There’s plenty of talk of how Modern is becoming inaccessible and expensive thanks to the release of Modern Horizons 2, but not every deck needs a set of Ragavan, Nible Pilferer in order to become successful.
One viable starting point into the Modern format is Affinity. Even with the banning of Mox Opal, the artifact aggressive strategy now uses inexpensive cards from Modern Horizons 2 to play powerful artifacts ahead of curve. For players new to Modern, Affinity teaches combat, mana efficiency, and offers straightforward options for you to get to grips with the format. It’s an affordable starting point where some of the cards can be port into Pioneer and Pauper if you want to extend those purchases further.
It’s worth noting that budget can vary from person to person, but this budget list is kept as low as possible to help more players get into Modern.
What is Modern Neoform Affinity?
Affinity has been a long-standing feature of the Modern format, it uses cheap artifacts and creatures to offer an aggressive start. Combined with cards such as
Cranial Plating
Cranial Plating
Equipped creature gets +1/+0 for each artifact you control.
{B}{B}: Attach this Equipment to target creature you control.
Equip {1}
you can kill your opponent as early as turn two if they are unable to interact with you. The archetype fell out of favor when Mox Opal became banned in January 2020, but it’s now back and resilient as ever with various win conditions. In the current Modern metagame, you may see a couple of variations of Affinity with the Neoform variant being the most popular at present.
Neoform Affinity plays similarly to traditional Affinity, however with the addition of
Thought Monitor
Thought Monitor
Affinity for artifacts (This spell costs {1} less to cast for each artifact you control.)
Flying
When this creature enters, draw two cards.
and Sojourner’s Companion, it allows you to use Neoform to find
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth
Haste
When this creature enters, creatures you control gain trample and get +X/+X until end of turn, where X is the number of creatures you control.
for the win. You deploy a strong board early on with
Memnite
Memnite
and Ornithopter, then use
Springleaf Drum
Springleaf Drum
{T}, Tap an untapped creature you control: Add one mana of any color.
to get ahead on mana.
Your Neoform targets aren’t limited to just
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth
Haste
When this creature enters, creatures you control gain trample and get +X/+X until end of turn, where X is the number of creatures you control.
either, you can find Griselbrand to draw a bunch of cards, or Magus of the Future to cast cards from the top of your library. There’s a diverse amount of threats to get you there if you are unable to overwhelm your opponents through traditional means.
Read More: Ten Most Expensive MTG Cards in Modern
Budget Modern Neoform Affinity
However,
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth
Haste
When this creature enters, creatures you control gain trample and get +X/+X until end of turn, where X is the number of creatures you control.
is pricey thanks to their evergreen presence in Commander, so there are alternatives available. As you can see from the list above, Neoform Affinity runs a dedicated
Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — This Saga gains "{T}: Add {C}."
II — This Saga gains "{2}, {T}: Create a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature token with 'This token gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.'"
III — Search your library for an artifact card with mana cost {0} or {1}, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
toolbox which is expensive to acquire if you are new to Modern. However, you can still play Neoform Affinity without these expensive cards but lose some of the raw power you get with these cards.
With this $140 list, it gives you a great starting point to Modern without a significant investment nor does it need a complicated land base to function. Plus, most of the cards are commons and uncommon from recent or reprint sets, making these readily accessible. If you want to go aggressively budget, you can remove the Mishra’s Bauble for a couple of Gingerbrute and Welding Jar to keep the artifact count high.
Your gameplan is the same as with an optimised version of the list instead, you are looking to use End-Raze Forerunners in replacement of
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth
Haste
When this creature enters, creatures you control gain trample and get +X/+X until end of turn, where X is the number of creatures you control.
. While not as powerful, the Boar can be enough to go over given how wide you can go in Affinity. Either way, it’s a decent placeholder until you can acquire the card.
Read More: How to Beat Mono-Green Tron in Modern in 2021
Upgrading Budget Modern Neoform Affinity
With the omission of
Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — This Saga gains "{T}: Add {C}."
II — This Saga gains "{2}, {T}: Create a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature token with 'This token gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.'"
III — Search your library for an artifact card with mana cost {0} or {1}, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
, we’re replacing these with Spire of Industry, Razortide Bridge, and an Island until you can grab the rare from Modern Horizons 2. There are a couple of extra copies of Welding Jar to ensure you can keep your threats alive, and helps pay for various Affinity costs.
To begin with, it’s worth picking up a copy of
Shadowspear
Shadowspear
Equipped creature gets +1/+1 and has trample and lifelink.
{1}: Permanents your opponents control lose hexproof and indestructible until end of turn.
Equip {2}
as this is one of the best equipment to run in Affinity. It’s in low mana value, can be found off an
Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — This Saga gains "{T}: Add {C}."
II — This Saga gains "{2}, {T}: Create a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature token with 'This token gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.'"
III — Search your library for an artifact card with mana cost {0} or {1}, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
and offers trample which is important. A lot of your creatures don’t come with any keywords but they’re big in terms of power, so
Shadowspear
Shadowspear
Equipped creature gets +1/+1 and has trample and lifelink.
{1}: Permanents your opponents control lose hexproof and indestructible until end of turn.
Equip {2}
allows you to connect with the opponent.
The sideboard can be upgraded over time too, primarily you’ll want Etched Champion and Ethersworn Canonist to offer resilience in games two and three. Sideboards often vary depending on the local metagame, but these two cards in particular are so good in Affinity they’re worth running either way. Then, you’ll want to pad out the rest of your sideboard with countermagic and removal. If you do acquire
Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — This Saga gains "{T}: Add {C}."
II — This Saga gains "{2}, {T}: Create a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature token with 'This token gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.'"
III — Search your library for an artifact card with mana cost {0} or {1}, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
, picking up Soul-Guide Lantern and Pithing Needle would be the next step as these are excellent targets for the Enchantment Land.
Even without Mox Opal, Affinity is back and better than ever, plus it’s cheap and easy to pick up if you are looking to jump in Modern!
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