Skeleton Ship + Intruder Alarm + Nest of Scarabs

Skeleton Ship

Intruder Alarm

Nest of Scarabs

How it works

1. Activate Skeleton Ship by tapping it, putting a -1/-1 counter on target creature.
2. Nest of Scarabs triggers, creating a creature token.
3. When the creature token enters, Intruder Alarm triggers, untapping all creatures.
4. Repeat.

This engine transforms the humble, sea-faring Skeleton Ship into a relentless counter-distributor, as long as you're careful to keep an Island in play so it doesn't jump ship. Each time you tap the crew to place a -1/-1 counter, Nest of Scarabs springs into action to materialize a scurrying Insect token. That very token's arrival triggers Intruder Alarm, bringing every creature on your battlefield—including the ship itself—freshly untapping and ready to repeat the process. The result is a perpetual motion machine that blankets the board in counters and tokens while generating an endless loop of entries, exits, and untap steps.