Living Death + Ashnod's Altar + Blood Vassal + Eternal Witness

4-card combo · BG

Verdict

Yes — this 4-card loop converts Blood Vassal and a spare creature into infinite death triggers, ETBs, and storm count every time Living Death resolves.

Cards required
4
Cheapest stack total
$17.88
Color identity
BG
Popularity
13 decks
Format
Commander
Buy required cards on TCGplayer

Blood Vassal and Ashnod's Altar together produce the five mana Living Death costs, while Eternal Witness recurs it from the graveyard on each loop — the engine is self-contained once a fifth nontoken creature is in play. Black-green reanimator shells running Meren of Clan Nel Toth or Gyome, Master Chef already accumulate the sacrifice fodder the combo needs naturally, and the loop triggers everything from Zulaport Cutthroat to Grave Pact on every iteration.

Recipe

How it works

01

Prerequisites

You control at least one additional nontoken creature.

02

Steps

  1. Activate Blood Vassal by sacrificing it, adding {B}{B}.
  2. Activate Ashnod's Altar twice by sacrificing Eternal Witness and another nontoken creature, adding {C}{C}{C}{C}.
  3. Cast Living Death by paying {3}{B}{B}, causing each player to exile all creature cards in their graveyards, sacrifice all creatures they control, then put all cards exiled this way onto the battlefield.
  4. When Eternal Witness enters the battlefield, it triggers, returning Living Death to your hand from your graveyard.
  5. Repeat.

03

Result

Infinite colorless mana; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite magecraft triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count

Variations

Cheaper, tighter, alternate lines

Replace Blood Vassal with any sacrifice-fodder that produces two black — the slot is flexible as long as the mana adds up to five. Kokusho, the Evening Star or Gray Merchant of Asphodel as the fifth creature converts the infinite ETBs into an outright kill; without a drain effect, the loop generates infinite triggers but needs a separate payoff already in play to close the game.

Verified on Commander Spellbook · Combo ID ashnods-altar-eternal-witness-living-death-2

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Updated . Data from Commander Spellbook, Scryfall, and EDHREC.