Thanks to the most recent $3 off orders from Ebay from the other week, I am now 14 Snow lands away from being fully Full Art Snow! NOW! I need to look at the Snow matters lands to see what could / should fit into a Cube that has gone this route!
Abominable Treefolk - Looks like it can get huge pretty easily... but do I want to devote a guild slot to that? Winter's Rest - Seems like a great "removal" Arcum's Astrolabe - I heard this card was doing things in other formats. Frostwalk Bastion - Having issues with which lands to put where as it is. Could be great at slowing down aggro decks. Icehide Golem - Speaking of aggro...
I looked through older snow permanents, but nothing caught my eye.
What is your opinions on snow stuff? I already have the lands (as mentioned) so that is not an issue. I am keeping the lands in the deck regardless if I add any snow stuff or not, so not going to FORCE anything in.
Also, if anyone is ever wanting to upgrade to snow lands like I have... the $3 off Ebay code is insane. I was getting 4 Snow Plains for 31 cents total, 8 Snow Mountains for 36 cents total. Forests were the most expensive at 80 cents for 4. Keep an eye out for the next time they do that sale and eat it up!
Astrolabe was ruining Pauper until they banned it. I hear it's playable in other formats, a Plateau doesn't replace itself, after all. It's not broken in cube, it's just a one mana Prophetic Prism. It's a strong turn 1 play.
Skred is one of the best removal spells in the game. It's the best one in Pauper at least.
Since I treat all my basic lands as snow lands, all the snow cards are just normal cards. It occasionally becomes an issue if you draft so many non-basic lands that you're not playing any basics but whatever. I don't have actual snow basics in my cube, I just have, "Damage is on the Stack, All basics are snow, Chaos Orb uses Old School Format rules." written on one of the longboxes that holds my cube and I try to remember to tell everyone beforehand.
Coldsnap is a cool set (pun intended) but I've crammed my cube so full of COK Block cards that I don't have much room for snow cards, Time Spiral block cards, Theros enchantment *****, and other quirky themed sets that I like. I say go for it, most things I've been told not to do regarding cube design have been just fine and for whatever reason Snow is a controversial theme.
People how play Monastery Swiftspear in their cube. What type of decks uses this card?
I guess mostly aggro decks and not "spell matter" decks but in my cube it seems it is always cut in aggro decks as there are so many better one drops. That is the reason I cut Swiftspear from my cube but seeing the MTGsalvation average Peasant cube it seems to be played a lot.
It's good in aggro decks that skew towards tempo, so mostly Izzet.
It's also good in Gruul combat trick-based decks, as you can surprise your opponent.
Boros equipments/auras also runs it, occasionally.
Also, it has haste, making the clock just that little bit faster.
What do people think about Ghost-Lit Raider? It's certainly no FTK but it looks like it has potential as a kind of kill-it-or-lose-to-it level threat in a lot of match-ups, and has a solid fallback as Flatten in other matchups. I'm surprised it's so absent from players' lists.
What do people think about Ghost-Lit Raider? It's certainly no FTK but it looks like it has potential as a kind of kill-it-or-lose-to-it level threat in a lot of match-ups, and has a solid fallback as Flatten in other matchups. I'm surprised it's so absent from players' lists.
Not a fan.
- As a 2/1 it dies to everything.
- Tap ability and no haste means it's practically a vanilla 2/1 for 2R unless it survives until your next turn.
- The ability costs 3 mana, while there is a plethora of cheaper ways to deal 2 damage to a creature for less (Shock, Magma Spray, Burst Lightning, Punishing Fire, Shivan Fire, Sudden Shock, Wild Slash all cost less and offer more flexibility).
- The ability may be repeatable (again, if it survives), but on the second activation, you've spent 6RRR to deal 2 damage to two creatures, and it's likely eaten a significant portion of your mana each turn for three turns. That compares poorly to Pyrotechnics, Rolling Thunder, and Violent Eruption, all of which can even hit players for the win.
- The Channel ability is an inefficient fallback - Bombard, Chandra's Outrage, Electrify, and Inferno Trap aren't exactly screaming to get played. For the same mana and damage, you also get Flametongue Kavu. 3R for the 4/2 Kavu vs. 3Rto discard the Raider and get no body (to be fair, you can do this one at instant speed). Even your comparable of Flatten was inefficient when black has Ob Nixilis's Cruelty, Dismember, and Grasp of Darkness.
I do run Cunning Sparkmage for repeatable damage. I know it is half the damage and lacks power, but the haste and the ability to target players make it work for me. It also doesn't cost anything beyond the initial three mana.
There aren't many repeatable 2 damage options for us, but I'd probably consider Skirsdag Cultist over the Raider.
I used to get tempted by the Ghost-Lit cards on occasion and Ghost-Lit Raider was one of the two I would have considered playable. However, as others have pointed out, its effectiveness relies very heavily on using its activated effect because of its pitiful stats and that is extremely mana intensive. You probably cannot hope for a better ratio of mana to repeatable 2 damage and the Channel effect provides a decent enough floor by diversifying the card but there are many better red 3-drops at this point. My personal pinger of choice is Spikeshot Goblin: You can get the bonus of repeatable damage greater than one with a variety of supporting effects ranging from +1/+1 counters to equipment and the like.
What do people think about Ghost-Lit Raider? It's certainly no FTK but it looks like it has potential as a kind of kill-it-or-lose-to-it level threat in a lot of match-ups, and has a solid fallback as Flatten in other matchups. I'm surprised it's so absent from players' lists.
I think that it's a solid card along with the rest of the Ghost-Lit cycle. Getting repeated uses out of one card is great in cube, and the Channel mechanic is cool and useful. It has fantastic pre-soulles Photoshop garbage art from the COK Block.
1.) When you pay 3 mana for the creature, and 3 mana to activate it twice, you haven't paid 9 mana. You've paid 3 mana 3 times. That's a rather absurd way of calculating the mana costs of things like Echo creatures and it's not how the game works. Mana is a renewable resource, you get to untap your lands at the beginning of each of your turns.
2.) In many cube games you end up in situations where you have extra mana and nothing else to spend it on. Why not shock a creature?
3.) You can use the Channel mode as just a normal burn spell.
4.) Yeah, there may be better cards than it, but why not have both the better version of the card and Ghost-Lit Red Guy? You're not building a constructed deck, min maxing doesn't matter. If you have the #1 pinger card and the #4 red Peasant legal pinger card in your cube, I'll still pick #4 and play both if I find both in the draft. If Ghostfire and Bolt are in the same draft, I'll still draft and play both, sure, why not?
5.) Everything dies to removal. Why play any creatures at all, after all Tarmogoyf just dies to removal amirite?
But then again, everything that's not Mulldrifter, Flametongue Kavu, Sprout Swarm, Sol Ring, and Pack Rat is literally unplayable garbage so I definitely would avoid trying the card out.
Monastery Swiftspear is a high pick in my cube for R or RW burn or RU spells matters. It's an amazing one drop compared to jackal pup or reckless waif. It makes blocking difficult for your opponent and gets in for the early damage.
Monastery Swiftspear is a high pick in my cube for R or RW burn or RU spells matters. It's an amazing one drop compared to jackal pup or reckless waif. It makes blocking difficult for your opponent and gets in for the early damage.
At worse it's just Raging Goblin, and it's a nice storm/spells matter card.
I'd play it if I liked the art on it. Seeker of the Way is also a pretty good card, Prowess is a good ability on its own and any other abilities that are tacked onto the creature are just gravy.
To go back to Ghost -Lit Raider, there is something to be said for versatility.
In constructed Pauper for example, midrange Boros decks will play the 2 mana Journey to Nowhere over the 3 mana Oblivion Ring. Even though the deck has zero mana problems and paying the extra mana is usually irrelevant, people still act as if O-Ring is completely unplayable even though it's the better card and is essentially Vindicate at common.
Sure, since the card is from 15 years ago, Ghost-Lit Raider is not a 2 mana 2/2 with haste but it's still a versatile card. It can shock, it can be a Gray Ogre if the board is clear, and you can Channel it in a pinch. This versatility is worth the extra mana.
I run Ghost-lit raider, and it is fine. I see it as a mediocre burn-spell with the alternate mode of being a repeatable source of damage when you can cast it (and perhaps protect it).
Here's how I think about it. 3R for 4 damage is fine, and would be a fine playable in most peasant cube Rx decks. Yes, there are better and more efficient options available among un/common burn spells, but that doesn't mean that once in the cube, an Electrify wouldn't be a worthvile card to put in a deck. This kind of a discussion came up a lot in the "Evaluate Everything" thread, where cards that are clearly "playable" would still get a zero because of better options available (I am asusming Electrify got a zero).
And the raider then comes with the upside of sometimes just being absurd in the right boardstate. It also has minor upside in being a creature, but also downside (can get it back with Raise Dead-effects, but does not trigger Young Pyromancer.
The times when this all breaks down are in cubes that are maxed out on removal and burn. In those cubes, a drafter might have so much removal to choose from that an Electrify would not make the 23. (even if being "fine" in the abstract").
Kind of interesting to treat the card as a modal card where the primary use is its Channel ability. Though, if we take that as the baseline, I wonder how it fares compared to cards like Stoke the Flames. Being effectively uncounterable is a nice bonus, for sure, and the alternative mode is considerably more interesting than Stoke's cost reduction mechanic. Ultimately, it would come down to how often that alternative mode ends up being the better choice. While 2-damage burns can finish up bigger monsters after combat (or in combination with First Strike), by the time the Raider comes online, it is considerably less impressive than even a turn before (and the decks which mostly focus on smaller creatures will often be too fast to allow it to shine).
As I have said, while I do not currently consider the card good enough to warrant play, I have been tempted by it before. Though, if I were to propose a comparison, I would definitely still pit it against Spikeshot Goblin, and I think the latter comes off both as more viable and interesting in terms of the gameplay and drafting it affords.
I've had Arc Mage (seems more similar than Stoke the Flames) in the cube for a short while some years ago, he was alright but clunky. Ghost-Lit Raider looks better than that, so I've no doubt it can work for a lot of people. Guess there are a lot of cards out there like that: you can play them if you want to, but even if you don't run all the most powerful cards you don't need to go there.
Still, I'm happy I tried Arc Mage, even if it's not a card I'd actively recommend. Sometimes it's worth trying these cards just to see how they feel. At worst you'll decide it's not what you were looking for, at best you've found a card that makes your cube more fun. No downside really. Just run them and see where it goes if you're tempted.
Ah, fair enough. I assumed decks that want Stoke want it because they're going to use the convoke mode, so aren't necessarily going for Ghost-Lit Raider at full price, whereas a grindier deck would. But maybe that's wrong.
In my opinion, part of the fun of cubing is that there are a ton of borderline cards which allows for personalisation, diversification and/or pushing of themes.
I mean, I suppose one of my red 3-drops is Reckless Racer - and it is something that I do not see myself removing any time soon, either. So, I am in no position to be saying that all cards should only be the optimal versions. If someone asks for advice, though, power level is going to be one of those things which gets mentioned since it remains one of the more quantifiable things on which others can comment.
For anyone wondering about it: I think Reckless Racer is by far the best rummager in red; occasionally one-upped by Vaultbreaker but Racer is more reliable. The First Strike and high toughness make it very good as a defensive play as well.
[quote from="MechanicalMech »" url="/forums/the-game/the-cube-forum/pauper-peasant-discussion/193990-the-peasant-cube-discussion-thread-c-u?comment=15005"]In constructed Pauper for example, midrange Boros decks will play the 2 mana Journey to Nowhere over the 3 mana Oblivion Ring. Even though the deck has zero mana problems and paying the extra mana is usually irrelevant, people still act as if O-Ring is completely unplayable even though it's the better card and is essentially Vindicate at common.
Posts like this really don't do a lot to add to your credibility. What cards are you worried about Journey to Nowhere missing that you would be happy using Oblivion Ring to get rid of? I've played a lot of Pauper between 2013-2017 and I just checked the top 12 decks in the MTGGoldfish meta. There's no non-creature cards in those decks that I would be happy (or even feel the need) to answer with an O-ring. It costs more and the added flexibility isn't worth it.
Hiya lads and lasses. I've been away for a while, but I've gotten a decent bit of testing done, and I thought I'd throw out some results. As always, I should note that I don't play, nor do I have any intention of ever playing an optimized environment. My cube is also slower than most. I'm looking to turn aggro up a notch or two soon. So, in more or less random order:
Defiant Salvager: I was really high on this card when it was new, but the sorcery speed is a much bigger problem than I anticipated. Saccing after declaring a block or in response to removal is such a big deal. I still like the card, but it's not as good as I'd hoped.
Jeweled Amulet: performs neither above or below expectations. A totally decent card that is never broken. Is there any other 0-mana rock that can say that?
Embereth Shieldbreaker: It's a better top-deck than Torch Fiend if there's a target, but very often, it gets played on turn two, and THEN they play an artifact you want to remove. I think I'm back on the side of Torch Fiend, though the fact that adventure counts for spellslinger decks definitely means something.
Skewer the Critics: Sorcery speed REALLY hurts this. This is definitely tier 3 or 4 burn. I'll be happy to cut it for something else.
Order of Midnight: The card is really swingy. Sometimes it's nuts, and sometimes it's dead. Sometimes the Raise Dead ability is exactly what you need (and you certainly weren't playing raise dead). Sometimes you play this, equip it, and smash them dead really fast. Sometimes you need to block, you don't have anything good in the graveyard, and everything about the card is awkward
Call the Cavalry: An underrated card. Gallant Cavalry is better if you have a blink theme or a lot of creature recursion, Call the Cavalry is better if you have an instant/sorcery/noncreature theme. People are always underestimating this.
Goblinslide: Such mixed results. I wager mine is a very durdly format, and this is a very durdly card. most cubes probably just don't have the time. But I've seen several games where this was the only thing that kept a player alive.
Reduce // Rubble: This is one of those cards that makes me really happy that I play my gold section the way I do (four cards per color, 1-3 of which must be nongold, meaning hybrid, or including an off-color cost). A bad mana leak is not an awful card, and the rubble side of this can be close to Time Walk. I like this card a lot.
Samut, Tyrant Smasher: I've been really happy with this. Five is a lot of loyalty. I like this better than Rhythm of the Wild. Missing tokens really hurts that card. Sometimes you just need a scry engine, and I've had that alone be the thing that saved a game. +2/+1 goes a long way too, especially if you play things like Spikeshot Goblin.
Bond of Flourishing: That life gain is sweet. This isn't uncuttable (if more great green draw comes about), but the card is good. Not as good as Grapple with the Past though.
Shepherd of the Flock: Middling results. Sometimes the card is really useful. Sometimes it's really not. A surprising amount of the time, a 3/1 is totally irrelevant, and you'll simply hold this to use as an instant.
Hopeful Eidolon: Mixed results. The card is swingy. If you have a pants archetype, it's a really strong card because it's both good pants for a creature, or a creature that's good at wearing pants. +1/+1 and lifelink can be unbeatable. Other times, this card just doesn't matter.
Fleshbag Marauder: It's a decent card, but it hasn't been measuring up lately.
Soulherder: It hurts souls. This card is bananas. Just total bananas. It's pretty rare that it doesn't do something stupid even in a deck that isn't really designed to optimize it. This plus Nevermaker is a devastating soft-lock. I have zero blink support in my cube besides this card, but it doesn't matter, it creates the archetype by itself.
Nevermaker: This card is super good, and has shot up to a pretty high pick in my cube. But tempo is also a serious strategy here. Both halves of this get played all the time. Triggering on leaves the battlefield gives this a lot of fun options other cards don't have. Shepherd of the Flock for example.
Foulmire Knight: This is not as much better than Typhoid Rats as I figured it would be. I mean it's better, but you don't cast the adventure all that often. I could see cutting this if they print for another Typhoid Rats with upside if they print more of those.
Divest: Man, this keeps whiffing. I'm not ready to cut it yet, but it's annoying.
Bazaar Trademage: This is not an uncommon, what's it doing here? Sorry about that, but I just thought I'd say, this card is a trap. The trade it makes is certainly bizarre, but it seldom ends up in your favor, even in a cube like mine with a heavy graveyard theme. I've never seen the card be good.
Keeper of Fables: Hoo hoo hoo! This card is nasty. Sadly, green doesn't have as much evasion as other colors, but that doesn't stop this from drawing way more cards than it has business doing.
That's all for now. There are more cards to be mentioned, but you gotta leave some for next time.
I have personally been keeping in Call the Cavalry since when I want to support tokens, I want to maximise the amount of tokens, and it is good for that. Would be interested to hear more about how Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner works in practice since I currently have a Simic hybrid slot filled in with Sturdy Hatchling. Calling Order of Midnight 'swingy' is weird to say the least. It has exactly one fail-scenario: when you cannot attack profitably with a 2/2 flier. That sounds like it is being assumed that the Raise Dead effect is needed for value even though it is basically all extra on top of a pretty decent aggressive body in black. The card's main strength is its lack of swinginess through a solid floor even if its drawback still means that its intended deck consists of some form of aggro where the extra value is crucial if you draw Order of Midnight in the mid- to late game.
On Order of Midnight, you're right that the raise dead option is really only a minor upside on what is otherwise just an aggro card. It's a card that would often be a dead draw in the late game except for the adventure option, and as we know, raise dead picks up a lot of value later in the game. I really like that about the card. I've found a surprising amount of situations where it can't attack profitably, and it just sort of sits there (staring down a Serra Angel, for example). Adventure does help with that though, and that's also true of other cards of the same ilk, like Olivia's Bloodsworn. Maybe "swingy" wasn't quite the right term, but it's a card I've seen overperfoming at times, and underperforming other times.
Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner is such a strong card, and I would definitely play it over Sturdy Hatchling. The loyalty is insanely high, and she usually takes more than one hit to kill. By then you've almost certainly gotten your value, and she's absorbed some damage that would have hit you. Obviously, she's a lot stronger if you play the Orzhov Basilica bounce lands, and some of her power in my cube comes through specific combos. For example, with Orcish Lumberjack in play, you can produce a truly absurd amount of mana fast. (Turn three, play Kiora, sac a forest for three mana, untap lumberjack, sac again, play a six drop, and draw a card from Kiora's static ability. I have done this-- it's risky, but Kiora turns your one remaining land into two. Or wait for turn four, and have 5-10 mana available. Sac lands if you need to hard cast something big, or keep them if you don't.) I've also seen her make Spikeshot Goblin into a terrifying monster. But the synergies with her happen organically-- you don't need to be playing specific cards to make her good. At the very worst, she's basically just a mana dork, and even that is pretty good considering blue's lack of dorks. Crucially, she allows you to play a card, and untap your blue mana to hold up a counterspell. Also if you have Kiora, you don't need to worry about double color symbols, since she can untap your only swamp (though not at instant speed). 2(G/U) is an extremely versatile cost, allowing her to fit into loads of decks, and making her really appealing during drafting. Unlike the hatchlings, she doesn't ask you to play a blue/green deck to get full value-- she can be part of a splash. The static ability is just gravy, but when it triggers, it makes you feel dirty. The card's not really good in aggro, and it doesn't save you if you're about to die, but all around it's an extremely versatile and powerful card. Definitely my favorite planeswalker.
Reckless Racer seems like a great card power-wise, I don't understand why it would be deemed sub-optimal.
Two issues I have with this entire community:
1.) The whole purpose of cube is to create a custom limited environment, not min-maxing everything. If you have Ghostfire instead of normal bolt it doesn't mean anything. Why not have aim for a middle of the road power level? Who cares if Benalish Infantry costs 1 more mana that it should? Ghost-Lit Raider is fine.
2.) The people who purport to only want to play with min-maxed cards can't properly evaluate certain cards. Like Skittering Skirge, Rogue Elephant, and Utopia Vow. These are all good limited cards.
[quote from="MechanicalMech »" url="/forums/the-game/the-cube-forum/pauper-peasant-discussion/193990-the-peasant-cube-discussion-thread-c-u?comment=15005"]In constructed Pauper for example, midrange Boros decks will play the 2 mana Journey to Nowhere over the 3 mana Oblivion Ring. Even though the deck has zero mana problems and paying the extra mana is usually irrelevant, people still act as if O-Ring is completely unplayable even though it's the better card and is essentially Vindicate at common.
Posts like this really don't do a lot to add to your credibility. What cards are you worried about Journey to Nowhere missing that you would be happy using Oblivion Ring to get rid of? I've played a lot of Pauper between 2013-2017 and I just checked the top 12 decks in the MTGGoldfish meta. There's no non-creature cards in those decks that I would be happy (or even feel the need) to answer with an O-ring. It costs more and the added flexibility isn't worth it.
If I were to run one of them (I don't), I would probably choose the Advanced Stitchwing - it's only one more mana to cast or reanimate, but a 3/4 is so many times better than a 3/1, at least in my cube. A 3/1 dies to everything, including 1/1 tokens, tappingers, low damageburn spells, upkeep triggers, and most of these aren't even a full 1-to-1 trade. A 3/4, on the other hand, can shrug off a Lightning Bolt. Then again, I prefer an element of control over pure aggro. The main question is - is an extra +0/+3 worth one mana?
Astrolabe was ruining Pauper until they banned it. I hear it's playable in other formats, a Plateau doesn't replace itself, after all. It's not broken in cube, it's just a one mana Prophetic Prism. It's a strong turn 1 play.
Into the North is a good one. It can fetch Dark Depths, Mouth of Ronom, Scrying Sheets, the snow taplands, and basic lands if you treat all the basics as snow.
Skred is one of the best removal spells in the game. It's the best one in Pauper at least.
Since I treat all my basic lands as snow lands, all the snow cards are just normal cards. It occasionally becomes an issue if you draft so many non-basic lands that you're not playing any basics but whatever. I don't have actual snow basics in my cube, I just have, "Damage is on the Stack, All basics are snow, Chaos Orb uses Old School Format rules." written on one of the longboxes that holds my cube and I try to remember to tell everyone beforehand.
Coldsnap is a cool set (pun intended) but I've crammed my cube so full of COK Block cards that I don't have much room for snow cards, Time Spiral block cards, Theros enchantment *****, and other quirky themed sets that I like. I say go for it, most things I've been told not to do regarding cube design have been just fine and for whatever reason Snow is a controversial theme.
Ignoring what Magic players say isn't the answer, it's listening to what they have to say and doing the exact opposite that's correct.
I guess mostly aggro decks and not "spell matter" decks but in my cube it seems it is always cut in aggro decks as there are so many better one drops. That is the reason I cut Swiftspear from my cube but seeing the MTGsalvation average Peasant cube it seems to be played a lot.
My C/Ube on Cube Cobra
It's also good in Gruul combat trick-based decks, as you can surprise your opponent.
Boros equipments/auras also runs it, occasionally.
Also, it has haste, making the clock just that little bit faster.
WiJ
Peasant 540 Cube
- As a 2/1 it dies to everything.
- Tap ability and no haste means it's practically a vanilla 2/1 for 2R unless it survives until your next turn.
- The ability costs 3 mana, while there is a plethora of cheaper ways to deal 2 damage to a creature for less (Shock, Magma Spray, Burst Lightning, Punishing Fire, Shivan Fire, Sudden Shock, Wild Slash all cost less and offer more flexibility).
- The ability may be repeatable (again, if it survives), but on the second activation, you've spent 6RRR to deal 2 damage to two creatures, and it's likely eaten a significant portion of your mana each turn for three turns. That compares poorly to Pyrotechnics, Rolling Thunder, and Violent Eruption, all of which can even hit players for the win.
- The Channel ability is an inefficient fallback - Bombard, Chandra's Outrage, Electrify, and Inferno Trap aren't exactly screaming to get played. For the same mana and damage, you also get Flametongue Kavu. 3R for the 4/2 Kavu vs. 3Rto discard the Raider and get no body (to be fair, you can do this one at instant speed). Even your comparable of Flatten was inefficient when black has Ob Nixilis's Cruelty, Dismember, and Grasp of Darkness.
I do run Cunning Sparkmage for repeatable damage. I know it is half the damage and lacks power, but the haste and the ability to target players make it work for me. It also doesn't cost anything beyond the initial three mana.
There aren't many repeatable 2 damage options for us, but I'd probably consider Skirsdag Cultist over the Raider.
2023 Average Peasant Cube|and Discussion
Because I have more decks than fit in a signature
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I think that it's a solid card along with the rest of the Ghost-Lit cycle. Getting repeated uses out of one card is great in cube, and the Channel mechanic is cool and useful. It has fantastic pre-soulles Photoshop garbage art from the COK Block.
1.) When you pay 3 mana for the creature, and 3 mana to activate it twice, you haven't paid 9 mana. You've paid 3 mana 3 times. That's a rather absurd way of calculating the mana costs of things like Echo creatures and it's not how the game works. Mana is a renewable resource, you get to untap your lands at the beginning of each of your turns.
2.) In many cube games you end up in situations where you have extra mana and nothing else to spend it on. Why not shock a creature?
3.) You can use the Channel mode as just a normal burn spell.
4.) Yeah, there may be better cards than it, but why not have both the better version of the card and Ghost-Lit Red Guy? You're not building a constructed deck, min maxing doesn't matter. If you have the #1 pinger card and the #4 red Peasant legal pinger card in your cube, I'll still pick #4 and play both if I find both in the draft. If Ghostfire and Bolt are in the same draft, I'll still draft and play both, sure, why not?
5.) Everything dies to removal. Why play any creatures at all, after all Tarmogoyf just dies to removal amirite?
But then again, everything that's not Mulldrifter, Flametongue Kavu, Sprout Swarm, Sol Ring, and Pack Rat is literally unplayable garbage so I definitely would avoid trying the card out.
Ignoring what Magic players say isn't the answer, it's listening to what they have to say and doing the exact opposite that's correct.
My Peasant Cube thread !!! (380 cards)
Draft my Peasant Cube on Cube Cobra !!!
I'd play it if I liked the art on it. Seeker of the Way is also a pretty good card, Prowess is a good ability on its own and any other abilities that are tacked onto the creature are just gravy.
To go back to Ghost -Lit Raider, there is something to be said for versatility.
In constructed Pauper for example, midrange Boros decks will play the 2 mana Journey to Nowhere over the 3 mana Oblivion Ring. Even though the deck has zero mana problems and paying the extra mana is usually irrelevant, people still act as if O-Ring is completely unplayable even though it's the better card and is essentially Vindicate at common.
Sure, since the card is from 15 years ago, Ghost-Lit Raider is not a 2 mana 2/2 with haste but it's still a versatile card. It can shock, it can be a Gray Ogre if the board is clear, and you can Channel it in a pinch. This versatility is worth the extra mana.
Ignoring what Magic players say isn't the answer, it's listening to what they have to say and doing the exact opposite that's correct.
Here's how I think about it. 3R for 4 damage is fine, and would be a fine playable in most peasant cube Rx decks. Yes, there are better and more efficient options available among un/common burn spells, but that doesn't mean that once in the cube, an Electrify wouldn't be a worthvile card to put in a deck. This kind of a discussion came up a lot in the "Evaluate Everything" thread, where cards that are clearly "playable" would still get a zero because of better options available (I am asusming Electrify got a zero).
And the raider then comes with the upside of sometimes just being absurd in the right boardstate. It also has minor upside in being a creature, but also downside (can get it back with Raise Dead-effects, but does not trigger Young Pyromancer.
The times when this all breaks down are in cubes that are maxed out on removal and burn. In those cubes, a drafter might have so much removal to choose from that an Electrify would not make the 23. (even if being "fine" in the abstract").
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)
As I have said, while I do not currently consider the card good enough to warrant play, I have been tempted by it before. Though, if I were to propose a comparison, I would definitely still pit it against Spikeshot Goblin, and I think the latter comes off both as more viable and interesting in terms of the gameplay and drafting it affords.
Still, I'm happy I tried Arc Mage, even if it's not a card I'd actively recommend. Sometimes it's worth trying these cards just to see how they feel. At worst you'll decide it's not what you were looking for, at best you've found a card that makes your cube more fun. No downside really. Just run them and see where it goes if you're tempted.
I miss the Evaluate Everything thread
Cubetutor Peasant'ish-Funbox
Project: Khans of Tarkir Cube (cubetutor)
For anyone wondering about it: I think Reckless Racer is by far the best rummager in red; occasionally one-upped by Vaultbreaker but Racer is more reliable. The First Strike and high toughness make it very good as a defensive play as well.
Posts like this really don't do a lot to add to your credibility. What cards are you worried about Journey to Nowhere missing that you would be happy using Oblivion Ring to get rid of? I've played a lot of Pauper between 2013-2017 and I just checked the top 12 decks in the MTGGoldfish meta. There's no non-creature cards in those decks that I would be happy (or even feel the need) to answer with an O-ring. It costs more and the added flexibility isn't worth it.
Mana efficiency is worth a lot.
Draft it on Cubetutor here, and CubeCobra here.
Treasure Cruise did nothing wrong.
Defiant Salvager: I was really high on this card when it was new, but the sorcery speed is a much bigger problem than I anticipated. Saccing after declaring a block or in response to removal is such a big deal. I still like the card, but it's not as good as I'd hoped.
Jeweled Amulet: performs neither above or below expectations. A totally decent card that is never broken. Is there any other 0-mana rock that can say that?
Embereth Shieldbreaker: It's a better top-deck than Torch Fiend if there's a target, but very often, it gets played on turn two, and THEN they play an artifact you want to remove. I think I'm back on the side of Torch Fiend, though the fact that adventure counts for spellslinger decks definitely means something.
Skewer the Critics: Sorcery speed REALLY hurts this. This is definitely tier 3 or 4 burn. I'll be happy to cut it for something else.
Order of Midnight: The card is really swingy. Sometimes it's nuts, and sometimes it's dead. Sometimes the Raise Dead ability is exactly what you need (and you certainly weren't playing raise dead). Sometimes you play this, equip it, and smash them dead really fast. Sometimes you need to block, you don't have anything good in the graveyard, and everything about the card is awkward
Call the Cavalry: An underrated card. Gallant Cavalry is better if you have a blink theme or a lot of creature recursion, Call the Cavalry is better if you have an instant/sorcery/noncreature theme. People are always underestimating this.
Goblinslide: Such mixed results. I wager mine is a very durdly format, and this is a very durdly card. most cubes probably just don't have the time. But I've seen several games where this was the only thing that kept a player alive.
Reduce // Rubble: This is one of those cards that makes me really happy that I play my gold section the way I do (four cards per color, 1-3 of which must be nongold, meaning hybrid, or including an off-color cost). A bad mana leak is not an awful card, and the rubble side of this can be close to Time Walk. I like this card a lot.
Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner: BONKERS!!! NUTS!! SLAM-DAMN-TASTIC! Play this card.
Heraldic Banner: Fantastic card, and better than most three mana rocks.
Riddleform: Middling results. It's a fine card, but one I could see cutting.
Fight with Fire: Great card. It's not up there with the tip-top burns like Arc Lightning and Burst Lightning (and Lightning Bolt, which I don't play), but it's definitely up there with really strong cards like Brimstone Volley. It can feel a bit unfair though.
Samut, Tyrant Smasher: I've been really happy with this. Five is a lot of loyalty. I like this better than Rhythm of the Wild. Missing tokens really hurts that card. Sometimes you just need a scry engine, and I've had that alone be the thing that saved a game. +2/+1 goes a long way too, especially if you play things like Spikeshot Goblin.
Bond of Flourishing: That life gain is sweet. This isn't uncuttable (if more great green draw comes about), but the card is good. Not as good as Grapple with the Past though.
Shepherd of the Flock: Middling results. Sometimes the card is really useful. Sometimes it's really not. A surprising amount of the time, a 3/1 is totally irrelevant, and you'll simply hold this to use as an instant.
Hopeful Eidolon: Mixed results. The card is swingy. If you have a pants archetype, it's a really strong card because it's both good pants for a creature, or a creature that's good at wearing pants. +1/+1 and lifelink can be unbeatable. Other times, this card just doesn't matter.
Fleshbag Marauder: It's a decent card, but it hasn't been measuring up lately.
Soulherder: It hurts souls. This card is bananas. Just total bananas. It's pretty rare that it doesn't do something stupid even in a deck that isn't really designed to optimize it. This plus Nevermaker is a devastating soft-lock. I have zero blink support in my cube besides this card, but it doesn't matter, it creates the archetype by itself.
Nevermaker: This card is super good, and has shot up to a pretty high pick in my cube. But tempo is also a serious strategy here. Both halves of this get played all the time. Triggering on leaves the battlefield gives this a lot of fun options other cards don't have. Shepherd of the Flock for example.
Foulmire Knight: This is not as much better than Typhoid Rats as I figured it would be. I mean it's better, but you don't cast the adventure all that often. I could see cutting this if they print for another Typhoid Rats with upside if they print more of those.
Divest: Man, this keeps whiffing. I'm not ready to cut it yet, but it's annoying.
Bazaar Trademage: This is not an uncommon, what's it doing here? Sorry about that, but I just thought I'd say, this card is a trap. The trade it makes is certainly bizarre, but it seldom ends up in your favor, even in a cube like mine with a heavy graveyard theme. I've never seen the card be good.
Keeper of Fables: Hoo hoo hoo! This card is nasty. Sadly, green doesn't have as much evasion as other colors, but that doesn't stop this from drawing way more cards than it has business doing.
That's all for now. There are more cards to be mentioned, but you gotta leave some for next time.
Low-power cube enthusiast!
My 1570 card cube (no longer updated)
My 415 Peasant+ Artifact and Enchantment Cube
Ever-Expanding "Just throw it in" cube.
Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner is such a strong card, and I would definitely play it over Sturdy Hatchling. The loyalty is insanely high, and she usually takes more than one hit to kill. By then you've almost certainly gotten your value, and she's absorbed some damage that would have hit you. Obviously, she's a lot stronger if you play the Orzhov Basilica bounce lands, and some of her power in my cube comes through specific combos. For example, with Orcish Lumberjack in play, you can produce a truly absurd amount of mana fast. (Turn three, play Kiora, sac a forest for three mana, untap lumberjack, sac again, play a six drop, and draw a card from Kiora's static ability. I have done this-- it's risky, but Kiora turns your one remaining land into two. Or wait for turn four, and have 5-10 mana available. Sac lands if you need to hard cast something big, or keep them if you don't.) I've also seen her make Spikeshot Goblin into a terrifying monster. But the synergies with her happen organically-- you don't need to be playing specific cards to make her good. At the very worst, she's basically just a mana dork, and even that is pretty good considering blue's lack of dorks. Crucially, she allows you to play a card, and untap your blue mana to hold up a counterspell. Also if you have Kiora, you don't need to worry about double color symbols, since she can untap your only swamp (though not at instant speed). 2(G/U) is an extremely versatile cost, allowing her to fit into loads of decks, and making her really appealing during drafting. Unlike the hatchlings, she doesn't ask you to play a blue/green deck to get full value-- she can be part of a splash. The static ability is just gravy, but when it triggers, it makes you feel dirty. The card's not really good in aggro, and it doesn't save you if you're about to die, but all around it's an extremely versatile and powerful card. Definitely my favorite planeswalker.
Low-power cube enthusiast!
My 1570 card cube (no longer updated)
My 415 Peasant+ Artifact and Enchantment Cube
Ever-Expanding "Just throw it in" cube.
Two issues I have with this entire community:
1.) The whole purpose of cube is to create a custom limited environment, not min-maxing everything. If you have Ghostfire instead of normal bolt it doesn't mean anything. Why not have aim for a middle of the road power level? Who cares if Benalish Infantry costs 1 more mana that it should? Ghost-Lit Raider is fine.
2.) The people who purport to only want to play with min-maxed cards can't properly evaluate certain cards. Like Skittering Skirge, Rogue Elephant, and Utopia Vow. These are all good limited cards.
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An opponent's Journey to Nowhere or Oubliette.
A Tortured Existence.
Bogles enchantments.
A Prophetic Prism.
The card is basically Pauper legal Vindicate.
Ignoring what Magic players say isn't the answer, it's listening to what they have to say and doing the exact opposite that's correct.
What are people's opinions on Advanced Stitchwing vs. Stitchwing Skaab?
My 540 CU/be thread
2023 Average Peasant Cube|and Discussion
Because I have more decks than fit in a signature
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