What to do with Polaris, Horseman of Pestilence
Unlike some of our recent cards, Polaris really was one of Apocalypse's horsemen. Following the loss of her powers, she became the Horseman of Pestilence, alongside Gambit as the Horseman of death and Sunfire as the Horseman of Famine (lesser-known character Gazer, not to be confused with PulseGlazer, was the Horseman of War). This means we have a somewhat confusing variant for the existing Polaris alongside our new Horseman of Pestilence.
Which card will be better? Classic Polaris has spent long stretches as an underrated card and has always been one of my pet cards. The new Polaris has a powerful effect, but the best path to using her isn't clear. Will her new persona represent an upgrade? Here's everything I'm looking forward to trying with Polaris, Horseman of Pestilence.
How Does She Work
Objective checks happen and resolve at the end of the turn after all other effects. If, at that time, there is -5 total in Affliction across any number of cards, Polaris will pull a random card from your hand. Remember, Objectives will resolve in the order they were played. As we will see, the timing of Objective and ordering are going to matter a ton for Horseman Polaris.
How Heavy Do We Go?
The big question about Polaris is how much you need to commit to an Affliction theme to get value from her. Does she need to be in an all-in Afflict deck with Ajax? Can she be placed with just a couple of cards like USAgent or Man-Thing? Could she be part of a small package with Laufey? I don't have a lot of faith in the Affliction archetype right now. The numbers don't add up in this new era of Marvel Snap where people are attacking two lanes with extremely tall Power. What does Fin Fang Foom care about -2 or -4 Power? Additionally, if a meta-dominant build ever does emerge that is heavily reliant on Affliction, Luke Cage is lurking to end the fun.
Proactive Afflictors
There are quite a few options here that can fulfill Polaris' Objective on their own, which makes me a lot more optimistic about the new Horseman.
Opponent Dependant
These cards depend to varying degrees on your opponent actually playing certain cards out, but they are still powerful Affliction options to supplement our goal.
The Evolved Cards
High Evolutionary is going to love this Polaris!
Skills Can Do It!
Polaris and Winds of Watoomb were made for each other, right? Fastball Special/Polaris looks like a meta combo.
Clever Ways to Meet the Objective
There are plenty of unusual or tricky ways to meet Polaris' Objective beyond straightforward Afflict cards. This is the list that really gets me excited for the card! There are even more edge case and silly cards like Esme Cuckoo, Agent Venom, and other cards that set Power to something specific. Technically, you can Taskmaster a Hobgoblin that you sent across and that would fulfill the Objective!
Decks with Decreasing Levels of Pestilence
Let's start high and slowly pare back. This process showed me just how creative you can get with building around Polaris, Horseman of Pestilence.
All-In Ajax
If Polaris is an upgrade over Malekith, it's slight. I think Polaris is an upgrade to this deck, but not by enough for it to become competitive again. This deck will also suffer from the first week new card hard counters.
Pestilent Surfer
This deck might only have one Afflict card, but it's one of the few decks in the game that is actually trying to win through thorough Affliction of the opponent. This deck often wins with the opponent's entire board in the negative. Could Polaris provide a little boost in consistency? It does seem fun to place Polaris in a Wong/Mystique lane to pull a Surfer or Abs Man at the end of the game or pull an unexpected Cage in an off lane for a win.
High Evo Afflict
Ok, now we're cooking with gas. High Evo is absolutely one of the most promising homes for Polaris. Unlike the above decks, this one has giant beasts it wouldn't mind pulling for free.
Poison Darts
What deck ends the game with a big card in hand that it would love to get onto the board? Bullseye! Now your Scorn can hit the board after your Bullseye does his thing. The timing on this is so perfect that I believe this deck must have been one of the design intents for Polaris, and that Discard generally might be among her best homes, between Bullseye and Marrow.
4-Cost Tribal
This deck has some pretty juicy final turn plays, even in the games you don't end up getting a Surge or Zabu discount. You can play Grandmaster and Laufey on the last turn to fulfill Polaris' Objective. Or you can play out Man-Thing and Polaris on the last turn, potentially even together into a lane that is empty on your side. Don't sleep on Zabu into Grandmaster on the first two turns. The top cards you want to pull are FS Galactus or Shang, preferably with an otherwise empty hand. You have to be very careful with the timing on a deck like this with so many competing and interconnected Objectives and End of Turn effects.
Small Pestilence Package
The most minimal package is the one I'm most excited for. A Laufey on a packed lane or an Anti-Venom hitting your Zola or Foom will do it. In a pinch, Red Guardian can contribute. The final result can be devastating with a free Zola or Foom hitting the board. There are plenty of other choices for this deck including Caliban (to help meet the Objective, or just as free value), Yellowjacket (to shrink your hand), or Iron Lad (for high-roll potential).
Is She Worth It?
I am low on Horseman Polaris as a piece that will elevate traditional Affliction decks, but there are enough clever and interesting ways to activate her Objective that I feel confident she will find a place to thrive, whether that's with Discard, a small Affliction package, or reliable self-Affliction. Cards that get a free card out onto the board tend to become beloved by those who love to build kooky, off-meta combos, and I see a similar future for Polaris. She won't rule the meta, but there will be pet strategies that rely on her. For more Polaris, Horseman of Pestilence talk and collaborative cooking come join the Fourth Location Discord!
Below the paywall you'll find a whopping 10 more small Affliction package decks, including the rogue decks I'm most excited to try. I really wanted to explore all of the creative ways to fulfill Polaris' Objective. I'm curious to see how effective this card can be with just a touch of Affliction and I plan to spend time finding that line.
