I'd like to post my group's list here, if I may, to receive input on our card choices. Thanks for any advice you have to offer.
The list is 450 cards, unpowered (our only restrictions are budgetary ones. Not that this is a budget cube, we just don't happen to have Moxen filling our binders)
Basic Information
Cube Size: 405 Cards
Breakdown: 56 of Each Color, 55 Colorless, 70 Multicolor
Standard or Theme Cube: Standard
Draft Frequency: During school, once a week or less. During breaks, 2-4 times a week.
Average Draft Number: 5-6 players or 2 players
Powered?: No
Portal?: No
"Un-" Cards: Yes
Banned for power reasons?: No
Banned for "fun" factor?: No
Banned for time reasons?: No
Standard or Multiplayer: Standard
Snow Cube?: No
Sideboards?: Yes. Matches are best 2/3, with sideboarding for games 2 and 3.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
Wow, that's a lot to process. Thanks very much for those lists, they're incredibly helpful.
I corrected all of the typos and I'm digesting all of the card information right now. I think you're absolutely right about picking up commons/uncommons/$10>rares, and I intend to do so soon, I just have some catching up to do with Rise, M11, and Scars.
I'm going to edit this post with some more in depth responses to the list, but I do want to say that I know I have some subpar stuff in there that will be replaced soon (Silent Specter, for example), but I've read that balancing the colors is really important, and so I just wanted to fill the space before our first draft.
Thanks.
EDIT: all right, time for me to go down the list.
WHITE White Knight - I know I have one somewhere, but I'm not sure what to cut for it. Mostly an oversight on our part. Sun Titan - I don't have one, but will get one of the cheap promo ones pronto. Martial Coup - I could get one of these, but are all the Wraths really necessary? I'm already running several.
BLUE Dissipate - I love Dissipate - Is there a reason so few people run it?
Remand - I forgot Remand? Holy crap. Will get this in as soon as possible. Preordain- Neat card. This will be in my first order of M11 stuff. Jace, the Mind Sculptor - Ha. Maybe when I'm out of college.
BLACK Nezumi Cutthroat - Unblockable aggro chump. Would this be better as Black Knight? Silent Specter - Placeholder Booster Tutor - This seems really fun, and my brother had a foil. I still want to try it out.
Dark Ritual - Is 3 mana really worth the card in cube draft? We agreed Ritual probably wouldn't be good in limited. I guess we were wrong. Black Knight - See Cutthroat. Consuming Vapors - Didn't know about this one. I'll look for one on the cheap. Skinrender - Love this. I'll get one ASAP. Bloodghast - This too. Liliana's Specter - This too. Wow, my black needs work. Braids, Cabal Minion - Ah, prison effects. I'll go dig up my crap rare binder and see if I have a copy. Grave Titan - This guy is right on the border of affordability. I might wait for him to rotate.
RED
[CARD]
Viashino Slaughtermaster[/CARD] - Placeholder. Mostly in to see if he can ever pick up an Equipment and start swinging. Urza's Rage - Trying to reach critical mass in burn. Blast from the Past - Is this just uncommon because it was in an Un-set? Otherwise I think it's pretty good. Hammer of Bogardan - See Urza's Rage.
GREEN Gaea's Anthem - I'm kind of surprised this one isn't used more often as well. It seems pretty good as aggro support. Silvos, Rogue Elemental - Kind of a placeholder, kind of a nostalgia thing. I can see him going.
Cultivate - See Preordain Indrik Stomphowler - Can't believe I missed him. I just need to pull him from one of my EDH decks. Obstinate Baloth - See Preordain Great Sable Stag - The Fairie hoser is good enough for cube? Granted, I haven't ever played with him, but he doesn't seem that great. Fauna Shaman - See Grave Titan Lotus Cobra - See Grave Titan
GOLD Rumbling Slum - Definitely needs to be Sarkhan Vol, I just need to get my hands on one. Nemesis of Reason - I don't get this one either. Nemesis blocks anything and can kill in 3 swings, regardless of blocks. Seems like a great U/B finisher. What's wrong with it?
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
WHITE White Knight - I know I have one somewhere, but I'm not sure what to cut for it. Mostly an oversight on our part. Galepowder Mage or Scepter of Dominance would be my choices. Martial Coup - I could get one of these, but are all the Wraths really necessary? I'm already running several. I like this more than Parallax Wave. There's also Elspeth Tirel to consider adding.
BLUE Dissipate - I love Dissipate - Is there a reason so few people run it? Is Cancel good enough for Cube? Because that's how Dissipate plays 95% of the time.
BLACK Nezumi Cutthroat - Unblockable aggro chump. Would this be better as Black Knight? Yes. Cutthroat is OK and is fine to support black aggro in larger cubes. Silent Specter - Placeholder Booster Tutor - This seems really fun, and my brother had a foil. I still want to try it out. Needs errata and only good if you want Un-cards (which it looks like you do).
Dark Ritual - Is 3 mana really worth the card in cube draft? We agreed Ritual probably wouldn't be good in limited. I guess we were wrong. Yeah, it's good. You can still do T1 Hypnotic Specter/Vampire Nighthhawk/Hymn to Tourach+Sarcomancy pretty often, plus it gets out your fatty two turns early.
Consuming Vapors - Didn't know about this one. I'll look for one on the cheap. It's really good. Braids, Cabal Minion - Ah, prison effects. I'll go dig up my crap rare binder and see if I have a copy. This card is just sickness. Combine with Bitterblossom for ultimate LOLs. Grave Titan - This guy is right on the border of affordability. I might wait for him to rotate. Possibly black's best finisher.
RED
Urza's Rage - Trying to reach critical mass in burn.Much less effiicient than most of the burn run in cubes. Blast from the Past - Is this just uncommon because it was in an Un-set? Otherwise I think it's pretty good. It's amazing if you do Un-cards. Hammer of Bogardan - See Urza's Rage. Really inefficient. I love this card and even I had to face reality and cut it.
Manic Vandal - See Preordain Fireball - Is it better than Comet Storm? Yeah because of the 1 red in the casting cost. I really love Comet Storm though, and I run both in my 465 card cube. Arc Lightning - Just overlooked this, I think. Needs to come in. It's red card advantage.
GREEN Gaea's Anthem - I'm kind of surprised this one isn't used more often as well. It seems pretty good as aggro support. It's not as needed in green as in white because green aggro has amazing 3cc creatures and tends not to use tokens as much as white. I'd run it if my cube were over 500 cards probably. Silvos, Rogue Elemental - Kind of a placeholder, kind of a nostalgia thing. I can see him going.The triple-green in the cc makes him hard to use and green has no shortage of amazing fatties. He's fine in larger cubes.
Great Sable Stag - The Fairie hoser is good enough for cube? Granted, I haven't ever played with him, but he doesn't seem that great. Has protection from a lot of removal, protection from theft, has both power and toughness equal to casting cost, can't be blocked by about 30-40% of creatures, and has an ability that is relevant once in a while. All of that equals a pretty great card. In most cases, anything that has protection from two colors deserves consideration.
GOLD Nemesis of Reason - I don't get this one either. Nemesis blocks anything and can kill in 3 swings, regardless of blocks. Seems like a great U/B finisher. What's wrong with it? I like this card a lot and ran it until recently. Mostly, it's just outclassed by about 4 or 5 other UB cards and most cubes don't need a 5th or 6th UB card. Also, milling doesn't do anything unless it wins you the game.
COLORLESS Forcefield - Wait, really? This is a classic. Is it that much worse in limited than constructed?Too man-intensive and the artifact competition is wicked strong. Also, it's only really good in control. Aggro needs the help and control mostly doesn't.
.
These are the only suggested cards that I have sitting around, but do they seem like improvements?
Also, with regards to White Knight, I am kind of worried about having too many cards at WW. If you guys don't think that's a concern, then I'd rather drop the Galepowder Mage. My sister had Scepter of Dominance in her W/B aggro deck when we drafted, and it was like a more versatile Rishadan Port (Now that's a card I need).
EDIT: Sorry curry, I didn't see your question initially. We've only played once, and I don't think Paralax Wave was played, but my idea putting it in was that it's great in aggro to thin out blockers, fun to combo with 187 dudes, and decent in control for slowing down midrange decks. It's the same reason I have Galepowder Mage in, really. I might leave it in for just a little while, because I feel like Flickerwisp isn't enough of that effect.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
These are the only suggested cards that I have sitting around, but do they seem like improvements?
Also, with regards to White Knight, I am kind of worried about having too many cards at WW. If you guys don't think that's a concern, then I'd rather drop the Galepowder Mage. My sister had Scepter of Dominance in her W/B aggro deck when we drafted, and it was like a more versatile Rishadan Port (Now that's a card I need).
I like all of those changes a lot (esp. Forcefield->Sol Ring. Boo yah!). I'd try to retain Demonfire because I like having a good number of red X-spells, but I definitely think it's one of the worst cubeworthy ones. You probably won't miss it.
There are so many good WW creatures that you can overload your cube with them without meaning to. White Knight is definitely one that you can do without, although I still run it and like it a lot. It all depends on how your drafts are running. If the casting cost of the weenies seems to be a problem, replace a couple with guys that cost 1W.
Cool. We drafted again tonight with the only change being Dissipate to Remand, and had a blast, but I'm sure it will only become more fun as we increase the power level of the cube. Thanks for the help guys.
Flipping through my binders looking for Sol Ring I stumbled across Necropotence. Is it worth trying out, or does the BBB render it unplayable?
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
Maybe I'll pass on Steel Hellkite then. I don't know, if the shop has it for a buck I'll probably pick it up anyway and give it a test.
All right, so if I'm going to be adding all of those in, I have to find drops. I went over our list, and these are some of the ones I found to be lacking/were pointed out by you guys.
It isn't that I dislike these cards, just that I think they're the weakest of what I have currently. If you disagree, let me know.
Furthermore, I am going to have to choose between Hellkite Charger and Bogarden Hellkite to go out for Inferno Titan, and right now I'm leaning towards Charger, but I'm not sure. I need another cut in Blue too - I'm thinking maybe Academy Ruins. I don't have the artifact support in blue like Tez and Tolarian Academy to enable an archetype, so without Mindslaver for the lock I think the Ruins loses some of its appeal, but I don't know. It's such a powerful effect. Do you guys have suggestions for drops in blue?
Meanwhile, I realized today that I have gone my entire Magic career without knowing that Volcanic Hammer could be thrown at creatures. I've always thought it was a Lava Axe effect. I think I should probably get it into the cube if I can find one when I go shopping. Assuming that I also add in Arc Lightning and Arc Trail, I've 3 burn spells to add and only 2 to drop (Ur-Rage and Hammer), so I think I need help there too, if you've got it to offer.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
I am still playing with Rampaging Baloths, but if you want to keep the 8/5 legend for flavor reasons, you are not losing too much, since the beast engine will disappear from a lot of lists as soon as the next 6 mana fatty in green gets printed.
looks like the changes from post #6 don't show up in your list, yet.
Ugh, sorry about that. Fixed. Sorry the list wasn't accurate, that's my bad.
If you only care about the power level of the cards, there is nothing to complain about cutting the Baloths, but on the other hand this will leave a big gap between the 5 and 8 mana in the curve. i would be more comfortable with replacing Oracle of Mul Daya instead.
Good idea. I was running Oracle thinking it might be as good as Future Sight, but I don't think it's been played yet. Luckily, we have several drafts planned before I make it to the comic shop to pick up singles, but I think you're right about the curve. I'll keep an eye on Oracle.
With Chimeric Mass coming in you could replace Chimeric Idol, since Glaciers is just such a good card against other slow decks.
I'd like to be able to run both for at least a little while; Reading these forums and all of the great articles that have been put together by its members has led me to believe that aggro needs a lot more support than control, and Glaciers is only good for slow decks, while I think both Chimeric artifacts can be great.
You don't have to recur the same artifact over and over again or build a deck around it - just having an "indestructible" Vedalken Shackles / Razormane Masticore / Umezawa's Jitte is good enough for me. It is also a great card in combination with Gifts Ungiven.
Yeah, and it ends up being a Volrath's Stronghold a lot of the time, especially with the additional artifact creatures from the new sets. Like I said, I don't like the idea of dropping it, I just thought it might be the weakest of my blue.
Kira and Wake are part of an attempt to allow aggro to use U if it wants to. I want to test them for at least a little while, so I'll probably give Future Sight the cut. I've seen what it's capable of in EDH, especially with a Top online, but it is awfully hard to cast and super slow.
I guess you could remove Viashino Slaughtermaster or 1 X-spell in red, but the Hammer is not a must have anyway.
I want to take your earlier advice with regards to Slaughtermaster and see how he works once we get some of the new equipment in the cube, but I might drop him for now if I find a Hammer. Or I might just start a box of borderline cards like Hammer and switch them in and out every once in awhile.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
Good idea. I was running Oracle thinking it might be as good as Future Sight, but I don't think it's been played yet. Luckily, we have several drafts planned before I make it to the comic shop to pick up singles, but I think you're right about the curve. I'll keep an eye on Oracle. Oracle was in my cube briefly and was spectacularly unimpressive. At three mana I think she'd be awesome but at four she's meh. I think she has a place in large cubes (maybe 700 cards or so) but not in small to medium cubes.
I'd like to be able to run both for at least a little while; Reading these forums and all of the great articles that have been put together by its members has led me to believe that aggro needs a lot more support than control, and Glaciers is only good for slow decks, while I think both Chimeric artifacts can be great. I really like both chimeric guys and run both. The Idol's days may be limited depending on what else we get in this block. The Mass is the better card but they both are good aggro beaters. I love to drop the Idol and then play Wildfire.
Pretty much what I'm thinking. The Charger is going to have to earn his spot over the next few drafts if he wants to stay in. I miss the Charger but red can 't afford too many expensive critters, and Titan, Bogardan Hellkite, and Crater Hellion are superior IMO.
Yeah, and it ends up being a Volrath's Stronghold a lot of the time, especially with the additional artifact creatures from the new sets. Like I said, I don't like the idea of dropping it, I just thought it might be the weakest of my blue. Ruins is exactly a Stronghold for artifacts. That makes it not as good but still pretty strong. Recurring Bottle Gnomes with it is a serious pain for aggro and it's fun with Nevinyrral's Disk.
Kira and Wake are part of an attempt to allow aggro to use U if it wants to. I want to test them for at least a little while, so I'll probably give Future Sight the cut. I've seen what it's capable of in EDH, especially with a Top online, but it is awfully hard to cast and super slow. I still run Future Sight but it's on the way out. It will probably be the next blue card I replace.
I want to take your earlier advice with regards to Slaughtermaster and see how he works once we get some of the new equipment in the cube, but I might drop him for now if I find a Hammer. Or I might just start a box of borderline cards like Hammer and switch them in and out every once in awhile. I'd rather have Volcanic Hammer, but I have no experience with the Slaughtermaster.
You don't have to recur the same artifact over and over again or build a deck around it - just having an "indestructible" Vedalken Shackles / Razormane Masticore / Umezawa's Jitte is good enough for me.
This is my exact sentiment. Academy Ruins is simply good enough on its own merits, IMO. When you chain Nevs Disk or Memory Jar, it's just Gravy.
Okay, after 4 drafts over the course of the last couple of days (w00t for Winter Break!), I think I want to try out a couple of cards that I traded for. These are the changes that I'm making, at least for a little while.
Let me know what you guys think. I also updated the OP to try to make it a little more presentable.
I should be able to get to the comic shop to go singles shopping some time after Christmas, so hopefully I'll get in a big update then.
EDIT: Forgot to ask this- Has anyone tried Manabarbs? My friend Rob suggested it, and it seems like it could be really great topping the curve of an aggro deck, but I don't see it in many of the lists that I read. Are we missing something?
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
I think it was rantipole, who suggested cutting the card. I am still playing with the mage and it doe a good job removing blockers while bashing in the air or reusing your etb creatures over and over again. Have you though about cutting something different, maybe Blade of the 6th Pride?
I have no problem with cutting the big rat ninja at some point, but you still have Beacon of Unrest in your list, which also costs 5 mana, but doesn't come attached to a 5 powered creature.
I was thanking you for suggesting the 1W fliers. I had totally overlooked those two scoops of vanilla. Sorry about that, I didn't mean to be confusing.
I like Galepowder Mage too, it's just that he hasn't been picked highly in our drafts. Furthermore, I really was only looking in the upper CMC range for cuts. I hadn't thought about cutting my little men. I actually like Blade quite a bit - It's hard to argue with 3 power on a 2 mana creature. 8.5 tails is someone I could see getting the axe though. Every time he's landed so far, the game ends before his owner has enough mana to really fuel his ability.
The more I think about that the more I like the idea of giving Galepowder another shot.
As for Beacon, you're absolutely right. I'm getting ahead of myself - I knew Ink Eyes was on the chopping block, but I couldn't remember for what, and now I remember that it's Grave Titan that I want to replace her with. So for now, she can avoid the drop.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
All right, I finally made it to the comic store this weekend, and I've acquired several of the singles I needed. I'm going to spoiler tag the changes, because there are many, many upgrades (At least, I think they're upgrades) and I don't want to wall of text anyone.
Whew, that took a long time to type. I'll update the OP to reflect these changes soon, but I'd like to hear some input first, if you guys are willing to give it.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
Just chiming in that I aqree with qq here: good changes other than the cards mentioned. Also, I agree with sexy on the 2/1 evasives vs. Blade of the 6th. Blade is a really cool card, but the 2/1 flyers are better.
I can understand where Eidolon and QQ are coming from about Temporal Isolation, although it can be really really disappointing in some match ups.
do you mean when you have shadow guys? because that has come up once, here. the shadow guys are great but there aren't exactly a lot of them in the average cube.
A simple change I can easily suggest (and I hope a lot of people will agree with) Blade of the 6th pride -> Mistral Charger / Stormfront Pegasus. The 2/1 fliers are decent beatsticks, usually hitting for 4-6, and Blade gets chumped like noone's business, and it's lack of evasion really hurts it imo.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
there's certainly better cards, and if you were running all of them and had no room for temporal isolation you should cut it. but that's true for literally any card in the cube, and i don't think isolation is the worst card he has in white.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
Thanks for all of the suggestions guys! Also, I'm glad to know that you like most of the changes.
I already added one of the 1W fliers earlier, dropping 8 1/2 tails for it. Do you think that both are needed here? I'd like to have variety whenever it isn't super awesome redundancy (who doesn't love 2 Savannah Lions?).
I was hoping to cut a spell in white, which is why I went with Temporal Isolation, but after all of the love it got here it's worth another shot. I'll add it back in.
The more I see of Scepter of Dominance, the more surprised I am that it gets recommended for cutting so often. It's been beastly for us. Every white deck can appreciate a faster Icy.
Other than that I would also try to find something else to remove than Thawing Glaciers, since it is just such a dominant card in the control mirror, especially in combination with Karoos.
Hmm. I might cut Yertle the Turtle for it, at least for now. I think once Besieged comes out I'm going to have to expand the artifact section by 5, cutting one of each color, so maybe I can justify adding him back in then. I just don't think Chimeric Mass makes the Idol obsolete, and want to run both.
I traded for a couple of cards today with a buddy from work, so I'm going to find spots for them. I also want to move Squee into the red cards, since the favorite combo with him seems to be Skullclamp, and that will free up a colorless slot for my new Nim Deathmantle foil. I think I'm going to cut Ravenous Baboons for it - Goblin Ruinblaster, Molten Rain, and Avalanche Riders seem to be filling that role well enough, and no one takes the Baboons earlier than about 10th pick.
EDIT- I'd like to cut a green card for Life from the Loam, but can't figure out what's the worst in my green section. Maybe Rampaging Baloths to trim down the fatties? Any suggestions?
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
I see your point. I think my weakest 2 mana green card is Viridian Zealot, so how about dropping him for Loam?
I think I'll add Dust Bowl back in as part of my colorless expansion if Loam ends up performing well for us. For now, the colorless section feels tight to me.
Thanks for the help guys, from everyone in our group. You're helping us have tons of fun with this cube.
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
That would certainly improve your cube, but as stated above, Briarhorn would be my first choice when I had to cut a card in green.
D'oh! Didn't see that earlier. All right, I'm going to make that switch then. I thought maybe Briarhorn would give green some tricks, but I guess it doesn't really need them. I like the potential combos of LftL.
I think what I'll do once Besieged is released is cut from my multicolor section. It seems that everyone suggests that first on these forums, and it feels like solid advice. So if I drop 1 of every color pair, I'll have 10 spots in colorless to fill - Dust Bowl, Chimeric Idol, and Smokestack are cards that I want to fit in, and I'm hoping Besieged will give me enough to round out those additions.
After drafting with the new changes, I've come to 2 major conclusions. First, Mimic Vat is just bizarrely good, and Betote's comparison to Umezawa's Jitte actually makes a lot of sense to me now. No, they aren't equal in power level, but they do make it equally hard to perform combat math. It could be that the card is just so new to us that no one really knows how to play around it yet, but that card wrecked every game in which it was given time to do its thing.
Second, Sunblast Angel is really, really good. I think she's highly underrated currently, because a 6 mana Plague Wind is devastating, even if you can't hit creatures with summoning sickness.
Do you guys know a way to empower black aggro? Am I running the best 1 and 2 drops? I looked over the cube comparisons thread and can't see major ones that I'm missing, but I want to be sure. The archetype seems kind of weak at the moment. I'm looking to add more discard, certainly Stupor and maybe Inquisition of Kozilek.
That said, right now I think I'm going to change the following
in my opinion, "unfun" effects are really just effects a player doesn't understand how to use or how to beat. i'd rather understand (and play with others who understand) how to use and beat powerful effects than simplify the cube so no one has to.
For all I know, you are Kai Budde and for all you know I'm John Finkel. It doesn't matter. What matters is your logical argument for or against the card in question.
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The list is 450 cards, unpowered (our only restrictions are budgetary ones. Not that this is a budget cube, we just don't happen to have Moxen filling our binders)
Basic Information
Cube Size: 405 Cards
Breakdown: 56 of Each Color, 55 Colorless, 70 Multicolor
Standard or Theme Cube: Standard
Draft Frequency: During school, once a week or less. During breaks, 2-4 times a week.
Average Draft Number: 5-6 players or 2 players
Powered?: No
Portal?: No
"Un-" Cards: Yes
Banned for power reasons?: No
Banned for "fun" factor?: No
Banned for time reasons?: No
Standard or Multiplayer: Standard
Snow Cube?: No
Sideboards?: Yes. Matches are best 2/3, with sideboarding for games 2 and 3.
Proxies?: No
Functional Reprints?: Yes
Perfect Creature/Non-Creature Balance: No
Gold "As Printed" or "As Played": As Played
Perfectly Balanced CMC: No
The List
WWWW WHITE WWWW
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Land Tax
1 Mana Tithe
1 Path to Exile
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Balance
1 Disenchant
1 Journey to Nowhere
1 Seal of Cleansing
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Ajani Goldmane
1 Armageddon
1 Day of Judgment
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
1 Faith's Fetters
1 Wrath of God
1 Hallowed Burial
1 Catastrophe
1 Isamaru, Hound of Konda
1 Mother of Runes
1 Savannah Lions
1 Steppe Lynx
1 Student of Warfare
1 Accorder Paladin
1 Knight of Meadowgrain
1 Kor Skyfisher
1 Lone Missionary
1 Mistral Charger
1 Silver Knight
1 Soltari Monk
1 Soltari Priest
1 Soltari Trooper
1 Stoneforge Mystic
1 Stormfront Pegasus
1 Wall of Omens
1 Mirran Crusader
1 Mirror Entity
1 Paladin en-Vec
1 Blade Splicer
1 Soltari Champion
1 Spectral Procession
1 Calciderm
1 Exalted Angel
1 Kor Sanctifiers
1 Hero of Bladehold
1 Cloudgoat Ranger
1 Reveillark
1 Sun Titan
1 Yosei, the Morning Star
1 Eternal Dragon
UUUU BLUE UUUU
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Force of Will
1 Faerie Conclave
1 Brainstorm
1 Force Spike
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Ponder
1 Arcane Denial
1 Condescend
1 Counterspell
1 Impulse
1 Mana Leak
1 Memory Lapse
1 Miscalculation
1 Remand
1 Forbid
1 Jace Beleren
1 Psionic Blast
1 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Tinker
1 Vedalken Shackles
1 Control Magic
1 Cryptic Command
1 Deep Analysis
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Into the Roil
1 Jace, the Mindsculptor
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Treachery
1 Capsize
1 Upheaval
1 Time Spiral
1 Waterfront Bouncer
1 Phantasmal Image
1 Looter il-Kor
1 Spellskite
1 Aether Adept
1 Man-o'-War
1 Sea Gate Oracle
1 Serendib Efreet
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Willbender
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Thieving Magpie
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Meloku the Clouded Mirror
1 Morphling
1 Mulldrifter
1 Sphinx of Jwar Isle
1 Mind Twist
1 Profane Command
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Snuff Out
1 Dark Ritual
1 Despise
1 Disfigure
1 Dismember
1 Duress
1 Inquisition of Kozilek
1 Reanimate
1 Thoughtseize
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Chainer's Edict
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Doom Blade
1 Go For the Throat
1 Hymn to Tourach
1 Sinkhole
1 Necromancy
1 Phyrexian Arena
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Stupor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Damnation
1 Fume Spitter
1 Carnophage
1 Vampire Lacerator
1 Bitterblossom
1 Bloodghast
1 Dark Confidant
1 Dauthi Horror
1 Nantuko Shade
1 Nezumi Graverobber
1 Oona's Prowler
1 Vampire Hexmage
1 Bone Shredder
1 Dauthi Marauder
1 Hypnotic Specter
1 Liliana's Specter
1 Vampire Nighthawk
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Graveborn Muse
1 Nekrataal
1 Sewer Nemesis
1 Skinrender
1 Shriekmaw
1 Grave Titan
1 Kokusho, the Evening Star
1 Tombstalker
RRRR RED RRRR
1 Ghitu Encampment
1 Banefire
1 Earthquake
1 Starstorm
1 Burst Lightning
1 Chain Lightning
1 Firebolt
1 Forked Bolt
1 Lightning Bolt
1 Incinerate
1 Magma Jet
1 Pyroclasm
1 Volcanic Hammer
1 Arc Lightning
1 Blast from the Past
1 Chaos Warp
1 Char
1 Molten Rain
1 Pillage
1 Staggershock
1 Stone Rain
1 Sulfuric Vortex
1 Wheel of Fortune
1 Koth of the Hammer
1 Chandra Nalaar
1 Wildfire
1 Goblin Patrol
1 Greater Gargadon
1 Grim Lavamancer
1 Jackal Pup
1 Mogg Fanatic
1 Spikeshot Elder
1 Blood Knight
1 Ember Hauler
1 Fireslinger
1 Hellspark Elemental
1 Kargan Dragonlord
1 Keldon Marauders
1 Plated Geopede
1 Stormblood Berserker
1 Chandra's Phoenix
1 Ghitu Slinger
1 Keldon Vandals
1 Manic Vandal
1 Avalanche Riders
1 Flametongue Kavu
1 Hero of Oxid Ridge
1 Moltensteel Dragon
1 Crater Hellion
1 Inferno Titan
GGGG GREEN GGGG
1 Worldly Tutor
1 Life from the Loam
1 Regrowth
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Vines of Vastwood
1 Harrow
1 Cultivate
1 Ice Storm
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Krosan Grip
1 Krosan Tusker
1 Garruk Wildspeaker
1 Plow Under
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Joraga Treespeaker
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Noble Hierarch
1 Pouncing Jaguar
1 Twinblade Slasher
1 Wild Dogs
1 Wild Nacatl
1 Fauna Shaman
1 Mire Boa
1 River Boa
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Tarmogoyf
1 Wall of Blossoms
1 Wall of Roots
1 Wild Mongrel
1 Eternal Witness
1 Great Sable Stag
1 Troll Ascetic
1 Uktabi Orangutan
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Viridian Shaman
1 Blastoderm
1 Chameleon Colossus
1 Obstinate Baloth
1 Phantom Centaur
1 Thrun, the Last Troll
1 Wickerbough Elder
1 Deranged Hermit
1 Genesis
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Kodama of the North Tree
1 Thornling
1 Woodfall Primus
XXXX COLORLESS XXXX
1 Gemstone Mine
1 Grand Coliseum
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Maze of Ith
1 Mishra's Factory
1 Mutavault
1 Strip Mine
1 Wasteland
1 Bottle Gnomes
1 Porcelain Legionnaire
1 Lodestone Golem
1 Masticore
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Molten Tail Masticore
1 Razormane Masticore
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Myr Battlesphere
1 Mox Diamond
1 Black Vise
1 Cursed Scroll
1 Mana Vault
1 Pithing Needle
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Bonesplitter
1 Skullclamp
1 Ankh of Mishra
1 Winter Orb
1 Umezawa's Jitte
1 Grim Monolith
1 Mind Stone
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Coalition Relic
1 Grafted Wargear
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Sword of Body and Mind
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Sword of Light and Shadow
1 Sword of War and Peace
1 Ring of Gix
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Tangle Wire
1 Nevinyrral's Disk
1 Icy Manipulator
1 Erratic Portal
1 Phyrexian Processor
1 Memory Jar
WUBRG MULTICOLOR WUBRG
(This section includes all guild-aligned lands)
1 Absorb
1 Wall of Denial
1 Azorius Signet
1 Tundra
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Flooded Strand
1 Celestial Colonnade
1 Ajani Vengeant
1 Lightning Helix
1 Figure of Destiny
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Duergar Hedge-Mage
1 Plateau
1 Arid Mesa
1 Psychatog
1 Shadowmage Infiltrator
1 Underground Sea
1 Watery Grave
1 Polluted Delta
1 Creeping Tar Pit
1 Dimir Signet
1 Electrolyze
1 Fire/Ice
1 Izzet Signet
1 Prophetic Bolt
1 Volcanic Island
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Steam Vents
1 Terminate
1 Sarkhan the Mad
1 Murderous Redcap
1 Badlands
1 Blood Crypt
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Lavaclaw Reaches
1 Simic Sky Swallower
1 Trygon Predator
1 Mystic Snake
1 Edric, Spymaster of Trest
1 Breeding Pool
1 Tropical Island
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Bloodbraid Elf
1 Kird Ape
1 Raging Ravine
1 Stormbind
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Stomping Ground
1 Taiga
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Putrefy
1 Putrid Leech
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Bayou
1 Kitchen Finks
1 Loam Lion
1 Horizon Canopy
1 Qasali Pridemage
1 Savannah
1 Temple Garden
1 Windswept Heath
1 Desolation Angel
1 Mortify
1 Vindicate
1 Scrubland
1 Marsh Flats
1 Godless Shrine
1 Gerrard's Verdict
Wishlist (Within reason. I know that I'll never be willing to pay for Moat, Moxen, etc.)
Stupid overpriced Mythics
The Classics
I corrected all of the typos and I'm digesting all of the card information right now. I think you're absolutely right about picking up commons/uncommons/$10>rares, and I intend to do so soon, I just have some catching up to do with Rise, M11, and Scars.
I'm going to edit this post with some more in depth responses to the list, but I do want to say that I know I have some subpar stuff in there that will be replaced soon (Silent Specter, for example), but I've read that balancing the colors is really important, and so I just wanted to fill the space before our first draft.
Thanks.
EDIT: all right, time for me to go down the list.
WHITE
White Knight - I know I have one somewhere, but I'm not sure what to cut for it. Mostly an oversight on our part.
Sun Titan - I don't have one, but will get one of the cheap promo ones pronto.
Martial Coup - I could get one of these, but are all the Wraths really necessary? I'm already running several.
BLUE
Dissipate - I love Dissipate - Is there a reason so few people run it?
Remand - I forgot Remand? Holy crap. Will get this in as soon as possible.
Preordain- Neat card. This will be in my first order of M11 stuff.
Jace, the Mind Sculptor - Ha. Maybe when I'm out of college.
BLACK
Nezumi Cutthroat - Unblockable aggro chump. Would this be better as Black Knight?
Silent Specter - Placeholder
Booster Tutor - This seems really fun, and my brother had a foil. I still want to try it out.
Dark Ritual - Is 3 mana really worth the card in cube draft? We agreed Ritual probably wouldn't be good in limited. I guess we were wrong.
Black Knight - See Cutthroat.
Consuming Vapors - Didn't know about this one. I'll look for one on the cheap.
Skinrender - Love this. I'll get one ASAP.
Bloodghast - This too.
Liliana's Specter - This too. Wow, my black needs work.
Braids, Cabal Minion - Ah, prison effects. I'll go dig up my crap rare binder and see if I have a copy.
Grave Titan - This guy is right on the border of affordability. I might wait for him to rotate.
RED
[CARD]
Viashino Slaughtermaster[/CARD] - Placeholder. Mostly in to see if he can ever pick up an Equipment and start swinging.
Urza's Rage - Trying to reach critical mass in burn.
Blast from the Past - Is this just uncommon because it was in an Un-set? Otherwise I think it's pretty good.
Hammer of Bogardan - See Urza's Rage.
Manic Vandal - See Preordain
Fireball - Is it better than Comet Storm?
Ember Hauler - See Preordain
Inferno Titan - See Grave Titan
Arc Lightning - Just overlooked this, I think.
GREEN
Gaea's Anthem - I'm kind of surprised this one isn't used more often as well. It seems pretty good as aggro support.
Silvos, Rogue Elemental - Kind of a placeholder, kind of a nostalgia thing. I can see him going.
Cultivate - See Preordain
Indrik Stomphowler - Can't believe I missed him. I just need to pull him from one of my EDH decks.
Obstinate Baloth - See Preordain
Great Sable Stag - The Fairie hoser is good enough for cube? Granted, I haven't ever played with him, but he doesn't seem that great.
Fauna Shaman - See Grave Titan
Lotus Cobra - See Grave Titan
GOLD
Rumbling Slum - Definitely needs to be Sarkhan Vol, I just need to get my hands on one.
Nemesis of Reason - I don't get this one either. Nemesis blocks anything and can kill in 3 swings, regardless of blocks. Seems like a great U/B finisher. What's wrong with it?
Sarkhan Vol - See Rumbling Slum
COLORLESS
Forcefield - Wait, really? This is a classic. Is it that much worse in limited than constructed?
Sigil of Distinction - Placeholder.
[CARD]
Chimeric Mass[/CARD] - See Preordain
Wurmcoil Engine - See Grave Titan
Sword of Body and Mind - See Grave Titan
Crystal Ball - See Preordain
Sol Ring - D'oh! See Indrik Stomphowler.
Wasteland - I'm going to try to trade for one of these the next time I see my buddy Jason.
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
Demonfire to Fireball
Silvos, Rogue Elemental to Indrik Stomphowler
Dissipate to Remand (How did I miss Remand?!)
Silent Specter to Dark Ritual
Nezumi Cutthroat to Black Knight
Forcefield to Sol Ring
These are the only suggested cards that I have sitting around, but do they seem like improvements?
Also, with regards to White Knight, I am kind of worried about having too many cards at WW. If you guys don't think that's a concern, then I'd rather drop the Galepowder Mage. My sister had Scepter of Dominance in her W/B aggro deck when we drafted, and it was like a more versatile Rishadan Port (Now that's a card I need).
EDIT: Sorry curry, I didn't see your question initially. We've only played once, and I don't think Paralax Wave was played, but my idea putting it in was that it's great in aggro to thin out blockers, fun to combo with 187 dudes, and decent in control for slowing down midrange decks. It's the same reason I have Galepowder Mage in, really. I might leave it in for just a little while, because I feel like Flickerwisp isn't enough of that effect.
Hey, thanks for that. Good to know I'm doing something right.
I like all of those changes a lot (esp. Forcefield->Sol Ring. Boo yah!). I'd try to retain Demonfire because I like having a good number of red X-spells, but I definitely think it's one of the worst cubeworthy ones. You probably won't miss it.
There are so many good WW creatures that you can overload your cube with them without meaning to. White Knight is definitely one that you can do without, although I still run it and like it a lot. It all depends on how your drafts are running. If the casting cost of the weenies seems to be a problem, replace a couple with guys that cost 1W.
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
Flipping through my binders looking for Sol Ring I stumbled across Necropotence. Is it worth trying out, or does the BBB render it unplayable?
So here's my M11 and Scars of Mirrodin shopping list, at least the cheaper cards.
Sun Titan (The prerelease is even cheaper than I thought)
Preordain
Consuming Vapors
Skinrender
Bloodghast (With the money I'm saving on Sun Titan)
Fume Spitter (?) (Found this guy in the spoiler, think he's probably worth a shot. Not quite Mogg Fanatic, but close)
Liliana's Specter
Braids, Cabal Minion (I could have sworn I had one. Oh well, she's like 49 cents.)
Inferno Titan (A little more than I'd like to spend, but he does seem to be a much needed addition in red)
Cultivate (Picking up a couple of these for EDH too.)
Obstinate Baloth
Great Sable Stag (You guys sold me on it.)
Those last 3 I saw in the spoiler, and they look pretty ridiculous. What do you guys think?
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
All right, so if I'm going to be adding all of those in, I have to find drops. I went over our list, and these are some of the ones I found to be lacking/were pointed out by you guys.
It isn't that I dislike these cards, just that I think they're the weakest of what I have currently. If you disagree, let me know.
Furthermore, I am going to have to choose between Hellkite Charger and Bogarden Hellkite to go out for Inferno Titan, and right now I'm leaning towards Charger, but I'm not sure. I need another cut in Blue too - I'm thinking maybe Academy Ruins. I don't have the artifact support in blue like Tez and Tolarian Academy to enable an archetype, so without Mindslaver for the lock I think the Ruins loses some of its appeal, but I don't know. It's such a powerful effect. Do you guys have suggestions for drops in blue?
Meanwhile, I realized today that I have gone my entire Magic career without knowing that Volcanic Hammer could be thrown at creatures. I've always thought it was a Lava Axe effect. I think I should probably get it into the cube if I can find one when I go shopping. Assuming that I also add in Arc Lightning and Arc Trail, I've 3 burn spells to add and only 2 to drop (Ur-Rage and Hammer), so I think I need help there too, if you've got it to offer.
Ugh, sorry about that. Fixed. Sorry the list wasn't accurate, that's my bad.
Good idea. I was running Oracle thinking it might be as good as Future Sight, but I don't think it's been played yet. Luckily, we have several drafts planned before I make it to the comic shop to pick up singles, but I think you're right about the curve. I'll keep an eye on Oracle.
I'd like to be able to run both for at least a little while; Reading these forums and all of the great articles that have been put together by its members has led me to believe that aggro needs a lot more support than control, and Glaciers is only good for slow decks, while I think both Chimeric artifacts can be great.
Pretty much what I'm thinking. The Charger is going to have to earn his spot over the next few drafts if he wants to stay in.
Yeah, and it ends up being a Volrath's Stronghold a lot of the time, especially with the additional artifact creatures from the new sets. Like I said, I don't like the idea of dropping it, I just thought it might be the weakest of my blue.
Kira and Wake are part of an attempt to allow aggro to use U if it wants to. I want to test them for at least a little while, so I'll probably give Future Sight the cut. I've seen what it's capable of in EDH, especially with a Top online, but it is awfully hard to cast and super slow.
I want to take your earlier advice with regards to Slaughtermaster and see how he works once we get some of the new equipment in the cube, but I might drop him for now if I find a Hammer. Or I might just start a box of borderline cards like Hammer and switch them in and out every once in awhile.
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
This is my exact sentiment. Academy Ruins is simply good enough on its own merits, IMO. When you chain Nevs Disk or Memory Jar, it's just Gravy.
My 630 Card Powered Cube
My Article - "Cube Design Philosophy"
My Article - "Mana Short: A study in limited resource management."
My 50th Set (P)review - Discusses my top 20 Cube cards from OTJ!
Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni to Braids, Cabal Minion
Galepowder Mage to Stormfront Pegasus (thanks eidolon!)
Giant Solifuge to Copperline Gorge
Hearth Kami to Manic Vandal
Let me know what you guys think. I also updated the OP to try to make it a little more presentable.
I should be able to get to the comic shop to go singles shopping some time after Christmas, so hopefully I'll get in a big update then.
EDIT: Forgot to ask this- Has anyone tried Manabarbs? My friend Rob suggested it, and it seems like it could be really great topping the curve of an aggro deck, but I don't see it in many of the lists that I read. Are we missing something?
Ha, I use guys as a unisex term. Didn't mean to exclude anyone.
I was thanking you for suggesting the 1W fliers. I had totally overlooked those two scoops of vanilla. Sorry about that, I didn't mean to be confusing.
I like Galepowder Mage too, it's just that he hasn't been picked highly in our drafts. Furthermore, I really was only looking in the upper CMC range for cuts. I hadn't thought about cutting my little men. I actually like Blade quite a bit - It's hard to argue with 3 power on a 2 mana creature. 8.5 tails is someone I could see getting the axe though. Every time he's landed so far, the game ends before his owner has enough mana to really fuel his ability.
The more I think about that the more I like the idea of giving Galepowder another shot.
Eigh-And-A-Half-Tails to Galepowder Mage
As for Beacon, you're absolutely right. I'm getting ahead of myself - I knew Ink Eyes was on the chopping block, but I couldn't remember for what, and now I remember that it's Grave Titan that I want to replace her with. So for now, she can avoid the drop.
Beacon of Unrest to Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni
So here we go. (OUT becomes IN)
White
Parallax Wave becomes Sunblast Angel
Akroma, Angel of Wrath becomes Sun Titan
Temporal Isolation becomes White Knight
Blue
Ancestral Vision becomes Preordain
Future Sight becomes Aether Adept
Black
Living Death becomes Consuming Vapors
Smother becomes Fume Spitter
Phyrexian Scuta becomes Liliana's Specter
Ink-Eyes, Servant of Oni becomes Skinrender
Red
Hellkite Charger becomes Inferno Titan
Hell's Thunder becomes Spikeshot Elder
Urza's Rage becomes Arc Trail
Hammer of Bogardan becomes Arc Lightning
Green
Pelakka Wurm becomes Obstinate Baloth
Gaea's Anthem becomes Great Sable Stag
Oracle of Mul Daya becomes Cultivate
Colorless
Mindslaver becomes Wurmcoil Engine
Sigil of Distinction becomes Sword of Body and Mind
Obelisk of Alara becomes Myr Battlesphere
Aether Vial becomes Mimc Vat
Reflecting Pool becomes Chimeric Mass
Thawing Glaciers becomes Crystal Ball
Whew, that took a long time to type. I'll update the OP to reflect these changes soon, but I'd like to hear some input first, if you guys are willing to give it.
i really like temporal isolation, it's cheap splashable instant speed removal. i'd lose blade of the sixth pride or maybe scepter of dominance if you don't want to lose a creature. i think a cube this size could be without any of these three or white knight, though.
i like hell's thunder more than viashino slaughtermaster, but you are hurting for two drops. why no kargan dragonlord?
i don't like losing reflecting pool. i'd kick out isochron scepter instead, it was less consistent than i would like. i value solid fixing higher.
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
do you mean when you have shadow guys? because that has come up once, here. the shadow guys are great but there aren't exactly a lot of them in the average cube.
thirded.
I already added one of the 1W fliers earlier, dropping 8 1/2 tails for it. Do you think that both are needed here? I'd like to have variety whenever it isn't super awesome redundancy (who doesn't love 2 Savannah Lions?).
I was hoping to cut a spell in white, which is why I went with Temporal Isolation, but after all of the love it got here it's worth another shot. I'll add it back in.
The more I see of Scepter of Dominance, the more surprised I am that it gets recommended for cutting so often. It's been beastly for us. Every white deck can appreciate a faster Icy.
Yup
Hmm. I might cut Yertle the Turtle for it, at least for now. I think once Besieged comes out I'm going to have to expand the artifact section by 5, cutting one of each color, so maybe I can justify adding him back in then. I just don't think Chimeric Mass makes the Idol obsolete, and want to run both.
I traded for a couple of cards today with a buddy from work, so I'm going to find spots for them. I also want to move Squee into the red cards, since the favorite combo with him seems to be Skullclamp, and that will free up a colorless slot for my new Nim Deathmantle foil. I think I'm going to cut Ravenous Baboons for it - Goblin Ruinblaster, Molten Rain, and Avalanche Riders seem to be filling that role well enough, and no one takes the Baboons earlier than about 10th pick.
Chimeric Idol becomes Thawing Glaciers
Blade of the Sixth Pride becomes Temporal Isolation
Viashino Slaughtermaster becomes Ember Hauler
Dust Bowl becomes Wasteland
Ravenous Baboons becomes Squee, Goblin Nabob
Squee, Goblin Nabob becomes Nim Deathmantle
EDIT- I'd like to cut a green card for Life from the Loam, but can't figure out what's the worst in my green section. Maybe Rampaging Baloths to trim down the fatties? Any suggestions?
I think I'll add Dust Bowl back in as part of my colorless expansion if Loam ends up performing well for us. For now, the colorless section feels tight to me.
Thanks for the help guys, from everyone in our group. You're helping us have tons of fun with this cube.
D'oh! Didn't see that earlier. All right, I'm going to make that switch then. I thought maybe Briarhorn would give green some tricks, but I guess it doesn't really need them. I like the potential combos of LftL.
I think what I'll do once Besieged is released is cut from my multicolor section. It seems that everyone suggests that first on these forums, and it feels like solid advice. So if I drop 1 of every color pair, I'll have 10 spots in colorless to fill - Dust Bowl, Chimeric Idol, and Smokestack are cards that I want to fit in, and I'm hoping Besieged will give me enough to round out those additions.
After drafting with the new changes, I've come to 2 major conclusions. First, Mimic Vat is just bizarrely good, and Betote's comparison to Umezawa's Jitte actually makes a lot of sense to me now. No, they aren't equal in power level, but they do make it equally hard to perform combat math. It could be that the card is just so new to us that no one really knows how to play around it yet, but that card wrecked every game in which it was given time to do its thing.
Second, Sunblast Angel is really, really good. I think she's highly underrated currently, because a 6 mana Plague Wind is devastating, even if you can't hit creatures with summoning sickness.
Do you guys know a way to empower black aggro? Am I running the best 1 and 2 drops? I looked over the cube comparisons thread and can't see major ones that I'm missing, but I want to be sure. The archetype seems kind of weak at the moment. I'm looking to add more discard, certainly Stupor and maybe Inquisition of Kozilek.
That said, right now I think I'm going to change the following
Briarhorn becomes Life from the Loam
Night's Whisper becomes Stupor
Comet Storm becomes Volcanic Hammer