I'm pretty sure I've first picked it at least once before. It's one of those cards that gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling when it's in my deck. It's extremely versatile and can enable you to make plays your opponent has no real way of expecting.
Definitely high on the list of my favorite blue creatures. It goes into any blue deck nicely, and fits perfectly into the tempo decks that I like to play. The original art is the best. I wish they hadn't gotten rid of the helmet in later versions. He looks so badass with that helmet on.
Ajani Goldmane is used almost entirely for its -1 ability, but this single ability is one of the best anthem effects available for aggro and token swarm strategies. Ajani Goldmane requires you to have some kind of board presence for it to protect itself or you, but buffing your team while giving it vigilance lets you beat down hard while holding up a growing defense. If you play multiplayer games with your cube, the vigilance from Ajani becomes even more valuable. However, the white 4 CMC slot is notoriously competitive with two other walkers that are stronger on the whole and more versatile, not to mention Wraths, Armageddon, and Hero of Bladehold. The fact that Ajani Goldmane's other two abilities are so underwhelming also makes him a bit narrow, so I wouldn't blame managers of smaller cubes or who aren't really pushing tokens for not running Ajani. However, I do support white tokens quite heavily, so Ajani Goldmane's spot in my cube is safe for the moment.
I love how grizzled and imposing Ajani Goldmane looks in the original Lorwyn art on Ajani Goldmane, I don't think the Pro Tour foil art holds a candle to it.
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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.
Ajani is still in my 450 cube but I feel like his days are numbered. Still a great card, but single ability planeswalkers have a hard time holding on these days. Making matters worse is Ajani's living in the overstacked 4cc slot.
Clearly the -1 is the best and most often used ability but I've found the +1 useful sometimes in the WB deck to offset Bitterblossom/Snuff Out damage.
Every time there's a new saucy White planeswalker, I think it's going to be time to cut Ajani. And then I never do. He may not be the most powerful 'walker out there, but he remains very solid. There are games where I've used the [-1] ability until Ajani died, and other games where I've used him to gain 8-10 life. One of these days, he just may get the axe, but until then, I'm never unhappy to see him in my 45 at the end of a draft.
Ajani seems really underpowered nowadays. We also don't see a lot of aggro v aggro mirrors where it's the best, and our tokens decks have enough anthems (cheaper ones too) that an arguably better anthem that costs more is probably not needed. He's such a liability outside of decks that flood the board that he only sees play there, and even then he can feel lame at certain times or as a redundant, more expensive option. I think Ajani's time has passed.
Ajani Goldmane is a baller. Crushes the aggro mirror, and single-handedly wins races. Not to mention that it's a stellar anthem for token shells. Every time I think his light has finally gone out, it does things that no other card can come close to doing, and is a complete blowout.
Until I get a replacement that can actually do what Goldmane does, he's not going anywhere.
I am still a huge fan of Ajani 1.0. The permanent boost and vigilance means you are going to start outracing everything and still be able to block if you need to. Also, its more than one anthem usually as you typically get to do the minus ability twice.
Goldmane is somehow still the only white 'walker in my 360 Multiplayer cube. How I haven't managed to find one of the Elspeths to replace him by now, I have no idea. His +1 is that weak.
But the -1... I've seen guys overrun a Multiplayer game simply using Goldmane and Sorin, Lord of Innistrad. Sorin spams the tokens onto the board, Ajani makes them big. And then Sorin starts throwing emblems around too once you've reached critical token mass. They really riff off each other nicely.
Still, one of these days I suspect Goldmane is going to be swapped for Elspeth, Knight-Errant, Elspeth Tirel or Gideon, Ally of Zendikar.
Still, one of these days I suspect Goldmane is going to be swapped for Elspeth, Knight-Errant, Elspeth Tirel or Gideon, Ally of Zendikar.
I'm a bit surprised to hear this. In multiplayer, I think the only white walker I might like better is Elspeth, Sun's Champion because it doubles as a board wipe.
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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.
Still, one of these days I suspect Goldmane is going to be swapped for Elspeth, Knight-Errant, Elspeth Tirel or Gideon, Ally of Zendikar.
I'm a bit surprised to hear this. In multiplayer, I think the only white walker I might like better is Elspeth, Sun's Champion because it doubles as a board wipe.
Well, truth be told, Goldmane underwhelms me thanks to his +1. It's basically of no consequence in a Multiplayer game. Tirel romps all over Goldmane in that regard. I'd look at the other three mentioned simply out of a desire to have more options and more board impact.
However, I will give Goldmane this - he is one of the few walkers where I see the ultimate go off with regularity. Whether that's because people don't fear the ultimate enough, or because he sits in the corner ticking up his +1 and having zero impact on the game while people look at other threats, I dunno.
Raise Dead, half a Mind Rot, Shatter, and Shock don't make very many cube lists, but put them together in a bulleted list on a single instant with the words "Choose two" at the top, and you've got one versatile cube card that guarantees value. Even unpowered cubes are full of mana rocks and dangerous equipment that can take over games, so any artifact destruction card that is strong enough to run main deck is worth at least considering. The fact that Kolaghan's Command ticks that box while providing an almost guaranteed 2-for-1 whether your opponent has artifacts or not makes it a great cube card, and worth a gold slot in even the tightest of cubes.
The only art available is a pretty sweet action shot against a shadowy backdrop that's pretty representative of Daarken's style.
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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.
Insane card is insane. If it wasn't for the versatility that Cackler provides, ending up in way more decks than Kolaghan's Command can and providing an essential piece of redundancy for those decks, then there would be no argument that KC is the best Rakdos card.
Kolaghan's Command is one of those few cards that I will actively splash a third, or fourth, color for to include it in the deck. It has single-handedly swung games in my favor every time I have cast it.
Kolaghan's Command has been one of my favorite cube cards ever since it was released. Everytime it's cast, it's as if somebody just got kicked in the nads. Funny bad beats story: one time I lost a game by getting decked because I forgot about Kolaghan's Command Raise Dead ability, I literally only thought of it as Shatter + Shock the entire match when I had an Inferno Titan just chilling in the graveyard : /
Did anybody pick this up while it was still cheap? I got mine for $3.
Did anybody pick this up while it was still cheap? I got mine for $3.
Kind of, I got mine as my promo foil at a prerelease. This community has had a pretty good track record recently of picking up on sleeper hits before Constructed formats, so I felt really good about that pull even though it wasn't worth much at the time.
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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.
As much as I like Kolaghan's Command it's not really a high pick for me until I'm already in both black and red. It's a great card once you're in those colors, and I'd probably splash for it if I'm in red or black, but it doesn't really pull me into those colors. It's a versatile answer, and it generates value, but it's nowhere near a first pick for me because it's a gold card.
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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'm going to try doing this daily post a bit differently. I'm just going to post the card without commentary and let the rest of you start the actual discussion, so that I don't bias it. I'll be sure to chime in later, though, before we move on to the next day's card.
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Ajani Goldmane is used almost entirely for its -1 ability, but this single ability is one of the best anthem effects available for aggro and token swarm strategies. Ajani Goldmane requires you to have some kind of board presence for it to protect itself or you, but buffing your team while giving it vigilance lets you beat down hard while holding up a growing defense. If you play multiplayer games with your cube, the vigilance from Ajani becomes even more valuable. However, the white 4 CMC slot is notoriously competitive with two other walkers that are stronger on the whole and more versatile, not to mention Wraths, Armageddon, and Hero of Bladehold. The fact that Ajani Goldmane's other two abilities are so underwhelming also makes him a bit narrow, so I wouldn't blame managers of smaller cubes or who aren't really pushing tokens for not running Ajani. However, I do support white tokens quite heavily, so Ajani Goldmane's spot in my cube is safe for the moment.
I love how grizzled and imposing Ajani Goldmane looks in the original Lorwyn art on Ajani Goldmane, I don't think the Pro Tour foil art holds a candle to it.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
Clearly the -1 is the best and most often used ability but I've found the +1 useful sometimes in the WB deck to offset Bitterblossom/Snuff Out damage.
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Until I get a replacement that can actually do what Goldmane does, he's not going anywhere.
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But the -1... I've seen guys overrun a Multiplayer game simply using Goldmane and Sorin, Lord of Innistrad. Sorin spams the tokens onto the board, Ajani makes them big. And then Sorin starts throwing emblems around too once you've reached critical token mass. They really riff off each other nicely.
Still, one of these days I suspect Goldmane is going to be swapped for Elspeth, Knight-Errant, Elspeth Tirel or Gideon, Ally of Zendikar.
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I'm a bit surprised to hear this. In multiplayer, I think the only white walker I might like better is Elspeth, Sun's Champion because it doubles as a board wipe.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
Well, truth be told, Goldmane underwhelms me thanks to his +1. It's basically of no consequence in a Multiplayer game. Tirel romps all over Goldmane in that regard. I'd look at the other three mentioned simply out of a desire to have more options and more board impact.
However, I will give Goldmane this - he is one of the few walkers where I see the ultimate go off with regularity. Whether that's because people don't fear the ultimate enough, or because he sits in the corner ticking up his +1 and having zero impact on the game while people look at other threats, I dunno.
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Cube: the Gittening (My Multiplayer Cube) - MTGS Cube List | @ CubeTutor
The N00b Cube (Peasant cube for new players) - MTGS Cube List | @ CubeTutor
Raise Dead, half a Mind Rot, Shatter, and Shock don't make very many cube lists, but put them together in a bulleted list on a single instant with the words "Choose two" at the top, and you've got one versatile cube card that guarantees value. Even unpowered cubes are full of mana rocks and dangerous equipment that can take over games, so any artifact destruction card that is strong enough to run main deck is worth at least considering. The fact that Kolaghan's Command ticks that box while providing an almost guaranteed 2-for-1 whether your opponent has artifacts or not makes it a great cube card, and worth a gold slot in even the tightest of cubes.
The only art available is a pretty sweet action shot against a shadowy backdrop that's pretty representative of Daarken's style.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
My 540 Powered CubeTutor Page
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My Article - "Cube Design Philosophy"
My Article - "Mana Short: A study in limited resource management."
My 49th Set (P)review - Discusses my top 20 Cube cards from MKM!
Did anybody pick this up while it was still cheap? I got mine for $3.
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It took the spot of Blightning in my cube, but R/B isn't a color scheme played often by the people in my group, unless it's a part of jund.
I'd rank it in top 5 gold cards in a powered cube
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Kind of, I got mine as my promo foil at a prerelease. This community has had a pretty good track record recently of picking up on sleeper hits before Constructed formats, so I felt really good about that pull even though it wasn't worth much at the time.
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/3pq
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.
Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
450 card Peasant cube thread. Draft it here.