[Deck] Vial Goblins

[FTW]

So you can turn 1 cast Muxus off Tomb/City + Mox/SSG + Sticker Goblin + Muxus?

How consistently does Turbo Muxus happen? You have redundancy for the mana (8 copies of each), but still need the other 2 pieces in hand too. Does this happen often?

What was the reason to change to this plan over cheating Muxus with Lackey/WInstigator?

[ESG]

The deck doesn't need Muxus to have big turns. I played against someone a couple weeks ago who went (on the draw): City of Traitors, Chrome Mox (imprinting red), Sticker Goblin (makes six red mana), Goblin Warchief, Goblin Rabblemaster, and Battle Cry Goblin, attack for 14. The deck basically gets to play the Moon Stompy approach with Turn 1 bombs like Goblin Rabblemaster, Blood Moon, or Broadside Bombardiers, but it also can play like combo with Sticker Goblin starts.

[Alex_UNLIMITED]

So you can turn 1 cast Muxus off Tomb/City + Mox/SSG + Sticker Goblin + Muxus?
How consistently does Turbo Muxus happen? You have redundancy for the mana (8 copies of each), but still need the other 2 pieces in hand too. Does this happen often?

You need the Playable Delusionary Hydra sticker to get 6 mana. Unfortunately, you can only have 1 copy of it in your 10-cards sticker deck. You start each game with 3 random stickers, so you should have a 30% chance to get the 6 mana sticker. There are 2 stickers that give you 5 mana, 1 sticker that gives you 3 mana and the other 6 give you 4 mana.

The deck doesn't need Muxus to have big turns. I played against someone a couple weeks ago who went (on the draw): City of Traitors, Chrome Mox (imprinting red), Sticker Goblin (makes six red mana), Goblin Warchief, Goblin Rabblemaster, and Battle Cry Goblin, attack for 14.

Exactly. You don't need Muxus to have a strong turn 1, but since _____ Goblin doesn't give you mana if it's killed with the ability on the stack, I prefer to maximize the odds of casting it in the first turn.

[NewSchoolBoxer]

This site's uptime is spotty and I learned to save my post in notepad to not lose it when I get auto-logged out. I looked up what I missed the past few years. Broadside Bombardiers is the best new printing in years but its strength is diluted by showing up in non-goblin decks. Masked Vandal cosplayer has value. Other new 1 drops and lords are fine but not reaching the new height of Bombardiers. I like the Conspicuous Snoop + Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + sac outlet combo discussed by FTW on page 94. I'll loop back to combos. Sticker Goblin had its reign of non-terror until the ban hammer struck in May 2024.

Delney

I had fun testing 2W legendary Delney, Streetwise Lookout with other new cards. I think fringe viable but no recent progress being made here. FTW's deck on the last page in 2021 fit in 3x Fury and 3x Reanimate. We got space to experiment. Can see talk of cutting Vial for Turbo Muxus, Goblin Grandee that once would have been blasphemous.

Running Delney has shock value and can be Vialed on 3 with the opponent expecting something else. Can't double Muxus to insta-win thanks to its 4 attack but 2x Matron, Ringleader, Lackey, Munitions, Settler, Piledriver or Grenzo, Havoc Raiser triggers pays for itself. Pashalik Mons gets a 2 for 1 with 2 pings for each graveyard trigger. The unblockable secondary ability can't protect Piledriver that procs before blockers are declared. Delney interaction on declaring attackers is not obvious. I think a good example to walk through is a Piledrive and (non-meta) General Kreat, the Boltbringer played the turn before:

1. Cast Delney. Kreat deals 1 damage from Delney entering that Delney copies again for 2 damage. I checked with Shocking Sharpshooter on MTGA dealing 2 when Delney enters.
2. Declare Piledriver and Kreat as attackers and stack Piledriver's trigger and its copy followed by Kreat's attacking trigger and its copy and start popping:
3. Two 1/1's enter, each triggering Kreat's 1 damage trigger that Delney copies for 4 on top of the stack. Pop the stack for 4 damage (6 total).
4. Piledriver sees three other attacking goblins so each trigger grants +6/0 for a 13/2. Attack for 13 + 1 + 1 + 2 = 17 damage (23 total).

What is not copied by Delney is activated abilities such as Skirk Prospector or Pashalik's token generator that uses a colon or require tapping. Sling-Gang Lieutenant gets four 1/1's instead of two but each token sacrifices for 1 damage, one time if Pashalik isn't hanging around. Another card less viable but can also jump out of Vial to shock a win is Torbran, Thane of Red Fell.

Top 8 Goblin Combos

You're sideboarding against an unfavorable matchup, can you morph into a combo deck and play the Uno Reverse card of Trix dropping combo for Phyrexian Negator? Or can combo justify slots in the main? I thought of Aluren + Squee, the Immortal + Lieutenant but that's 2 cards outside of a normal build. Wait a minute, this is the future. Can't I search card combos on the internet? Enter EDHREC. The links even tell you how to play the combo. There was also a post on a site I never heard of asking about goblin combos that got a whole spreadsheet response in under 90 minutes. My rankings:

1. Goblin Sharpshooter and 2RR Splinter Twin
   Kiki-Jiki does not work. You need an initial X/1 target to get 2x tokens into play for infinite damage, which is not hard when Goblin Sharpshooter has zero qualms with friendly fire. Else have Pashalik in play. Limited by summoning sickness but all red, 2 cards, only 1 out of the ordinary and Splinter Twin is bad but not dead without Sharpshooter. Basilisk Collar and Gorgon's Head are old news when Platinum Angel isn't meta.
2. Squee, the Immortal + 2G Food Chain
   2 card combo for infinite mana of all colors but like #6 not a kill in and of itself. Maindeck material, Food Chain removes need for Prospector and realistically you're not allotting more non-goblins slots to Vial. Can exile free Fury to cast free Muxus and dig up a wincon or Bombardiers to toss Muxus for 8. Food Chain stands on its own without Squee. Crucible of Words tuber ran this and #4 in the same deck and struggled. Found Snoop combo to be win-more and Harbinger low value without it. Just running Food Chain combo next time. Green splash invites Ignoble Hierarch.
   Infinite red mana use: Pashalik kills with infinite tokens + sacs. Battle Cry Goblin creates an attacking token and grants every goblin haste and infinite power.
3. Lightning Crafter + Kiki-Jiki + 1 of Skirk/Lieutenant/Pashalik
   Lightning Crafter is a bad card as stated in the primer but everyone is a goblin for searchability and synergy. No need to wait out Crafter's summoning sickness. Play after Kiki-Jiki and champion it, who copies Crafter in response to make the copy with haste. Token copy bolts opponent and gets sac'd by Skirk/Lieutenant to return Kiki-Jiki untapped. Can instead play Crafter first but need a champion target other than Kiki-Jiki or the sac outlet that the link's plan assumes. Pashalik play is different, instead Crafter bolts itself. Crafter notable as a 4 cost 3/3 that dodges common removal. Crafter can combo by entering with just 2RR Molten Echoes in play but goblin synergy is lost and two bad cards in the 60 versus one.
4. Conspicuous Snoop + Harbinger and Lieutenant/Mogg Fanatic in-deck as covered
   Downside of needing otherwise bad Boggart Harbinger for consistency, Kiki-Jiki cannot be drawn, Snoop's ability does not copy haste and Snoop builds aren't standard. If all copies of Lieutenant/Mogg Fanatic are drawn, one needs to be in play. Upside is only casting 2 cheap goblins to lock in the instant speed win. Could store Harbinger in the sideboard.
5. Kiki-Jiki + (2) Thornbite Staff + Lieutenant or Mogg Fanatic or Sharpshooter
   Kiki-Jiki is a Shaman to dodge the (4) equip cost, how lucky! Can sub in 3 cost Mogg Mob or 4 cost Mogg Bombers if Vial is likely to summon Kiki-Jiki anyway but I wouldn't. 2U Faces of the Past and Intruder Alarm are clearly worse on the casting cost front but have less hate as enchantments. Sharpshooter's combo is weaker since it can't have summoning sickness. Tap Kiki-Jiki to create another Sharpshooter, have one target the opponent and one kill the other or itself to start the loop. Prospector as a sac outlet gives infinite mana that could get you there with Pashalik or Battle Cry Goblin as seen in #2.
6. Krenko, Mob Boss + (1) Staff of Domination + Skirk Prospector
   Krenko cannot have summoning sickness. Generating infinite red mana to draw your deck, gain infinite life and create endless 1/1's is easy enough but you don't win at just with this staff. Have to stop the combo and play Lieutenant, Pashalik or Battle Cry/haste lord to swing with the token army if none are watching Krenko make magic. Staff of Domination isn't fooling anyone like Thornbite could from an opponent thinking you're playing jank and letting it resolve. Advantage over other combos is drawing your outs if the opponent cannot be damaged.
7. Krenko, Mob Boss + (2) Thornbite Staff + Skirk Prospector
   Like #5 but worse since Krenko cannot have summoning sickness and you have to pay the (4) equip cost. Better for working with Prospector. Activate Krenko for a few 1/1's, sac 1 for R, untap, loop for infinite tokens for infinite red mana. Then circle back to infinite (2) tap to deal 1 damage. Staff activations with Prospector sacs keep untapping. Wins at instant speed versus added risk for #6 but takes 5 additional mana to start. 2U Faces of the Past or Intruder Alarm can replace Staff to generate infinite 1/1's without a sac outlet but no instant speed win unless Lieutenant is present.
8. Grumgully, the Generous + Murderous Redcap + Skirk/Lieutenant/Pashalik sac outlet
   Like #3, an all-goblin instant speed win that's immune to summoning sickness. Improves it using 3 and 4 cost goblins. Downside is two bad cards taking up deck slots versus one. With Pashalik, Redcap targets itself.

I think the first three are feasible taking up maindeck slots. #4 could luck into Kiki-Jiki on top for infinite Snoops from fetchland or Matron shuffling or the draw after Snoop enters, without playing to combo. New printings could push Snoop to the mainstream.

• Honorable Mention: Warren Soultrader + Gravecrawler + Zulaport Cutthroat/Blood Artist/Marionette Apprentice
  You'd be correct for thinking a three card combo with only one goblin wouldn't make the cut. The catch is Warren Soultrader and Gravecrawler can be put in a whole Deadguy Ale deck of abusable etb effects. Voice of Victory protects every combo piece and Gravecrawler already dodges counters that don't exile. More like a zombie combo when Soultrader is both.