Abnormal Endurance costs 1B and is strictly worse than Supernatural Stamina.
I am skeptical that Stitcher's Supplier can do much of anything. At the end of the day, it is still a 1/1 for 1. You have no control what goes to the yard and you can't control when you get the second trigger.
I think I like Vampire Sovereign a decent amount. Been trying to compare it to other options. It seems the best when you are behind, and it is guaranteed value in the face of immediate removal. I wonder if this is enough to actually make it better than Sengir Vampire or Indulgent Tormentor. Sure, the absolute power level is higher on the Tormentor, but when you are behind and want/need to block? And if a big flyer wins you the game, the Sovereign also gets the job done, 9 damage over the first 2 turns as opposed to 10.. It's interesting to think about at least.
Whoops, don't know how I didn't pick that up in regards to Abnormal Endurance!
I'm not opposed to Stitcher's Supplier going down. I can see some good scenarios, but most of them are conditional on the opponent interacting in the first couple of turns so you can power out a big delve creature or something. But even in those cases, probably not worth a card, and your opponent isn't likely to attack their 2/1 into it or whatever.
I put in Vampire Sovereign for Indulgent Tormentor and much prefer it as a way for slower decks to catch up and faster decks to close the door. I'm also trying out Vampire Neonate over Disowned Ancestor for a WB life gain deck I'm trying as well as a fine 1 drop from control decks as I was very impressed with it in M19 draft.
No love for Meteor Golem? I've seen it appear in ramp and reanimator and has now allowed me to try tinker along with Accomplished Automaton in my artifact based control deck.
Sorry, I haven't been able to work on this much lately. Yes, will get to the others shortly.
I can see Vampire Neonate filling a specific role, as the 3 toughness might be able to mitigate some early damage and allow time for activations. Probably only for a limited number of decks, so a niche rating seems appropriate. And sounds like Vampire Sovereign at 2 is appropriate.
Most of the rest. Still got white spells, multi, artifacts and lands to go.
4 - Staple - Cards with enough base power that your cube is less powerful from their omission. They are cards that are likely to never rotate out of your cube unless you ban them for being too good. 3 - Strong - These cards are among the top cards at providing an important effect and/or supporting a popular archetype. 2 - Playable - These are good cards, but they are either interchangeable (e.g. lots of removal, aggressive red 2-drops) or are build-around cards that need a little support to be good (Favorable Winds). 1 - Niche - These cards aren't usually considered great, but might be included to support some obscure archetypes, specific interactions, or if going deep on a particular type of deck / archetype / effect. No reason to cube - There isn't a reason to cube these over options. You might find some perfectly 'playable' cards here, but there is little reason to put them into your cube in the first place unless you are intentionally depowering an effect.
Dryad Greenseeker - 2 Description - It can block some early threats and draw a card about 40% of the time on the end step if needed. Over a long game it can add up. There are few incidental synergies, but Sensei's Divining Top and Sylvan Library are good friends, and plays nice if scry or surveil are prevalent in your cube. Helps pull you out of a land-light hand pretty effectively. Anchors - Supports -
Druid of Horns - 1 Description - The base is bad, but the upside is good if you can get a couple of activations. A single trigger is fine but probably doesn't really get you there; only cube it if you have enough support, and preferably with some repeatable / bouncable auras. Anchors - Voltron / Pants Supports -
Vine Mare - 1 Description - It's got enough power and toughness that a Pants deck might be able to make use of it. Just make sure it has enough support. Anchors - Supports -
Talons of Wildwood - 1 Description - The base isn't amazing, but on the right size creature the trample can make a difference. The re-buy cost also doesn't look efficient on the surface, but can help support enchantment based triggers, supply discard outlets etc. Anchors - Supports - Enchantments Matter
Colossal Majesty - 1 Description - You probably need to draw 3 cards to make it worth it, but midrange decks with enough good sized creatures can happily trade in the early game and then drown the opponent in card advantage later. Elemental Bond and Garruk's Packleader play in a similar space, but once it triggers this is more likely to keep you drawing cards, rather than relying on what you draw. Anchors - Power Matters Supports -
Goblin Instigator - 2 Description - Fine companion to Dragon Fodder. If you don't need both cards, it depends on whether you'd prefer the ability to bounce / flicker, or spells matter / graveyard filling. Anchors - Supports - Tokens, Bounce
Cavalry Drillmaster - 1 Description - It is fine for all out aggro that essentially puts some hasty power on the table, but there are plenty of similar options. Anchors - Supports -
Militia Bugler - 1 Description - It's a little lacklustre on the surface, but if it hits you are going to be pretty happy with the two for one. Anchors - Supports -
Trusty Packbeast - 1 Description - It's narrow on the theme, and requires enough support in artifacts that naturally find their way to the graveyard (creatures or sacrifice), but will be fine in the decks that can get that value out of it. Anchors - Artifacts Matter Supports -
Gallant Cavalry - 1 Description - It's fine for putting bodies on the board. Nothing exceptional, but fine for go wide strategies. You may consider Call the Cavalry as well or instead, depending on your preference for blink targets vs prowess, spells matters etc. Anchors - Supports -
Talons of Wildwood - The base isn't amazing, but on the right size creature the trample can make a difference. The re-buy cost also doesn't look efficient on the surface, but can help support enchantment based triggers, supply discard outlets etc.
Lightning Mare - Not efficient enough. Even with in the pump, it is just going to die when it runs into anything.
Viashino Pyromancer - It might not be terrible in an aggro deck, but there are just too many other options which are going to perform better on average.
Catalyst Elemental - I guess the dream is to accelerate on turn 4 into a game ending 6 drop or something, but it just doesn't seem worth the investment and risk (seeing as we don't get many ridiculous 6-drops in the first place at peasant).
Siegebreaker Giant - It isn't efficient enough. Making something scared is fine, but it will probably still trade with other things on the battlefield.
Thud - It's a removal spell that does nothing if you have an empty board, and by the time you get a good damage to mana ratio you are sacrificing a good creature.
Leonin Vanguard - This doesn't need an attacking force to trigger, but Boros Elite is the better card.
Novice Knight - It's the most efficient / effective blocker at 1 mana, but most cube decks aren’t in the market for that type of defensive speed, and it certainly isn't good enough to signal a pants deck.
Rustwing Falcon - The upsides and synergy potential on Topplegeist and Healer's Hawk are much better than the 2nd point of toughness here.
Is Talons of Wildwood even better than Horned Helm (which is rated at zero)? Beyond the first target, Talons costs you five mana to "re-equip".. (EDIT: And now I see that you have also listed it in the unplayables..)
I just heard the LR sunsetshow for M19 and they described Siegebreaker Giant as a card that had underperformed. They described a common scenario where you can only activate it once on the turn after you cast it and that is insufficient to avoid trading down.
I appreciate the analysis and organization that has been done here. I wanted to check the card rankings against my own collection to see what I may have missed, so I ported the first page to excel and shared it here if anyone is interested.
@jovian
I think a couple of people were interested in Talons of Wirewood during spoiler season. Not sure how it has panned out for them. I think it is unique enough to consider for its interactions (getting it back after milling, getting multiple enchantment matters / prowess triggers etc), even if it isn't particularly powerful in its own right. Being in the unplayable section as well was a mistake on my behalf.
Seems like Siegebreaker can drop out of consideration. And I guess Rustwing Falcon can hold off spirit tokens or attack into a single opposing one... but Healer's Hawk seems like much better upside than that extra toughness, alongside Topplegeist.
@rancoredmalone
Yeah, it would be better most of the time. I wonder if it was underrated the first time around? Happy for Star-Crowned Crag to be no reason to cube, on the basis you aren't likely to want both, and the bestow upside seems significantly better than the 'dies to enchantment removal' downside.
@BetweenWalls
Wow. That is awesome. Having a quick look, I can see that the anchors / supports fields have been a bit underutilised. Being able to filter these to find something for the archetype you are looking to support was part of the intention of those fields. Might have to go back over those at some point.
Sorry it's been a couple of weeks. Here is the rest of the M19.
4 - Staple - Cards with enough base power that your cube is less powerful from their omission. They are cards that are likely to never rotate out of your cube unless you ban them for being too good. 3 - Strong - These cards are among the top cards at providing an important effect and/or supporting a popular archetype. 2 - Playable - These are good cards, but they are either interchangeable (e.g. lots of removal, aggressive red 2-drops) or are build-around cards that need a little support to be good (Favorable Winds). 1 - Niche - These cards aren't usually considered great, but might be included to support some obscure archetypes, specific interactions, or if going deep on a particular type of deck / archetype / effect. No reason to cube - There isn't a reason to cube these over options. You might find some perfectly 'playable' cards here, but there is little reason to put them into your cube in the first place unless you are intentionally depowering an effect.
Satyr Enchanter - 1 Description - Clearly a signal for an enchantment deck, in the colours that are the easiest to support it. You still need to support it well, but with aura-based removal and enough good enchantments it can be good enough. Anchors - Enchantment Matters Supports -
Heroic Reinforcements - 2 Description - It's an option for go wide and token support. Not good when you are behind, but if you are applying early pressure it can be really good. Anchors - Supports -
Poison-Tip Archer - 1 Description - It's going to be annoying to face sometimes, but it gets lost against stronger options. Anchors - Supports -
Skyrider Patrol - 2 Description - There is a bit of investment, but making beefy fliers is nice. It's fine on its own, but consider it higher if you support +1/+1 counters. Anchors - Supports - +1/+1 counters
Regal Bloodlord - 1 Description - It isn't the highest profile life gain reward, but the stats and flying make it reasonable at stabilising, and if you can get a few Bat tokens out of it, it can be worth your while. Clearly only for cubes with enough repeat life gain triggers. Anchors - Lifegain Matters Supports -
Psychic Symbiont - 1 Description - It can be a 3 for 1, but it is fairly expensive compared to other options. Anchors - Supports -
Diamond Mare - 1 Description - It's a way to support life gain decks while providing a defensive body. It might find its way into more general control decks, but it is a low impact top deck. Anchors - Supports - Life Gain Matters
Meteor Golem - 2 Description - It's expensive, but it kills almost everything, and is colorless, allowing control / ramp decks a catch-all answer card. Also a reasonable high end for blink / flicker decks. A 3/3 on the field isn't embarrassing either if you've taken out their best permanent. Anchors - Supports - Flicker / Bounce
Aerial Engineer - It's fine when it is on, but it isn't so much above the curve that you'd consider a gold slot for for it, when it is pretty bad when it isn't on.
Brawl-Bash Ogre - There are better sacrifice outlets, and more generally the upside isn't high enough for a gold card.
Diamond mare a 2 I find a little suspicious. It's really bad just a little late into the game, unlike a lone missionary, and it has an arguably worse statline.
Fair enough, I've dropped it to a 1. Of the ones I had question marks against, Poison-Tip Archer at 1, Skyrider Patrol at 2, and Psychic Symbiont at 1.
I was waiting the longest for activity to pick up in the thread, and when it does, I don't contribute. I think things look OK with the ratings as of now.
I came to think: Are we assuming draft or a draft-like format? Or should we give explicit ratings for sealed? I think I have just assumed that we are talking about draft in some form, where consistency and power of decks are higher than in sealed. Suspicious Bookcase was decent in M19 sealed, was what got me thinking about it.
Also, the Regal Bloodlord misses a "lifegain matters" under anchors/supports.
I think sticking with draft as the 'baseline' evaluation is appropriate, as I suspect this is the type of game most people play, and individuals can adjust their evaluation based on their own play format. I think we all play slightly different formats, even if we do draft. Some people do regular 8-mans, some do Glimpse / Burn variants for less players etc. each of which will have their own nuances.
Yes, thats good.
But Ulka, do you think people should be running sealeds with larger pools to get deck strength up to some imaginary bar we set through draft, or are you happy with the kind of challenge low power sealed gets you?
Yes, thats good.
But Ulka, do you think people should be running sealeds with larger pools to get deck strength up to some imaginary bar we set through draft, or are you happy with the kind of challenge low power sealed gets you?
Depends on the event but my group is pretty relaxed so our best sealed events come from 8 packs of 15
That's probably the right number to get around a draft power level
Also, does anyone else find it odd that most of us count by multiples of 15 for everything? We have complete control, yet we still just do what papa wizards used to tell us.
This is my first post here, so thank you Bacchus for creating and maintaing this thread and to everyone who has contributed! It has been very useful for creating my own peasant cube.
I went through the Excel version and compared to my own cube, and there were 29 cards rated as no reason to cube. I went through the "No reasons to cube" lists, but there were a few I couldn't find. I also searched the thread, and there seems that some of them have been rated:
Treasure Keeper - Suggested a rating of 1 or 2 in this thread.
Treasure keeper's trigger is bloodbraid elf's cascade, but it's on a much much slower creature. If it's suitable for anything, it would have to be for some sort of value deck. But what kind of "cascades" would be worth it in a value deck? If BBE hits lightning bolt, it's comparable to flametongue kavu, but if this guy hits lightning bolt he's comparable to mudbutton torchrunner. If BBE hits a 2 drop, it applies pressure on a board where a 2 drop may still be good. If this guy hits a 2 drop, it's like... Seed guardian? Except it doesn't have 4 toughness, or reach, or the upside of making a 5/5.
So I think it's not worth running.
Squirrely is crazy, but is trying hard to support some deep graveyard strategy by looking at the bottom of the barrel. If you could get it going reliably, a 3/3 haste that pumps the team is ridiculous, but that probably isn't average case scenario.
Pyrewild shaman is a card that I have been trying a little, but I think I need to take it out. It costs too much for conditional reach.
There are too many great selesnya cards to justify using Wayfaring temple. Scion of the wild just isn't really playable and this guy requires you to be way ahead to actually get better than the monogreen card.
Supreme will is always a card that works. Worth a filler spot.
Gaea's anthem is pretty good, but it is second fiddle to curse of predation. The curse is OP and has been banned by a couple of people, btw.
Skywhaler's shot
You know, this is almost murder. It would probably be a fine card, except white has like 89 Oblivion rings to take its place.
I guess 15 goes all the way back to alpha, when draft wasn't really any part of design at all (Although I think the playtesters had actually started experimenting with draft/limited even before the game released).
I have often wondered about whether the game would be better if it could be released in "constructed boosters" and "limited boosters", from a pure gameplay perspective. Get the berated "draft chaff" out of the constructed boosters, and keep stupid crap like The locust god and Tetzimoc, Primal Death out of drafts. Of course this comes with a whole bunch of other potential problems (overall game economy not least among them), but probably the pack size could be different.
My starting point would be a multiple of the number of players.
Collation also comes into it. I have found that in a cube setting with completely random 15-card packs there is an unacceptably high occurence of four-colour packs and general variance in colour distribution overall. I have sorted this one of two ways: The first is to seed the boosters so that each pack has 1 card of each colour + 9 random cards. The second, less labour-intensive solution, is to use more than 15 cards per booster and then scrap the remainder (e.g. 20 card packs, scrap last 5 cards from each pack.)
I am skeptical that Stitcher's Supplier can do much of anything. At the end of the day, it is still a 1/1 for 1. You have no control what goes to the yard and you can't control when you get the second trigger.
I think I like Vampire Sovereign a decent amount. Been trying to compare it to other options. It seems the best when you are behind, and it is guaranteed value in the face of immediate removal. I wonder if this is enough to actually make it better than Sengir Vampire or Indulgent Tormentor. Sure, the absolute power level is higher on the Tormentor, but when you are behind and want/need to block? And if a big flyer wins you the game, the Sovereign also gets the job done, 9 damage over the first 2 turns as opposed to 10.. It's interesting to think about at least.
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)
I'm not opposed to Stitcher's Supplier going down. I can see some good scenarios, but most of them are conditional on the opponent interacting in the first couple of turns so you can power out a big delve creature or something. But even in those cases, probably not worth a card, and your opponent isn't likely to attack their 2/1 into it or whatever.
No love for Meteor Golem? I've seen it appear in ramp and reanimator and has now allowed me to try tinker along with Accomplished Automaton in my artifact based control deck.
Also had good experiences with Satyr Enchanter
Edit: Actually I see you were just covering Blue and Black there? Sorry for jumping the gun
Modern:
WBG
Legacy:
WBG
I can see Vampire Neonate filling a specific role, as the 3 toughness might be able to mitigate some early damage and allow time for activations. Probably only for a limited number of decks, so a niche rating seems appropriate. And sounds like Vampire Sovereign at 2 is appropriate.
Modern:
WBG
Legacy:
WBG
4 - Staple - Cards with enough base power that your cube is less powerful from their omission. They are cards that are likely to never rotate out of your cube unless you ban them for being too good.
3 - Strong - These cards are among the top cards at providing an important effect and/or supporting a popular archetype.
2 - Playable - These are good cards, but they are either interchangeable (e.g. lots of removal, aggressive red 2-drops) or are build-around cards that need a little support to be good (Favorable Winds).
1 - Niche - These cards aren't usually considered great, but might be included to support some obscure archetypes, specific interactions, or if going deep on a particular type of deck / archetype / effect.
No reason to cube - There isn't a reason to cube these over options. You might find some perfectly 'playable' cards here, but there is little reason to put them into your cube in the first place unless you are intentionally depowering an effect.
Dryad Greenseeker - 2
Description - It can block some early threats and draw a card about 40% of the time on the end step if needed. Over a long game it can add up. There are few incidental synergies, but Sensei's Divining Top and Sylvan Library are good friends, and plays nice if scry or surveil are prevalent in your cube. Helps pull you out of a land-light hand pretty effectively.
Anchors -
Supports -
Druid of Horns - 1
Description - The base is bad, but the upside is good if you can get a couple of activations. A single trigger is fine but probably doesn't really get you there; only cube it if you have enough support, and preferably with some repeatable / bouncable auras.
Anchors - Voltron / Pants
Supports -
Vine Mare - 1
Description - It's got enough power and toughness that a Pants deck might be able to make use of it. Just make sure it has enough support.
Anchors -
Supports -
Talons of Wildwood - 1
Description - The base isn't amazing, but on the right size creature the trample can make a difference. The re-buy cost also doesn't look efficient on the surface, but can help support enchantment based triggers, supply discard outlets etc.
Anchors -
Supports - Enchantments Matter
Colossal Majesty - 1
Description - You probably need to draw 3 cards to make it worth it, but midrange decks with enough good sized creatures can happily trade in the early game and then drown the opponent in card advantage later. Elemental Bond and Garruk's Packleader play in a similar space, but once it triggers this is more likely to keep you drawing cards, rather than relying on what you draw.
Anchors - Power Matters
Supports -
Goblin Instigator - 2
Description - Fine companion to Dragon Fodder. If you don't need both cards, it depends on whether you'd prefer the ability to bounce / flicker, or spells matter / graveyard filling.
Anchors -
Supports - Tokens, Bounce
Cavalry Drillmaster - 1
Description - It is fine for all out aggro that essentially puts some hasty power on the table, but there are plenty of similar options.
Anchors -
Supports -
Militia Bugler - 1
Description - It's a little lacklustre on the surface, but if it hits you are going to be pretty happy with the two for one.
Anchors -
Supports -
Trusty Packbeast - 1
Description - It's narrow on the theme, and requires enough support in artifacts that naturally find their way to the graveyard (creatures or sacrifice), but will be fine in the decks that can get that value out of it.
Anchors - Artifacts Matter
Supports -
Gallant Cavalry - 1
Description - It's fine for putting bodies on the board. Nothing exceptional, but fine for go wide strategies. You may consider Call the Cavalry as well or instead, depending on your preference for blink targets vs prowess, spells matters etc.
Anchors -
Supports -
Goblin Motivator - Add to Bloodlust Inciter.
I just heard the LR sunsetshow for M19 and they described Siegebreaker Giant as a card that had underperformed. They described a common scenario where you can only activate it once on the turn after you cast it and that is insufficient to avoid trading down.
The new Healer's Hawk at least pushes out all the Aven Skirmishers, and probably also Rustwing Falcon.
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)
https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/peasantsnowcube
-- Updated with Outlaws of Thunder Junction
The PioneWer Peasant CUbe
https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/pionewer
-- Updated with Murders at Karlov Manor
I think a couple of people were interested in Talons of Wirewood during spoiler season. Not sure how it has panned out for them. I think it is unique enough to consider for its interactions (getting it back after milling, getting multiple enchantment matters / prowess triggers etc), even if it isn't particularly powerful in its own right. Being in the unplayable section as well was a mistake on my behalf.
Seems like Siegebreaker can drop out of consideration. And I guess Rustwing Falcon can hold off spirit tokens or attack into a single opposing one... but Healer's Hawk seems like much better upside than that extra toughness, alongside Topplegeist.
@rancoredmalone
Yeah, it would be better most of the time. I wonder if it was underrated the first time around? Happy for Star-Crowned Crag to be no reason to cube, on the basis you aren't likely to want both, and the bestow upside seems significantly better than the 'dies to enchantment removal' downside.
@BetweenWalls
Wow. That is awesome. Having a quick look, I can see that the anchors / supports fields have been a bit underutilised. Being able to filter these to find something for the archetype you are looking to support was part of the intention of those fields. Might have to go back over those at some point.
4 - Staple - Cards with enough base power that your cube is less powerful from their omission. They are cards that are likely to never rotate out of your cube unless you ban them for being too good.
3 - Strong - These cards are among the top cards at providing an important effect and/or supporting a popular archetype.
2 - Playable - These are good cards, but they are either interchangeable (e.g. lots of removal, aggressive red 2-drops) or are build-around cards that need a little support to be good (Favorable Winds).
1 - Niche - These cards aren't usually considered great, but might be included to support some obscure archetypes, specific interactions, or if going deep on a particular type of deck / archetype / effect.
No reason to cube - There isn't a reason to cube these over options. You might find some perfectly 'playable' cards here, but there is little reason to put them into your cube in the first place unless you are intentionally depowering an effect.
Satyr Enchanter - 1
Description - Clearly a signal for an enchantment deck, in the colours that are the easiest to support it. You still need to support it well, but with aura-based removal and enough good enchantments it can be good enough.
Anchors - Enchantment Matters
Supports -
Heroic Reinforcements - 2
Description - It's an option for go wide and token support. Not good when you are behind, but if you are applying early pressure it can be really good.
Anchors -
Supports -
Poison-Tip Archer - 1
Description - It's going to be annoying to face sometimes, but it gets lost against stronger options.
Anchors -
Supports -
Skyrider Patrol - 2
Description - There is a bit of investment, but making beefy fliers is nice. It's fine on its own, but consider it higher if you support +1/+1 counters.
Anchors -
Supports - +1/+1 counters
Regal Bloodlord - 1
Description - It isn't the highest profile life gain reward, but the stats and flying make it reasonable at stabilising, and if you can get a few Bat tokens out of it, it can be worth your while. Clearly only for cubes with enough repeat life gain triggers.
Anchors - Lifegain Matters
Supports -
Psychic Symbiont - 1
Description - It can be a 3 for 1, but it is fairly expensive compared to other options.
Anchors -
Supports -
Diamond Mare - 1
Description - It's a way to support life gain decks while providing a defensive body. It might find its way into more general control decks, but it is a low impact top deck.
Anchors -
Supports - Life Gain Matters
Meteor Golem - 2
Description - It's expensive, but it kills almost everything, and is colorless, allowing control / ramp decks a catch-all answer card. Also a reasonable high end for blink / flicker decks. A 3/3 on the field isn't embarrassing either if you've taken out their best permanent.
Anchors -
Supports - Flicker / Bounce
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
I was waiting the longest for activity to pick up in the thread, and when it does, I don't contribute. I think things look OK with the ratings as of now.
I came to think: Are we assuming draft or a draft-like format? Or should we give explicit ratings for sealed? I think I have just assumed that we are talking about draft in some form, where consistency and power of decks are higher than in sealed. Suspicious Bookcase was decent in M19 sealed, was what got me thinking about it.
Also, the Regal Bloodlord misses a "lifegain matters" under anchors/supports.
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)
I think sticking with draft as the 'baseline' evaluation is appropriate, as I suspect this is the type of game most people play, and individuals can adjust their evaluation based on their own play format. I think we all play slightly different formats, even if we do draft. Some people do regular 8-mans, some do Glimpse / Burn variants for less players etc. each of which will have their own nuances.
I dont know why people dont just run a sealed with more cards (when they have a big enough cube). I usually sealed with 110 cards.
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
I love doing sealed with my cube. My group loves it if we can only get 4 people to play.
But Ulka, do you think people should be running sealeds with larger pools to get deck strength up to some imaginary bar we set through draft, or are you happy with the kind of challenge low power sealed gets you?
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
Depends on the event but my group is pretty relaxed so our best sealed events come from 8 packs of 15
Also, does anyone else find it odd that most of us count by multiples of 15 for everything? We have complete control, yet we still just do what papa wizards used to tell us.
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
That said, I do use packs of 12.
The first attempts can almost always be improved
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
I went through the Excel version and compared to my own cube, and there were 29 cards rated as no reason to cube. I went through the "No reasons to cube" lists, but there were a few I couldn't find. I also searched the thread, and there seems that some of them have been rated:
Curious what you think of the cards above.
Treasure keeper's trigger is bloodbraid elf's cascade, but it's on a much much slower creature. If it's suitable for anything, it would have to be for some sort of value deck. But what kind of "cascades" would be worth it in a value deck? If BBE hits lightning bolt, it's comparable to flametongue kavu, but if this guy hits lightning bolt he's comparable to mudbutton torchrunner. If BBE hits a 2 drop, it applies pressure on a board where a 2 drop may still be good. If this guy hits a 2 drop, it's like... Seed guardian? Except it doesn't have 4 toughness, or reach, or the upside of making a 5/5.
So I think it's not worth running.
Squirrely is crazy, but is trying hard to support some deep graveyard strategy by looking at the bottom of the barrel. If you could get it going reliably, a 3/3 haste that pumps the team is ridiculous, but that probably isn't average case scenario.
Pyrewild shaman is a card that I have been trying a little, but I think I need to take it out. It costs too much for conditional reach.
There are too many great selesnya cards to justify using Wayfaring temple. Scion of the wild just isn't really playable and this guy requires you to be way ahead to actually get better than the monogreen card.
Supreme will is always a card that works. Worth a filler spot.
Gaea's anthem is pretty good, but it is second fiddle to curse of predation. The curse is OP and has been banned by a couple of people, btw.
Skywhaler's shot
You know, this is almost murder. It would probably be a fine card, except white has like 89 Oblivion rings to take its place.
My CubeCobra (draft 20 card packs, 2 packs.)
430, Peasant, Very Unpowered
Why you should take your hybrids out of your gold section
Manamath Article
I have often wondered about whether the game would be better if it could be released in "constructed boosters" and "limited boosters", from a pure gameplay perspective. Get the berated "draft chaff" out of the constructed boosters, and keep stupid crap like The locust god and Tetzimoc, Primal Death out of drafts. Of course this comes with a whole bunch of other potential problems (overall game economy not least among them), but probably the pack size could be different.
My starting point would be a multiple of the number of players.
Collation also comes into it. I have found that in a cube setting with completely random 15-card packs there is an unacceptably high occurence of four-colour packs and general variance in colour distribution overall. I have sorted this one of two ways: The first is to seed the boosters so that each pack has 1 card of each colour + 9 random cards. The second, less labour-intensive solution, is to use more than 15 cards per booster and then scrap the remainder (e.g. 20 card packs, scrap last 5 cards from each pack.)
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)