Got inspired to do my a fun little 2017 cube review. Was able to do a lot of cubing this year since I just discovered Xmage in May so I was able to test a lot of things over the year. Note that this is all subjective / for fun.
Here’s the list of 30 new cards that survived through 2017. Unstable and anything that got cut was not eligible: https://i.imgur.com/YqcfRsQ.png
BEST SLEEPER CARDS
#1 Search for Azcanta
#2 Walking Ballista
#3 Combat Celebrant (mostly because a lot of people aren’t aware this goes infinite with Kiki-Twin)
MOST UNEXPECTED CARD PRINTINGS
#1 Nissa, Steward of Elements
#2 Fractured Identity
#3 Hazoret the Fervent
MOST ANTICIPATED CARDS TO FILL CERTAIN SLOTS / ROLES
#1 Ramunap Excavator
#2 Liliana, Death’s Majesty
#3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
BEST SET OVERALL
- Amonkhet
WORST SET OVERALL
- Aether Revolt
TOP 5 CARDS OF THE YEAR
#1 Ramunap Excavator
#2 Fractured Identity
#3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
#4 Sorcerous Spyglass
#5 Nissa, Steward of Elements
-Why is Kari Zev the most annoying?
-Is there a card you would replace combat celebrant with if that combo did not exist?
-What would your top 3 overrated/didn't-live-up-to-the-hype cards be?
-Where does this compare to other years in terms of quality? (This one may not be so easy, feel free to ballpark and not look at past years with too much effort.)
- Kari Zev is really annoying because you need 3 creatures to fully block her. Add to the fact that she has 3 toughness and carries equipment like a champ makes her one of the most annoying 2-drops creatures to deal with.
- I don’t think anything else was really a sleeper card this year.... Maybe Hazoret if people just didn’t want to test her over Hero of Oxid Ridge?
- Tough one, especially since the full list of cards I tested isn’t centralized. Off the top of my head for almost got there cards or disappointing cycles I’d say Heart of Kiran / AKH gods / Pain desert lands.
- Also hard to say. I always say quality > quantity when it comes to cube sets. Most sets from this year only have about 5 cards in my cube. AER only has one top-tier card (Kari Zev) and the only other card I wouldn’t consider filler from AER would be Walking Ballista. While AER / XLN / HOU May not have had the biggest number of cubeable cards, a lot of the playable ones are either very exciting and / or flexible.
Here’s the list of 30 new cards that survived through 2017. Unstable and anything that got cut was not eligible: https://i.imgur.com/YqcfRsQ.png
BEST UTILITY CARDS
#1 Sorcerous Spyglass
#2 Chart a Course
#3 Abrade
MOST ANNOYING CARDS TO PLAY AGAINST
#1 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
#2 Fractured Identity
#3 Carnage Tyrant
BEST SLEEPER CARDS
#1 Search for Azcanta
#2 Walking Ballista
#3 Combat Celebrant (mostly because a lot of people aren’t aware this goes infinite with Kiki-Twin)
MOST UNEXPECTED CARD PRINTINGS
#1 Nissa, Steward of Elements
#2 Fractured Identity
#3 Hazoret the Fervent
MOST ANTICIPATED CARDS TO FILL CERTAIN SLOTS / ROLES
#1 Ramunap Excavator
#2 Liliana, Death’s Majesty
#3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
BEST SET OVERALL
- Amonkhet
WORST SET OVERALL
- Aether Revolt
TOP 5 CARDS OF THE YEAR
#1 Ramunap Excavator
#2 Fractured Identity
#3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
#4 Sorcerous Spyglass
#5 Nissa, Steward of Elements
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra
Could you expand on:
-Why is Kari Zev the most annoying?
-Is there a card you would replace combat celebrant with if that combo did not exist?
-What would your top 3 overrated/didn't-live-up-to-the-hype cards be?
-Where does this compare to other years in terms of quality? (This one may not be so easy, feel free to ballpark and not look at past years with too much effort.)
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- I don’t think anything else was really a sleeper card this year.... Maybe Hazoret if people just didn’t want to test her over Hero of Oxid Ridge?
- Tough one, especially since the full list of cards I tested isn’t centralized. Off the top of my head for almost got there cards or disappointing cycles I’d say Heart of Kiran / AKH gods / Pain desert lands.
- Also hard to say. I always say quality > quantity when it comes to cube sets. Most sets from this year only have about 5 cards in my cube. AER only has one top-tier card (Kari Zev) and the only other card I wouldn’t consider filler from AER would be Walking Ballista. While AER / XLN / HOU May not have had the biggest number of cubeable cards, a lot of the playable ones are either very exciting and / or flexible.
My High Octane Unpowered Cube on CubeCobra