Love the cube, looks very similar to one I made ages ago from random things I had lying around.
A few quick ideas (not sure if they're what you're looking for)
*Swamp Mosquito can put pressure on the opponent to stop it. Works well when the field is clogged.
*Diminish is a really useful blue combat trick. It can also stop someone swinging for lethal as a last resort.
*Arbor Elf is a third Llanowar Elves.
*Taunting Elf can be great for a green alpha strike.
*Llanowar Druid is an obscure mono-green Early Harvest at common.
Swamp Mosquito: Not really. They lose in ten turns, not really that much pressure. Diminish: I'm on the fence. Not sure about it. Arbor Elf: I have enough mana dorks. Taunting Elf: Way too narrow. Llanowar Druid: The effect is too small for it. No room to cut for it.
When I see Healing Salve, I'm often like "Oh girl, I wish I could turn every card into this." Thanks they removed the gain life part, otherwise this would have been broken.
Seconded! Anyways, Arbor Elf may be the best manadork in the format, depending on things like how many enchant lands you run (I run three, so he's pretty sick.)
Arbor Elf into Overgrowth into eight mana turn 3 really is living the dream.
Also, False Demise can be so sweet. It always worked way better than it looked on paper to me. It turns your removal into a great tempo boost. I was never that happy with Peel From Reality when I tried it, so if you feel the same way you could cut that for it.
Hungry Spriggan has always been at the verge of inclusion for me, but I wouldn't include it over grunts - the flash is awesome in green were there is little to no removal.
I'd run Turn to Mist as a blue card before False Demise, but maybe that's just me. Though I also dislike Peel, it's like Withdraw but really much much worse. Having to have a guy out is annoying, returning a dude of yours without an ETB ability is really super annoying.
I'd run both (Spriggan and Grunts) - 4 attacking power for 3 is really good in commons and is extremely hard to come by. (Something like Greater Mossdog or Acorn Harvest could easily go for Grunts.) Grunts is effectively a removal spell for an attacking creature that can (and usually does) become an attacker, which I think is really good for green.
I wouldn't run Join the Ranks, Raise the Alarm is good for 2 mana, but changing its cost to 4 just kills it as it's way too inefficient. If I'm paying 4 mana to make tokens, it'd better have retrace (Cenn's Enlistment) or something like that.
If you're looking for flash-like effects as you get with Join the Ranks, how is Dewdrop Spy? It's an evasive, instant-speed bear that has a (mostly) irelevant ability tacked on. The UU might be a problem though... I still like it more than Mnemonic Wall, which was always too slow for me.
I found Gossamer Chains to be a really useful lock piece. Stopping an attacker a turn for WW can cause some hard attacking decisions for the opponent. It's basically a recurring chump blocker of any size for WW, that stops trample, flying etc. I'd cut Join the Ranks for it. It's a nice card, but every time I used it I ended up groaning and wishing I was running allies.
Spitting Earth can be a huge removal spell for just 1R. Preferrable to Fiery Temper in my opinion. Temper's pretty low-quality unless you hit the madness, and if you force that by holding a hand of more than 7 cards you're probably going too slow for a red deck.
Again, just suggestions, take what's useful for you.
EDIT: Some more random ideas. Haven't had time to think about what to replace, but tell me what you think about Castigate, Tinder Wall and Sinkhole.
They're also ridiculously expensive for a common. Does Rune Snag have a home here? I'd put it in over Negate, since Essence Scatter is probably grabbing more of the threats in a limited environment.
Oona's Grace over Think Twice? It'll turn your land topdecks into draw spells in the late game for the same price as Think Twice's Flashback, and it's repeatable.
Also, seriously, someone needs to sell Deftblade Elite to me. I just don't see what's so good about it. But obviously, some people do. So tell me, people, what am I missing?
I don't have much feeling either way towards Deftblade Elite. If someone else does, I'd love to hear it.
Two more smaller suggestions: Phyrexian Debaser as an evasive beater that blows up for removal. I'd say this would hit enough targets to be worth it over Heartstabber Mosquito cost-wise.
Also, seriously, someone needs to sell Deftblade Elite to me. I just don't see what's so good about it. But obviously, some people do. So tell me, people, what am I missing?
Yeah, I'm not really sure either. Kai Budde said it was the best 1-drop ever (in 2003) and I'm not 100% why. It can clear blockers out, which is nice and can basically fog an attacker... but does that amazing?
It was in the time before equipment although I can imagine that with pump/equipment, Deftblade's Provoke can be really really good, acting like a machine gun.
I don't have much feeling either way towards Deftblade Elite. If someone else does, I'd love to hear it.
Two more smaller suggestions: Phyrexian Debaser as an evasive beater that blow up for removal. I'd say this would hit enough targets to be worth it over Heartstabber Mosquito cost-wise.
But they fill different roles; Heartstabber Mosquito is a lategame killer, will Debaser can be considered earlygame removal. Plus, Debaser doesn't look very good by itself.
I have enough looters, and I'm unlikely to cut the Bouncer or Tracer any time soon.
Yeah, I'm not really sure either. Kai Budde said it was the best 1-drop ever (in 2003) and I'm not 100% why. It can clear blockers out, which is nice and can basically fog an attacker... but does that amazing?
At the time, this WAS a fantastic card (and I guess I still think it is in draft). You use Deftblade Elite to let your fattest guy get through to the opponent. (I remember establishing a position where I always had 1 more attacker than the opponent had blockers. The red zone was the most common place for damage during this block). The opponent was forced to use targetted removal on the unblocked attacker...and if it succeeded you didn't care, because you'd drop a few more after. It was about connecting 2-3 damage per creature through to the opponent's face. Once you were leading the opponent in life totals and the attacker/blocker ratio, this guy completely won games.
How often this type of scenario happens in an all-common or common/uncommon cube...i'm not so sure. For one thing, it really depends how many guys are swinging in the red zone at a time. If it is common for 3 or more to be doing so, then I'd say he's worth inclusion. If it's usually just 1-2, maybe not so much.
I'm not sure about Mosquito VS Debaser, I don't run either.
On Deftblade Elite, it's really good because it's really flexible. It can hit small utility creatures early (pingers/looters), can make one fatty irrelevant when you're swinging in the later game (we all know that a single roadblock fat creature against weenie decks is super annoying). Later than that, it's still useful to stop the beating of your face. Plus he is an absolute champ with equipment.
All that for W
He's not exactly stellar in all of those situations, but he is very consistently good.
I'm going to add a new section to the cube, called the Testing Zone. A 10 card-max section, it's for cards that I want to try out, but don't want to cut other cards for until I know they're good (enough). During any draft or sealed or whatever we play, those 10 cards will always be put in; for example, if we're playing four-player sealed, I'll get a pile of 350 cards from the main cube, and then shuffle those ten in, and make the pools.
Any thoughts on this? I need to compile a list for the Testing Zone.
A few quick ideas (not sure if they're what you're looking for)
*Swamp Mosquito can put pressure on the opponent to stop it. Works well when the field is clogged.
*Diminish is a really useful blue combat trick. It can also stop someone swinging for lethal as a last resort.
*Arbor Elf is a third Llanowar Elves.
*Taunting Elf can be great for a green alpha strike.
*Llanowar Druid is an obscure mono-green Early Harvest at common.
Good luck with the cube!
Cameron
G Omnath, Locus of Mana G
=CUBE=
Pauper {360} 2013 REVIVAL UPDATE
Swamp Mosquito: Not really. They lose in ten turns, not really that much pressure.
Diminish: I'm on the fence. Not sure about it.
Arbor Elf: I have enough mana dorks.
Taunting Elf: Way too narrow.
Llanowar Druid: The effect is too small for it. No room to cut for it.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
I used to write cube articles on StarCityGames, now for GatheringMagic and podcast about cube (w/Antknee42.)
NEVER!
Seconded! Anyways, Arbor Elf may be the best manadork in the format, depending on things like how many enchant lands you run (I run three, so he's pretty sick.)
Arbor Elf into Overgrowth into eight mana turn 3 really is living the dream.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Essence Warden → Arbor Elf
Comment: Yeah, never really liked the Warden in green.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
Personally, I think that the wardens don't fit in white either, but that's a different story (I'd drop it for Glittering Lynx, btw)
EDIT: You're running Join the Ranks? Really?
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Is there room for Hungry Spriggan? Maybe over Simian Grunts...
Also, False Demise can be so sweet. It always worked way better than it looked on paper to me. It turns your removal into a great tempo boost. I was never that happy with Peel From Reality when I tried it, so if you feel the same way you could cut that for it.
G Omnath, Locus of Mana G
=CUBE=
Pauper {360} 2013 REVIVAL UPDATE
I'd run Turn to Mist as a blue card before False Demise, but maybe that's just me. Though I also dislike Peel, it's like Withdraw but really much much worse. Having to have a guy out is annoying, returning a dude of yours without an ETB ability is really super annoying.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Simian Grunts → Hungry Spriggan
Peel from Reality → False Demise
Both test runs. Thanks.
Also, hell yes I'm running Join the Ranks. Instant speed blockers & suprise EOT creatures are never missed.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
I wouldn't run Join the Ranks, Raise the Alarm is good for 2 mana, but changing its cost to 4 just kills it as it's way too inefficient. If I'm paying 4 mana to make tokens, it'd better have retrace (Cenn's Enlistment) or something like that.
I used to write cube articles on StarCityGames, now for GatheringMagic and podcast about cube (w/Antknee42.)
Greater Mossdog → Simian Grunts
Still a fan of Join the Ranks, so I'll keep it in til he begins to really underperform.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
I found Gossamer Chains to be a really useful lock piece. Stopping an attacker a turn for WW can cause some hard attacking decisions for the opponent. It's basically a recurring chump blocker of any size for WW, that stops trample, flying etc. I'd cut Join the Ranks for it. It's a nice card, but every time I used it I ended up groaning and wishing I was running allies.
Finally, two red cards. Electrostatic Bolt is a creature-shock that hits harder on artifacts, killing Wizard Replica, Yotian Soldier, Steel Wall, Spire Golem, Razor Golem... The number of things in your cube this hits is pretty big. I'd run this over Rites of Initiation. Not a fan of the "at random" clause, and you need to ditch a massive hand for a game-winning swing.
Spitting Earth can be a huge removal spell for just 1R. Preferrable to Fiery Temper in my opinion. Temper's pretty low-quality unless you hit the madness, and if you force that by holding a hand of more than 7 cards you're probably going too slow for a red deck.
Again, just suggestions, take what's useful for you.
EDIT: Some more random ideas. Haven't had time to think about what to replace, but tell me what you think about Castigate, Tinder Wall and Sinkhole.
Cameron
G Omnath, Locus of Mana G
=CUBE=
Pauper {360} 2013 REVIVAL UPDATE
Gossamer Chains seems like a lot of effort for a mediocre effect.
Too many good things in red. I'll just stick with Lightning Bolt and Flame Slash.
I'm not sure about Fiery Temper, but even so, I don't think Spitting Earth is worth it. At least Temper can hit the face, which is important at times.
Thanks, but no thanks. ^^
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
Draft it on Cubetutor!
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
That, of course, is a good excuse. They are damn hard to come by.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
Oona's Grace over Think Twice? It'll turn your land topdecks into draw spells in the late game for the same price as Think Twice's Flashback, and it's repeatable.
G Omnath, Locus of Mana G
=CUBE=
Pauper {360} 2013 REVIVAL UPDATE
Oh god, I'm still running Negate. /nearly barfs
Negate → Oona's Grace
Also, seriously, someone needs to sell Deftblade Elite to me. I just don't see what's so good about it. But obviously, some people do. So tell me, people, what am I missing?
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
Two more smaller suggestions:
Phyrexian Debaser as an evasive beater that blows up for removal. I'd say this would hit enough targets to be worth it over Heartstabber Mosquito cost-wise.
If you want more looting (which is always fantastic), there's always Thought Courier. Maybe over Echo Tracer or Waterfront Bouncer?
Cameron
G Omnath, Locus of Mana G
=CUBE=
Pauper {360} 2013 REVIVAL UPDATE
Yeah, I'm not really sure either. Kai Budde said it was the best 1-drop ever (in 2003) and I'm not 100% why. It can clear blockers out, which is nice and can basically fog an attacker... but does that amazing?
It was in the time before equipment although I can imagine that with pump/equipment, Deftblade's Provoke can be really really good, acting like a machine gun.
I used to write cube articles on StarCityGames, now for GatheringMagic and podcast about cube (w/Antknee42.)
But they fill different roles; Heartstabber Mosquito is a lategame killer, will Debaser can be considered earlygame removal. Plus, Debaser doesn't look very good by itself.
I have enough looters, and I'm unlikely to cut the Bouncer or Tracer any time soon.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2
At the time, this WAS a fantastic card (and I guess I still think it is in draft). You use Deftblade Elite to let your fattest guy get through to the opponent. (I remember establishing a position where I always had 1 more attacker than the opponent had blockers. The red zone was the most common place for damage during this block). The opponent was forced to use targetted removal on the unblocked attacker...and if it succeeded you didn't care, because you'd drop a few more after. It was about connecting 2-3 damage per creature through to the opponent's face. Once you were leading the opponent in life totals and the attacker/blocker ratio, this guy completely won games.
How often this type of scenario happens in an all-common or common/uncommon cube...i'm not so sure. For one thing, it really depends how many guys are swinging in the red zone at a time. If it is common for 3 or more to be doing so, then I'd say he's worth inclusion. If it's usually just 1-2, maybe not so much.
I'm not sure about Mosquito VS Debaser, I don't run either.
On Deftblade Elite, it's really good because it's really flexible. It can hit small utility creatures early (pingers/looters), can make one fatty irrelevant when you're swinging in the later game (we all know that a single roadblock fat creature against weenie decks is super annoying). Later than that, it's still useful to stop the beating of your face. Plus he is an absolute champ with equipment.
All that for W
He's not exactly stellar in all of those situations, but he is very consistently good.
Draft it on Cubetutor!
I'm going to add a new section to the cube, called the Testing Zone. A 10 card-max section, it's for cards that I want to try out, but don't want to cut other cards for until I know they're good (enough). During any draft or sealed or whatever we play, those 10 cards will always be put in; for example, if we're playing four-player sealed, I'll get a pile of 350 cards from the main cube, and then shuffle those ten in, and make the pools.
Any thoughts on this? I need to compile a list for the Testing Zone.
My Pauper Cube ♤ The Pauper Cube Thread Common Knowledge — 1 2