I'll be honest, I didn't pay much attention to the cube before starting my picks. I was kinda wanting to go into GU ramp, but after we began, I realized there doesn't seem to be much to ramp into outside of Keiga and a few greed fatties, none of which really interested me. Not even a Tangle Wire or a Smoke Stack to be found. So I opted for a less-raw-power-more-consistency tempo build. The most consistent cards I put in the main deck, while the sideboard can push the deck into a more aggro build if necessary, or a more control build if necessary, or offer extra disruption and removal if necessary.
Not really sure how this would stack up to some of the other decks, but this was definitely fun to do. Are we playing any games over Cockatrice or something or is this the end?
Asking out a girl is like trying to cast a first turn Necropotence. Sometimes the other player will have the Force of Will to say no. You shouldn't let that stop you from trying it.
I can play over MWS next week. I'll have a decklist by then.
You should have stomphowler and a very rooty wall in your main. (You *better* main howler after cutting it from me.)
Board arcane denial and Tarmo, perhaps? Is tarmo really all that good in your deck? You have two enchantments, one of which never dies, an artifact that never dies, zero sorceries and a pile of instants, none of which you'd really want to loot away. So at the very best in the late game tarmo might be a 2/3. I don't think you can really rely on turn 2 counter your artifact turn 3 tarmo turn 4 counter your creature attack for 3 or something.
Before i took it apart I had stuff like witch hunter in my cube. Because it's a white time elemental that also pings. It was crazy good in time spiral limited, too.
Incidentally, shall I start a new thread for the next one?
Asking out a girl is like trying to cast a first turn Necropotence. Sometimes the other player will have the Force of Will to say no. You shouldn't let that stop you from trying it.
A tad less formal this time, due to time constraints. As always, take with a salt of grain:
Merl:
Nice draft as always. Merl's deck may be the favorite, with Lass's deck as his only truly bad matchup (and mine as 50/50, I'm guessing). Merl's lack of early defense doesn't seem to matter much, as there is somehow only one real aggro deck. This actually turned out to make red a strange partner to blue in your deck, as usually red is the "help versus aggro" color in UR; here it is more akin to the role white or black often plays (big ass finishers). I think Merl will run into trouble against decks that can disrupt his mana, heavy counter decks, and heavy discard decks. Thanks to the cube, and this strange draft, no one was really able to assemble a pure version of any of those.
Lass:
Lass did a great job drafting BR aggro. Despite that, I think the rest of the draft kind of screwed him, because too many drafters fell into the archetype that is worst for him (midrange). Still, his deck is so well constructed that it might be able to overcome bad matchups. I think he should have grabbed some more anti-misrange cards during the draft, like FtK, Yawgs Will, Wheel of Fortune, Zo-Zu, and Phyrexian Arena.
Dragoon:
Dragoon went for a UG tempo deck, which is a fine idea, but missed on some key cards and themes. First, Upheaval would have been perfect, and is a huge miss. Next, Man-o-war and Venser are amazing tempo effects on a stick and are missing here. I think Dragood should have grabbed more green ramp creatures as well (the lack of one drops is toubling, and this could have helped). Lastly, I would still play Trinket Mage (clamp and SdT are worth it), Tarmogoyf (even if this isn't the best deck for it) and memory lapse (over dryad sophisticate, Kavu Titan, and Shapeshifter).
Phant:
I was distracted for the beginning of this draft (in training) and screwed up the Darksteel Ingot pick (should have been Mulldrifer). I also missed on Thawing Glaciers and Kj Outpost.
I think the deck turned out fairly well though. It is potentially the most explosive deck in the draft, and has a lot of fairly quick roads to victory. It combines good stall tactics with a lot of draw, and a ton of great ways to win. I went UW because the draft seemed to be heading towards a lot of midrange and control decks, and aggro is about all that keeps UW from dominating. Sadly, thanks to Lass' badass deck, I couldn't just go crazy control heavy. Still, I like my matchup against everyone but Lass, and could even pull that one out with a little bit of luck (and a lot of sideboarding).
Ponder (no build submitted):
I found Ponders draft to be the most confusing. Why Squee in the second round? Why play red and not grab any removal on a stick creatures? Why no Rancor or Lox warhammer? Why 3C with that manabase? A build might help to clear this up, but this draft just seemed unfocused.
Rubin (no build):
I thought Rubin started out strong, with Mind Twist, geddon and Necro, but ended up with a strange mix of WB aggro and midrange, with the manabase to support neither. It's a shame, because this meta was ripe for a kickass WB prison deck, with discard, Braids, Damnation, Kj Outpost, and maybe a reanimation theme as a wincon. Also, when grabbing necro, get some more lifegain.
ExpiredRascals (no build):
ExpiredRascals had maybe the most promising opening. Survival and RecNightmare is a brutal combo in any cube, but gets even better the more acceleration pieces are removed. Unfortunately, Rascals then got sniped in a brutal drive by Squee-ing. In the wreckage, Rascals decided to go for a third and fourth color, possibly hoping they had Squee's in them?
Seriously though, going into a 3rd color in a RecSur deck can be the correct move, but you must be extremely careful, and have a good reason. G/B already has the tools to beat aggro and/or control, so you can simply gear your deck towards whatever the meta is shaping up to be. Aggro everywhere? Wall of Blossoms. Consuming Vapors. More mana elves. Phantom, 187, and Lifegain creatures. More control? Discard, card advantage engines (think draw enchantments and creatures, Loam and Eternal Witness). G/B had everything needed to dominate this draft, but Rascals flew to close to the sun on wings made of 3U.
Volcanon:
Vol built a very solid GW deck, but sadly only has two aggro decks to beat up with it. He did a good enough job with the card advantage/selection engines so as to keep his deck competitive with control. I would have like to have seem Geddon over Balance, and it feels like it needs 1-2 more pieces of ramp. It's a shame the G and W fatties are lacking the wow factor.
Well done everyone. It was certainly a different draft! I didn't particularly care for the cube, due to its inconsistencies, but I certainly had fun.
Unfortunately, Rascals then got sniped in a brutal drive by Squee-ing.
hahaha. Definitely an accurate description.
I've been a little busy with life outside of MTGS, I'll try to get my build posted after jury duty today. I still haven't yet decided to go straight combo (go infinite with palinchron + recurring nightmare) in the MB and SB into more traditional rec-sur or whether to stick to the traditional for both.
Just got to say, you've definitely earned distinction as an MTGS hero
Quote from Stardust »
Because he's the hero MTGS deserves, and the one it needs right now. So we'll global him. Because he can take it. Because he's not just our hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector. An expired rascal.
Quote from LuckNorris »
ExpiredRascals you sir are a god-like hero.
Quote from Lanxal »
ER is a masterful god who cannot be beaten in any endeavour.
Quote from votan »
:ER:, you suck as a hero
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1 Wall of Roots
1 Looter il-Kor
1 Dryad Sophisticate
1 Gaea's Skyfolk
1 Kavu Titan
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Trygon Predator
1 Edric, Spymaster of Trest
1 Serendib Efreet
1 Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
1 Vesuvan Shapeshifter
1 Blastoderm
1 Masticore
1 Mulldrifter
1 Morphling
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Skullclamp
1 Rancor
1 Counterspell
1 Psionic Blast
1 Treachery
1 Capsize
8 Island
5 Forest
1 Breeding Pool
1 Yavimaya Coast
1 Yavimaya Hollow
1 Keiga, the Tide Star
1 Tarmogoyf
1 Pouncing Jaguar
1 Trinket Mage
1 Wood Elves
1 Aether Vial
1 Snap
1 Arcane Denial
1 Memory Lapse
1 Moldervine Cloak
1 Stunted Growth
1 Creeping Mold
1 Desert Twister
I'll be honest, I didn't pay much attention to the cube before starting my picks. I was kinda wanting to go into GU ramp, but after we began, I realized there doesn't seem to be much to ramp into outside of Keiga and a few greed fatties, none of which really interested me. Not even a Tangle Wire or a Smoke Stack to be found. So I opted for a less-raw-power-more-consistency tempo build. The most consistent cards I put in the main deck, while the sideboard can push the deck into a more aggro build if necessary, or a more control build if necessary, or offer extra disruption and removal if necessary.
Not really sure how this would stack up to some of the other decks, but this was definitely fun to do. Are we playing any games over Cockatrice or something or is this the end?
Level 1 DCI Judge
Check out my Commons Cube.
1 Tarmogoyf
1 Looter il-Kor
1 Dryad Sophisticate
1 Gaea's Skyfolk
1 Kavu Titan
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Trygon Predator
1 Edric, Spymaster of Trest
1 Serendib Efreet
1 Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
1 Vesuvan Shapeshifter
1 Blastoderm
1 Masticore
1 Mulldrifter
1 Morphling
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Skullclamp
1 Rancor
1 Arcane Denial
1 Counterspell
1 Psionic Blast
1 Treachery
1 Capsize
I can play over MWS next week. I'll have a decklist by then.
You should have stomphowler and a very rooty wall in your main. (You *better* main howler after cutting it from me.)
Board arcane denial and Tarmo, perhaps? Is tarmo really all that good in your deck? You have two enchantments, one of which never dies, an artifact that never dies, zero sorceries and a pile of instants, none of which you'd really want to loot away. So at the very best in the late game tarmo might be a 2/3. I don't think you can really rely on turn 2 counter your artifact turn 3 tarmo turn 4 counter your creature attack for 3 or something.
Ah, the slogan of my online cube...
My $40 MTGO cube
Draft my cube at Cubetutor!
Before i took it apart I had stuff like witch hunter in my cube. Because it's a white time elemental that also pings. It was crazy good in time spiral limited, too.
Incidentally, shall I start a new thread for the next one?
5 Forest
Sideboard:
Seal of Cleansing
Aven Mindcensor
Silver Knight
Soltari Priest
Preacher
Whirling Dervish
Samurai Pale Curtain
Silklash Spider
White Knight
Glory
Should I deck Glory? Over what, Rhox?
Level 1 DCI Judge
Check out my Commons Cube.
Merl:
Nice draft as always. Merl's deck may be the favorite, with Lass's deck as his only truly bad matchup (and mine as 50/50, I'm guessing). Merl's lack of early defense doesn't seem to matter much, as there is somehow only one real aggro deck. This actually turned out to make red a strange partner to blue in your deck, as usually red is the "help versus aggro" color in UR; here it is more akin to the role white or black often plays (big ass finishers). I think Merl will run into trouble against decks that can disrupt his mana, heavy counter decks, and heavy discard decks. Thanks to the cube, and this strange draft, no one was really able to assemble a pure version of any of those.
Lass:
Lass did a great job drafting BR aggro. Despite that, I think the rest of the draft kind of screwed him, because too many drafters fell into the archetype that is worst for him (midrange). Still, his deck is so well constructed that it might be able to overcome bad matchups. I think he should have grabbed some more anti-misrange cards during the draft, like FtK, Yawgs Will, Wheel of Fortune, Zo-Zu, and Phyrexian Arena.
Dragoon:
Dragoon went for a UG tempo deck, which is a fine idea, but missed on some key cards and themes. First, Upheaval would have been perfect, and is a huge miss. Next, Man-o-war and Venser are amazing tempo effects on a stick and are missing here. I think Dragood should have grabbed more green ramp creatures as well (the lack of one drops is toubling, and this could have helped). Lastly, I would still play Trinket Mage (clamp and SdT are worth it), Tarmogoyf (even if this isn't the best deck for it) and memory lapse (over dryad sophisticate, Kavu Titan, and Shapeshifter).
Phant:
I was distracted for the beginning of this draft (in training) and screwed up the Darksteel Ingot pick (should have been Mulldrifer). I also missed on Thawing Glaciers and Kj Outpost.
I think the deck turned out fairly well though. It is potentially the most explosive deck in the draft, and has a lot of fairly quick roads to victory. It combines good stall tactics with a lot of draw, and a ton of great ways to win. I went UW because the draft seemed to be heading towards a lot of midrange and control decks, and aggro is about all that keeps UW from dominating. Sadly, thanks to Lass' badass deck, I couldn't just go crazy control heavy. Still, I like my matchup against everyone but Lass, and could even pull that one out with a little bit of luck (and a lot of sideboarding).
1 Blacker Lotus
1 Jack in the Mox
[1]
1 Ponder
1 Force Spike
1 Ancestral Vision
1 Mana Vault
1 Swords to Plowshares
[2]
1 Coldsteel Heart
1 Eternal Dragon
1 Azorius Signet
1 Wall of Omens
1 Impulse
1 Sky Diamond
1 Marble Diamond
[3]
1 Tinker
1 Man-o'-War
1 Forbid
1 Exalted Angel
1 Icy Manipulator
1 Grand Arbiter Augustin IV
1 Faith's Fetters
1 Wrath of God
[5]
1 Future Sight
[6]
1 Mindslaver
1 Sundering Titan
[Land]
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Faerie Conclave
1 Azorius Chauncery
1 Academy Ruins
1 Forbidding Watchtower
1 Adarkar Wastes
4 Island
2 Plains
1 Mana Leak
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Temple Acolyte
1 Withdraw
1 Aura of Silence
1 Flood Plain
1 Confiscate
1 Akroma's Vengeance
1 Darksteel Ingot
Ponder (no build submitted):
I found Ponders draft to be the most confusing. Why Squee in the second round? Why play red and not grab any removal on a stick creatures? Why no Rancor or Lox warhammer? Why 3C with that manabase? A build might help to clear this up, but this draft just seemed unfocused.
Rubin (no build):
I thought Rubin started out strong, with Mind Twist, geddon and Necro, but ended up with a strange mix of WB aggro and midrange, with the manabase to support neither. It's a shame, because this meta was ripe for a kickass WB prison deck, with discard, Braids, Damnation, Kj Outpost, and maybe a reanimation theme as a wincon. Also, when grabbing necro, get some more lifegain.
ExpiredRascals (no build):
ExpiredRascals had maybe the most promising opening. Survival and RecNightmare is a brutal combo in any cube, but gets even better the more acceleration pieces are removed. Unfortunately, Rascals then got sniped in a brutal drive by Squee-ing. In the wreckage, Rascals decided to go for a third and fourth color, possibly hoping they had Squee's in them?
Seriously though, going into a 3rd color in a RecSur deck can be the correct move, but you must be extremely careful, and have a good reason. G/B already has the tools to beat aggro and/or control, so you can simply gear your deck towards whatever the meta is shaping up to be. Aggro everywhere? Wall of Blossoms. Consuming Vapors. More mana elves. Phantom, 187, and Lifegain creatures. More control? Discard, card advantage engines (think draw enchantments and creatures, Loam and Eternal Witness). G/B had everything needed to dominate this draft, but Rascals flew to close to the sun on wings made of 3U.
Volcanon:
Vol built a very solid GW deck, but sadly only has two aggro decks to beat up with it. He did a good enough job with the card advantage/selection engines so as to keep his deck competitive with control. I would have like to have seem Geddon over Balance, and it feels like it needs 1-2 more pieces of ramp. It's a shame the G and W fatties are lacking the wow factor.
Well done everyone. It was certainly a different draft! I didn't particularly care for the cube, due to its inconsistencies, but I certainly had fun.
hahaha. Definitely an accurate description.
I've been a little busy with life outside of MTGS, I'll try to get my build posted after jury duty today. I still haven't yet decided to go straight combo (go infinite with palinchron + recurring nightmare) in the MB and SB into more traditional rec-sur or whether to stick to the traditional for both.
Body Count: GRRRUUUUUUUUUUU
إن سرقت إسرق جمل
Level 1 Judge
My Cube for use with 6th ed. Rules