^Arcum will be your sac outlet. This assumes you do it all in one turn, have 1 creature in play, another in hand, and you have no other mana rocks. This setup will require at least 1 more mana after you cast your first spell to untap -
1: Arcum Tap (x creature), get Paradox Engine (PE).
2: Cast y creature, untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac y creature), get Citanul Flute (CF), search for Memnite (or any 0-drop) via CF.
3: Cast 0-drop, untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac 0-drop), get 3-mana rock (Mana Vault/Grim Monolith/Basalt Monolith/Thran Dynamo/Gilded Lotus) via Arcum, tap 3-mana rock (3 mana in pool), CF search for Myr Retriever (MR)(1 mana in pool).
4: Cast MR (-1 mana [hence the need to have that additional 1 mana]), untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac MR), get 0-drop back from GY via MR trigger, get another 3-mana rock via Arcum, tap both (6 mana in pool), search for Junk Diver/Workshop Assistant (JD/WA) via CF (3 mana in pool).
5: Cast 0-drop, untap nonlands due to PE, tap the 2 3-mana rocks (9 mana in pool), cast JD/WA (6 mana in pool), untap nonlands due to PE, tap the 2 3-mana rocks (12 mana in pool), Arcum tap (sac Junk Diver/Workshop Assistant), get Retriever back from GY via JD/WA trigger, search for any artifact. At this point, you can cycle through the MR and JD/WA, which will net you 1 mana from the 2 3-mana rocks each time.
No need for Krark-Clan Ironworks which is probably close to a dead card majority of the time.
^Shrieking Drake is only infinite if you have a U-producing mana rock/dork AND another mana rock/dork. Also, Shrieking Drake is dead outside the combo. Personally, I don't see the need for it.
Cards You Shouldn't Run
Ornithopter, Memnite, etc. - As I explained earlier, free dorks might seem enticing, but they're actually the worst kind because they don't do anything helpful, as opposed to other dorks which grant tempo or card advantage. Arcum is NOT an affinity deck; simply loading up our board with cheap artifacts does not help us.
You say not to run these, yet the list you have featured in the Primer has both of these. Clarification please?
He forgot to edit it. Prior to the printing of Paradox Engine, those were bad cards to run. Now, they allow winning on the same turn given a set of circumstances via Citanul Flute.
Using FoodChainGoblins' list as basis, thoughts on the 27th land versus the 4th Farseek? The move to 26 would entail removing a Mountain and a Forest, but putting in the 3rd Stomping Ground to maintain the mountain count.
As Sorcerous Spyglass enters the battlefield, look at an opponent's hand, then choose any card name.
Activated abilities of sources with the chosen name can't be activated unless they're mana abilities.
Library of Alexandria
Moat
The Abyss
Nethervoid
Aaaand...
Underground sea I guess???
The same for me except the Underground Sea is Unlimited (which I won from a Legacy tourney). I was supposed to get a Workshop but someone bought the really good priced one, before me.
I'm late to this thread, and I haven't read all 22 previous pages, but I haven't seen anybody running Laboratory Maniac, which seems like a natural wincon with the Staff/Rings/Monolith combo. Once it goes off I don't really see how anyone could stop it (since you'll have countermagic in your hand along with everything else, which means you shouldn't have any problem getting Laboratory Maniac out) save for some split-second luckiness or I guess maybe Boseju to prevent you from countering their counter.
What does everybody think?
Lab Maniac is dead outside of the combo. You generally want less of that in your deck. Further, once you draw you're deck, what's stopping you from just playing Ballista and killing everybody, at least Ballista has use outside of the combo (as utility ping-man or fodder).
I wouldn't include Mana Crypt considering it was printed in Eternal Masters (currently at $68). If you do include it, you'll have to include lots of other cards (Goyf, Liliana, Hierarch etc.) I suggest having a $ cutoff in mind, like $100.
You forgot the dual lands. Although some are cheaper than the others, the U ones are expensive.
Though not particularly staples, (some might be if you support certain archetypes), the following cards also see cube play:
Eureka
Mishra's Workshop
City of Traitors
Rishadan Port
Similarly, if BUG is on the rise, would a non-decayable Crusader be a stronger option? Or does the introduction of (Revolt-powered) Fatal Push in the meta sufficiently weaken Crusader's stock in the deck?
On the contrary, since Crusader survives Fatal Push, he's never been better than now. Specially considering that the printing nudged some percentages from Lightning Bolt to Fatal Push (Bolt on Crusader resulted in sad pandas). I'd run at least 2 Crusaders now.
I still think Trinisphere is worth running despite the non-bo with the Engine-Flute line. While it may hinder us, it will be hindering the opponent as well, probably even more. We can choose to go the normal route of fetching Rings-Basalt line over several turns if need be.
^I'm currently at 2 RIP's and 1 Faerie Macabre. IMO, while Faerie Macabre may be the better SB card against BReanimator, Surgical Extraction is generally more useful in other matchups (Storm, Miracles etc.). If I were to increase my Graveyard hate, I would either go 2 RIP's, 1 Faerie Macabre, 1 Surgical Extraction, or 2 RIP's, 2 Surgical Extraction.
1: Arcum Tap (x creature), get Paradox Engine (PE).
2: Cast y creature, untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac y creature), get Citanul Flute (CF), search for Memnite (or any 0-drop) via CF.
3: Cast 0-drop, untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac 0-drop), get 3-mana rock (Mana Vault/Grim Monolith/Basalt Monolith/Thran Dynamo/Gilded Lotus) via Arcum, tap 3-mana rock (3 mana in pool), CF search for Myr Retriever (MR)(1 mana in pool).
4: Cast MR (-1 mana [hence the need to have that additional 1 mana]), untap nonlands due to PE, Arcum Tap (sac MR), get 0-drop back from GY via MR trigger, get another 3-mana rock via Arcum, tap both (6 mana in pool), search for Junk Diver/Workshop Assistant (JD/WA) via CF (3 mana in pool).
5: Cast 0-drop, untap nonlands due to PE, tap the 2 3-mana rocks (9 mana in pool), cast JD/WA (6 mana in pool), untap nonlands due to PE, tap the 2 3-mana rocks (12 mana in pool), Arcum tap (sac Junk Diver/Workshop Assistant), get Retriever back from GY via JD/WA trigger, search for any artifact. At this point, you can cycle through the MR and JD/WA, which will net you 1 mana from the 2 3-mana rocks each time.
No need for Krark-Clan Ironworks which is probably close to a dead card majority of the time.
He forgot to edit it. Prior to the printing of Paradox Engine, those were bad cards to run. Now, they allow winning on the same turn given a set of circumstances via Citanul Flute.
2
Artifact
As Sorcerous Spyglass enters the battlefield, look at an opponent's hand, then choose any card name.
Activated abilities of sources with the chosen name can't be activated unless they're mana abilities.
----
Looks good to me.
The same for me except the Underground Sea is Unlimited (which I won from a Legacy tourney). I was supposed to get a Workshop but someone bought the really good priced one, before me.
Lab Maniac is dead outside of the combo. You generally want less of that in your deck. Further, once you draw you're deck, what's stopping you from just playing Ballista and killing everybody, at least Ballista has use outside of the combo (as utility ping-man or fodder).
You forgot the dual lands. Although some are cheaper than the others, the U ones are expensive.
Though not particularly staples, (some might be if you support certain archetypes), the following cards also see cube play:
Eureka
Mishra's Workshop
City of Traitors
Rishadan Port
On the contrary, since Crusader survives Fatal Push, he's never been better than now. Specially considering that the printing nudged some percentages from Lightning Bolt to Fatal Push (Bolt on Crusader resulted in sad pandas). I'd run at least 2 Crusaders now.