Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor - Infinite Mill in Historic Brawl
Lorwyn Eclipsed introduced one of the most infamous artifacts to hit MTG Arena, so powerful that it enabled a two-card combo and was even pre-banned in Historic. The good news is that it is completely legal in Historic Brawl. Today, we are breaking down a deck that can utterly abuse that artifact to its fullest potential. Let’s dive in.
Table of Contents
Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor: Historic Brawl Deck Overview
This is a mono-blue artifact control deck that leans heavily into cheap artifacts, efficient card draw, and strong stack interaction.
Cards like [card]Mox Amber[/card], [card]Mox Opal[/card], [card]Arcane Signet[/card], and [card]Mind Stone[/card] accelerate early development, while draw spells such as [card]Preordain[/card], [card]Ponder[/card], and [card]Brainstorm[/card] keep cards flowing. The deck plays patiently, builds resources, and then snowballs with powerful artifact payoffs.
The Historic Brawl Commander: Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor
At the heart of the deck is [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card].
[cards]{{Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor}}{{Merata, Neuron Hacker}}[/cards]
This commander turns card draw into raw mana advantage by building ingenuity counters every time you draw your first or second card each turn.
Once those counters add up, Lady Octopus lets you tap to cast artifacts for free, completely bypassing mana costs at instant speed. The entire deck is built to draw cards early, protect the commander, and then convert those counters into explosive artifact turns.
On MTG Arena, [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card] appears as [card]Merata, Neuron Hacker[/card] in the Through the Omenpaths version. Functionally, these are the same card. Searching for [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card] in Arena will still bring up Merata, and this naming difference applies to other paper cards from sets like Spider-Man that use alternate names on Arena through the Omenpaths sheet.
Primary Artifact Finishers
[cards]{{Urza, Lord High Artificer}}[/cards]
[card]Urza, Lord High Artificer[/card] is one of the strongest payoff engines available, transforming every artifact into blue mana while also producing a massive Construct that scales naturally with your board. Once Urza is in play, your mana explodes, letting you chain spells and hold up interaction effortlessly.
[cards]{{Kappa Cannoneer}}{{Wurmcoil Engine}}{{Batterskull}}[/cards]
[card]Kappa Cannoneer[/card] plays a very different role, acting as a fast and nearly unavoidable threat. It grows every time an artifact enters the battlefield and becomes unblockable on those turns, which makes it an excellent closer once you stabilize. [card]Wurmcoil Engine[/card] and [card]Batterskull[/card] give the deck staying power, stabilizing against creature-heavy strategies with lifelink while also being difficult to remove cleanly.
[cards]{{Chimil, the Inner Sun}}[/cards]
[card]Chimil, the Inner Sun[/card] pushes the deck firmly into the late game by making your spells uncounterable and providing a steady stream of free value every end step, forcing opponents to answer it quickly or get buried.
Engine Pieces and Setup Tools
[cards]{{Mishra's Bauble}}{{Chromatic Star}}{{Aether Spellbomb}}{{Soul-Guide Lantern}}[/cards]
Cheap artifacts like [card]Mishra's Bauble[/card], [card]Chromatic Star[/card], [card]Aether Spellbomb[/card], and [card]Soul-Guide Lantern[/card] are ideal enablers because they do several jobs at once. They trigger card draw for [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card], increase artifact count for affinity, and improvise, and replace themselves so you never fall behind on resources.
[cards]{{Fabricate}}{{Whir of Invention}}{{Trinket Mage}}[/cards]
Tutors are especially important in singleton formats, which is why [card]Fabricate[/card], [card]Whir of Invention[/card], and [card]Trinket Mage[/card] are so valuable. These cards let you consistently find key pieces like mana rocks, payoff artifacts, or combo components when you need them.
[cards]{{Emry, Lurker of the Loch}}{{Buried Ruin}}[/cards]
[card]Emry, Lurker of the Loch[/card] and [card]Buried Ruin[/card] add resilience, allowing the deck to grind through removal-heavy matchups by replaying artifacts from the graveyard and keeping the engine online even after sweepers.
Stack Control and Tempo Interaction
[cards]{{Counterspell}}{{Mana Leak}}{{Spell Snare}}{{Force of Negation}}{{Wash Away}}[/cards]
Core counters like [card]Counterspell[/card], [card]Mana Leak[/card], [card]Spell Snare[/card], [card]Force of Negation[/card], and [card]Wash Away[/card] let you stop opposing commanders, planeswalkers, and combo turns before they ever resolve. These spells are especially strong in Brawl, where denying a commander cast can completely derail an opponent’s game plan.
[cards]{{Metallic Rebuke}}{{Disruption Protocol}}{{Machinist's Dismissal}}[/cards]
Artifact-focused counters such as [card]Metallic Rebuke[/card], [card]Disruption Protocol[/card], and [card]Machinist's Dismissal[/card] shine here because they scale with your board.
Removal
[cards]{{Otawara, Soaring City}}{{Sink into Stupor}}[/cards]
Blue may not have traditional removal, but this deck compensates with flexible, efficient answers that fit the Historic Brawl metagame. [card]Otawara, Soaring City[/card] and [card]Sink into Stupor[/card] can answer almost any permanent at instant speed, all while dodging counterspells thanks to channel and modal flexibility. These cards are especially valuable against planeswalkers and problematic artifacts.
[cards]{{Unable to Scream}}{{The Mightstone and Weakstone}}[/cards]
[card]Unable to Scream[/card] permanently neutralizes dangerous creatures by stripping abilities and shrinking them, making it a clean answer to commanders that rely on text boxes. [card]The Mightstone and Weakstone[/card] pulls double duty by either drawing cards or removing large creatures outright with -5/-5, giving the deck meaningful interaction without sacrificing card advantage.
Closing the Game
Rather than winning quickly, this deck aims to win decisively once it establishes control.
[cards]{{Kappa Cannoneer}}{{Wurmcoil Engine}}{{Phyrexian Metamorph}}[/cards]
Large artifact threats like [card]Kappa Cannoneer[/card] and [card]Wurmcoil Engine[/card] apply consistent pressure while forcing awkward blocks and removal decisions. [card]Phyrexian Metamorph[/card] adds flexibility by copying your best threat.
[cards]{{Time Warp}}{{Temporal Manipulation}}{{Temporal Trespass}}[/cards]
Extra-turn spells such as [card]Time Warp[/card], [card]Temporal Manipulation[/card], and [card]Temporal Trespass[/card] act as finishers rather than setup tools, allowing you to convert an established advantage into an unstoppable sequence of turns.
[cards]{{Painter's Servant}}{{Grindstone}}[/cards]
Lastly, the main win condition comes from the [card]Painter's Servant[/card] and [card]Grindstone[/card] combo. In slower matchups, this pairing gives the deck a clean alternate path to victory by completely ignoring stalled boards and heavy life-gain strategies. The ideal setup is to cheat one of the pieces into play at the end of an opponent’s turn, then deploy the other on your own turn with counterspell backup. Once both are on the battlefield, activating [card]Grindstone[/card] immediately mills an opponent out and ends the game on the spot.
Utility Lands
[cards]{{Flooded Strand}}{{Misty Rainforest}}{{Polluted Delta}}{{Mystic Sanctuary}}[/cards]
Fetch lands like [card]Flooded Strand[/card], [card]Misty Rainforest[/card], and [card]Polluted Delta[/card] thin the deck and synergize pretty well with tutoring for [card]Mystic Sanctuary[/card].
[cards]{{Seat of the Synod}}{{Darksteel Citadel}}{{Treasure Vault}}[/cards]
Artifact lands such as [card]Seat of the Synod[/card], [card]Darksteel Citadel[/card], and [card]Treasure Vault[/card] boost artifact count while providing mana.
[cards]{{Inventors' Fair}}{{Archway of Innovation}}[/cards]
Utility lands like [card]Inventors' Fair[/card], and [card]Archway of Innovation[/card] add tutoring, recursion, and improvise support.
How to Play with Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor in Historic Brawl
Early game, the goal is simple: resolve [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card], play cheap artifacts, and draw cards every turn. Midgame, you protect the commander while stacking ingenuity counters and tutoring for key artifacts. Once enough counters are built, the deck explodes by casting large artifacts for free, chaining card draw, and locking opponents out with interaction. The late game is about converting that advantage into a decisive threat or extra-turn sequence, which we will explain in the winning lines now.
Infinite Combos and Near-Infinite Lines
The most direct infinite combo in the deck is the pairing of [card]Painter’s Servant[/card] and [card]Grindstone[/card].
[cards]{{Painter’s Servant}}{{Grindstone}}[/cards]
Once [card]Painter’s Servant[/card] is on the battlefield and set to any color, all cards everywhere share that color. Activating [card]Grindstone[/card] then causes the mill effect to repeat indefinitely, since the first two cards milled will always match. One activation is enough to mill an opponent’s entire library and win the game on the spot.
[cards]{{Fabricate}}{{Whir of Invention}}[/cards]
Because the deck runs tutors like [card]Fabricate[/card] and [card]Whir of Invention[/card], assembling this two-card win condition is far more consistent than it looks in a singleton format.
[cards]{{Mystic Sanctuary}}{{Time Warp}}[/cards]
The deck also has access to near-infinite turn sequences through [card]Mystic Sanctuary[/card] and extra-turn spells like [card]Time Warp[/card]. With three other Islands in play, [card]Mystic Sanctuary[/card] can put an extra-turn spell back on top of your library after it resolves. While this loop is not truly infinite without repeated land reuse, even chaining two or three extra turns is usually enough to lock the game up in Historic Brawl.
Those turns give you time to rebuild protection, find a finisher, or assemble the [card]Grindstone[/card] combo uncontested.
Two-Card Synergies and Value Engines
One of the strongest disruptive synergies in the deck is [card]Harbinger of the Seas[/card] alongside [card]Winter Moon[/card].
[cards]{{Harbinger of the Seas}}{{Winter Moon}}[/cards]
Harbinger turns all nonbasic lands into Islands, and [card]Winter Moon[/card] restricts players to untapping only one nonbasic land per turn.
[cards]{{Emry, Lurker of the Loch}}{{Mishra’s Bauble}}{{Chromatic Star}}[/cards]
[card]Emry, Lurker of the Loch[/card] forms a powerful value engine with cheap artifacts like [card]Mishra’s Bauble[/card], [card]Chromatic Star[/card], and [card]Aether Spellbomb[/card]. Emry allows you to repeatedly cast artifacts from your graveyard, turning these low-cost pieces into recurring card draw or interaction. Cards like [card]Cryogen Relic[/card] push this even further by drawing on both entry and exit, letting Emry generate real card advantage with minimal effort.
[cards]{{Tezzeret, Cruel Captain}}{{Repurposing Bay}}{{Grindstone}}[/cards]
Another strong engine comes from [card]Tezzeret, Cruel Captain[/card] and [card]Repurposing Bay[/card]. Tezzeret’s zero ability untaps an artifact each turn, which pairs perfectly with Repurposing Bay’s artifact-to-artifact tutoring ability. Tezzeret also helps assemble combo pieces directly by tutoring low-cost artifacts, such as [card]Grindstone[/card], while gaining loyalty as your artifact count grows.
Synergies Enabled by Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor
[card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card] is the engine that ties the entire deck together. Every time you draw your first or second card each turn, she gains ingenuity counters, which can then be converted into free artifact casts.
[cards]{{Ponder}}{{Preordain}}{{Brainstorm}}{{Thoughtcast}}{{Thought Monitor}}[/cards]
The deck is intentionally packed with cheap draw spells like [card]Ponder[/card], [card]Preordain[/card], and [card]Brainstorm[/card], as well as affinity-based draw like [card]Thoughtcast[/card] and [card]Thought Monitor[/card], to ensure those counters build up quickly.
[cards]{{Arcane Signet}}{{Mind Stone}}[/cards]
Once Lady Octopus has even a small number of counters, she effectively becomes an artifact-specific cost reducer. Early on, she can deploy mana rocks like [card]Arcane Signet[/card] or [card]Mind Stone[/card] for free, letting you keep mana open for interaction.
[cards]{{The One Ring}}{{Wurmcoil Engine}}{{Chimil, the Inner Sun}}{{Kappa Cannoneer}}[/cards]
As the game progresses, those counters scale into game-breaking tempo plays, allowing you to cast cards like [card]The One Ring[/card], [card]Wurmcoil Engine[/card], [card]Chimil, the Inner Sun[/card], or [card]Kappa Cannoneer[/card] without paying mana at all.
[cards]{{Lavaspur Boots}}{{Mox Amber}}[/cards]
Protecting and activating Lady Octopus quickly is critical, which is where [card]Lavaspur Boots[/card] shines. Granting haste and ward lets you use her ability immediately and makes removing her more awkward. Being a one-mana legendary creature also means she turns on [card]Mox Amber[/card] from turn one, enabling explosive starts where you play Lady Octopus, cast a draw spell, build counters, and immediately cheat an artifact into play.
One of the most subtle but powerful aspects of Lady Octopus is her ability to ignore normal timing restrictions. Because the artifact is cast during the resolution of her ability, you can effectively play artifacts at instant speed. This allows for surprise plays like casting [card]The One Ring[/card] in response to lethal damage or deploying a key combo piece at the end of an opponent’s turn when shields are down. That flexibility gives the deck a constant threat of action, even when it appears tapped out.
What is Lady Octopus called in Through the Omenpaths?
In Through the Omenpaths, Lady Octopus is officially named [card]Merata, Neuron Hacker[/card]. This version represents the same character under a different identity, using a new name while keeping the exact same abilities and gameplay role.
Is Merata, Neuron Hacker the same card as Lady Octopus?
Yes. [card]Merata, Neuron Hacker[/card] is the Through the Omenpaths version of Lady Octopus. The card text, abilities, mana cost, and function are identical; only the name, art, and universe branding are different. In formats like Historic Brawl, both names refer to the same commander for deckbuilding and gameplay purposes.
Is Lady Octopus a combo commander?
Yes, [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card] functions as a combo-enabled commander. While the deck can win through combat and value, it also supports deterministic combo finishes like [card]Painter’s Servant[/card] plus [card]Grindstone[/card], as well as extra-turn chains using cards like [card]Time Warp[/card]. The commander accelerates these lines by cheating key artifacts into play.
Can Lady Octopus cast artifacts at instant speed?
Effectively, yes. [card]Lady Octopus, Inspired Inventor[/card] allows you to cast artifacts during the resolution of her tap ability, which bypasses normal timing rules. This lets you deploy artifacts on an opponent’s turn, including defensive plays like casting [card]The One Ring[/card] in response to damage or flashing in a combo piece at end step.
How does the Painter’s Servant and Grindstone combo work?
With [card]Painter’s Servant[/card] on the battlefield choosing any color, all cards become that color. When you activate [card]Grindstone[/card], the mill effect repeats indefinitely because the milled cards always share a color. This mills an opponent’s entire library in a single activation and wins the game immediately.
How does this deck win without combos?
Outside of combos, the deck wins by overwhelming opponents with artifact threats and extra turns. Cards like [card]Kappa Cannoneer[/card], [card]Wurmcoil Engine[/card], and copied threats from [card]Phyrexian Metamorph[/card] apply steady pressure, while extra-turn spells allow you to close the game without giving opponents a chance to recover.
Is this deck good against aggressive strategies?
Yes, the deck performs well against aggressive decks, though you need to mull a bit harder for cheap interaction in the first turns. Lifegain threats like [card]Wurmcoil Engine[/card] and [card]Batterskull[/card] stabilize the board, while bounce effects from [card]Otawara, Soaring City[/card] and [card]Sink into Stupor[/card] buy time. Once stabilized, the deck usually outscales aggro opponents.
Is this deck competitive in Historic Brawl?
This deck sits comfortably in the high-power Historic Brawl space. It combines strong interaction, consistent card advantage, mana denial elements, and fast combo potential. While it is not purely all-in on combos, it punishes slower decks and can reliably close games once it establishes control.
Is this deck hard to pilot?
The deck has a medium-to-high skill ceiling. Sequencing draw spells, knowing when to hold up counters, and choosing when to commit combo pieces are all important decisions. However, the core game plan—draw cards, cheat artifacts, protect the engine—is intuitive once you’ve played a few games.
Wrap Up
This may not be the most powerful commander or the most exciting strategy, but I wanted to highlight what Lorwyn Eclipsed has brought to the format and give a glimpse of what you might see more of in the future so it does not catch you by surprise.
Thanks for reading.
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