So in attempting to build my first cube (a360) I can't wrap my head around what to do archetype wise. Is it suggested to do 5 strongly defined archetypes with secondary ones being there to support? 10 defined archetypeS? Or just a smattering of good cards of each color and make the best deck?
When defining the archetype is there a suggested number of "supporting" cards to it? Or should I just focus on balancing the 5 prime colors themselves?
I Look forward to seeing your advices, I hope to be drafting my own cube for 2016
It probably comes down to personal style, but personally, I like the direction new Magic sets have been going with incorporating archetypes.
Here's the way I broke down my cube. Each color has a main strategy that is heavily supported within color. White is aggro white weenie, blue is classic mono-blue control, black is pox/attrition, I'll come back to black, red is aggro/burn, and green is ramp. Combining those strategies into 2-color pairs leads to variations on those archetypes, and the multicolor cards are picked to support them. Right now, I'm experimenting with including multicolor cards that really shine in the 2-color archetypes, rather than more commonly run (and better/more powerful) cards, like Prophet of Kruphix over Mystic Snake since, in my experience, the GU ramp decks are tapping out almost every turn.
Aside from that, there are a few decks that go across colors. I have reanimator, Splinter Twin, artifacts-matter, and some more build-around type cards like Oath of Druids and Sneak Attack. So I guess I fall into the "five strongly defined archetypes with secondary ones" camp, but I've put in a lot of time testing and thinking about how much support to give to each one.
In addition to the archetypes, I also want aggro, control, and midrange decks to show up in almost every draft. Although my cube is unpowered, I grew unhappy with the power level of some commonly played control cards. I recently cut Treachery and have been boosting the power of aggro decks, in an effort to make midrange decks better. I'm constantly trying to refine the experience of the draft, and although I generally prefer boosting the power level, I've found that the existing card pool either doesn't always let me do that, or it requires pushing the power too much. So I've come around to lowering the power level slightly. It's possibly also my play group too. Cards that people talking about being broken, like Skullclamp just don't tend to show up all that frequently in decks here.
Anyway, I wrote a lot, but that's because making the cube has been the most fun Magic experience I've had, and really enjoy thinking about it.
Interesting, I appreciate the post it definitely will help me get pushing forward. I am sure there is no wrong way but can't wait to playtest to tweak.
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When defining the archetype is there a suggested number of "supporting" cards to it? Or should I just focus on balancing the 5 prime colors themselves?
I Look forward to seeing your advices, I hope to be drafting my own cube for 2016
Here's the way I broke down my cube. Each color has a main strategy that is heavily supported within color. White is aggro white weenie, blue is classic mono-blue control, black is pox/attrition, I'll come back to black, red is aggro/burn, and green is ramp. Combining those strategies into 2-color pairs leads to variations on those archetypes, and the multicolor cards are picked to support them. Right now, I'm experimenting with including multicolor cards that really shine in the 2-color archetypes, rather than more commonly run (and better/more powerful) cards, like Prophet of Kruphix over Mystic Snake since, in my experience, the GU ramp decks are tapping out almost every turn.
Aside from that, there are a few decks that go across colors. I have reanimator, Splinter Twin, artifacts-matter, and some more build-around type cards like Oath of Druids and Sneak Attack. So I guess I fall into the "five strongly defined archetypes with secondary ones" camp, but I've put in a lot of time testing and thinking about how much support to give to each one.
In addition to the archetypes, I also want aggro, control, and midrange decks to show up in almost every draft. Although my cube is unpowered, I grew unhappy with the power level of some commonly played control cards. I recently cut Treachery and have been boosting the power of aggro decks, in an effort to make midrange decks better. I'm constantly trying to refine the experience of the draft, and although I generally prefer boosting the power level, I've found that the existing card pool either doesn't always let me do that, or it requires pushing the power too much. So I've come around to lowering the power level slightly. It's possibly also my play group too. Cards that people talking about being broken, like Skullclamp just don't tend to show up all that frequently in decks here.
Anyway, I wrote a lot, but that's because making the cube has been the most fun Magic experience I've had, and really enjoy thinking about it.