I'm sort of curious what people think about Morph in Pauper cubes. I've got a rather small (285 cards at the moment, I'm slowly letting it grow, eventual cap being 360 or so) pauper cube, and I've tried to keep a reasonable level of support for Morph creatures. In order to do this, I've basically been starting from the assumption that you really want to have at least a couple of creatures with Morph in each color, so you don't get into the situation where it's incredibly obvious what that face down creature your opponent just cast is.
Here's the current roster of Morph creatures I'm playing:
The down side of this is I basically end up playing stuff that probably wouldn't make the cut if I wasn't trying to maintain a critical mass of Morph creatures. It's not like it's a ton of room, but it's not nothing either.
What do people think? Is it worth maintaining a critical mass of Morph in a cube? Do you really lose a lot by dropping down to just the awesome ones? Are there any that I'm playing that I could cut without jeopardizing the integrity of Morph as a theme? Anything on the bench that should clearly be played? Any that I'm not playing or watching but clearly should? Inquiring minds want to know.
I personally think your going a bit overboard. I figure at any time if my opponent cant narrow it down to 1 or two cards than I have the advantage. With this said even with the normal morphs pauper cubes play it is still rare not to have at least 5 possibilities (2 in each color + zombie cutthroat + gathan raiders)
Also, I think some of the morphs your not playing (specifically disruptive pitmage and shaper parasite) are better than some of the others that you are playing
These are the ones I consider to be cubable in pauper. I think all morphs should be playable even if the opponent knows what's coming - the "trickiness" of morphs are not what makes them good in cube.
I think having 12 morphs, eg. those mentioned above, would be enough to mean that your opponent can't just guess what the morph is and be right too much of the time, but you can minimize playing bad cards.
The ones I don't run in my cube are:
Aven Liberator, Daru Lancer, Echo Tracer, Fathom Seer, Zombie Cutthroat, Skirk Commando, Voidmage Apprentice
I've been considering Zombie Cutthroat more these days. The 5 life seems like a lot. But you don't just get a huge dude ( I might be biased but I think 3/4 is one of my favorite P/T combos.) but you also get a free kill spell on top of it. The card basically reads 3 colorless and 5 life for a 3/4 kill target creature with power =< 3. I have no pauper experience with this card and I'm sure other people have better reads on the card but it's on paper evaluation seems at the very least playable.
Zombie Cutthroat actually has an edge over Ashes to Ashes in that regard. It can still be cast without paying the 5 life. Sure, playing a 3/4 for 5 mana isn't something we want to do but it's better than those times that you're at 4 life and draw Ashes to Ashes. He's no Dauthi Marauder but I could see this guy being a card that aggressive black decks want. I might give him a go and see how he turns out. Black's 3 drop section is pretty stacked...I might have to just make him colorless along with Gathan Raiders.
I really don't like Skinthinner. This guy is so far off from Nekrataal it hurts ><
Funny thing, I also thought especially about Zombie Cutthroat. It's the only morph creature, that's not overcosted by mana. It works effectivley as a combat trick and 3/4 bodies over all are great. I like them more than 4/3 bodies. The question is just, if a combat trick is worth 5 life. Ashes to Ashes is at least staple and maybe even bomb, because trading 2 creatures for cc3 is simply game wining. I'm just not sure if you really want this creature without the combat trick function for cc5 or you always want it for cc3 and 5 life, even if that kills you from time to tim, because your opponent suddenly clears your board and wins. Against red this card is terrible.
I'm not sure about Skinthinner. Is the 2/1 body important enough to be worth 8 mana over all.
I don't see much potential in Skirk Commando. It's the same with Haunted Cadaver. A 2/2 morph will simply not come through.
Still, I am fine with a 3 mana investment, up front, for a kill spell on a terror on a creature body. plus they can't respond with a kill spell in response to stop the trigger when un-morphing.
Yes, I consider this card worse than Pith Driller, but Driller is a solid, often colourless creature.
Zombie Cutthroat actually has an edge over Ashes to Ashes in that regard. It can still be cast without paying the 5 life. Sure, playing a 3/4 for 5 mana isn't something we want to do but it's better than those times that you're at 4 life and draw Ashes to Ashes. He's no Dauthi Marauder but I could see this guy being a card that aggressive black decks want. I might give him a go and see how he turns out. Black's 3 drop section is pretty stacked...I might have to just make him colorless along with Gathan Raiders.
It isn't a must play or anything like that. But it's still a good card.
I really don't like Skinthinner. This guy is so far off from Nekrataal it hurts ><
Yeah, that would be true if we had a Nekrataal. We don't. We don't even have anything close. When making comparisons with other cards, it's worth considering the format in question.
It's still true even if we don't have access to it : /. The way I see it, alot of pauper cards are worse versions of good cards. However, even tho they are almost strictly worse, they are close enough to be considered good cards in a format with less choices. Ghitu Slinger is just a bad Fire Imp. And I think it's still fair to say that almost no one is going to want to play an 8 mana nekrataal without first strike despite their chosen format.
Agreed. The other thing I don't like about him is you can't really play him on curve like most of the morphs. You can usually play most of the morphs turn 3 and then go to combat the next turn with enough mana to flip them. This guy's morph is so expensive that your opponent has too many opportunities to get rid of him on curve. I guess you can hold him off until turn 4 and flip him on turn 5 but that almost seems like a big tempo loss for something you could have just spent less turns and mana on. The other morphs can even be played and flipped on turn 6. While it isn't exactly what you want to be doing, it's pretty acceptable if your opponent tries to burn/kill your morph. This guy can't do that until turn 8 ><
Skinthinner is good. It's removal on a body, but it's also a 2/1 for 1b. Of course, that's not an amazing deal but it's important to realize when playing with it that if you don't have another 2 drop you should cast this on 2 most of the time.
I'm on the fence about the Cutthroat, but my gut instinct is that it's not good enough. The versatility it provides, like any morph creature, is great, but that 5 life is a lot and possibly too much a slice of the time. It's probably testworthy.
I've been looking for a spot in my colorless to try out Vault Skirge. Once I find it, I think i'll try out Zombie Cutthroat for a few runs and see how it goes. If it underperforms, I'll just throw Vault Skirge in like I originally intended.
Fathom Seer is pretty good, but not so much as a 3 drop. Any removal pointed at it that early in the game means using its ability sets your mana back too much to be useful. It's great off the top after turn 5-6, but at that point, Gush would be similarly useful.
Personally, I'd much rather play Gush than the seer. I might put it into my cube soon - it's very good in blue decks in pauper constructed and it shouldn't be too hard to imitate that.
Gush has been in my cube for a while now. I initially added it to have more instant speed draw, and even at 5 mana, it's a serviceable spell. It also goes well with Kiln Fiend and Wee Dragonauts decks, which is an archetype I like supporting when I can.
Im aiming for a Tier2-worthy blinkmorph archetype, so Titanic Bulvox seems very strong. Much better than Woolly Loxodon which will get chumped all the time because of the supported token-archetype I guess.
I too have caught the Morph bug. I don't think many of the new ones are that playable:
Aven Liberator- Decent Stats, on curve, playable without morph. Battering Craghorn- Ditto Daru Lancer- Pretty powerful turn 4 play and decently playable without morph. Daru Sanctifier- With all the great Auras, this could actually be decent. Can only be morphed though for value, since 1/4's aren't spectacular. Echo Tracer- Delayed trigger Man-o'-War is nice for keeping the pressure on when you can't get value out of the bounce. Must be morphed for value. Gathan Raiders- Already playing and super powerful. Good all the time. Monastery Flock- Perfect for my Bunkers theme. Mystic of the Hidden Way- Great card in KtK sealed. I imagine it would be great in Pauper too. Nantuko Vigilante- Staple Shaper Parasite- On curve and decent stats. Morph for value. Skinthinner- Probably my weakest consideration. Very expensive and must be morphed for value. Skirk Marauder- Cut once for the expense but may add again for variety. Snarling Undorak- Good stats and an intriguing ability. Can be played unmorphed. Wingbeat Warrior- I like the ability and a 2/1 flyer for 3 isn't bad.
Of the rest I think they are overcosted too much. The wedge creatures all seem underpowered. Fathom Seer has never played well for me as it is best as a mid to late game card in decks that want defensive creatures. So early you run out a 1/3 with nothing built in, or a 2/2 that you hope to use later.
@Humphrey:
I've considered all of these but I think, that all of them are outclassed, too weak or simply cards, where Morph isn't a good keyword, to be on.
Im aiming for a Tier2-worthy blinkmorph archetype, so Titanic Bulvox seems very strong. Much better than Woolly Loxodon which will get chumped all the time because of the supported token-archetype I guess.
We gave up on Titanic Bulvox. It looks much better than it played for us.
Here's the current roster of Morph creatures I'm playing:
1 Wingbeat Warrior
1 Aven Liberator
1 Daru Lancer
Blue
1 Aquamorph Entity
1 Echo Tracer
1 Fathom Seer
1 Haunted Cadaver
1 Zombie Cutthroat
1 Sootfeather Flock
1 Skinthinner
Red
1 Gathan Raiders
1 Shaleskin Plower
1 Skirk Commando
1 Skirk Marauder
1 Snarling Undorak
1 Nantuko Vigilante
1 Disruptive Pitmage
1 Lumithread Field
1 Patron of the Wild
1 Shaper Parasite
1 Spitting Gourna
1 Voidmage Apprentice
1 Woodcloaker
What do people think? Is it worth maintaining a critical mass of Morph in a cube? Do you really lose a lot by dropping down to just the awesome ones? Are there any that I'm playing that I could cut without jeopardizing the integrity of Morph as a theme? Anything on the bench that should clearly be played? Any that I'm not playing or watching but clearly should? Inquiring minds want to know.
Also, I think some of the morphs your not playing (specifically disruptive pitmage and shaper parasite) are better than some of the others that you are playing
These are the ones I consider to be cubable in pauper. I think all morphs should be playable even if the opponent knows what's coming - the "trickiness" of morphs are not what makes them good in cube.
I think having 12 morphs, eg. those mentioned above, would be enough to mean that your opponent can't just guess what the morph is and be right too much of the time, but you can minimize playing bad cards.
The ones I don't run in my cube are:
Aven Liberator, Daru Lancer, Echo Tracer, Fathom Seer, Zombie Cutthroat, Skirk Commando, Voidmage Apprentice
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Aven Liberator - Interesting card. It's a tricky one.
Fathom Seer - This card requires some work to use, but has the potential to be very good
Shaper Parasite - A very strong card. It's a shame not more people run this.
Zombie Cutthroat - Usable, but 5 life is a lot to pay for a slightly above curve.
Skinthinner - Very good.
Gathan Raiders - Staple. Do not go cubing without this card.
Skirk Commando - Interesting. Has potential.
Skirk Marauder - Very good. A card that you actively look for room.
Nantuko Vigilante - A staple for green. second best artifact and enchantment destruction in the colour.
I really don't like Skinthinner. This guy is so far off from Nekrataal it hurts ><
Still, I am fine with a 3 mana investment, up front, for a kill spell on a terror on a creature body. plus they can't respond with a kill spell in response to stop the trigger when un-morphing.
Yes, I consider this card worse than Pith Driller, but Driller is a solid, often colourless creature.
Yeah, that would be true if we had a Nekrataal. We don't. We don't even have anything close. When making comparisons with other cards, it's worth considering the format in question.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
I'm on the fence about the Cutthroat, but my gut instinct is that it's not good enough. The versatility it provides, like any morph creature, is great, but that 5 life is a lot and possibly too much a slice of the time. It's probably testworthy.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
You don't like Dead Reveler? He's one of my favorite new additions to the cube. He's done very well every time he shows up.
As much as I love Gush, I think pauper is a format that struggles to take advantage of this kind of effect.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Are there new bodies you'd consider? I like either green Reach body, and the heavy p/t ones seem ok.
Loose Change Pauper Cube-cast
Pauper Cube Article #1
Pauper Cube Article #2
Personal Enjoyment Cube
My 720 Peasant Cube
Glacial Stalker solid
Titanic Bulvox broken with blink effects
Unblinking Bleb if you want to support morph a lot
Voidmage Apprentice playable
Whip-Spine Drake solid
War Behemoth playable
T2 powpercube Value https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/37t
well, playtesting will be fun the next weeks
I think Skinthinner is much too slow and Aven Liberator seems very unuseful
T2 powpercube Value https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/37t
Aven Liberator- Decent Stats, on curve, playable without morph.
Battering Craghorn- Ditto
Daru Lancer- Pretty powerful turn 4 play and decently playable without morph.
Daru Sanctifier- With all the great Auras, this could actually be decent. Can only be morphed though for value, since 1/4's aren't spectacular.
Echo Tracer- Delayed trigger Man-o'-War is nice for keeping the pressure on when you can't get value out of the bounce. Must be morphed for value.
Gathan Raiders- Already playing and super powerful. Good all the time.
Monastery Flock- Perfect for my Bunkers theme.
Mystic of the Hidden Way- Great card in KtK sealed. I imagine it would be great in Pauper too.
Nantuko Vigilante- Staple
Shaper Parasite- On curve and decent stats. Morph for value.
Skinthinner- Probably my weakest consideration. Very expensive and must be morphed for value.
Skirk Marauder- Cut once for the expense but may add again for variety.
Snarling Undorak- Good stats and an intriguing ability. Can be played unmorphed.
Wingbeat Warrior- I like the ability and a 2/1 flyer for 3 isn't bad.
Of the rest I think they are overcosted too much. The wedge creatures all seem underpowered. Fathom Seer has never played well for me as it is best as a mid to late game card in decks that want defensive creatures. So early you run out a 1/3 with nothing built in, or a 2/2 that you hope to use later.
I think you have consistently underrated Dead Reveler. It is near staple status IMO.
We gave up on Titanic Bulvox. It looks much better than it played for us.
T2 powpercube Value https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/37t