if I were to step outside of the top 3 targeted discard cards (Thoughtseize/Inquisition of Kozilek/Duress), what would be next up? I recently picked up a copy of Blackmail with the intent of doing some testing - it seems like a deceptively powerful card, given it can hit lands, and is quite strong as a top deck. i'm specifically trying to beef up aggro's gameplan against midrange and combo - is there a better alternative I'm missing?
I think I may give Cabal Therapy a try as well - being able to hit your opponent right after a SFM/tutor seems really strong, and while its not as relevant as an early-game discard (unless you've scouted with a T1 Duress, T2 Therapy), it can be a nice answer for non-blue decks to deal with combo. maybe its just me, but sometimes I feel that Blue is a bit too powerful in powered/vintage cube, so I'm just trying to give other colors some better tools to answer them!
let's get this thread going again! it's been years, but finally picked up some of the OG foils I've had my eye on for a while for my powered un-cube: specifically Entomb and Cryptic Command, as well as a few "modern" updates I hadn't got around to adding, like Thundermaw and Walking Ballista.
Hey! Just want to say I really appreciate this guide/series you've put together. One of my favourite parts of cubing is the ability to showcase powerful interactions, archetypes, and decks throughout magic's history (not just the latest planeswalker hotness). can't wait to read your future articles!
These look like Cubeamajigs, but coming from a more reputable/accessible brand. I haven't been able to find these locally yet, has anyone tried them out yet? My one qualm is I wish they had more available colours, but I'll take what I can get.
hey wtwlf! i saw in another thread that you were quite excited about Kher Keep. while my cube is probably too small to run Polymorph, I do run a fairly light Aristocrats package, Braids/Stax, Skullclamp, etc. do you see Kher Keep doing well in smaller lists with sacrifice, but not Polymorph support? it's something I'd love to try out! plus, i've been looking for a red "spell land" for a while!
Necro-ing this thread since I pulled a US Gamble and decided to try it in the cube! I run a 400 powered cube (with Un support), and our first draft with Gamble gave it a home in a jund reanimator/sneak style deck. it was an excellent early game play, when random discard meant a lower probability of hitting the card(s) you need. running it in a graveyard-centric deck also means multiple tools to pull your discarded cards back out later on (Regrowth, Recurring Nightmare, Animate Dead, etc.).
I know Gamble usually gets a bad beat, but I think the fact that it's a 1 mana tutor effect in red (a colour with nearly no other tutor effects, apart from Imperial Recruiter and Goblin Engineer) should not be overlooked. it's tough to compare this to existing staples such as Entomb, Vampiric Tutor, and other better tutors, but i think it's worth a second look!
It's a great card, but it just doesn't make my top 5 Selesnya cards. I rank Militant, Knight of Autumn, Finks, Pridemage, and Chant above it (although, you likely don't need both Chant and Pridemage in a small to middle sized cube). If you push a lands matter theme, Knight of the Reliquary is more important. So while VoR is awesome, I can see lots of cubes just not having the space for it.
Cheers,
rant
Whoops! Totally forgot about Militant and Finks - I moved both of them to the G and W slots a while ago, so I was comparing VoR to other gold GW cards (ex. Knight of Autumn, Mirari's Wake, Pridemage, etc.). But if you're still running the hybrid cards in your gold section, I definitely think Finks wins out! But I still like VOR over the rest of them
I still think Voice of Resurgence is still quite a rewarding card to pull players into GW, especially if you run go-wide strategies. Its a decent impression of Teferi, Time Raveler, punishing players from playing cards EOT or at instant speed, and demands a response before many decks can get back to their gameplan. I also love the fact that is resistant to Wraths, and the lightweight body means it can be recurred with fun cards such as Reveillark, Sun Titan, or even Birthing Pod (if you run it).
The last cube draft we ran, I was up against a well built GWReveillark deck, featuring cards such as Deranged Hermit, Angel of Invention, Earl of Squirrel, etc. I took out their early Voice and unfortunately ignored the token until it was too late, at which point I had to prioritize removing the Angel.
I would rank Voice #2 behind Knight of Autumn (out of sheer efficiency/modularity), but ahead of everything else (Nature's Chant tossed into either W or G).
Great post! I used to play legacy enchantress way back when, so I can definitely appreciate the power enchantments can bring to the battlefield. I know you are focusing on the new THB cards, but I think it would be useful to discuss some of the older enchantment support to help build an enchantment archetype in cube:
In constructed, the redundancy of Enchantress (draw) effects was the key to the deck: once you were able to stick 1-2, casting enchantments became cantrips (often low-cost Utopia Sprawl/Wild Growth variants), before hitting a win condition such as Sigil of the Empty Throne, or even a big X spell (powered by Serra's Sanctum).
In Cube, I think my biggest issue with the Enchantment archetype is the fact that the cards are tough to find homes for in other decks. With the power level and colourless nature of artifacts, they will often get picked up by other decks, but the colour requirements of Enchantment-archetype cards make it tougher for them to see play outside of the dedicated Enchantment deck. As much as I love Enchantress, I think it would be tough to find the cuts in my cube, but I definitely hope THB gives us some more reasons to try!
Thanks for the feedback! I ended up deciding to give Aristocrats a shot, albeit with the bare minimum of parasitic cards - really just Blood Artist. I think your comment about Yawgmoth being strong enough for 400 tipped me over. With Yawgmoth and Blood Artist, and all the rest of the existing cubeable cards (stax, recursive creatures, bitterblossom, etc.), I think we will see Aristocrats come together every once in a while.
bringing this up again. for a cube supporting storm, is Wishclaw Talisman really that bad of an idea? being able to throw it down early to "bank" while you build/sculpt your hand to storm off, and eventually cracking it for a cheap tutor seems really powerful. maybe i'm just coming off a cube draft where I found myself durdling for 4-5 turns waiting for the right cards to turn up, but I certainly wouldn've appreciated dropping this earlier on to prep for my combo turn.
not to mention it plays well with cracking Lion's Eye Diamond; instead of using LED in response to the less cubeable card Infernal Tutor, you can just crack the LED, wish for a Yawgmoth's Will, and start storming off.
Hey Wtwlf, can you tell me a bit about how Aristocrats has been playing out in your cube? I run a tighter 400 list (powered, but also featuring Un cards), and I am strongly considering adding Aristocrats to give black aggro a stronger identity. Currently I'm planning to add Blood Artist, Bloodghast, Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, and Carrion Feeder. Are there any other glaring archetype cards I'm missing (ex. Goblin Bombardment, Zulaport Cuttthroat, Judith, the Scourge Diva) that you think could make the cut at 400?
Does Yawgmoth even make the cut at 400? Does Vampire Nighthawk still make it these days? I recently cut Hypnotic Specter and the decision still stings!
This aristocrats package is really making me rethink everything about my black section! I'm taking a second look at old school faves like The Abyss, Contamination, and Attrition... would love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks,
Winter
PS. I think some of your photobucket links are broken on your first post!
It's 2019! Is anyone still using Attrition? I'm considering adding an Aristocrats package to support black aggro in my cube, and Attrition (and Contamination) was mentioned a lot. Is Attrition too parasitic for medium sized cubes? I run 400 powered for reference.
I think the Escape mechanic is super interesting - a planeswalker that can recur seems really powerful. That being said, Elspeth seems to have been designed with that in mind to be fairly weak, and I'm not convinced she'll find a slot in my cube. If the Escape cost was lower I could see it working out, but I don't quite see the deck/archetype she would fit into.
couldn't your opponent tap out in response to casting Piracy and just float the mana? it might work in a multiplayer game where another player volunteers to let you use their mana, but that requires the politics working out first
I think I may give Cabal Therapy a try as well - being able to hit your opponent right after a SFM/tutor seems really strong, and while its not as relevant as an early-game discard (unless you've scouted with a T1 Duress, T2 Therapy), it can be a nice answer for non-blue decks to deal with combo. maybe its just me, but sometimes I feel that Blue is a bit too powerful in powered/vintage cube, so I'm just trying to give other colors some better tools to answer them!
These look like Cubeamajigs, but coming from a more reputable/accessible brand. I haven't been able to find these locally yet, has anyone tried them out yet? My one qualm is I wish they had more available colours, but I'll take what I can get.
I know Gamble usually gets a bad beat, but I think the fact that it's a 1 mana tutor effect in red (a colour with nearly no other tutor effects, apart from Imperial Recruiter and Goblin Engineer) should not be overlooked. it's tough to compare this to existing staples such as Entomb, Vampiric Tutor, and other better tutors, but i think it's worth a second look!
Whoops! Totally forgot about Militant and Finks - I moved both of them to the G and W slots a while ago, so I was comparing VoR to other gold GW cards (ex. Knight of Autumn, Mirari's Wake, Pridemage, etc.). But if you're still running the hybrid cards in your gold section, I definitely think Finks wins out! But I still like VOR over the rest of them
The last cube draft we ran, I was up against a well built GW Reveillark deck, featuring cards such as Deranged Hermit, Angel of Invention, Earl of Squirrel, etc. I took out their early Voice and unfortunately ignored the token until it was too late, at which point I had to prioritize removing the Angel.
I would rank Voice #2 behind Knight of Autumn (out of sheer efficiency/modularity), but ahead of everything else (Nature's Chant tossed into either W or G).
Plus, the foil looks great!
Enchantress Engine: Argothian Enchantress, Enchantress's Presence
Enchantments Payoff: Serra's Sanctum, Academy Rector, Opalescence, Replenish, Sigil of the Empty Throne, Luminarch Ascension
Protection: Sterling Grove, Elephant Grass, City of Solitude, and Privileged Position, Dovescape
In constructed, the redundancy of Enchantress (draw) effects was the key to the deck: once you were able to stick 1-2, casting enchantments became cantrips (often low-cost Utopia Sprawl/Wild Growth variants), before hitting a win condition such as Sigil of the Empty Throne, or even a big X spell (powered by Serra's Sanctum).
In Cube, I think my biggest issue with the Enchantment archetype is the fact that the cards are tough to find homes for in other decks. With the power level and colourless nature of artifacts, they will often get picked up by other decks, but the colour requirements of Enchantment-archetype cards make it tougher for them to see play outside of the dedicated Enchantment deck. As much as I love Enchantress, I think it would be tough to find the cuts in my cube, but I definitely hope THB gives us some more reasons to try!
not to mention it plays well with cracking Lion's Eye Diamond; instead of using LED in response to the less cubeable card Infernal Tutor, you can just crack the LED, wish for a Yawgmoth's Will, and start storming off.
think I just might have to try this out!
Does Yawgmoth even make the cut at 400? Does Vampire Nighthawk still make it these days? I recently cut Hypnotic Specter and the decision still stings!
This aristocrats package is really making me rethink everything about my black section! I'm taking a second look at old school faves like The Abyss, Contamination, and Attrition... would love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks,
Winter
PS. I think some of your photobucket links are broken on your first post!