<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.kieranyanner.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kieran Yanner</a></em></p>
<p>Affinity is a timeless archetype in <em>Magic: the Gathering</em>. In every format where <em>Mirrodin</em> is legal, I've had hundreds of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Frogmite" href="#" target="_blank">Frogmite</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>s played against me over the course of my tournament career. What if creatures much more powerful than <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Frogmite" href="#" target="_blank">Frogmite</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Myr Enforcer" href="#" target="_blank">Myr Enforcer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> could be given affinity for artifacts? <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is here to answer that very question.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sami, Wildcat Captain"></div></div>
<p>In this deck tech, I'm using <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to give huge Eldrazi, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ulamog, the Defiler" href="#" target="_blank">Ulamog, the Defiler</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sire of Seven Deaths" href="#" target="_blank">Sire of Seven Deaths</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, affinity for artifacts.</p>
<h2>What Does <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Do?</h2>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a six-mana Human Artificer Rogue with double strike and vigilance that gives affinity for artifacts to all your spells. Sami's mana cost is the only part of the card that gives me pause. For a deck that's going to end up pretty commander focused, six mana is a huge investment.</p>
<p>However, just a couple turns with Sami in play should be sufficient to get a good return on that six mana investment with enough artifacts in play and enough big spells to power out.</p>
<p>The Sami deck I've built for this article is an aggressive ramp deck. My goal is for the turn I cast <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to feel like an apocalyptic event. Sami hits the board and suddenly all the expensive colorless spells that have been hiding in my hand for the first several turns of the game can be cast for little to no mana.</p>
<p>Cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ugin, the Spirit Dragon" href="#" target="_blank">Ugin, the Spirit Dragon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Karn Liberated" href="#" target="_blank">Karn Liberated</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger" href="#" target="_blank">Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will come down and completely transform the dynamic of the game.</p>
<h2>Key Cards for Sami, Wildcat Captain</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Retrofitter Foundry"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Karn, Living Legacy"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Collector&#039;s Vault"></div></div>
<p>The most critical engine pieces for this deck are cards that can put a lot of artifacts into play. It doesn't even really matter what those artifacts are. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Retrofitter Foundry" href="#" target="_blank">Retrofitter Foundry</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is likely never going to convert the Servos it produces into Thopters or Constructs. The Powerstone and Treasure tokens that <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Karn, Living Legacy" href="#" target="_blank">Karn, Living Legacy</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Collector&#039;s Vault" href="#" target="_blank">Collector&#039;s Vault</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> produce are among the more useful trinkets this deck can put into play.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="The Endstone"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Chimil, the Inner Sun"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tezzeret, Cruel Captain"></div></div>
<p>It's important to have engines that can keep the deck running smoothly in the games where Sami gets removed several times and decides to go on vacation, a risk that affects six-mana commanders more than most.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Endstone" href="#" target="_blank">The Endstone</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a new artifact from <em>Edge of Eternities</em> that's performed way above my expectations. In the later stages of the game, an artifact that effectively draws a million cards per turn and resets its controller's life total back up to 20 each turn is staggeringly powerful.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Chimil, the Inner Sun" href="#" target="_blank">Chimil, the Inner Sun</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> serves much the same purpose, providing an impressive card advantage engine that just happens to protect spells on the stack.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tezzeret, Cruel Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Tezzeret, Cruel Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a peculiar planeswalker that I'm still trying to evaluate. Tezzeret can untap artifacts to make a lot of mana, tutor out key artifacts like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mana Vault" href="#" target="_blank">Mana Vault</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Voltaic Key" href="#" target="_blank">Voltaic Key</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and has an easy to achieve -7 that slowly weaponizes all the otherwise useless artifacts on the board. I don't think any of those modes by themselves would justify his inclusion, but all those features combined turn Tezzeret into a pretty impressive three-mana play.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Void Winnower"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="God-Pharaoh&#039;s Statue"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Portal to Phyrexia"></div></div>
<p>Another approach this deck can take is slamming big stax pieces, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Void Winnower" href="#" target="_blank">Void Winnower</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, to shut the door on the opponents as they scramble to answer your threats.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="God-Pharaoh&#039;s Statue" href="#" target="_blank">God-Pharaoh&#039;s Statue</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one of my favorite cards to include in decks that are capable of making enough mana to cast it early in the game. Each opponent's spells costing two additional mana can render many decks totally inert, especially when cast in the early stages of the game. No one wants to pay three mana to cast their <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sol Ring" href="#" target="_blank">Sol Ring</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Portal to Phyrexia" href="#" target="_blank">Portal to Phyrexia</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is an interesting case. I don't consider this artifact to be a stax piece in the traditional sense. However, the tempo swing of each opponent losing three of their creatures early in a game and then being forced to watch as their opponent resurrects their best creatures turn after turn can be both crippling and demoralizing.</p>
<p>That fits perfectly with that I'm trying to accomplish here.</p>
<h2>How Does This <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Commander Deck Win?</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ulamog, the Defiler"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Pathrazer of Ulamog"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sire of Seven Deaths"></div></div>
<p>This deck wins games very honestly. No combos, no tricks, just giant Eldrazi turning sideways and triggering annihilator!</p>
<p>This is both a strength and a weakness. On one hand, consistency isn't a huge issue as any seven-mana card is just as good as the next. On the other, this deck will struggle against interactive decks that have ways to keep the Eldrazi at bay. I think that's a fine trade-off!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cityscape Leveler"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ugin, Eye of the Storms"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger"></div></div>
<p>My favorite aspect of this deck is how versatile all of its threats are. Each large threat doubles as a both a large body and some other type of spell the deck needs.</p>
<p>Many Eldrazi have card draw or removal spells stapled to their cast triggers. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ugin, Eye of the Storms" href="#" target="_blank">Ugin, Eye of the Storms</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> staples a removal spell to every single colorless spell in the deck! This paradigm allows me to skimp on traditional staples, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swords to Plowshares" href="#" target="_blank">Swords to Plowshares</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Path to Exile" href="#" target="_blank">Path to Exile</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>That's an incredibly powerful option to have in a deck that needs to have abnormally high densities of artifacts and threats to function.</p>
<h2>Sami, Wildcat Captain Commander Deck List</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Boros Eldrazi Winter" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Sami, Wildcat Captain
[/Commander]
[Instants]
*1 Big Score
*1 Kozilek&#039;s Command
*1 Kozilek&#039;s Return
*1 Razorgrass Ambush // Razorgrass Field
*1 Teferi&#039;s Protection
*1 Unexpected Windfall
*1 Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge
[/Instants]
[Sorceries]
*1 Blasphemous Act
*1 Brass&#039;s Bounty
*1 Emeria&#039;s Call // Emeria, Shattered Skyclave
*1 Ondu Inversion // Ondu Skyruins
*1 Pirate&#039;s Pillage
*1 Seize the Spoils
*1 Shatterskull Smashing // Shatterskull, the Hammer Pass
*1 Sundering Eruption // Volcanic Fissure
[/Sorceries]
[Creatures]
*1 Cityscape Leveler
*1 Foundry Inspector
*1 Giver of Runes
*1 Glaring Fleshraker
*1 Hangarback Walker
*1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
*1 Kozilek, the Great Distortion
*1 Mother of Runes
*1 Myr Battlesphere
*1 Ornithopter of Paradise
*1 Pathrazer of Ulamog
*1 Sire of Seven Deaths
*1 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
*1 Ulamog, the Defiler
*1 Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
*1 Void Winnower
*1 Walking Ballista
*1 Witch Enchanter // Witch-Blessed Meadow
[/Creatures]
[Planeswalkers]
*1 Karn Liberated
*1 Karn, Living Legacy
*1 Tezzeret, Cruel Captain
*1 Ugin, Eye of the Storms
*1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
[/Planeswalkers]
[Artifacts]
*1 Boros Signet
*1 Chimil, the Inner Sun
*1 Collector&#039;s Vault
*1 Coveted Jewel
*1 Extinguisher Battleship
*1 Ghost Vacuum
*1 God-Pharaoh&#039;s Statue
*1 Hedron Archive
*1 Kaldra Compleat
*1 Lightning Greaves
*1 Mana Vault
*1 Manifold Key
*1 Mind Stone
*1 Mishra&#039;s Bauble
*1 Portable Hole
*1 Portal to Phyrexia
*1 Retrofitter Foundry
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Springleaf Drum
*1 Swiftfoot Boots
*1 Talisman of Conviction
*1 The Endstone
*1 The Eternity Elevator
*1 The One Ring
*1 Thousand Moons Smithy // Barracks of the Thousand
*1 Voltaic Key
*1 Worn Powerstone
[/Artifacts]
[Enchantments]
*1 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker // Reflection of Kiki-Jiki
[/Enchantments]
[Lands]
*1 Ancient Den
*1 Arena of Glory
*1 Arid Mesa
*1 Battlefield Forge
*1 Bloodstained Mire
*1 Clifftop Retreat
*1 Darksteel Citadel
*1 Elegant Parlor
*1 Flooded Strand
*1 Furycalm Snarl
*1 Great Furnace
*1 Inspiring Vantage
*1 Marsh Flats
*3 Mountain
*3 Plains
*1 Prismatic Vista
*1 Radiant Summit
*1 Rugged Prairie
*1 Sacred Foundry
*1 Scalding Tarn
*1 Spectator Seating
*1 Sunbaked Canyon
*1 Sunbillow Verge
*1 Sundown Pass
*1 Sunscorched Divide
*1 The Mycosynth Gardens
*1 Urza&#039;s Saga
*1 Windswept Heath
*1 Wooded Foothills
[/Lands]"></span></div>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>This is such a bizarre deck. I think there's a lot of room for further optimization that I'm excited to delve into once the set is out and I've had more opportunity to tinker with the deck's engine.</p>
<p>For instance, the number of huge creatures probably needs to come up from around 20 to possibly closer to 30 or even beyond. Similarly, I think the number of artifact token generators may need to come up by a wide margin to make the early game more consistent.</p>
<p>Players looking for a deck that produces explosive turns without creating a cumbersome amount of triggers will feel at home playing this deck. Sami takes short turns where flurries of ridiculously powerful spells hit the stack without creating particularly difficult to parse game states.</p>
<p>In the era of Commander decks that take lots of game actions using cards that have multiple paragraph long abilities, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sami, Wildcat Captain" href="#" target="_blank">Sami, Wildcat Captain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> feels like a breath of fresh air.</p>
<h3>More <em>Edge</em>:</h3>
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<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="03I3mKJht5"><p><a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/building-a-1-1-counter-deck-with-haliya-ascendant-cadet/">Building a +1/+1 Counter Deck with Haliya, Ascendant Cadet</a></p></blockquote>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden;" title="&#8220;Building a +1/+1 Counter Deck with Haliya, Ascendant Cadet&#8221; &#8212; EDHREC" src="https://edhrec.com/articles/building-a-1-1-counter-deck-with-haliya-ascendant-cadet/embed/#?secret=3J4sHLYHDz#?secret=03I3mKJht5" data-secret="03I3mKJht5" width="500" height="282" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p>


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