Basalt Ravager 3R
Creature - Giant Wizard
When Basalt Ravager enters the battlefield, it deals X damage to any target, where X is the greatest number of ceatures you control that have a creature type in common.
4/2
I like it, probably borderline, but Wizards, Goblins, Humans, Warriors... Are tribes easy to assemble to have here a payoff for them. Maybe winmore?
Foretell - does this really do anything for us? If it's the only foretell card in your cube, they know what it is, even face down. Is it really worth taking two turns to cast our removal?
Behold the multiverse is another sweet option to add, and we have to discover all the spoilers yet. At least, is an interesting mechanic that offers choices in a tribal set, something that usually is not good enough for cubes. Who knows, but I like both, Behold and Ravenform. If we run Abrade, Goblin Cratermaker, Beast Within or Feed the Swarm... This could be another good addition.
I played uncommon duals when I started my C/Ube. The more I read opinions, the more I liked the idea to help aggro with better lands that entered untapped. So I changed Gates and Gainlands.
First, I tried with full cycles: Painlands and Checklands for everybody, also Prismatic vista and Fabled Passage. There are still Vivids and now Thriving lands instead of Trilands, but aggro had untapped lands, at least.
Games were good for aggro, but I like to read and read about the format, what I should run to improve my decks, learning about what matters or not if you play aggro, midrange or control, and finally, I recently changed my lands again. And the solution was to give each guild the appropriated land. Control had good options to cast Counterspell on T2 with a Painland, but will suffer against aggro with those pesky lifes to pay the colored mana. Also, a Checkland doesn't help too much if your first land was a Painland, for example.
So I gave each deck better lands for what the guild does. For example, all guilds now have shocklands. You may decide to play them tapped or untapped, so you are taking decisions, what is good and fun. And for control decks this only represents two lifes IF THEY WANT and not 3, 4 lifes if that was a Painland. Now Checklnds have more sense, but I opted to give my Blue (control) decks, also Temples and Bicycle lands from Amonkhet. You know, they enter tapped but you gain the opportunity to filter some draws, more decisions for colors that doesn't matter if they are a bit slow but gain some advantage later. And if it's late game you even can cycle them (Fetid Pools) to draw another thing. I don't have an izzet Bicycle land so I play with the UR canopy, Fiery Islet. Izzet plays midrange, tempo oriented, so you can change that land for a card if you need gas.
Boros and Rakdos have only lands to play fast. Well, shocklands, fastlands and canopy or painlands.
And midrange decks play with some mix, sometimes Temples, bicycles, checklands, even bouncelands in green...
I need more drafts to test these changes, because the pandemia doesn't allow me to play so much, but I think these lands should be a good addition for the games. I don't have a designer vision where I only have to play with uncommon tapped lands for cohesive / aesthetic reasons with a grey symbol on them.
I play Peasant for budget reasons, and many of these rare lands are proxies, to test them. Some fastlands and shocks are really expensive, but temples, painlands and bicycles not so much. I started with a Pauper cube but the lack of good payoffs in my guilds made me migrate to Peasant and I'm so happy with this change that I didn't look back. So, why not improve my decks with better lands when Wizards is making many of them Rares for monetary reasons?? I have it clear.
If someone doesn't like the monarch ability of Fall from Favor or Feast of Succesion, delete that mechanic from those cards. But to say, "I pass" on the best wrath we have in black seems hard.
Also I like Frenzied Saddlebrute and should run it. But maybe Rite of the Raging Storm is better. The problem with Rite, in my opinion, is that you are playing a cmc 5 that doesn't do anything. Yes, probably will give you the match, the card is good for midrange, control, aristocrats... but it doesn't have a big impact as it arrives.
This is true. As more and more good legendary creatures enter my Cube, Iwamori becomes less relevant, and with Commander Legends bringing maybe 5 new legendaries... I will have to cross fingers each time I'll play Iwamori.
The same with Cast Down. I'll be looking at these two cards to see if they are becoming unplayed.
Annoyed Altisaur] is a wonderful common to consider. Good body, two relevant keywords to attack and defend, and then Cascade to get even more value.
The "bad" thing, this only is a payoff for ramp decks, not so good to reanimate because Cascade in on cast, not an ETB ability.
Other considerations: you may cascade into a mana dork, or a ramp spell, so you don't get all the possible value. Your good payoffs probably cost seven mana (at six I only run Hooting Mandrills and Great Oak Guardian) but at least, you did something and removed from the deck a not so usefull spell at that point of the game. If you cascade into a mana dork could be nice to dodge edicts But if you cascade into a Ridgescale Tusker, Arborback Stomper, Acidic Slime or Charging Monstrosaur... Oh, boy.
I really like this guy, but it has a tougher competition in green at seven mana.
Stitcher gets you any fattie not in your colors, she doesn't matter the cmc. It's only one shot, but can bring back a Plated Crusher. She also filters your deck to fill the graveyard.
Prava of the Steel Legion is also a good payoff, less parasitic than Intangible Virtue. I mean, easier to remove, but more useful as an engine and lso has the anthem effect. I'm considering to swap the enchantment with her.
Fall from favor could be awesome for control decks. Solashable pseudo removal and the monarch effect to have a good flow of card advantage. Seems nice. Maybe it will be hard to retain the emblem but I love the card.
Flying
Whenever you cast an instant, sorcery or Wizard spell, you may draw a card. If you do, discard a card.
2/2
I really like this card. I think many archetypes could want it: flyers, spellslinger, wizard tribal if you run Adeliz in your UR guild. Or Dimir reanimator, or Madness could make good use of him.
Basalt Ravager
Basalt Ravager 3R
Creature - Giant Wizard
When Basalt Ravager enters the battlefield, it deals X damage to any target, where X is the greatest number of ceatures you control that have a creature type in common.
4/2
I like it, probably borderline, but Wizards, Goblins, Humans, Warriors... Are tribes easy to assemble to have here a payoff for them. Maybe winmore?
I think Neutralize is the best one, and the second, Sinister Sabotage.
Behold the multiverse is another sweet option to add, and we have to discover all the spoilers yet. At least, is an interesting mechanic that offers choices in a tribal set, something that usually is not good enough for cubes. Who knows, but I like both, Behold and Ravenform. If we run Abrade, Goblin Cratermaker, Beast Within or Feed the Swarm... This could be another good addition.
I don't know if Binding the Old Gods is better than Putrefy or Status/Statue, being a sorcery but with more effects.
Koll,the Forgemaster seems decent for boros equipments / auras.
Fetcheable dual lands at common, with Into the north, Farseek, Three Visits or Nature's Lore or Wood Elves.
There are not great cards yet, but here is a little piece I like:
Rampage of the Valkyries
3WB
Enchantment
When Rampage of the Valkyries enters the battlefield, create a 4/4 white Angel token with flying and vigilance.
Whenever an angel you control dies each other player sacrifices a creature.
__________________
Warchanter Skald
2W
Creature - Dwarf Cleric
Whenever Warchanter Shield becomes tapped, if it's enchanted or equipped, create a 2/1 red Dwarf Berserker creature token.
2/3
First, I tried with full cycles: Painlands and Checklands for everybody, also Prismatic vista and Fabled Passage. There are still Vivids and now Thriving lands instead of Trilands, but aggro had untapped lands, at least.
Games were good for aggro, but I like to read and read about the format, what I should run to improve my decks, learning about what matters or not if you play aggro, midrange or control, and finally, I recently changed my lands again. And the solution was to give each guild the appropriated land. Control had good options to cast Counterspell on T2 with a Painland, but will suffer against aggro with those pesky lifes to pay the colored mana. Also, a Checkland doesn't help too much if your first land was a Painland, for example.
So I gave each deck better lands for what the guild does. For example, all guilds now have shocklands. You may decide to play them tapped or untapped, so you are taking decisions, what is good and fun. And for control decks this only represents two lifes IF THEY WANT and not 3, 4 lifes if that was a Painland. Now Checklnds have more sense, but I opted to give my Blue (control) decks, also Temples and Bicycle lands from Amonkhet. You know, they enter tapped but you gain the opportunity to filter some draws, more decisions for colors that doesn't matter if they are a bit slow but gain some advantage later. And if it's late game you even can cycle them (Fetid Pools) to draw another thing. I don't have an izzet Bicycle land so I play with the UR canopy, Fiery Islet. Izzet plays midrange, tempo oriented, so you can change that land for a card if you need gas.
Boros and Rakdos have only lands to play fast. Well, shocklands, fastlands and canopy or painlands.
And midrange decks play with some mix, sometimes Temples, bicycles, checklands, even bouncelands in green...
I need more drafts to test these changes, because the pandemia doesn't allow me to play so much, but I think these lands should be a good addition for the games. I don't have a designer vision where I only have to play with uncommon tapped lands for cohesive / aesthetic reasons with a grey symbol on them.
I play Peasant for budget reasons, and many of these rare lands are proxies, to test them. Some fastlands and shocks are really expensive, but temples, painlands and bicycles not so much. I started with a Pauper cube but the lack of good payoffs in my guilds made me migrate to Peasant and I'm so happy with this change that I didn't look back. So, why not improve my decks with better lands when Wizards is making many of them Rares for monetary reasons?? I have it clear.
I will run:
Prava of the Steel Legion
Slaughter the Strong
Halana, Kessig Ranger
Coastline Marauders
Gilt-Leaf Winnover
Fall from favor
Feast if Succesion
Reyav, Master Smith
I have douts with Araumi of the Dead Tide for my dimir section and Kangee, Sky Warden for azorius. I'm not sure if they are better than what I have now.
Also I like Frenzied Saddlebrute and should run it. But maybe Rite of the Raging Storm is better. The problem with Rite, in my opinion, is that you are playing a cmc 5 that doesn't do anything. Yes, probably will give you the match, the card is good for midrange, control, aristocrats... but it doesn't have a big impact as it arrives.
This is true. As more and more good legendary creatures enter my Cube, Iwamori becomes less relevant, and with Commander Legends bringing maybe 5 new legendaries... I will have to cross fingers each time I'll play Iwamori.
The same with Cast Down. I'll be looking at these two cards to see if they are becoming unplayed.
The "bad" thing, this only is a payoff for ramp decks, not so good to reanimate because Cascade in on cast, not an ETB ability.
Other considerations: you may cascade into a mana dork, or a ramp spell, so you don't get all the possible value. Your good payoffs probably cost seven mana (at six I only run Hooting Mandrills and Great Oak Guardian) but at least, you did something and removed from the deck a not so usefull spell at that point of the game. If you cascade into a mana dork could be nice to dodge edicts
I really like this guy, but it has a tougher competition in green at seven mana.
Stitcher gets you any fattie not in your colors, she doesn't matter the cmc. It's only one shot, but can bring back a Plated Crusher. She also filters your deck to fill the graveyard.
Araumi has more versatily, looks more midrange oriented, recovering smaller creatures with more immediate value, such a Faerie Seer, Man-o'-war , Mulldrifter or Ravenous Chupacabra.
Great card. I probably will run both.
Reyav, Master Smith, I like him for my Boros Equipments archetype.
Prava of the Steel Legion is also a good payoff, less parasitic than Intangible Virtue. I mean, easier to remove, but more useful as an engine and lso has the anthem effect. I'm considering to swap the enchantment with her.
I have good and bad feelings with it. I like it but it could be it's expensive, or slow... I don't know if it's worth to include it.
Even Demon's disciple is a good upgrade over Fleshbag Marauder / Merciless Executioner
Creature - Human Wizard
Flying
Whenever you cast an instant, sorcery or Wizard spell, you may draw a card. If you do, discard a card.
2/2
I really like this card. I think many archetypes could want it: flyers, spellslinger, wizard tribal if you run Adeliz in your UR guild. Or Dimir reanimator, or Madness could make good use of him.