What what? Genesis? yea yea we all know its good....
This is not my goal with this discussion. What cards would you re-visit if you had your choice? Power, the best in each color? I hope that I can spawn the idea that there is more to card choices in cube than "most powerful" or "Best"
Genesis has been in a staple in cubes of every size long before I created my first almost 2 years ago. It has stayed tired and true for the most part through that time. New, broken cards have been printed, but still it holds. However, some have discarded it.
Genesis isn't as flashy as Survival of the Fittest (but they work together well). Genesis is a workhorse in a color that likes to "bring it". Genesis is a green card that truly embodies what green does best.
BIG MANA
But it only costs five? Yes, but after biting the dust lots of mana will win you the game with Genesis. The number one reason to play Genesis is the ability to gain inevitability. This cannot be overstated if you can keep up the pressure long enough, cracks will form, and the wall will break.
SIZE
4 Toughness is what I call the tipping point into the beefy realm. This is the level that will dodge red spells and will either defeat or trade with all lower CMCs (with exceptions to be sure). Efficient Body, check.
SUPPORT
It might seem strange, but if you really look at green supporting other colors is a staple of it's diet. Being splash-able is important to role players like Genesis.
Don't forget the role players when you build your cube!
Genesis is one of those cards that just doesn't look exciting when I draft it OR put it in to play. It takes a little work and time to get him going, but when you do, it pays dividends. Buying back stuff like Shriekmaw or even Strangleroot Geist is just killer.
On top of all the obvious applications--Survival, bringing back utility guys, post-Wrath recovery--it combos nicely with Braids, Cabal Minion, Smokestack, Masticore and his brothers, and any creature that you sacrifice for an effect (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Vampire Hexmage). It's great with any card that makes you discard, particularly Wild Mongrel.
To add: Green decks need cards to help them beat control decks.
There are other green creatures that have resilience. Shroud, uncounterable etc. Genesis is a role player that breaks symetry wide open, even survival can be beaten if you can counter enough creatures that the player with survival is drawing off the top simply to find more gas.
Take home message....Don't forget your role players, both in constructing the cube and your deck.
Cheers,
H.G.
P.S. I was going to do one of these in each color, discussing a creature that really defines the color, and is a main stay while not being overly broken. (in other words, cards that to the untrained eye, might be overlooked or brushed asside)
I have red, blue, and black figured, but I need to think on White.
The one thing I'd question about him is if he's as good in heavy aggro cubes as the recursion cost is not cheap.
It seems to me that getting to 5 (or getting him in the yard and paying 3 every turn) just isn't a winning proposition without the deck built around Survival of the Fittest if you expect at least half (I don't know what sort of %'s Blimpy and TAB (as far as I can tell the 2 most aggro focused cubes) have so I made up half) the decks drafted to be aggro.
Edit for the card for white, what about reveillark? I mean most people realize it's a good card but some people can forget just how powerful the effect can be.
The one thing I'd question about him is if he's as good in heavy aggro cubes as the recursion cost is not cheap.
It seems to me that getting to 5 (or getting him in the yard and paying 3 every turn) just isn't a winning proposition without the deck built around Survival of the Fittest if you expect at least half (I don't know what sort of %'s Blimpy and TAB (as far as I can tell the 2 most aggro focused cubes) have so I made up half) the decks drafted to be aggro.
Edit for the card for white, what about reveillark? I mean most people realize it's a good card but some people can forget just how powerful the effect can be.
Building a green deck agro deck thinking you wont hit 6+ mana is probably not to your advantage anyway. I've seen very very few games end by turn 4 and nearly all of them involve somethin broken or mana screw. Some control decks will have the tools to deal with every threat you play early, but its not likely that they will be able to recover once genesis gets going.
Why I though Genesis was a good case study is that it promotes a deeper understanding of deck design.
Can you build your deck with a super low curve and cap out at 4 lands? sure.
Is it worth the risk of getting into a unwinnable situation because you have only velocity and not inevitabilty? Thats a harder question.
Re: Revilark
I don't associate the abilities on Revilark as particularly "White" in nature. Its more of an outlier than a commonality (a very powerful one to be sure). I've considers Exalted Angel, Soltari Champion, Kor Sanctifiers, and Cloudgoat Ranger so far.
I didn't mean in an aggro deck so much as in a format that is overflowing with aggro decks, my post wasn't very clear on that. It is a card that is insane against control and midrange, but I was curious how it fares in the aggro-centric cubes as it might be a little slow and low immediate impact for those midrange decks.
As for reveillark that makes sense then, of those cards I'd talk about cloudgoat ranger as it can seem under powered on first glance. Then again Soltari Champion would be an interesting one also.
I don't associate the abilities on Revilark as particularly "White" in nature. Its more of an outlier than a commonality (a very powerful one to be sure). I've considers Exalted Angel, Soltari Champion, Kor Sanctifiers, and Cloudgoat Ranger so far.
I think Reveillark is a good choice for one of these discussions, since like Genesis, it's slightly overcosted for the base creature but has extra interactions that you want to take advantage of in certain games or deck styles.
If you don't want to use Reveillark, I think Soltari Champion is good from your list, since it can actually have a pretty high variance in practice. It's either superb with multiple creatures (tons of damage), great with equipment on his own (3-mana unblockable with huge power and damage triggers), or poor (3-mana 2/2 unblockable... that doesn't pump anything).
I didn't mean in an aggro deck so much as in a format that is overflowing with aggro decks, my post wasn't very clear on that. It is a card that is insane against control and midrange, but I was curious how it fares in the aggro-centric cubes as it might be a little slow and low immediate impact for those midrange decks.
As for reveillark that makes sense then, of those cards I'd talk about cloudgoat ranger as it can seem under powered on first glance. Then again Soltari Champion would be an interesting one also.
Being slow against agro is certainly one of its drawbacks, but it still has a body that can battle. A green deck facing another agro deck wants to go over the top by accelerating into bigger creatures and spells faster. Overwhelming them with resources and outclassing smaller creatures.
White is a hard one because White goes in all directions, it is a complete color that can do everything except damage players with spells directly.
Yea, I was thinking Cloudgoat, or Exalted Angel because they fit everywhere.
Student of Warfare is another perfect one but its also obviously good and substancially newer.
I think Exalted Angel is more clearly good to the untrained eye than Cloudgoat, at least I see a lot more posts questioning Cloudgoat Ranger than the Angel. So you going to keep us in suspense on R, U & B?
Genesis is a great card. You just have to board it out against really fast aggressive decks because it's too slow there. But it's great in midrange and control match ups.
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Calvin and Hobbes Cube Tutor
When evaluating this card, what slot do you compare it in?
It seems like a lot of people are comparing it to other green 5 drops (e.g. Deranged Hermit, Thragtusk) which isn't really where the value of the card lies.
It feels more like a 0 mana free graveyard enchantment al-la Bridge from Below that should probably compete with some narrow, unrelated card like Oath of Druids. Or it should compete with Regrowth.
In any case, given the UG Ramp is a very strong cube archtype and that 360 card cubes typically have both Fauna Shaman and Survival of the Fittest along with the embarrassment of riches that blue has to offer in the looting department like Jace, Vryn's Prodigy, Looter-il Kor and Enclave Cytologist, I wonder if this card has a home there for the important roles of wrath insurance and late game mana sink / card advantage.
It seems ideally positioned to take advantage of both the massive amounts of ramp mana and looting effects while hedging against some of the weaknesses (sweepers, mana/flood topdeck mode)
In a high powered environment, Genesis is way too slow to compete these days. Great nostalgic card, but it's nowhere near consideration for me in 2018.
What what? Genesis? yea yea we all know its good....
This is not my goal with this discussion. What cards would you re-visit if you had your choice? Power, the best in each color? I hope that I can spawn the idea that there is more to card choices in cube than "most powerful" or "Best"
Genesis has been in a staple in cubes of every size long before I created my first almost 2 years ago. It has stayed tired and true for the most part through that time. New, broken cards have been printed, but still it holds. However, some have discarded it.
Genesis isn't as flashy as Survival of the Fittest (but they work together well). Genesis is a workhorse in a color that likes to "bring it". Genesis is a green card that truly embodies what green does best.
BIG MANA
But it only costs five? Yes, but after biting the dust lots of mana will win you the game with Genesis. The number one reason to play Genesis is the ability to gain inevitability. This cannot be overstated if you can keep up the pressure long enough, cracks will form, and the wall will break.
SIZE
4 Toughness is what I call the tipping point into the beefy realm. This is the level that will dodge red spells and will either defeat or trade with all lower CMCs (with exceptions to be sure). Efficient Body, check.
SUPPORT
It might seem strange, but if you really look at green supporting other colors is a staple of it's diet. Being splash-able is important to role players like Genesis.
Don't forget the role players when you build your cube!
Cheers,
H.G.
http://hgcube.blogspot.com/ (help me Make my Custom CUBE!)
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=382498
The "Make a Proxy Thread
Redit Proxy Article "current gallery"
MY LEGACY ALTERS
Over the course of a game, it will take up a lot of your mana to give you the inevitability and versatility it can provide.
My Cube Blog @theCubeMiser on Twitter
I rank Genesis within green's 20 best cards.
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
There are other green creatures that have resilience. Shroud, uncounterable etc. Genesis is a role player that breaks symetry wide open, even survival can be beaten if you can counter enough creatures that the player with survival is drawing off the top simply to find more gas.
Take home message....Don't forget your role players, both in constructing the cube and your deck.
Cheers,
H.G.
P.S. I was going to do one of these in each color, discussing a creature that really defines the color, and is a main stay while not being overly broken. (in other words, cards that to the untrained eye, might be overlooked or brushed asside)
I have red, blue, and black figured, but I need to think on White.
Suggestions?
http://hgcube.blogspot.com/ (help me Make my Custom CUBE!)
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=382498
The "Make a Proxy Thread
Redit Proxy Article "current gallery"
MY LEGACY ALTERS
It seems to me that getting to 5 (or getting him in the yard and paying 3 every turn) just isn't a winning proposition without the deck built around Survival of the Fittest if you expect at least half (I don't know what sort of %'s Blimpy and TAB (as far as I can tell the 2 most aggro focused cubes) have so I made up half) the decks drafted to be aggro.
Edit for the card for white, what about reveillark? I mean most people realize it's a good card but some people can forget just how powerful the effect can be.
Building a green deck agro deck thinking you wont hit 6+ mana is probably not to your advantage anyway. I've seen very very few games end by turn 4 and nearly all of them involve somethin broken or mana screw. Some control decks will have the tools to deal with every threat you play early, but its not likely that they will be able to recover once genesis gets going.
Why I though Genesis was a good case study is that it promotes a deeper understanding of deck design.
Can you build your deck with a super low curve and cap out at 4 lands? sure.
Is it worth the risk of getting into a unwinnable situation because you have only velocity and not inevitabilty? Thats a harder question.
Re: Revilark
I don't associate the abilities on Revilark as particularly "White" in nature. Its more of an outlier than a commonality (a very powerful one to be sure). I've considers Exalted Angel, Soltari Champion, Kor Sanctifiers, and Cloudgoat Ranger so far.
http://hgcube.blogspot.com/ (help me Make my Custom CUBE!)
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=382498
The "Make a Proxy Thread
Redit Proxy Article "current gallery"
MY LEGACY ALTERS
As for reveillark that makes sense then, of those cards I'd talk about cloudgoat ranger as it can seem under powered on first glance. Then again Soltari Champion would be an interesting one also.
I think Reveillark is a good choice for one of these discussions, since like Genesis, it's slightly overcosted for the base creature but has extra interactions that you want to take advantage of in certain games or deck styles.
If you don't want to use Reveillark, I think Soltari Champion is good from your list, since it can actually have a pretty high variance in practice. It's either superb with multiple creatures (tons of damage), great with equipment on his own (3-mana unblockable with huge power and damage triggers), or poor (3-mana 2/2 unblockable... that doesn't pump anything).
My Cube Blog @theCubeMiser on Twitter
Being slow against agro is certainly one of its drawbacks, but it still has a body that can battle. A green deck facing another agro deck wants to go over the top by accelerating into bigger creatures and spells faster. Overwhelming them with resources and outclassing smaller creatures.
White is a hard one because White goes in all directions, it is a complete color that can do everything except damage players with spells directly.
Yea, I was thinking Cloudgoat, or Exalted Angel because they fit everywhere.
Student of Warfare is another perfect one but its also obviously good and substancially newer.
http://hgcube.blogspot.com/ (help me Make my Custom CUBE!)
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=382498
The "Make a Proxy Thread
Redit Proxy Article "current gallery"
MY LEGACY ALTERS
Calvin and Hobbes
Cube Tutor
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
It seems like a lot of people are comparing it to other green 5 drops (e.g. Deranged Hermit, Thragtusk) which isn't really where the value of the card lies.
It feels more like a 0 mana free graveyard enchantment al-la Bridge from Below that should probably compete with some narrow, unrelated card like Oath of Druids. Or it should compete with Regrowth.
In any case, given the UG Ramp is a very strong cube archtype and that 360 card cubes typically have both Fauna Shaman and Survival of the Fittest along with the embarrassment of riches that blue has to offer in the looting department like Jace, Vryn's Prodigy, Looter-il Kor and Enclave Cytologist, I wonder if this card has a home there for the important roles of wrath insurance and late game mana sink / card advantage.
It seems ideally positioned to take advantage of both the massive amounts of ramp mana and looting effects while hedging against some of the weaknesses (sweepers, mana/flood topdeck mode)
360 card powered Chicago cube:
https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/e7r
2020 Numerical Power Rankings:
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/the-cube-forum/cube-card-and-archetype/817969-2020-numerical-cube-power-rankings
2018 CubeTutor Power Rankings:
https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/the-cube-forum/cube-card-and-archetype/803301-cubetutor-power-rankings-2018-by-color-and-cmc
Cheers,
rant
My Cube
CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5f5d0310ed602310515d4c32
Cube Tutor: http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1963
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra