I've never played with this card before, but if I understand this card correctly, the usage of this card is like this;
Tap swamp for 1 black.
Play Lake of the Dead, sacrifice trigger on the stack, use lake of the dead's ability to sacrifice the tapped swamp for 4 black.
Then sacrifice Lake of the dead.
I'm actively maintaining a comprehensive article to help explain to new cube players how some complex vintage level cards work in a cube environment. Vintage Cube Cards Explained
The way it's written on the alliances card, it's a triggered ability, so if the alliances text was correct, it would work the way you describe. But on the oracle text of the card, it's a replacement effect, so it doesn't work that way. You need to sacrifice a swamp in order for Lake of the Dead to ETB. See the Vintage Masters printing.
I'm actively maintaining a comprehensive article to help explain to new cube players how some complex vintage level cards work in a cube environment. Vintage Cube Cards Explained
I've never played with this card before, but if I understand this card correctly, the usage of this card is like this;
Tap swamp for 1 black.
Play Lake of the Dead, sacrifice trigger on the stack, use lake of the dead's ability to sacrifice the tapped swamp for 4 black.
Then sacrifice Lake of the dead.
Vintage Cube Cards Explained
Here are some other articles I've written about fine tuning your cube:
1. Minimum Archetype Support
2. Improving Green Archetypes
3. Improving White Archetypes
4. Matchup Analysis
5. Cube Combos (Work in Progress)
Draft my Cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/d8i
[180 classic cube]
Online forums for BR reanimator have been talking about how 2 Swamps + Lake of the Dead allows for explosive turn 3 Grave Titans.
I'm still willing to give the card a shot.
Vintage Cube Cards Explained
Here are some other articles I've written about fine tuning your cube:
1. Minimum Archetype Support
2. Improving Green Archetypes
3. Improving White Archetypes
4. Matchup Analysis
5. Cube Combos (Work in Progress)
Draft my Cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/d8i
It still does. Tap 2 swamps for mana, sac the swamp for the ETB, then sac the other swamp for BBBB, and you have BBBBBB in your pool.
All that being said, I think there are better ways to get lots of mana in Cube.
375 unpowered cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/601ac624832cdf1039947588