Wow. Komainu Battle Armor is a Saint Seiya reference if I ever saw one. Obscure 80s fight anime about battle armors with animal designs based on the zodiac constellations.
And obvious Spirited Away reference with the sootlings. Classy
Between this, the Fist of the North Star and numerous mecha references, I'm surprised they didn't sneak in a Jojo reference as well, considering how popular the memes are.
It's not a necro, it's literally the way the Card and Archetype Discussion forum was designed.
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with a kamigawa focus lair that’s probably triple confirms kamigawa neon dynasty.
As an aside, I wonder if there's a story behind how they settled on the templating for those planeswalkers, and if they'll share it. Like "we got in touch with some of the people who did templating on the original Legends cards and asked them how they'd template planeswalkers if they had been printed in 1994, and this is what they came up with!"
They were almost definitely influenced in part by Pringlesman's Bohemian Cube from 2018, which replaces the rules text and art of modern cube cards with old-school text and art. As Pringlesman suggests, browsing this list by visual spoiler is the best way to experience this cube.
I think they're both interesting designs that could transition to paper cube for cubers who want them, but don't quite get there in general.
In paper terms, the conjure effect is limited on these two, making them a bit more practical to implement. The conjure trigger is a one-time exile on Aberration and the ETB/attack requirement on Trainer reduces its spammability. Realistically, how often will you conjure five or more Stormfront Pegasus per cast? These conjured cards could be stored with the tokens and a limit placed on them as an extra lever to pull.
Without looking at my black five drops at 540, a vanilla 3/3 for 5 doesn't quite get there for me. I love Reassembling Skeleton, but the Aberration's death trigger is an extra hoop that I don't want to jump through.
The biggest drawback on these is that they are conservatively costed with their ability to generate card advantage in mind, and require additional mana investment to make them actually cubeworthy. This might be balanced by the fact that the conjured card can be used as a resource (looters can use the Stormfront Pegasus, delve can use the Skeletons).
I would have liked a 3WW Wingsteed Trainer that creates a Stormfront Pegasus token on etb or attack (though the attack trigger should probably be balanced with a 1W boast, battalion, pack tactics or something), and a Boneyard Aberration that cost 2BB instead of 4B.
Literally none of those cards will work with Herd Baloth except Good-Fortune Unicorn/Juniper Order Ranger. They use static replacement abilities, while the Baloth is a triggered ability. And I’m not sure that jumping through the hoop of playing two 5-mana cards in a specific sequence just to put a bunch of vanilla fat on the table is worth it. Which leaves only Good Fortune Unicorn as an enabler.
Gargadon - Errant Ephemeron isn't even that good in pauper anymore imho. With the cube curve having gone down and the game speed having gone up, waiting around for four turns has a much higher cost than it used to. I would look to one of the cycling fatties like Granitic Titan or Lava Serpent for comparison, since they also give you two different casting modes, but those give you an immediate investment for two mana, and they have better value in reanimator. I could be wrong, but I think this is mostly a pauper card. Bonus points if you include storm?
Fast // Furious - I love modal cards where both sides are almost good enough to run on their own, and I love big red. It depends how you want to balance your Pyroclasm effects vs your Firespout effects, but I think this might have staying power.
Scurry Oak - I overlooked the fact that this actually puts +2 power on the board with every evolve trigger. I love Crocanura in pauper and I expect this will do well in peasant.
Tireless Provisioner - seems like a great value add. My only regret is that I can't squeeze even more value out of it in my cube by enabling some sort of G/X artifact deck.
Herd Baloth - like you said, this is a de facto Selesnya card, as I don't think a deck in any other color combination will take it. It does pair very well with Arcus Acolyte from the same set, and I'm a big fan of the Rampaging Baloths callback.
Prophetic Titan - agreed that even getting one trigger is fine. This would be a slam dunk if it was guaranteed both, and unlike the Dragon Rage Channeler, you're a lot likelier to have delirium ready by the time the giant shows up, just from playing the game. This would be a good way to sneak Prophetic Bolt into my cube.
Graceful Restoration - most Orzhov sections have to decide between reanimation and aristocrats, I guess? And poor Killian is pointing to an archetype that doesn't exist for me - it's just a decent pile of stats a la Danitha Capashen, Paragon.
Monoskelion - I thought this was base p/t 0/0, so I'm happy to be wrong and have it stick around for Skullclamp and various sac outlets, or to get counters placed back on later. A colorless bear with upside that would go nicely alongside Icehide Golem in my cube.
There's so many good options for Wind Drake+ now that are all pretty close to each other in power. Honestly, I say just pick the ones that fit the strategies that want to promote for blue. Frost Trickster, Aven Eternal, Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator, Mistral Singer, Aerial Guide, Nimbus Naiad, Windrider Wizard, Warden of Evos Isle are all perfectly fine options IMO (these are just the ones I've personally considered at some point). If I had to guess, the first two I listed are have the most raw power, but others could be more powerful in your cube.
Thanks for the response, I had completely forgotten some of the above!
I agree Umbral Juke is better than it looks. It's an edict that also lets you get ahead on board instead of just subtracting from the opponent's, on top of sniping planeswalkers and getting in for those last few points of life if needed. Plus, that spell synergy for those that are looking for it.
With the advent of Frost Trickster, would you all place it ahead of Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator? I'm looking for a Wind Drake+ but the role is so narrow that I wouldn't feel great giving it two slots.
A lot of the multicolor cards seem like Limited role fillers, but I do like that they've shuffled mechanics around and expanded the theme of each guild. Boros in particular needs a refresher to not just get pigeonholed into the attacky guild.
I've run a snow peasant cube since Modern Horizons. My own sentiment is that snow should add to gameplay, not take it away. From that perspective, I wouldn't include Cold Snap or Freyalise's Radiance.
I quite like Dwarven Hammer for peasant myself, and I think it would be funny if it opened the door for the lifelink half to be printed as a 2WCleric's Hammer or something.
On top of the three mana and five mana modes, it also has the six mana mode of drop + equip to swing for the fences (which I know is usually factored into the three-mana mode, but I'm just thinking in terms of turns as well - dropping an equipment and passing turn 3 is a very different speed than dropping the hammer and equipping something for immediate impact on turn 6).
My peasant cube has been snow since Modern Horizons, I'm glad we get more good snow cards and more snow basics so players have the option to switch if desired. Feel free to ignore this trail of snow:
Avalanche Caller is an excellent defensive creature that can switch to aggro later.
Boreal Outrider: I'm probably the only one who would exclude Boreal Outrider for accessibility reasons. I cube with many different levels of players, and this card is too easy to misread. Don't really see why it needed the color restriction?
Moritte of the Frost and Narfi, Betrayer King are super tempting value propositions. Clever Impersonator is great fun, and Moritte brings +1/+1 counter synergy to make up for the 1 tax (being limited to your own stuff on a 5-mana card is a bit of a bummer). Narfi rewards clever drafting in a couple ways with zombies and graveyard shenanigans, though I suspect he'll still be middle-of-the-road if you take him just for his recursion. I think my drafts would be improved by having one or both of these.
Spirit of the Aldergard: should be 4/4 at worst, 5/4 on average and often a 6/4 or 7/4, and the manafixing/deck thinning is great. Without evasion or a way to re-use the ETB though, it's solidly tier 2.
The guild lands are yummy, and I'm always looking for ways to add spells to my land slots, but - taking up a cube slot is still a real cost. I think some of these are serious contenders though.
Finally, I love foretell. Time will tell, but I think it's an excellent mechanic; simple to grasp, lots of options, and can be revisited (I hope).
I find it super interesting that a structured post about Cryptic Serpent gets one reply but fake Gurmag Angler that's actually Tombstalker from SaltMaster of all people, is the highlight of peasant talk. Looks like controversy sells.
Well, it's not that interesting since I'm on my way out of this forum anyway. Enjoy your imaginary card discussions, I'll be going to a place that entertains discussion on real cube cards.
I understand the 2/3 body for 1B of Eternal Taskmaster is probably the main draw and possibly needed for critical aggro mass. I was a big fan of Woebearer though, so I wonder how much the extra three mana matters, considering you get evasion, an untapped blocker on cast, and the recursive ability for free (it becomes a net mana gain after the first trigger). Yeah, it's super under the curve, but on the plus side, you're a lot more likely to have stuff to recur on turn six than on turn three. Does the need for a semi-efficient aggro beater outweigh all that?
To help push spells-matter, would you run Cryptic Serpent in your package? There is this excellent group of regulars but I rarely see the Serpent included, despite the fact that it offers Gurmag Angler-like stats.
I know it's early days, but I was wondering if y'all got any playtime with Eldraine cards. Specifically, I'm looking for feedback on Syr Alin, the Lion's Claw. Is it as good as I think it is? Or is it a big fat do-nothing most of the time? I have the first draft of my peasant cube coming up in a few weeks so I'm trying to tighten things up in time
And obvious Spirited Away reference with the sootlings. Classy
Between this, the Fist of the North Star and numerous mecha references, I'm surprised they didn't sneak in a Jojo reference as well, considering how popular the memes are.
In this case, the "o" in Shorikai is actually a long vowel sound, usually romanized as "ou" or "ō".
Shouri - victory, triumph, conquest, success
Kai - all, everything
In English, I would put the name down as Supreme Victory (or Great Success if you're feeling quirky
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SonofaBith75 is incorrect and rude, and he has been reported for backseat modding. Keep up the good discussion, Breathe1234
They were almost definitely influenced in part by Pringlesman's Bohemian Cube from 2018, which replaces the rules text and art of modern cube cards with old-school text and art. As Pringlesman suggests, browsing this list by visual spoiler is the best way to experience this cube.
In paper terms, the conjure effect is limited on these two, making them a bit more practical to implement. The conjure trigger is a one-time exile on Aberration and the ETB/attack requirement on Trainer reduces its spammability. Realistically, how often will you conjure five or more Stormfront Pegasus per cast? These conjured cards could be stored with the tokens and a limit placed on them as an extra lever to pull.
Without looking at my black five drops at 540, a vanilla 3/3 for 5 doesn't quite get there for me. I love Reassembling Skeleton, but the Aberration's death trigger is an extra hoop that I don't want to jump through.
The biggest drawback on these is that they are conservatively costed with their ability to generate card advantage in mind, and require additional mana investment to make them actually cubeworthy. This might be balanced by the fact that the conjured card can be used as a resource (looters can use the Stormfront Pegasus, delve can use the Skeletons).
I would have liked a 3WW Wingsteed Trainer that creates a Stormfront Pegasus token on etb or attack (though the attack trigger should probably be balanced with a 1W boast, battalion, pack tactics or something), and a Boneyard Aberration that cost 2BB instead of 4B.
EDIT: My info is wrong, please ignore me
Literally none of those cards will work with Herd Baloth except Good-Fortune Unicorn/Juniper Order Ranger. They use static replacement abilities, while the Baloth is a triggered ability. And I’m not sure that jumping through the hoop of playing two 5-mana cards in a specific sequence just to put a bunch of vanilla fat on the table is worth it. Which leaves only Good Fortune Unicorn as an enabler.
Dragon's Rage Channeler - I do think that if you can trigger the surveil consistently, this has potential to be peasant's version of Grim Flayer. I would be interested to see how consistently you can turn it on with just two triggers (one instant, one sorcery, then bin creature and land with surveil). The must-attack clause is a non-issue as it's very difficult to deal with in combat after delirium (I think most cubes will only have around 10 feasible creature options in their entire cube that can deal with it, and with generally poor mana efficiency (Archfiend of Sorrows, Vampire Nighthawk, Flickerwisp, Talrand's Invocation, Jetting Glasskite, escaped Chainweb Aracnir, Baleful Strix, Spectral Procession/Lingering Souls, Kangee, Sky Warden, and Sphinx of the Guildpact). The fact this can also be a late-game 3/3 flyer for one mana is no small thing either.
Gargadon - Errant Ephemeron isn't even that good in pauper anymore imho. With the cube curve having gone down and the game speed having gone up, waiting around for four turns has a much higher cost than it used to. I would look to one of the cycling fatties like Granitic Titan or Lava Serpent for comparison, since they also give you two different casting modes, but those give you an immediate investment for two mana, and they have better value in reanimator. I could be wrong, but I think this is mostly a pauper card. Bonus points if you include storm?
Fast // Furious - I love modal cards where both sides are almost good enough to run on their own, and I love big red. It depends how you want to balance your Pyroclasm effects vs your Firespout effects, but I think this might have staying power.
Scurry Oak - I overlooked the fact that this actually puts +2 power on the board with every evolve trigger. I love Crocanura in pauper and I expect this will do well in peasant.
Tireless Provisioner - seems like a great value add. My only regret is that I can't squeeze even more value out of it in my cube by enabling some sort of G/X artifact deck.
Herd Baloth - like you said, this is a de facto Selesnya card, as I don't think a deck in any other color combination will take it. It does pair very well with Arcus Acolyte from the same set, and I'm a big fan of the Rampaging Baloths callback.
Prophetic Titan - agreed that even getting one trigger is fine. This would be a slam dunk if it was guaranteed both, and unlike the Dragon Rage Channeler, you're a lot likelier to have delirium ready by the time the giant shows up, just from playing the game. This would be a good way to sneak Prophetic Bolt into my cube.
Graceful Restoration - most Orzhov sections have to decide between reanimation and aristocrats, I guess? And poor Killian is pointing to an archetype that doesn't exist for me - it's just a decent pile of stats a la Danitha Capashen, Paragon.
Monoskelion - I thought this was base p/t 0/0, so I'm happy to be wrong and have it stick around for Skullclamp and various sac outlets, or to get counters placed back on later. A colorless bear with upside that would go nicely alongside Icehide Golem in my cube.
Thanks for the response, I had completely forgotten some of the above!
If I had to rank them, I agree that Aven Eternal is at the top. Frost Trickster would be a close second.
Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator and Windrider Wizard provide good value over time, instead of up-front value like the top two. They seem solidly middle of the pack.
Mistral Singer, Aerial Guide, Nimbus Naiad and Warden of Evos Isle are all fairly narrow use or fail to provide value, which relegates them to role-players.
With the advent of Frost Trickster, would you all place it ahead of Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator? I'm looking for a Wind Drake+ but the role is so narrow that I wouldn't feel great giving it two slots.
A lot of the multicolor cards seem like Limited role fillers, but I do like that they've shuffled mechanics around and expanded the theme of each guild. Boros in particular needs a refresher to not just get pigeonholed into the attacky guild.
On top of the three mana and five mana modes, it also has the six mana mode of drop + equip to swing for the fences (which I know is usually factored into the three-mana mode, but I'm just thinking in terms of turns as well - dropping an equipment and passing turn 3 is a very different speed than dropping the hammer and equipping something for immediate impact on turn 6).
My peasant cube has been snow since Modern Horizons, I'm glad we get more good snow cards and more snow basics so players have the option to switch if desired. Feel free to ignore this trail of snow:
Blizzard Brawl seems better than Clear Shot and friends.
Boreal Outrider: I'm probably the only one who would exclude Boreal Outrider for accessibility reasons. I cube with many different levels of players, and this card is too easy to misread. Don't really see why it needed the color restriction?
Moritte of the Frost and Narfi, Betrayer King are super tempting value propositions. Clever Impersonator is great fun, and Moritte brings +1/+1 counter synergy to make up for the 1 tax (being limited to your own stuff on a 5-mana card is a bit of a bummer). Narfi rewards clever drafting in a couple ways with zombies and graveyard shenanigans, though I suspect he'll still be middle-of-the-road if you take him just for his recursion. I think my drafts would be improved by having one or both of these.
Spirit of the Aldergard: should be 4/4 at worst, 5/4 on average and often a 6/4 or 7/4, and the manafixing/deck thinning is great. Without evasion or a way to re-use the ETB though, it's solidly tier 2.
I'm a bit sad that Rampage of the Valkyries probably won't crack in. I only have Extricator of Sin, Flickerwisp and Blizzard Strix to abuse it, but in cubes with extra support like Kor Skyfisher and the like...
The guild lands are yummy, and I'm always looking for ways to add spells to my land slots, but - taking up a cube slot is still a real cost. I think some of these are serious contenders though.
Finally, I love foretell. Time will tell, but I think it's an excellent mechanic; simple to grasp, lots of options, and can be revisited (I hope).
Well, it's not that interesting since I'm on my way out of this forum anyway. Enjoy your imaginary card discussions, I'll be going to a place that entertains discussion on real cube cards.
To help push spells-matter, would you run Cryptic Serpent in your package? There is this excellent group of regulars but I rarely see the Serpent included, despite the fact that it offers Gurmag Angler-like stats.
Here's what I run for UR Spells Matter: