Several changes, nothing too major.

• Adding the Multicolor package with Pyroconvergence and Widespread Thieving (already supported by Sandstorm Eidolon.) Honestly, one problem with this cube is red has too many interesting things going on!
• Cut Iron Man, who's been here since the beginning. But I want to try out Mishra's Groundbreaker!
• Taking out Thaumatog (it's pretty bad) and trying out Common Bond. It's obviously very good and can sometimes net you a 2-for-1, but I think it's okay.
• I always liked Flamebreak for some reason. It seems powerful, but RRR is a lot. Let's try it out. Same for Phyrexian Vault. I think I was playing Carnage Altar because it's worse, but Vault is fine and it's more aesthetic.
• Changed the Lesson package around.
• Reinstating Grinning Totem and Rag Man.

Possibly coming soon: the Cluestone update? Also looking for suitable TDM cards.

I've always been worried Vedalken Dismisser could get out of hand

First of all, big news! I've finally settled on a new planeswalker: Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler! I think I overlooked him at first for not being good enough, which still may be true, but I came across him again and I had the impulse to try him out! I feel like if you reanimate one creature and mess up combat for your opponent as you threaten to do it again, that could be good enough. (Even if you hoard a bunch of counter on him, you can't -2 too much or you'll be at risk of milling out!) Plus he combos with Oath of Liliana.

Also, I finally gave up on my superstition that every color should have exactly 3 one-drop creatures.

Cards I'm very excited about and I hope they're not too pushed:
Grim Return
Rosnakht, Heir of Rohgahh (Battle Cry is good, but like... how much is this realistically doing?)
Viashino Sandswimmer (Now that combat damage doesn't use the stack, this is mostly bad, right?)
Jedit Ojanen (Oh yeah, we're doing it. 5/5 for 7 is above rate, but there can be bombs in the sucky cube, right?)
The Raven's Warning (Such a cool card. Honestly, the fact that your sideboard contains infinite basics makes this pretty good.)
Mundungu (Maybe this is too annoying but it doesn't seem too good. Obviously you'll never actually counter something with this.)
The Apprentice's Folly (It's hilarious how Steady Progress totally wrecks this card)

Cards I think are cool and definitely aren't too good:
Xenic Poltergeist
Scrounge
Kobold Taskmaster (this is actually the first tribal lord!)
Magnetic Web (watch this be totally busted somehow)
Eye of Doom
Stimulus Package
Cosmic Rebirth
Cerebral Vortex (mostly for the art)

Cards that might be pushing it but I'm not attached to:
Kami of the Painted Road (only 2 instant arcane spells, but still, preventing blocks might be big. Really hope this is okay because the art is insane)
Callow Jushi (hard to flip, but even once you do, how relevant is the ability, really? 3/4 is obviously good though)
Skyshroud Ridgeback (it's basically take 4 if you play it turn 1, is that too good?)
Ashiok's Forerunner (this can surprise-eat most creatures in combat!)
Culling Sun (who cares about 3-drops, right? They're bad!)

I've made the removal a little better overall. I don't even think these are above the average power level, and I think there should be more ways to permanently deal with threats. They should still be rare, though!
Lay Down Arms (might just be bad!)
Vengeance
Secure the Scene (5 mana, sorcery speed, and a 1/1 is much more impacftful here)
Chronostutter
Illusory Wrappings (doesn't even remove abilities!)
Shrewd Negotiations (I'll have to keep an eye on this one, but making you donate an artifact is a significant requirement)
One with the Stars (similar to Illusory Wrappings)
Rite of the Serpent (here's our unconditional removal at 6)
Collateral Damage (instant speed makes this good but still fair)
Kamahl's Sledge
Entangling Vines

Cards making their triumphant return:
Thorntooth Witch
Thorn Thallid
Shapeshifter

Cards making a less triumphant return but have a role to fill:
Arctic Merfolk
Grappler Spider

Cards I'm sad about removing:
Trickster Mage (I thought the flavor text was hilarious for some reason when I was 10)
Conjured Currency (may make a return, but last time I drafted this I ended up cutting it... it's good when you're behind, but it's usually worse than a random 2/3)
Rag Man (I'm not sure if anyone ever cast this card... honestly, I was always worried it was OP)
Breeding Pit (the last repeatable token maker finally cut. It just slows the game down)
EMBER SHOT (This card is honestly absurd. I mostly kept it in for historic reasons, and it's not like it wins the game, it's just too efficient)
Gamble (I like this card in theory but then when I saw it in a draft I realized no one would ever play it)
Skyshroud Cutter (love the art, may bring it back, trying out Skyshroud Ridgeback as an alternative)
Deconstruct (very striking art!)
Toymaker (good aeshetics, but let's try Xenic Poltergeist instead)
Kasimir the Lone Wolf (upgraded to Jedit!)
Riptide Crab (I'm worried about The Raven's Warning being too good, but surely it's not better than this!)
Yavimaya Kavu (I love kavus but this is just so bad! You need like four other creatures before this is above rate unless one of them is the other RG kavu)
Horned Cheetah (This card has been in the cube since forever but I decided I wanted multicolor cards to actually be good if possible! For some reason GW has been the hardest to fill out but I think I finally found a good one)
Jhoira of the Ghitu (no one ever pulled off any combos with this)
Iname as One (mostly put in as a Jhoira target. May bring it back, but I needed room for Tyvar and the other two cards are actually playable!)

I'm about to make some significant changes (maybe like 60 cards or more), but in preparation for that, I'm updating here with the changes I've made over the past two years.

Jedit's Dragoons mucked up the board one time too many, but fortunately I found an acceptable downgrade in Tireless Missionaries.

Equal Treatment also demonstrated its potential for total blowouts; it's gone.

Removed the Pirate package: I like Forerunner of the Coalition, but Rishadan Cutpurse, as much as I think it's cool, is either very weak or really screws someone over, and there just wasn't a good replacement.

Added the Mercenary package to make up for it.

Finally killed the Dormant Gomazoa package. It never really got out of hand, but it required me to make sure I had enough self-target spells in the cube, and it felt a little too much in the "do nothing or blow up the game" category. It was also too good as a blocker if you untapped it once. I might add it back later.

Also got rid of Entropic Specter. Black just had a few too many bombs. Again, might add back later since I'm going to bump up the removal a bit.

Swapped out Rhystic Tutor for The Creation of Avacyn. More fun. It does suck because I got Dan Frazier to sign the tutor (possibly the only copy of this card he's ever signed), and I'm keeping it in the cube box for fun, but it's time to try something different.

Added the Energy package! I hope Aether Revolt isn't too good, but it just does nothing on its own. Primal Prayers might just be bad, though.

Turns out Deflecting Palm is probably fine over Reflect Damage! How much damage are you really going to reflect/deflect anyway? Probably like 3. If you get someone with Skyshroud Behemoth, you deserve it.

Added a single Gate (they finally made an acceptable one!) for Glaive of the Guildpact.

Most importantly, got rid of the Obelisks (as cool as they are), the Tempest tap-painlands, the Kamigawa "exert" lands, and the Invasion sac-trilands, and finally put in some reasonable duals! I have the full set of plainlands (original painlands are pretty painful in this cube!) plus the old Invasion no-frills taplands and their counterparts in Shadows over Innistrad. I feel pretty good about this change, especially since I'm using the very nostalgic 7th Edition painlands (the set I started with). I didn't feel like using my Apocalypse enemy painlands here though, so I'm using Dominaria United.

the lesson update