Tier 3combo

En Kor Life

Infinite Life Combo

Featured list~$4319Series May @ Bottrop (Germany)

Overview

"En Kor Life assembles a free toughness engine: Nomads en-Kor or Shaman en-Kor repeatedly redirects a single point of damage to Task Force at zero cost, and its counters accumulate without bound. Daru Spiritualist offers a second target, gaining toughness equal to each point of redirected damage. The oversized creature is sacrificed to Worthy Cause for a near-infinite life total, or flipped by About Face into lethal power. Eladamri's Call and Living Wish tutor the pieces while Mother of Runes guards them."

Game Plan

Assemble an En-Kor creature (like Nomads en-Kor) with Task Force, redirect damage to pump Task Force's toughness to infinity, then sacrifice it to Worthy Cause or About Face for lethal.

Key Cards

Core engine & flex

Signature

Daru Spiritualist

$0.22

TCG MP CK

Starlit Sanctum

$0.67

TCG MP CK

Nomads en-Kor

$0.78

TCG MP CK

Worthy Cause

$0.40

TCG MP CK

Shaman en-Kor

$8.09

TCG MP CK

Task Force

$0.16

TCG MP CK

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Sample Decklists

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Series May @ Bottrop (Germany)

1st PlaceMay 17, 2026

Michael Kammer

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Michael Kammer

TCG

Mainboard (60)

$4274

Creature (16)

$78.14

$0.661W

$42.30W

$2.34W

$32.361W

$0.482W

Instant (12)

$76.00

4Eladamri's Call

$50.04GW

3Swords to Plowshares

$24.24W

1Transmutation

$0.121B

4Worthy Cause

$1.60W

Sorcery (6)

$37.65

3Duress

$11.10B

3Living Wish

$26.551G

Artifact (3)

$3368

3Mox Diamond

$33680

Land (23)

$714

$8.80

$34.96

$128

$1.84

$66.22

$1.44

$2.01

1Volrath's Stronghold

$116

4Windswept Heath

$355

Sideboard (15)

$44.93

$0.221W

$0.181W

$0.972WW

$5.631G

$0.481G

$0.241W

$0.78W

$21.91W

$0.373G

$6.864WWW

$0.903W

$0.67

$1.852G

$3.871BB

Est. Total$4319

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1. Time Walk @ Somewhere (Novy Jicin, Czech Republic)

1st PlaceApr 18, 2026

Marco Campos Aguilar

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Marco Campos Aguilar

TCG

Mainboard (60)

$599

Creature (22)

$107

$75.28G

$1.081W

$28.20W

$1.361W

$0.60W

$0.441W

Instant (4)

$32.32

4Swords to Plowshares

$32.32W

Sorcery (4)

$2.28

4Battle Screech

$2.282WW

Enchantment (9)

$31.27

3Goblin Bombardment

$14.851R

2Seal of Cleansing

$1.141W

4Shared Triumph

$15.281W

Land (21)

$426

$21.64

$17.60

$1.84

$12.90

$13.78

$0.76

$1.92

$0.59

$355

Sideboard (15)

$79.52

$2.141GW

$19.101WW

$6.822G

$3.27XR

$12.951

$14.742W

$18.62R

$0.351W

$1.530

Est. Total$679

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Premodern League 2026-01-30 (Premodern)

1st PlaceJan 30, 2026

Azerate218

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Azerate218

TCG

Mainboard (60)

$889

Creature (21)

$213

$32.361W

$0.642W

$56.46G

$0.661W

$42.30W

$2.34W

$78.613W

Instant (11)

$52.25

$50.04GW

$1.60W

$0.26R

$0.351W

Sorcery (3)

$26.55

3Living Wish

$26.551G

Enchantment (4)

$38.50

$0.332W

$28.881G

$5.422WW

$3.871BB

Land (21)

$559

$1.92

$355

$13.20

$95.67

$2.01

$1.84

$88.72

Sideboard (15)

$53.25

3Swords to Plowshares

$24.24W

$13.89G

$1.852G

$2.91WW

$0.67

$0.351W

$0.78W

$2.161G

$0.241W

$5.631G

$0.181W

$0.221W

$0.13R

Est. Total$943

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Archetype Anatomy

Based on 120 decks with known dates(121 total)2021-09-30 to 2026-06-14

Mana Base

Average21.9lands

Median22lands

Range19–24lands

Spells38.1avg non-land

Based on 120 decks (All-time)

core Cards(>80%)

Daru Spiritualist

98%

3.2x

Starlit Sanctum

98%

3.1x

Nomads en-Kor

98%

3.2x

Worthy Cause

97%

3.7x

Shaman en-Kor

97%

3.6x

Task Force

95%

3.4x

City of Brass

92%

3.5x

Windswept Heath

85%

3.9x

Living Wish

81%

3.3x

flex Cards(30-80%)

Brushland

65%

3.0x

Mother of Runes

65%

2.9x

Eladamri's Call

60%

3.9x

Gemstone Mine

57%

2.2x

Swords to Plowshares

53%

3.2x

Birds of Paradise

52%

3.8x

Unspeakable Symbol

41%

1.0x

Duress

40%

2.9x

About Face

38%

1.8x

Caves of Koilos

37%

2.5x

Sylvan Library

35%

2.3x

fringe Cards(<30%)

Transmutation

29%

1.5x

Cabal Therapy

27%

3.1x

Academy Rector

26%

1.0x

Survival of the Fittest

25%

4.0x

Weathered Wayfarer

25%

1.9x

Gaea's Blessing

23%

1.2x

Squee, Goblin Nabob

23%

1.0x

Llanowar Wastes

20%

1.9x

Test of Endurance

20%

1.0x

Volrath's Stronghold

20%

1.0x

Wall of Roots

14%

2.3x

Animal Boneyard

13%

1.1x

Mox Diamond

12%

2.9x

Mirri's Guile

12%

2.1x

Serra Avatar

11%

1.0x

Sylvan Safekeeper

10%

1.0x

2.6x

1.7x

1.3x

1.6x

1.4x

1.3x

1.3x

1.0x

2.3x

2.1x

1.6x

1.0x

1.0x

4.0x

2.6x

2.6x

2.2x

1.6x

3.0x

3.0x

2.8x

1.5x

3.3x

3.0x

2.0x

1.3x

1.3x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

4.0x

4.0x

4.0x

4.0x

4.0x

3.0x

3.0x

2.0x

2.0x

2.0x

2.0x

2.0x

1.5x

1.5x

1.5x

1.5x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

1.0x

Sideboard Anatomy

flex Sideboard Options(30-80%)

Starlit Sanctum

79.7%

1.0x

Daru Spiritualist

76.6%

1.0x

Nomads En-Kor

75.7%

1.0x

Uktabi Orangutan

71.8%

1.1x

Monk Realist

65.4%

1.0x

Gaea'S Blessing

46.1%

1.4x

Xantid Swarm

44.3%

1.9x

Naturalize

43.4%

2.0x

Orim'S Chant

42.6%

2.4x

Disenchant

33.8%

1.7x

Swords To Plowshares

32.1%

2.3x

fringe Sideboard Options(<30%)

Serra Avatar

29.1%

1.0x

Tormod'S Crypt

24%

1.8x

True Believer

20.7%

1.2x

Absolute Law

18.1%

2.0x

Ray Of Revelation

16.3%

1.1x

Tranquil Domain

16.1%

1.5x

Academy Rector

15.5%

1.0x

Masticore

13.8%

1.0x

Aura Of Silence

12%

1.5x

Shaman En-Kor

11.2%

1.0x

Seal Of Cleansing

10.4%

1.9x

About Face

10.4%

1.6x

Engineered Plague

9.7%

2.3x

Bone Shredder

8.8%

1.0x

Unspeakable Symbol

8.8%

1.1x

Plague Spitter

8.7%

1.0x

Phyrexian Furnace

8.3%

1.7x

Crimson Acolyte

7.9%

1.2x

Reverent Silence

7.8%

1.5x

Sylvan Safekeeper

6.9%

1.0x

Abeyance

6.6%

1.0x

Warmth

1.8x

City Of Solitude

5.6%

1.1x

Meddling Mage

5.6%

2.1x

Task Force

5.6%

1.0x

Mother Of Runes

4.8%

2.0x

Cabal Therapy

4.7%

2.0x

Mesmeric Fiend

4.6%

1.4x

Duress

4.5%

2.3x

Caller Of The Claw

4.5%

1.0x

Tradewind Rider

4.4%

1.0x

Defense Grid

4.3%

1.7x

Sacred Ground

3.8%

1.5x

Genesis

3.6%

1.0x

Withered Wretch

3.5%

1.0x

Gilded Light

3.5%

2.0x

Gilded Drake

3.4%

1.0x

Circle Of Protection: Red

3.2%

1.6x

Perish

3.1%

1.0x

Peacekeeper

1.6x

Weathered Wayfarer

1.0x

Gurzigost

2.9%

1.0x

Spiritual Focus

2.9%

1.7x

Presence Of The Master

2.9%

2.0x

Test Of Endurance

2.9%

1.0x

Obsidian Acolyte

2.8%

1.3x

Monk Idealist

2.6%

1.0x

Auramancer

2.6%

1.0x

Words Of Wilding

2.6%

1.0x

Sylvan Library

2.6%

1.7x

Abolish

2.2%

2.2x

Enlightened Tutor

2.2%

1.2x

Sphere Of Law

2.1%

2.0x

False Prophet

2.1%

1.0x

Caves Of Koilos

2.1%

1.0x

Krosan Reclamation

2.1%

1.0x

Cleansing Meditation

2.0x

Elephant Grass

1.0x

Soltari Visionary

2.5x

Stern Judge

2.0x

Nova Cleric

1.0x

Call Of The Herd

3.0x

Transmutation

1.9%

1.0x

Armadillo Cloak

1.9%

2.0x

Earthquake

1.9%

2.5x

Pyroblast

1.9%

2.0x

Reverent Mantra

1.9%

1.5x

Serenity

1.8%

1.6x

Gemstone Mine

1.8%

1.0x

Nantuko Vigilante

1.7%

1.0x

Volrath'S Stronghold

1.6%

1.0x

Glowrider

1.4%

1.0x

Soltari Monk

1.4%

3.5x

Crumble

1.4%

1.5x

Shared Triumph

1.3%

1.0x

Compost

1.1%

2.0x

Crusade

1.1%

2.0x

Pyroclasm

1.0x

Kor Haven

1.0x

Nevinyrral'S Disk

1.0x

Devoted Caretaker

1.0x

Prismatic Strands

2.0x

Battlefield Scrounger

1.0x

Angelic Protector

1.0x

Recent Events Featuring this Archetype

Final Liga Pudraiser Mallorca Top8

2026-06-14•Mallorca, Spain•8 Players

Highest Finish: 2nd

VIEW EVENT

Grand Pre Louisville @ Louisville (KY)

2026-06-06•Louisville, USA•200 Players

Highest Finish: 9th

VIEW EVENT

Premodern & Hooters 7th Edition

2026-05-31•Italy•23 Players

Highest Finish: 3rd

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PM Magic Beijing #40 @ PMBJ (Beijing, China)

2026-05-27•Beijing, China•22 Players

Highest Finish: 5th

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$1K @ The Quest (Portland, OR)

2026-05-17•Portland, USA•40 Players

Highest Finish: 9th

VIEW EVENT

Quick Facts

Tier3

Stylecombo

Meta Share0.4%

Avg Lands21.9

Est. Price~$4319

Colors

Deck Weaknesses

Two — piece creature dependency - the deck cannot win without both an En-Kor redirect creature (Nomads en-Kor or Shaman en-Kor) and Task Force on the battlefield at the same time, so removing or countering either piece dismantles the entire turn's setup.
Edict vulnerability — Mother of Runes grants protection from a color, but forced-sacrifice effects do not target and ignore protection entirely, leaving the combo pieces exposed to any edict regardless of which color is named.
Creature — type clustering - the redirect engine runs on Kor bodies (Nomads en-Kor, Shaman en-Kor), so a static -1/-1 to Kor or a sweeper naming that type wipes multiple redirect enablers at once, and Mother of Runes can shield only one creature from only one color.
No countermagic and narrow discard — Duress can pull a single non-creature spell from the opponent's hand but cannot touch creatures and cannot be cast reactively, so the deck has no way to answer instant-speed disruption on the stack and must protect its pieces on the battlefield instead.

How to win with it

Mulligan toward a two-card engine: you want one En-Kor creature (Nomads en-Kor or Shaman en-Kor) plus Task Force, or one combo half alongside a tutor (Eladamri's Call or Living Wish), with mana to deploy both by turn three. A hand with a single combo piece and no tutor is a snap mulligan regardless of how strong the supporting spells look.
The dream draw is turn one Birds of Paradise or Mother of Runes, turn two Task Force, turn three an En-Kor creature, and you combo the moment both resolve: activate Nomads en-Kor's free ability targeting Task Force, and because Task Force gets +0/+3 every time it becomes the target of an ability, each activation grows its toughness with no damage needed. Repeat until its toughness is arbitrarily large, then cast About Face to swap that toughness into power and swing for lethal, or sacrifice it to Worthy Cause to gain effectively unbounded life.
Understand the engine precisely: the kill is driven by targeting, not by damage. Nomads en-Kor's ('The next 1 damage that would be dealt to it is dealt to target creature instead') and Shaman en-Kor's redirect both cost zero mana and target Task Force, and it is the act of targeting that triggers Task Force's +0/+3 each time, so you never need a damage source, a blocker, or combat to loop the toughness as high as you want. About Face is the finisher that converts that toughness into one-shot power; Worthy Cause converts it into life to stabilize, and Unspeakable Symbol can also target Task Force to pad it or serve as a free life outlet once Worthy Cause has banked your life total.
Hold Eladamri's Call and Living Wish as gap-fillers rather than jamming them as turn-one cantrips. Living Wish can only fetch a creature or land, so use it to grab the missing Task Force, Nomads en-Kor, Shaman en-Kor, or Daru Spiritualist, while Eladamri's Call finds any of those creatures at instant speed on the combo turn; only fire a tutor early if your hand already holds the other combo half and you simply need the specific creature.
Mother of Runes is your protection piece, so deploy her at least a turn before you go off since she cannot tap the turn she enters; on the combo turn give Task Force or your En-Kor creature protection from the removal color you expect, letting you assemble and fire the kill straight through interaction without sandbagging a counter.
When the fast kill is disrupted, grind: lean on Sylvan Library to dig hard, paying the life freely because Worthy Cause will bank it all back, and keep Daru Spiritualist as a backup engine since it also gains +0/+2 whenever the En-Kor redirect targets it, giving you a second route to unbounded toughness. Swords to Plowshares clears anything threatening to race you while you reassemble, and Worthy Cause cast at instant speed with Buyback keeps your life total out of reach until About Face closes the game.

How to beat it

The combo needs two specific creatures in play at once: an En-Kor redirect creature (Nomads en-Kor or Shaman en-Kor) and Task Force. Remove either piece before the other lands, or kill Task Force in response to the first redirect activation before its toughness climbs out of range - once it reaches double digits, direct damage can no longer race it.
Mother of Runes can give one creature protection from one color per turn, but she cannot cover two different creatures in the same turn and is summoning-sick the turn she enters. Sequence your interaction so two threats hit the same piece at once - two removal spells, or a spell plus an edict - and she can only answer one, leaving the other piece exposed.
An edict effect (forced sacrifice) walks right past Mother of Runes, since protection never stops a player from being made to sacrifice their own creature. Land an edict while only one copy of the En-Kor creature or Task Force is on the battlefield and the combo loses a load-bearing piece with no way to save it.
Pumping Task Force's toughness is only half the kill - the deck then needs a second conversion step to turn that toughness into a lethal result, and Worthy Cause on its own merely sacrifices a creature for life rather than ending the game. Strip Task Force off the table after the redirection has started but before that finishing step resolves, and the gained life is the only thing the deck has to show for the turn.
Duress is the deck's only disruption, it cannot name creatures, and the deck runs no countermagic, so it can never interact with a threat on the stack. Force the opponent to assemble a fragile two-creature combo while answering a clock of their own - having to defend and combo with the same cards strains a deck that has no instant-speed protection beyond Mother of Runes.

Last Updated: May 2026

Overview

Game Plan

Key Cards

Sample Decklists

Michael Kammer

Mainboard (60)

Creature (16)

Instant (12)

Sorcery (6)

Artifact (3)

Land (23)

Sideboard (15)

Marco Campos Aguilar

Mainboard (60)

Creature (22)

Instant (4)

Sorcery (4)

Enchantment (9)

Land (21)

Sideboard (15)

Azerate218

Mainboard (60)

Creature (21)

Instant (11)

Sorcery (3)

Enchantment (4)

Land (21)

Sideboard (15)

Unchained Appearances1 deck

Archetype Anatomy

Mana Base

core Cards(>80%)

flex Cards(30-80%)

fringe Cards(<30%)

Sideboard Anatomy

flex Sideboard Options(30-80%)

fringe Sideboard Options(<30%)

Recent Events Featuring this Archetype