MTG Salvation

Banding + Provoke is really interesting. It allows you to basically provoke with a bigger creature and then shunt any damage to that creature. It honestly seems a little oppressive, really. If I have this guy and a 5/5, you can't cast any creatures that are 4/4 or smaller or I can just swing, provoke, and pick them off. You'll note that of the nine actual creatures printed with Provoke, every single one has either Power or Toughness 3 or less, with the exception of Feral Throwback, who can get larger than that, but requires specific deck construction to do so. Every other provoke creature with high power has low toughness so they can trade with a creature but can't but can't just bulldoze everything, and every provoke creature with high toughness has low power so they can take creatures out of blocking and survive but can't consistently pick off midsized creatures.

So in short, yeah this seems Cubeable, but I'm concerned it would lead to a negative play experience due to how easy it can become to shut your opponent out of meaningful creature combat.

Musing on making an actually-Green Sylvan Library:

Sylvan Sage 1G
Creature - Human Druid
At the beginning of your upkeep, look at the top three cards of your library and put them back in any order.
At the beginning of your draw step, if you control a creature with power 4 or greater, draw an additional card. If you control a creature with power 8 or greater, instead draw two additional cards.
2/2

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Made a mythic one drop cycle that shares the following features:
- Mono-color one drops
- Each has an activated or triggered ability
- Each one has a transform ability that can become cheaper in a way connected to the first ability.
- Each transformation represents an iconic tribe respective to the color. (Angel, Demon, Beast, Dragon, Sphinx)
- Each card references its power or toughness in varied ways. Some less overt than others.

"Beast" is not the iconic creature type of Green. Hydra is. Just noting that.

Beastling G
Creature - Beast (M)
Beastling cannot attack alone if an opponent controls a creature with two or more power.
2GGGG: Transform Beastling. If an opponent controls a creature with four or more power you may pay 2GG instead to activate this ability.
2/2
////
Beast Pack Alpha
Creature - Beast (M)
Trample
When Beast Pack Alpha enters the battlefield you may have it fight target creature an opponent controls. (Each deals damage equal to its power to the other.)
5/5

Decent mix of abilities. I like the combination of the Orgg ability and the Mogg Flunkies ability, it allows this to attack live on curve a lot of the time which is solid, while still being a drawback.

Do note that transforming a creature does not cause it to enter the battlefield unless you use the "exile and return flipped" tech from the transform walkers. The actual text you want should be taken from Ravager of the Fells.

Benevolent Warrior W
Creature - Human Monk (M)
W: Prevent one damage dealt to an attacking or blocking creature you control.
3WWW: Transform Benevolent Warrior. If one or more damage dealt to a creature you control was prevented this turn you may pay 2WW instead to activate this ability.
2/1
////
Angel of Benevolence
Creature - Angel (M)
Flying, Vigilance
1WW: Prevent up to four damage dealt to creatures you control.
3/4

Obviously a strong card because it's Elite Vanguard++, but I have some issues with this one. That damage prevention ability seems like it could be pretty oppressive, letting you swing freely into what would otherwise be trades. I'm also not super fond of how the transform discount is basically automatic if any combat happens, but also basically always just a discount of W instead of WW since there's not a ton of sources of prevention in Cube.

Also, the prevention wording is not quite correct. It should be "Prevent the next 1 damage that would be dealt to target attacking or blocking creature you control this turn" and "Prevent the next 4 damage that would be dealt this turn to any number of target creatures you control, divided as you choose."

Calcified Cultist B
Creature - Skeleton Wizard (M)
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may sacrifice a creature.
2BBBB: Transform Calcified Cultist. If you sacrificed a creature this turn you may pay 2BB instead to activate this ability.
2/1
////
Flesh Demon
Creature - Demon (M)
Flying
Sacrifice a creature: Flesh Demon gains indestructible and +X/+Y where X is the sacrificed creature’s power and Y is the sacrificed creature’s toughness until end of turn.
3/4

Not super fond of black getting a drawbackless 2/1, it should at least enter tapped or not be able to block. It also seems weird to have a sac ability that serves no purpose except to trigger a discount on its flip cost. Maybe make it do something minor like drain 1 life? Alternately, make this a Carrion Feeder variation.

I'm also not a huge fan of the flip side using both X and Y. I'd probably change this to be something like:

Front side: 1/1, at the beginning of your upkeep you may sacrifice a creature to put a +1/+1 counter on it.
Backside: 3/4, Sac a creature: Put X +1/+1 counters on it, where X is the sacrificed creature's power.

The flavor of a skeleton turning into a "flesh demon" is also super weird. I'd make this a Human or maybe a Zombie.

Masterful Mentalist U
Creature - Human Wizard (M)
U, : Draw a card, then put two cards from your hand on top of your library in any order.
3UUU: Transform Masterful Mentalist. If you have drawn more than one card this turn you may pay 2UU instead to activate this ability.
1/2
////
Majestic Mentalist
Creature - Sphinx (M)
Flying
:Draw four cards, then put three cards from your hand on top of your library in any order. You may reveal any of the cards returned to the top of your library this way. Majestic Mentalist gains protection from each card type of the revealed cards until end of turn.
4/3

The first side's draw ability seems super weak, and I'd probably only ever use it to get a one mana discount on the flip cost if I had no other way to draw an extra card. The backside's draw ability is strong, but I'm not super fond of how this basically can't attack because it has to tap to use this ability to do anything of note. Probably the weakest of these designs IMO.

Talon Collector R
Creature - Goblin Shaman (M)
R, : Talon Collector deals 1 damage to any target and 1 damage to you.
3RRR: Transform Talon Collector. If at least two players have been dealt damage this turn you may pay 2RR to activate this ability instead.
1/1
////
Twin-Talon Dragon
Creature - Dragon (M)
Flying, Double Strike
Whenever an instant or sorcery an opponent controls targets Twin-Talon Dragon you may copy that spell, if you do, choose new targets for the copied spell.
2/4

I like the symmetrical ping, though I'm curious why red doesn't get a 2-power dude. Again I'm not super fond of how the ability is one of the few ways to trigger the discount and so the discount effectively becomes only 1 instead of 2.

The dragon is strong, but I don't really get the spell reflection component of it as a cohesive card here.


I'm also confused overall on the cycle why some cost 2MMMM to flip and others cost 3MMM, but all the discounted costs are 2MM. Why is green the only one whose flip condition has nothing to do with its other abilities?

The cycle also seems extremely busy, between each card being either a one drop beater with an extra ability or a powerful utility creature, AND having a transform ability, AND having a discount on the transform ability under certain circumstances, and then the backside having more abilities that may or may not be linked to the front side. I guess that's fine for mythics, but I'd maybe look for a place that they could be trimmed down slightly.

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

Just a one-of for today

Dwindleburn Phoenix 2RR
Creature - Phoenix (M)
Flying
At the beginning of your end step put a -1/-1 counter on Dwindleburn Phoenix for each red spell less than two cast this turn.
1R: Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a red card. Put that card into your hand and exile the other cards. You take damage equal to the number of cards revealed this way.
6/6

That EOT trigger seems really confusingly worded. "At the beginning of your end step, if you cast fewer than two red spells this turn, put a -1/-1 counter on Dwindleburn Phoenix. If you cast no red spells this turn, instead put two of those -1/-1 counters on it."

That last ability also doesn't seem particularly red. I'd maybe like to see it as a Chandra's Impulse variant. "Exile cards from the top of your library until a red card is exiled this way. You may cast that card this turn."

The real problem with Zealous Conscripts is that it's 5cmc when the competition at that slot is pretty high - it's tough to beat Glorybringer, Stormbreath Dragon, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, and Siege-Gang Commander, and there's only so many slots. 6 CMC is even tighter, you rarely want to run more than one 6 CMC red card - even the average 720 cube doesn't run more than Inferno Titan, and I don't think this beats it.

If you truly want to make a Zealous Conscripts variant that's more guaranteed to see play, the thing to do is bring down the CMC. The following card would be a slam dunk in most cubes:

Zealous Dinger 1RR
Creature - Goblin Warrior
When Zealous Dinger enters the battlefield, gain control of target creature until end of turn. Untap it, it gains haste until end of turn.
1/1

Because that gives you a playble threaten effect that also goes infinite with Splinter Twin/Kiki-Jiki at a mana cost where you aren't conflicting with those.

I could also see 2RR as a 3/2 with haste or something.

Quote from BlackWaltz3 »

I think cubes don't run more than one red 6 drop because there isn't a great one outside of Inferno Titan. This could fill the gap I think. I'd like to make this effect playable without having to force combo. I would not run the 1RR version, but I would run mine.

Combustible Gearhulk and Burning Sun's Avatar are both solid enough that a 720 cube would run them if it was worth playing more than one 6 drop.

Oh yeah, that new guy is pretty baller.

Right. Do you think this card you've proposed here beats out Emissary of Grudges or Inferno Titan? I'm thinking probably not.