How to Pilot the Temur Jace Combo in Magic: The Gathering Arena

To execute the Temur Jace combo in Standard, you must upgrade Innkeeper's Talent to Level 3 before casting Jace Reawakened. Level 3 doubles the counters placed on your permanents, allowing Jace Reawakened to enter the battlefield with six loyalty counters instead of three. This lets you immediately activate Jace's -6 ultimate on the turn it arrives, creating a continuous effect that copies every spell you cast for the rest of the turn and enabling an explosive burn finish.

How the Combo Engine Works

Under standard rules, Jace Reawakened enters with three loyalty and cannot activate its -6 ultimate without ticking up over several turns. Innkeeper's Talent Level 3 applies a static replacement effect to incoming counters:

Counter Doubling: When Jace Reawakened enters the battlefield, Innkeeper's Talent doubles its initial loyalty counters from three to six.
Immediate Ultimate: You can immediately expend all six counters to activate Jace's -6 ability: "Until end of turn, whenever you cast a spell, copy it."
Spell Duplication: While Jace is sacrificed to pay the loyalty cost, the copy effect remains active until the end of the turn, duplicating every subsequent instant, sorcery, or permanent spell you cast.

Step-by-Step Execution Sequence

Once Innkeeper's Talent reaches Level 3, execute the winning line during your main phase:

Deploy Jace Reawakened: Cast Jace for {U}{U} (Turn 4 or later). It enters with six loyalty counters.
Trigger the Ultimate: Activate the -6 ability immediately. Jace goes to the graveyard, leaving the spell-copy trigger active for the turn.
Generate Mana and Cards: Cast resource engines like Big Score. The copy trigger creates a second resolution, yielding four Treasure tokens and four fresh cards to float excess mana.
Clear the Board: Cast "This Town Ain't Big Enough" targeting one of your own nonland permanents and an opponent's threat. Targeting your own permanent discounts the spell to {1}{U}. The copied instances clear opposing blockers or problem permanents while returning your utility pieces to hand.
Burn for Lethal: Cast direct-damage spells like Lightning Strike. With one or more copy triggers active, a single burn spell duplicates across the stack, quickly dealing 12 to 24 damage to wipe out the opponent's life total.

Early-Turn Turn Blueprint

Jace Reawakened has a strict casting restriction: you cannot cast it during your first, second, or third turns of the game. Early turns must focus on mana fixing, plotting resources, and leveling your Class enchantment.

Turn	Primary Objective	Mana Investment	Strategic Purpose
Turn 1	Land Setup	Play untapped green or red source	Fix three-color mana and hold open cheap interaction.
Turn 2	Cast Innkeeper's Talent	Pay {G} for Level 1	Establish the engine and place +1/+1 counters on blockers.
Turn 3	Level Class or Plot	Pay {G} for Level 2 or plot utility	Grant Ward {1} to permanents with counters or bank free spells.
Turn 4	Level 3 Upgrade	Pay {3}{G} for Level 3	Enable counter doubling for incoming planeswalkers.
Turn 5+	Combo Execution	Deploy Jace Reawakened ({U}{U})	Fire the -6 ultimate immediately and chain copied burn for the win.

Using Jace’s +1 ability to plot spells with mana value 3 or less also offers setup value if you draw an extra copy early. Plotted cards exile safely and cast for free on later turns, preserving your mana pool for the final burst turn.

Matchup Strategy and Counterplay

Aggressive Shells (Mono-Red, White Weenie): Do not tap out for Level 3 on Turn 4 if the opponent has lethal damage on board. Use early copies of Lightning Strike, Abrade, or bounce spells to stabilize. Level 1 of Innkeeper's Talent buffs your blockers to buy time.
Midrange and Control (Black or Blue Shells): Watch for counterspells like Three Steps Ahead and instant-speed enchantment removal like Get Lost. Level 2 of Innkeeper's Talent taxes target removal with Ward {1}. Against counter-heavy decks, cast plotted spells first to bait permission before resolving Jace.