Article Channel Waddell: Cube Draft #2
- Thread starter Jason Waddell
- Start date
I felt like you shouldve either taken Counterspell pick 2 or Tarmogoyf pick 3. This wouldve set you up to be more aggressive than you were and probably end up Bant. As it seems though, and you mentioned this, you were pretty apprehensive to take green cards even after giving solid reason for taking Cobra pick 2. I know my Modern restriction creates a different environment but Im always looking for the cheaper aggressive creatures before any finisher. Control needs these cheaper creatures so they arent blown out in the early game. Most control finishers can be swapped out with each other as well. I agree that Sphinx is one of the better ones but I still wouldnt take it that early in the draft. Especially since Meloku and Jar-Jar showed up later. I greatly enjoyed the article and love reading others thought process when drafting. How do you set it up to record these drafts and how much extra time can the other players expect to add with you taking notes? Id love to try this with one of my drafts sometime.
Hi Sterling, thanks for posting. I don't disagree with any of your points. My local players can attest that I usually stick to a very low curve. I've played control decks that top out at 4 CMC, and as my environment skews towards a Legacy style I think that's usually correct. But as a designer I still like to check in on archetypes. Is this type of deck still viable? Yes, maybe, but it's certainly not Tier 1 anymore.
I don't think Wrath of God is a very strong cube card (at least over here). I'd usually much rather be the deck casting Flametongue Kavu at the 4-drop slot. Andy Cooperfauss posted somewhere (Twitter? Facebook?) that he thinks UW Tempo is stronger than UW Control, and I tend to agree. The week after this draft a player won with 3 Steppe Lynx UW Tempo.
White control was very wide open in this draft, but even then I'm not sure that it's where I wanted to be. A Bant deck would likely have been stronger, and I've had incredible success with Lotus Cobra in the past. It's probably the card most highly correlated to win percentage in my decks. Lotus Cobra, Dark Confidant and Koth. Who knows, I don't keep data. I wonder if there's a smart way to improve the performance of UW control type of decks. Add another mana rock somewhere? Sphinx's Revelation?
As for recording drafts, I have a thread about it here: http://riptidelab.com/forum/threads/recording-paper-drafts.32/
Taking notes doesn't take up too much time, but when you're playing the slowest deck at the table it's an issue. The other problem is that we played this on a work night, so I had to take more detailed notes than had we played on, say, Sunday afternoon. On the weekend I can draft then write the match reports mostly from memory, with chicken scratch for notes. If I draft during the week I have to write the report a day or two later, and need better notes.
Have been thinking about ways to improve big control.
What are your experiences with this card in cube?
What are your experiences with this card in cube?
My group LOVES this card. I gets picked really high here. If Im dedicated control its a card that makes me feel better having in my deck. It doesnt completely hose aggro (like Lone Missionary was doing) but it does help control stay in the game and find their answers. On average I would guess x=3. Drawing cards at instant speed is what I like most about it.
Dom Harvey
Contributor
Yeah, nothing bad to say about Revelation.
CML
Contributor
i wanna reflexively vote "no" on sphinx's due to previous bad experiences with similar cards, but the cube has changed a lot since i took out USZ and phyrexian arena for ruining control mirrors.
at what point does it start being good in cube, x=3? i dunno, i might try it but my playgroup is averse to the idea (and we have plenty of UW players -- ok, maybe only one and a half -- who have said it'd just be the best card)
at what point does it start being good in cube, x=3? i dunno, i might try it but my playgroup is averse to the idea (and we have plenty of UW players -- ok, maybe only one and a half -- who have said it'd just be the best card)
CML
Contributor
it's true. i tossed it in anyway let em deal with it.
i think cubes' extreme sensitivity to subtle shifts in curve is a far-out topic. i guess it's a topic for any limited format
edit: i never really think of lone missionary as hosing aggro. you get a good rate on the dude, but he doesn't give you the time that an unopposed reckoner in std or goyf in legacy do. kitchen finks is about as aggro-hosey as i get in cube (though i also do like loxodon hierarch and baneslayer angel)
i think cubes' extreme sensitivity to subtle shifts in curve is a far-out topic. i guess it's a topic for any limited format
edit: i never really think of lone missionary as hosing aggro. you get a good rate on the dude, but he doesn't give you the time that an unopposed reckoner in std or goyf in legacy do. kitchen finks is about as aggro-hosey as i get in cube (though i also do like loxodon hierarch and baneslayer angel)
To be fair Kitchen Finks is pretty far on the extreme of aggro hosing. Gains 4 life while blocking and/or killing two of their dudes.
Chris Taylor
Contributor
And yet, he's also great in aggro decks because he's a recursive body.
funny how that works
Depending on your density of removal, baneslayer does a pretty silly batterskull impersonation. I contemplated cutting it recently (only to be persuaded by the missus, since it's her favorite card)
funny how that works
Depending on your density of removal, baneslayer does a pretty silly batterskull impersonation. I contemplated cutting it recently (only to be persuaded by the missus, since it's her favorite card)
Your new deck also missed out on your crazy 4 drops of the bant one. Those probably helped solidify position where in the new deck you were hoping to grind into something big or grind long enough for your littler threats to take action. I will say that your new deck had one additional sword for the mystic to pick up, I am surprised this wasn't more relevant, but I guess only have 4-5 reasonable dudes to hold the swords hurt a lot compared to the old deck of like 7-10ish, plus buddies from Elspeth.
My guess is that even though you have two decent bombs to finish off, the new deck durdles really hard for relatively few game enders at the top of the curve.
(I am new, sorry if I'm way off here.)
My guess is that even though you have two decent bombs to finish off, the new deck durdles really hard for relatively few game enders at the top of the curve.
(I am new, sorry if I'm way off here.)
No, I'd say these are all fairly accurate assessments.