Mine is totally foiled, it was fun to put together and a lot of the nonsense cards came from friends who just didn't need them. But I agree, you do accrue a fair amount of nonsense in the process.
I used to cube with Temporal Spring. Card was fine, never stellar. But I did once get my turn 2 bounceland Temporal Springed.
I lost that game and it was miserable.
LD is a very real support aspect to aggressive decks in higher powered cubes where the tempo can be better leveraged by more powerful threats, and where the LD is more powerful (Armageddon effects) or more efficient (Strip Mine). In this format, that's just not really the case. The corner cases where the games are swung by LD effects are not frequent enough to warrant including them. I don't WANT to punish our best fixing options when pauper fixing is already relatively poor; I want my drafters' decks to be MORE consistent, not less.
With discussions about cube tutor tools, you can also compare two cubes which can be really helpful. For example, comparing my cube with Runner's to see the changes he made between a typical "best commons" cube with all the offenders he mentioned and his new more archetype-focused cube can be done with http://www.cubetutor.com/comparecubes/648/420.
I've found it really useful when making cuts or broader changes as it helps pinpoint my pet cards and the stuff that nobody's doing anymore. Comparing to the average cubes is also a thing to do.
Hope this helps somebody! Runner I'll have to take another look at your list because the shift to archetypes is something I'd been toying with a bit.
In a sense though, you can get paid off for being in the colors by tabling a Liliana's Specter- a very good card- because players that weren't in BW don't want to play the card. I agree that you're not losing a ton of power by dropping to 2 gold cards per pair, particularly in some guilds, but you do lose some of the cards that can reward you for finding two open colors or making picks around being able to wheel the sort of effect you want in your 2-for-1 laden BW deck or that sort of thing. There's merits to both sides. Personal taste really.
Has anyone cubed Giant Scorpion or Disowned Ancestor as defensive options for the Pestilence deck? I'm on the lookout for an additional one, I feel like Pestilence and Evincar's Justice are really at odds with my current black section and want to give a black controlling deck a couple more tools. Any other good ones?
Right now, there's not enough incentive for me to include them. I'm picking up foils of the cards you mentioned for the future, but I just don't think that 5 or 6 cards are enough payoff for supporting them (yet!)
Not enough incentive to start supporting the colorless cards yet. I'll still be picking up a couple foils, Stalking Drone in particular looks awesome if we get to the point that it can be activated easily, but we're not there just yet.
From running compare cubes, a lot of your exclusions are based on your modern border restriction, which is fine, and metalevolence addressed a number of others, but I still have a few thoughts:
Ampryn Tactician has been unexciting but fine for me, and you're supporting tokens, so it seems like it'll be better here. Razor Golem/Spire Golem/Dross Golem are all on curve or better with 1-2 of the requisite basics. They've been great for me. Kor Chant is a very powerful trick that you might not know existed in a modern frame. Benthic Giant is an awesome control guy, it stabilizes boards pretty well and is generally just huge. Sigiled Starfish works overtime. Infiltrator il-Kor is a great beater if you're supporting a blue tempo strategy. Also wears auras well allowing for cross-archetype stuff with the pants deck. Mortis Dogs same deal, very strong aggressive creature and plays really well with pump effects from R/G or auras from W/G.
I'd like to second a recommendation for Mark of the Vampire, it plays a lot better than it looks and can easily run away with a game. Inner-Flame Acolyte is kind of a pet card but it seems like it would fit your R/G archetype Teetering Peaks see above
I was not impressed by Tithe Drinker but your mileage may vary. Beetleform Mage is a much better card than Frilled Oculus imo. Izzet Chronarch overlaps well with UR spells and UW blink as another tool to create Ghostly Flicker loops and just a solid value guy for a URx control deck.
I'm in the process of doing a long-overdue update, but without enough playtest data to have a good opinion of some cards. How have these cards played for people? Some are potential adds, some are potential cuts.
since there are no cards to discuss yet, im totally fine with discussing current state of the game and desing in general.
Sure, but why does that need to happen here, where we will be discussing cards as they come up?
Anyway all I'm taking away from your posts are that you're nostalgic for the way magic used to be and just want to complain about that. I'll agree with Leelue that I think you're just being a curmudgeon. Please, take that to another thread.
The last thing I'll say on the topic is if you are so displeased with new cards, why not simply build a cube that works the way you want magic to work? Just take the initiative rather than complaining about the change of direction that R&D has taken (which I think is a positive one, but you clearly have another view here and I'm not interested in arguing with you about it), and let others enjoy the game as they see fit too.
Card's great and I highly recommend it.
I lost that game and it was miserable.
LD is a very real support aspect to aggressive decks in higher powered cubes where the tempo can be better leveraged by more powerful threats, and where the LD is more powerful (Armageddon effects) or more efficient (Strip Mine). In this format, that's just not really the case. The corner cases where the games are swung by LD effects are not frequent enough to warrant including them. I don't WANT to punish our best fixing options when pauper fixing is already relatively poor; I want my drafters' decks to be MORE consistent, not less.
I've found it really useful when making cuts or broader changes as it helps pinpoint my pet cards and the stuff that nobody's doing anymore. Comparing to the average cubes is also a thing to do.
Hope this helps somebody! Runner I'll have to take another look at your list because the shift to archetypes is something I'd been toying with a bit.
I like Unnatural Endurance well enough, but I don't think the lifeloss was the tipping point on Boon of Erebos.
Zada's Commando has very solid stats and is almost certainly better than SOMETHING in my red 2s.
I think Cinder Hellion looks a bit better than Shatterskull Recruit so I'll likely make that swap.
Goblin Freerunner looks very good to me. Vines of the Recluse looks like a nice trick but not one that I am missing.
I like Tajuru Pathwarden, but not more than Sentinel Spider, so I'll probably pass on it for now.
Not enough incentive to start supporting the colorless cards yet. I'll still be picking up a couple foils, Stalking Drone in particular looks awesome if we get to the point that it can be activated easily, but we're not there just yet.
From running compare cubes, a lot of your exclusions are based on your modern border restriction, which is fine, and metalevolence addressed a number of others, but I still have a few thoughts:
Ampryn Tactician has been unexciting but fine for me, and you're supporting tokens, so it seems like it'll be better here.
Razor Golem/Spire Golem/Dross Golem are all on curve or better with 1-2 of the requisite basics. They've been great for me.
Kor Chant is a very powerful trick that you might not know existed in a modern frame.
Benthic Giant is an awesome control guy, it stabilizes boards pretty well and is generally just huge.
Sigiled Starfish works overtime.
Infiltrator il-Kor is a great beater if you're supporting a blue tempo strategy. Also wears auras well allowing for cross-archetype stuff with the pants deck.
Mortis Dogs same deal, very strong aggressive creature and plays really well with pump effects from R/G or auras from W/G.
I'd like to second a recommendation for Mark of the Vampire, it plays a lot better than it looks and can easily run away with a game.
Inner-Flame Acolyte is kind of a pet card but it seems like it would fit your R/G archetype
Teetering Peaks see above
I was not impressed by Tithe Drinker but your mileage may vary.
Beetleform Mage is a much better card than Frilled Oculus imo.
Izzet Chronarch overlaps well with UR spells and UW blink as another tool to create Ghostly Flicker loops and just a solid value guy for a URx control deck.
That's actually awesome.
Shambling Ghoul (thinking specifically that I want a 2-drop that fits in the Pestilence/Evincar's Justice deck)
Ampryn Tactician
Vulturous Aven
Sickleslicer
Emrakul's Hatcher
Ill-Tempered Cyclops vs Vestige of Emrakul?
Sure, but why does that need to happen here, where we will be discussing cards as they come up?
Anyway all I'm taking away from your posts are that you're nostalgic for the way magic used to be and just want to complain about that. I'll agree with Leelue that I think you're just being a curmudgeon. Please, take that to another thread.
The last thing I'll say on the topic is if you are so displeased with new cards, why not simply build a cube that works the way you want magic to work? Just take the initiative rather than complaining about the change of direction that R&D has taken (which I think is a positive one, but you clearly have another view here and I'm not interested in arguing with you about it), and let others enjoy the game as they see fit too.