...and just like that, new competition for Spellseeker. The tokens this makes may be fragile, but you won’t mind that so much when you’re dropping Eldrazi and Griselbrand into play EOT. Even outside those BCS scenarios, getting to build a board at instant speed for 3 mana while also drawing cards seems quite powerful. I don’t think I’d ever feel comfortable attacking into an activation of this.
True, although you don’t lose the token until EOT, so you don’t get blown out in combat. And if you’re putting a Grave Titan into play, getting Artisan removed really isn’t the end of the world.
Yeah it's def interesting, I don't think I'll personally test it due to the looting cost but it's on the backburner in case it tests really well or anyone.
It's sorta like Show and Tell but it also helps you find your bombs while making tokens in the meantime. You also realize that the tokens are not exiled until the NEXT endstep, right? That means when you drop a Grislebrand on eot they have to remove the token and not the Artisan.
If you're able to protect her, i honestly don't see how you could possibly lose the game. Your opponent can't attack you because they could easily get blown out allowing you to sit back and get free value. This feels like a conspiracy card to me so I'll probably put it in with my conspiracy module.
One of my biggest concerns is when I'm looting and not pitching a creature that's a really bad rate, and it's going to happen a real amount in decks trying to exile an eldrazi or whatever with this. I would pretty much only want to activate this ability if I had nothing better to do, I had the creature, or I desperately need the creature and have no other way to find it, and I still have to wait a turn to use that ability. I'm pretty skeptical of the consistency of this card.
It's sorta like Show and Tell but it also helps you find your bombs while making tokens in the meantime. You also realize that the tokens are not exiled until the NEXT endstep, right? That means when you drop a Grislebrand on eot they have to remove the token and not the Artisan.
If you're able to protect her, i honestly don't see how you could possibly lose the game. Your opponent can't attack you because they could easily get blown out allowing you to sit back and get free value. This feels like a conspiracy card to me so I'll probably put it in with my conspiracy module.
If you do that you can also alleviate Salmo's concern of not having a creature, thanks to Summoner's Bond.
Not amazing by any stretch, but could be good enough as an additional enabler for cheaty combo decks.
At my current size, would be happy with another piece to support those kind of decks.
The card is a lightning rod for removal, but if it manages to live, a single activation could be enough to end the game in the right deck.
Expensive exile looting will occasionally come up as value when you have nothing else to do.
One of my biggest concerns is when I'm looting and not pitching a creature that's a really bad rate, and it's going to happen a real amount in decks trying to exile an eldrazi or whatever with this.
Pretty much every cube creature is awesome when it costs 2U, has flash and draws you a card. This card is obviously going to be at it's best exiling huge fatties, but as long as you have any creature in your hand I'm pretty sure the ability is pretty much always going to be a fantastic use of your mana. (You are right that fatty cheat doesn't usually run all that many creatures, but I think this card has potential applications in random midrange decks, too)
This card attacks with a big fatty on the same turn as Sneak Attack assuming a normal curve, so that's pretty nice too.
How many creatures am I running in these decks to make up for the moments when I don't have one? I get that the ceiling is insane, but if I spend two turns playing + activating this and I can't get a crazy creature onto the board that seems realllyyyyyyyy bad. A big part of sneak attack is the ability to drop it + activate it the same turn at 5 mana, having a much slower version that has a more expensive total mana cost for that first creature is Red Flag City, USA.
It does, there's absolutely a real ceiling, but there's a real floor too. If I'm not putting value creatures into play and instead something like an eldrazi, there's also the option of killing them on a main phase so the creature dies that turn.
If people test it and rave then I'll give it a run, but not hitting a creature on the first loot seems miserable and not totally unlikely outside of heavy creature decks.
If I'm not putting value creatures into play and instead something like an eldrazi, there's also the option of killing them on a main phase so the creature dies that turn.
In the scenario where you’re cheating out huge things, I would assume you activate during their end step, ensuring you get at least an attack in if they kill your artisan. (Unless you’re under enough pressure that you absolutely need the blocker, but if I’m using sneak attack to block my fatty gets to attack 0% of the time.)
Right the point is as an opponent I'm not going to let that happen if I don't have to. You would do it on their second main so it goes away that turn.
I think if you're deep on the Sneak/Show/Eureka decks, this is a passable fringe support card for that deck. But at face value, I think it's too slow and vulnerable.
As far as cheaty decks go, it's a pretty fair card. It's a great support card for larger cubes that want to keep those archetypes from being extremely fringe. If you like Volrath's Shapeshifter or Shifty Doppelganger, there's no reason you won't love this.
Not amazing by any stretch, but could be good enough as an additional enabler for cheaty combo decks.
At my current size, would be happy with another piece to support those kind of decks.
The card is a lightning rod for removal, but if it manages to live, a single activation could be enough to end the game in the right deck.
Expensive exile looting will occasionally come up as value when you have nothing else to do.
Gonna test, but don’t expect much from it.
Update:
Played about 30 cubes with arcane artisan, and while I don't recommend it for every cube, it is still in my cube and has overperformed my expectations.
It serves it's role well as an additional "combo piece" for sneak and show type decks, while still being a playable in some reanimator & green ramp decks.
While it is a lightning rod for removal, the rate at which it can win the game if it untaps is very very high for it's cost. An impressive amount for a 3 mana spell.
The reason I don't recommend it for every cube, is it's important that the cube has a lot of the best creatures available in magic to cheat in AND you have a high density of cheatable creatures in your cube. If your cheaty decks commonly end up with only 2-3 fatties, the card isn't for your cube. It's also important that some of the more niche/high powered options are available. IE if your cube doesn't run 15 mana emrakul, don't bother thinking of this card.
After the top tier combo enablers there's a HUGE drop off in power for fringe support.. The lack of redundancy of is the only reason that sneak/show decks aren't busted through the teeth. Arcane artisan provides some redundancy, but not at the power level of the staple cheat spells.
I like it a lot, and its better than it looks, but Its not necessary enough for it to be holding a permanent spot... I expect to cut it in the next 2 years.
I'll second LV's sentiments on its playability, except my experience with it has been even better than his/hers. For us the card has been nothing short of great, but maybe it's because my cube contains 2 of the 3 OG Eldrazi titans. Either way, great card.
I'll second LV's sentiments on its playability, except my experience with it has been even better than his/hers. For us the card has been nothing short of great, but maybe it's because my cube contains 2 of the 3 OG Eldrazi titans. Either way, great card.
Funny you mention this, as I now think it's even better than when I posted that
I literally just finished cubing with Gerry T, visiting a friend from out of town. He doesn't cube at all, but built a solid UR sneak/through the breach deck.
Every time I was looking over at his matches he was wrecking his opponent with arcane artisan lol.
Lacked the ramp to cast his fatties, but had a lot of counter magic. Common play pattern if he got to untap was hold up counter magic, then end of opponents turn activate the artisan.
After the massacre I witnessed today, it's earned a semi-permanent place for sure.
I've come around to Arcane Artisan and I feel this is a card you need to play both sides of a matchup to full appreciate:
- I've written my theory about Green Ramp and I've around its best variant are the not the play 10+ mana dorks + 5 Eldrazi, but in a slightly more midrange shell that plays 6-7 dorks, 4-5 midrange threats that act as either removal/ ramp, 2 cheat effects, 3-4 fatties. I feel Arcane Artisan fits the role of a midrange/ 3 cmc ramp enabler very well
- Yes she dies to removal, but so does Metalworker, Rofellos etc. This is not a card, especially in the era of Archon of Cruelty, Atraxa that you can let your opponent resolve or up tap with. There were several times as a tempo player that I had to take a turn off playing a threat and needed to play my removal/ leave up counter magic.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm actively maintaining a comprehensive article to help explain to new cube players how some complex vintage level cards work in a cube environment. Vintage Cube Cards Explained
I've come around to Arcane Artisan and I feel this is a card you need to play both sides of a matchup to full appreciate:
- Yes she dies to removal, but so does Metalworker, Rofellos etc.
The big difference here is that the super fatties that are cheated out with Rofellos / Metalworker don't die when Rofellos / Metalworker dies. Rofellos / Metalworker pair best with Natural Order / Tinker respectively, and those decks really only need 2-3 super fatties to function. Arcane Artisan relates more to Show and Tell, which in my experience typically wants 5-6 super fatties in their deck. Show and Tell type decks also really want to be paired with Oath of Druids, which this doesn't play well with.
I tested Arcane Artisan alongside Quicksilver Amulet when it was first released. I expected to like Arcane Artisan and not like Quicksilver Amulet, but the opposite ended up being true. The super fattie selection wasn't the problem, it was the fragility and anti-synergy with Oath of Druids. Arcane Artisan has always been at the bottem of the totem pole for me in terms of cheaty face enablers goes, and we've gotten a lot of good ones over the years like Selvala's Stampede / Incarnation Technique / Unmarked Grave / Persist / the resurgence of Flash / etc.
As I've mentioned, I feel she's at her best in the UG ramp shell and is a decent roleplayer in the Reanimator/ Welder Deck.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm actively maintaining a comprehensive article to help explain to new cube players how some complex vintage level cards work in a cube environment. Vintage Cube Cards Explained
The big difference here is that the super fatties that are cheated out with Rofellos / Metalworker don't die when Rofellos / Metalworker dies. Rofellos / Metalworker pair best with Natural Order / Tinker respectively, and those decks really only need 2-3 super fatties to function. Arcane Artisan relates more to Show and Tell, which in my experience typically wants 5-6 super fatties in their deck. Show and Tell type decks also really want to be paired with Oath of Druids, which this doesn't play well with.
Every last bit of this.
Artisan was a huge disappointment for my playgroup, and it did not play well at all.
...and just like that, new competition for Spellseeker. The tokens this makes may be fragile, but you won’t mind that so much when you’re dropping Eldrazi and Griselbrand into play EOT. Even outside those BCS scenarios, getting to build a board at instant speed for 3 mana while also drawing cards seems quite powerful. I don’t think I’d ever feel comfortable attacking into an activation of this.
Cubetutor Link
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
Cubetutor Link
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
If you're able to protect her, i honestly don't see how you could possibly lose the game. Your opponent can't attack you because they could easily get blown out allowing you to sit back and get free value. This feels like a conspiracy card to me so I'll probably put it in with my conspiracy module.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
If you do that you can also alleviate Salmo's concern of not having a creature, thanks to Summoner's Bond.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
At my current size, would be happy with another piece to support those kind of decks.
The card is a lightning rod for removal, but if it manages to live, a single activation could be enough to end the game in the right deck.
Expensive exile looting will occasionally come up as value when you have nothing else to do.
Gonna test, but don’t expect much from it.
Last Updated 02/07/24
Streaming Standard/Cube on Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/heisenb3rg96
Strategy Twitter https://www.twitter.com/heisenb3rg
How many creatures am I running in these decks to make up for the moments when I don't have one? I get that the ceiling is insane, but if I spend two turns playing + activating this and I can't get a crazy creature onto the board that seems realllyyyyyyyy bad. A big part of sneak attack is the ability to drop it + activate it the same turn at 5 mana, having a much slower version that has a more expensive total mana cost for that first creature is Red Flag City, USA.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
If people test it and rave then I'll give it a run, but not hitting a creature on the first loot seems miserable and not totally unlikely outside of heavy creature decks.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
Right the point is as an opponent I'm not going to let that happen if I don't have to. You would do it on their second main so it goes away that turn.
Also, follow us on twitter! @TurnOneMagic
My 630 Card Powered Cube
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!
Update:
Played about 30 cubes with arcane artisan, and while I don't recommend it for every cube, it is still in my cube and has overperformed my expectations.
It serves it's role well as an additional "combo piece" for sneak and show type decks, while still being a playable in some reanimator & green ramp decks.
While it is a lightning rod for removal, the rate at which it can win the game if it untaps is very very high for it's cost. An impressive amount for a 3 mana spell.
The reason I don't recommend it for every cube, is it's important that the cube has a lot of the best creatures available in magic to cheat in AND you have a high density of cheatable creatures in your cube. If your cheaty decks commonly end up with only 2-3 fatties, the card isn't for your cube. It's also important that some of the more niche/high powered options are available. IE if your cube doesn't run 15 mana emrakul, don't bother thinking of this card.
After the top tier combo enablers there's a HUGE drop off in power for fringe support.. The lack of redundancy of is the only reason that sneak/show decks aren't busted through the teeth. Arcane artisan provides some redundancy, but not at the power level of the staple cheat spells.
I like it a lot, and its better than it looks, but Its not necessary enough for it to be holding a permanent spot... I expect to cut it in the next 2 years.
Last Updated 02/07/24
Streaming Standard/Cube on Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/heisenb3rg96
Strategy Twitter https://www.twitter.com/heisenb3rg
Funny you mention this, as I now think it's even better than when I posted that
I literally just finished cubing with Gerry T, visiting a friend from out of town. He doesn't cube at all, but built a solid UR sneak/through the breach deck.
Every time I was looking over at his matches he was wrecking his opponent with arcane artisan lol.
Lacked the ramp to cast his fatties, but had a lot of counter magic. Common play pattern if he got to untap was hold up counter magic, then end of opponents turn activate the artisan.
After the massacre I witnessed today, it's earned a semi-permanent place for sure.
Last Updated 02/07/24
Streaming Standard/Cube on Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/heisenb3rg96
Strategy Twitter https://www.twitter.com/heisenb3rg
- I've written my theory about Green Ramp and I've around its best variant are the not the play 10+ mana dorks + 5 Eldrazi, but in a slightly more midrange shell that plays 6-7 dorks, 4-5 midrange threats that act as either removal/ ramp, 2 cheat effects, 3-4 fatties. I feel Arcane Artisan fits the role of a midrange/ 3 cmc ramp enabler very well
- Yes she dies to removal, but so does Metalworker, Rofellos etc. This is not a card, especially in the era of Archon of Cruelty, Atraxa that you can let your opponent resolve or up tap with. There were several times as a tempo player that I had to take a turn off playing a threat and needed to play my removal/ leave up counter magic.
Vintage Cube Cards Explained
Here are some other articles I've written about fine tuning your cube:
1. Minimum Archetype Support
2. Improving Green Archetypes
3. Improving White Archetypes
4. Matchup Analysis
5. Cube Combos (Work in Progress)
Draft my Cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/d8i
The big difference here is that the super fatties that are cheated out with Rofellos / Metalworker don't die when Rofellos / Metalworker dies. Rofellos / Metalworker pair best with Natural Order / Tinker respectively, and those decks really only need 2-3 super fatties to function. Arcane Artisan relates more to Show and Tell, which in my experience typically wants 5-6 super fatties in their deck. Show and Tell type decks also really want to be paired with Oath of Druids, which this doesn't play well with.
I tested Arcane Artisan alongside Quicksilver Amulet when it was first released. I expected to like Arcane Artisan and not like Quicksilver Amulet, but the opposite ended up being true. The super fattie selection wasn't the problem, it was the fragility and anti-synergy with Oath of Druids. Arcane Artisan has always been at the bottem of the totem pole for me in terms of cheaty face enablers goes, and we've gotten a lot of good ones over the years like Selvala's Stampede / Incarnation Technique / Unmarked Grave / Persist / the resurgence of Flash / etc.
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
Vintage Cube Cards Explained
Here are some other articles I've written about fine tuning your cube:
1. Minimum Archetype Support
2. Improving Green Archetypes
3. Improving White Archetypes
4. Matchup Analysis
5. Cube Combos (Work in Progress)
Draft my Cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/d8i
Every last bit of this.
Artisan was a huge disappointment for my playgroup, and it did not play well at all.
My 630 Card Powered Cube
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!