This cube is meant to showcase some of the strongest strategies and cards of limited from March of the Machine back.

Version 3.0 Update Notes

The latest update, completed on 04/25/23, mainly adds cards from Dominaria United, The Brother's War, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and March of the Machine. The following general changes were made:

• The old basic landcyclers were replaced with the ones from MoM. These are overall stronger cards that should make them more palatable as mana-fixing options.
• A few of the worse tribal cards were removed. While Bloodline Pretender and Brass Herald still exist for discerning players that happen to find a tribal throughline as they draft, the weaker changeling cards were mostly swapped out. Additionally, Diregraf Captain got the axe, so the Zombie theme in UB is now completely dead.
• In general, most of the cards that got added in this update likely benefit the faster decks in the cube. The good cards from the last year's worth of Standard sets were mostly in the faster decks, so that checks out. Slower decks did receive some new tools and are almost certainly not outclassed, however.
• I chose not to include Battles for the time being, as only having two or three seemed weird.

Archetype Guide

+1/+1 Counters

This theme is one of the most heavily supported in the cube, and can end up in a variety of color combinations. The most common are Selesnya, Golgari and Abzan, though Gruul does offer a few supporting cards and you could end up successfully drafting a deck in other combinations of colors. These are almost always going to be base-Green decks. Many cards for this archetype can also help support Go Wide and Heroic decks. Some cards like Ridgescale Tusker are very strong all on their own, so keep an eye out for those!

Go Wide

Another heavily supported archetype across multiple color combinations. Selesnya, Orzhov and Boros are the main two-color combinations that use this strategy, though other combinations are possible. These decks are usually base-White, as it has the most token producers and anthem effects. As previously stated, some +1/+1 Counters cards also work wonders in this deck. You'll also notice overlap with some of the Sacrifice cards.

Cycling

Zenith Flare was one of the cards that inspired me to make this cube, and so a Cycling archetype is included. Payoffs for Cycling are exclusively in Boros, but cards with the keyword are found in every color. You can also look at cards that trigger off any card draw, like Ominous Seas, Teferi's Tutelage and Improbable Alliance. To be an effective Cycling deck, you really need a few of those payoffs alongside a critical mass of cyclers.

The Cycling deck can be built as a four/five color deck, often base-green to facilitate splashes. Keep an eye out for ways to recur Zenith Flare, such as Archaeomancer. Also look for cards that don't require mana to cycle, such as Street Wraith and Edge of Autumn! Last but not least, be careful not to deck yourself!

White/Blue Flyers

A simple, tried and true archetype. Use removal and good blockers to defend yourself on the ground while your fliers get in uncontested for damage. Many cards in this archetype are good all on their own, but payoffs like Watcher of the Spheres and Thunderclap Wyvern really make this deck tick. This is the strongest archetype supported in Azorius, but not the only one.

Heroic

Another archetype that can span multiple color combinations, but not as strongly supported as +1/+1 Counters or Go Wide. Powerful auras exist in every color, and White is positioned to take advantage of them! The deck is usually two colors and nearly always base-White.

It's important to find the right mix of creatures, auras and combat tricks to make this deck work. Auras and combat tricks always come with the risk of being two-for-one'd in response, so try to time your spells right to avoid disaster! Cards like Fight as One and Vines of Vastwood can be instrumental to protecting your creatures, so don't forget them!

Sacrifice/Aristocrats

Black excels in turning excess creatures into profit, and often pairs with White or Red to do so. Look for ways to sacrifice creatures like Carrion Feeder and payoffs for doing so like Mayhem Devil.

Orzhov and Rakdos decks take slightly different approaches to this strategy. Both are effective at using extra tokens as sacrifice fodder, but Orzhov leans more heavily into that line of play. On the other hand, Rakdos can take advantage of cards that steal your opponent's creatures, like Enthralling Victor or Traitorous Greed. With enough fixing, you can even consider a Mardu build that gets the best of both worlds!

Spellslinger

Typically an Izzet strategy, decks utilizing this theme will utilize the wide range of powerful instants and sorceries in the color combination. Red's removal and Blue's card draw complement each other well, and do so even better when you have a payoff like a Thermo-Alchemist in play!

Since payoffs for this archetype are pretty plentiful and many strong spells exist outside of Izzet, it's very possible to draft a deck in other colors that fits this archetype. Black's abundant removal pairs well with Red and Blue, while White has access to both some removal and token producers that happen to be instants or sorceries. Seeing Spellslinger decks in Jeskai, Grixis, Rakdos, Dimir or Boros is not at all uncommon!

Graveyard Matters/Self-Mill

This Golgari archetype is not as easy to build as the +1/+1 Counter deck, but can attack on an entirely different yet effective angle if built well! You'll generally want to grab stonger, more versatile cards like Syr Konrad, the Grim early, as your more specific payoffs will be easier to get once you're certain you want them. Being a Golgari deck that can leverage removal and threats well while rebuying them with cards like Golgari Findbroker is a great strategy on its own. Going deep on the self-mill plan can be very strong, but also risky. Like with Cycling, be careful not to deck yourself!

Ramp

Simic specializes in generating mana and cards, as it often does. As previously mentioned, this happens to work well with the Kicker archetype, but you can also ignore those cards if you want and just focus on slamming huge threats like Bookwurm or Titanoth Rex instead! Ensure you can quickly and consistently reach your endgame, then outvalue your opponent!

Given that you will likely have access to multiple ways to splash, doing so can prove very powerful. Other colors don't have quite the same big beaters, but cards like Sentinel of the Eternal Watch or Charging Monstrosaur can still be good picks here!

Blue/Black Control/Tempo

Many of Dimir's cards don't necessarily push you into a synergy-based strategy. Playing a slower, more methodical game with individually powerful cards does work. That said, in this color combination in particular, look out for powerful enchantments like Sphinx's Tutelage and Ill-Gotten Inheritance. Dimir has access to all of the best and can easily outvalue its opponents if they don't respect these cards.

Red/Green Stompy

Gruul, like Dimir, often takes a less synergy-based approach. Whereas Dimir tends to be slower, however, Gruul excels and putting down strong bodies turn after turn and creating pressure from the get-go! Find your powerful creatures and turn them sideways!

Format Notes

Color Fixing is Strong

While you are by no means guaranteed to be able to splash whatever you want, with the right prioritization you can construct mana bases capable of easily supporting three or four colors! Lands in particular are very powerful in this cube. All ten Ravnica Bouncelands are here, and can help you fix your mana while allowing you to reduce the total number of lands you need to run. The Thriving Lands are also generally underrated; even an "off-color" land can act as an Evolving Wilds in a pinch. Of course, Green has access to even more fixing, and so can support more splashes than any other color!

As a side note, the preponderance of Bouncelands and ways to accrue card advantage leads me to believe that you'll often start with sixteen lands in this cube. Don't be afraid to take your fixing early! Cards are strong enough that you will generally be able to fill out your nonland playables with relative ease.

Enchantments are Dangerous

Several decks will take advantage of powerful enchantments to help secure a win. As such, it's often a good idea to draft some ways to deal with them.
I wouldn't necessarily main-deck them, but having access to them can help turn a near-unwinnable game into a victory. Artifacts aren't nearly as important to hit, but many cards will help you deal with both.

Don't Get Milled

In general, you should expect some long, grindy games in this format. Removal is strong and there are plenty of ways to get card advantage. While not every game or deck will be slow, these scenarios will happen.

In particular, watch out for the Blue mill enchantments. There are enough ways to deal with them where they aren't game-breaking, but if you aren't ready for them they can end a game all on their own.