I've got the cube nearly built, just waiting for a few stragglers to arrive.
It's nowhere near as pretty as Shazaam's, but looks stunning to my eyes.
I began with your list from the OP, frogczar, and have made a few changes
Mana Fixing: Two copies of each Dual land and City of Brass. Also added Untamed Wilds. To fit these 11 additional cards, I cut one card from each color, 5 legends, and Sol Ring (just too powerful here).
I also swapped a number of cards around within the colors. For example, blue really has little need of most one-drop creatures IMO, so a swapped them for other things.
I've gone with 5 guild-colored legends and 5 shards. I haven't necessarily chosen them on raw power but more for decks they might go into.
I really wanted to include the Elder Dragons since they are so iconic, but I agree they are barely playable.
For mana fixing, I want to add 3 more copies of City of Brass eventually.
I tried really hard to balance the mana curve of not only creatures but spells in every color. Blue has such lousy creatures at low mana costs. I agree they are pathetic but I decided to leave them in.
I really wanted to include the Elder Dragons since they are so iconic, but I agree they are barely playable.
For mana fixing, I want to add 3 more copies of City of Brass eventually.
I tried really hard to balance the mana curve of not only creatures but spells in every color. Blue has such lousy creatures at low mana costs. I agree they are pathetic but I decided to leave them in.
Thanks, frogczar.
I've added Firebreathing and Land's Edge to allow red to get more damage through. Also swapped in Tetsuo Umezawa.
I may also reduce the walls in different colors, cool as they are.
I tried keeping the dragons in for exactly that reason, but the fixing wasn't there, and control is already too strong.
For now I think we'll enjoy the variety of cards, but I'm already thinking of a version using single-double-triple cycles as in Murasame's Pyramid Cube. And a Japanese version of the same cube, but I digress^_^
Anyway, our first draft is coming soon so I'll post pics and possibly even decks.
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"That's right!" shouted Vroomfondel, "we demand rigidly defined areas of doubt and uncertainty!"
We finally drafted it with seven players and it was a blast!
My own first pick was Shivan Dragon and I ended up UR Control with 4 massive fliers. This was despite my intention to force red aggro -- red was in high demand early.
Other decks included a sick sick 4-color Goodstuff deck, Monoblack, WR aggro, UG control, UBr Tetsuo mid-range, and GW Land Tax.
There are a few points I'd like to add to the discussion:
1) I expected the speed to be much slower, but decks had very strong aggressive starts quite often. The WR Aggro deck absolutely punished me in consecutive games. I don't think aggro's balanced with control yet, but it may not be as far off as I suspected.
2) Maze of Ith was a force. I may need to remove it until I support more ways to destroy it -- currently only about 5 cards plus turning lands to creatures. Similarly, the Abyss may be too strong.
3) I was very happy with the mana fixing, having two copies of each dual, and City of Brass. I could see a 3rd set of each, but I'm not yet convinced it's needed.
I'm looking forward to drafting again this weekend as I believe this can be more than just a nostalgia cube.
----------------------------------
Edit:
I drafted it again with different players, and once again it was a blast. As expected, the decks leaned towards midrange and control, but there was a WR aggro deck that did well thanks to Armageddon and Winter Orb.
I drafted BG Pestilence with LD and Mind Twist. I was lucky to draw Mind Twist frequently, and it flat out won every game I cast it. Maze of Ith again seemed way too strong for the environment, and worse, it was passed to me after I had already grabbed several of the cube's answers to it (Sinkhole, Ice Storm, Strip Mine)!
I found Maze of Ith to not be so game breaking that it warranted removal from the cube. It's annoying for sure, but not overpowered. It can also encourage a more defensive strategy which is rare in this cube.
Do you play with the power? What did you swap it with?
The Abyss has completely taken over a game before by itself. It's one of the more powerful effects in all of '94 Magic. I've considered removing it, but it's just too cool.
I found Maze of Ith to not be so game breaking that it warranted removal from the cube. It's annoying for sure, but not overpowered. It can also encourage a more defensive strategy which is rare in this cube.
Do you play with the power? What did you swap it with?
The Abyss has completely taken over a game before by itself. It's one of the more powerful effects in all of '94 Magic. I've considered removing it, but it's just too cool.
-Frog
The Abyss is bonkers, but I think there are enough answers or ways to play around it. There are also a ton of enchantments so enchantment hate shouldn't be wasting away in sideboards too often.
I didn't go with the Power because after what was said earlier, it seemed like it would negatively affect game balance.
---------------------------------------------
EDIT:
I've now drafted the cube four times.
In the past two I tried to force aggressive decks; once it was mediocre (RBw) as I didn't get enough 1-2 drops, and one time it was amazing (GU ramp into fat flyers).
I'm giving white every banding creature I can find --> Benalish Hero recently joined the card pool.
Maze of Ith has dominated every game it has appeared in during these four drafts. Time to cut it.
Well I finally got my hands on an Ali from Cairo so I will be swapping him in for Firestorm Phoenix. I'm still trying to keep the curve down or similar when replacing cards currently in the cube. The Phoenix is cool but he's so expensive for what he does. I worry that Ali will be too defensive, but he's iconic so he's a good addition.
I did a Winston draft last weekend with my Brother-in-law and he was able to successfully hard cast Nicol Bolas! I was able to swing in for the kill the next turn but it was amazing that he got him down on the table. He was able to draft a RUB deck that included Badlands and Underground Sea so as to be able to actually play the Elder Dragon.
Browsed lists, saw this, thought, why isn't Bartel Runeaxe on it? Saw you just subbed it out. He's def better than Gabriel Angelfire, who is a 7-mana air elemental. More than half of your kill spells are enchantments and he's out of burn range outside of X spells.
Bartel Runeaxe was getting passed over because he was 3 colors. If I end up adding more multi-colored mana sources, I might put him back in. Gabriel Angelfire is a little more iconic and he's easier to put out. Also a 4/4 flier for seven is playable here.
I've considered both Urza's Avenger and Clockwork Beast for the slot that Obsianus Golem currently occupies, but I like the golem just because he has a big butt at 6 toughness. Clockwork Beast was one of my two original rares in my very first revised starter deck, so I have a special place in my heart for him, but for now I like the golem.
We recently played a Holiday Ante game where everyone brought a card to ante for a prize. I anted a Fallen Empires booster. Everyone had a good time and the matches were all very close, we had a tie between a black/white deck and a red/green deck. The Abyss was amazing but it didn't win it all. It's a bit slow and it can be played around. The winning player took home the FE pack (which had a Hymn in it) a Arabian Bird Maiden, and a signed Fastbond. Good times.
Well, after many months of un-won auctions, I finally got a Guardian Beast for the right price. The price actually went up about 20 percent during the time that I have been looking for one.
Just like to add some thoughts after a few times playing the cube recently.
First, I feel like the current set of cards in the cube is a very good mix of aggro, control and quirkiness. There's a couple of opportunities for a combo or board state that can be nasty, but nothing that can't be played around or answered.
Some old friends and I got together for a retro-gaming weekend and we played a 5-man multiplayer game using the cube. It was one of the best multi-player experiences I've ever had (and I usually hate multi-player games). The politics surrounding who would attack who based on what permanents were in play was fascinating. Lots of bargaining and deal-making. We had a couple of control decks facing off against a good stuff deck and a couple of aggro decks. Even the aggro decks had some means of dealing with tough cards on the table which is a good sign that the removal is at the right level.
Some cards of note: Copper Tablet hit the table early and started a clock on everyone. This led to attacks on the player who dropped it, but protecting that player later when life loss was really important to stick on the control players. Millstone is brutal when everyone is playing 40 card decks. It drew a lot of hate cards. It was agreed that there was the right amount of artifact hate in the cube since everyone had a little bit of it somewhere. I was shooting for this since artifacts are just really good in general in the environment. Tawnos's Coffin is amazing. Repeatable removal at instant speed that returns the creature to play tapped is insanely powerful. I knew that the card was good, and it was my very first pick of my first pack. I think it was a little underestimated how good it was on the table.
The Red/Blue/Black control deck won the game (on the back of cards like Flood and Pestilence) and the player won a booster of Fallen Empires (as is my offering when we play a big game). We all signed the Breeding Pit that was the "rare" in the pack. Good times!
I'll throw in another voice of support for Tawnos's Coffin. I used the card to great advantage in a Sharuum EDH deck back in the day and saw the power of ETB/LTB creatures, as well as using it as a removal spell for enemy creatures.
The thing is great and I would definitely consider picking it first in a weak pack in a 360 card '94 cube.
So I have been playing a Winston Draft with the cube with a friend of mine from work who is new to Magic. It's been good for him to learn a bit about deck building using the cube and we've been having a good time. We've played a couple of times now and each time that either of us has drafted The Abyss, the card has completely taken over the game. Now, I love The Abyss and I think it belongs in the 94 Magic world, however it has led to a few fairly unfun experiences.
I'm considering replacing it with:
1st choice: Soul Exchange - This card gives black another "reanimator" choice and has always been a personal favorite of mine.
2nd choice: Underworld Dreams - Iconic and fairly interesting as a combo with things like Howling Mine.
3rd choice: All Hallow's Eve - More reanimator but difficult to use effectively.
4th choice: Spirit Shackle - bad removal is bad, but it's still removal.
...each time that either of us has drafted The Abyss, the card has completely taken over the game. Now, I love The Abyss and I think it belongs in the 94 Magic world, however it has led to a few fairly unfun experiences.
Funny enough, I was just checking in to post about The Abyss. After drafting it backed up by Demonic Tutor, The Hive, fat artifact creatures, and cheap removal, it's just far too good. I won every single game in our recent draft by abusing it, until I took the card out of the deck for fun.
I'm already running Spirit Shackle -- it's decent, especially considering the environment with Royal Assassin, Old Man, Preacher, and so on.
Underworld Dreams is a classic but with that mana cost, will it sit in sideboards?
In an effort to balance deck types, I've replaced most of the Walls with (relatively) more aggressive creatures or pump spells. Two cards that caught my eye recently were Alpha misprints: Orcish Oriflamme (1R instead or 3R) and Orcish Artillery (1R instead of 1RR). I'm considering playing them in the cube with cost-as-misprinted. Oriflamme seems excellent at that cost, but Artillery concerns me that it could backfire. Have you tried these/what do you think?
EDIT: I've mostly steered clear of cards which hate strongly on specific colors, like Tsunami or Circle of Protection. Still, I can't help feeling like friendship-ending, dedicated hate was an essential part of Magic in those days which makes me feel odd not representing it.
It's funny that you mention the Alpha misprints. I play a "Alpha only" game with another group and use those cards as printed and they are a lot better at those costs. I wouldn't run them that way for 94 since they had been corrected by then.
While I was looking through my cards, I came across another old favorite that might be more appropriate as a replacent for The Abyss: Takklemaggot. What about that?
Couple of changes I'm considering for the cube. I've got some old friends visiting this summer and we're likely to play the '94 cube when we get together.
Wall of Earth out and Dwarven Lieutenant in. Not sure about this change. I like having one wall per color (with the exception of green) since Walls were a part of the old game. Also, playing defensively is something to do for more control-ish decks and the walls help facilitate that.
Wall of Putrid Flesh out and Mindstab Thrull in. The wall is disgusting and therefore kinda cool. If I take out the walls, this would be the change I would make here. Mindstab Thrull enables more discard which is nice.
Tangle Kelp out and Transmute Artifact in. Transmute Artifact is a powerful effect and Tangle Kelp is kinda lame. The mana isn't identical and I like having some 1 drops to help the curve. Also, I'm not sure artifacts need any help in the cube, there are already so many.
Merseine out and Land Equilibrium in. A powerful Enchant World effect but it might just be unfun to play against or with.
Legends changes.
Gabriel Angelfire out and Adun Oakenshield in. Pretty sure I'm gonna make this change. Adun Oakenshield is a bit hard to cast at 3 colors, but his ability is unique and fuels a bit more re-animator in the cube. Gabriel Angelfire is grossly overcosted, but iconic.
Stangg out and Tuknir Deathlock in. Tuknir is harder to cast arguably but has a semi-interesting ability and flies. Stangg is mostly a liability but he is cool.
Stangg was easier to play due to being only two colors but was unimpressive. Adun Oakenshield has an interesting ability and is a reasonable cost at 3 mana.
I don't think Maze of Ith is necessarily too powerful, but it makes games take a long time and become much more stale. I think having a defensive card like Maze of Ith is fine, however I think control already has a lot of options in that department in the Cube. Flood, Icy Manipulator, various walls, Singing Tree, Drop of Honey and others. Lands are also a lot harder to get rid of, even with every piece of land destruction available.
Arena gives decks/colors without much removal a removal option and that's always appreciated.
Promoting Aggro changes. Another topic of discussion from our holiday games was the issue of promoting aggro strategies over control. Right now I think the balance is slightly in favor of control. That means that there are more "slow" options to deal with threats on the table and opportunities for card interaction. That's good, but I think I'd like to make a few small changes to promote faster games and give aggro a little more help.
It's nowhere near as pretty as Shazaam's, but looks stunning to my eyes.
I began with your list from the OP, frogczar, and have made a few changes
Mana Fixing: Two copies of each Dual land and City of Brass. Also added Untamed Wilds. To fit these 11 additional cards, I cut one card from each color, 5 legends, and Sol Ring (just too powerful here).
I also swapped a number of cards around within the colors. For example, blue really has little need of most one-drop creatures IMO, so a swapped them for other things.
I've gone with 5 guild-colored legends and 5 shards. I haven't necessarily chosen them on raw power but more for decks they might go into.
All changes are here.
For now I'm very happy with the variety of cards, but I could see a need to include multiple copies of key cards eventually (Lightning Bolt).
My 1994 Magic Cube
Japanese cards on eBay -- Legacy, Modern, EDH, Cube.
I really wanted to include the Elder Dragons since they are so iconic, but I agree they are barely playable.
For mana fixing, I want to add 3 more copies of City of Brass eventually.
I tried really hard to balance the mana curve of not only creatures but spells in every color. Blue has such lousy creatures at low mana costs. I agree they are pathetic but I decided to leave them in.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Thanks, frogczar.
I've added Firebreathing and Land's Edge to allow red to get more damage through. Also swapped in Tetsuo Umezawa.
I may also reduce the walls in different colors, cool as they are.
I tried keeping the dragons in for exactly that reason, but the fixing wasn't there, and control is already too strong.
For now I think we'll enjoy the variety of cards, but I'm already thinking of a version using single-double-triple cycles as in Murasame's Pyramid Cube. And a Japanese version of the same cube, but I digress^_^
Anyway, our first draft is coming soon so I'll post pics and possibly even decks.
My 1994 Magic Cube
Japanese cards on eBay -- Legacy, Modern, EDH, Cube.
My own first pick was Shivan Dragon and I ended up UR Control with 4 massive fliers. This was despite my intention to force red aggro -- red was in high demand early.
Other decks included a sick sick 4-color Goodstuff deck, Monoblack, WR aggro, UG control, UBr Tetsuo mid-range, and GW Land Tax.
There are a few points I'd like to add to the discussion:
1) I expected the speed to be much slower, but decks had very strong aggressive starts quite often. The WR Aggro deck absolutely punished me in consecutive games. I don't think aggro's balanced with control yet, but it may not be as far off as I suspected.
2) Maze of Ith was a force. I may need to remove it until I support more ways to destroy it -- currently only about 5 cards plus turning lands to creatures. Similarly, the Abyss may be too strong.
3) I was very happy with the mana fixing, having two copies of each dual, and City of Brass. I could see a 3rd set of each, but I'm not yet convinced it's needed.
I'm looking forward to drafting again this weekend as I believe this can be more than just a nostalgia cube.
----------------------------------
Edit:
I drafted it again with different players, and once again it was a blast. As expected, the decks leaned towards midrange and control, but there was a WR aggro deck that did well thanks to Armageddon and Winter Orb.
I drafted BG Pestilence with LD and Mind Twist. I was lucky to draw Mind Twist frequently, and it flat out won every game I cast it. Maze of Ith again seemed way too strong for the environment, and worse, it was passed to me after I had already grabbed several of the cube's answers to it (Sinkhole, Ice Storm, Strip Mine)!
My 1994 Magic Cube
Japanese cards on eBay -- Legacy, Modern, EDH, Cube.
I found Maze of Ith to not be so game breaking that it warranted removal from the cube. It's annoying for sure, but not overpowered. It can also encourage a more defensive strategy which is rare in this cube.
Do you play with the power? What did you swap it with?
The Abyss has completely taken over a game before by itself. It's one of the more powerful effects in all of '94 Magic. I've considered removing it, but it's just too cool.
-Frog
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
The Abyss is bonkers, but I think there are enough answers or ways to play around it. There are also a ton of enchantments so enchantment hate shouldn't be wasting away in sideboards too often.
I didn't go with the Power because after what was said earlier, it seemed like it would negatively affect game balance.
---------------------------------------------
EDIT:
I've now drafted the cube four times.
In the past two I tried to force aggressive decks; once it was mediocre (RBw) as I didn't get enough 1-2 drops, and one time it was amazing (GU ramp into fat flyers).
I'm giving white every banding creature I can find --> Benalish Hero recently joined the card pool.
Maze of Ith has dominated every game it has appeared in during these four drafts. Time to cut it.
My 1994 Magic Cube
Japanese cards on eBay -- Legacy, Modern, EDH, Cube.
Oooo. Ice Age and Mirage are not '94 but certainly old-school!
Yeah, I love Rainbow Vale, it also works to trigger Land Tax.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
I did a Winston draft last weekend with my Brother-in-law and he was able to successfully hard cast Nicol Bolas! I was able to swing in for the kill the next turn but it was amazing that he got him down on the table. He was able to draft a RUB deck that included Badlands and Underground Sea so as to be able to actually play the Elder Dragon.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Mana Vortex out Tangle Kelp in
Field of Dreams out Invisibility in
Bartel Runeaxe out Gabriel Angelfire in
Gravity Sphere out Lands Edge in
Presence of the Master out Jihad in
Winds of Change out Goblin War Drums in
Pearled Unicorn out Farrel's Zealot in
Living Lands out Living Plane in
Ghazbán Ogre out Elvish Hunter in
Emerald Dragonfly out Thorn Thallid in
Ball Lightning out Fire Drake in
Fountain of Youth out Tawnos's Coffin in
Electric Eel out Ghost Ship in
Water Wurm out Leviathan in
Hill Giant out Roc of Kher Ridges in
Hyperion Blacksmith out Aladdin in
Rukh Egg out Bird Maiden in
Ashnod's Transmogrant out Feldon's Cane in
Wall of Dust out Wall of Earth in
Keepers of the Faith out Samite Healer in
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Why no clockwork beast? He's a beast.
I've considered both Urza's Avenger and Clockwork Beast for the slot that Obsianus Golem currently occupies, but I like the golem just because he has a big butt at 6 toughness. Clockwork Beast was one of my two original rares in my very first revised starter deck, so I have a special place in my heart for him, but for now I like the golem.
We recently played a Holiday Ante game where everyone brought a card to ante for a prize. I anted a Fallen Empires booster. Everyone had a good time and the matches were all very close, we had a tie between a black/white deck and a red/green deck. The Abyss was amazing but it didn't win it all. It's a bit slow and it can be played around. The winning player took home the FE pack (which had a Hymn in it) a Arabian Bird Maiden, and a signed Fastbond. Good times.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Fungusaur out, Wormwood Treefolk in.
Titania's Song out, Spore Cloud in.
Argothian Treefolk out, Scarwood Bandits in
Green just needed a little more oomph.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Evil Eye of Orms-By-Gore out Guardian Beast in!
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
First, I feel like the current set of cards in the cube is a very good mix of aggro, control and quirkiness. There's a couple of opportunities for a combo or board state that can be nasty, but nothing that can't be played around or answered.
Some old friends and I got together for a retro-gaming weekend and we played a 5-man multiplayer game using the cube. It was one of the best multi-player experiences I've ever had (and I usually hate multi-player games). The politics surrounding who would attack who based on what permanents were in play was fascinating. Lots of bargaining and deal-making. We had a couple of control decks facing off against a good stuff deck and a couple of aggro decks. Even the aggro decks had some means of dealing with tough cards on the table which is a good sign that the removal is at the right level.
Some cards of note:
Copper Tablet hit the table early and started a clock on everyone. This led to attacks on the player who dropped it, but protecting that player later when life loss was really important to stick on the control players.
Millstone is brutal when everyone is playing 40 card decks. It drew a lot of hate cards. It was agreed that there was the right amount of artifact hate in the cube since everyone had a little bit of it somewhere. I was shooting for this since artifacts are just really good in general in the environment.
Tawnos's Coffin is amazing. Repeatable removal at instant speed that returns the creature to play tapped is insanely powerful. I knew that the card was good, and it was my very first pick of my first pack. I think it was a little underestimated how good it was on the table.
The Red/Blue/Black control deck won the game (on the back of cards like Flood and Pestilence) and the player won a booster of Fallen Empires (as is my offering when we play a big game). We all signed the Breeding Pit that was the "rare" in the pack. Good times!
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
My 630 Card Powered Cube
My Article - "Cube Design Philosophy"
My Article - "Mana Short: A study in limited resource management."
My 50th Set (P)review - Discusses my top 20 Cube cards from OTJ!
The thing is great and I would definitely consider picking it first in a weak pack in a 360 card '94 cube.
CUBE TOP 10 - Help us vote for the best cards in cube
I'm considering replacing it with:
1st choice: Soul Exchange - This card gives black another "reanimator" choice and has always been a personal favorite of mine.
2nd choice: Underworld Dreams - Iconic and fairly interesting as a combo with things like Howling Mine.
3rd choice: All Hallow's Eve - More reanimator but difficult to use effectively.
4th choice: Spirit Shackle - bad removal is bad, but it's still removal.
What do you all think?
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Funny enough, I was just checking in to post about The Abyss. After drafting it backed up by Demonic Tutor, The Hive, fat artifact creatures, and cheap removal, it's just far too good. I won every single game in our recent draft by abusing it, until I took the card out of the deck for fun.
I'm already running Spirit Shackle -- it's decent, especially considering the environment with Royal Assassin, Old Man, Preacher, and so on.
Underworld Dreams is a classic but with that mana cost, will it sit in sideboards?
In an effort to balance deck types, I've replaced most of the Walls with (relatively) more aggressive creatures or pump spells. Two cards that caught my eye recently were Alpha misprints: Orcish Oriflamme (1R instead or 3R) and Orcish Artillery (1R instead of 1RR). I'm considering playing them in the cube with cost-as-misprinted. Oriflamme seems excellent at that cost, but Artillery concerns me that it could backfire. Have you tried these/what do you think?
EDIT: I've mostly steered clear of cards which hate strongly on specific colors, like Tsunami or Circle of Protection. Still, I can't help feeling like friendship-ending, dedicated hate was an essential part of Magic in those days which makes me feel odd not representing it.
My 1994 Magic Cube
Japanese cards on eBay -- Legacy, Modern, EDH, Cube.
I think I'll give Spirit Shackle a try to start.
Edit: duh, I'm already running it too!
Soul Exchange it is then, for now.
The Abyss out Soul Exchange in
While I was looking through my cards, I came across another old favorite that might be more appropriate as a replacent for The Abyss: Takklemaggot. What about that?
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Visual Spoiler
Draft this cube on cubetutor!
The visual spoiler matches the actual cards I own as best to my memory.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Wall of Earth out and Dwarven Lieutenant in. Not sure about this change. I like having one wall per color (with the exception of green) since Walls were a part of the old game. Also, playing defensively is something to do for more control-ish decks and the walls help facilitate that.
Wall of Putrid Flesh out and Mindstab Thrull in. The wall is disgusting and therefore kinda cool. If I take out the walls, this would be the change I would make here. Mindstab Thrull enables more discard which is nice.
Tangle Kelp out and Transmute Artifact in. Transmute Artifact is a powerful effect and Tangle Kelp is kinda lame. The mana isn't identical and I like having some 1 drops to help the curve. Also, I'm not sure artifacts need any help in the cube, there are already so many.
Merseine out and Land Equilibrium in. A powerful Enchant World effect but it might just be unfun to play against or with.
Legends changes.
Gabriel Angelfire out and Adun Oakenshield in. Pretty sure I'm gonna make this change. Adun Oakenshield is a bit hard to cast at 3 colors, but his ability is unique and fuels a bit more re-animator in the cube. Gabriel Angelfire is grossly overcosted, but iconic.
Stangg out and Tuknir Deathlock in. Tuknir is harder to cast arguably but has a semi-interesting ability and flies. Stangg is mostly a liability but he is cool.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Should have that change a long time ago.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Stangg out and Adun Oakenshield in
Stangg was easier to play due to being only two colors but was unimpressive. Adun Oakenshield has an interesting ability and is a reasonable cost at 3 mana.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Maze of Ith out and Arena in
I don't think Maze of Ith is necessarily too powerful, but it makes games take a long time and become much more stale. I think having a defensive card like Maze of Ith is fine, however I think control already has a lot of options in that department in the Cube. Flood, Icy Manipulator, various walls, Singing Tree, Drop of Honey and others. Lands are also a lot harder to get rid of, even with every piece of land destruction available.
Arena gives decks/colors without much removal a removal option and that's always appreciated.
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube
Soul Exchange out and Howl From Beyond in
Phyrexian Gremlins out Necrite in
War Elephant out and Amrou Kithkin in
Icatian Phalanx out and Angry Mob in
Shield Wall out and Morale in
My Kamigawa cube.
My Mirage Cube