Affinity is one of the oldest and still to this day, one of the most powerful archetypes in the Pauper format. It has the tools to play all 5 colors, big creatures to turn sideways and a good amount of burn/reach to end the game with. Affinity will always be one of my favorite decks of all time in the format.

Affinity is one the archetypes that benefited in a huge way from the new Modern Horizons set and it has me a bit excited. Today we will be looking at a list that took 1st place in the challenge that took place on 6/14/2021 and was piloted by the player Hodortimebaby (love the name). Instead of me rambling, let’s get right into it!

Disciple Affinity

by Hodortimebaby

4 Atog 4 Disciple of the Vault 4 Myr Enforcer 1 Dispel 2 Fling 4 Galvanic Blast 1 Temur Battle Rage 4 Thoughtcast 1 Makeshift Munitions 4 Chromatic Star 3 Ichor Wellspring 4 Prophetic Prism 2 Witching Well 4 Darksteel Citadel 4 Great Furnace 4 Seat of the Synod

1 Vault of Whispers 1 Drossforge Bridge 2 Mistvault Bridge 2 Silverbluff Bridge 4 Sojourner's Companion

Sideboard: 3 Krark-Clan Shaman 2 Ancient Grudge 3 Blue Elemental Blast 1 Dispel 1 Fiery Cannonade 3 Pyroblast 1 Duress 1 Reaping the Graves

Atog – This is your big scary win condition for the Affinity archetype. Atog can end the game extremely quickly and will be public enemy number 1 the second it hits the battlefield, so be a bit careful when running it onto the battlefield.

Disciple of the Vault – Here is your big combo card. Disciple doesn’t do much on its own, as it is just a 1/1, but its ability can end the game quickly with Atog. Do remember, Affinity is a combo-aggro deck, it wants to end the game quickly. The less draw phases you give your opponent, the better.

Myr Enforcer – The main creature of the Affinity archetype. Never ever play less than 4 of these.

Sojourner’s Companion – One of Modern Horizon 2’s many toys and Affinity got a huge boost from it. It is a colorless creature unlike Carapace Forger and it is an artifact itself for your Atog kills. Not only does this give you 4 more Myr Enforcers to work with, but if in the worst case scenario you need to fix your colors or need another land, this creature has Artifact Landcycling. Honestly this creature does it all.

Thoughtcast and Galvanic Blast – 2 staples of the Affinity archetype. Never ever play less than 4 of either of these.

Dispel – Always a good idea to have a copy of this in the main deck as a silver bullet to removal or counter magic.

Witching Well – While it is a little slow to draw cards, it is a 1 mana artifact that lets you Scry 2 when it hits the battlefield. You also have a good chance of hitting 4 mana as well and drawing cards is always a good thing.

Fling and Temur Battle Rage – Here are your combo finishers. Both can end the game instantly with Atog, but with your Myr Enforcers and Sojourner’s Companion, you can still deal tons of damage quickly. Having access to these cards is a good thing because it means you always have outs to win the game from almost any situation.

Makeshift Munitions – Another way to drive home the last few points of damage. You can also play the control game against some aggro decks such as Elves or Goblins as well.

Chromatic Star – Affinity is an archetype that is very color hungry. This is a mainstay in the archetype for a reason. Not only does it draw a card when it hits the graveyard, but it also helps you cast your powerful spells.

Prophetic Prism – Another mainstay of the archetype. Not only does it help you cast your spells, but it also draws a card as well.

Ichor Wellspring – Not the best card in the world, but it has the potential to dig 2 cards deeper into the deck. It is a free artifact for Atog and helps towards building Affinity/Metalcraft as well.

The Manabase

Great Furnace, Seat of the Synod and Vault of Whispers – Here are your typical lands for the archetype. You are a Grixis Affinity deck so you want to max out on these.

Darksteel Citadel – A major way people will try to win the game against you, is destroying your lands. However, Darksteel Citadel has the keyword Indestructible. This means that the land destruction plan is much less likely to work and gives you a chance to play the game.

Drossforge Bridge, Mistvault Bridge and Silverbluff Bridge – Here are the new Artifact dual lands from Modern Horizons 2. You don’t want to max out on them because you don’t want to slow yourself too much with come into play tapped lands. However, you want some number of them because they can’t be destroyed by cards such as Gorilla Shaman and are great at helping fix your colors. In my opinion, you should expect every Affinity list to have these from now on.

The Sideboard

Dispel – Against any removal or counter heavy deck, you always want a second copy of Dispel at the ready.

Ancient Grudge – Great for the mirror and for trying to color screw the Tron archetypes.

Blue Elemental Blast and Pyroblast – Some of the best sideboard cards in the format. If you have access to either blue or red, these are usual good cards to have.

Duress – Having perfect information is always nice. The reason I like 1 Duress here because it can be a good catch, but you can’t prevent what your opponent draws off the top, which makes reactive counter spells better.

Fiery Cannonade and 3 Krark-Clan Shaman – Board wipe effects are always a good thing to have access to. Remember, hold the control key while using Shaman’s ability or else it won’t work properly.

Reaping the Graves – Being able to return multiple creatures from the graveyard (thanks to the Storm mechanic) is always a big game for Affinity. The best part is that this is an instant. This means you can use your opponents turn against them for a lot of card advantage.

Verdict and Conclusion

It is no secret that Affinity is one the best decks that benefited from Modern Horizons 2. The new artifact lands and Sojourner's Companion might not seem like they did all that much, but trust me, they are a big upgrade.

Affinity has always been an archetype that either turns big 4 power creatures sideways or uses cards like Disciple of the Vault to combo you to death. The issue is that you end up playing a lot of colors because Carapace Forger requires green and sometimes this can lead to issues.

Although it dies to artifact removal, I believe Sojourner's Companion is a strictly stronger upgrade. It can come down easier, doesn’t mess with your mana and can even fix your colors for you. As I said earlier, it literally does everything you want and need in a card.

I really like playing Disciple of the Vault as these days, getting through with combat damage can be hard. I do wish there was at least a copy of Gearseeker Serpent in the deck because it is such a big creature and sometimes can win the game on its own. However, I don’t think it is necessary here.

Do I think you should play this deck? Absolutely I do. I think Affinity is one of the best decks in the format and with proper practice and proper preparation for the meta game, it will def be good for the challenges. I think it goes without saying that it should also crush it in the leagues.

However, with all this being said, as always, do remember my words are not gospel. I will always encourage you to try a deck that bring you despite my personal feelings. Remember that results will vary and always remember to practice!

Would you like to compete in a free Pauper tournament with some great prizes? Head on over to Gatherling.com on Tuesday nights at 8pm EDT and play in our weekly Pauper Classic Tuesday's event! Join the chat #PCT to chat with us and feel free to find most of the competitors on Discord!

Thank you so much for reading. Best of luck to you in your next tournament and I’ll catch you all next time!