Art by Aleksi BriclotThis cube seeks to recreate the feeling of brewing a deck with the strongest cards in Modern, as it WAS at different points from 2012-2018. This takes us up to Rivals of Ixalan, before Dominaria and well before the Modern Horizons sets. It is meant to be drafted in 3 packs of 20, with two picks from each pack like in Commander Legends, but the minimum deck size is still 40.
There are many duplicated cards, mostly in doubles, but also 4 copies of an iconic card from each color, 4 of each fetchland, and 3 of each shockland. The iconic nonland cards are: Path to Exile, Snapcaster Mage, Thoughtseize, Lightning Bolt, and Tarmogoyf. I believe there is room to carve out new synergies, but I do have these specific decks supported:
Aggro:
Humans, Zoo, Burn, Delver, Boremandos, Shadow
Control:
Ponza, Faeries, Smallpox, Gifts Control, Big Red, Boros Prison, The Rack, Grixis Control, Esper Control, Jeskai Control, Mardu Control
Midrange:
Bant Company, Bring to Light, Jund, Creature Toolbox, Aristocrats, Return to the Ranks, BW Tokens, The Rock, Mardu Pyromancer, Hatebears, Stoneblade, Naya Midrange, Abzan Midrange, Temur Midrange
Combo:
Saheeli Copycat, Kiki-Chord, Twin, Melira Pod, Persist combo, Nahiri Breach, Scapeshift Valakut
A note on banned cards:
Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Bloodbraid Elf were unbanned at the very end of this era. Stoneforge Mystic was actually unbanned after this era. Birthing Pod was legal for four years, Splinter Twin for five, and Gitaxian Probe for seven. Conversely, Deathrite Shaman was legal only two years, and Treasure Cruise / Dig Through Time for less than six months.
The Delve spells did not have enough time to feel like Modern staples. Deathrite Shaman had more, but warps the game around itself so much I don't like it being present. Bloodbraid Elf was likely banned for the sins of Deathrite Jund, and should've been unbanned then. Twin and Pod are such iconic decks I feel they deserve inclusion, and just enough support to not feel dominant.
Ultimately, this is a cube. It isn't and can never be an exact replica of what the format was actually like to play. I don't support a number of extremely popular constructed decks such as Tron, Infect, Storm, or Affinity, which during a draft silo you, and then are difficult to pivot out of. I am also not subject to market forces, which some believe limited WotC from reprinting+unbanning Stoneforge Mystic or Jace, the Mindsculptor earlier. I believe they are each at an appropriate power level for this environment, and that the decks they support fit well with the others. Despite being a time capsule, this cube is like most others and a constant work in progress. Always happy to hear feedback if something new might fit in, or something present sounds too strong.
Decks' Key Cards
For those who weren't active during the era and might not know what to be looking for while drafting, here are some key synergies the cube is designed around:
Humans
Kiln Fiend saw play in some Delver-style lists, and the support for all-in Kiln Fiend decks looks much like Death's Shadow (phyrexian spells, Temur Battle Rage) so I think this is an easy-include that has a reasonable floor in Burn.