Xavier Sal, Infested Captain + Intruder Alarm + Awaken the Woods + Soul Stair Expedition

Xavier Sal, Infested Captain

Intruder Alarm

Awaken the Woods

Soul Stair Expedition

How it works

1. Activate Xavier Sal by tapping it and removing a counter from a permanent you control, creating a token copy of the Forest Dryad token.
2. When the Forest Dryad enters the battlefield, Intruder Alarm and Soul Stair Expedition trigger.
3. Resolve the Soul Stair Expedition trigger, putting a counter on a creature you control.
4. Resolve the Intruder Alarm trigger, untapping all creatures.
5. Repeat.

This loop turns a modest forest into a thriving ecosystem by chaining creature entries directly into untaps. You begin by casting Awaken the Woods to provide the initial Forest Dryad tokens that feed Xavier Sal, Infested Captain's ability, allowing him to tap and consume a counter to populate a fresh copy. Each time that new copy hits the battlefield, Intruder Alarm triggers to untap all your creatures—including Xavier Sal himself—so you can immediately tap him again. Meanwhile, Soul Stair Expedition quietly counts each entry with its landfall ability, easily fueling its own counter requirement to return creatures from your graveyard if you ever need backup.