CML's Cube (405, polychromatic)

[CML]

i could try these all

currently: mickey the unhallowed, strangleroot, messenger, and my beloved pyreheart. it's "enough" but man i really wanna try young wolf

 

[Jason Waddell]

It's really juvenile, but every time I see that card my brain says "Demonlord of Ass-to-mouth".

 

[Chris Taylor]

From the for delver thread: Shift might be too expensive. What's your opinion of favorable winds?

 

[CML]

i love it. i'm gonna try it right away

 

[CML]

wadds you are way behind the curve of "Emrakul, the Anus Torn" and "Polukranus, Butthole Eater"

 

[Chris Taylor]

wadds you are way behind the curve of "Emrakul, the Anus Torn" and "Polukranus, Butthole Eater"

It's really juvenile, but every time I see that card my brain says "Demenlord of Ass-to-mouth".

We're a classy crowd

 

[Chris Taylor]

So Chris, do any of the blue cards in your cube do anything, or are they all just durdles to get better cards in other colors?
Cantrips, Intuition, Frantic Search, Mystical Tutor (Sidenote: the fuck is this doing here?), gifts...

Now I know why people say blue sucks in this cube. Blue's about half the size of the other colors

 

[CML]

well, doing nothing is blue's traditional role in MTG. still though your criticism is spot-on, i just reverted to this configuration because i am flummoxed for making a Blue permanents section that rivals Naya (and now Black too) in its power and fun.

i gotta cut gifts (intuition too maybe) but Frantic Search and Mystical Tutor are banned as reanimator enablers in Legacy for a reason ... (Tutor for Terminus is also hilarious) but yeahhh Blue does suck in this Cube and it's usually the permanent-based Blue decks (Bant Venser durdles) that end up being the few awesome ones

 

[Chris Taylor]

My opinion: Less finding more doing.
Mystical Tutor is banned because it lets you find broken cards like reanimate, or entomb. If a card in your cube is worth being played at a turn later down a card, it's probably too good, and I don't even think reanimate or entomb fit that bill. I get that it's cute with terminus, but I don't see it being good enough anytime soon unless it's ruining the game

Try these blue changes:
Out> In

Auger of Bolas > Looter Il-Kor
Old man of the Sea > Looter Il-Kor
Trinket Mage > Serendib Efreet
Vexing Sphinx > Fettergeist
Tidespout Tyrant > Consecrated Sphinx
Sphinx of Uthuun > Sphinx of Jwar Isle
Ponder > Man-o'-War
Preordain > Faerie Conclave
Mystical Tutor > Vapor Snag
Complicate > Hinder
Exclude > Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
Frantic Search > Sakashima's Student
Intuition > Sphinx of Lost Truths
Gifts Ungiven > Opposition
Repeal > Repulse
Careful Study > Spellstutter Sprite
Gitaxian Probe > Coralhelm Commander
Threads of Disloyalty > Control Magic
Time Warp > Force of Will

Sylvok Lifestaff > Bonesplitter
Relic of Progenitus > Runechanter's Pike
Pithing Needle > Runechanter's Pike

Explination:
Cards I don't like:

• Old man of the Sea: Control card, and a pretty low impact one anyways. If bonesplitter is on this guy, it's not on your beatdown guys, or it's in your control deck, and then what are you doing. He's not great just stealing 2 drops anyways.
• Trinket Mage: I count 7 targets, and sylvok lifestaff is only in here since this guy is. Nut up and add another bonesplitter, and cut this guy anyways. Even when he's fetching artifact lands, he's still Civic Wayfinder, and that card aint so great. Also not a fan of Pithing Needle or Relic of Progenitus either.
• Vexing Sphinx: Coming out for better fliers, mostly because it's hard to take advantage of his huge body when he dies so quickly. The death trigger does little to heal the damage his upkeep did, and lord help you if he gets exiled or bounced.
• Tidespout Tyrant: Too expensive, and you have to follow it up with other spells. Play bombs that reanimator AND control decks like.
• Mystical Tutor: See above rant
• Complicate: This is sadly pretty ineffective Try a cancel variant instead, hinder being my personal favorite. Dissolve would be fine too.
• Frantic Search: Too much reanimator support here man. Thirst for Knowledge and Compulsive Research pull double duty for control decks and reanimator decks, and this card is squarely in the latter category.
• Careful Study: See above.
• Intuition/Gifts: I think you've come to the conclusion these are more trouble than they're worth
• Time Warp: When has this been good?

Cards I like but had to come out anyway:

• Sphinx of Uthuun: I like it, but it looks like your blue section needs help, and that's not going to come from tier 2 powerful blue finishers. This guy is okay, but there's much more powerful things you could be playing that it looks like you need.
• Probe/Ponder/Preordain: You have a few too many of these, and I decided to keep triple brainstorm. I think it fits the best with the mentality. You've still got 3 brainstorm, 1 ponder 1 preordain.
• Exclude: Good card, but you're light on threats, not answers.
• Repeal: It's okay, but I prefer repulse since the mana you save makes it better for a tempo deck, where repeal is better for control decks just trying to buy time. Both are fine, but make the more aggro friendly switch.
• Threads of Disloyalty: Do you really need an aggro hoser? Control magic is a strong but fair card in cube, and it even got a new art printing in C13 so you can't complain about how shitty the beta artwork is.
• Auger of Bolas: This card is better the durdlier your blue section is. (This is why I prefer omenspeaker BTW, but I don't think you need either at present.)

Reasoning behind new cards:

• Looter Il-Kor x2: Face it, small blue attacking creatures suck. This guy carries equipment well, kinda helps out reanimator, and makes runechanter's pike a beast.
• Serendib Efreet: 3 power + Big butt = good aggro creature, decent control creature. 1 life a turn might be annoying, but he blocks so well sometimes it's worth it. Also really helps the blue aggro decks against aggro
• Fettergeist: See above
• Consecrated Sphinx/Sphinx of Jwar Isle: Your finishers are all insanely expensive except frost titan. Play cheaper stuff reanimator still likes.
• Man-o'-War: He's solid basically everywhere.
• Faerie Conclave: It's a sweet manland, what do you want? If this is in the utility land draft ignore this.
• Vapor Snag: Cheapness is key. You want some of the bounce in your cube to hit permanents (Into the roil, cyclonic rift, etc) but Creatures are your bread and butter.
• Coralhelm Commander: The most flexible level up creature ever. He's a 3/3 flier with echo, a phantom monster, a psudo air elemental, or just a bear. That's a lot of modes for a single creature.
• Kira, Great Glass-Spinner: Since all blue creatures except a small subset of 3 drop fliers have 1-2 toughness, she's really important.
• Sakashima's Student: Clone Plus, also he gaurentees to get the creature in unblocked. So if you ninja this guy out and copy say... a flipped test subject
• Sphinx of Lost Truths: I think you want another 5, and one with a big butt. This or prognostic sphinx would work, but I see so much reanimator support I fear you'd ignore me if I didn't mitigate cutting so much
• Opposition: Give it a try, it's honestly not as bad as you've been lead to believe. Gone are the days when t3 squirrel nest t4 this would just win you the game, and the average case you don't have too many creatures anyway. I think the risk/reward are fine here.
• Repulse: Love me a good bounce spell, and you've forgotten the best one (okay maybe remand)
• Spellstutter Sprite: Small disruptive guy is sweet. Also random gotcha moments with mutavault and V-Clique countering people's doom blades.
• Hinder: Ye olde Cancel Variant. I love putting dudes on top with this, and at worse it's dissipate plus. Your environment doesn't seem slow enough where this is unplayable, like some random cubes.
• Control Magic
• Force of Will

Ignore of this what you will, but there's my suggustions

 

[Jason Waddell]

This is a totally baller post. You should cross-post it to the Delver thread for double the likes.

 

[Jason Waddell]

To add, if you're looking for another counterspell, may I nominate my pet card Evasive Action?

 

[Chris Taylor]

I prefer adding a hard counter in this environment, but it's certainly possible. Card's definitely more interesting than mana leak, and leak is fine here.

 

[James Stevenson]

I love Complicate, it's really good in my cube. Just saying.

 

[CML]

o happy day, thanks so much chris. your power evals are erratic but like who cares, i think we're getting closer now:

IN (17)
cloudfin
cloudfin
delver
delver
coralhelm
ninja of the deep hours
equilibrium
serendib efreet
kira, gg spinner
sakashima’s student
psionic blast
vapor snag
evasive action
judge’s familiar
izzet charm
edric
bonesplitter

OUT (17)
tamiyo
vexing sphinx
brainstorm
gifts ungiven
condescend
careful study
preordain
complicate
trinket mage
pithing needle
sylvok lifestaff
exclude
plumeveil
into the roil
forbidden alchemy
scute mob
porcelain legionnaire

 

[Jason Waddell]

I would take out all your non-Brainstorm cantrips before you cut any Brainstorms.

 

[Chris Taylor]

Also I'd keep tamiyo in so control doesn't get any worse. She's mostly harmless, but solid.

 

[CML]

but straight control will be worse whatever we do here, like it'll benefit from fewer people in Blue trying to build that kind of deck but not as much as it's hurt by the 15+ cuts

 

[Chris Taylor]

but straight control will be worse whatever we do here, like it'll benefit from fewer people in Blue trying to build that kind of deck but not as much as it's hurt by the 15+ cuts

You know we are also focusing the section in addition to adding the tempo blue thing, right? Those cuts for Consecrated Sphinx weren't for nothing you know

Also, having taken a good look at those changes, why is the roman leaving? He's sweet, and in this deck too!
Glad your cutting scute mob, good riddance to old rubbish. I guess he s'cute though

 

[CML]

right, but it'll still be hurt on balance.

ugh i dunno i get a headache and make bad design choices sometimes. the legionnaire is OK but god scute mob.

 

[Chris Taylor]

I'd keep legionaire in if you can, 3 power first strikers are sweet. Mans basically has evasion he's so hard to block

It's not too late! Relic of Progenitus isn't on that cut list yet

 

[CML]

all these smiley faces are making me wonder if i am like a cruel dictator whose obsequious underlings actually hate him

 

[Jason Waddell]

Yeah, if you want to support blue aggro, cutting colorless beaters feels like a nonbo. o_O

 

[Chris Taylor]

Nah I'm just a really expressive person IRL, and I find that text usually cuts a lot of that out.

 

[James Stevenson]

Yeah man, when I write I have my musical, lilting, expressive voice in my head, and then when I read things back I'm like "well gosh this is monotonous and why do write all these run on sentences?"

 

[Jason Waddell]

Yeah man, when I write I have my musical, lilting, expressive voice in my head, and then when I read things back I'm like "well gosh this is monotonous and why do write all these run on sentences?"

You're going to have to fix that for your next hitchhiking article...