--- >>># Welcome to my Barroom brawl Cube!<<< >>>aka the Chaff Cube<<< --- >>>[(relevant)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQXnI72P6lU)<<< This is a cube made to play in breweries, kitchen tables, and other casual settings. Made from my desire to relive my early days of magic where I dug through bulk bins looking for cards. This is a beater cube, aka played un-sleeved where card damage is part of the charm. Easily throw it into your bag and head to the bar to hang out and play Magic! Inside the box is all 451 cards and 30 basics of each type, everything you need for magic night! >>>### TL;DR<<< A medium powered synergy-lite cube with a broad power band made to emulate retail master set limited. Decks will typically be 2-3 colors and play on standard "fair game" axis's of Aggro Midrange and Control. Games may be decided by bomb-y threats. Lastly, green is not your typical ramp color, focus on playing better than average creatures. --- >>>## Design Goals<<< 1. Embrace the chaff. I started playing magic looking through bulk bins trying to find cards to fit into my kitchen table decks. I want to emulate that feel. This means there are going to be cards more powerful than others in the cube. 2. Simple Gameplans. In general, I want decks to operate on the standard aggro -> midrange -> control axis. 3. Open color pairs. You can draft the same color pair multiple times and end up with different decks each time, and multiple decks may want similar cards. 4. Emulate retail limited. Think a masters set limited draft. That is the power level for the non-lands I am aiming for. * This means decks should resemble good limited decks * There are power outliers, aka bombs, like normal limited * Creature combat is how a majority of games will end. 5. Mana fixing is accessible. I don't want decks to be hindered because of the lands available at the chaff level. See the [card changes](https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/clays-chaff-cube#card-changes) section for more. 6. No Fess: I don't want to carry a token box to draft this at breweries and such. No extra game pieces of any kind Some Cube Inspirations: [Regular Cube](https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/regular) [Bun Magic Cube](https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/andymangold) [The Peasant Cube](https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/5d3f7245d1bbf667dd9d4286) [Bar Cube](https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/BarCube) --- >>>## Archetypes by color and combo<<< This section explores the archetypes and themes available by color. Archetypes and themes listed in a color (i.e. white aggro) can, and often will, go into additional colors. The descriptions provided here assume that the archetype or theme in question forms the core of your deck. Any of these cores can benefit from including other colors for additional utility but the discussion is focused on the flavor/direction of the base color. Multicolor themes spread evenly across two or more colors are discussed after base-color archetypes. --- >>>### {W} White {W}<<< --- >>>##### Aggro<<< White is, primarily, one of the aggro colors, with the second lowest average mana value. White weenies is definitely a viable strategy. Start pressure early with many small bodies and then close things out with pump effects and solid 3-4 drops. >>><<[[!Adanto Vanguard]][[!Taranika, Akroan Veteran]][[!Heroic Charge]]>><<< >>>##### Midrange<<< White can be paired with another midrange color in order to leverage good W/x bodies and interaction pieces to make a game about 1-for-1's and solid midrange threats. >>><<[[!Fiend Hunter]][[!Serra Angel]][[!Sevinne's Reclamation]]>><<< >>>##### Death and Taxes<<< White can augment its midrange or aggro strategies with taxing effects that slow your opponents. This is commonly known as white weenies or "death and taxes". >>><<[[!Thalia, Guardian of Thraben]][[!Elite Spellbinder]][[!Leonin Arbiter]]>><<< >>>##### Control Support<<< White has plenty of removal and some of the best board wipes in the cube, and can serve as a nice secondary color in a control deck. >>><<[[!Touch the Spirit Realm]][[!Shatter the Sky]][[!Elspeth's Smite]]>><<< --- >>>### {U} Blue {U}<<< --- >>>##### Control<<< Blue has a high density of counter magic. Because creatures are the win con of nearly every deck, they have many creature-only counters as well as bounce spells. As such, U is the best controlling color. >>><<[[!Essence Scatter]][[!Fact or Fiction]][[!Floodwaters]]>><<< >>>##### Tempo/Midrange<<< Blue can also leverage its bounce and counter magic to stick an evasive threat and use cards to keep their opponents off tempo to sail into a win. >>><<[[!Man-o'-War]][[!Remand]][[!Zephyr Winder]]>><<< >>>##### Spells Matter<<< Blue's spells matter cards are mainly prowess creatures and creatures that card about drawing 2 cards. Blue has the most and some of the best non-creature spells in the cube. >>><<[[!Brainstorm]][[!Stormwing Entity]][[!Symmetry Sage]]>><<< --- >>>### {B} Black {B}<<< --- >>>##### Aggro<<< Black has a good mix of cheap aggressive creatures where it can form the base of an aggro deck. B aggro decks can take two forms, aggro sac and traditional aggro. Sacrifice uses cheap and recursive bodies and drain effects to quickly whittle opponents down. Traditional aggro uses good 1-3 drops to apply pressure, possibly pairing key removal to clear blockers. >>><<[[!Despoiler of Souls]][[!Blood Artist]][[!Cult Conscript]]>><<< >>>##### Midrange<<< Some of blacks aggro creatures and a good amount of its midrange creatures are self recursive. Black midrange decks use removal and those creatures to form in inevitable clock. Black is best suited to use its graveyard, but don't expect a dedicated reanimator deck. The few reanimation spells are value based. Expect zombifying a 5 drop that died or your 3 mana pay off to be the ceiling (Well I suppose the absolute ceiling is zombifying a [[Troll of Khazad-dûm]]). >>><<[[!Tenacious Underdog]][[!Cut Down]][[!Inquisition of Kozilek]]>><<< >>>##### Control<<< Black's removal suite can form the basis of a sort of tap out control deck where you stick threats and use removal to control what your opponent is able to do. >>><<[[!Shadows' Verdict]][[!Sheoldred's Edict]][[!Trench Stalker]]>><<< --- >>>### {R} Red {R}<<< --- >>>##### Aggro<<< Red is the aggro color, with the lowest mana curve available. Cheap creatures allow you to swarm your opponent quickly. Most burn goes toward creatures to clear the path for attackers, but look out for the occasional direct damage spell to close things out. >>><<[[!Lightning Bolt]][[!Reinforced Ronin]][[!Rimrock Knight]]>><<< >>>##### Control/Midrange Support<<< While mainly an aggro color, there are synergy pieces for other strategies hidden amongst the aggro cards, so be on the lookout for those. Red as a midrange or control color is best suited as a support piece. Red has very good burn to point at creatures and can help U or B decks be more controlling, or help W or G decks be more midrange. >>><<[[!Volcanic Spite]][[!Bellowing Bruiser]][[!Geological Appraiser]]>><<< --- >>>### {G} Green {G}<<< --- >>>##### Aggro<<< Green is probably the most different from its typical role. There is hardly any ramp in the cube. Instead, green focuses on having the best bang for your buck in terms of creatures. This can be take the form of an aggressive creature based deck. Many pump spells can help sneak in those last points of damage. >>><<[[!Skyshroud Elite]][[!Verdant Outrider]][[!Colossal Growth]]>><<< >>>##### Midrange<<< Green has the most creatures, and typically, the best rate for them (looking at you [[Jewel Thief]]). Don't expect to win with 6+ drops (there is only 1) in your green based decks. Midrange decks exploit this and aim to play many impactful 3-4 mana creatures and support them to the win. >>><<[[!Sarulf's Packmate]][[!Territorial Maro]][[!Clear Shot]]>><<< --- >>>### Multicolor Themes <<< --- >>>##### {W}{R}{G}: Zoo<<< Zoo is an aggro archetype based on cheap creatures in its colors putting the pressure on early with help from many/different land types. This deck needs good fixing to work, prioritize the fetches/shocks. >>><<[[!Wild Nacatl]] [[!Steppe Lynx]] [[!Kird Ape]]>><<< >>>##### {W}{U}{R}{B}: Control<<< Control in this cube can take many forms. The U/x varieties will play more like draw go control, while non the non blue will be tap out control. >>><<[[!Counterspell]] [[!Rout]] [[!Doom Blade]]>><<< >>>##### {W}{U}{R}{G}: Heroic<<< Target your own creatures for value and payoff! This is the widest archetype spread across many colors. If no-one fights for this archetype, it can have some explosive games. Try and find spells that are double duty as much as possible. >>><<[[!Whiskervale Forerunner]] [[!Flowstone Infusion]] [[!Gnarlback Rhino]]>><<< >>>##### {W}{B}{R}: Sacrifice<<< The main sacrifice pay offs lay in red and black. The pay offs could be card advantage, life drain, or counters to make large threats. >>><<[[!Viscera Seer]] [[!Makeshift Munitions]] [[!Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim]]>><<< >>>##### {R}{U}{G}: Land Animation<<< There are a handful of spells that animate lands in order to win in combat. Cards like [[Sylvan Advocate]] are good bodies on their own that reward you for animating lands. Look out for creature lands in these colors as well for additional payoff. >>><<[[!Genju of the Falls]] [[!Tatyova, Steward of Tides]] [[!Embodiment of Fury]]>><<< >>>##### {W}{U}{B}{R}: Spells Tempo<<< Burn, bounce, removal, and counter spells are the name of the game. Use cheap creatures that love to see non-creature spells cast to out value your opponents. 1-for-1 your opponents and get under their decks. >>><<[[!Jeskai Elder]] [[!Abbot of Keral Keep]] [[!Reprieve]]>><<< >>>##### {B}{U}{G}: Graveyard<<< Rather than a dedicated reanimator strategy of cheating out big threats, graveyard decks in this format try to form a sort of inevitability. Fill the graveyard and use creatures that love to see cards in your graveyard, or find creatures that bring themselves back, via escape or other abilities, to form a clock your opponent can't deal with. Blue can be a nice support color to fill your yard. >>><<[[!Monstrous War-Leech]] [[!Splinterfright]] [[!Urborg Lhurgoyf]]>><<< --- >>>## Card Changes<<< --- Since this cube is played un-sleeved, and its my "beater" cube, I have made some errata's. There are two "sharpie errata's", and I tagged them in the cube. First, [[Avalanche Caller]] can animate any land. The second is [[Jewel Thief]] doesn't create a treasure token. This is so the cube has no tokens. These changes are clearly marked in black sharpie on the card. If you see a DMU dual, they are actually __shock__ lands. Similarly, gain lands are actually __fetch__ lands. This are all clearly marked on the physical cards (in black sharpie). This way I don't have to spend a crap ton of money to make this cube. Plus I feel it embraces the spirit of chaff of using your other bulk cards to proxy for cards you want. Most fixing lands are also common taplands that have their rules text sharpied on. All proxied lands have their nickname (ex Fetchland, Horizonland) on top to make it clear there are changes on that card. >>>EX. Wind-Scarred Crag becomes Arid Mesa<<< >>><<[[!Wind-Scarred Crag]][[!Arid Mesa]]>><<< >>>EX. Radiant Grove becomes Temple Garden<<< >>><<[[!Radiant Grove]][[!Temple Garden]]>><<<