Red

Thunderhead Gunner's stellar run through DFT limited and the amount of selection it gives you merits a test. Great madness enabler for when we add Fiery Temper (#spoilers). Scrounger was nice but the "tap me" synergy is not there yet.

I don't know why I wasn't running Goblin Bushwhacker. As I've said before, I like the off color kicker cards from DMU, but this is such a jump in quality and notability.

I've been wanting to test Dwarven Hammer for a while, and since I just added another haste provider, I'm swapping equipments. I think it is a great pseudo-inevitability tool, making any 1/1 into a very dangerous must-block threat. Is it worse than Colossal Dreadmask? Probably, but we'll see.

Another artifact/multiple-objects-provider I wanted to test is Synthesizer. I think there is no need for sacrifice synergies (although there are some) and any curve-conscious deck can run it and play it when it's not risking losing the card. Same thing for sacrificing it for a Samurai.

Arena Athlete works as a payoff for "heroic" decks, which in this cube should be any kind of aggressive deck that drafted combat tricks or protection spells. There are several ways of targeting for value so I wanted to have a few and this one looks like it can help pushing a lot of damage while being really different from the white ones.

Given that I want to push a bit of "heroic" gameplay in RG and RG (actually across Naya but), having one of the best targeted spells available for those color pairs is great, even though we're reducing the amount of pump in red in general. Dreadship was there as a card that gave you multiple objects and as a hasty threat, so Reckless Charge covers part of that. About the other part I'm not worried, we'll have enough artifacts to sacrifice lying around.

I wanted to have the Epicure for card selection, multiple objects, being a staple in constructer, etc. Harrier is decent but I'm also adding another haste creature in Specialist, which can reach 4 power for reasons, with counters and similar damage output (given haste) than the card being removed.

White

Both Sentinel's Eyes and Courage play similarly by giving white some use for its graveyard, a small buff and vigilance, but Courage is explicitly counters synergy, and when you have Tethmos High Priest or other heroic cards you really want to target them them repeatedly.

All these changes are helping white to be more aggressive in general since control decks don't need the tools, there's plenty removal/defensive stats in the cube already.

It's time to dust of an old legend. I don't think it will be problematic, it can be raced and/or evaded, and there is multicolor removal to prioritize if you care.

Blue

Bringing back a classic (and good) 2x1 since I don't think we need the Mystic Sanctuary "lock" with Deprive, and there are many other ways or returning it to hand. Using Deprive in any other instance is pretty expensive.

Maximize Altitude was here for the blitz deck but I don't think it needs such a spell, and there are better alternatives around. Interference is just a good card.

A true like-for-like change, I think a 0/2 is much more ignorable than a 1/1 that can still kill you if you don't have blockers, so it will be better for blue decks overall.

Archaeologist is such a defensive card and we already have some of those around, I rather have a decent flyer that can also help with selection and filling the graveyard for delve or other reasons.

Black

I'm testing Deathgorger to give the +1/+1 counters synergy in black a second card (besides Hagra Constrictor). Now that black is more aggressive I think it is a decent effect in general. The dragon at the top end is not nothing, and some anti graveyard cards are great to have. Reaper of Night was a bit expensive for the effect and I think we have enough discard.

Gravestalker is replacing another early cycler. It is worse for reanimating it, but the potential of a 1 mana 5/4 is great if you self mill a little bit.

Gorehound, as Unwilling Ingredient before, is enabling ninjas being a 1 mv menace creature. Instead of drawing a card it enables self mill and great selection in low-to the ground black decks, with cards like the next one specially.

Brigade helps black push damage as well, and attacks relatively safely so you can take advantage of Mobilize with your sac outlets. I'm taking out Vanguard as I think it's very similar to Dark-Dweller Oracle and we still have enough of that effect.

Working on feedback about BW and BG

I decided to undo the cut of Gixian Infiltrator and take out a sacrifice enabler since there are many of those, and Infiltrator can be useful by itself sometimes. The cut was Mold Folk because I wanted to balance lifelink in the BW archetype and I am also including another lifelink card.

The other lifelink card is Call to the Feast, which signals very explicitely that you can do tokens/go-wide in BW. I took out Pillory of the Sleepless because I think there is a lot of removal in this color pair and I liked the other options better for the small aggressive gameplay they promote.

Twin-Silk Spider was the only spider of the cube, so just one simple cut to avoid triggering people with them. Galadhrim Bow is filling the role by keeping reach numbers up, but can also be a nice combat trick. Doesn't trigger heroic-like creatures but we don't have Gnarlback Rhino yet.

Urban Daggertooth pushes explicit counters synergy and it is a dream to live with Pestilence or Crypt Rats. I added Tales of Master Seshiro as a way to let green attack and be defensive at the same time and the dinosaur works in that area too.

I'm cutting one more "Gravedigger" in Desecrator Hag for Putrid Leech because I don't enforce having a hybrid per color pair anymore, we have enough grindy cards and I like pushing the more aggressive Golgari version a bit.

Decks, curves and relative power

I've been trying to improve the chances of aggro decks without filling the cube of 2/1s, and at the same time presenting a variety of strategies, not only the go-wide RW with mass pump effects: "Big proactive" (in Sam Black's words) Red, Green and White decks with tools to counteract removal (persisting creatures, protection spells) and lower to the ground decks with combat tricks, Blue based "tempo" decks, etc.

The recent discussion on Lucky Paper Radio (check out In Praise of Lower Mana Curves) about the relative power of cards pushed me to formalize it in this update.

In many cases I've removed big plays for more early interaction or aggressive creatures. In others I've made "like for like" swaps for cards that work slighty better in a lower curve deck.

White

Borrowed Grace is another payoff for go-wide decks which can use the push. I'm not sure if the balance between payoff and enabler is right, though.

I think the +1/+1 counters synergy needed a bit more, and Unbounded Potential also plays very well with the heroic-like theme by targeting 2 creatures.

Sunblade Samurai is nice but I don't like it works differently than the other landcyclers (by searching only basic Plains).

Pegasus Guardian was simply a signal for a deck that doesn't need it and doesn't win with tokens and it even is eclipsed by other cards in that regard.

Blue

Blue should be monarch of the skies, and Zephyr Winder helps in that regard. It is also nice to have more evasive creatures for our ninjas.

Mirrorshell Crab is a great reanimation target and modal spell, and I like the swap with Exclude which is just a very standard (and powerful) 2x1 and I'm looking to reduce a bit that type of card.

Moonsnare Specialist is pretty good and it combines well with other ninjas too, but I think we have too much bounce and too many ninjas.

Black

I want to emphasize what each color is good at, and Mardu Skullhunter is a decent discard spell that's perfect in proactive decks like UB Ninjas or Rakdos Aggro.

Voracious Vermin is both an enabler for sacrifice decks (by providing material) and a payoff, by growing. It also works great with white in go-wide and aristocrats.

I like Gixian Infiltrator, it grows with more things than the rats, but I wanted to keep the number of sacrifice payoffs in check.

Final Flourish is perfectly playable but at the same time, so much worse than other alternatives. Maybe I'll bring it back when adding more artifact fodder (like Ichor Wellspring, Prized Statue, etc).

Blade Juggler is a card that promotes aggressive gameplay, but at the same time it is a basic 2x1 like so many cards.

Ichor Drinker is nice but something had to give I guess.

Red

I'm Swapping Harried Spearguard for Fanatical Firebrand because I think the human (plus rat) will serve more decks better.

Green

I'm swapping Edge of Autumn for Rampant Growth, because I want to have ramp that is more useful for lower-to-the-ground decks, and while those would prefer a creature, the cycling makes it not dead late game which might be even better than a mana dork.

I'll be trying Ainok Survivalist instead of Masked Vandal as a more aggressive option that plays into +1/+1 counters synergies, and doesn't exile which is a plus for build-arounds in general.

Jungleborn Pioneer provides a safe place for future buffss, which I want to promote.

Earthen Arms is a cheap effect for pushing damage early, great on creatures with good keywords, but can also serve as late game diversifying of threats (you get both effects). In contrast, Dread Linnorm's protection/buff mode is expensive for proactive decks with low curves, and those will never cast the wurm, so this ends up playing against them by generating a surprise blocker or countering removal. Basically this doesn't have any cost to run on bigger decks, while 1 or 2 mana protection spells are more useful the more aggressive you are.

It pains me to remove Elves of Deep Shadow because I love the art but it was the weakest ramp and there are a lot of options already.

Set representation and board wipes (?)

Since removing Satyr Wayfinder, BNG lost its representative, but luckily (?) there will always be downshifts. Drown in Sorrow doesn't have the possibility of cycling like the card it is replacing, but it's double the effect so it will be useful in more situations, especially in control. The scry is also really nice.

Set representation and sacrifice themes

Filling missing sets without a card in the cube:

• Wrangle is the cheapest Threaten-effect in common, helps any kind of red aggro deck but it is especially good with sacrifice outlets. I like the Elemental but we just added another Trumpet Blast.
• Another good card with sac outlets is Sylvok Lifestaff. Any creature focused deck can make good use of it because it can make racing impossible if you have a constant flow of creatures, so it won't just snuff out aggro in a control shell.

RG archetypes

I want RG to be draftable in a two main flavors: combat focused aggro (low to the ground creatures and combat tricks) and midrange or "Big Proactive", in Sam Black's words.

Combat Aggro

We'll be testing Carefree Swinemaster, which makes it look like you are just attacking to get the token but you can pump as a surprise. Also, token makers are card advantage for aggro decks, and this also serves as a mana sink.

Ratcatcher Trainee and Gnawing Crescendo are mainly for the Go-Wide decks, which overlap a bit with this RG archetype.

Big Proactive

For this archetype I'm adding Warbeast of Gorgoroth to test an explicit payoff, which helps maintain pressure against removal. At the very least it will give you a 2/2, but hopefully you'll have must kill 4-power threats ready for attacking. Grabby Giant helps with ramp, splash, flood protection and reach.

Cross archetype synergies

You want combat tricks with trample for your big creatures, and some big creatures have cheaper modes or viceversa, which can help mitigte flood in smaller decks.

Some early green plays are big for their mana cost, or get bigger the more big creatures you play.

Future additions:

• Drowsing Tyrannodon can serve a defensive role in any slow green deck, but also be a cheap threat with just 1 counter or any big beater around.
• Gnarlback Rhino is a 4 mana 4/4 trampler for the big proactive deck, which also gives you extra value from all your combat tricks and fight spells.

Green updates after LTR and CMM

Moving around some proliferate and heroic adjacent cards, both Courage in Crisis and Rosethorn Halberd are nice but we have better options. Contagious Vorrac can give you a land if you need it or don't have counters around. Green is a bit lacking in removal so I'm also adding a fight spell that always give you counters for proliferating in Struggle for Skemfar.

Green top end was a bit too crowded so I cut the two I think were most replaceable. Pulse of Murasa is coming back as the last standing representative of OGW. Wild Nacatl pushes green a bit towards aggro and makes drafting typed lands better.

Red updates after LTR and CMM

Rally is an easy, strictly better upgrade over Forbidden Friendship and it also means I don't have to get that Dinosaur token :)

I wanted some spell-matters card that worked better for more controlling decks, and while I really like the off-color kicker cards from DMU, Ghitu Amplifier was the worst of the payoffs.

Tormentor's Helm is a decent card and it works well with Akki, but it is basically a worse Simian Sling so it was bothering me. Akki Ember-Keeper is not very powerful but it ties together equipment, counters, auras and sacrifice decks, so I wanted to test it.

I'll miss Mogg Fanatic, it's from when I started playing. But Fanatical Firebrand is really similar and it's the last standing representative of RIX. Borderland Marauder is good but it is just a 3 power 2-drop without synergies. I'd rather have cards fill the role but with the possibility of doing something else once in a while. Like, for example, Skophos Reaver. Totally fine as a 3 drop but when you discard it to a Faithless Looting or a Blood token it will be awesome. Speaking of Blood tokens, I'm adding Falkenrath Celebrants because I love the showcase version (yes) but it also hits hard and gives you material, I think it is good.

Black updates after LTR and CMM

I couldn't resist Exhume after the LTR landcyclers, hopefully it is fun and not just obnoxious. I'm also changing the other "creature with cycle" (I think there's 2 in each color except blue) for a cheaper and I think better option in Injector Crocodile.

Gray Merchant of Asphodel is an iconic card but we have decent enough drain in varios extort creatures and Vampire Sovereign, and I don't care specifically about a monoblack deck. Mire Triton does everything I want for the cube and it was lacking in early deathtouchers I think.

Easterling Vanguard is a better sac fodder in black for aggressive decks than Seekers' Squire which you only want to sacrifice if it explored into a land.

Dunland Crebain is just a good value creature for sacrifice and ninja decks. Feed the Swarm is nice but black has enough removal. In that note, I'm also removing Dead Weight (we have enough aura removal) and trying a new sac outlet in Legion Vanguard which seems awesome, with graveyard and counters synergies.

Blue updates after LTR and CMM

I feel like blue had so much card draw, and no spell-matters card per se like red has. Murmuring Mystic will be a general powerhouse, but Jhessian Thief goes well in the proactive blue decks I like to have with black and green too. Shore Up also helps in those.

Since I started thinking about Scattered Thoughts as "Fact or Fiction at home" I wanted to get it in. Frantic Search is great but we have enough looting in blue and no High Tide so far.

White updates after LTR and CMM

Angelic Renewal has a lot of applications, it can be flicker adyacent and also a really strong combination with evoke creatures. It also makes some sort of engine with Custodi Squire. Spirited Companion is a good boy, but we have so many cantriping or close creatures already. That's the reason I'm cutting Airlift Chaplain as well, even though I like the self milling and counters.

Ministrant of Obligation is a nice card for grindy archetypes such as BW, and the tokens having flying is pretty good. I thought about Soul of Migration as well, especially because I'm also adding Angelic Renewal, but I rather have an earlier and cheaper drop best case.

I needed some beefier creatures on 3 mana for white, and while I love the Soltaris, Soltari Visionary was a bit slow, so I'm bringin back a decent beater with counters synergy for GW in Martyr's Soul. Thought about Warlord's Elite, maybe after adding more artifacts.

And talking about beefier creatures, Rhox Veteran is also back replacing our anthem because what better anthem than the one that attacks and removes a defender? I like Silverflame Ritual and I want to have some sort of big game aggressive payoff. Maybe the next iteration.

"Free" spells are good! I'm also interested in moar combat tricks in general. The tiefling was just a slow flicker with legs and I think we have enough flicker support.

Upgrades to fixing

Shire Terrace is basically a better card than all the Panoramas, and I'm replacing those with the landcyclers from Lord of the Rings, which in combination with the DMU duals can fix more than one color. They're also great in general.

We also get the 5th gate (which I didn't have). I'm removing the last card from Oath of the Gatewatch but hopefully we'll add another.

Missed a card

I missed this card on the last update and I really like how it plays. Thalakos Seer is a nice dream with ninjutsu creatures but the double pip is tough to have on curve.

White updates after MOM

Strict upgrades over Pacifism (sadly) and variants. I guess I'll have to make a cube where Pacifism is great again.

This is a decent 1-drop by itself, but can also recycle counters from other creatures and enable decent attacks.

These are some "heroic" creatures to go along with Tenth District Legionnaire. I picked these 2 because think Hero of the Pride is decent in any go-wide deck, and with High Priest you only need one or two triggers to make it pay for itself. It can make protection spells really valuable, so I might add a few more.

I removed some creatures that were identical or strictly worse than others already in.

Blue updates

These two are some of the best cantrips printed, and in common, we had to have them. They just replace similar cantrips that cost more.

Free spells are good! It also synergizes with Mystic Sanctuary and protects your early creatures if you go that route.

I wanted to add more card draw, specifically instant speed draw. Meeting of Minds is great for any tempoish blue deck using creatures, like Ninjas or flyers. Witching Well gives you value before sacrificing it, and is an object in play in case you care about those.

I cut a bit on flyers, and while I love Mistblade Shinobi I think we had enough ninjas.

Red updates after MOM

Red needed more sac-outlets, so what better than a downshifted rare, recently added to (and promptly removed from) the MODO Vintage Cube? Oracle is great and it is nice to have enablers that are not just more damage.

Neonate might come back if we push madness as an archetype, but Scrounger is a nice rummager with more than one use and plenty of synergies elsewhere in the cube. I like Weird but there were so many spell matters cards already.

Black updates after MOM

I wanted to have more value from the graveyard for black, and this creature also helps UB ninjas by being a 1-drop, and +1/+1 Abzan counters with the Incubate. I love rats but beetles will be better when adding artifact synergies.

Aristocrat is what gave the deck its name and it was missing representation. It can work with any sort of buff and token makers from white. There are so many drain cards for Orzhov already, so I'm taking one out.

Green updates after MOM

Green needed a bit more of early self mill, so I'm adding some. I'm taking out Satyr Wayfinder, which I love, because Blanchwood Prowler is already in, mostly the same, and it has +1/+1 counters synergy.

Its artifact/enchantment removal was lacking so I'm adding this classic, and thinking that maybe Nature's Chant is helpful during the draft.

Green also needed some help stabilizing against flyers (I think there are too many on the other colors, I probably will tone them down as well), so while I do that (and get a Penumbra Spider) the Twins get in.

I think Tales of Master Seshiro can be a great way to enable attacks (and counters synergies) without losing defense, so I'm trying it.

Tanuki and Walker are out because ramp enablers and payoffs are plenty already. Pioneer I like, but I don't have the token :P