Mikaeus, the Unhallowed + Twilight Shepherd + Bartolomé del Presidio

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Twilight Shepherd

Bartolomé del Presidio

How it works

1. Activate Bartolomé del Presidio by sacrificing Twilight Shepherd.
2. When Twilight Shepherd dies, its persist ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it.
3. Resolve the Bartolomé del Presidio ability.
4. Activate Bartolomé del Presidio by sacrificing Twilight Shepherd.
5. When Twilight Shepherd dies, its undying ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
6. Resolve the Bartolomé del Presidio ability.
7. Repeat.

This clever engine sets up an infinite loop of life and death by exploiting the interaction between opposing counters. When you feed Twilight Shepherd to Bartolomé del Presidio, its persist ability brings it back with a -1/-1 counter, but Mikaeus, the Unhallowed grants it undying as well; the next time it dies, the undying ability triggers and returns it with a +1/+1 counter instead. Because these two counter-types annihilate one another upon entering the battlefield—resetting Twilight Shepherd's clean slate—you can infinitely alternate between persist and undying triggers. This grants you limitless sacrifices and enter-the-battlefield triggers while growing Bartolomé del Presidio into a fearsomely massive threat.