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Yup, there are 11 evil rounds in this challenge.

So, keeping in mind I haven't unlocked Donate, the only way to give lands to the AI is Power Struggle... but he hasn't got lands. He doesn't play anything actually. So, I have to use Forbidden Orchard, transform my lands via Kormus Bell (I'm guessing Tranquility was there to mess up Living Lands?) get 5 Strip Mines and randomly exchange with Power Struggle till I get very lucky?
That's devious.
How do you sleep at night?

I think I won't be playing 10.1 odds anytime soon.

I used Power Struggle, Living Lands, and lots of 'wish' cards to get the strip mines. It was not pretty. It should be pretty easy with Donate, once you unlock that. I don't remember which challenge it was for though, but it was one created after this one.

The main problem I see with this challenge is that, even though the vastness of cards and effects we have at our disposal allows us to make pretty much anything, it takes so many slots and turns for some winning conditions, namely this one, I don't know if my deck will remain effective.
I mean, even after I get the strip mines I have to make sure the AI doesn't use them on me.

To make matters worse, the challenges used to have mostly tribal decks, that were more controllable.
Now there are very nasty things out there with Naturalize, Demistify, Disenchant, Harmonic Sliver and Qasali Pridemage.
And you have to worry about other things like massive burn for example.
That steals some slots and in this challenge it can be complicated.
I thought that my deck was already pretty stretched out but I guess it will have to go that extra mile.
Or maybe I'll do a massive overall.

Getting the buff from Enchanted challenge does give a bit of help too.

Well, if it helps, the deck I used for this challenge was a modified version of keeper/'the deck'. I put in lots of tutors and wish cards, and some board control like Moat and The Abyss. I didn't actually put ANY of the cards I needed to do the different rounds in the deck itself; I wished for them all.

While I haven't even tried this challenge, the only method I would try would be using Time Vault first to get unlimited turns and then start wishing. If even just this one challenge had the possibility to save and continue later, I would try it. Now... no way

If you haven't seen it, here's the earlier thread about this challenge: viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1532

Any suggestions for someone not real familiar with MTG to get started? I didn't play the cards beyond Ice Age and just discovered the Manalink 2.0 thing a few months ago. I'm working through the other challenges and have beat several, mainly thanks to decks posted here. I have about 10 left. But I don't even know how to start Magic The Puzzling. I keep looking for black sorceries and creatures that might help, but I guess I don't get it as nothing seems like it would let me win the first turn I play. Is there a way to get a hint without spoiling it? Thanks in advance.

It's hard to give any hints without spoiling it, but I would suggest focusing on ways to get extra mana or ways to get very cheap effects. As an example (which is not a card needed for the challenges as of this post) Eureka can get an awful lot of stuff into play for just 4 mana.

The best generic advice I can give is to think about how you could POSSIBLY meet the requirements of the challenge. If it has to be done by the end of upkeep you know there will be no sorceries involved, and you'll need instants. If creatures are involved you'll need some way to enable their effects or attacks without summoning sickness. Sometimes you have to deck your opponent, sometimes you can deal enough damage to kill him. The mana sources available to you will help guide (but not strictly dictate) what colors you need to look at.

Bear all these in mind then start scrolling through the cards. You'll see something that might work, but it requires XX extra mana, so you look for a way to get that mana. Or you need a creature with XX ability so you narrow it down to those. And if you can't find something that completes your combo, you scrap it and go back to the drawing board.

-Rob

Thanks for the responses gents, although I think it's still beyond me. I can't seem to figure out the pattern, especially with the limitations of swamps for starting mana and sorceries instead of instants -- can't even get a Dark Ritual to pump my mana. I figured a card that would get a Hellkite into play (8 power, haste) would do it, but the closest I've come up with is Show and Tell (Eureka got me thinking about it), a sorcery that I'm one blue mana short to play. I haven't been able to find a SORCERY that would grant +1 blue mana over its cost -- shame I can't just use a Mox Sapphire in its place.

I guess I'll just work on the rest for now and and skip that one. I didn't so much want to unlock the Sphinx card, rather I wanted the hope that I could eventually beat them all (bit OCD-ish I guess). I actually didn't get the patch after that added yet another challenge (forget which). If I skip Puzzling, I only have 8 other challenges left, as I finally managed to beat Gimme tonight. Thank God I got an accidental draw result on the creatureless red/green deck with all the mana flares, thanks to the computer's ill-timed Hurricane. I think I need to take another crack at Onslaught.

Yeah, that one is a real bitch.

#4 is killing me. I always seem to find that I need one more piece of mana or one more spell. I've reduced the deck down to zero, but have nothing left to force him to draw. I have found myself in a position to wipe out the life total, only to find myself two mana short. Frustratingly a Black Lotus would solve all my problems - damn artifact restrictions.

What makes matters more frustrating is that I have already stumbled across the solution to #5 in my various attempts to solve this one, only to find myself unable to get there.

My hair currently lays scattered about my chair having been yanked out in anger ...

The reason #4 is 'nonartifact' is because it was really easy to beat with a Black Lotus when I tested it :p The nonartifact restriction takes away most of the solutions, but there is still one that's pretty tough to find.

The only hint I can think of (and I'll delete this if it's too much) is that there are technically two solutions to this one (that I know of) but that they are essentially identical; the third card can be either of two cards that are almost the same.

I'm very curious what other people did to beat #4. My solution shouldn't work, but it does. It's a mistaken application of the stack rules. Maybe someone can DM me their solution.

-Rob