Cube Cobra Overview: The No Nonsense Type 4 Stack

The No Nonsense Type 4 Stack

(200 Card Cube)

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The No Nonsense Type 4 Stack

Cube ID

noNonsenseType4

Art by Jim Murray

200 Card Cube1 follower

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Cloned from The Type 4 Stack

What is Type 4?

Type 4, also known as Limited Infinity (LI) or DC10, is a casual, non-rotating, multiplayer format with two simple rules: everyone has infinite mana of all types but can only play one spell per turn. With Magic's extensive cardpool, Type 4 combines the bombastic spells and multiplayer element of EDH with the interaction of eternal formats. Pushing MTG to the extreme, Type 4 offers absurd boardstates, insane blowouts, and unforeseen interactions.

Unofficial cards added, but not shown in the list: https://imgur.com/a/unofficial-mtg-cards-type-4-stack-aGNLX4S

Rules

Players have infinite mana of every type at all times.
Players can only cast one spell per turn (spells cast for their alternate cost are also included in this).
Communal library for players. Players have their own graveyard.
Starting and max hand size of 5.
Starting life is 20.
All melded and transformed cards are played as is. Their MV is equal to the total melded cards MV or the front side of the card.
Serum Powder Mulligan or SPM - If a player is dissatisfied with their hand before the game begins, they may exile their hand and draw that many cards. Do this only once.
Alternate Cast Rule or ACR: Once per turn, you may cast an additional spell if it has an alternate cast that you pay.
- Cards & Keywords that work under ACR (Currently in the stack. The list is not exhaustive):
  - Cleave
  - Dash
  - Disguise
  - Evoke
  - Flashback (the card must be cast from the graveyard for its flashback cost to be considered alternate cast)
  - Foretell (the card must be cast from exile for its foretell cost to be considered alternate cast)
  - Madness (the card must be cast from exile for its madness cost to be considered alternate cast)
  - Morph
  - Overload
  - Plot (the card must be cast from exile without paying its mana cost to be considered alternate cast)
  - Surge (the card with surge must be your second spell in order for it to be considered alternate cast)
  - Cards that state "You may pay rather than pay this spell's mana cost", e.g., Baleful Mastery, Force of Will, Ricochet Trap.
  - Cards that allow you to cast spells for free, e.g., Omniscience, Press the Enemy, Reinterpret, Spelljack, etc.
  - Cards that provide other cards with an alternate cast, e.g., Form of the Mulldrifter, Fist of Suns, and Jodah, Archmage Eternal.
  - For all other alternate cast cards, please refer to this page on alternate cast. The ACR is based on WoTC's definition and rulings on what constitutes an alternate cast.

Defensive Ability Wins or DAW: If two or more infinite activated abilities are on the stack, the last one to be placed on the initial stack will always resolve first. In other words, he who instigates, loses. Here's a couple examples:
- Player 1 "instigates" by activating Kazarov, Sengir Pureblood targeting a creature. Player 2 "defends" by activating Azorius Guildmage to counter the ability. Applying DAW, Player 2 will always counter Player 1's ability.
- Player 1 "instigates" by activating Vampiric Dragon targeting Player 2's Combat Medic. Player 2 "defends" by activating Combat Medic to prevent the damage. Applying DAW, Player 2 will always prevent Player 1's ability.
Additionally, there are two special rulings based on applying DAW:
- In the case of two Masticore-style cards targeting one another, the first to instigate will always lose. Also, barring any other interaction, the instigating creature will die first and the defending creature will die second once the stack fully resolves.
- In the case of two Shade-style cards attacking into each other, the attacking or instigating creature will always lose. Also, barring any other interaction, that creature will die during combat.

Alternate Gameplay Modes

While the stack is best played with a pod of 4 players (for balance sake), you can still play with 3, 5 or 6 players. I recommend the following game types based on each:

3 Players - Totem
5 Players - Star
6 Players - Emperor

Design Patterns or "Lessons Learned"

Curated Card Advantage - Card advantage is the ultimate resource in Type 4. I've gone through a few design changes to ensure card advantage is not overly oppressive. All strict draw 4's and up have been removed. The few cards you can draw several cards from (notably Decree of Pain and Overwhelming Forces) are at sorcery speed. For now, draw 3's are the highest I'll go for instants. Artifacts such as Tower of Fortunes and Loreseeker's Stone provide too much advantage every turn cycle for one player. Fortunately, that's led me to find cards like Emmessi Tome and Thran Tome, which have worked well.
Impactful Creatures - Creatures are a major driver for Type 4 games and comprise a large portion of the stack (approximately 36%). That being the case, every creature needs to be as impactful as possible with relevant activated or static abilities, or haste. Big creatures with summoning sickness telegraph too much to other players.
No Tutors - Tutors are perfectly fine in Type 4. However, they're not great for communal stacks for a number of reasons: there's very few relevant tutors for Type 4 (approximately 25 total), tutoring prolongs the length of the game, and tutoring offers an unfair advantage for the player that draws them. All that being said, tutors are excellent for Type 4 cubes designed for drafting.
Minimal Lifegain - Lifegain, in my opinion, is anathema to Type 4. Echoing similar reasons to my no tutor design, life gain prolongs the length of the game with uninteresting, unenjoyable, and tedious board states where one player has more life than everyone else. Cards like Creakwood Ghoul, Beacon of Immortality, and Tower of Eons were the worst culprits. Instead, I've opted for cards that prevent damage, and it's led me to discover interesting cards like Delaying Shield.

FAQ

How in the world does Blast from the Past work? - The "proper" way to play Blast from the Past is to first Cycle, then Madness, Kicker, and Buyback.
What are Kicker, Buyback, Delve, etc. considered? - Unless they are listed under ACR, these are all considered additional costs or cost reduction for the spell. They are not activated abilities either.
What are Cycle and Channel considered? - Activated abilities. They can be used any time, and do not count as spells.
What is the mana value of a disguised/morphed creature? - Zero. It's also zero on the stack as well (Void Winnower prevents your opponents from casting disguised/morph spells as well as blocking with facedown creatures).
What happens if you clone/copy a manland that's a creature? - When you copy a manland, you will get a copy of the original card. So the clone/copy will enter as a copy of the land, not the creature. However, since you have infinite mana, you can activate right away.
How does the Splice mechanic work? - All you need to do is reveal the card as you cast the spell it's Spliced to. It's effect is added onto the spell as it resolves. If the Spliced spell is countered, you do not get the effect of the Splice card. For more info, see this article on Splice.
What happens when you cast Press the Enemy or Reinterpret and you've already cast another alternate cast spell? - You do not get to cast another spell as part of the resolution of either spell since you've already satisfied your one spell and one alternate cast spell for the turn.
Can you cast two alternate cast spells in a turn? - Yes! However, one of those spells will count as your one spell for the turn.
Can you target indestructible creatures with Agonizing Demise? - Yes! And it deals damage!
Can you target uncounterable creatures with Essence Backlash? - Yes! And it deals damage!
Can you target a tapped creature with Delirium? - Unlike Backlash, you absolutely can. And it also deals damage!
Can your stack be drafted? - Absolutely! I recommend Booster, Rochester, Winchester, or Winston drafts. See here for more information on those drafting formats.