There's theoretical Magic and then there's actual Magic. You are looking at Endless One from the first and not the second.
No, I'm looking at it from both, and it's bad in both. I'm glad it can drop anywhere in the curve. But it's never good. And the added versatility doesn't come close to making up for its lackluster performances.
Quote from ahadabans »
I guarantee you I've played with this card more than you have.
Can't argue with that. I played with it just enough to know that I didn't want to play with it ever again.
Quote from ahadabans »
I don't know what type of shuffling and mulligan voodoo you are performing where you get all the cards you want all the time in every game.
By leaving Endless One out of my decks, it increases my chances of drawing cards I want.
ahadabans, I totally agree that the value of Endless One is in it's flexibility, and I DO think that a lot of people on these boards under appreciate the call-option you get on curving out by having him in your hand, but I have also come to the conclusion that he just doesn't cut it for cube. We played him for a while and he was decent, but consistently rode the pine. And yea I'd probably play him in peasant or in '08, but as my cube currently stands (which is mostly in line with the standard MTG Salvation-y cube) he doesn't cut it.
I only felt the need to chime in here because we were once brothers-in-arms in extolling Endless One's virtues. Guess I'm a traitor
FWIW, I looked at both Endless One and Chimeric Mass for inclusion in my low power list and ultimately preferred other options. It is nice that they scale, but being vanilla is so bad. Scaling across the curve gives you options, but when all of those options are undesired, that doesn't help to raise the card's worth.
I read a lot on these forums. I've decided I should cut Hex Parasite. While I'm at it, I think Perilous Myr should go too. There was a time when I felt my Creature count was too low, but that time is gone
Is Smokestack viable in my cube? If not, what other cards should I add if I wanted to?
Or do you have another suggestion for an Artifact that I should add?
I like Basalt Monolith slightly more. It is better in the Upheaval deck (comes into play untapped) and the extra 1 mana worth of ramp isn't irrelevant. That being said, I might want the Powerstone more in some decks depending on the curve.
I like Powerstone slightly more as the extra mana isn't worth needing an investment to untap when you're rarely using that mana upfront anyways so the ETB tapped is a bit more important. Overall I think they're pretty close.
Worth noting Basalt Monolith + Wake Thrasher = infinite power/dmg. If you're running Thrasher, Monolith's infinite combo potential can't be ignored.
I like Powerstone slightly more as the extra mana isn't worth needing an investment to untap when you're rarely using that mana upfront anyways so the ETB tapped is a bit more important. Overall I think they're pretty close.
Worth noting Basalt Monolith + Wake Thrasher = infinite power/dmg. If you're running Thrasher, Monolith's infinite combo potential can't be ignored.
Riptide Laboratory or Shelldock Isle?
I have been thinking about trying out the Laboratory. It only has 30 targets (14 in blue) in my cube though. Is it enough?
The ceiling is quite high and it can create a soft lock with cards like Aether Adept or Reflector Mage. Also it ETB untapped and can create colorless mana for the OGW additions.
Shelldock on the other hand is swingy, but can lead to some huge blowouts. The LD package of Boom // Bust, Pillage, Molten Rain and Fulminator Mage (in addition to the usual suspects) hurts it though. So lots of factors to consider .
Riptide Lab could be spicy in a cube looking for extra sources of C that also has a good density of Wizards. The ceiling is pretty high on that card. That being said, the ceiling is still certainly lower than what you'd expect from Isle, so it just depends on how often Isle reliably does valuable stuff for you. For us, that number was quite low, so it was expendable. But in a bigger, slightly slower environment, it would probably be pretty great.
The only thing Sign in Blood has going for it is it acts like burn in certain spots, but that's a corner case most of the time that doesn't make up for BB.
Depends. Staggershock gives you two prowess triggers or two tokens off young pyromancer, etc. So synergy is higher. But if you need more removal that can deal with 4 toughness, then firecraft is probably better. Although instant > sorcery and R > RR, so there's that to consider as well.
Staggershock also has a sweet full art promo version.
I'd put in Pernicious Deed. Pulse is rarely anything more than a spot kill in singleton cubes, and Vraska is pretty underwhelming, considering her +1 might never actually do anything besides add counters.
No, I'm looking at it from both, and it's bad in both. I'm glad it can drop anywhere in the curve. But it's never good. And the added versatility doesn't come close to making up for its lackluster performances.
Can't argue with that. I played with it just enough to know that I didn't want to play with it ever again.
By leaving Endless One out of my decks, it increases my chances of drawing cards I want.
My 630 Card Powered Cube
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My 50th Set (P)review - Discusses my top 20 Cube cards from OTJ!
I only felt the need to chime in here because we were once brothers-in-arms in extolling Endless One's virtues. Guess I'm a traitor
MTGS Average Peasant Cube 2023 Edition
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My first add should be Blacker Lotus (with errata to not rip it) as I'm running a powered cube but was never fond of spending the money on a Black Lotus
For my second add I'm looing at a couple of cards: Smokestack, Sphere of the Suns or Captain's Claws.
Is Smokestack viable in my cube? If not, what other cards should I add if I wanted to?
Or do you have another suggestion for an Artifact that I should add?
"Everybody dies, Tracey. Someone's carrying a bullet for you right now, doesn't even know it. The trick is to die of old age before it finds you."
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540> 360 Powered CubeMy 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!
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/other-formats/mtgo-pauper/developing/647850-primer-angler-delver
Modern: Sultai Death's Shadow
http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/773885-sultai-deaths-shadow-bug-aggro]
Legacy: Snake&Show
http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?27217-Deck-Sneak-and-Show
Discuss my Cube @ MTGsalvation:
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=207309
Worth noting Basalt Monolith + Wake Thrasher = infinite power/dmg. If you're running Thrasher, Monolith's infinite combo potential can't be ignored.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
Worth noting Basalt Monolith + Wake Thrasher = infinite power/dmg. If you're running Thrasher, Monolith's infinite combo potential can't be ignored.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
I have been thinking about trying out the Laboratory. It only has 30 targets (14 in blue) in my cube though. Is it enough?
The ceiling is quite high and it can create a soft lock with cards like Aether Adept or Reflector Mage. Also it ETB untapped and can create colorless mana for the OGW additions.
Shelldock on the other hand is swingy, but can lead to some huge blowouts. The LD package of Boom // Bust, Pillage, Molten Rain and Fulminator Mage (in addition to the usual suspects) hurts it though. So lots of factors to consider .
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!
Night's Whisper > Read the Bones > Sign in Blood
https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/3pq
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
Depends. Staggershock gives you two prowess triggers or two tokens off young pyromancer, etc. So synergy is higher. But if you need more removal that can deal with 4 toughness, then firecraft is probably better. Although instant > sorcery and R > RR, so there's that to consider as well.
Staggershock also has a sweet full art promo version.
http://riptidelab.com/forum/threads/modular-cube-5-colors.800/
Retro combo cube thread
http://riptidelab.com/forum/threads/retro-combo-cube.1454/
Tried out Meren of Clan Nel Toth, didn't turn out as exciting, so it's going out.
What should I add instead: Pernicious Deed, Vraska the Unseen or Maelstrom Pulse ? (They have all been in my cube at some point)
"Everybody dies, Tracey. Someone's carrying a bullet for you right now, doesn't even know it. The trick is to die of old age before it finds you."
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540> 360 Powered CubeI'd put in Pernicious Deed. Pulse is rarely anything more than a spot kill in singleton cubes, and Vraska is pretty underwhelming, considering her +1 might never actually do anything besides add counters.
Deed is Golgari's #1 card, and Pulse is #2. I'd run both at any size, but if you want only one, Deed is more unique and interesting.
Going by your list, I'd just cut Garruk Apex Predator and Meren to add both Deed and Pulse.