Affinity is an Artifact-based aggro deck that also goes by the name Robots. The name comes from the mechanic in the Mirrodin block, primarily Affinity for Artifacts on cards like Thoughtcast, Frogmite, and Myr Enforcer. With the release of the Scars of Mirrodin block, Affinity has gained a ton of new tools and evolved into a powerful and synergistic deck that only uses only one Affinity card: Thoughtcast.
Affinity is a Tier 1 Modern deck and one of the few real aggro deck in the format with elements of combo and tempo. It combines low-costed creatures with evasion and highly efficient spells in the form of Thoughtcast and Galvanic Blast, and it is also highly resilient to removal and board wipes. The deck has numerous complex synergies that rewards strong pilots with faster clocks. Theoretically, the deck can win on as early as turn 2, although in reality it mostly wins on turn 4 or turn 5 with light disruption.
While Affinity seems like a simple plays all my creatures and turn them sideways deck, it's one of the most complex decks to play in Modern simply because it is one of the few decks in Modern with reliable mana acceleration and its spells are so cheap. Having access to 4 or more mana by turn 2 means there are many different possible lines, and it takes someone with an intimate knowledge of Affinity and also of the deck the opponent is playing to know the best line to take to maximize clock and minimize blow outs.
The root of modern Affinity traces back to the Mirrodin block in 2003, when the most infamous deck in the history of the Standard format was built: Ravager Affinity. Ravager Affinity changed the game in a way that Standard players today would not be able to comprehend. Artifact lands like Great Furnace, Seat of the Synod, and Vault of Whispers, and Glimmervoid were the major mana sources powering the deck. The artifacts lands were broken in design, as admitted by WotC, because they effectively decreased the cost of Affinity for artifact spells by 2. Affinity has ridiculously fast hands because it runs cards like Frogmite, Myr Enforcer, and Ornithopter that quickly overran the opponent in conjunction with broken card advantage via cards like Thoughtcast and Skullclamp. The deck also had win conditions outside of combat damage because it ran Shrapnel Blast and Disciple of the Vault to force wins out of nowhere.
Because Affinity warped the Standard format in such a way that it was either play Affinity or anti-Affinity, WotC decried that Affinity had to die in Standard. On June of 2004, less than 3 months after the release of Darksteel, Skullclamp was banned. On March of 2005, Arcbound Ravager, Disciple of the Vault, Great Furnace, Seat of the Synod, Vault of Whispers, Ancient Den, and Tree of Tales followed suit in being banned while in Standard. The reasoning was simple. Magic is at heart a game, and games are about having fun and variety. In addition, in 2010 Wizards of the Coast decided to change the rules so that damage no longer goes on the stack because it enabled Arcbound Ravager to sacrifice creatures that already had damage on the stack to gain extra +1/+1 counters.
Today, the Mirrodin block, specifically the original Affinity deck, is credited with causing more people to quit Magic because it has become “unfun” than any other set or deck. Ever.
II. Card Choices:
Ornithopter
- The original 0 drop that came before Affinity, Ornithopter continues to see play as a playset because of its natural evasion and its 0/2 butt. It also helps to power Springleaf Drums and Mox Opal turn 1. Memnite
- As a 0 drop, most of the time it's worse than Ornithopter simply because it's easier to block and weaker to removal. It also helps to power Springleaf Drums and Mox Opal turn 1. Signal Pest
- One of two 1 drops, it is a very cheap Lord that is the fastest means of a clock, but also very weak to removal. Vault Skirge
- The other 1 drop that technically costs 2 life, it helps to race against aggro very well, but also weak to removal. It is very helpful in race situations when the opponent is unable to remove the Lifelink flyer. Arcbound Ravager
- The card that makes the deck tick. There are many tricks to Arcbound Ravager that will be later discussed in the tips section. Steel Overseer
- A newer addition that has proven itself in midrange games. Wins the game on its own if it untaps. Spellskite
- Another addition to either the main deck or the sideboard that tremendously helps against targeted damage removal, e.g., Lightning Bolt. Etched Champion
- A powerhouse against most grindy match ups, it is most often the preferred 3 drop. Master of Etherium
- An alternate 2U drop against a Stony Silence and Lingering Souls heavy meta.
Thoughtcast
- The reason why Affinity is played. U for draw 2 cards is incredibly powerful and helps Affinity to grind it out mid game. Galvanic Blast
- A better Lightning Bolt for Affinity, do note that the opponent can destroy Artifacts in response to sabotage Metalcraft. Dispatch
- A better Path to Exile for Affinity, do note that the opponent can destroy Artifacts in response to sabotage Metalcraft. Mox Opal
-The nut draw in the opening hand, Mox Opal is the only mana acceleration card that works on the 1st turn and that is permanent in Modern. The legendary rule change now allows it to also be played as a Lotus Petal that remains on the board. Springleaf Drum
-The other mana acceleration in Affinity, it enables 2nd turn Blood Moon, Etched Champion, Master of Etherium, etc. Cranial Plating
-The card that makes makes 2nd and 3rd turn kills possible, it is the card that you want to see the most in Affinity because it significantly increases your clock. Spell Pierce
-A possible form of main deck disruption that keeps key spells from resolving and prevents blow outs. It is also helpful to disrupt combo and Affinity hate in Game 2 and Game 3. Welding Jar is a strong tempo card that makes Lightning Bolt look bad.
Glimmervoid
-The original source of colored mana, Glimmervoid has gone down to 3x because it makes the deck more vulnerable to Artifact removal. Blinkmoth Nexus
-Affinity is more resilient because of the number of manlands it can play, which survives Wrath of God effects. Inkmoth Nexus
-A game changing land that creates an alternate win condition that skillful pilots can use to speed up our clock and ignore enemy life totals. Darksteel Citadel
-The only Artifact land available in Modern, it helps with our Artifact count for Thoughtcast, Cranial Plating, Master of Etherium, and Arcbound Ravager, as well as power our Metalcraft spells. Island
-We play a lonely island as something to fetch for when an opponent plays Path to Exile. It also helps to power Thoughtcast and Master of Etherium. Mountain
-Red heavy variants of Affinity that run Galvanic Blast in addition to Shrapnel Blast typically run 1-2 Mountain to play the red cards.
This is the starting point, although players may modify it to fit their needs depending on their local meta-game, it is a good place for beginners to start. Almost all Affinity lists today is a deviation of this core.
This is similar to the main board that I play, but the sideboard is slightly different. The main advantage of a main deck Spellskite is that it helps against all the cards that hit us in the wrong places, Abrupt Decay on Cranial Plating, Lightning Bolt on Steel Overseer, and Lightning Helix on Inkmoth Nexus with Arcbound Ravager's +1/+1 counters trigger on the stack. It also happens to help against our worst match ups Game 1, American Control and Splinter Twin. More on that later.
"If I wee to run it again I would not be playing Dispatch, and I would remove a Spellskite for 2 Thoughtseize and something else."
"No I have the 4th Opal, but I took a list to base my testing off and it only had 3, and when I was tweaking it never had the need for the 4th. When I go back to playing Champion I will play the 4th."
"And you have no idea the reach this has. The amount of games I put so much pressure on Pod they had to pay life to cast and activate it, I just burned them out from there."
The goal of the deck is mass creatures early and to bum rush the enemy to death. With the number of creatures that the deck runs in additional to Welding Jar, it is incredibly resilient to targeted removal. An early Myr Enforcer will win games, especially when combined with Cranial Plating. Mox Opal would be ideal here, although Paradise Mantle to a certain degree replaces it as an additional mana producer.
IV. Opening:
A key part of playing Affinity effectively is knowing when to mulligan and when to keep. The general guidelines are as follows.
1. Because Affinity is a deck based around synergy, a good number of its cards are very weak on its own (e.g., Memnite, Ornithopter). It's probably one of the worst decks to be on top deck mode.
2. Since Affinity is threat light in the sense that not all its creatures can do work, it is very important to start with a hand with ideally 1-2 threats, namely, Steel Overseer, Arcbound Ravager, Cranial Plating, and Etched Champion or Master of Etherium. Thoughtcast is another card that influences mulligan decisions simply because it means 2 other cards, which is good in any hand that has access to U mana.
3. Mana is also critical here. Depending on the hand, starting with 1 mana available can be very bad as you can get stuck, which gives your opponent time to beat you. If you're both playing 1 spell per turn, other decks will beat you by playing better cards that do more on their own.
4. Be very open to mulligan aggressively as Affinity doesn't need a whole lot of cards to kill an opponent, just the right cards at the right times. An early unanswered Steel Overseer is enough to win games, an early unaswered Cranial Plating can take over games, and so can the right combination of speed and resilience. You can win with hands of 5 cards if you play them out fast enough and the opponent doesn't have access to the right answers in time.
2. Glimmervoid, Etched Champion, Mox Opal, Arcbound Ravager, Cranial Plating, Thoughtcast, Galvanic Blast
This is another example of another unkeepable hand, simply because you may be stuck on 1 mana for way too long and have the game slip by you. The fact that you're not dropping anything turn 1, for some people, is another reason why this hand just can't get there in time. The opponent can also destroy your only Artifact to keep your Glimmervoid, which is another reason to toss the hand back.
3. Thoughtcast, Inkmoth Nexus, Vault Skirge, Darksteel Citadel, Signal Pest, Blinkmoth Nexus, Ornithopter.
This is a very dubious keep. On the one hand, you have Thoughtcast, which means that you effectively will most likely get something later on. On the other hand, you don't have the U mana to cast it. I personally would toss it as there are only 12 U sources that you can draw over the next few turns, and there's no compelling threat for me to keep the hand, being a land heavy hand at 3 lands.
6. Darksteel Citadel, Steel Overseer, Ornithopter, Mox Opal, Cranial Plating, Springleaf Drum, Inkmoth Nexus
This is an example of a god hand that just straight up wins the game on the play. You have the ability to play out Steel Overseer turn 1 and not every decks will be able to answer it on the draw. By turn 2, you'll start clocking the opponent with poison counters, and you have the option to kill them by turn 3 if Steel Overseer is not immediately removed, assuming no relevant draws.
V. Sideboards:
The sad truth is that lots of Affinity-hose cards exist. Here is a rundown of the cards, decks to expect them in, and tips for combating them.
Stony Silence
Found in: UWR Control, UWR Midrange, Boggles, Death and Taxes, Hate Bears
Combat with: Duress, Thoughtseize, Spell Pierce
Notes: If it resolves and you don't have a Glimmervoid and a destroy enchantment effect, you're very likely to lose.
The following cards may be helpful in the sideboard depending on your local meta. I won't be going too deep into sideboard options here because there are too many variables, and it's something that you have to figure out yourself.
GBrw Jund:
We are favored in this match up Game 1, or at least until the Lingering Souls resolves.
Game 2 becomes more complicated if they have the option to board in Stony Silence. Do your best to make sure that it doesn't resolve. Remember, you only need to win either Game 2 or Game 3 to take the match. Also, the opponent may be playing Shatterstorm on the sideboard as well.
GB Rock:
Another of the easier match ups, made even easier by the fact that it doesn't run W. We are strongly favored.
After sideboard, the major cards to play around are Infest and Creeping Corrosion.
RG Tron:
The match up is close to even Game 1, although I would give Tron the edge because they have less variance.
The match up is better after sideboard because we have more answers on our sideboard like Blood Moon and Thoughtseize to create enough disruption to take the win. We only need to delay them for a turn to get a win.
Splinter Twin:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because they can combo out faster than us with more disruption.
We are close to even Game 2 and Game 3 by adding Spellskite and Torpob Orb. However, if they have access to G, they can use Ancient Grudge to blow us out.
Fish:
We are heavily favored Game 1 because we are a much faster aggro deck deck, and our creatures can grow much more quickly than them with Steel Overseer.
We are favored Game 2 with the additional removals spells available. Just watch out for the Hurkyl's Recall and the win should come decisively.
Kiki Pod:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because of the quick mana acceleration into comboing out while leaving plenty of chump blockers, including flyers like Birds of Paradise and Glen Elendra Archmage.
We are more even post board because of additional removals spells, as well as Torpor Orb, Grafdigger's Cage, and Spellskite to stop their combo.
Boggles:
We are favored in this match up Game 1 because we can effectively race against them with Vault Skirge and Cranial Plating as well as create bigger creatures than them. Our nut draws are much faster because of mana acceleration. We also have additional win conditions in the form of Inkmoth Nexus if they gain too much life.
We are unfavored in this match up Game 2 and Game 3 because of Stony Silence, additional Lifelink cards on their sideboard, and Path to Exile. Whoever goes first is likely going to have a huge advantage.
GW Hatebears:
We are favored Game 1 because of their lack of removals other than Path to Exile and our ability to have a faster clock than them.
We are unfavored Game 2 and Game 3 because of their sideboard additions of Stony Silence and Kataki, War's Wage.
R/U/G Scapeshift:
We are favored Game 1 because some lists don't even run Lightning Bolt, and we tend to do well against counter magic. Watch out for the Pyroclasm and Firesprout.
We are about even Game 2 because of lists running Ancient Grudge, which sets us back enough for them to Scapeshift for the win. Spellskite is very helpful in this match up even though it provides no additional damage.
Storm:
We are favored Game 1 because they have no real interaction with us. That means we can go for the fastest clock with Inkmoth Nexus to create the fastest clock, or we can gain a bunch of life with Vault Skirge to keeps us out of Grapeshot range.
We are close to end Game 2 because their sideboard additions in the form of Lightning Bolt, artifact destruction, while generally speaking maintaining a fast clock. Whoever goes first is likely going to have a huge advantage.
Red Deck Wins:
We are unfavored Game 1 due to the mass removal suite. Landing an Arcbound Ravager with enough Artifacts in play is key, and so is drawing an early Etched Champion followed by Cranial Plating, in which case it turns to full on race mode.
We are unfavored Game 2 due to cards like Smash to Smithereens and Rakdos Charm. This is one of the few match ups where Duress is better than Thoughtseize.
VII. FAQ:
Red Affinity is no longer a competitive list because it is an all-in strategy based on the cards Atog and Fling. It was discovered over time that Affinity can play an incredibly strong midrange game given the space. If an Etched Champion hits the board, most decks will have no way to answer him other than a mass removal effect. Equipping a Cranial Plating on Etched Champion creates a creature with high degree of inevitability that is unmatched by spells of similar costs. Steel Overseer was also found to be incredibly powerful unanswered since as few as one activations could be game changing in a race situation.
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas lacks in having strong synergy with the rest of the deck, being a Planeswalker, and its casting cost is prohibitive at 2UB. Whereas landing a Tezzeret is incredibly powerful in Legacy Affinity where you're effectively creating a 1 turn clock, Modern Affinity does not have as high a threshold of Artifacts to ensure a one hit kill. Tezzeret is an incredibly powerful card, but it belongs in a control shell, not in an aggro shell like Affinity.
The issue of Tempered Steel mainly lies in the mana base. Producing WW requires additional mana base investment in the form of Plains, City of Brass, or Glimmervoid. Removing Inkmoth Nexus defeats the purpose of pumping creatures simply because it's fewer creatures. The fact that Tempered Steel is an Enchantment instead of an Artifact doesn't help either because Affinity can only run a very limited number of non-Artifact spells. The other issue is that it forces you to opt a less than optimal creature base including a playset of Memnite, which creates issues in consistency as well if you do not draw Tempered Steel.
The question here is whether Master of Etherium is better or Etched Champion, and I believe it is a meta call. For the most part, Etched Champion is better against Affinity's bad match ups like UWR Control, Melira Pod, in addition to bringing Jund to its knees. However, in a predominantly W meta, Master of Etherium can be the stronger card if it is not met by Path to Exile.
Spellskite is a card that I've chosen to include in my main deck because it's strong in so many match ups, and it's solid for our deck as another 2 drop Artifact Creature. It helps to protect Steel Overseer from being instantly removed, it helps to protect creatures during the Arcbound Ravager graveyard trigger, and it helps to blank Lightning Bolt, the premier card of the Modern format. Spellskite helps against some match ups like Boggles, Infect, and Splinter Twin immensely Game 1, all of which can effectively race us. There's only a few decks it's bad against, RG Tron and Fish Game 1. Fish is a walk in the park Game 1, and for Tron at the very least it'll always survive a Pyroclasm. Other decks that it's helpful against are American Control, Jund, Rock, Red Deck Wins, UR Delver, and Kiki-Pod.
Stony Silence is probably the one card that hates Affinity the hardest. Stony Silence stops 12 out of Affinity's 24 mana sources, and it also stops many of our major interactions, including but not limited to Cranial Plating, Arcbound Ravager, and Steel Overseer. The issue is that even with Enchantment removal in hand, it's difficult to destroy Stony Silence because you still need a Glimmervoid for colored mana. I think that Enchantment removal should be a part of the sideboard, but it may not necessary to be a good idea to put it in Game 2 on the draw. Instead, rely on other 1 answers like Duress, preferably Thoughtseize, and Spell Pierce. Wear // Tear is another answer if you're also expecting some amount of Artifacts in addition to Stony Silence like in the case of American Control. I would not use Ray of Revelation because it is more a concession to Boggles rather than to as a way to destroy Stony Silence because of the prohibitive 1W cost.
VIII. Tricks:
The following section is a list of tricks mostly composed by user nightspirit.
#1 If you have 2 or more of the same artifacts and your opponent casts Echoing Truth targeting them (or any other "Echoing" card) you can sacrifice the targeted one with Arcbound Ravager to counter the effect and save the other card.
#2 If the spell targets only a creature and has many effects (like Lightning Helix) and you sacrifice the target all the effects are countered. It does not affect cards with multiple targets (like Searing Blaze) - in that case the spell does as much as it can.
#4 You can assign Blinkmoth Nexus as a blocker and then use its tap ability it to pump it +1/+1.
#5 Remember that you can attach Cranial Plating at instant speed for BB to an unblocked creature after the declare blockers step.
#6 If you have 2 artifacts in play and Metalcraft cards you can wait with activating you Blinkmoth Nexus or Inkmoth Nexus and possibly trick your opponent into an unfavorable situation.
#8. Be careful when you cast Dispatch. If you only have three artifacts, and they kill one in response, you are just tapping down the dude. If you suspect something it might be better to cast it at the right time e.g. in the declare attackers step on the opponents turn instead of later. The same risk goes with Etched Champion. On the other side, you are always safe with Mox Opal, because it's mana ability.
#9 You can sacrifice Arcbound Ravager to itself to move counters to another Artifact creatures. You won't get an additional counter though.
#10 If you have two Arcbound Ravager in play sacrifice one with the other one - it will get an additional counter and you can choose another modular target.
#11 You can block with Steel Overseer and then tap it to add counters before damage.
#12 You can block with Arcbound Ravager and then sacrifice it to pump up another robot. The blocked creature will remain blocked and deal no damage as long as it doesn't have Trample.
#14 You can block a creature and sacrifice it to Arcbound Ravager so that it doesn't deal combat damage (unless the creature has Trample). This is especially useful when the attacking Creature has Lifelink.
#15 In the mirror you can use Spellskite to counter an opponent's Arcbound Ravager. Once they target who's getting the counters from Arcbound Ravager, just redirect to Spellskite (Note that it's a may ability)
#17 Read the rulings of all your cards on magiccards.info - they contain useful information.
IX. Links:
http://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/5300
An incredible website that has shows the cards commonly run on Affinity, along with other information about the meta and format staples.
http://mtgo-stats.com/archetypes/Modern/RU1/
An alternative website that basically does the same thing. I prefer MTG Goldfish to view the format staples, and it's more pleasing on the eye.
In previous years, the following archetypes have developed and shaped the face of Affinity. However, based on years of testing results from large tournaments and on MTGO, the following lists have fallen out of favor:
1) Red Affinity: This deck is usually mono-red, though some people will splash black. Red Affinity utilizes Atog as an insanely powerful beater, as well as cards such as Fling to get even more damage through. The heavy use of red also allows for Blood Moon on the sideboard which greatly helps in one of our worst match-ups, 12 Post
2) Tezzeret Affinity: Tezz Affinity looks at this deck and says "hey, almost the entire deck is Modern Legal. And that's a Legacy deck!" Like the Legacy deck, this build is slower but has a great amount of lasting power, and generally good aggro matchups.
3) Tempered Steel Affinity:Tempered Steel is a pretty awesome card in a deck made entirely of artifact creatures. These decks tend to be similar to Legacy-Style Affinity but drop Tezzeret for Tempered Steel and shift the mana-base into UW. These decks also tend to run more man-lands
There should probably be smaller ones, it will (should) keep discussion more focused and less confusing.
Thank you for these thread, they are extremely usefull.
After looking through the Standard Forum, I think you are right. I will make more threads, though I like the idea of a thread with a primer separate from the discussion threads
Is there a posibility of Rb affinity that makes use of stuff like shrapnel blast and disciple of the vault? Or would adding the second color slow it down too much?
Is there a posibility of Rb affinity that makes use of stuff like shrapnel blast and disciple of the vault? Or would adding the second color slow it down too much?
I think someone posted in the old thread about splashing black for Bloodthrone Vampire... Dunno though.
Well written primer. That being said, etched champion is hardly a core part of the deck. It sees some play, but its hardly required to win in any way.
Second, most affinity lists play 4x mox opal and 3-4 springleaf drum. Even if opal is bad in multiples, it's better than playing any of the alpha moxen in modern affinity, and ravager can frequently eat multiple copies of opal and drum anyway.
Under "the suspects", there's:
"Galvanic Blast: Noone needs to be told why Lightning Bolt... ...Unfortunately, it strains your mana by either forcing more Glimmervoids (thus less art lands) or Great Furnace, which is a kill-able Citadel to the rest of the deck.'"
In italics is irrelevant in modern ^_^.
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Amazing sig by GobboElysiumKCW, TFE, god_child , Harkius, DalkonCledwin, Arnnaria, Rianalnn, Gaea's Regent our sig main man!
Under "the suspects", there's:
"Galvanic Blast: Noone needs to be told why Lightning Bolt... ...Unfortunately, it strains your mana by either forcing more Glimmervoids (thus less art lands) or Great Furnace, which is a kill-able Citadel to the rest of the deck.'"
In italics is irrelevant in modern ^_^.
Yea, I haven't changed that section at all for Modern. Hopefully I'll find the time soon. Until then, I think I'll just remove that section.
Ive been testing against an esper colored affinity style deck lately that is looking pretty solid. The deck usually dumps its hand by turn 2-3 and is usually swinging for 5+ in the air with Vault Skirge, Ornithopter, Signal Pest equipped with Cranial Plating. Its pretty fast and the Skirge does a good job of pushing out of critical life situations. Overall I like the deck and its pretty cheap to piece together.
My main concerns were cards to look out for. I am thinking if on the play that Creeping Corrosion is too slow to worry about. Maybe a little more of a concern on the draw. Likewise Krosan Grip is rather slow at 3 mana and would likely not cause major problems. Nature's Claim looks to be more troublesome as 1 cmc instant speed removal. Is this a pretty accurate evaluation of the threats to this deck? Is there anything else I should be looking out for?
I know the card balancing is off, but could something along those lines work?
Unified Will might be interesting in one of those slots, Pact of Negation while free might give some game losses.
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Commander: WBGTeneb, the Harvester B Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief B Horobi, Death's Wail BR Kaervek the Merciless WUB Zur the Enchanter WUBRG Reaper King UB Oona, Queen of the Fae U Memnarch
The thing I find funny in all of this is the fact that affinity doesn't run any affinity cards anymore lol. Affinity was always my fallback on(for extended) if I couldn't get a deck brewed or couldn't find certain cards in time for PTQs.
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In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
The thing I find funny in all of this is the fact that affinity doesn't run any affinity cards anymore lol. Affinity was always my fallback on(for extended) if I couldn't get a deck brewed or couldn't find certain cards in time for PTQs.
Thoughtcast would like to have a word with you, but I know what you're saying. Then again, I call my Saga-era Tolarian Academy deck "Affinity" these days, when it pre-dates the mechanic entirely...
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UUU Talrand, Sky Summoner // (W/U)(W/U)(W/U) Grand Arbiter Augustin IV // RRR Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker // (R/G)(R/G)(R/G) Wort, the Raidmother // URG Riku of Two Reflections // RWU Ruhan of the Fomori
Quote from Mark Rosewater »
In response to your Lightning Blast, I'll eat this burrito.
Quote from slipknot72102 »
This is why I started playing magic in the first place. It wasn't PT aspirations just making noobs cry by doing things that are perfectly fair.
Thoughtcast would like to have a word with you, but I know what you're saying. Then again, I call my Saga-era Tolarian Academy deck "Affinity" these days, when it pre-dates the mechanic entirely...
every list that I have seen hasn't even had thoughcast in there. It was the mono-red version that doesn't even run frogmite lol.
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In life all we can do is try to make things better. Sitting lost in old ways and fearing change only makes us outdated and ignorant.
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.
Albert Einstein
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
every list that I have seen hasn't even had thoughcast in there.
That's weird, because it's in almost every deck I've seen, including every non-red deck in this subforum, and I'm never mad to draw one in a game. It's such a killer card for Affinity.
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UUU Talrand, Sky Summoner // (W/U)(W/U)(W/U) Grand Arbiter Augustin IV // RRR Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker // (R/G)(R/G)(R/G) Wort, the Raidmother // URG Riku of Two Reflections // RWU Ruhan of the Fomori
Quote from Mark Rosewater »
In response to your Lightning Blast, I'll eat this burrito.
Quote from slipknot72102 »
This is why I started playing magic in the first place. It wasn't PT aspirations just making noobs cry by doing things that are perfectly fair.
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Affinity is an Artifact-based aggro deck that also goes by the name Robots. The name comes from the mechanic in the Mirrodin block, primarily Affinity for Artifacts on cards like Thoughtcast, Frogmite, and Myr Enforcer. With the release of the Scars of Mirrodin block, Affinity has gained a ton of new tools and evolved into a powerful and synergistic deck that only uses only one Affinity card: Thoughtcast.
Affinity is a Tier 1 Modern deck and one of the few real aggro deck in the format with elements of combo and tempo. It combines low-costed creatures with evasion and highly efficient spells in the form of Thoughtcast and Galvanic Blast, and it is also highly resilient to removal and board wipes. The deck has numerous complex synergies that rewards strong pilots with faster clocks. Theoretically, the deck can win on as early as turn 2, although in reality it mostly wins on turn 4 or turn 5 with light disruption.
While Affinity seems like a simple plays all my creatures and turn them sideways deck, it's one of the most complex decks to play in Modern simply because it is one of the few decks in Modern with reliable mana acceleration and its spells are so cheap. Having access to 4 or more mana by turn 2 means there are many different possible lines, and it takes someone with an intimate knowledge of Affinity and also of the deck the opponent is playing to know the best line to take to maximize clock and minimize blow outs.
The root of modern Affinity traces back to the Mirrodin block in 2003, when the most infamous deck in the history of the Standard format was built: Ravager Affinity. Ravager Affinity changed the game in a way that Standard players today would not be able to comprehend. Artifact lands like Great Furnace, Seat of the Synod, and Vault of Whispers, and Glimmervoid were the major mana sources powering the deck. The artifacts lands were broken in design, as admitted by WotC, because they effectively decreased the cost of Affinity for artifact spells by 2. Affinity has ridiculously fast hands because it runs cards like Frogmite, Myr Enforcer, and Ornithopter that quickly overran the opponent in conjunction with broken card advantage via cards like Thoughtcast and Skullclamp. The deck also had win conditions outside of combat damage because it ran Shrapnel Blast and Disciple of the Vault to force wins out of nowhere.
Because Affinity warped the Standard format in such a way that it was either play Affinity or anti-Affinity, WotC decried that Affinity had to die in Standard. On June of 2004, less than 3 months after the release of Darksteel, Skullclamp was banned. On March of 2005, Arcbound Ravager, Disciple of the Vault, Great Furnace, Seat of the Synod, Vault of Whispers, Ancient Den, and Tree of Tales followed suit in being banned while in Standard. The reasoning was simple. Magic is at heart a game, and games are about having fun and variety. In addition, in 2010 Wizards of the Coast decided to change the rules so that damage no longer goes on the stack because it enabled Arcbound Ravager to sacrifice creatures that already had damage on the stack to gain extra +1/+1 counters.
Today, the Mirrodin block, specifically the original Affinity deck, is credited with causing more people to quit Magic because it has become “unfun” than any other set or deck. Ever.
II. Card Choices:
Ornithopter
- The original 0 drop that came before Affinity, Ornithopter continues to see play as a playset because of its natural evasion and its 0/2 butt. It also helps to power Springleaf Drums and Mox Opal turn 1.
Memnite
- As a 0 drop, most of the time it's worse than Ornithopter simply because it's easier to block and weaker to removal. It also helps to power Springleaf Drums and Mox Opal turn 1.
Signal Pest
- One of two 1 drops, it is a very cheap Lord that is the fastest means of a clock, but also very weak to removal.
Vault Skirge
- The other 1 drop that technically costs 2 life, it helps to race against aggro very well, but also weak to removal. It is very helpful in race situations when the opponent is unable to remove the Lifelink flyer.
Arcbound Ravager
- The card that makes the deck tick. There are many tricks to Arcbound Ravager that will be later discussed in the tips section.
Steel Overseer
- A newer addition that has proven itself in midrange games. Wins the game on its own if it untaps.
Spellskite
- Another addition to either the main deck or the sideboard that tremendously helps against targeted damage removal, e.g., Lightning Bolt.
Etched Champion
- A powerhouse against most grindy match ups, it is most often the preferred 3 drop.
Master of Etherium
- An alternate 2U drop against a Stony Silence and Lingering Souls heavy meta.
Thoughtcast
- The reason why Affinity is played. U for draw 2 cards is incredibly powerful and helps Affinity to grind it out mid game.
Galvanic Blast
- A better Lightning Bolt for Affinity, do note that the opponent can destroy Artifacts in response to sabotage Metalcraft.
Dispatch
- A better Path to Exile for Affinity, do note that the opponent can destroy Artifacts in response to sabotage Metalcraft.
Mox Opal
-The nut draw in the opening hand, Mox Opal is the only mana acceleration card that works on the 1st turn and that is permanent in Modern. The legendary rule change now allows it to also be played as a Lotus Petal that remains on the board.
Springleaf Drum
-The other mana acceleration in Affinity, it enables 2nd turn Blood Moon, Etched Champion, Master of Etherium, etc.
Cranial Plating
-The card that makes makes 2nd and 3rd turn kills possible, it is the card that you want to see the most in Affinity because it significantly increases your clock.
Spell Pierce
-A possible form of main deck disruption that keeps key spells from resolving and prevents blow outs. It is also helpful to disrupt combo and Affinity hate in Game 2 and Game 3.
Welding Jar is a strong tempo card that makes Lightning Bolt look bad.
Glimmervoid
-The original source of colored mana, Glimmervoid has gone down to 3x because it makes the deck more vulnerable to Artifact removal.
Blinkmoth Nexus
-Affinity is more resilient because of the number of manlands it can play, which survives Wrath of God effects.
Inkmoth Nexus
-A game changing land that creates an alternate win condition that skillful pilots can use to speed up our clock and ignore enemy life totals.
Darksteel Citadel
-The only Artifact land available in Modern, it helps with our Artifact count for Thoughtcast, Cranial Plating, Master of Etherium, and Arcbound Ravager, as well as power our Metalcraft spells.
Island
-We play a lonely island as something to fetch for when an opponent plays Path to Exile. It also helps to power Thoughtcast and Master of Etherium.
Mountain
-Red heavy variants of Affinity that run Galvanic Blast in addition to Shrapnel Blast typically run 1-2 Mountain to play the red cards.
III. Decklists:
2 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Vault Skirge
4 Steel Overseer
4 Arcbound Ravager
3 Etched Champion
1 Master of Etherium
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Cranial Plating
4 Thoughtcast
2 Galvanic Blast
Lands:
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Glimmervoid
1 Island
This is the starting point, although players may modify it to fit their needs depending on their local meta-game, it is a good place for beginners to start. Almost all Affinity lists today is a deviation of this core.
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Etched Champion
2 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Steel Overseer
4 Vault Skirge
2 Spellskite
4 Cranial Plating
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Thoughtcast
Lands:
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Glimmervoid
4 Inkmoth Nexus
1 Island
1 Ancient Grudge
2 Dismember
2 Duress
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Illness in the Ranks
1 Nature's Claim
1 Negate
1 Ray of Revelation
1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Rest in Peace
2 Torpor Orb
This is similar to the main board that I play, but the sideboard is slightly different. The main advantage of a main deck Spellskite is that it helps against all the cards that hit us in the wrong places, Abrupt Decay on Cranial Plating, Lightning Bolt on Steel Overseer, and Lightning Helix on Inkmoth Nexus with Arcbound Ravager's +1/+1 counters trigger on the stack. It also happens to help against our worst match ups Game 1, American Control and Splinter Twin. More on that later.
4 Ornithopter
3 Memnite
4 Signal Pest
4 Vault Skirge
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Steel Overseer
3 Master of Etherium
Spells:
3 Mox Opal
3 Springleaf Drum
4 Galvanic Blast
3 Shrapnel Blast
4 Cranial Plating
4 Glimmevoid
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
1 Mountain
3 Whipflare
3 Dispatch
3 Spellskite
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Spell Snare
2 Nature's Claim
"If I wee to run it again I would not be playing Dispatch, and I would remove a Spellskite for 2 Thoughtseize and something else."
"No I have the 4th Opal, but I took a list to base my testing off and it only had 3, and when I was tweaking it never had the need for the 4th. When I go back to playing Champion I will play the 4th."
"And you have no idea the reach this has. The amount of games I put so much pressure on Pod they had to pay life to cast and activate it, I just burned them out from there."
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Vault Skirge
4 Signal Pest
4 Ornithopter
4 Etched Champion
3 Steel Overseer
2 Memnite
Spells:
4 Mox Opal
4 Cranial Plating
4 Springleaf Drum
3 Thoughtcast
2 Welding Jar
2 Galvanic Blast
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
3 Glimmervoid
1 Island
2 Torpor Orb
1 Spellskite
1 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Rest in Peace
3 Thoughtseize
2 Dismember
1 Ray of Revelation
1 Nature's Claim
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Illness in the Ranks
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Glimmervoid
4 Inkmoth Nexus
1 Island
Creatures:
4 Arcbound Ravager
3 Etched Champion
2 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
3 Steel Overseer
4 Vault Skirge
4 Cranial Plating
4 Galvanic Blast
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Thoughtcast
3 Ancient Grudge
3 Blood Moon
2 Dispatch
2 Spellskite
2 Thoughtseize
1 Wear // Tear
2 Whipflare
4 Myr Enforcer
4 Frogmite
4 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Steel Overseer
4 Vault Skirge
4 Cranial Plating
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Welding Jar
4 Tooth of Chiss-Goria
Lands:
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Contested War Zone
4 Dismember
2 Grafdigger's Cage
4 Relic of Progenitus
4 Spellskite
1 Torpor Orb
The goal of the deck is mass creatures early and to bum rush the enemy to death. With the number of creatures that the deck runs in additional to Welding Jar, it is incredibly resilient to targeted removal. An early Myr Enforcer will win games, especially when combined with Cranial Plating. Mox Opal would be ideal here, although Paradise Mantle to a certain degree replaces it as an additional mana producer.
IV. Opening:
A key part of playing Affinity effectively is knowing when to mulligan and when to keep. The general guidelines are as follows.
1. Because Affinity is a deck based around synergy, a good number of its cards are very weak on its own (e.g., Memnite, Ornithopter). It's probably one of the worst decks to be on top deck mode.
2. Since Affinity is threat light in the sense that not all its creatures can do work, it is very important to start with a hand with ideally 1-2 threats, namely, Steel Overseer, Arcbound Ravager, Cranial Plating, and Etched Champion or Master of Etherium. Thoughtcast is another card that influences mulligan decisions simply because it means 2 other cards, which is good in any hand that has access to U mana.
3. Mana is also critical here. Depending on the hand, starting with 1 mana available can be very bad as you can get stuck, which gives your opponent time to beat you. If you're both playing 1 spell per turn, other decks will beat you by playing better cards that do more on their own.
4. Be very open to mulligan aggressively as Affinity doesn't need a whole lot of cards to kill an opponent, just the right cards at the right times. An early unanswered Steel Overseer is enough to win games, an early unaswered Cranial Plating can take over games, and so can the right combination of speed and resilience. You can win with hands of 5 cards if you play them out fast enough and the opponent doesn't have access to the right answers in time.
I would rank the top 5 cards that you want to see on your opening hand as follows (lands not included):
1. Cranial Plating
2. Mox Opal
3. Arcbound Ravager
4. Steel Overseer
5. Thoughtcast
1. Ornithopter, Memnite, Mox Opal, Springleaf Drum, Signal Pest, Blinkmoth Nexus, Inkmoth Nexus.
This is an example of an unkeepable hand because it is extremely threat light. By removing the Signal Pest, the opponent effectively reduces you to trying to clock them with a Memnite and a Blinkmoth Nexus, which gives them more than enough time to set up their side of the field and kill you.
2. Glimmervoid, Etched Champion, Mox Opal, Arcbound Ravager, Cranial Plating, Thoughtcast, Galvanic Blast
This is another example of another unkeepable hand, simply because you may be stuck on 1 mana for way too long and have the game slip by you. The fact that you're not dropping anything turn 1, for some people, is another reason why this hand just can't get there in time. The opponent can also destroy your only Artifact to keep your Glimmervoid, which is another reason to toss the hand back.
3. Thoughtcast, Inkmoth Nexus, Vault Skirge, Darksteel Citadel, Signal Pest, Blinkmoth Nexus, Ornithopter.
This is a very dubious keep. On the one hand, you have Thoughtcast, which means that you effectively will most likely get something later on. On the other hand, you don't have the U mana to cast it. I personally would toss it as there are only 12 U sources that you can draw over the next few turns, and there's no compelling threat for me to keep the hand, being a land heavy hand at 3 lands.
4. Arcbound Ravager, Cranial Plating, Inkmoth Nexus, Vault Skirge, Memnite, Springleaf Drum
This is a keepable hand. You have your early mana acceleration into two threats in the form of Arcbound Ravager and Cranial Plating. You also have the potential for a 4 turn clock should you have the right match up by attaching Cranial Plating to Inkmoth Nexus, assuming no other relevant draws. You're hoping to draw another land, but it's not absolutely necessary since you'll curve out just fine being on 2 mana with access to colored mana.
5. Etched Champion, Glimmervoid, Vault Skirge, Signal Pest, Blinkmoth Nexus, Springleaf Drum, Arcbound Ravager
This is also another keepable hand, although much slower. Some people would argue that if your opening play is just a Springleaf Drum that it's not a good hand, but I'd disagree. Having an Arcbound Ravager and a Etched Championp means that you can establish a clock early and if you're able to keep Metalcraft up, the opponent will have little ways of interacting with you other than discards or board wipes.
6. Darksteel Citadel, Steel Overseer, Ornithopter, Mox Opal, Cranial Plating, Springleaf Drum, Inkmoth Nexus
This is an example of a god hand that just straight up wins the game on the play. You have the ability to play out Steel Overseer turn 1 and not every decks will be able to answer it on the draw. By turn 2, you'll start clocking the opponent with poison counters, and you have the option to kill them by turn 3 if Steel Overseer is not immediately removed, assuming no relevant draws.
V. Sideboards:
The sad truth is that lots of Affinity-hose cards exist. Here is a rundown of the cards, decks to expect them in, and tips for combating them.
Kitaki, War's Wage
Found in: Melira Pod, Hate Bears, Death and Taxes
Combat with: Dispatch, Dismember
Notes: May be run in addition with Burrenton Forge-Tender, which makes Galvanic Blast and Whipflare less helpful.
Hurkyl's Recall
Found in: Fish
Combat with: Duress, Thoughtseize, Spell Pierce
Notes: If it resolves, you're very likely to lose.
Creeping Corrosion
Found in: BG Midrange
Combat with: Duress, Thoughtseize, Spell Pierce
Notes: If it resolves, you're very likely to lose.
Stony Silence
Found in: UWR Control, UWR Midrange, Boggles, Death and Taxes, Hate Bears
Combat with: Duress, Thoughtseize, Spell Pierce
Notes: If it resolves and you don't have a Glimmervoid and a destroy enchantment effect, you're very likely to lose.
Shatterstorm
Found in: Jund
Combat with: Duress, Thoughtseize, Spell Pierce
Notes: If it resolves, you're very likely to lose.
The following cards may be helpful in the sideboard depending on your local meta. I won't be going too deep into sideboard options here because there are too many variables, and it's something that you have to figure out yourself.
Disruption:
Duress
Thoughtseize
Spell Pierce
Blood Moon
Creature Removal:
Whipflare
Galvanic Blast
Dismember
Dispatch
Artifact/Enchantment Removal:
Ray of Revelation
Wear // Tear
Ancient Grudge
Artifact Creatures:
Etched Champion
Spellskite
Ethersworn Canonist
Other Hate:
Relic of Progenitus
Rest in Peace
Torpor Orb
Grafdigger's Cage
VI. Match Ups:
GBrw Jund:
We are favored in this match up Game 1, or at least until the Lingering Souls resolves.
Game 2 becomes more complicated if they have the option to board in Stony Silence. Do your best to make sure that it doesn't resolve. Remember, you only need to win either Game 2 or Game 3 to take the match. Also, the opponent may be playing Shatterstorm on the sideboard as well.
GB Rock:
Another of the easier match ups, made even easier by the fact that it doesn't run W. We are strongly favored.
After sideboard, the major cards to play around are Infest and Creeping Corrosion.
RG Tron:
The match up is close to even Game 1, although I would give Tron the edge because they have less variance.
The match up is better after sideboard because we have more answers on our sideboard like Blood Moon and Thoughtseize to create enough disruption to take the win. We only need to delay them for a turn to get a win.
UWR Control:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because of cards like Lightning Helix, Spell Snare, and Electrolyze. Learn to play around it to your best ability; sequencing your spells is very important as landing a Cranial Plating and a Etched Champion is also a guaranteed win.
We are unfavored after board because of Stony Silence and Engineered Explosives.
Melira Pod:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because they can create enough road blocks to combo out and kill Cranial Plating Game 1 via Abrupt Decay and Harmonic Sliver.
We are unfavored in this match up post board because they can bring additional hate with more Harmonic Sliver, Lingering Souls, and Kataki War's Wage.
Splinter Twin:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because they can combo out faster than us with more disruption.
We are close to even Game 2 and Game 3 by adding Spellskite and Torpob Orb. However, if they have access to G, they can use Ancient Grudge to blow us out.
Fish:
We are heavily favored Game 1 because we are a much faster aggro deck deck, and our creatures can grow much more quickly than them with Steel Overseer.
We are favored Game 2 with the additional removals spells available. Just watch out for the Hurkyl's Recall and the win should come decisively.
UR Delver:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because of the heavy removal suite in the form of Lightning Bolt, Pillar of Flame, Magma Jet, and Electrolyze.
We unfavored after board in this match up because more removal via Magma Spray and Engineered Explosives.
Kiki Pod:
We are unfavored in this match up Game 1 because of the quick mana acceleration into comboing out while leaving plenty of chump blockers, including flyers like Birds of Paradise and Glen Elendra Archmage.
We are more even post board because of additional removals spells, as well as Torpor Orb, Grafdigger's Cage, and Spellskite to stop their combo.
Boggles:
We are favored in this match up Game 1 because we can effectively race against them with Vault Skirge and Cranial Plating as well as create bigger creatures than them. Our nut draws are much faster because of mana acceleration. We also have additional win conditions in the form of Inkmoth Nexus if they gain too much life.
We are unfavored in this match up Game 2 and Game 3 because of Stony Silence, additional Lifelink cards on their sideboard, and Path to Exile. Whoever goes first is likely going to have a huge advantage.
GW Hatebears:
We are favored Game 1 because of their lack of removals other than Path to Exile and our ability to have a faster clock than them.
We are unfavored Game 2 and Game 3 because of their sideboard additions of Stony Silence and Kataki, War's Wage.
R/U/G Scapeshift:
We are favored Game 1 because some lists don't even run Lightning Bolt, and we tend to do well against counter magic. Watch out for the Pyroclasm and Firesprout.
We are about even Game 2 because of lists running Ancient Grudge, which sets us back enough for them to Scapeshift for the win. Spellskite is very helpful in this match up even though it provides no additional damage.
Storm:
We are favored Game 1 because they have no real interaction with us. That means we can go for the fastest clock with Inkmoth Nexus to create the fastest clock, or we can gain a bunch of life with Vault Skirge to keeps us out of Grapeshot range.
We are close to end Game 2 because their sideboard additions in the form of Lightning Bolt, artifact destruction, while generally speaking maintaining a fast clock. Whoever goes first is likely going to have a huge advantage.
Red Deck Wins:
We are unfavored Game 1 due to the mass removal suite. Landing an Arcbound Ravager with enough Artifacts in play is key, and so is drawing an early Etched Champion followed by Cranial Plating, in which case it turns to full on race mode.
We are unfavored Game 2 due to cards like Smash to Smithereens and Rakdos Charm. This is one of the few match ups where Duress is better than Thoughtseize.
VII. FAQ:
Red Affinity is no longer a competitive list because it is an all-in strategy based on the cards Atog and Fling. It was discovered over time that Affinity can play an incredibly strong midrange game given the space. If an Etched Champion hits the board, most decks will have no way to answer him other than a mass removal effect. Equipping a Cranial Plating on Etched Champion creates a creature with high degree of inevitability that is unmatched by spells of similar costs. Steel Overseer was also found to be incredibly powerful unanswered since as few as one activations could be game changing in a race situation.
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas lacks in having strong synergy with the rest of the deck, being a Planeswalker, and its casting cost is prohibitive at 2UB. Whereas landing a Tezzeret is incredibly powerful in Legacy Affinity where you're effectively creating a 1 turn clock, Modern Affinity does not have as high a threshold of Artifacts to ensure a one hit kill. Tezzeret is an incredibly powerful card, but it belongs in a control shell, not in an aggro shell like Affinity.
The issue of Tempered Steel mainly lies in the mana base. Producing WW requires additional mana base investment in the form of Plains, City of Brass, or Glimmervoid. Removing Inkmoth Nexus defeats the purpose of pumping creatures simply because it's fewer creatures. The fact that Tempered Steel is an Enchantment instead of an Artifact doesn't help either because Affinity can only run a very limited number of non-Artifact spells. The other issue is that it forces you to opt a less than optimal creature base including a playset of Memnite, which creates issues in consistency as well if you do not draw Tempered Steel.
The question here is whether Master of Etherium is better or Etched Champion, and I believe it is a meta call. For the most part, Etched Champion is better against Affinity's bad match ups like UWR Control, Melira Pod, in addition to bringing Jund to its knees. However, in a predominantly W meta, Master of Etherium can be the stronger card if it is not met by Path to Exile.
Spellskite is a card that I've chosen to include in my main deck because it's strong in so many match ups, and it's solid for our deck as another 2 drop Artifact Creature. It helps to protect Steel Overseer from being instantly removed, it helps to protect creatures during the Arcbound Ravager graveyard trigger, and it helps to blank Lightning Bolt, the premier card of the Modern format. Spellskite helps against some match ups like Boggles, Infect, and Splinter Twin immensely Game 1, all of which can effectively race us. There's only a few decks it's bad against, RG Tron and Fish Game 1. Fish is a walk in the park Game 1, and for Tron at the very least it'll always survive a Pyroclasm. Other decks that it's helpful against are American Control, Jund, Rock, Red Deck Wins, UR Delver, and Kiki-Pod.
Stony Silence is probably the one card that hates Affinity the hardest. Stony Silence stops 12 out of Affinity's 24 mana sources, and it also stops many of our major interactions, including but not limited to Cranial Plating, Arcbound Ravager, and Steel Overseer. The issue is that even with Enchantment removal in hand, it's difficult to destroy Stony Silence because you still need a Glimmervoid for colored mana. I think that Enchantment removal should be a part of the sideboard, but it may not necessary to be a good idea to put it in Game 2 on the draw. Instead, rely on other 1 answers like Duress, preferably Thoughtseize, and Spell Pierce. Wear // Tear is another answer if you're also expecting some amount of Artifacts in addition to Stony Silence like in the case of American Control. I would not use Ray of Revelation because it is more a concession to Boggles rather than to as a way to destroy Stony Silence because of the prohibitive 1W cost.
VIII. Tricks:
The following section is a list of tricks mostly composed by user nightspirit.
You can read about the thread here: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=464775
#1 If you have 2 or more of the same artifacts and your opponent casts Echoing Truth targeting them (or any other "Echoing" card) you can sacrifice the targeted one with Arcbound Ravager to counter the effect and save the other card.
#2 If the spell targets only a creature and has many effects (like Lightning Helix) and you sacrifice the target all the effects are countered. It does not affect cards with multiple targets (like Searing Blaze) - in that case the spell does as much as it can.
#3 You can tap Blinkmoth Nexus and Inkmoth Nexus for mana and then activate them. They won't attack but they'll get counters from Steel Overseer and count as artifacts for Cranial Plating or Metalcraft cards.
#4 You can assign Blinkmoth Nexus as a blocker and then use its tap ability it to pump it +1/+1.
#5 Remember that you can attach Cranial Plating at instant speed for BB to an unblocked creature after the declare blockers step.
#6 If you have 2 artifacts in play and Metalcraft cards you can wait with activating you Blinkmoth Nexus or Inkmoth Nexus and possibly trick your opponent into an unfavorable situation.
#7 When they want to use Vedalken Shackles on your robot you can use a Springleaf Drum to tap it in response.
#8. Be careful when you cast Dispatch. If you only have three artifacts, and they kill one in response, you are just tapping down the dude. If you suspect something it might be better to cast it at the right time e.g. in the declare attackers step on the opponents turn instead of later. The same risk goes with Etched Champion. On the other side, you are always safe with Mox Opal, because it's mana ability.
#9 You can sacrifice Arcbound Ravager to itself to move counters to another Artifact creatures. You won't get an additional counter though.
#10 If you have two Arcbound Ravager in play sacrifice one with the other one - it will get an additional counter and you can choose another modular target.
#11 You can block with Steel Overseer and then tap it to add counters before damage.
#12 You can block with Arcbound Ravager and then sacrifice it to pump up another robot. The blocked creature will remain blocked and deal no damage as long as it doesn't have Trample.
#13 You can pump up Inkmoth Nexus with Blinkmoth Nexus.
#14 You can block a creature and sacrifice it to Arcbound Ravager so that it doesn't deal combat damage (unless the creature has Trample). This is especially useful when the attacking Creature has Lifelink.
#15 In the mirror you can use Spellskite to counter an opponent's Arcbound Ravager. Once they target who's getting the counters from Arcbound Ravager, just redirect to Spellskite (Note that it's a may ability)
#16 Adding Spellskite and Arcbound Ravager together, you can forcibly fizzle a burn spell like Lightning Helix that can target a creature by changing the target to Spellskite and sacrificing it to Arcbound Ravagger.
#17 Read the rulings of all your cards on magiccards.info - they contain useful information.
IX. Links:
http://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/5300
An incredible website that has shows the cards commonly run on Affinity, along with other information about the meta and format staples.
http://mtgo-stats.com/archetypes/Modern/RU1/
An alternative website that basically does the same thing. I prefer MTG Goldfish to view the format staples, and it's more pleasing on the eye.
In previous years, the following archetypes have developed and shaped the face of Affinity. However, based on years of testing results from large tournaments and on MTGO, the following lists have fallen out of favor:
1) Red Affinity: This deck is usually mono-red, though some people will splash black. Red Affinity utilizes Atog as an insanely powerful beater, as well as cards such as Fling to get even more damage through. The heavy use of red also allows for Blood Moon on the sideboard which greatly helps in one of our worst match-ups, 12 Post
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Atog
4 Frogmite
4 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Vault Skirge
Spells:
4 Cranial Plating
2 Fling
4 Galvanic Blast
4 Mox Opal
1 Shrapnel Blast
3 Springleaf Drum
3 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Mountain
4 Blood Moon
3 Etched Champion
1 Magus of the Moon
4 Mindbreak Trap
3 Torpor Orb
2) Tezzeret Affinity: Tezz Affinity looks at this deck and says "hey, almost the entire deck is Modern Legal. And that's a Legacy deck!" Like the Legacy deck, this build is slower but has a great amount of lasting power, and generally good aggro matchups.
4 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Vault Skirge
4 Arcbound Ravager
2 Master of Etherium
4 Etched Champion
Spells:
3 Mox Opal
3 Springleaf Drum
2 Dispatch
4 Cranial Plating
3 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
4 Thoughtcast
3 City of Brass
3 Darkslick Shores
1 Island
1 Swamp
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Glimmervoid
3 Ethersworn Canonist
2 Nature's Claim
3 Thoughtseize
3 Pithing Needle
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Nihil Spellbomb
2 Dispatch
3) Tempered Steel Affinity: Tempered Steel is a pretty awesome card in a deck made entirely of artifact creatures. These decks tend to be similar to Legacy-Style Affinity but drop Tezzeret for Tempered Steel and shift the mana-base into UW. These decks also tend to run more man-lands
4 Memnite
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
4 Vault Skirge
2 Arcbound Ravager
4 Etched Champion
2 Master of Etherium
4 Mox Opal
2 Springleaf Drum
3 Dispatch
4 Cranial Plating
4 Tempered Steel
4 Thoughtcast
3 City of Brass
3 Glimmervoid
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Blinkmoth Nexus
1 Plains
1 Island
Thank you for these thread, they are extremely usefull.
Talrand, Sky Summoner
Darien and his Loyal Army
Marrow-Gnawer tribal rats
Elesh Norn / Sharuum / Damia - Retired
Also, your list of hate cards that you copy straight from your legacy primer still has all of the legacy only hate cards on it.
UWRasputin DreamweaverUW
UWBSen TripletsUWB
After looking through the Standard Forum, I think you are right. I will make more threads, though I like the idea of a thread with a primer separate from the discussion threads
There were I think 6 non-red Affinity decks that earned 20 or more points at the PT. TS definitely has some top 8s, and I think a second place.
EDIT: Thanks! I fixed that. I still need to redo the in-depth card analysis, but it's 11 pm... Maybe tomorrow.
Level 1 Judge
Currently Playing:
W Death and Taxes
BGR ScapeWish Nic Fit
BGR Punishing Nic Fit
UWRasputin DreamweaverUW
UWBSen TripletsUWB
I think someone posted in the old thread about splashing black for Bloodthrone Vampire... Dunno though.
Level 1 Judge
Currently Playing:
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Not Modern legal:
Null Rod needs to come out of the hate section
Meekstone and Retribution of the Meek need to come out of the sideboarding section
Second, most affinity lists play 4x mox opal and 3-4 springleaf drum. Even if opal is bad in multiples, it's better than playing any of the alpha moxen in modern affinity, and ravager can frequently eat multiple copies of opal and drum anyway.
Thanks!
I coulda sworn Null Rod was reprinted...
Is there anything I'm missing?
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Currently Playing:
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BGR Punishing Nic Fit
Under "the suspects", there's:
"Galvanic Blast: Noone needs to be told why Lightning Bolt... ...Unfortunately, it strains your mana by either forcing more Glimmervoids (thus less art lands) or Great Furnace, which is a kill-able Citadel to the rest of the deck.'"
In italics is irrelevant in modern ^_^.
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Yea, I haven't changed that section at all for Modern. Hopefully I'll find the time soon. Until then, I think I'll just remove that section.
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Currently Playing:
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My main concerns were cards to look out for. I am thinking if on the play that Creeping Corrosion is too slow to worry about. Maybe a little more of a concern on the draw. Likewise Krosan Grip is rather slow at 3 mana and would likely not cause major problems. Nature's Claim looks to be more troublesome as 1 cmc instant speed removal. Is this a pretty accurate evaluation of the threats to this deck? Is there anything else I should be looking out for?
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Currently Playing:
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I know the card balancing is off, but could something along those lines work?
EDH:
You're thinking of Stony Silence
Unified Will might be interesting in one of those slots, Pact of Negation while free might give some game losses.
WBG Teneb, the Harvester
B Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief
B Horobi, Death's Wail
BR Kaervek the Merciless
WUB Zur the Enchanter
WUBRG Reaper King
UB Oona, Queen of the Fae
U Memnarch
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
Thoughtcast would like to have a word with you, but I know what you're saying. Then again, I call my Saga-era Tolarian Academy deck "Affinity" these days, when it pre-dates the mechanic entirely...
every list that I have seen hasn't even had thoughcast in there. It was the mono-red version that doesn't even run frogmite lol.
Albert Einstein
Thomas Jefferson
That's weird, because it's in almost every deck I've seen, including every non-red deck in this subforum, and I'm never mad to draw one in a game. It's such a killer card for Affinity.