Cube Size: 720 Cards
Breakdown: 96 Each Color, 80 Colorless, 70 Multicolor, 90 Land
Standard or Theme Cube: Standard
Snow Lands: No
Average # Players: 2-8
How Often Drafted: bi-weekly with 6-8, regularly with 2
Card Selection:
Powered? : Yes
Portal? : Yes
"Un-" Cards?: Yes
Banned Cards for Power-Level? : No
Banned Cards for Time Constraints? : No
Banned Cards for "Fun" factor? : No
Cube Design:
Standard or Multiplayer: Both, some inclusions specifically geared toward 2HG
Sideboards? : Yes (but no sideboard only cards)
Even Colour Balance: Yes
Perfect Creature/Non-Creature Balance: No
Gold Balance: No, preference given to stronger cards
Gold As Played/As Printed: As Printed, allows me to cheat in more "multi"-color cards
Welcome! Hope you enjoy your stay! I had a quick look at your list, which seems pretty good at first glance. I highlighted a few cards in each color that I wanted to hear your thoughts on, as these would generally be considered subpar or placeholders that can be swapped out for better stuff:
Finally, it's worth noting that there is an uneven balance in your number of mana-fixing lands, possibly due to the method of organization. Your allied pairs appear to have seven lands, while enemy pairs only have five. This can skew the drafts, since half the combinations in the cube enjoy more support and become stronger due to the increase in manafixing. One solution would be to cut a land from the allied pairs and add a land to enemy pairs for an even number across the board (six each).
First of all thanks for taking the time to look over my list. It is very much appreciated. I haven't gotten much of chance to have it evaluated as most of my playgroup is rather uncritical/unversed in the ways of cube design.
As to the cards you highlighted I'd start off by admitting that yes, some of these are placeholders, mainly with the idea of keeping the overall CMC of the cube down and then just waiting for wizards to give me a better alternative (Lightning Mauler et al).
The suggestion on the lands section is very helpful. I hadn't really reflected too much on the imbalance other than wizards has, by the cards they've printed, historically favored allied pairs. Obvoiusly they have tried in the recent past to right this wrong i.e. Zendikar enemy fetches, Innistrad lands. But the SOM and WWK lands both felt like stronger cycles, which favors the allied pairs. And there is the trade-off in terms of power, the Innistrad enemy duals versus the SOM allied lands. I had gone with the SOM lands more to favor aggro without really considering the 7 to 5 imbalance in cycles but your comment has gotten me to reconsider that.
And then to the specific card choices: Sigiled Paladin has actually been decent, not electrifiying, but decent. In decks that can support WW he usually makes the cut. I have been trying to wittle away at the WW and BB knights and so far done pretty well (no protection knights) and he is undoubtly cuttable. I would ask though, how far should one push the 1X two drops over XX? Should there ever be a bearier/drawback to two drop CCs? Or will I see a day when paying XX for any two drop just no longer makes sense, and is that a good thing?
Soltari Crusader-on the chopping block, probably the cut for Restoration Angel when I get one
Shaper Parasite-just a unique effect for blue and a trick almost on one sees coming, I am a long way from cutting this one to the extent that I would cut other, objectively stronger cards
Personal Tutor-just cool factor, there is no good arguement for this over even Serum's Vision. I'll probably be trading this one out sooner than later.
Aphotto Exterminator and Skinthinner have been on the chopping block for a LONG time but somehow have continued to be included. Really just looking for alternatives at that CMC. I am looking for a Nether Void so one of these will likely be cut for that.
Ancient Craving over Necropotence/Yawgmoth's Bargain-Cravings is splashable and is a fourth black draw spell for Mono black, RB aggro, and Rock decks. As to playing it over Necropotence, I just got tired of seeing Necro table in draft after draft. The BBB was/is a bridge too far, Bargain was likewise discounted as overpriced. Though they are ones I would consider again but regardless I would still keep in Cravings, we've been very happy with it.
Skirk Marauder-I know this guy ought to get cut (and probably will eventually) but, like the previous morphs, I love me a two-for-one, even when I am paying throught the nose mana wise. Plus I place a bit higher value on variance of play which the morphs afford.
Scute Mob, Skarrgan Pit-Skulk, and Skyshroud Elite-I have tried to push aggro inspite of, or to compensate for, the large size of my cube. Plus these guys see lots of play. The Elite is 75% Kird Ape, and 25% Beast Within on my Library mid-combat liability, but when Wild Dogs still makes the cut...Skulk-unique evasion, Mob-geos from chump blocker to nutty-sized threat.
Isao, Enlightened Bushi-just too cool. And that being said if people didn't play him he'd get cut, no question. But people DO play him, because he IS too cool.
Dimir Cutpurse, Dimir Guildmage-totally cuttable, they are mainly there over Oona, Queen of the Fae because of CMC and no real need for Yet Another Fatty. I hope to find good alternatives with the release of M13.
Clutch of the Undercity-pet card that is mainly there for its flexability, tutor for JMS, bounce, or Lava Spike you. Won't be cut any time soon.
Ashenmoor Gouger, Shambling Remains- there to push RB aggro and keep CMC down-Void, Butiminous Blast were just overloads on removal when RB really seemed to want to be more aggro than control. That said the Gouger could be cut soon.
Progenitus-just fun fatty for style points, even had it hard cast one game off Mirari's Wake, incidently some in my playgroup lean toward combos and strong synergies i.e. Strip Mine+Crucible of Worlds, and draft to pull off the nuttier things you can do in cube.
Stuffy Doll-everybody loves this guy, unique roadblock obviously but there is something people seem to love about this card. Similar to Isao this gets played, and actually performs, despite looking on paper like a weak choice. Stuffy Doll, like Mindslaver, stays in mostly due to its uniqueness, but, unlike Mindslaver I'd have a really hard time cutting him.
Trip Noose over Ring of Gix or even Puppet Strings is mainly due to CMC, that and my playgroup HATES echo. (I try to reason with them but its a gut level thing I guess).
The manabase isn't really an issue until you hit larger cube sizes like 720+ (I think even 630 would be fine with 5 lands per pair). You can take a look at my own manabase for an example on potential choices, as I recently cleaned it up after looking at the best choices for each combination here. Boros is missing a land, but that's mostly because I can't stand the karoo in that combination, which is probably the purest aggro pair in my cube. Enemy fastlands can't come fast enough!
Sigiled Paladin - an interesting question on two-drops. I think with the increased quality of 1W creatures, there's a higher threshold before WW bears become playable. I run Loyal Cathar and Knight of the White Orchid over Sigiled Paladin and Serra Avenger because I prefer the card advantage they provide over the bump in P/T from Paladin and Avenger.
Scute Mob is more of a control finisher than an aggro card, and considered in that light it becomes pretty subpar. You're not even playing Ranger of Eos, which would be my biggest reason to keep Scute Mob around!
Ashenmoor Gouger, Shambling Remains - I feel like red and black have enough three-drops that you don't need to cut into the multicolor section with more. I would much rather see Falkenrath Aristocrat in one of their spots, as it's probably one of the best aggro finishers. Not quite Hero of Oxid Ridge, but it's close.
For everything else, eidolon's list can provide alternatives you might not have considered yet.
Cube Size: 720 Cards
Breakdown: 96 Each Color, 80 Colorless, 70 Multicolor, 90 Land
Standard or Theme Cube: Standard
Snow Lands: No
Average # Players: 2-8
How Often Drafted: bi-weekly with 6-8, regularly with 2
Card Selection:
Powered? : Yes
Portal? : Yes
"Un-" Cards?: Yes
Banned Cards for Power-Level? : No
Banned Cards for Time Constraints? : No
Banned Cards for "Fun" factor? : No
Cube Design:
Standard or Multiplayer: Both, some inclusions specifically geared toward 2HG
Sideboards? : Yes (but no sideboard only cards)
Even Colour Balance: Yes
Perfect Creature/Non-Creature Balance: No
Gold Balance: No, preference given to stronger cards
Gold As Played/As Printed: As Printed, allows me to cheat in more "multi"-color cards
Cube List
Etali, Primal Storm EDH
White: Sigiled Paladin, Soltari Crusader
Blue: Shaper Parasite, Personal Tutor
Black: Aphetto Exterminator, Skinthinner, Ancient Craving (over Necropotence and Yawgmoth's Bargain?)
Red: Skirk Marauder
Green: Scute Mob, Skarrgan Pit-Skulk, Skyshroud Elite, Kavu Titan, Isao, Enlightened Bushi, Desert Twister
Multicolor: Dimir Cutpurse, Dimir Guildmage, Clutch of the Undercity
Ashenmoor Gouger, Shambling Remains
Progenitus
Artifact: Stuffy Doll
Trip Noose - Ring of Gix would be a considerable improvement in this part. Some players have also seen good results from Tumble Magnet.
Finally, it's worth noting that there is an uneven balance in your number of mana-fixing lands, possibly due to the method of organization. Your allied pairs appear to have seven lands, while enemy pairs only have five. This can skew the drafts, since half the combinations in the cube enjoy more support and become stronger due to the increase in manafixing. One solution would be to cut a land from the allied pairs and add a land to enemy pairs for an even number across the board (six each).
My Cube (DeckStats)
My Pauper Cube: 540 (CubeTutor link!)
Level 1 Judge
As to the cards you highlighted I'd start off by admitting that yes, some of these are placeholders, mainly with the idea of keeping the overall CMC of the cube down and then just waiting for wizards to give me a better alternative (Lightning Mauler et al).
The suggestion on the lands section is very helpful. I hadn't really reflected too much on the imbalance other than wizards has, by the cards they've printed, historically favored allied pairs. Obvoiusly they have tried in the recent past to right this wrong i.e. Zendikar enemy fetches, Innistrad lands. But the SOM and WWK lands both felt like stronger cycles, which favors the allied pairs. And there is the trade-off in terms of power, the Innistrad enemy duals versus the SOM allied lands. I had gone with the SOM lands more to favor aggro without really considering the 7 to 5 imbalance in cycles but your comment has gotten me to reconsider that.
And then to the specific card choices:
Sigiled Paladin has actually been decent, not electrifiying, but decent. In decks that can support WW he usually makes the cut. I have been trying to wittle away at the WW and BB knights and so far done pretty well (no protection knights) and he is undoubtly cuttable. I would ask though, how far should one push the 1X two drops over XX? Should there ever be a bearier/drawback to two drop CCs? Or will I see a day when paying XX for any two drop just no longer makes sense, and is that a good thing?
Soltari Crusader-on the chopping block, probably the cut for Restoration Angel when I get one
Shaper Parasite-just a unique effect for blue and a trick almost on one sees coming, I am a long way from cutting this one to the extent that I would cut other, objectively stronger cards
Personal Tutor-just cool factor, there is no good arguement for this over even Serum's Vision. I'll probably be trading this one out sooner than later.
Aphotto Exterminator and Skinthinner have been on the chopping block for a LONG time but somehow have continued to be included. Really just looking for alternatives at that CMC. I am looking for a Nether Void so one of these will likely be cut for that.
Ancient Craving over Necropotence/Yawgmoth's Bargain-Cravings is splashable and is a fourth black draw spell for Mono black, RB aggro, and Rock decks. As to playing it over Necropotence, I just got tired of seeing Necro table in draft after draft. The BBB was/is a bridge too far, Bargain was likewise discounted as overpriced. Though they are ones I would consider again but regardless I would still keep in Cravings, we've been very happy with it.
Skirk Marauder-I know this guy ought to get cut (and probably will eventually) but, like the previous morphs, I love me a two-for-one, even when I am paying throught the nose mana wise. Plus I place a bit higher value on variance of play which the morphs afford.
Scute Mob, Skarrgan Pit-Skulk, and Skyshroud Elite-I have tried to push aggro inspite of, or to compensate for, the large size of my cube. Plus these guys see lots of play. The Elite is 75% Kird Ape, and 25% Beast Within on my Library mid-combat liability, but when Wild Dogs still makes the cut...Skulk-unique evasion, Mob-geos from chump blocker to nutty-sized threat.
Kavu Titan probably should be cut for Sakura Tribe-Elder (how am I not playing that!?)
Isao, Enlightened Bushi-just too cool. And that being said if people didn't play him he'd get cut, no question. But people DO play him, because he IS too cool.
Dimir Cutpurse, Dimir Guildmage-totally cuttable, they are mainly there over Oona, Queen of the Fae because of CMC and no real need for Yet Another Fatty. I hope to find good alternatives with the release of M13.
Clutch of the Undercity-pet card that is mainly there for its flexability, tutor for JMS, bounce, or Lava Spike you. Won't be cut any time soon.
Ashenmoor Gouger, Shambling Remains- there to push RB aggro and keep CMC down-Void, Butiminous Blast were just overloads on removal when RB really seemed to want to be more aggro than control. That said the Gouger could be cut soon.
Progenitus-just fun fatty for style points, even had it hard cast one game off Mirari's Wake, incidently some in my playgroup lean toward combos and strong synergies i.e. Strip Mine+Crucible of Worlds, and draft to pull off the nuttier things you can do in cube.
Stuffy Doll-everybody loves this guy, unique roadblock obviously but there is something people seem to love about this card. Similar to Isao this gets played, and actually performs, despite looking on paper like a weak choice. Stuffy Doll, like Mindslaver, stays in mostly due to its uniqueness, but, unlike Mindslaver I'd have a really hard time cutting him.
Trip Noose over Ring of Gix or even Puppet Strings is mainly due to CMC, that and my playgroup HATES echo. (I try to reason with them but its a gut level thing I guess).
Again big thanks for your help.
Etali, Primal Storm EDH
Sigiled Paladin - an interesting question on two-drops. I think with the increased quality of 1W creatures, there's a higher threshold before WW bears become playable. I run Loyal Cathar and Knight of the White Orchid over Sigiled Paladin and Serra Avenger because I prefer the card advantage they provide over the bump in P/T from Paladin and Avenger.
Scute Mob is more of a control finisher than an aggro card, and considered in that light it becomes pretty subpar. You're not even playing Ranger of Eos, which would be my biggest reason to keep Scute Mob around!
Ashenmoor Gouger, Shambling Remains - I feel like red and black have enough three-drops that you don't need to cut into the multicolor section with more. I would much rather see Falkenrath Aristocrat in one of their spots, as it's probably one of the best aggro finishers. Not quite Hero of Oxid Ridge, but it's close.
For everything else, eidolon's list can provide alternatives you might not have considered yet.
My Cube (DeckStats)
My Pauper Cube: 540 (CubeTutor link!)
Level 1 Judge