How to beat 4c Ephemerate in Pauper

Over the last 90 days of recorded Pauper matches, the decks with the best results against 4c Ephemerate are White Aggro (67% over 6 matches), Grixis Affinity (60% over 5 matches) and Spy Combo (60% over 5 matches). White Aggro's 67% sits in a 95% range of 30%–90%, which is the range a 6-match sample actually supports. The decks with the best records against it most often carry Dust to Dust, Martyr of Sands and Hydroblast in the sideboard — those are their sideboards in general, not cards chosen for this matchup.

Best records against 4c Ephemerate

Matches played in the last 90 days, from events that publish round-by-round pairings. Ranked by the bottom of each 95% range, not by the headline percentage, so a small sample cannot outrank a large one.

Archetypes with the best recorded results against 4c Ephemerate, best first
DeckWin rate vs 4c EphemerateRecordMatchesSample95% range
White Aggro66.7%4-26Low sample30%–90%
Grixis Affinity60.0%3-25Low sample23%–88%
Spy Combo60.0%3-25Low sample23%–88%
  • High sample · 20+ matches
  • Medium sample · 8–19 matches
  • Low sample · 5–7 matches

21 further pairings (36 matches) fall below the 5-match floor and are not given a percentage. Full history, retired archetypes included, is on 4c Ephemerate's archetype page and in the Pauper matchup matrix.

What the decks that beat 4c Ephemerate bring

Sideboard cards run by White Aggro, Grixis Affinity, Spy Combo. This is not a sideboard guide for this matchup. We record who beat whom, not what either player boarded, so these are whole-sideboard frequencies across every matchup those decks play — a hint about the kind of card that punishes 4c Ephemerate, not a list to bring in.

CardDecks running itAverage copiesWhich decks
Dust to Dust1 of 33.6White Aggro
Martyr of Sands1 of 32.9White Aggro
Hydroblast1 of 32.9Grixis Affinity
Pyroblast1 of 32.7Grixis Affinity
Journey to Nowhere1 of 32.3White Aggro
Standard Bearer1 of 32.0White Aggro
Faerie Macabre1 of 31.7Spy Combo
Blue Elemental Blast1 of 31.7Grixis Affinity
Extract a Confession1 of 31.7Grixis Affinity
Mesmeric Fiend1 of 31.4Spy Combo
Writhing Chrysalis1 of 31.4Spy Combo
Holy Light1 of 31.3White Aggro

Average copies is expected copies per deck — average copies played multiplied by the share of that archetype's lists running the card — so a 4-of in half the lists reads as 2.0.

Decks 4c Ephemerate beats

The other end of the same table. If you are choosing a deck to attack 4c Ephemerate with, the record argues against these.

Archetypes 4c Ephemerate has the best recorded results against, worst first for the challenger
DeckWin rate vs 4c EphemerateRecordMatchesSample95% range
Mono Red Madness20.0%1-45Low sample4%–62%
  • High sample · 20+ matches
  • Medium sample · 8–19 matches
  • Low sample · 5–7 matches

Questions

What beats 4c Ephemerate in Pauper?

Across the last 90 days, White Aggro (67% over 6 matches), Grixis Affinity (60% over 5 matches) and Spy Combo (60% over 5 matches) hold the best recorded results against 4c Ephemerate. Records come from events that publish round-by-round pairings, and both decks in a match have to be identified for it to count, so these are the pairings we can see rather than every match played.

What should I bring in against 4c Ephemerate?

We do not have sideboard choices tied to individual matches, so this is not a sideboard guide. What the data supports is narrower: the 3 decks with the best records against 4c Ephemerate — White Aggro, Grixis Affinity and Spy Combo — most commonly run Dust to Dust, Martyr of Sands, Hydroblast, Pyroblast and Journey to Nowhere in their sideboards. Those are whole-sideboard frequencies across every matchup those decks play.

What does 4c Ephemerate beat?

4c Ephemerate's best recorded matchups over the same window are Mono Red Madness (80% across 5 matches). If you are picking a deck to attack 4c Ephemerate with, these are the ones the record argues against.

How reliable are these Pauper matchup numbers?

Not very, and the page says so per row rather than in aggregate. Every pairing shows its match count, its sample band and a 95% range; the strongest band we award is 20+ matches, which is still roughly a ±20-point range around the figure shown. Pairings under 5 matches are counted but never given a percentage — there are 21 of those for 4c Ephemerate right now. Rankings use the bottom of each range rather than the headline percentage, so a small sample cannot outrank a large one it has not earned.

What period does this cover?

Matches played in the last 90 days, filtered on when each match was actually played. Archetypes that have dropped out of the Pauper metagame are excluded from the ranking — their historical records are still on 4c Ephemerate's own archetype page and in the format matchup matrix.

What each number on this site measures, and where it is least reliable, is set out on the methodology page.