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Thread: [Deck] Affinity

  1. #1261

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Quote Originally Posted by Shawon View Post
    Times have changed, and no one is scared about Ravager + Disciple. Ravager is still good enough in Affinity, but Disciple is lackluster without Ravager.

    Re: List

    Cut Galvanic Blast. It's a sweet card, and it is by no means 'bad' in Affinity, but the more you play with Blast the more you will realize how little you need it in the matchups you are trying to improve (e.g. combo). Galvanic Blast is a really really good burn spell, but Affinity doesn't need Burn, (not in this metagame anyway).

    Don't ever shave artifact lands, least of all Seat of the Synod. I can assume you are trying to make your manabase more resistant to extreme hate such as Energy Flux or Null Rod, but no deck you will consistently face (DTBs et al) are ever going to pack either of those two hate cards. Furthermore, you're just making the deck less consistent in general. Cut the Glimmervoids + Great Furnaces and add more artifact lands (4th Seat and 4 Vault of Whispers).

    Signal Pest is such a cheap and aggressive card. I love the card, but it has horrible defense and it highlight's some of the deck's weaknesses you should try to avoid (weak toughness -> Punishing Fire/Umezawa's Jitte/Forked Bolt/Lots of other stuff). Signal Pest is also much better if you run 12 free guys (including Frogmite).

    You need a total of 4 Tezzeret between all the cards in your MD and SB. They're much better than Disenchant against control, so take out Disenchants.

    Rest in Peace is too slow, and requires white mana. Grafdigger's Cage is half the cost and an artifact, and thus much more likely to resolve or even cast against Reanimator before becoming irrelevant.

    Infiltration Lens is way too conditional. BTW, you can wrap a tag (type [cards] in front of a card name and close it off with the same tag except with a backslash in front of 'Cards') that lets posters see a card's image above the card.
    Thanks Shawon for the reply. Nice hearing a prompt reply from people who love this deck. As for the things that you have said have opened my eyes. As for using Rest in Peace, I use it because of Tarmogoyf decks because they will just get big by turn 2 which is really annoying to deal with, but I do see your point with also dealing with Reanimator fast. I have now put 2 Grafdigger Cages' and 1 Rest in Peace if I have to deal with Tarmogoyf.

    As for lands, I see your point. I have always found Springleaf Drum kind of slow when I use in-game, so I usually use 2 and for Mox Opal, I will start using 4 instead of 3.

    So what is going to be changed will be these areas which will make my deck, in my mind, better:
    4x Mox Opals'
    4x Arcbound Ravagers'
    1x Seat of Synod
    4x Vaults of Whispers
    -4x Signal Pests'
    -3x Glimmervoids'
    -2x Great Furnaces'

    As for Tezzeret, I don't understand replacing Disenchants' for him. Can you explain? I usually never have more than two Tezzeret since I believe it usually slows you down once played. Your opponent will focus all his power in killing him no matter what it takes!

    Also, what about Dispatch? Should it replace Galvanic Blast?

  2. #1262

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Quote Originally Posted by Geeksire View Post
    As for Tezzeret, I don't understand replacing Disenchants' for him. Can you explain? I usually never have more than two Tezzeret since I believe it usually slows you down once played. Your opponent will focus all his power in killing him no matter what it takes!

    Also, what about Dispatch? Should it replace Galvanic Blast?
    Tezzeret is most likely a 2-turn clock (either by finding another artifact and Ultimating, or by turning your chaff into 5/5s.) 5/5 is still on the bigger side of the equation, creature-wise.

  3. #1263

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    True. I completely forgot about his -1 ability lol : D I may then add two more or maybe try to squeeze one in my MD. Thanks for all the comments!

  4. #1264
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Quote Originally Posted by Geeksire View Post
    As for using Rest in Peace, I use it because of Tarmogoyf decks because they will just get big by turn 2 which is really annoying to deal with, but I do see your point with also dealing with Reanimator fast. I have now put 2 Grafdigger Cages' and 1 Rest in Peace if I have to deal with Tarmogoyf.

    As for Tezzeret, I don't understand replacing Disenchants' for him. Can you explain? I usually never have more than two Tezzeret since I believe it usually slows you down once played. Your opponent will focus all his power in killing him no matter what it takes!

    Also, what about Dispatch? Should it replace Galvanic Blast?
    If you're still concerned about Tarmogoyf, Relic of Progenitus is a better solution than Rest in Peace. It's faster, and it has incidental value if your opponent tries to remove it.

    Have you tried Leonin Bola? I mainly use it because I can find it with SFM and it stops Emrakul, but it's also a great way for you to buy time against Delvers or Tarmogoyfs.

    Like Darkenslight said, Tezzeret is a two-turn clock against control. But I was mainly referring to Miracles (w/ or w/o Helm Combo). Disenchant gets rid of problem cards such as Energy Field, but Tezzeret helps you ignore them altogether by winning on your terms. Why not use a proactive solution to such cards rather than a conditional removal?

    You don't need Dispatch or Galvanic Blast for the express purpose of creature removal. The point of playing Affinity over other combat-oriented decks is that you're supposed to ignore whatever your opponent has. If you do have to interact with your opponent, you need to be running cards that have more value than just removing one target. Case in point, Relic of Progenitus. Using Relic's tap-itself ability early one takes care of all of your opponent's Tarmogoyfs for the rest of the game. Why settle for a Dispatch when your opponent can just play another Goyf? Furthermore, running instants, like anything else non-artifact, dilutes the deck.

  5. #1265

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Hello again! I have been a little more in the deck and I have been wondering, what circumstances would be best to use Arcbound Ravager. I have tested him out in-game and he seems a flop, or it might just be me doing bad with this card. Can anybody tell me how Arcbound Ravager is a game-changer or good in anyway? Thanks!

  6. #1266
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Quote Originally Posted by Geeksire View Post
    Hello again! I have been a little more in the deck and I have been wondering, what circumstances would be best to use Arcbound Ravager. I have tested him out in-game and he seems a flop, or it might just be me doing bad with this card. Can anybody tell me how Arcbound Ravager is a game-changer or good in anyway? Thanks!
    As a 4-of, Ravager is much better in Affinity if you are running more free guys like Frogmite, because while Ravager's Modular trigger is pretty useful in the face of removal, but what good is it if you don't have a target for it when Ravager dies or worse, if you're opponent has another removal in response to Modular? Having at least 12 free guys makes it easy for you to secure at least one or two targets for Modular should you cast Ravager and your opponent tries to get rid of it fast (which he/she will).

    I don't like Ravager in my build because for two mana, I would always want to cast Stoneforge Mystic over Ravager. Furthermore, SFM (nor Batterskull, sadly) are not 'robots,' so you can't target them with Modular or sacrifice SFM to Ravager, and it's redundant to target Master with Modular.

    It's also possible you could be misplaying him. Do you always hold back from sacrificing artifacts to Ravager until your opponent is within legal range? Sometimes you have to 'foresee' how many turns you minimally need to kill your opponent because your opponent might stabilize or combo off. It's not difficult, it just takes some basic math to figure out. For example, I was facing ANT and I sacrificed all but a Darksteel Citadel to pump up my Vault Skirge to a 6/6. I thought about keeping the Citadel in case I needed to rebuild my manabase, but I should have gone all the way and made my Skirge into a 7/7. I didn't get close to killing my ANT opponent within 3 turns, but he did combo to Tendrils me for the exact amount of my life, despite having gained life from multiple Skirge hits. I could have survived if I had sacrificed everything to Ravager and made my Skirge as big as possible.

    I think Ravager is better if your Affinity build is more swarm-based. I've had past success with Ravager as a 1-of, since it can act as a 5th Plating or Master. Ravager is a great ace-in-the-hole card because it can take opponents by complete surprise sometimes, but ultimately it's only as useful as much as you know how to use him.

  7. #1267
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Newest list:

    Mana
    12 Artifact Lands
    4 Opal
    4 Drum
    4 Inkmoth Nexus
    1 Ruins

    Critters
    8 free guys
    4 Masters
    4 SFM
    4 Skirge

    Tech
    1 Jitte
    1 Mantle
    1 Batterskull
    1 Leonin Bola

    Power Cards
    4 TC
    4 Plating
    3 Tezz

    SB
    1 Tezz
    4 Canonist
    3 O-Ring
    4 MBT
    3 Champ

    Notes:

    I moved the Champs to the SB for MD Tezzs to pack a trump card against control in g1.

    The Inkmoth Nexuses increase the threat density of the deck while doubling as mana. I will miss being able to make Darksteel Citadel into an indestructible 5/5, though.

    Update on Primer: Wrote more stuff on the primer. I'm trying to make it appeal to beginners or new players to Affinity, hence going over obvious card choices.

    Card Choices

    Seat of the Synod – You can’t have an Affinity deck in Legacy without artifact lands. The artifact lands and free guys make up the core of Affinity. Artifact lands quickly enable Metalcraft and cheapen Affinity for Artifact spells. Plus, you want a land that taps for so you can cast Thoughtcast.

    Vault of Whispers – It might be tempting to cut or shave this land, however you need reliable access to black mana to enable Quick-Plating (i.e. using Cranial Plating’s ability to swap it to another attack in cases where your opponent has removal or blockers) and to cast Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas.

    Ancient Den – Necessary to cast Stoneforge Mystic as well as sideboard cards.

    Mox Opal– If you’re a beginner, let me briefly explain to you why this is used in Affinity. Affinity has such a high concentration of artifacts, therefore it’s really easy to amass the three-artifact requirement for Metalcraft to be able to tap Mox Opal for mana. Furthermore, since Mox Opal costs nothing to cast and we run about 20 or more artifacts that don’t cost mana to hit the board (artifact lands + free guys), it’s almost always likely to be able to cast Mox Opal and use it as early as turn 1 or by turn 2 at the latest. The speed that Mox Opal is invaluable to a deck that is capable of winning on turn 3 (with the combat phase no less).

    Unfortunately, WotC decided to add a drawback to Mox Opal to prevent players from casting multiple Mox Opals to set up Metalcraft for each other and have way too easy access to fast mana. They made Mox Opal “Legendary.” (not finished)

    Springleaf Drum – A lot of Affinity players hate this card, and I used to hate it too (after loving it), but it’s quite necessary in the deck if you’re going to be playing with Fr3’s. A novice mistake of playing Springleaf Drum is casting it AFTER casting a free guy. This is a mistake because it gives your opponent a chance to respond to your Drum, such as removing the one creature you have that you were about to tap with Drum after it resolves, which means you won’t get to use the mana Drum would’ve provided. Always play the Drum first, then the free guy, keep priority and then tap Drum for mana.

    Paradise Mantle – This can act as an extra Springleaf Drum, except it can be searched with Stoneforge Mystic.

    Leonin Bola – It’s a maindeck solution to Show & Tell decks (taps down Emrakul, the Aeons Torn) that actually synergizes with the rest of the deck and isn’t a total blank versus other decks. Leonin Bola can tap down a 3/2 flying Insect Aberration or a 4/5 Goyf. Of course, the other reason I am using Leonin Bola is because it can be searched by Stoneforge Mystic and put into play with SFM’s ability without being countered.

  8. #1268

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    How about Blood Scrivner? Affinity dumps it's hand pretty fast, and you can't really play Dark Confidant.
    If you wanna get cute, you can even play something like Chromatic Orb for extra draw effects. And you could actually get an Ancestrall Recal with Thoughtcast... LOL

  9. #1269
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Both Scrivener and Confidant are too cute and slow for Affinity. The slow card advantage that either card provides is better accepted in decks that plan to stay in the game longer than Affinity would. Affinity is more focused on creating immediate board pressure than dumping its hand. Scrivener capitalizes on the latter gameplan, but it doesn't capitalize or even facilitate the former plan since it's just a 2/1 body.

  10. #1270

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Hello everyone!!!! It has been a while and I have completed my deck! Now I would like to share with you the awesomeness of this deck because I truly am loving Tez Affinity deck! I have been noticing not a lot of builds containing Arcbound Ravager since he is used more with Vault guy, but that should change! More than likely, Etched Champion is used more since we like to take it slow and do damage over and over, but don't we want to end the game in as soon as possible? I have actually tested the deck out with friends who have Legacy Soldier decks and Elf decks, and wow does this deck shine when Cranial Plating, Tez, or Arcbound come in to play. I find Etched Champion to be a blocker for a GIANT creature, to be resilient to spells, or to be a slow-unblockable hitter, but we surely do not need that (sorry my opinion : /.) The downside is when you are not able to get any creatures on the field or anything else for Arcbound, but it is magical when it can be able to sacrifice EVERYTHING to become powerful for itself or another creature! I see the purpose of having Etched when Batterskull comes in to play or Jitte, so I only keep one in my MD (with no possibility of ever drawing it.) Nonetheless, I truly love this deck for what it has become and thank you guys for giving me advice on the deck: Shawon, thanks a ton, and the others who I have forgotten : D

    Creatures [26]
    3x Vault Skirges'
    4x Memnites'
    4x Ornithopters'
    1x Etched Champions'
    4x Master of Etheriums'
    3x Stoneforge Mystics'
    3x Arcbound Ravagers'
    4x Frogmites'

    Artifacts [12]
    4x Cranial Platings'
    4x Mox Opals'
    3x Springleaf Drums'
    1x Umezawa's Jitte

    Spells [7]
    4x Thoughtcasts'
    3x Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas

    Land [15]
    4x Ancient Dens'
    3x Ancient Tombs'
    4x Vault of Whispers'
    4x Seat of Synods'

    -----------------------------------
    Sideboard [15]
    4x Chalice of the Void
    3x Ethersworn Canonist
    3x Spell Pierce
    2x Gravdiggers
    1x Rest in Peace
    1x Etched Champion
    1x Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas

    Have a good one guys!

  11. #1271
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Your list looks a lot better, Geeksire. Just don't stop at 'amazing.' Always strive to make your list better than it was before. You'll be surprised as to how your list and your skill with the deck improve with organized experimentation and discipline. I've witnessed an all too common habit with people who post in this thread, where they have this initial excitement with their list and they suddenly disappear from the thread because they came across matchups that gave them hell or their games didn't go the way they imagined in their minds.

    I agree with what you're saying about Etched Champion. I was thinking of writing a post saying how he's not what he once was in the deck. Champ is simply a Grey Ogre against any combo deck and with Abrupt Decay in the format, relying on equipping a Cranial Plating to Champ and expecting it to win the game is no longer a failsafe option. Also, he really is just slow. The main reason people have been holding onto Champs in Affinity is because he can act as an untargetable blocker, especially against Tarmogoyfs, but think about it: why should you be concerned about blocking Goyfs? Affinity is always the aggro deck against any deck with Tarmogoyfs in it. You are in a bad position if the only thing keeping you in the game is blocking Goyfs with a 2/2 Champ. You should just ignore those Goyfs altogether with a Plated Inkmoth Nexus!

    [EDIT] I will concede that Etched Champion is very useful in the Stoneblade matchup. Against Affinity, the Blade player is always going to retrieve Jitte if they land a Stoneforge Mystic, and Etched Champion is one of your best defenses. However, I think that running your own Jitte is just as fine an answer to an opposing Jitte, or running Cabal Therapy to double up as additional contro/combo hate.[/EDIT]

    Speaking of Inkmoth Nexus, have you tried it, Geeksire? You can also sacrifice Ravager to it, and you get to keep the counters on Inkmoth even after it goes back into being a land, which is pretty sweet if you ask me. In theory, it seems that going all-in with Ravager + Inkmoth can be a reasonable strategy against combo and against BUG, because if you go all-in to make a 10+ Inkmoth Nexus, the BUG opponent can't Abrupt Decay it since it's still a land!

    I'm running Inkmoth Nexus now, and I love it in my Esper list, where I have access to 8 virtual copies of Cranial Plating to retain the threat of hitting with a 10/1 Nexus. I would love to experiment with Ravager and Inkmoth Nexus, but I can't run Ravager in my Esper list (conflicts with SFM), so I might test out a separate straight-up UB list with both of those guys in it.
    Last edited by Shawon; 05-19-2013 at 03:11 PM.

  12. #1272

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    I see the point of having Inkmoth Nexus to be a finisher when Cranial Plating is put in to play but for me, I would like Ancient Tomb to get my guys out faster. I have also been thinking about putting 4x Signal Pest instead of 4x Frogmite for an unblockable creature because my opponents are more than likely going to have creatures out that can block me. In contrast to other decks I have tried this deck has been awesome, but I still have questions regarding Arcbound Ravager: can anybody give me tips on how to use him properly in combat, on the field, or against spot-removal. I only know some tips from it, but it would be awesome if I can get other tips from others who have used him more than I. Thanks!!!

  13. #1273
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    What the new rules spell out for this deck:

    - Running less than 4 Opals in Affinity has always been suspect, but post-ruling if you're playing Affinity, you would be an idiot to play less than 4. Prior to the ruling, you could tap your Opal in play, then cast two Opals in succession, and be able to net mana with the 3rd Opal after the first two go to the graveyard due to the legend rule. Now, because you can choose which Opal to send to the graveyard, you can play a 2nd Opal, sacrifice the first one (after tapping it ofc), and net one mana with just two Opals. A 3rd Opal will net you additional mana. Ultimately, this means Affinity's turn 1s just got better and hands with multiple Opals are less likely to be mulligans.

    - The main reason for running Jitte at all in Affinity is to get rid of opposing Jittes. However, now that is impossible due to the new ruling. New, reliable solutions to Jitte have to be brainstormed. I am toying with Tower of the Magistrate and Manriki-Gusari at the moment.

    - I was never fond of using Phyrexian Metamorph as 'tech' against huge legend fatties like Prog or Emrakul, but I thought it was worth mentioning that Metamorph doesn't cancel out any opposing Legend anymore.

  14. #1274

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Yeah, four mox opal is mandatory now for sure. Under the old legends rules, you would almost always mulligan a hand with three moxen. Now, you can keep and plop down a turn one Tez.
    I see more than others do because I know where to look.

  15. #1275
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    I forgot to mention that another caveat from the recent rule changes is that you can effectively discard a Tezzeret with 1 counter by playing a 2nd Tezz and immediately ramping it to 4 counters. That's really dope. So no more whining about multiple Tezzs/Opals from you guys!

    Esper Affinity

    Mana
    12 Art Lands
    4 Inkmoth
    4 Opal
    3 Drum
    1 Mantle
    1 Ruins

    Critters
    8 Free guys
    4 Skirge
    4 SFM
    4 MoE
    2 Spellskite!

    Big Business
    4 TC
    4 Tezz
    1 BSkull

    SB
    4 Chalice
    4 Canonist
    3 O-Ring
    3 Champs
    1 Tower of the Magistrate

    I've totally removed Jitte from my Esper list now that it can't kill my opponent's. It's way too slow to begin with. I have 1 Tower of the Magistrate in the SB. I haven't used its ability in practice yet, but on paper, it seems to be an effective halt to Jitte as well as Batterskull. I like that Tower also lets you kill Baleful Strix without losing a creature.

    Leonin Bola is no longer in. With the buzz surrounding more OmniTell decks popping up, having a silver bullet just for Emrakul seems no longer defensible.

    I'm actually debating what lands I can use in my one slot for utility lands. I have 1 MD Academy Ruins, but I'm thinking of trying out Tower MD or even Kor Haven! Kor Haven stops any Jitte equipped attacker, and furthermore, I can kill a Goyf with a Plated Memnite and save Memnite! I'm still a big fan of Ruins though, so any change to that utility land slot will be hard.

    Inkmoth Nexus has proven to be stellar! It's very good at stealing the game from other aggro decks if their life total is too high to deplete before they kill you. Case in point, Bant and Maverick.

    The slots that are currently taken by Spellskite have been seated previously by many other cards I tested, like Cursed Scroll or even MD Champs. Cursed Scroll felt like a hit-or-miss to be MD. The speed was less of the issue than whether it mattered or not against certain matchups. It's effectively dead against any combo deck, and some decks with creatures in it can either get decimated by Scroll or they can just ignore it.

    I've finally come around to trying Chalice. I love the insurance of being safe with Mindbreak Trap in hand from turn 1 kills while on the draw, but MBT does nothing against Elves, and I need the flexibility of handling fast combo and Elves with 8 cards including Canonist.
    Last edited by Shawon; 05-28-2013 at 04:30 PM.

  16. #1276
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Ever since I started drafting my forthcoming Affinity primer, I knew that I was going to write a how-to-play guide for both the Esper variant and the classic Scars block-influenced swarm build. However, I gave up modifying the swarm build as I was disappointed with my swarm build and I really wanted to explore the potential of Esper Affinity. But now that I have enough expertise to write about the Esper Affinity, I am going back to modifying the swarm build so that when I finish my primer, readers can intake unbiased information and strategy about both variants and thus make up their own mind about which one to play.

    So, here's the new swarm list, with explanations following:

    Affinity for Artifact Aggro (like it?)

    Mana
    4 Seat
    4 Whispers
    4 Darksteel
    3 Tomb
    1 Ruins (I'm always going to include this as a 1-of in every Affinity list)
    4 Drum
    4 Opal

    Critters
    12 Free-guys (including Frogmite)
    4 Signal Pest
    4 Arcbound Ravager
    4 Steel Overseer
    4 Myr Enforcer

    Everything Else
    4 TC
    4 Tangle Wire
    0 Cranial Plating (read: ZERO)

    SB:
    4 Tezz
    4 Therapy
    4 Chalice
    3 Champ


    Let me clear right here and say that Tangle Wire is NOT my idea at all. This idea and my thanks go to the people over at MTGSal who thought of using Tangle Wire as a means to prevent the opponent from being able to answer the aggressive board states swarm-based builds tend to create very early.

    As for the reasons behind certain inclusions and certain exclusions (NO PLATING!!!), I can sum it all up in a nutshell by saying that I am focusing the entire plan of the swarm-based build on swarm-aggro. There are no Champs MD because it is too slow. It's needed in the SB against other beatdown decks that can stabilize against you. There are no Masters anymore because I want to spend turn 2-3 casting Tangle Wire, but I do need a big beatstick, so Myr Enforcer is another alternative that's big but also doesn't conflict with Tangle Wire.

    Cranial Plating equipped on an attacker is a legit way of winning, but it conflicts with the swarm plan and furthermore... Abrupt Decay. Abrupt Decay being printed is the main reason why I left behind the swarm-based build and even considered running Stoneforge Mystic, a card that I once thought was ridiculously awful. Spending 3 mana to Cranial-equip an attacker and lose your Plating to an Abrupt Decay is more of a huge tempo sink than simply losing a Plating, and I don't want to spend a turn that I would have otherwise used to securing or intensifying my swarm plan over a plan B option that can risk slowing me down from killing my opponent before they stabilize. I actually replaced the Cranial Platings with Steel Overseer. Steel Overseer is slower at first, but it's beneficial to the swarm plan and doesn't make it easy for the opponent to single out any one attacker with removal. Furthermore, it's a creature on its own, and by having a huge creature count, it makes Arcbound Ravager in the deck WAY more powerful because you're almost guaranteed to have a target for Modular when it dies.

    The SB is just a placeholder, but on paper it looks fantastic. Cabal Therapy benefits from having many cheap creatures. Tezzeret is a good end-game plan against Miracles, and like I said before, Champs are defense against aggro.

    What are your thoughts? I'm curious, what builds to most people prefer, swarm or Esper (Mystic) builds? I still prefer my Esper build, because Stoneforge Mystic is so skill-intensive when you have an extensive package of Equipments it can find. However, I still enjoy goldfishing fast aggro hands. But I'm going to spend some more time testing the swarm-based builds and test out some post-board games so I can add more to my written draft of the primer.
    Last edited by Shawon; 05-28-2013 at 04:32 PM.

  17. #1277
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Did you consider winter orb as a 5th/6th stalling effect ?
    CLICK HERE FOR THE RULES OF A VERY FUN MULTIPLAYER CASUAL FORMAT
    You very likely can build it without spending any money, just out of what you already have.

    An example with my (very large) list in a visual form

  18. #1278
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    No, I haven't, but my initial impression is that it's very easy to get out of, since your opponent has at least one land untapped and can play another. But then again, I never considered running it as a supplement to Tangle Wire, and I only just recently started running it. I'll try it out, good question!

  19. #1279

    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    Hello everyone! It's been a while how has everyone been?!?!? I have play-testing my deck for quite a while now, but now I have come to a difference between the importance of Arcbound Ravager and Etched Champion. Been looking over the pros and cons of both of them since I want to replace 4x of either or, and I have came to the decision of replacing the Ravagers' with Etched Champions'. Etched seems to be the perfect condition for spot removal since Ravager is suppose to counteract this problem but for some reason, I want Ravager to be able to do something but it is too difficult to achieve in Legacy. Unless a deck can be able to give +1/+1 counters to Ravager then I believe it can achieve something great but as for now in Affinity, we need to be able to focus on getting damage and having creatures be able to be resilient to spells.

    The pros I have seen in Arcbound Ravager (in my deck) is the possibility of getting Tezzeret to buff it up to a 5/5, or Etherium to give it +1/+1. As for Etched Champion, we can get these buffs as well as equip Cranial Plating to get the job done, but it can slower to do sufficient damage in time.

    I have also been thinking of replacing my Stoneforge Mystics' for Frogmites' since I replaced my Frogmites' with Signal Pests'. I see Signal Pests' really do have great potential in the beginning as well as mid-game when used with Etched Champion. Please tell me your opinions!!!!

  20. #1280
    Legacy Vagabond
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    Re: [Deck] Affinity

    I've actually started to 100% fully embrace Arcbound Ravager now. The more I play with Ravager, the better I become at using it, and thus the better it becomes in Affinity. I have a good sense when to go 'all-in' with it or just moderately pump it to force my opponent to do something about it. Ravager can steal games on its own, but my is it fun to steal games with Ravager + Inkmoth.

    I would say that Ravager is the strongest creature you can run in Affinity, with Stoneforge Mystic becoming a close second. However, Ravager becomes pretty lackluster if you do not have enough experience with it, and thus you would better off with Etched Champion or Master of Etherium. This is coming from someone who once completely wrote off Ravager (as well as Mystic) haha. I've learned not to underestimate either of those cards ever again.

    If you are going to run Etched Champion, you really want to be able to consistently find Cranial Plating with Mystic to make Etched Champion very threatening.

    EDIT:
    The pros I have seen in Arcbound Ravager (in my deck) is the possibility of getting Tezzeret to buff it up to a 5/5,
    Ravager after being targeted by Tezz becomes a 5/5 with +1 counter, thus making it 6/6 :)

    EDIT#2: I am still working on a forthcoming Affinity primer, and I should resume working on it after this final essay for my online history class is submitted (which I really really don't want to do, I already got two A's on my last papers!). I am thinking of writing a mini-article, either separate from the primer or contained within, dedicated solely to using Arcbound Ravager. My goal of the Affinity primer to attract new Legacy players to not only play Affinity, but make a commitment to learn and eventually master Affinity. I think one of the skill barriers that prevent Affinity players from succeeding with Affinity is their limitations on how to use Ravager, and I want to write a mini-primer on Arcbound Ravager to tear that barrier down.

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