With 2 Karns mainboard and 4 3 drops (2-2 split or otherwise), does the deck really have enough lands to censistently cast them? I recall from the few games I've played with the deck (proxied) that sometimes mana was a bit tight and I didn't even have Karn in those lists.
Among lands, moxen and drums we play 24 mana source. I always felt quite easy reaching 4 mana.
I think the main difference with Karn and TAW is that Karn will give you a nice payoff on the tunr you play him (one of his constructs) while TAW only cantrips for the first two turns. The third mode on TAW should be pretty much game over most of the time. At least I think it would. However it'll force you to play the game until 3 tunrs after casting a 4 drop.
That's very true and the main reason I prefer the planeswalker.
1. First up, I've seen some people experimenting with Bomat Courier over Galvanic Blast. I don't think these tests were very succesful, at least from what I could find out. DO you think that this is ever something to consider?
2. Brwosing some Affinity lists, I saw some recent ones electing to drop one of the 8 manlands (Inkmoth Nexus/Blinkmoth Nexus) in order to fit in another basic land. Usually an Island in addition to the traditional mountain. What do you think about this change?
3. My last question is regarding Thoughtcast. Not really a card I've seen in Affinity lists in a while. What are some of the reasons for why people chose to drop this card? It seems pretty powerful on paper (at least in my opinion)
1. Bomat courier force to keep R up. And since it isn't evasive in some match up is a do-nothing 1/1. Moreover you give up interaction and it's not a good idea in this meta I think. It's stronger in the all-in affinity list though.
2. Since I tend to flood I don't like the change, but it's possible.
3. I prefer Karn to thoughtcast as a card advantage source. It does many more things even if it costs more. Versatility is more important than cards and cheap costs
Again these are my 2 cents.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Decks played: Modern:
0 Affinity;
URG Delver
URGW Countercats
(Here you can find some video contents about Countercats and Temur Delver decks)
No need for defense; decks change constantly. Staples come and go. How long does it take for something to become tradition?
R has become a bigger part of Affinity recently. I think it really changed when Ghirapur Aether Grid came out but that might just be my perception. Galvanic Blast is the only R-card typically main-deck but there are several side-board staples now.
Thoughtcast used to be in nearly every deck; one doesn't see it often anymore. Master of Etherium still sees play but he's not in every deck and as a three-drop, one has a little more time to find a U-source. One often wants R early when facing things like Infect.
Here are some short notes between my practicing of the deck and the event
Overall 69% win rate on MTGO between both Friendly and Competitive Leagues. In the F2F Won vs Death and Taxes, Death and Taxes GW, Mardu, Tron, Jeskai Control, Infect. Lost vs Mardu, Living End.
Let's talk about Karn; I believe he is very worthy of slots in the sideboard. He dilutes your openers, doesn't help give you resilience (Trust me, Mardu doesn't care about him and that's already a hard matchup) and he doesn't speed up the clock. He gives you abilities in matchups where both Lightning Bolt and Fatal push present themselves but yet not when going wide. So we are talking Abzan & Jund style decks, yet it's obvious 4 Etched Champion help those matchups significantly more. I think it's just a fad to find a utility card to help in flooding situations like Hangarback Walker used to be.
Now let's talk about Bomat Courier; Card overperforms. Straight up. It's either a Ball Lightning when equipped with a Cranial Plating, or simply a miniature Treasure Cruise against Combo & Control decks. It requires on demand removal, and helps with nut draws. Consider it extra copies of Signal Pest 5-8. They go out in the same matchups, and are in your hopeful openers in others. If I were to ever replace this card in the deck, I would go to 6-7 copies between Master of Etherium and Etched Champion.
Spire of Industry is a mainstay, but it's incorrect to run 4 copies. Burn is a bad matchup, and most game states the life loss will matter when you prepare yourself for those grindy game 2's.
You need the Island, not the Mountain. You need to have a method of casting Master of Etherium through Blood Moon and Stony Silence (uploaded image for viewing pleasure) If you don't run Master, it's probably a mistake unless you are hellbent on losing to cards like Pyroclasm.
Speaking of which... It's wrong to run Blood Moon in Affinity.Damping Sphere is our new calling. Shuts off Tron and Amulet Bloom without shutting off Inkmoth Nexus and Blinkmoth Nexus. Hinders Storm and KCI severely.
Running Welding Jar is also probably incorrect. I know this is probably the most controversial situation of them all, but I have found this throughout the event - you want one of two things, the card to be resilient or impactful to race. Welding Jar is definitely resilient, but it's optimal situation is merely against controlling or midrange decks, and most of them pack Stony Silence. Welding Jar is a great game 1 card, but it hinders your effectiveness in the matchups it specifically warrants it's positions for in games 2 and 3.
Graveyard decks have our number on speed dial. I would run possibly 4 Rest in Peace and 1 Grafdigger's Cage in the future in my sideboard. I know I will be running 3 this weekend in the upcoming PPTQ locally. Yet I lost both of my matchups in my main event because I wasn't prepared enough for the graveyard attrition & combo based decks.
That's all I got for now. Any questions feel free to reply.
Hey,
thanks for your input. I just ran Karn Affinity on a small local Tourney and lost the finals. I guess your stuff is well tested and I will not argue about it - though I really enjoyed those games when Baby Karn just steamrolled my opponent from every angle. I guess I'll pick up some Bomat Couriers soon!
For the SB plan, I am totally on your line. Dredge is horrible without Rest in Peace, and I guess there can be slots opened up for a playset RIP.
Greetings
PS: Still no love for Hope of Ghirapur ?! It is Game-changing in my opinion! Please someone, support my favourite 1-of special.
Hey,
thanks for your input. I just ran Karn Affinity on a small local Tourney and lost the finals. I guess your stuff is well tested and I will not argue about it - though I really enjoyed those games when Baby Karn just steamrolled my opponent from every angle. I guess I'll pick up some Bomat Couriers soon!
For the SB plan, I am totally on your line. Dredge is horrible without Rest in Peace, and I guess there can be slots opened up for a playset RIP.
Greetings
PS: Still no love for Hope of Ghirapur ?! It is Game-changing in my opinion! Please someone, support my favourite 1-of special.
I can definitely understand the appeal for Karn. Specifically during Eldrazi Winter, I ran two Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas in my MAINDECK. Sometimes the format simply calls for the weirdest utilities, yet I don't see how Karn helps against the top decks of the current format. Such as Humans, Tron, Storm, KCI, Burn, and Grixis Death's Shadow. What it does help in the current Metagame could be both Jeskai Control and Hollow One. Yet once again, Etched Champion demands a completely different gameplan from your opponent.
I will definitely try the card again, but it feels dramatically incorrect to have two copies main.
5-0'ed the local FNM tonight. Beat Hollow One, UR Wizards, Vizier combo, Elves, and Merfolk.
Played a list I've been experimenting with and wanted to give a real shot to. It's an 8 cantrip list with 4 Ancient Stirrings and 4 Oath of Nissas. It functioned well, but the sideboard needs work.
Agreed, Karn has been unimpressive for me, certainly not worth a slot in the mainboard. It feels like a 4 mana Master of Etherium in many games, without the anthem effect
Some thoughts: I never really liked Galvanic Blast that much. Affinity is pretty swingy, you're either smashing for 10+ damage a turn or doing nothing, Galvanic Blast wont do much too often that it doesn't make my list, its basically a card with too low of a floor. I prefer Thoughtcast because it gives you fuel versus decks that want to trade resources 1 for 1 and allows you to keep hands with a bunch of enablers to dig for wincons and lands, its basically never a completely dead card. They get traded out for sideboard stuff usually in G2 and G3.
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas has always given me good results, its great against grindy decks that want to trade 1 for 1 and is a very relevant wincon. Planeswalkers are very hard for some decks to deal with. People are runing Karn, but I think Tezzeret is so much better. The mana has never really been an issue for me. Having said that its often boarded out against decks that want to race.
I'm not married to the sideboard, but I think its pretty solid.
I'm testing some Experimental Frenzy. I've really liked the curve of my 8 cantrip shell, and this is another way to use that curve (without the cantrips obviously).
What I could use some help with though, is wanting to minimize my land count. Assuming I have 4 Mox Opals and 4 Springleaf Drums, do any other artifacts come to mind as cards that can substitute for lands? Paradise Mantle perhaps? The goal is to try and reduce the land count a bit while still having a good supply of mana so that there are more cards I can play off the top.
I'm testing some Experimental Frenzy. I've really liked the curve of my 8 cantrip shell, and this is another way to use that curve (without the cantrips obviously).
What I could use some help with though, is wanting to minimize my land count. Assuming I have 4 Mox Opals and 4 Springleaf Drums, do any other artifacts come to mind as cards that can substitute for lands? Paradise Mantle perhaps? The goal is to try and reduce the land count a bit while still having a good supply of mana so that there are more cards I can play off the top.
I'm testing some Experimental Frenzy. I've really liked the curve of my 8 cantrip shell, and this is another way to use that curve (without the cantrips obviously).
What I could use some help with though, is wanting to minimize my land count. Assuming I have 4 Mox Opals and 4 Springleaf Drums, do any other artifacts come to mind as cards that can substitute for lands? Paradise Mantle perhaps? The goal is to try and reduce the land count a bit while still having a good supply of mana so that there are more cards I can play off the top.
List?
Haven't fully committed yet. I picked up some Frenzy's on MTGO but I've been playing them in Jund there. I won't be able to play them in Affinity until our next Modern FNM which is Oct 12 (though there's a chance I head to SCG Columbus this weekend and play them, I haven't yet decided).
This is what my list is looking like right now, I'm still thinking about things.
I'm testing some Experimental Frenzy. I've really liked the curve of my 8 cantrip shell, and this is another way to use that curve (without the cantrips obviously).
What I could use some help with though, is wanting to minimize my land count. Assuming I have 4 Mox Opals and 4 Springleaf Drums, do any other artifacts come to mind as cards that can substitute for lands? Paradise Mantle perhaps? The goal is to try and reduce the land count a bit while still having a good supply of mana so that there are more cards I can play off the top.
List?
Haven't fully committed yet. I picked up some Frenzy's on MTGO but I've been playing them in Jund there. I won't be able to play them in Affinity until our next Modern FNM which is Oct 12 (though there's a chance I head to SCG Columbus this weekend and play them, I haven't yet decided).
This is what my list is looking like right now, I'm still thinking about things.
4 mana for a draw engine that doesn't necessarily win the game is a tough sell for me. That drawback may be a real problem from time to time too. If you want cards with a wincon tacked on I'd prefer Karn or Tezzeret.
On a side note, what do people think of affinity versus the hardened scales version. I think our version is still more explosive. Even if hardened scales seems more resilient, it doesn't seem like it does much without Hardened Scales. Pretty sure traditional affinity is generally still better, but I could be wrong.
4 mana for a draw engine that doesn't necessarily win the game is a tough sell for me.
Drawing 4 to 10 cards every single turn typically wins the game real fast. Faster than any 4 mana PW option, or any 4 mana creature. Let me put this in perspective for you. How much mana would you pay for an enchantment that was a 1 sided draw 7 every single turn? That's very close to what Frenzy averages.
That drawback may be a real problem from time to time too. If you want cards with a wincon tacked on I'd prefer Karn or Tezzeret.
Granted, most of my games so far haven't been with the card in Affinity (I don't have Affinity online, so I can't play it in paper until next week) but I have played about 50 games with the card so far, and not once has the drawback ever been relevant. For that matter, I haven't had the two lands in a row situation come up either. I am however looking at Bomat Courier as some deck manipulation as additional insurance.
Took the above to FNM. Went 4-0 in rounds for first place, 8-1 in games. Beat Mardu Pyro, Abzan, Hollow One, and Eldrazi Tron. I drew Frenzy in 4/9 games, played it in 3/9, in the remaining game it would have been good but I never got to 4 mana to cast it. In one of the three Frenzy games I blew the Frenzy up at the end of a turn in order to access a lethal Cranial Plating that was stranded in my hand. All three games where I cast Frenzy effectively ended on the spot. It still took another 1-2 turns to kill the opponent but the card advantage was simply too much, everything the opponent did simply ceased to matter.
Having 4 basic lands was nice, it ended up being relevant against a Settle the Wreckage. I got hit by Blood Moon once as well but it actually improved my mana. In one Frenzy, I was able to cast it on T4, get a Mox Opal right away, tap the Opal and get a Springleaf Drum that was on top, play an Ornithopter from the top, then tap the Drum for an Arcbound Worker. Getting 4 cards off Frenzy on the turn I tapped out to play it was pretty cool.
However, my luck with the card was below average in general compared to what I'm used to. I had several turns where I just hit land, land, and couldn't do anything. This is usually pretty rare but it happened to me a lot tonight. I'm thinking cutting a Nexus for a second fetch might help there.
Additionally, Bomat Courier was very good. If you look at my list, you'll notice that I've pushed the mana curve even lower than is normal by removing 3 drops. There were multiple reasons for this:
1. I wanted to empty my hand ASAP to get cards off Bomat Courier.
2. Holding up a mana for Bomat Courier is much easier if your curve is lower.
3. A lower curve means more cards off Frenzy.
4. A lower curve also means a lower opportunity cost from Frenzy.
This version of the deck is very low to the ground and quite fast. The Bomat/Frenzy interaction is powerful, but didn't come up much. I only used it to clear a card to continue a Frenzy once or twice.
The sideboard needs work, but I was quite impressed with how things turned out.
I played:
Grinding Station Trawler Combo - 2:0
I was really fast both games.
Bant Spirits - 2:1
I lost second game due to a harsh Mulligan to 5 and opposing interaction.
Burn - 2:0
I was faster.
Traverse Shadow - 2:1
I lost the first game, then got lucky game 2 and 3 by topdecking the lethal outs just before I would loose. Thoughtcast was gross here, even when I just drew lands.
This will be my next iteration on Frenzy. Would love advice for the sideboard, inparticular something other than Hex Parasite which exists to deal with Planeswalkers and Chalice.
Among lands, moxen and drums we play 24 mana source. I always felt quite easy reaching 4 mana.
That's very true and the main reason I prefer the planeswalker.
1. Bomat courier force to keep R up. And since it isn't evasive in some match up is a do-nothing 1/1. Moreover you give up interaction and it's not a good idea in this meta I think. It's stronger in the all-in affinity list though.
2. Since I tend to flood I don't like the change, but it's possible.
3. I prefer Karn to thoughtcast as a card advantage source. It does many more things even if it costs more. Versatility is more important than cards and cheap costs
Again these are my 2 cents.
Modern:
I've been a Mountain-man for a while myself and I would never cut a Galvanic Blast for, well, anything. I shouldn't say never, but I just did.
Frenzy-Affinity-Ghost Quarter-Rock-Tokens- RGWPhyrexian Zoo- WVial KnightsStandard:
BW Knights(Rotated)Pioneer: RW Knights - BW Rally Zombies - UW Heroes
Commander:WUG
Jenara, Asura of War- WGSigarda, Host of HeronsCasualties of economicsLegacy: Good-night, sweet prince. Mono-R Burn
R has become a bigger part of Affinity recently. I think it really changed when Ghirapur Aether Grid came out but that might just be my perception. Galvanic Blast is the only R-card typically main-deck but there are several side-board staples now.
Thoughtcast used to be in nearly every deck; one doesn't see it often anymore. Master of Etherium still sees play but he's not in every deck and as a three-drop, one has a little more time to find a U-source. One often wants R early when facing things like Infect.
Frenzy-Affinity-Ghost Quarter-Rock-Tokens- RGWPhyrexian Zoo- WVial KnightsStandard:
BW Knights(Rotated)Pioneer: RW Knights - BW Rally Zombies - UW Heroes
Commander:WUG
Jenara, Asura of War- WGSigarda, Host of HeronsCasualties of economicsLegacy: Good-night, sweet prince. Mono-R Burn
You can find here other example of classic list doing Top8 in competitive:
http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=19599&d=325498&f=MO
Here is the list I played, and I would run back 73 of the 75.
4 Ornithopter
4 Signal Pest
2 Bomat Courier
4 Vault Skirge
4 Arcbound Ravager
3 Steel Overseer
3 Etched Champion
2 Master of Etherium
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Mox Opal
4 Cranial Plating
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Inkmoth Nexus
2 Glimmervoid
2 Spire of Industry
1 Island
1 Master of Etherium
1 Etched Champion
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Pithing Needle
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Damping Sphere
1 Torpor Orb
2 Rest in Peace
2 Whipflare
2 Ghirapur Aether Grid
Here are some short notes between my practicing of the deck and the event
Overall 69% win rate on MTGO between both Friendly and Competitive Leagues. In the F2F Won vs Death and Taxes, Death and Taxes GW, Mardu, Tron, Jeskai Control, Infect. Lost vs Mardu, Living End.
Let's talk about Karn; I believe he is very worthy of slots in the sideboard. He dilutes your openers, doesn't help give you resilience (Trust me, Mardu doesn't care about him and that's already a hard matchup) and he doesn't speed up the clock. He gives you abilities in matchups where both Lightning Bolt and Fatal push present themselves but yet not when going wide. So we are talking Abzan & Jund style decks, yet it's obvious 4 Etched Champion help those matchups significantly more. I think it's just a fad to find a utility card to help in flooding situations like Hangarback Walker used to be.
Now let's talk about Bomat Courier; Card overperforms. Straight up. It's either a Ball Lightning when equipped with a Cranial Plating, or simply a miniature Treasure Cruise against Combo & Control decks. It requires on demand removal, and helps with nut draws. Consider it extra copies of Signal Pest 5-8. They go out in the same matchups, and are in your hopeful openers in others. If I were to ever replace this card in the deck, I would go to 6-7 copies between Master of Etherium and Etched Champion.
Spire of Industry is a mainstay, but it's incorrect to run 4 copies. Burn is a bad matchup, and most game states the life loss will matter when you prepare yourself for those grindy game 2's.
You need the Island, not the Mountain. You need to have a method of casting Master of Etherium through Blood Moon and Stony Silence (uploaded image for viewing pleasure) If you don't run Master, it's probably a mistake unless you are hellbent on losing to cards like Pyroclasm.
Speaking of which... It's wrong to run Blood Moon in Affinity. Damping Sphere is our new calling. Shuts off Tron and Amulet Bloom without shutting off Inkmoth Nexus and Blinkmoth Nexus. Hinders Storm and KCI severely.
Running Welding Jar is also probably incorrect. I know this is probably the most controversial situation of them all, but I have found this throughout the event - you want one of two things, the card to be resilient or impactful to race. Welding Jar is definitely resilient, but it's optimal situation is merely against controlling or midrange decks, and most of them pack Stony Silence. Welding Jar is a great game 1 card, but it hinders your effectiveness in the matchups it specifically warrants it's positions for in games 2 and 3.
Graveyard decks have our number on speed dial. I would run possibly 4 Rest in Peace and 1 Grafdigger's Cage in the future in my sideboard. I know I will be running 3 this weekend in the upcoming PPTQ locally. Yet I lost both of my matchups in my main event because I wasn't prepared enough for the graveyard attrition & combo based decks.
That's all I got for now. Any questions feel free to reply.
thanks for your input. I just ran Karn Affinity on a small local Tourney and lost the finals. I guess your stuff is well tested and I will not argue about it - though I really enjoyed those games when Baby Karn just steamrolled my opponent from every angle. I guess I'll pick up some Bomat Couriers soon!
For the SB plan, I am totally on your line. Dredge is horrible without Rest in Peace, and I guess there can be slots opened up for a playset RIP.
Greetings
PS: Still no love for Hope of Ghirapur ?! It is Game-changing in my opinion! Please someone, support my favourite 1-of special.
I can definitely understand the appeal for Karn. Specifically during Eldrazi Winter, I ran two Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas in my MAINDECK. Sometimes the format simply calls for the weirdest utilities, yet I don't see how Karn helps against the top decks of the current format. Such as Humans, Tron, Storm, KCI, Burn, and Grixis Death's Shadow. What it does help in the current Metagame could be both Jeskai Control and Hollow One. Yet once again, Etched Champion demands a completely different gameplan from your opponent.
I will definitely try the card again, but it feels dramatically incorrect to have two copies main.
Played a list I've been experimenting with and wanted to give a real shot to. It's an 8 cantrip list with 4 Ancient Stirrings and 4 Oath of Nissas. It functioned well, but the sideboard needs work.
Here's what I'm thinking of going with for my return to the ring.
4x Ornithopter
3x Memnite
3x Vault Skirge
1x Hope of Ghirapur
4x Signal Pest
3x Steel Overseer
4x Arcbound Ravager
4x Master of Etherium
Non-Creatures
2x Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
4x Cranial Plating
4x Thoughtcast
4x Mox Opal
4x Springleaf Drum
3x Blinkmoth Nexus
4x Inkmoth Nexus
3x Spire of Industry
1x Glimmervoid
1x Island
4x Darksteel Citadel
3x Etched Champion
2x Thoughtseize
2x Ancient Grudge
2x Whipflare
2x Ghirapur Aether-Grid
2x Rest in Peace
2x Damping Sphere
Some thoughts: I never really liked Galvanic Blast that much. Affinity is pretty swingy, you're either smashing for 10+ damage a turn or doing nothing, Galvanic Blast wont do much too often that it doesn't make my list, its basically a card with too low of a floor. I prefer Thoughtcast because it gives you fuel versus decks that want to trade resources 1 for 1 and allows you to keep hands with a bunch of enablers to dig for wincons and lands, its basically never a completely dead card. They get traded out for sideboard stuff usually in G2 and G3.
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas has always given me good results, its great against grindy decks that want to trade 1 for 1 and is a very relevant wincon. Planeswalkers are very hard for some decks to deal with. People are runing Karn, but I think Tezzeret is so much better. The mana has never really been an issue for me. Having said that its often boarded out against decks that want to race.
I'm not married to the sideboard, but I think its pretty solid.
Arahbo, Kitty Kat Beatdown Decklist
Mizzix of the Izmagnus Decklist
Breya, Etherium Shaper
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow Decklist
My Current Set Cube Lists:
Kamigawa Re-Experience
Ravnica, City of Guilds Re-Experience
Alara Re-Experience
https://www.mtgtop8.com/event?e=20153&d=331215&f=MO
// Deck file created with mtgtop8.com
// NAME : Affinity
// CREATOR : Chino_Iñigo_Pe
// FORMAT : Modern
4 [DS] Blinkmoth Nexus
4 [C16] Darksteel Citadel
2 [MR] Glimmervoid
2 [MBS] Contested War Zone
1 [RTR] Island
4 [AER] Ornithopter
3 [MR] Frogmite
1 [AER] Hope of Ghirapur
4 [NPH] Vault Skirge
4 [SOM] Memnite
4 [MBS] Signal Pest
4 [DS] Arcbound Ravager
2 [M15] Ensoul Artifact
4 [C16] Cranial Plating
4 [SOM] Mox Opal
4 [BNG] Springleaf Drum
4 [PLC] Simian Spirit Guide
3 [MR] Welding Jar
2 [ORI] Day's Undoing
SB: 1 [GTC] Illness in the Ranks
SB: 1 [NPH] Dispatch
SB: 2 [M15] Stain the Mind
SB: 1 [ORI] Ghirapur Aether Grid
SB: 1 [10E] Rule of Law
SB: 1 [DGM] Wear / Tear
SB: 2 [ISD] Ancient Grudge
SB: 1 [9E] Blood Moon
SB: 1 [XLN] Spell Pierce
SB: 1 [] Damping Sphere
SB: 1 [DKA] Grafdigger's Cage
SB: 2 [THS] Thoughtseize
What I could use some help with though, is wanting to minimize my land count. Assuming I have 4 Mox Opals and 4 Springleaf Drums, do any other artifacts come to mind as cards that can substitute for lands? Paradise Mantle perhaps? The goal is to try and reduce the land count a bit while still having a good supply of mana so that there are more cards I can play off the top.
List?
Haven't fully committed yet. I picked up some Frenzy's on MTGO but I've been playing them in Jund there. I won't be able to play them in Affinity until our next Modern FNM which is Oct 12 (though there's a chance I head to SCG Columbus this weekend and play them, I haven't yet decided).
This is what my list is looking like right now, I'm still thinking about things.
4 Darksteel Citadel
3 Blinkmoth Nexus
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Mountain
1 Arid Mesa
Creatures 24
4 Ornithopter
3 Memnite
1 Arcbound Worker
4 Vault Skirge
1 Hope of Ghirapur
4 Signal Pest
3 Steel Overseer
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Cranial Plating
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
1 Paradise Mantle
2 Welding Jar
2 Galvanic Blast
3 Experimental Frenzy
3 Etched Champion
2 Whipflare
2 Ghirapur Aether-Grid
2 Blood Moon
2 Legion Loyalist
4 mana for a draw engine that doesn't necessarily win the game is a tough sell for me. That drawback may be a real problem from time to time too. If you want cards with a wincon tacked on I'd prefer Karn or Tezzeret.
On a side note, what do people think of affinity versus the hardened scales version. I think our version is still more explosive. Even if hardened scales seems more resilient, it doesn't seem like it does much without Hardened Scales. Pretty sure traditional affinity is generally still better, but I could be wrong.
Arahbo, Kitty Kat Beatdown Decklist
Mizzix of the Izmagnus Decklist
Breya, Etherium Shaper
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow Decklist
My Current Set Cube Lists:
Kamigawa Re-Experience
Ravnica, City of Guilds Re-Experience
Alara Re-Experience
Drawing 4 to 10 cards every single turn typically wins the game real fast. Faster than any 4 mana PW option, or any 4 mana creature. Let me put this in perspective for you. How much mana would you pay for an enchantment that was a 1 sided draw 7 every single turn? That's very close to what Frenzy averages.
Granted, most of my games so far haven't been with the card in Affinity (I don't have Affinity online, so I can't play it in paper until next week) but I have played about 50 games with the card so far, and not once has the drawback ever been relevant. For that matter, I haven't had the two lands in a row situation come up either. I am however looking at Bomat Courier as some deck manipulation as additional insurance.
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
3 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Mountain
1 Bloodstained Mire
Creatures 26
4 Ornithopter
3 Memnite
1 Arcbound Worker
4 Bomat Courier
3 Vault Skirge
4 Signal Pest
3 Steel Overseer
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Cranial Plating
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
1 Welding Jar
2 Galvanic Blast
3 Experimental Frenzy
2 Etched Champion
2 Whipflare
2 Ghirapur Aether-Grid
2 Blood Moon
2 Legion Loyalist
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Pyrite Spellbomb
1 Hex Parasite
1 Smash to Smithereenes
Having 4 basic lands was nice, it ended up being relevant against a Settle the Wreckage. I got hit by Blood Moon once as well but it actually improved my mana. In one Frenzy, I was able to cast it on T4, get a Mox Opal right away, tap the Opal and get a Springleaf Drum that was on top, play an Ornithopter from the top, then tap the Drum for an Arcbound Worker. Getting 4 cards off Frenzy on the turn I tapped out to play it was pretty cool.
However, my luck with the card was below average in general compared to what I'm used to. I had several turns where I just hit land, land, and couldn't do anything. This is usually pretty rare but it happened to me a lot tonight. I'm thinking cutting a Nexus for a second fetch might help there.
Additionally, Bomat Courier was very good. If you look at my list, you'll notice that I've pushed the mana curve even lower than is normal by removing 3 drops. There were multiple reasons for this:
1. I wanted to empty my hand ASAP to get cards off Bomat Courier.
2. Holding up a mana for Bomat Courier is much easier if your curve is lower.
3. A lower curve means more cards off Frenzy.
4. A lower curve also means a lower opportunity cost from Frenzy.
This version of the deck is very low to the ground and quite fast. The Bomat/Frenzy interaction is powerful, but didn't come up much. I only used it to clear a card to continue a Frenzy once or twice.
The sideboard needs work, but I was quite impressed with how things turned out.
I won a recent FNM with a traditional list:
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
3 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Darksteel Citadel
2 Spire of Industry
2 Glimmervoid
1 Island
[Creatures]
4 Ornithopter
3 Memnite
4 Signal Pest
1 Hope of Ghirapur
3 Vault Skirge
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Steel Overseer
4 Master of Etherium
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Cranial Plating
3 Thoughtcast
2 Karn, Scion of Urza
3 Thoughtseize
2 Rest in Peace
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Wear // Tear
2 Ghirapur Aether Grid
2 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Damping Sphere
2 Etched Champion
I played:
Grinding Station Trawler Combo - 2:0
I was really fast both games.
Bant Spirits - 2:1
I lost second game due to a harsh Mulligan to 5 and opposing interaction.
Burn - 2:0
I was faster.
Traverse Shadow - 2:1
I lost the first game, then got lucky game 2 and 3 by topdecking the lethal outs just before I would loose. Thoughtcast was gross here, even when I just drew lands.
Greetings!
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
2 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Mountain
2 Bloodstained Mire
Creatures 26
4 Ornithopter
3 Memnite
1 Arcbound Worker
4 Bomat Courier
4 Vault Skirge
4 Signal Pest
2 Steel Overseer
4 Arcbound Ravager
4 Cranial Plating
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum
1 Welding Jar
2 Galvanic Blast
3 Experimental Frenzy
2 Etched Champion
2 Whipflare
2 Ghirapur Aether-Grid
2 Blood Moon
2 Legion Loyalist
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Pyrite Spellbomb
1 Hex Parasite
1 Smash to Smithereenes
Smugglers Copter sounds interesting as some additional library manipulation, but I don't think it really does enough.