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MTG Modern 📍 MTGO Challenge 32 — 2nd Place Played by MTGO user Rvng

Instant Reanimator — Modern Strategy Guide

~$922 deck cost Reviewed by Robert SmithPublished Nov 7, 2026 Event Nov 4, 2026

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Archetype Overview

Instant Reanimator is a Goryo's Vengeance deck: put Griselbrand or Atraxa, Grand Unifier into your graveyard, return it with Goryo's Vengeance, and use Ephemerate to get more out of its enters trigger. This 75 finished 2nd at an MTGO Challenge 32 (56 players, November 4, 2026), played by MTGO user Rvng.

What sets this build apart

If you've read our Goryo Reanimator guide, the core will look familiar. The two lists share 23 main-deck card names, including the full four of Goryo's Vengeance, Ephemerate, Atraxa, Grand Unifier, Solitude and Psychic Frog, and nearly the same mana base. The differences are what this guide is about:

Our Reanimator and Grixis Reanimator guides cover different decks. They're built on other reanimation spells and other big creatures. In the main deck, this list shares only Psychic Frog, Emperor of Bones, Thoughtseize and a few lands with them, plus Fallaji Archaeologist with the Reanimator list.

The plan

Almost every card in the main deck does one of three jobs.

Ephemerate sits across these jobs. It exiles a creature you control and returns it, which gives Atraxa, Grand Unifier or Solitude a second enters trigger. Its rebound lets you cast it again for free at your next upkeep.

Why the plan is strong

  • Cheap, fast payoffs. Goryo's Vengeance costs {1}{B} and returns a 7/7 with haste. Griselbrand is a flying, lifelink 7/7 that can pay 7 life to draw seven cards. Atraxa, Grand Unifier is a 7/7 with flying, vigilance, deathtouch and lifelink that reveals ten cards and can put one of each card type into your hand.
  • Instant speed. Goryo's Vengeance, Ephemerate, Faithful Mending and Otherworldly Gaze are all instants, so a lot of your plan can happen on your opponent's turn.
  • A fair backup plan. Psychic Frog draws a card whenever it deals combat damage to a player and can gain flying by exiling three cards from your graveyard. Solitude can be cast for its mana cost as a 3/2 flash, lifelink creature. When the combo isn't there, you can still play a normal game.

Who should pick it up

Play this if you like combo decks that can also play a midrange game, and you're willing to practice. The deck has many small decisions: what to discard, which fetch land to crack, when to spend life, and whether to evoke Solitude or hard-cast it. The mana base costs life, and Thoughtseize and Griselbrand cost more. If you want a deck that's simple to play under a round clock, this isn't it. If you want a fast, flexible combo deck with a real game plan after sideboarding, it's a strong choice, and the second engine gives you more ways to win through disruption than a pure Goryo's list.

Core Strategy & Game Plan

You're a combo deck first. Most games you're trying to get a 7/7 onto the battlefield on turn two or three and win with it before your opponent can recover. Your interaction is there to protect that plan and to buy turns, not to grind a long game. When the combo is stopped, you have a midrange fallback built from Psychic Frog, Solitude and your removal.

The two halves of the combo

Every combo turn needs a big creature in the graveyard and a way to bring it back.

Getting it into the graveyard. Psychic Frog is the cleanest outlet. Its discard ability has no mana cost, so once it's on the battlefield you can discard Griselbrand or Atraxa, Grand Unifier whenever you need to. Faithful Mending draws two and discards two at instant speed for {W}{U}, and it has flashback for {1}{W}{U}. Otherworldly Gaze surveils 3 for {U}, with flashback for {1}{U}. Fallaji Archaeologist mills three when it enters. Meticulous Archive, Shadowy Backstreet and Undercity Sewers each surveil 1 when they enter.

Bringing it back. Goryo's Vengeance returns a legendary creature card from your graveyard. The creature gains haste and is exiled at the beginning of the next end step. Emperor of Bones works differently. At the beginning of combat on your turn, it exiles up to one target card from a graveyard. Whenever +1/+1 counters are put on it, it puts a creature card it exiled onto the battlefield under your control with a finality counter. That creature gains haste and is sacrificed at the beginning of the next end step. Emperor's own {1}{B} ability is Adapt 2, and no other card in the list puts +1/+1 counters on it.

What each target does

Griselbrand is the card-advantage finisher. It's a 7/7 with flying and lifelink, and it can pay 7 life to draw seven cards. Returned by Goryo's Vengeance, it has haste, so it attacks the turn it arrives. Drawing seven usually finds more Goryo's Vengeance, interaction and enablers.

Atraxa, Grand Unifier is the value finisher. When it enters, it reveals the top ten cards of your library. For each card type, you may put one card of that type into your hand. The main deck has creatures, instants, sorceries and lands, so one trigger can be worth up to four cards. Teferi, Time Raveler adds planeswalker to that list after sideboarding.

Ephemerate is your multiplier. It exiles a creature you control and returns it to the battlefield, so Atraxa's enters trigger happens again. Rebound gives you another free cast at your next upkeep. On Solitude, it exiles a second creature.

The ideal games

  1. Turn one: Thoughtseize to clear a counterspell or removal spell, or a surveil land to start filling the graveyard. A tapped surveil land on turn one costs you very little.
  2. Turn two: Psychic Frog or Fallaji Archaeologist. If Frog survives, the combo is live next turn.
  3. Turn three: discard Griselbrand or Atraxa, Grand Unifier to Frog, cast Goryo's Vengeance, and attack. With Atraxa, Grand Unifier, cast Ephemerate after combat for a second trigger.

The faster line uses instants. With a big creature already in your graveyard, Goryo's Vengeance needs only two mana. Mill or surveil it there on turn one or two, and you can return it as early as turn two.

The Emperor of Bones line is slower but harder to stop. Cast Emperor on turn two. On turn three, at the beginning of combat, it exiles Griselbrand from your graveyard. Then pay {1}{B} for Adapt 2. Neither of Emperor's abilities requires it to tap, so it doesn't matter that it arrived the turn before.

Posture

Against slower decks, be the aggressor. Your combo is faster than their plan, and your interaction is best used to clear the way. Against fast aggro decks, play defense first. Solitude and Prismatic Ending keep you alive until a lifelinking 7/7 swings the race. Against combo decks, Thoughtseize and Force of Negation are your most important cards, because you're racing and you need to slow them down.

When the combo is off

Sometimes you won't find a big creature or a reanimation spell. That's when the fair half matters. Psychic Frog grows with each card you discard, draws when it connects, and can fly by exiling three cards from your graveyard. Solitude cast for {3}{W}{W} is a 3/2 lifelink creature that removes something on the way in. Atraxa, Grand Unifier can be hard-cast for seven, and Overgrown Tomb is your only green source for it. Those games are slow, but they're winnable, especially when your opponent has spent cards on your combo.

Card Choices & Breakdown

Walk through the 60 by job. Most of the numbers are full playsets. The interesting choices are the three-ofs, the two-ofs and the mana base.

Reanimation targets (6)

  • 4 Atraxa, Grand Unifier. The main target. It's a 7/7 with flying, vigilance, deathtouch and lifelink, and its enters trigger can draw several cards. Four copies make it easy to find one for discard or mill. Extra copies in hand are still discard fodder for Psychic Frog or Faithful Mending.
  • 2 Griselbrand. The second target. Pay 7 life, draw seven. With two copies, you're more likely to have Griselbrand when you need to find answers or rebuild after disruption. It costs eight to hard-cast, so it's almost never cast from hand.

Reanimation (7)

  • 4 Goryo's Vengeance. The core spell. Two mana, instant speed, and haste. It only returns legendary creatures, which in the main deck means your six targets. Its splice ability rarely matters here, because the only Arcane spells in the list are other copies of Goryo's itself.
  • 3 Emperor of Bones. This is what makes the build different. Emperor doesn't need a legendary target. It can take Solitude from your graveyard or a creature from your opponent's. It's also a two-mana 2/2 that exiles a card from a graveyard each combat. That makes it useful against opposing graveyard decks even if you never reanimate with it. Three rather than four keeps room for interaction.

Enablers (11, plus 3 surveil lands)

  • 4 Psychic Frog. The best enabler. The discard ability has no mana cost and you can use it any number of times. It's also a strong threat when you aren't comboing.
  • 3 Fallaji Archaeologist. A two-mana 0/3 that mills three. If you mill a noncreature, nonland card, you may put it into your hand. If you don't, it gets a +1/+1 counter. That can turn the mill into Goryo's Vengeance or Ephemerate. The 0/3 body also blocks small attackers.
  • 2 Faithful Mending. Draw two, discard two, gain 2 life, at instant speed. Flashback makes it two uses. It costs {W}{U}, so it is more color-hungry than your other enablers.
  • 2 Otherworldly Gaze. One mana for surveil 3, with a two-mana flashback. It's the cheapest way to dig for a big creature, but it doesn't get one out of your hand.

Value and protection (4)

Interaction (11)

  • 4 Solitude. A flash creature that exiles up to one other target creature when it enters, and that creature's controller gains life equal to its power. Its evoke cost is exiling a white card from your hand, so you can use it without spending mana. Your white cards include Ephemerate, Faithful Mending, Prismatic Ending, Atraxa, Grand Unifier and other copies of Solitude.
  • 3 Thoughtseize. One mana to take their best nonland card, and you see their hand before you combo. It costs 2 life, which adds up in this deck, so three copies is a sensible count.
  • 2 Force of Negation. Counter a noncreature spell. On your opponent's turn, you may exile a blue card from your hand instead of paying its mana cost. Your blue cards include Psychic Frog, Fallaji Archaeologist, Otherworldly Gaze, Faithful Mending, Atraxa, Grand Unifier and other copies of Force. Keeping it at two limits how often you pay that card cost.
  • 2 Prismatic Ending. Exile a nonland permanent with mana value up to the number of colors spent. For X=1, it costs only {W}. For X=2, you need two colors. Your mana can produce all four colors, so larger X values are possible but not easy.

Mana (21 lands)

Twenty-one lands is a moderate count for a deck with this many cheap spells. That works because the deck has so many ways to see more cards: Faithful Mending, Otherworldly Gaze, Fallaji Archaeologist, Griselbrand and Atraxa, Grand Unifier.

The Decklist

Deck compositionMain deck · 60 cardsCreatures 20Instants 14Sorceries 5Lands 21
What's in the list, by card type. Plus 15-card sideboard.

This is the 75-card list played by MTGO user Rvng to a 2nd-place finish at an MTGO Challenge 32 (56 players, November 4, 2026).

Main Deck (60)

Creatures (20)

Instants (14)

Sorceries (5)

Lands (21)

Sideboard (15)

Mulligan Guide

A keepable hand needs three things: enough lands to cast your spells, a way to get a big creature into the graveyard, and a way to bring it back or a plan that buys time until you find one. You don't need all three in your opening seven. You do need at least two, plus mana that can cast them.

What a good seven looks like

Atraxa, Grand Unifier and Griselbrand in hand are good if you have a discard outlet. Without one, they're dead cards until you find an outlet.

Example hands

Hand 1: Polluted Delta, Hallowed Fountain, Psychic Frog, Goryo's Vengeance, Griselbrand, Thoughtseize, Ephemerate.
Verdict: keep. This is close to ideal. Thoughtseize on turn one, Frog on turn two, then discard Griselbrand and cast Goryo's on turn three. Ephemerate is there for a second Atraxa trigger once you find one.

Hand 2: Plains, Island, Atraxa, Grand Unifier, Atraxa, Grand Unifier, Goryo's Vengeance, Solitude, Prismatic Ending.
Verdict: mulligan. No black source, so you can't cast Goryo's Vengeance, and no way to discard Atraxa. You have interaction, but your combo is two draws away. This is a trap: it looks powerful, but it does nothing.

Hand 3: Marsh Flats, Undercity Sewers, Watery Grave, Fallaji Archaeologist, Emperor of Bones, Otherworldly Gaze, Force of Negation.
Verdict: keep. No big creature yet, but three self-mill effects and a reanimator. Otherworldly Gaze and Fallaji Archaeologist dig six cards deep, and the surveil land adds one more. Force of Negation protects the turn you go off.

Hand 4: Flooded Strand, Goryo's Vengeance, Goryo's Vengeance, Psychic Frog, Griselbrand, Ephemerate, Thoughtseize.
Verdict: mulligan on the play, close on the draw. One land with a three-turn plan. Flooded Strand can find Watery Grave for both of Frog's colors, but you still need two more lands from your draws to reach the Goryo's turn. On the draw, you see one more card before turn one, but this is still risky.

Hand 5: Polluted Delta, Marsh Flats, Godless Shrine, Island, Solitude, Solitude, Thoughtseize.
Verdict: keep against aggro, mulligan against combo. No combo at all, but two Solitudes and four lands. Against an aggro deck, that's a hand that stabilizes and then draws into the combo. Against a combo deck or Tron, it's too slow.

Hand 6: Shadowy Backstreet, Watery Grave, Faithful Mending, Atraxa, Grand Unifier, Goryo's Vengeance, Prismatic Ending, Force of Negation.
Verdict: keep. The turn-three line is: Faithful Mending at the end of their turn two, discarding Atraxa, then Goryo's Vengeance on your turn three. Shadowy Backstreet and Watery Grave give you {W} and {U} for Mending, then {1}{B} for Goryo's the next turn, so two lands are enough for the whole line.

On the play vs on the draw

On the play, you can keep slightly slower hands, because you're more likely to combo before your opponent's interaction is ready. On the draw, you see an extra card, so one-land hands become marginally better, but your opponent also has more time. In general, keep hands with interaction more often on the draw, and hands with pure speed more often on the play.

Mulligan to six

Six-card hands are fine with this deck if they have an enabler and a payoff. When you bottom cards, keep lands and enablers, and bottom extra copies of Atraxa, Grand Unifier or Griselbrand first. One big creature in hand is enough.

Matchup adjustments

Sequencing & Key Lines

The deck rewards careful sequencing. Most mistakes happen in the first three turns: which land to play, what to discard and when to spend life.

Turn one

  • Surveil land or fetch? If you don't have a one-mana play, a tapped surveil land is often your best turn-one land. It enters tapped but surveils 1, so it might put a big creature in your graveyard right away.
  • Thoughtseize or Otherworldly Gaze? Thoughtseize when you need information or their interaction gone. Gaze when you need a big creature in the graveyard. Against combo decks, Thoughtseize almost always comes first.
  • Don't crack fetches without reason. Each costs 1 life. Crack them when you need a specific land, or when you want them in the graveyard to help Psychic Frog's flying ability later.

Turn two

Psychic Frog, Fallaji Archaeologist or Emperor of Bones are your typical plays. Choose based on your hand.

  • Frog if you have a big creature in hand and a reanimation spell. It's your discard outlet for next turn.
  • Fallaji Archaeologist if you have Goryo's Vengeance but no big creature. It mills three, and if it hits a noncreature, nonland card you want, you can take it.
  • Emperor of Bones if you already have a big creature in your graveyard. Its first combat trigger can exile it next turn. Holding Emperor until a target is in the graveyard is fine.

If you already have Griselbrand or Atraxa, Grand Unifier in your graveyard and two mana open, cast Goryo's Vengeance now. Don't wait a turn just to have Ephemerate mana too.

Turn three: the standard Goryo's turn

  1. In your main phase, discard the big creature to Psychic Frog.
  2. Cast Goryo's Vengeance targeting it. It gains haste.
  3. If it's Griselbrand, decide whether to draw seven before or after combat. Drawing before combat finds interaction to clear blockers. Drawing after combat means you've already dealt damage.
  4. Attack.
  5. If it's Atraxa, Grand Unifier, cast Ephemerate after combat for a second enters trigger.

The Emperor of Bones line

  1. Have Emperor of Bones on the battlefield and a creature card in a graveyard before your turn's combat.
  2. At the beginning of combat, Emperor's trigger exiles up to one target card from a graveyard. Target the creature you want.
  3. After the trigger resolves, pay {1}{B} to activate Adapt 2. Emperor's last ability reads: whenever one or more +1/+1 counters are put on it, put a creature card exiled with it onto the battlefield under your control with a finality counter. That creature gains haste.
  4. Attack with both. The reanimated creature is sacrificed at the beginning of the next end step.

The order matters. Emperor can only return a creature it has already exiled, so the combat trigger has to resolve first. You can also target a creature card in your opponent's graveyard if that's the best target available.

Instant-speed lines

Faithful Mending at the end of your opponent's turn lets you discard two cards and untap with a big creature in your graveyard. Otherworldly Gaze does the same with surveil. Both leave your mana free on your own turn for Goryo's Vengeance and Ephemerate, and they let you see what your opponent does before you commit.

Using Solitude

  • Evoke when you need a removal spell right now and can't spare five mana. It costs you a white card from hand.
  • Hard-cast when you have the mana. You keep a 3/2 lifelink creature on the battlefield.
  • With Ephemerate, Solitude's enters trigger happens twice, so you exile two creatures.

Playing around interaction

  • Against counterspells, cast Thoughtseize first, or bait with a less important spell. Force of Negation counters target noncreature spell, so it can answer their counterspell, but on your own turn it costs the full {1}{U}{U}. Budget that mana if you plan to protect a main-phase Goryo's Vengeance.
  • Against creature removal, reanimate the creature that does the most the moment it arrives. Griselbrand can pay 7 life and draw seven right away, and Atraxa, Grand Unifier's enters trigger happens as it arrives.
  • Against Consign to Memory, which counters a triggered ability: be aware that Atraxa's enters trigger and Emperor's triggers are triggered abilities. Pinnacle Affinity sideboards play Consign to Memory in all 18 Top 8 lists, and Scepter Chant sideboards play it in all 12 (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026).
  • Against opposing Thoughtseize, which Rakdos Delirium plays four of in all 34 Top 8 lists (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026), get your big creature into the graveyard early. Then a single Goryo's Vengeance or Emperor of Bones is enough.

Matchup Matrix

Broodscale Bloodchief
Even
Rakdos Delirium
Even
Pinnacle Affinity
Even
Amulet Titan
Favored
UrzaTron
Favored
Scepter Chant
Unfavored
Living End
Even
Boros Aggro
Even
Ruby Storm
Even
Matchup verdicts at a glance. Details below.

Across 32 MTGTop8 Modern events with 32 or more players (2,307 players, 256 Top 8 slots), Broodscale Bloodchief took 48 Top 8 slots and Rakdos Delirium 34 (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8s, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Pinnacle Affinity (18), Amulet Titan (17), UrzaTron (13) and Scepter Chant (12) came next (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8s, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). The verdicts below are reads from card text and list contents, not recorded results.

MatchupVerdictWhat decides it
Broodscale BloodchiefEvenYour speed vs their sideboard Trinisphere and Cage
Rakdos DeliriumEvenTheir Thoughtseize, Fatal Push and Blood Moon
Pinnacle AffinityEvenSpeed, and their Consign to Memory post-board
Amulet TitanFavoredYour discard and Force against their combo turn
UrzaTronFavoredCombo before their big spells land
Scepter ChantUnfavoredTheir Solitude, Teferi and Silence effects
Living EndEvenForce of Negation on both sides
Boros AggroEvenSurviving their early pressure
Ruby StormEvenRacing, plus discard on their key cards

Broodscale Bloodchief

The most common Top 8 deck in the data. Every Top 8 list plays 4 Basking Broodscale, 4 Sowing Mycospawn, 4 Kozilek's Command and 3-4 Emrakul, the Promised End (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). The real danger is the sideboard: Grafdigger's Cage appears in all 48 lists and Trinisphere in 41 (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Trinisphere makes each spell that would cost less than three mana cost three while it's untapped, which hits nearly your whole deck. After sideboarding, Consign to Memory counters colorless spells and triggered abilities, and Wrath of the Skies answers several of their permanents at once. For that side of the matchup, see our Broodscale Bloodchief Modern guide.

Rakdos Delirium

All 34 Top 8 lists main four Thoughtseize, and 27 play Fatal Push (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Fatal Push destroys a creature with mana value 2 or less, or 4 or less with revolt, so it kills Psychic Frog, Emperor of Bones and Fallaji Archaeologist. It doesn't stop a 7/7. Blood Moon appears in 14 main decks and 24 sideboards (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). It turns nonbasic lands into Mountains, and 18 of your 21 lands are nonbasic. Fetch your Island, Plains and Swamp early in this matchup. Use Celestial Purge after sideboarding on their black or red threats. For that side of the matchup, see our Rakdos Delirium Modern guide.

Pinnacle Affinity

All 18 Top 8 lists play 4 Kappa Cannoneer, 4 Pinnacle Emissary, 4 Engineered Explosives and 3-4 Tormod's Crypt (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Your 7/7 fliers are bigger than the 4/4 Cannoneer and the 3/3 Pinnacle Emissary. After sideboarding, they bring in Consign to Memory (in all 18 sideboards) and Grafdigger's Cage (16) (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Bring in Wrath of the Skies, which destroys artifacts as well as creatures. For that side of the matchup, see our Pinnacle Affinity Modern guide.

Amulet Titan

Every Top 8 list plays 4 Amulet of Vigor, 3-4 Primeval Titan and 3-4 Scapeshift (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). The cards every list shares are part of their own plan; the interaction in the data is in their sideboards. Thoughtseize takes Primeval Titan or Scapeshift. Solitude exiles Primeval Titan. After sideboarding, Consign to Memory counters triggered abilities, which includes both Amulet of Vigor's untap trigger and Primeval Titan's land-search trigger. They side in Dismember (all 17 lists) and Trinisphere (13) (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Dismember gives a creature -5/-5, which doesn't kill a 7/7, but Trinisphere taxes nearly every spell you cast. For that side of the matchup, see our Amulet Titan Modern guide.

UrzaTron

Every Top 8 list plays the three Urza lands, 4 Karn, the Great Creator, 4 Expedition Map and 4 Kozilek's Command (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Combo before their big spells land. Watch out for Chalice of the Void (main in 7 lists) and Trinisphere (sideboard in all 13) (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Consign to Memory counters colorless spells, which includes Chalice of the Void ({X}{X}) and Trinisphere ({3}), so it's your best post-board card here. Force of Negation also counters noncreature spells such as Karn, the Great Creator.

Scepter Chant

Your hardest common matchup. Every Top 8 list mains 4 Solitude, 4 Teferi, Time Raveler, 4 Orim's Chant and 3-4 Silence, with Consign to Memory and Mystical Dispute in all 12 sideboards (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Their Solitude exiles your reanimated creature at instant speed, their Teferi limits you to sorcery speed, and Silence and Orim's Chant stop you casting spells on your turn. Thoughtseize is your best card. Bring in Mystical Dispute, which costs only {U} against blue spells like Teferi. Resolve Thoughtseize before your combo turn so you know whether a Silence effect or Solitude is waiting. For that side of the matchup, see our Scepter Chant Modern guide.

Living End

All 10 Top 8 lists play 3 Living End and 4 Force of Negation (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Living End makes each player exile all creature cards from their graveyard, sacrifice all creatures and return the exiled cards. That covers your graveyard and battlefield too, so think about what you have in both before they can cast it. Their Force of Negation can counter your Goryo's Vengeance, a noncreature spell, so bait it or strip it with Thoughtseize. Thoughtseize can also take Living End from their hand. After sideboarding, they have Mystical Dispute in all 10 sideboards (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). For that side of the matchup, see our Living End Modern guide.

Boros Aggro

All 10 Top 8 lists play 4 Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer, 4 Ajani, Nacatl Pariah, 4 Guide of Souls and 4 Ocelot Pride (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Survive with Solitude and Prismatic Ending, then win with a 7/7. Their sideboard includes Wrath of the Skies in all 10 lists (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026), which can hit your small creatures. Bring in your own Wrath of the Skies to answer a board of creatures at once. For that side of the matchup, see our Boros Aggro Modern guide.

Ruby Storm

All 9 Top 8 lists play 4 Ruby Medallion, 4 Pyretic Ritual, 4 Desperate Ritual, 4 Manamorphose, 3 Past in Flames and 4 Ral, Monsoon Mage (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). You're racing. Thoughtseize on Ruby Medallion or Past in Flames slows them down. Force of Negation counters a key noncreature spell on their turn for free. Spell Snare counters Ruby Medallion, which has mana value 2. For that side of the matchup, see our Ruby Storm Modern guide.

Sideboard / Tech Guide

The sideboard covers three needs: fighting other combo and artifact decks, stopping aggro, and beating blue control. Here's how to use each card, followed by matchup plans. These are starting points; adjust based on what you see in game one.

The sideboard cards

  • 4 Consign to Memory. One mana to counter a triggered ability or a colorless spell, with replicate {1} to copy it. This is your best card against Broodscale Bloodchief, Amulet Titan, UrzaTron and Pinnacle Affinity.
  • 3 Wrath of the Skies. You get X energy, then destroy each artifact, creature and enchantment with mana value up to the energy paid. Against aggro and artifacts, it's a reset. Remember it hits your own cheap creatures too.
  • 3 Quantum Riddler. A 4/6 flier that draws a card when it enters, and it has Warp {1}{U}. It's a strong fair threat when you expect graveyard hate.
  • 2 Mystical Dispute. Counters a spell unless its controller pays {3}. It costs {2} less against blue spells. For blue control and Living End.
  • 1 Spell Snare. Counters a spell with mana value 2.
  • 1 Teferi, Time Raveler. Opponents can cast spells only at sorcery speed, and its -3 bounces an artifact, creature or enchantment and draws a card.
  • 1 Celestial Purge. Exiles a black or red permanent at instant speed.

Broodscale Bloodchief

In: 4 Consign to Memory, 2 Wrath of the Skies, 1 Spell Snare.
Out: 2 Faithful Mending, 2 Otherworldly Gaze, 2 Fallaji Archaeologist, 1 Thoughtseize.

They side in Grafdigger's Cage (all 48 lists) and Trinisphere (41) (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Consign to Memory counters colorless spells, and Spell Snare counters Basking Broodscale. Cutting self-mill enablers makes your plan less reliant on the graveyard. Prismatic Ending stays in for permanents they land.

Rakdos Delirium

In: 1 Celestial Purge, 3 Quantum Riddler.
Out: 2 Otherworldly Gaze, 1 Fallaji Archaeologist, 1 Faithful Mending.

They have Grafdigger's Cage in 16 sideboards and Blood Moon in 24 (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Quantum Riddler gives you a fair threat that doesn't need your graveyard, so you trim graveyard-only enablers. Keep Force of Negation for their key noncreature spells.

Pinnacle Affinity

In: 3 Wrath of the Skies, 2 Consign to Memory.
Out: 3 Thoughtseize, 2 Faithful Mending.

Wrath destroys artifacts, which is most of their deck. Consign to Memory counters Kappa Cannoneer's trigger or Engineered Explosives, which is colorless. Thoughtseize's 2 life matters more against an aggressive artifact deck.

Amulet Titan

In: 4 Consign to Memory, 1 Spell Snare.
Out: 2 Prismatic Ending, 2 Solitude, 1 Fallaji Archaeologist.

Consign counters Amulet of Vigor's trigger and Primeval Titan's trigger. Keep two Solitude for Primeval Titan.

UrzaTron

In: 4 Consign to Memory.
Out: 2 Prismatic Ending, 2 Solitude.

Consign to Memory counters colorless spells. Your removal has few targets until they land their big threats.

Scepter Chant

In: 2 Mystical Dispute, 3 Quantum Riddler, 1 Teferi, Time Raveler.
Out: 2 Prismatic Ending, 2 Solitude, 2 Fallaji Archaeologist.

Your Solitudes have few targets against a creature-light control deck. Riddler and Teferi give you threats that don't need the combo, and Dispute fights their Teferi.

Living End

In: 2 Mystical Dispute, 2 Consign to Memory.
Out: 2 Prismatic Ending, 2 Faithful Mending.

Dispute counters their Force of Negation for one mana. Consign to Memory counters triggered abilities.

Boros Aggro

In: 3 Wrath of the Skies, 1 Celestial Purge.
Out: 2 Force of Negation, 2 Otherworldly Gaze.

Wrath answers a whole board of their creatures; check the mana values on the battlefield before you choose X. Celestial Purge exiles red permanents like Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer.

Ruby Storm

In: 1 Spell Snare, 1 Teferi, Time Raveler, 2 Mystical Dispute.
Out: 2 Prismatic Ending, 2 Solitude.

Spell Snare counters Ruby Medallion. Teferi stops them casting spells on your turn. Dispute counters their key spell when they can't spare {3} to pay for it. Your removal has few targets.

Tech Choices & Variations

The core of the list is fixed: four Goryo's Vengeance, four Ephemerate, four Atraxa, Grand Unifier, four Psychic Frog and four Solitude. Everything else is a choice you can tune for the field you expect.

The flex slots in this list

  • 3 Emperor of Bones. The biggest choice in the build. Emperor gives you a second way to reanimate, and it exiles a card from any graveyard each combat. The trade-off is that it's a creature, so it can be killed by cheap removal like Fatal Push before it does anything. If you expect a lot of cheap creature removal, cutting one for a Quantum Riddler is reasonable.
  • 3 Fallaji Archaeologist. More self-mill, and a blocker. The alternative is more Faithful Mending, which gets a big creature out of your hand. Archaeologist mills from the library instead. If your hands often have a big creature but no outlet, Mending is the better card. If your hands often have Goryo's but no target, Archaeologist is better.
  • 2 Otherworldly Gaze. One mana surveil 3. These could become Faithful Mending or more interaction. Gaze is cheaper but can't discard from your hand.
  • 2 Griselbrand. The second copy gives you more card draw at the cost of life. If your field is aggressive and your life total is under pressure, a sixth target matters less than a fair card like Quantum Riddler.
  • 2 Force of Negation. Free protection on their turn. Moving to three is good against combo-heavy fields. Moving to one leaves more room for creatures against aggro.
  • 3 Thoughtseize. The fourth copy is reasonable against combo. Against aggro, each copy costs you 2 life you might not have.
  • 2 Prismatic Ending. Cheap removal for small permanents. Against creature-heavy fields, it's good. Against big-mana decks like UrzaTron, it often has no target.

Sideboard options within the list

Quantum Riddler is the main swap candidate. It's a strong card, and it moves between main deck and sideboard depending on the field. If you expect graveyard hate in game one, moving one or two Riddlers into the main gives you a threat that doesn't need the graveyard. The cost is less combo consistency.

Teferi, Time Raveler and Spell Snare are singletons. A second Teferi is strong against Scepter Chant and Ruby Storm. A second Spell Snare is useful against fields full of two-drops, like Basking Broodscale and Ruby Medallion.

Tuning for a field

  • Heavy Broodscale Bloodchief. It took 48 of 256 Top 8 slots (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8s, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Keep four Consign to Memory, consider a second Spell Snare, and plan for Trinisphere and Grafdigger's Cage after sideboarding.
  • Heavy Rakdos Delirium. It took 34 Top 8 slots (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8s, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026). Expect discard and Blood Moon. Fetch basics early and consider moving Quantum Riddler main.
  • Heavy aggro. You already play four Solitude. Wrath of the Skies is the main sideboard tool. Consider cutting a Thoughtseize main for life.
  • Heavy control and Scepter Chant. Add a second Teferi, Time Raveler or more Mystical Dispute.

Reading your own results

Track why you lose games with the list. If you lose to graveyard hate, move toward Quantum Riddler and Emperor of Bones, which give you angles that don't rely only on Goryo's Vengeance. If you lose with a big creature stuck in hand, add discard outlets like Faithful Mending. If you lose with Goryo's in hand and nothing to return, add self-mill like Fallaji Archaeologist or Otherworldly Gaze. Change one or two slots at a time so you can tell which change helped.

What not to change

Don't cut Ephemerate below four. It's what turns a single reanimation into a big swing. Don't cut Psychic Frog, because it's both your best enabler and your best fair threat. And don't trim lands below 21, because nearly every card in your hand needs one to two specific colors.

Budget Options

This list is estimated at about $922 in total. That's approximate, and individual prices move. It's an expensive Modern deck, mostly because of the mana base and a few staples. A cheaper version is possible, but you'll give up power with each swap.

Where the cost likely sits

Budget swaps and what you give up

These swaps use cards already in the 75, so the effects are ones covered in this guide.

  • Fewer fetch lands → more surveil lands and basics. You lose life-free flexibility in finding the right color, and fewer fetches mean fewer cards for Psychic Frog's flying cost. More surveil lands mean more tapped lands, which slows your turn-two and turn-three plays. This is the biggest power loss on the list.
  • Force of Negation → Mystical Dispute or Spell Snare. You lose free protection on your opponent's turn. Both cost mana, and both are narrower.
  • Thoughtseize → more Fallaji Archaeologist or Otherworldly Gaze. You lose information and disruption, but you make the combo more consistent. This is a reasonable trade in a field without much combo.
  • Solitude → Prismatic Ending. Not a full replacement. Ending is a sorcery, and it can't be cast without mana. You also lose a creature target for Ephemerate.

Sideboard on a budget

The sideboard is where you can wait longest. Start with Consign to Memory and Wrath of the Skies, which cover artifact, colorless and creature-heavy decks. Quantum Riddler, Teferi, Time Raveler and Mystical Dispute can come later, once you know which matchups you face most at your events.

What not to cut

Playing a budget version well

A version with fewer fetch lands and more tapped lands is slower, so lean on your instant-speed enablers. Faithful Mending and Otherworldly Gaze at the end of your opponent's turn use mana you'd otherwise waste. Fewer fetches also means fewer life payments, which partly offsets the lost speed against aggro. Without Force of Negation, Thoughtseize carries more of your protection, so keep all three copies. If you also cut Thoughtseize, accept that you're playing a pure race and mulligan slow hands more aggressively. Whatever you cut, keep the sideboard's Consign to Memory, which costs only {U} and covers several of the most common decks in the field.

Upgrade path

  1. Start with the combo core: Goryo's Vengeance, Ephemerate, Atraxa, Grand Unifier, Griselbrand, Psychic Frog, Emperor of Bones and Fallaji Archaeologist.
  2. Add Solitude next. It's both your best interaction and a creature for Ephemerate.
  3. Then the mana. Fetch lands and shock lands, one cycle at a time.
  4. Then Thoughtseize and Force of Negation.
  5. Finish with the sideboard. Consign to Memory first, since it covers several of the most common matchups.

A budget version can still win games, but this deck depends on its mana base more than most. If you're on a budget, get the lands first, because fetch lands and shock lands are the part of the list you can reuse in other decks with these colors.

Common Mistakes

Seven mistakes that cost games with this deck, and how to avoid each.

1. Paying too much life

Every fetch land costs 1 life. Every shock land entering untapped costs 2. Thoughtseize costs 2. Griselbrand's activation costs 7. It adds up fast, especially against aggro. Before you crack a fetch, ask whether you need the land untapped this turn. Before you shock in, ask whether a tapped land costs you anything. Fetch basics when you can, and save life for the turns that matter. A fetch land also doesn't have to be cracked the turn you play it. Leaving it uncracked until you know which color you need keeps your options open and saves the life on turns you don't need the mana.

2. Evoking Solitude too early

Solitude evoked costs you a white card from hand. That's a two-for-one in card count. Use it on threats that will otherwise beat you, not on the first creature you see. If you can wait until you have five mana, a hard-cast Solitude leaves a 3/2 lifelink creature on the battlefield as well. Remember that the exiled creature's controller gains life equal to its power, so exiling a large creature from an aggro opponent gives them life back.

3. Exiling the wrong white card

When you evoke Solitude, the card you exile matters. Don't exile Ephemerate if you plan to combo soon, since it's your best follow-up. Exile extra copies of Atraxa, Grand Unifier only if you already have one in the graveyard. Faithful Mending and Prismatic Ending are usually the cheapest to give up. Count your white cards before the game gets tight. If your only white card is the Ephemerate you need next turn, hard-casting or holding Solitude may be better than evoking it.

4. Reanimating into open removal

If your opponent has mana open and cards in hand, a reanimated creature might be exiled before it attacks. Cast Thoughtseize first when you can, so you know what's waiting. Against Scepter Chant, which mains four Solitude in all 12 Top 8 lists (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8 deck lists, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026), this matters most.

5. Discarding the wrong creature

Griselbrand and Atraxa, Grand Unifier do different things. Griselbrand draws seven for 7 life, which is strong when you need answers but risky at low life. Atraxa's trigger reveals ten and takes up to one card of each type, which is better when you can follow up with Ephemerate. At low life, discard Atraxa. When you need to dig for an answer, discard Griselbrand. If you have both in hand and a discard outlet, you don't need to discard both at once. Keep one in hand as a backup in case the first one is answered.

6. Ordering Emperor of Bones wrong

Emperor of Bones can only put onto the battlefield a creature card it exiled. Its exile trigger happens at the beginning of combat on your turn. If you pay for Adapt 2 before the trigger resolves, there's nothing exiled to return. Always let the trigger resolve, then activate. Also make sure the creature you want is in the graveyard before combat starts.

7. Exiling your own target with Psychic Frog

Psychic Frog gains flying when you exile three cards from your graveyard. That's a strong way to attack past blockers, but the graveyard is also where your Griselbrand and Atraxa, Grand Unifier wait for Goryo's Vengeance. Exile used fetch lands, spent Thoughtseize and cast-and-flashed Otherworldly Gaze or Faithful Mending first. Never exile your last reanimation target unless the Frog attack wins the game.

Life costs in this listLife costs in this listFetch land1 lifeShock land, untapped2 lifeThoughtseize2 lifeGriselbrand activation7 life
Source: card text

Tournament Prep & Final Notes

This deck rewards preparation more than most. Here's what to practice before an event, which rules interactions to know, and a final assessment.

What to practice

  • Opening hands. Draw sample hands and decide keep or mulligan. Focus on whether you have colors for your spells, especially black for Goryo's Vengeance and white or blue for your enablers.
  • The turn-three Goryo's turn. Practice the full sequence with Psychic Frog, Goryo's Vengeance and Ephemerate until it's automatic. Count mana for each step before you begin.
  • The Emperor of Bones line. Practice timing the combat trigger and the Adapt activation. This line is less common, so it's easy to get wrong under pressure.
  • Atraxa reveals. When Atraxa, Grand Unifier reveals ten cards, you choose one card per type. Practice choosing quickly: usually a land if you need one, Goryo's Vengeance or Ephemerate as the instant, Thoughtseize or Prismatic Ending as the sorcery, and the best creature for the situation.
  • Sideboarding. Know your plans for the top six or seven decks before the event. The matchup and sideboard chapters give starting points.

Rules interactions to know from the card text

  • Goryo's Vengeance returns only a legendary creature card from your graveyard. In your main deck, those are Atraxa, Grand Unifier and Griselbrand. The creature gains haste and is exiled at the beginning of the next end step.
  • Emperor of Bones exiles up to one target card from a graveyard at the beginning of combat on your turn. When +1/+1 counters are put on it, it puts a creature card exiled with it onto the battlefield under your control with a finality counter. That creature gains haste and is sacrificed at the beginning of the next end step.
  • Ephemerate exiles a creature you control and returns it under its owner's control. If you cast it from your hand, rebound lets you cast it again from exile for free at your next upkeep.
  • Force of Negation is free only when it's not your turn. On your own turn, you have to pay {1}{U}{U}.
  • Solitude gives the exiled creature's controller life equal to its power.
  • Prismatic Ending checks the number of colors of mana spent, not the amount.
  • Psychic Frog can discard any number of cards, one at a time, and can exile three cards from your graveyard to gain flying. Don't exile the creature you want to reanimate.

Time management

Combo turns can take a while. Atraxa, Grand Unifier reveals ten cards and you choose several. Griselbrand draws seven. Fetch lands require a search and a shuffle. Practice enough that these steps go quickly. In a best-of-three match, plan to finish game one quickly, since your combo games usually end fast and you'll want time for game three.

Before each round

Write down your sideboard plans for the most common decks and bring them to the table. Between games, check whether your opponent showed graveyard hate, Trinisphere or Blood Moon, and adjust: more Quantum Riddler against graveyard hate, more basic-land fetching against Blood Moon, and Consign to Memory against colorless spells.

Closing assessment

This list is a Goryo's Vengeance combo deck with a second engine in Emperor of Bones and a fair backup in Psychic Frog and Solitude. Its strengths are speed, flexibility and instant-speed play. Its weaknesses are graveyard hate, Trinisphere and Blood Moon after sideboarding, and decks like Scepter Chant that stop spells on your turn. Broodscale Bloodchief and Rakdos Delirium, the two most common Top 8 decks across the 32 events counted (source: MTGTop8 Modern Top 8s, Oct 20-Nov 3, 2026), both have sideboard tools against you. That's why Emperor of Bones and Quantum Riddler matter. If you put in the practice, the deck gives you real chances against most of the field.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Instant Reanimator win games in Modern?

It puts Griselbrand or Atraxa, Grand Unifier into the graveyard and returns it with Goryo's Vengeance or Emperor of Bones. Either 7/7 then attacks with haste, and Ephemerate gives Atraxa a second enters trigger.

What makes this build different from other Goryo Reanimator lists?

It adds three Emperor of Bones as a second reanimation engine, three Fallaji Archaeologist and two Otherworldly Gaze for self-mill, and a second Griselbrand. Quantum Riddler moves to the sideboard.

What are the best enablers for getting creatures into the graveyard?

Psychic Frog is the best, because its discard ability has no mana cost. Faithful Mending, Otherworldly Gaze, Fallaji Archaeologist and the three surveil lands also fill the graveyard.

What is the hardest matchup for Instant Reanimator?

Scepter Chant. Its Solitude exiles your reanimated creature at instant speed, Teferi, Time Raveler limits you to sorcery speed, and Silence stops your spells. Thoughtseize and Mystical Dispute are your best tools.

How do you use Emperor of Bones correctly?

Let its beginning-of-combat trigger exile the creature card first, then pay {1}{B} for Adapt 2. Emperor of Bones can only return a creature card it has already exiled.

What should you mulligan with this deck?

Mulligan hands without a black source for Goryo's Vengeance, and hands with big creatures but no discard outlet. A keepable hand has lands, an enabler and a payoff, or at least two of those.

What are good budget swaps for Instant Reanimator?

Fewer fetch lands for more surveil lands and basics, Force of Negation for Mystical Dispute or Spell Snare, and Thoughtseize for more Fallaji Archaeologist or Otherworldly Gaze. Each swap costs some power.

Metagame Context

Built from the 2nd-place list at an MTGO Challenge 32 (56 players, 2026-11-04), played by MTGO user Rvng. Metagame context: MTGTop8 standings and Top 8 deck lists for the 32 Modern events with 32 or more players, plus Wizards of the Coast's Banned and Restricted announcements, from 2026-10-20 to 2026-11-03 (brief dated 2026-11-03). Matchup verdicts are reads from card text and list contents, not recorded results.

Buy This Deck

Full decklist — about $922 for regular printings of each card, as of Nov 7, 2026. Links go to TCGPlayer and may earn us a small commission at no cost to you.

Buy the full deck on TCGplayer

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4× Ephemerate 2× Faithful Mending 3× Fallaji Archaeologist 4× Polluted Delta 1× Hallowed Fountain 2× Otherworldly Gaze 1× Meticulous Archive 4× Marsh Flats 1× Island 2× Griselbrand 1× Watery Grave 1× Plains 4× Goryo's Vengeance 2× Prismatic Ending 1× Shadowy Backstreet 1× Overgrown Tomb 1× Swamp 3× Flooded Strand 1× Undercity Sewers 1× Godless Shrine 2× Force of Negation 3× Thoughtseize 4× Atraxa, Grand Unifier 4× Psychic Frog 4× Solitude 3× Emperor of Bones 4× Consign to Memory 2× Mystical Dispute 1× Spell Snare 3× Wrath of the Skies 3× Quantum Riddler 1× Teferi, Time Raveler 1× Celestial Purge

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Source: tournament results. Decklist and placements as reported by the event organizer.