilience can be built into the deck to withstand disruption. The combo is explosive, often ending the game once it goes off. The strategy is versatile, adapting to different commanders and playstyles.
However, it also has weaknesses. It is vulnerable to graveyard hate, creature removal, and counterspells. It is mana-intensive, requiring a significant investment to get going. Inconsistent draws can plague the deck if it is not built well. Some playgroups may frown upon the combo due to its ability to quickly win games.
Notable Cards and Synergies
Beyond the core components, several cards and synergies enhance the Food Chain combo. Ramp spells like Cultivate and Kodama’s Reach accelerate mana production. Tutors like Demonic Tutor and Vampiric Tutor find essential pieces. Protection spells like Counterspell and Swan Song safeguard the combo. Value engines like Sylvan Library and Rhystic Study provide card advantage.
The History of Food Chain in MTG
When Food Chain first debuted, it was underestimated. Players initially overlooked its potential, focusing on other, more obvious strategies. However, as players began to experiment with the card, its true power became evident. The ability to generate infinite creature mana opened up new possibilities, leading to the rise of Food Chain decks. While difficult to measure its success in tournament play in Commander, Food Chain is known as a powerful card in the format. The continuous evolution of decklists reflects its adaptation to changing metagames and new card releases. Its current place in the Magic landscape is cemented as a potent combo enabler, both in casual and competitive formats.
Conclusion
The Food Chain combo is a force to be reckoned with in Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to generate infinite creature mana and enable game-winning plays makes it a powerful and exciting strategy. While it has weaknesses, careful deckbuilding and strategic execution can mitigate those risks. We encourage you to explore this combo, experiment with different commanders, and discover the devastating potential of the Food Chain.
Food Chain is more than just a combo; it’s a gateway to strategic mastery. Mastering the Food Chain is a rewarding experience that can elevate your gameplay and provide countless victories. So, take the plunge, embrace the devouring dominance, and become a Food Chain master today!
