Red 5s are stacked, so this probably won't make it into smaller Cubes. But my gut reaction to this is that it's quite similar to Thundermaw Hellkite and better than Goldspan Dragon which is in my 720-card Cube and the Magic Online 540. Goldspan for this is an easy swap for me.
It ticks quite a few boxes to be honest, Evasion and Haste being paramount for red 5 CMC in my opinion. I'd say almost guaranteed value. Definetly worth testing out!
I haven't tested Daybound too much myself, but from what I heard, its not that hard to flip.
I could see myself playing this if Tovolar's Huntmaster, Brutal Cathar outperform their CMC counter parts.
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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
I’ll mention that it’s quite nice in a Winota deck. I know you don’t get the attack trigger, but this is still probably one of the best possible hits in Boros Winota aggro.
It’s a good card in a slot that is tooo stacked. Can’t imagine making it in any cube except a huge one.
The only exception i could think of would be a cube deeply supporting Winota.
I will try! Mostly, I like how much more "play" there seems to be to this guy than Thundermaw.
He's like a Dragon and mini-Chainwhirler, a devastating card but the RRR sentences him to not see much play at all.
He's a decent beater that applies constant pressure and must be answered. Hey, that's a Dragon. But this Dragon also helps keep the board clear every turn. Love it. Yes, he'll occasionally flip at an inconvenient time but that's also part of the fun of this card I think. (But, his front side will also tangle with MANY creatures and still survive so I'm cool with that I think.)
All of this leads to MUCH more interesting gameplay than a 5/5 hasty flyer that maybe wipes few fliers when he lands. I'm not saying any of that is undesirable or "not good enough", I just think this guy is a top-end red threat that has other modes besides just that.
And the final reason is I'm trying to flesh out a minor Wolves/Werewolves theme in my forever-lacking-identity-Gruul section and this guy slots right in there too. That means absolutely nothing to you but it also supports this decision in my environment.
I would say this is a very fair assessment. The most important thing about red finishers to me is haste and evasion, which both have. After looking at Hellkite again, I actually really like that swap and maybe I'll give it a try as well
I will try! Mostly, I like how much more "play" there seems to be to this guy than Thundermaw.
He's like a Dragon and mini-Chainwhirler, a devastating card but the RRR sentences him to not see much play at all.
He's a decent beater that applies constant pressure and must be answered. Hey, that's a Dragon. But this Dragon also helps keep the board clear every turn. Love it. Yes, he'll occasionally flip at an inconvenient time but that's also part of the fun of this card I think. (But, his front side will also tangle with MANY creatures and still survive so I'm cool with that I think.)
All of this leads to MUCH more interesting gameplay than a 5/5 hasty flyer that maybe wipes few fliers when he lands. I'm not saying any of that is undesirable or "not good enough", I just think this guy is a top-end red threat that has other modes besides just that.
And the final reason is I'm trying to flesh out a minor Wolves/Werewolves theme in my forever-lacking-identity-Gruul section and this guy slots right in there too. That means absolutely nothing to you but it also supports this decision in my environment.
I agree with this. This card has been the biggest overperformer for us in recent printings compared to community sentiment. I think most people see Volatile Arsonist and think of it as “second tier 5cc bulk,” but in reality it seriously competes with all the best dragon options.
Red 5s are stacked, so this probably won't make it into smaller Cubes. But my gut reaction to this is that it's quite similar to Thundermaw Hellkite and better than Goldspan Dragon which is in my 720-card Cube and the Magic Online 540. Goldspan for this is an easy swap for me.
I haven't tested Daybound too much myself, but from what I heard, its not that hard to flip.
I could see myself playing this if Tovolar's Huntmaster, Brutal Cathar outperform their CMC counter parts.
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
The only exception i could think of would be a cube deeply supporting Winota.
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He's like a Dragon and mini-Chainwhirler, a devastating card but the RRR sentences him to not see much play at all.
He's a decent beater that applies constant pressure and must be answered. Hey, that's a Dragon. But this Dragon also helps keep the board clear every turn. Love it. Yes, he'll occasionally flip at an inconvenient time but that's also part of the fun of this card I think. (But, his front side will also tangle with MANY creatures and still survive so I'm cool with that I think.)
All of this leads to MUCH more interesting gameplay than a 5/5 hasty flyer that maybe wipes few fliers when he lands. I'm not saying any of that is undesirable or "not good enough", I just think this guy is a top-end red threat that has other modes besides just that.
And the final reason is I'm trying to flesh out a minor Wolves/Werewolves theme in my forever-lacking-identity-Gruul section and this guy slots right in there too. That means absolutely nothing to you but it also supports this decision in my environment.
Fully-powered 600-Card "Dream Cube" https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/dreamcube
450-Card "Artificer's Cube" https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/artificer
Cubing in Indianapolis...send me a PM!!
I agree with this. This card has been the biggest overperformer for us in recent printings compared to community sentiment. I think most people see Volatile Arsonist and think of it as “second tier 5cc bulk,” but in reality it seriously competes with all the best dragon options.