>>> ## Golden Gate Artifact Cube <<< The Artifact Cube is a high powered legacy cube centered around artifacts. Here are the goals for the cube: - __Focus on synergy.__ The artifact cube contains fewer generically powerful cards, instead focusing on cards that enable powerful interactions centered around artifacts. - __Avoid an "on rails" drafting experience.__ By focusing on synergy, a cube runs the risk of having an "on rails" drafting experience if too many of the cards are only good in one kind of deck. To avoid this the cube prioritizes themes that have broad overlap. Themes are also not confined to certain color combinations. This allows a wide variety of mixing and matching of themes, cards and colors in the cube. For example, it's possible to build a great sacrifice deck in almost any color combination featuring at least {R} or {B}. - __Keep as high power level as possible.__ Part of the fun of the cube is doing some of the most busted things you can do in Magic. Even though the cube aims to keep a wide variety of synergies viable, it still prioritizes making them as powerful as possible. - __Feature strategies from some of the top decks in Magic's history.__ The cube should allow you to explore old ideas in new ways, invoking nostalgia of some of the most powerful artifact-based cards and strategies in Magic's history. >>> ## Themes <<< As pointed out above, there's a lot of blending between the themes, but hopefully this will give you a high level taste of what's possible in the artifact cube. >>> #### Affinity _for artifacts_ <<< <<[[!Thought Monitor]] [[!Mox Opal|6be9b1d5-9ab8-4adb-ba54-2c0117e842fa]] [[!Ornithopter]] [[!Seat of the Synod]]>> A classic strategy throughout Magic's history. Quickly deploy as many artifacts as you can to the board and use them to your advantage to activate _metalcraft_, pump up construct tokens, power out spells with _improvise_ and _affinity for artifacts_, or animate them into huge creatures. >>> #### Artifact Aggro _aka artifact weenie_ <<< <<[[!Tempered Steel]] [[!Steel Overseer|3fb27f1e-21fb-4017-8ef2-37c3206003e3]] [[!Cranial Plating]] [[!Master of Etherium]]>> An aggressive slant on affinity. Power out as many artifact creatures as you can and buff them with cards like [[Tempered Steel]] or [[Cranial Plating]]. Finish your opponent off with powerful artifact based burn spells like [[Galvanic Blast]]. >>> #### Equipment _suit up_ <<< <<[[!Stoneforge Mystic|19557351-b65f-4b04-b971-66abdc07000a]] [[!Fervent Champion]] [[!Puresteel Paladin]] [[!Umezawa's Jitte|3b6e5956-f795-451b-bb24-56462d1ced27]]>> The cube is full of powerful equipment and ways to buff equipped creatures. You can take things in an aggressive direction by using an equipped threat to quickly kill your opponent. There's also you a midrange approach that supplies a never ending stream of creatures that can become game ending threats by suiting them up. >>> ##### _Subtheme: Colossus Hammer_ <<[[!Colossus Hammer|fa35b2b5-3e91-4a6c-90b1-8581b4ecaf8b]] [[!Sigarda's Aid|7fc32f1d-dee7-4f71-a652-26a006e6020a]] [[!Kemba, Kha Enduring]]>> <<< The cube [has several ways to equip for free](http://cubecobra.com/cube/list/artifact-cube?f=tag%3Afree-equip), and as Modern players know, the best thing to equip for free is a [[Colossus Hammer]]. >>> #### +1/+1 Counters _gettem' chonky_ <<< <<[[!The Ozolith|9341ed06-53db-4604-b60a-3ea9129afbc2]] [[!Hardened Scales]] [[!Walking Ballista|329a8738-3e17-403a-857a-0ba529ce8cd1]] [[!Luminarch Aspirant]]>> There are lots of ways to have fun with +1/+1 counters in the cube. Create huge beaters with proliferate and cards like [[Hardened Scales]]. Ramp your mana with [[Rishkar, Peema Renegade]] or load up a [[Walking Ballista]] and unload the counters as direct damage. This archetype can be built in a way that's centered around artifact creatures, many of which have _modular_. The {G} variations can be built barely using any artifacts at all. >>> #### Sacrifice _nom nom_ <<< <<[[!Ichor Wellspring|e6815c12-95ba-44f2-9115-3504d4d0a097]] [[!Arcbound Ravager|c0c33a92-5621-40b4-a3a2-b67893edbc01]] [[!Mayhem Devil]] [[!Disciple of the Vault]]>> Sacrifice artifacts and creatures for fun and profit. Pumping out tokens like treasures and food and using them as fodder for your engine is one way to do it. Another way is to load up on artifacts and creatures like [[Ichor Wellspring]] and [[Experimental Synthesizer]] that can be sacrificed for value. >>> ##### _Subtheme: Tokens!_ <<[[!Academy Manufactor]] [[!Peregrin Took]] [[!Dockside Extortionist]]>> <<< I heard you like tokens, so have some tokens with your tokens. There are lots of tokens flying around in the cube, and a some cards to utilize them in interesting and powerful ways. >>> #### Reanimator _we can rebuild it_ <<< <<[[!Goblin Welder|6171e136-1167-4329-acb2-6853d3a814e5]] [[!Daretti, Scrap Savant]] [[!Triplicate Titan]] [[!Entomb]]>> A classic archetype with an artifact twist. There are lots of big, powerful artifacts to quickly discard and reanimate to play. You can reanimate them the old fashioned way with {B} cards like [[Reanimate]], or welder-style with {R} cards [[Goblin Welder]] and [[Trash for Treasure]]. >>> ##### _Subtheme: Discard_ <<[[!The Underworld Cookbook]] [[!Ovalchase Daredevil]] [[!Currency Converter]]>> <<< Huge artifacts to reanimate aren't the only cards you might want to discard. Discard [[Ovalchase Daredevil]] and continuously return them back to your hand. Use cards like [[Currency Converter]] to squeeze extra value out of your discarded cards. >>> #### Combos _the true test of awesomeness_ <<< There are a lot of combos in the cube. Combine them with existing strategies or create a focused deck for combo kills! >>> ##### _Thopter Sword_ <<[[!Thopter Foundry|42b8d797-b01d-49cf-9818-d84bba17029d]] [[!Sword of the Meek|7668aaf3-194b-49f4-9f79-e51e89e8f2f8]] [[!Urza, Lord High Artificer|81329329-0154-4f89-a476-a54112dfa0b7]]>> <<< Assembling Thopter Foundry and Sword of the Meek allows you to generate a thopters and gain a life as many times as you want for 1 mana. If Urza is also in play, you can create infinite thopters and gain infinite life. >>> ##### _Zirdalith_ <<[[!Zirda, The Dawnwaker]] [[!Basalt Monolith|d4f3e497-7584-42b4-ad37-845c4a8dce43]] [[!Grim Monolith]]>> <<< Get infinite colorless mana by having Zirda in play along with either Grim Monolith or Basalt Monolith. >>> ##### _Krark-Clan Ironworks_ <<[[!Krark-Clan Ironworks]] [[!Scrap Trawler]] [[!Myr Retriever]]>> <<< [[Krark-Clan Ironworks]] is a particularly powerful sacrifice engine, and lets you power out big turns with the help of recursive cards like [[Scrap Trawler]]. >>> ##### _Artifact Storm_ <<[[!Paradox Engine]] [[!Lion's Eye Diamond]] [[!Brain Freeze|59a43ef5-08f0-44fc-802d-b6cfd56b7d1f]] [[!Underworld Breach]]>> <<< [[Krark-Clan Ironworks]], [[Paradox Engine]] and [[Lion's Eye Diamond]] are all powerful mana generation engines. When combined with Recursion and Card Draw engines like [[Memory Jar]], [[Underworld Breach]], [[Bolas's Citadel]] you can probably find a way to bury your opponent. >>> #### _Top Deck_ <<[[!Sensei's Divining Top]] [[!Mystic Forge]] [[!The Reality Chip]] [[!Foundry Inspector]]>> <<< Make Sensei's Divining Top less boring! Draw your whole deck when you have a cost reducer in play by repeatedly playing Sensei's Divining Top from the top for free. >>> ##### _Sam Cat_ <<[[!Samwise Gamgee]] [[!Cauldron Familiar|9a539a23-8383-4525-82dd-acfe1d219fe9]] [[!Altar of Dementia]]>> <<< Infinitely drain your opponent by infinitely reanimating Cauldron Familiar with the help of Samwise Gamgee. >>> ##### _Counter Token Loops_ <<[[!Rosie Cotton of South Lane|75338f49-1f02-4333-87e4-5779ef14e688]] [[!Lonis, Genetics Expert]] [[!Animation Module]]>> <<< There are lots of ways to generate infinite loops with [[Animation Module]] or [[Lonis, Genetics Expert]]. Try and assemble these as a powerful combo finish for your deck. [[Animation Module]] + _Altar_ + _Counter Generator or Giver_ [[Lonis, Genetics Expert]] + _Altar_ + _Counter Giver_ ___Altars:___ [[Krark-Clan Ironworks]], [[Ashnod's Altar]], [[Phyrexian Altar]], [[Crime Novelist]] + _Sacrifice Engine_ ___Counter Generators:___ [[Crime Novelist]], [[Ravenous Squirrel]], [[Korvold, Fae-Cursed King]], [[Captain Storm, Cosmium Raider]], [[Gleaming Geardrake]], [[Syr Ginger, the Meal Ender]], [[Securitron Squadron]] ___Counter Givers:___ [[Yotian Dissident]], [[Rosie Cotton of South Lane]] >>> ## Omissions <<< - The Power Nine, and other unconditional fast mana like [[Sol Ring]] - [[Mishra's Workshop]], [[Tinker]] & [[Tolarian Academy]] - These cards were just too powerful with the density of artifacts in the cube. - [[Shatterstorm]], [[Bane of Progress]] and similar effects - There's a lot of back breaking hate that's just too oppressive against artifact decks.