Art by Volkan BaǵaThis is a Pioneer Cube jam-packed with showcase / secret lair / promo cards with the goal of showcasing the best of the Pioneer format while also showing off some SPICY bling! The card pool is highly-interactive with a low mana-value, averaging out at a Mana Value of 3, that supports a variety of archetypes. Cube classics, and Pioneer meta decks, like White Weenies, UW Control, Red Deck Wins, Rakdos Midrange are just some of the popular drafted decks.
This cube is generally updated along with changes to the Pioneer meta, and typically delayed a set in updates so I have time to test new cards in both constructed and limited!
In this cube you can find...
Mono-White Humans
Red Deck Wins
Izzet Spells
Azorious Control
Rakdos Midrange
Format Banned Cards
With a fair amount of testing, these cards are not as easy to 'break' in a limited environment.
In this cube you will not find the following...
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No textless / Difficult to decipher cards / Universes Beyond variants or cards. I will not be adding in UB cards from mainstay standard releases like Final Fantasy or Avatar the Last Airbender, even if they are tier 1 decks in the pioneer format.
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No major identified power outliers that lead to feels-bad beats. Sheoldred, the Apocalypse and Oko, Thief of Crowns are just insanely strong and are perma-banned from this environment.
Trial and Error Bans
Over the past 7-8 months of 1 and 2 card tinkering, the cube has been updated where it warrants a blog post of the updates!
First, The Pioneer Showcase Cube will be in voting for CubeCon 2025 with polls opening on 6/10/2025! If you've enjoyed this cube, cloned it, followed it or whatever, feel free to rank it high!
Notable Adds and SwapsThe most impactful swap has been replacing Kaito Shizuki with Kaito, Bane of Nightmares. Kaito Shizuki was just okay and Kaito Bane of Nightmares is an absolute house. This cube had a few ninjas like Moon-Circuit Hacker and Biting-Palm Ninja but even without their support, Bane of Nightmares is excellent. Not to mention it has been leading the charge in the Pioneer Metagame with the newer Dimir Ninjas archetype. I don't want to over support the archetype, but I've also added in Floodpits Drowner which shows up in the constructed list. In drafting over the past few months, Kaito, Bane of Nightmares has been a welcomed inclusion!
Red has been dominating the Pioneer Metagame lately. While I am not going to be adding in Heartfire Hero, Manifold Mouse, and/or Emberheart Challenger (due to how mid they'd be in singleton cube), I have added in representation of the archetype in the form of Tersa Lightshatter and Sunspine Lynx. Sunspine Lynx is a really strong inclusion, especially considering the fixing that is in the cube!
Lastly, Aetherdrift brought in some welcomed inclusions to the cube. The most surprising addition has been Oviya, Automech Artisan. This card has led to many players attempting (and succeeding) in dropping massive green threats like Vaultborn Tyrant and Titan of Industry. Oviya has been well-received by my drafters, and it's a card I'm really happy to have in the environment!
Bling AcquisitionsI've been fortunate enough to fit in a bunch of Magic travel this year! I have some spicy bling inclusions I was able to pick up and trade for that I am excited to give a home in the showcase portion of the pioneer showcase cube ;)
Sword of Forge and Frontier from Spotlight: Dragons, Virtue of Persistence from the Store Championship, most of the Unfinity Space Shocklands like Steam Vents, AND the WMCQ Thalia, Guardian of Thraben that I am pumped to have!
CutsAs we've been drafting more locally, I've been able to solidify cuts to the list. Most of these cards were lackluster, often went un-played, and just didn't fit the vibe or make a ton of sense.
Solve the Equation, The Wandering Rescuer, Migloz, Maze Crusher, Sigarda, Champion of Light, Farewell, Heartflame Duelist, Hour of Devastation, Subterranean Schooner, Experimental Augury, Stalactite Stalker, Bladecoil Serpent, and Arlinn, the Pack's Hope are out.
Future ChangesAs stated many times previously, I will not be adding any Universes Beyond cards to this cube. Edge of Eternities will be the last new set of cards this year. I really tried to give a shit about the Final Fantasy cards during pre-release and I don't have it in me. As such, I'm holding firm on my "no universes beyond inclusions" in this cube.
I'm going to do a bit of testing and give a few Tarkir: Dragonstorm cards a shot in the coming months! I've been impressed with cards like Marang River Regent, Voice of Victory, Cori Mountain Monastery, Kishla Village, and Surrak, Elusive Hunter. Probable includes for the future!
That's all for now, thanks for checking out these updates :-)