General 2023 Cube in Review

MilesOfficial

MilesOfficial

I feel like we all did this before, but I wanted to see what the lovely folks of Riptide's answers were for the 2023 Cube in Review, like they do over at Lucky Paper. There are five sections -- just copy and paste my response and replace it with your own to keep the format like on Lucky Paper!

If you want the best way to visualize your Cube's new cards printed in 2o23, just add this to the end of your CubeCobra URL:

?f=set%3DLCI+OR+set%3DREX+OR+set%3DLCC+OR+set%3DWHO+OR+set%3DWOC+OR+set%3DWOE+OR+set%3DCMM+OR+set%3DLTR+OR+set%3DLTC+OR+set%3DMAT+OR+set%3DMOM+OR+set%3DMOC+OR+set%3DONE+OR+set%3DONC&s1=Set&s2=Color+Identity&view=spoiler
Click to expand...

Here's my new cards, for example.

Cube “Hit” of the Year​

LSV's daily Cube draft videos (and to a lesser extent but no less important extent, Tolarian Community College's Cube videos). Not only are they wildly entertaining and helpful to me as a drafter, but they've singlehandedly raised the profile of Cube in the community as an alternative to the grind of messy constructed formats. As one of the most visible and recognized pros/content creators in the space, LSV is the perfect person to start a new effort, and I'm so so happy it's about Cube (even if I don't really want to draft the specific Cubes he prefers).

Video platforms are the ultimate/most effective way to engage in online spaces in 2023. And there's a huge drought of video content for MtG in general -- what content there is, views don't gravitate towards them in the way one would expect when compared to similar games. A shockingly small amount of MtG players watch any MtG video content on YouTube, TikTok, Reels, etc. and when they do, it's stuff like The Command Zone. In just a few months, LSV's new channel has become among the most-watched in the Magic space, and that's going to be helpful for bringing more awareness to Cube in the years to come.

Cube “Miss” of the Year​

With all the CubeCon drama of the last 48 hours, it's easy to say that in hindsight, but mine is related enough that it was worth a mention anyways: the lack of Cube events. CubeCon proved out the case in 2022, but similar Cube events were much slower to pop up than I would've expected. I moved 8,000 miles in both 2022 and 2023, otherwise I would've started one myself, but there should be community and/or store-driven Cube events of note in every metro area where Magic players gather. Cube is the best way to play Magic, and playing it in person is the best way to do it, so we should be making that happen on the biggest scale feasible.

The Limited Resources team says 2024 will be the "Year of Cube" and I hope he's right, but it'll take folks like us to make it so.

Cube Card of the Year​



This isn't particularly close for me - Inti is my clear favorite of the year. The interplay with all varieties of decks I already support (and want to keep supporting with the ever-increasing power-level of my Cube/new cards being printed) makes Inti the ideal crossover card. Whether you're getting incidental value off your Faithless Lootings or jamming in your Embereth Veterans on turn two for extra damage, Inti does it all.

I love a good two-drop card that isn't immediately oppressive but can be a game-winning engine if you work for it.

Best Set for Cube​



I have thirty-two cards from Wilds of Eldraine in my Cube. Still! It's very rare I have more cards included a set later than I started off with, but WOE continues to present gems to me. Adventure cards are an easy win, but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the suite of excellent one-drops in nearly every color or the cycle of man-lands that are such a big increase in quality over the BFZ cycle. While only a slightly-better-than-average draft set, WOE had tools for Cube far beyond what I'd ever expect from a standard set.

Cube Level-Ups​



Last year was the start of this for me, but in 2023 I really found a lot of value in including a bunch of individual cards that can single-handedly inspire my players to change their draft strategies and try out one-off decks or unique variations of other archetypes. Especially with larger Cubes like mine, there's a lot of room for these kinds of cards that aren't useless on their own, and I think this is a great way to increase the replayability of my Cube.

BONUS CATEGORY: Best New Basics of Each Type​

ltr-263-plains.jpgsld-1400-island-1.jpgrex-23-swamp.jpgsld-1476-snow-covered-mountain.jpgsld-1477-snow-covered-forest.jpg

Very hard year to pick favorites. Can't believe I picked so many full-art lands considering I generally don't prefer them! The Shire is the quintessential "Plains" vibe, and this art is a true delight. The whole set of JungShan's painterly ink pieces are easily contenders across the cycle. The Jurassic Park Swamp has the intimidation factor we don't get often enough in swamps, plus the murky water is beautiful and very swamp-y. ELK64's snow cycle for Secret Lair is my favorite though, with the Mountain and Forest of particular interest to me. These lands capture winter so well: there's a sense of mystery that the season brings on, of not knowing what potential dangers are in front of you, just barely obscured. But it's also beautiful, and wondrous, and romantic. It might be cheating a bit to do snow lands, but hey, for everything except my draft box (and standard I guess lol), they're fair game!

--
Let's see yours!!
 
Last edited:
Nanonox

Nanonox

New cards added in 2023.

Cube “Hit” of the Year​


More support and glue cards for various themes.

This has been a good year for the discard archetype as well as the +1/+1 counter deck. Artifact matters has also recieved some cool new toys. I am sure other themes have had a boost too, but these are some I actively support and it’s fun to have more tools and options.

Cube “Miss” of the Year

Card complexity and wordiness is still too high.

They’ve made some simple ones that I happily play (Reprieve, Troll of Kazad-Dum) so it can be done. Just stop adding random text to cards! Take Malcolm, Alluring Scoundrel, a card that I cube with. You could remove the Chorus counter bullshit and I would still happily play it!

Cube Card of the Year​




Right now, my cube design is all about allowing drafters to express themselves with crazy engines and synergies. It's tough to get crazier than this Cauldron! It's a self-contained enabler and payoff, stapled to a piece of GY interaction.

Even if you have no other cards that care about +1/+1 counters this will do some work. But if you have a Mikaeus, the Lunarch, Steel Overseer or Nissa, Voice of Zendikar, things get silly fast. There are a lot of worthwhile abilities to trigger from Goblin Welder, to Loran of the Third Path or heaven forbid, Griselbrand.


Best Set for Cube​

There have been some great sets for cube this year! Some real power houses in LoTR and sweet designs and adventures in WOE.

But for me, Lost Caverns of Ixalan has provided some amazing glue cards and I am here for it.



And a plethora of others really help archetypes meld and mesh together allowing the drafter more freedom during their draft.

Cube Level-Ups​

My most recent cube level up has been making sure that the synergy pieces in my cube are actually the correct picks. Dom’s Cubecon report talking about Uber Bear’s artifact cube really hit home.

One way to do this is to have them be at the top of the power-band. I’ve done a fairly good job of that.
A second way, and this is where I failed, is keeping the good stuff cards in check. Mystic Confluence, Chandra, Torch of Defiance, Necron Deathmark, …
All of these are great cards that are a lot of fun, but draft them all in the same deck and you don’t need any synergy to win!

So I cut these and am working on ironing out the rest of the list.


BONUS CATEGORY: Best New Basics of Each Type

I am pretty indifferent to most of the basics released. Some are pretty, but don't really speak to me. This one did and deserves a mention!

s87078.png


I love the Mirage lands, but dislike that they have the tap symbol as it clashes with the full textbox mana. Dominaria Remastered solved that with one of these Mirage lands in foil, no less!
 
Velrun

Velrun

For me cube has been lying silent for 2023. There were simply too many cards that fit my cube’s criteria perfectly that I had to stop and redesign some of my levels. That us currently still going on. 2023 cards didn’t only have the right mechanics. They also had the right art and flavor of party adventure explore questing so they were too good to ‘not’ shake up Ascension.
 
TrainmasterGT

TrainmasterGT

Cube Hit of the Year​

The Average Power Level of New Sets.


The sets of 2023 had the best slate of sets in a long time. While the year started a bit slow with the underwhelming Phyrexia: All Will Be One, it came roaring back in April with March of the Machine. The subsequent sets were phenomenal, including new classics like Tales of Middle Earth and Wilds of Eldraine. Even the final set of the year, Lost Caverns of Ixalan, succeeded where the original fell flat and provided us with a bunch of cool new cards in that great setting.


Power level-wise, this year was also one of the most consistent in recent memory. No sets felt broken, yet all but one felt above-average quality-wise. The only actual weak link was Phyrexia at the beginning of the year, and that was mainly because WOTC correctly decided to play the poison theme safe. Sets had compelling cards at every rarity, including cool card draw like Wrenn's Resolve and Decadent Dragon, awesome cheap creatures like Cenote Scout, and phenomenal finishers Atraxa, Grand Unifier and Trumpeting Carnosaur. I am also super happy to see the return of Adventures. The new take on Adventure felt more dynamic than the originals since many of the new cards either required a second color to play or couldn't curve into themselves. I really liked Mosswood Dreadknight and Decadent Dragon. The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth also had a lot of surprisingly cool cards. I was afraid it would feel like a core set since it is clearly designed to draw in new players who maybe haven't played Magic before, but I felt like it struck a good line between complexity and simplicity. Samwise Gamgee is one of my favorite cards of all time now!

There were a couple of individual cards that overshot the mark a little bit. Orcish Bowmasters would have been perfect if it was going straight to legacy, but being legal in modern makes it a little too good. I don't feel The One Ring is broken, but I think it's a little too good as a colorless card (although I would be Cubing it if it hadn't made such a splash in constructed). I don't blame Up the Beanstalk or Geological Appraiser for being too good, as they were both problematic in the context of other cards in their respective formats as opposed to in their own right. To be honest, this year's constructed power-level issues were probably the least impactful in a decade, since they were all either attached to fun cards or addressed right away.

Cube Miss of the Year​

The Doctor Who Characters I Cared About.


I was really excited when WOTC announced that we were going to be getting Doctor Who cards. I was a big fan of this franchise when I was younger, and I wanted to be able to use some of the moments and characters I enjoyed in my Cube. Unfortunately, WOTC did a terrible job designing most of the Doctors and Companions. Amy Pond? Gray Ogre with some suspend trinket text. The Eleventh Doctor? Passwall Adept stapled to Wojek Halberdier. These cards just feel like weak, generic "time matters" cards and really have nothing to do with the characters. That's not the only issue, however. Even some of the more flavorful cards just don't meet the mark. The Pandorica, a powerful artifact that can hold a being in stasis for centuries? It's almost always just worse than Banishing Light. I don't even know what they were thinking with Dinosaurs on a Spaceship. The dinosaurs were locked on a spaceship for 65 Million years before their ship came on course back to Earth. Why can I hard cast them only a turn after I would be able to suspend them? The suspend cost should be a lot cheaper and the Pterosaurs should either not be part of the card or be balanced for more appropriate suspend timing. The character closest to being both correctly powered and correctly flavored from the entire 11th Doctor era is Rory Williams, but honestly, he should have been called "Rory, the Last Centurion" and stayed suspended for less time. As is the card enters too late to do anything.

This whole release was very frustrating to me because there were plenty of good cards in the set. The Sea Devils is a fantastic card, Gallifrey Falls // No More is probably one of the coolest split-cards ever, Ecstatic Beauty is a great use of suspend with ecstatically beautiful art to boot. But they really failed with most of the doctors and companions. It's a shame because WOTC did showcase that they could get these cards right in the set, even with the Companions. Sarah Jane Smith is probably the coolest card in the entire set. Astrid Peth, while only appearing in one episode and not having the Doctor's Companion mechanic, is also really interesting. They just for some reason threw all of their design skills out the window when trying to make the cards I cared about. Even if they liked some of these designs, the cards are still over costed. For example, there's no real reason Amy couldn't have been a 2/1 for {R} or a 2/2 for {1}{R}. The card still wouldn't have been great, even with those cost adjustments.

It's a real shame, because this set should have been an easy slam-dunk. Unfortunately, WOTC just dropped the ball where it mattered.

Cube Card of the Year​


This card is from that new Digital-Only Khans of Tarkir set that WOTC just posted to Magic Arena. Siege Rhino has given black decks a reason to speculate into Green and White. It's a great card to pair with Necropotence in the Timeless format since it can gain some life while also applying pressure to the opponent. It's a better design than most popular 4-drops since it always does enough to not be blown out by removal but doesn't tend to run away with the game by itself. I think people should be playing this over inferior designs like Sheoldred, the Apocalypse.

Siege Rhino is definitely the best card of the year!

Cube Card of the Year​

To be honest, I had a lot of trouble picking a favorite new Cube card for this year. Ever since I started graduate school in late June, I haven't had enough time to test most of the new cards in my main Cube, and I haven't been able to fire an 8-person draft. Today, I'm going to say my favorite is Up the Beanstalk.

This card is such a cool enabler for so many decks. Ramp strategies can use this card as a draw engine, but that's barely scratching the surface of what this card can do. Are you playing a delve deck? Up the Beanstalk turns your Tasigurs, Murktide Regents, and Hooting Mandrills into Elvish Visionaries. Playing domain? Draw cards off of Scion of Draco and Leyline Binding. It even works with Bring to Light! Affinity? How would you like your Thought Monitors to become Ancestral Recall with a free Carnivorous Death Parrot attached!? Not to mention how great this card is with Scam Cards and Force of Will (as @safra can attest to).

Up the Beanstalk is truly the coolest card of the year, and I expect it to only see more Cube play as time goes on!

Honorable Mentions:

I love Samwise Gamgee, he almost was my pick, but I think he's narrow enough that I don't think he's really the best Cube card of the year. Mosswood Dreadknight and Cheeky House-Mouse were also almost picks for me due to their simplicity and phenomenal play patterns, but I decided to go with a more unconventional choice as well. Let's be honest– the real winner this year is Abzan! Special thanks to Tough Cookie, Virtue of Persistence, and Virture of Loyalty for being awesome too!

Best Set for Cube​

So many great sets were released this year, but I'm going to say it's a tie between Wilds of Eldraine and Lost Caverns of Ixalan!

I don't think it would be fair for me to pick between these two sets! Lost Caverns of Ixalan brought a lot of individually great Cube cards for us to enjoy. Sentinel of the Nameless City and the aforementioned awesome one-drops are helping to give a synergistic slant to proactive decks all across the Cube world. Meanwhile, cool finishers like Trumpeting Carnosaur provide awesome options for more reactive strategies.

Meanwhile, Wilds of Eldraine was a nearly perfect set from a mechanical standpoint. The new Adventure cards have started to show how the mechanic will mature into what I hope will be a frequent cornerstone of the game. As I said, the Virtures, Mosswood Dreadknight, Cheeky House-Mouse, Questing Druid and Decadent Dragon are all great iterations of Adventure! Meanwhile, the set's use of the Bargain mechanic as a way to tie together Artifacts, Enchantments, and Tokens is probably the single best mechanics usage of the entire year. The new food cards were all hits, I am a huge Tough Cookie fan! I also really liked the Role tokens. I thought they were a fun and flavorful way to buff up creatures, and I enjoyed the texture they brought to the game. I also enjoyed the Faerie Adventure archetype from the limited format, I may even try to modify it for usage in my Cube!

Cube Level-Ups​


This year, I finally accepted that it's ok to just do my own thing.

For the longest time, I was struggling to find a Cube space where I "fit in." Riptide was always very accepting, but I eventually lost interest in designing lower-power Cubes as my main project. Other spaces like MTGSalvation, Reddit, and various Discord groups were usually working with a sort of hive-mind mentality, which was nice for learning about a subset of new cards but was generally not great for generating new ideas that applied to my design goals.

I was really concerned about trying to find spaces where there were communities of people who had similar design goals to me and could help me with my design work. While I met many great people along the way (shoutouts to @Chris Taylor , @landofMordor , @Onderzeeboot , and @safra !), I still wasn't able to find exactly what I was hoping for out of the community. But what I did find were skills and connections. These people, along with many others, became friends and acquaintances. While they didn't always have the exact answers I was looking for, they were more often than not able to help me find a good solution myself. To paraphrase John Lennon and Paul McCartney, I tried with a little help from my friends, and I got by with a little help from my friends.

By 2021 I was to the point where I was able to do the work by myself. In the two years since, I have refined my craft, and I am in a really good place design-wise. My main Cube, as much as it is focused on trying to invoke the play patterns of something tangible, is still fundamentally informed by my own experiences, preferences, and nostalgia. I believe that my design techniques are some of the best ways to replicate play patterns from formats of years past. As the community has grown, and more diverse Cubes have started to pop up in a similar power space to mine, I was hoping that some of the things that I was developing would catch on and potentially catch on. While that hasn't ended up happening to the extent that I hoped, I think that's ok. Even though there has been an increasing sentiment in the broader Cube community about wanting to re-experience the old days through Cube, resistance to using complicated but up-to-date Cube tech and animosity towards Universes Beyond I think has really turned some people off to innovations that are often in service of desirable play patterns. While I think many designers could potentially learn some potentially valuable lessons in designing archetypes from nostalgic and historically relevant decks from my techniques, I also recognize that those designers may have goals that don't primarily focus on gameplay or are looking to avoid certain game elements that existed in the past. I think that's even good! I started this journey by myself, and while I would love other people to join me in riding Siege Rhinos cloned by Fable of the Mirror Breaker to victory, I can ride that road alone with no downside.

I still want to share what I'm doing with other people, as I think there is real value in the design work I'm doing. I realize that it's not reasonable to believe that other well-established Cubers are going to want to listen to the offbeat design ideas from a guy who primarily wants to play Siege Rhino, Delve Cards, and his favorite second-rate FIRE threats alongside a pile of cantrips. But honestly, that's ok. I can keep fighting the good fight; maybe I'll help some people along the way. Perhaps there are some winds of change on the horizon. For example, @andymangold did just add two cards I have historically championed, Whisperwood Elemental and Ripjaw Raptor, to his Bun Magic Cube. His Cube resides in the same cluster as my current Highball 4K Cube in the Lucky Paper Cube Map. Maybe I won't be alone for much longer!

But regardless of what happens, I am finally content with my design abilities. I think my Cube standing alone has allowed it to evolve into being the unique environment it is today. It is my sincere hope that I am able to continue this strong energy into the new year!

Cube Resolutions​

I know this isn't part of the LPR list, but I wanted to add this because I enjoy New Year's resolutions!

I have been working with a Local Game Store chain in my state to potentially start a store Cube series. While I'm still in the early planning process, and there's a non-zero chance it won't happen, I am incredibly excited about the potential of stable, regular paper Cube events being backed by an actual gaming space. It is my resolution to see my greater state Cube project through and get it to gaming tables (potentially) near you!

Thanks for reading!
–GT
 
LadyMapi

LadyMapi

Cube Miss Of The Year

Last year was a pretty rough one, so I didn't actually get around to any real cubing. Might try to change that in the coming year.
 
ravnic

ravnic

Cube Hit of the Year​

I just cubed a lot, compared to recent years. I had 14 drafts with 4-8 people happening this year, and I connected with a new draft group. I also finally found the perfect solution for my ravnica cube. However, all of that has to pale next to my actaully biggest hit: My 375 cards custom Pokémagic Cube. Seems like a decade of thinking about cube and reading MaRo's articles was good for something. It was an incredible experience to see two years of work playing out so nicely. Also, of course, a nostalgia kick for me and other Pokémon fans.

RC2 Pikachu 2.jpg UN5 Verlockender Köder.jpg XC9 Mewtu.jpg

Cube Miss of the Year​


Despite me connecting with a group of ~40 people who are heavily into drafting, I didn't manage yet to convince them, at least the majority of them, that cube is just better than retail limited. When someone buys a booster box and asks in the whatsapp group for people to draft, they have a much easier time getting to 8 or even more people than I have with any of my three cubes. However, I wont give up and there have been people really enjoying my creations, so there is a reason to believe in it.

Cube Card of the Year​




I have always wanted to just have a bear in red that rummages when it attacks. We got lots of versions on that, pushed and wordy stuff like Conspiracy Theorist as well as very bad versions like Battlefield Scavenger. Now, I finally got one that's elegant and good without doing too much. It's the only card from LCI in my cube yet, but it isn't likely to ever leave.

Best Set for Cube​




I guess it has to be WOE for me. I have a whopping nine cards from 2023 in my whole cube, and four of them are from the new eldraine. second place would surprisingly go to ONE with two cards lol. It really wasn't a year for the CCC in that sense. We got a lot of DFCs, got wordy cards and keywords that would've been on only one card of interest. That being said, I've never been the guy to make 30+ updates with new sets.

Cube Level-Ups​


Not sure what to say about my main cube. I figured some details, balanced my mono color support, balanced the landfall theme, nothing special. So I will give this one to my new old Ravnica Cube. I came up with the solution of guild modules, containing all the gold cards and fixing for their respective guild. Five of those will semi-rendomly, in a way that each color is represented twice, be chosen before a draft and shuffled in with the core. That finally allowed me to create a draft format that works as smoothly like a modern two-color faction set but still comes with the nostalgia and charme of the whole original Ravnica block. In addition, it provides you with lots of variety.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top