This one might not be worth it but I was surprised no one mentioned it so far. Are people still running Shadowmage Infiltrator and is this an upgrade or downgrade?
- BIG negative, no Fear. It's possible this comes in and is just a 1/3 waste of a card.
- You reveal the draw, giving your opponent some information.
+ The card you draw drains the opponent. Could be useful in a damage race as this seems to be more of a tempo deck critter.
+ Ninjitsu. This could potentially connect on turn 2, and maybe that low cost can help it get in for a couple early attacks before blockers are deployed. Ninjitsu also helps it connect later in the game (at least once). You can also rebuy the ninjitsu'd creature if it has an etb bonus vendilion clique, etc.
I'd love the dream of going t1 black 1-drop, t2 ninjitsu this in for damage + draw, then leaving counter/removal mana up the rest of the game. I'd have to imagine the ACS is at least sneaking it in on one attack and/or rebuying an etb effect creature, so is that worth trying out?
Definitely not the worst card you could be playing, but this really needs ninjas. By itself it’s not better than Shadowmag Infiltrator and with Ninjutsu it’s not much better than Ninja of the Deep you’re. There’s other cards to be played in mono black / blue / Dimir to support tempo.
Ninja of the Deep Hours is a favorite card of mine, so when I saw this, I considered it. But it doesn't edge out any of the Dimir I'm currently running. I'm not running Shadowmage anymore, but I think Shadowmage is better without ninja support. However, if anyone is running Masterful Ninja, this is kind of neat. Still need a few more ninjas to make the cut.
This one might not be worth it but I was surprised no one mentioned it so far. Are people still running Shadowmage Infiltrator and is this an upgrade or downgrade?
- BIG negative, no Fear. It's possible this comes in and is just a 1/3 waste of a card.
- You reveal the draw, giving your opponent some information.
+ The card you draw drains the opponent. Could be useful in a damage race as this seems to be more of a tempo deck critter.
+ Ninjitsu. This could potentially connect on turn 2, and maybe that low cost can help it get in for a couple early attacks before blockers are deployed. Ninjitsu also helps it connect later in the game (at least once). You can also rebuy the ninjitsu'd creature if it has an etb bonus vendilion clique, etc.
I'd love the dream of going t1 black 1-drop, t2 ninjitsu this in for damage + draw, then leaving counter/removal mana up the rest of the game. I'd have to imagine the ACS is at least sneaking it in on one attack and/or rebuying an etb effect creature, so is that worth trying out?
Shadowmage is too slow + the damage is irrelevant. I've been pretty impressed with Yuriko in cEDH/ EDH and legacy and I would like to give her a try - The versatility is well understood and the ceiling is up there.
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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
This one might not be worth it but I was surprised no one mentioned it so far. Are people still running Shadowmage Infiltrator and is this an upgrade or downgrade?
- BIG negative, no Fear. It's possible this comes in and is just a 1/3 waste of a card.
- You reveal the draw, giving your opponent some information.
+ The card you draw drains the opponent. Could be useful in a damage race as this seems to be more of a tempo deck critter.
+ Ninjitsu. This could potentially connect on turn 2, and maybe that low cost can help it get in for a couple early attacks before blockers are deployed. Ninjitsu also helps it connect later in the game (at least once). You can also rebuy the ninjitsu'd creature if it has an etb bonus vendilion clique, etc.
I'd love the dream of going t1 black 1-drop, t2 ninjitsu this in for damage + draw, then leaving counter/removal mana up the rest of the game. I'd have to imagine the ACS is at least sneaking it in on one attack and/or rebuying an etb effect creature, so is that worth trying out?
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Shadowmage is too slow + the damage is irrelevant. I've been pretty impressed with Yuriko in cEDH/ EDH and legacy and I would like to give her a try - The versatility is well understood and the ceiling is up there.
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