Polaris Horseman of Pestilence asks a tempting question for Afflict players: can it push the archetype into a stronger place, even with Luke Cage around? After trying several Afflict packages, I don’t think it reaches that role yet.
Luke Cage was the obvious concern going in, but the interaction is less straightforward than it first looks. I found it going off much more than I expected. That makes it a more interesting Afflict card than a simple counter-check would suggest.
I also faced very little Luke Cage during testing. My projection was that Luke Cage would not be a problem. Afflict may have more room to grow when it rewards taking a downside that can later be removed for points.
The Wiccan Experiment Wasn’t Worth Repeating
The Wiccan version was the first package I wanted to test, largely because I wanted more chances for Affliction to happen and more ways for Polaris to matter when a game did not unfold perfectly. It did not convince me.
That setup left me feeling like I needed to clog a lane, and the lane never became competitive. The cost was higher than the payoff. For the Wiccan variation, I would rather use the classic Domino variation. I wanted that consistency much more.
Classic Afflict Has the Right Idea but Not Enough Height
Classic Afflict gave Polaris a clearer purpose. The plan is to pile on Afflictions, and US Agent was an MVP in this deck.
Polaris fits as another useful cheating piece once the deck is already built around that kind of plan.
The problem is height. Even when the deck does all of its things, it lacks a single card that simply wins a lane. Ajax wants to be that card, but I did not find that it was. That limitation held the deck around the 50% range in my testing.
There may be metas where this version is good. The current environment was not one of them. Polaris is another piece in Afflict’s plan. It does not bring Afflict to the next level.
High Evolutionary Needs One Commitment
My High Evolutionary test tried to preserve a Star-Lord, Bruce Banner, Cyclops line while retaining other options depending on the opening hand. That split did not give me the value I wanted. The build hovered between two plans instead of committing to either one.
If I am going all in on High Evolutionary with Polaris, I want to go all in on the Afflict side. Wasp belongs in that direction, and Thing is the card I would remove.
There is another possible route: Star-Lord may not even be necessary, and a Sunspot, Warlock, She-Hulk variation could make more sense. I am not presenting that as a finished answer. The lesson from the hybrid was simpler. Trying to do both approaches did not work for this style of build.
The Star-Lord Shell Came Closest
The strongest result came from taking the Star-Lord shell further and adding Polaris alongside Hazmat and Spiderwoman. It was my most successful version, reaching 60% and plus nine cubes. That is a legitimate use for Polaris.
The deck performed because the Star-Lord plan supplied extra energy, while Hazmat and Spiderwoman formed a secondary points package. Polaris had a place in that structure, but the whole shell was doing the work. I still wanted one more Affliction card beyond Hazmat and Spiderwoman. Grandmaster was the possible cut, with Scorpion one possible replacement rather than a locked-in change.
Board space also made the deck harder to pilot. The moving parts can fill the board, and Polaris adds another card into that navigation problem. Even so, with one or two tweaks, I can see it becoming a fun and consistent variation. It came close to something good.
A Good Afflict Piece at the Wrong Time
Polaris does something useful for Afflict. It works in the shell, and I expect it to become a regular option when Afflict has a moment in the meta. I am genuinely happy the archetype has access to it.
That is not the same as saying it brings Afflict to the next level. Polaris does not go over the top, and it is not the card that turns Afflict into a top-five deck. The card is fun, cool, and valuable for the archetype, but it remains another piece of an almost-complete plan.
My official rating is garbage. If you are an Afflict player with patience, there is enough here to be interested. Otherwise, this is a comfortable resource skip and a card to revisit if the meta changes. It asks for a specific deck with plenty of pieces already in place, so missing it now should not hurt.
[Watch the discussion on YouTube.](the original episode)
