Conspiracies that work well with Merchant Scroll (Keep in mind you can use all of these on the Merchant Scroll, or the card you're going to get with Merchant Scroll.)
I'd like to have a discussion about cubing Merchant Scroll. I'm going to try it out in my next update to see how it fares in our decks. Having access to another Ancestral Recall is particularly strong, but the card also works well in a few archetypes I'm interested in trying. It may be good enough for "regular" cubes, even at larger sizes as having a toolbox of sorts may be useful to some players.
It's not because Ancestral Recall and Mana Drain are broken cards that Scrolling for them is broken. "1UU, Sorcery. Draw three cards." is pretty fair for Cube standards (still good, of course).
The majority of cards you're able to get are counterspells or card drawing. Cards of those categories are in Cubes because they're efficient, and paying two mana to search for them negates much of their point. Counterspells are particularly awkward targets because you have to leave yourself open (at least partially) to play the Scroll, plus you have to reveal the card making it easier to play around.
That seems to me a really demanding set of requirements. So, for traditional Cubes, I'd say it's an easy pass. But, as seems to be a trend with your threads, if there's any list where this card could be good, it's yours (you even run High Tide, which, if you have it in your deck, will presumably be worth tutoring for).
I think more traditional cubes may want Merchant Scroll if they would like a toolbox tutor to get either a powerful spell like Ancestral or Drain in the early game, or powerful card drawing spell like Fact or Fiction or Mystical Tutor in the mid-game. Also, if your playgroup likes conspiracies, there is the chance of upping the percentage of a powerful interaction like Forbid + Iterative Analysis.
Note on your Ancestral comment: I think 1UU: Draw 3 would likely be good enough for cube, but this is 1U / U, meaning it can be spread out over multiple turns, so it is a bit better. When Merchant Scroll and Gifts Ungiven were unrestricted in vintage, 4 of each were a mainstay in the format although that's not saying they will translate exceptionally well to cube. Vintage players were okay with paying 1U / U for an Ancestral.
Or Supreme Verdict. I know that some cubes are already running Personal Tutor, this card is probably almost as good for blue cube decks as that, and at a fraction of the (monetary) price.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
465 card Unpowered cube thread. Draft it here and I'll be happy to return the favor.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
I don't think it's close to as good as Personal Tutor. Tutor grabs a ton of really important sorcery cards that your entire deck is sculpted around. And it's not limited to only grabbing blue cards. So Personal Tutor is a card engineered to increase your deck's consistency and make combo-centric decks more consistent. Merchant Scroll only grabs blue instants, making it a utility spell at best that doesn't have a huge range of varying effects in the toolbox to pick from. It doesn't do any of the things that make Personal Tutor good.
The thing that keeps Merchant Scroll off my list is that it is a sorcery. Blue decks are often reactive, and it would be great to be able to use it to tutor for the perfect response to an opponent's play, as well as having the option to cast it EOT of course.
If you run more proactive blue decks, and it looks like you push combo, I could see it being a reasonable include.
"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less." -Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass
Merchant Scroll is ok but pretty far down the list for tutors even in combo lists. I know OP doesn't play Unserious cards but one that I think needs some consideration is Mise. With all the top deck tutors it can easily end up being Ancestral #2.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Merchant Scroll 1U
Sorcery
Search your library for a blue instant card, reveal that card, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.
Bomb targets:
Ancestral Recall
Fair targets:
- Force of Will
- Brainstorm
- Mystical Tutor
- Arcane Denial
- Counterspell
- Mana Drain
- Mana Leak
- Memory Lapse
- Miscalculation
- Remand
- Forbid
- Thirst for Knowledge
- Cryptic Command
- Fact or Fiction
- Condescend
- Into the Roil
- Far // Away
- Electrolyze
Cards I'm running (or will be including in the next update) that people may or may not respect:- Gifts Ungiven
- Frantic Search
- Impulse
- Brain Freeze
- Flash
- Snap
- High Tide
Conspiracies that work well with Merchant Scroll (Keep in mind you can use all of these on the Merchant Scroll, or the card you're going to get with Merchant Scroll.)- Double Stroke
- Brago's Favor
- Iterative Analysis
I'd like to have a discussion about cubing Merchant Scroll. I'm going to try it out in my next update to see how it fares in our decks. Having access to another Ancestral Recall is particularly strong, but the card also works well in a few archetypes I'm interested in trying. It may be good enough for "regular" cubes, even at larger sizes as having a toolbox of sorts may be useful to some players.CUBE TOP 10 - Help us vote for the best cards in cube
The majority of cards you're able to get are counterspells or card drawing. Cards of those categories are in Cubes because they're efficient, and paying two mana to search for them negates much of their point. Counterspells are particularly awkward targets because you have to leave yourself open (at least partially) to play the Scroll, plus you have to reveal the card making it easier to play around.
To be worth playing, I think you need to have a deck with at least one target like Flash, Brain Freeze or maybe Gifts Ungiven (intending to set up some combo like Unburial Rites + big guy, or Time Walk/Eternal Witness/Regrowth/Noxious Revival/Snapcaster Mage/...), and then also one card drawing spell and one counterspell as potential targets for when that won't win the game.
That seems to me a really demanding set of requirements. So, for traditional Cubes, I'd say it's an easy pass. But, as seems to be a trend with your threads, if there's any list where this card could be good, it's yours (you even run High Tide, which, if you have it in your deck, will presumably be worth tutoring for).
One last comment: it would be nice if this could get some type of removal as well, e.g. Into the Roil, Far // Away or Electrolyze.
A Comprehensive list of Cube Archetypes
All in all, a great insightful post.
I think more traditional cubes may want Merchant Scroll if they would like a toolbox tutor to get either a powerful spell like Ancestral or Drain in the early game, or powerful card drawing spell like Fact or Fiction or Mystical Tutor in the mid-game. Also, if your playgroup likes conspiracies, there is the chance of upping the percentage of a powerful interaction like Forbid + Iterative Analysis.
Note on your Ancestral comment: I think 1UU: Draw 3 would likely be good enough for cube, but this is 1U / U, meaning it can be spread out over multiple turns, so it is a bit better. When Merchant Scroll and Gifts Ungiven were unrestricted in vintage, 4 of each were a mainstay in the format although that's not saying they will translate exceptionally well to cube. Vintage players were okay with paying 1U / U for an Ancestral.
CUBE TOP 10 - Help us vote for the best cards in cube
Or Supreme Verdict. I know that some cubes are already running Personal Tutor, this card is probably almost as good for blue cube decks as that, and at a fraction of the (monetary) price.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
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!
If you run more proactive blue decks, and it looks like you push combo, I could see it being a reasonable include.
My 380 Beginners’ Cube on Cube Tutor
"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less." -Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass