If a creature an opponent controls would die, exile it instead.
At the beginning of each end step, create X 1/1 black Rat creature tokens with "This token gets +1/+1 for each other Rat you control," where X is the number of creatures that were exiled under your opponents' control this turn.
Vren turns every opponent creature death into a token engine: when their creatures die you exile them, and at each end step you make that many escalating Rat tokens that grow with every other Rat. You play removal, board wipes, and edicts to maximize exiles, snowball a wide Rat army, then alpha-strike or close with overrun effects. Mid-game you stabilize behind Ward and a growing board while denying opponents recursion.
Turns opposing creature deaths into a self-snowballing token army that scales with each Rat already in play
Doubles as graveyard hate, exiling opponent creatures so they can't reanimate or recur them
Ward makes Vren resilient to single-target removal
Rewards playing removal and board wipes you'd want anyway, generating value off everyone's turns
Token count grows every end step, so even a stalled board produces relentless pressure
The payoff is end-of-turn, so the tokens are vulnerable to board wipes before you can attack
Heavily reliant on opponents' creatures dying, so creature-light or token-flood metas dampen the engine
Goes wide, making it extremely exposed to mass removal and damage sweepers
Needs Vren on the battlefield to function, so repeated removal stalls the deck
Slow to close without an overrun or anthem payoff already assembled
Lean into edict and sacrifice effects (Dictate of Erebos, Grave Pact, Plaguecrafter) so opponents lose creatures every turn regardless of their plans, maximizing end-step Rats. Add Rat-tribal and anthem payoffs (Marrow-Gnawer, Coat of Arms, Door of Destinies) plus a finisher overrun and protection like Heroic Intervention-style effects in blue/black or counterspells to shield Vren. Finally, tighten the mana with fast rocks and dual lands, and include graveyard-agnostic removal that exiles or kills broadly to keep the engine fed.
Legendary Creature — Rat Rogue
