FlowerSunRain's Cube

[FlowerSunRain]

I added 24 cards to my cube before I played it this weekend for some reason. Lolteth Troll, the spoiler season darling that subsequently was completely forgotten once the RTR was released was also the MVP in his rookie outing, making me wish I had drafted quicksand instead of desert out of the util binder. Dude was tough deal with and set up some quality Diabolic Servitude plays to boot, I think he has a place to stay over his balls to the ball aggro brother putrid leech.

 

[Chris Taylor]

I run both and love it

Whats in your competing GB slots?

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I don't really have "slots", but only other GB gold card I'm running is Varolz (Creekwood Liege semi-counts). I'll update what I added to my list asap for quality.

 

[Chris Taylor]

Yeah, I'd count creakwood leige. Seems a bit ambitious in a gruul deck I'd reckon

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I've seen him effective in G/U and mono-green devotion, for what that's worth, but he's by far the best in G/B.

 

[Chris Taylor]

Oh I'm sure he can be played just like geralf's messenger can make it into an evenly split 2 color deck, but it is WAY less likely.

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

With all your edict effects, did you make a decision to consciously dial down cards that make tokens?

 

[FlowerSunRain]

No, I didn't. If there are fewer token makers, it was completely unintentional. Edicts are powerful in that they can kill anything if its by itself, so their presence is powerful in encouraging overextention. They are also brutal for taking down the aura'd up dude as they get around hexproof. Being soft to doomed traveler and that ilk is the price for power.

Actually, last weekend there was a deck with Deranged Hermit, Bloodline Keeper, Creekwood Liege, Hornet Queen and Diabolic Servitude, so it certainly didn't feel like the token makers were dialed down! Knowing he had every token maker at the table (4 man face up draft) sans Doomed Traveler, he safely slotted in Chainer's Edict, Consuming Vapors and Fleshbag Maurader with little fear of them hitting junk.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I'm putting a list here of "out of place" cards. These cards do not particularly conform to the roles of the color in my cube and are probably here because of some non-gameplay reason (inadvertent powermax, nostalgia, gridfilling, etc.). The purpose of this list is to separate these cards with hopes to decide if they serve a legitimate purpose or not.

Weathered Wayfarer
Armageddon
Cataclysm
Time Spiral
Vampire Hexmage
Eternal Witness
Vindicate

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

I like hexmage and vindicate as flexible answers to walkers, as I feel that the more answers to walkers there are the better and that's even without super loads of walkers. With more answers printed, the more I could see them hitting the bench.

The rest I could take or leave and if there were things more interesting I'd swap them over.

Ps, think geddon is horrible.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I'm thinking of switching as follows:

Armageddon > Sunder
Unstable Mutation > Ethereal Armor

This puts the mana denial firmly in red/blue and the aggro enchantment into white.

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

I think that would deffo be worth a shot.

 

[Chris Taylor]

If you don't like geddon's unconditionality, try global ruin?

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

That's not too bad an idea. Still disruptive, slightly more expensive, requires more thought and easier to come back from.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I don't think Global Ruin is what I'm looking for. Overall, I don't mind Armageddon, but its existence as a white card in my cube is basically random. Sunder is in the right color, at a more reasonable cost and with much more play to it, I think it'll work out. I would like a card that is somewhat similar to cataclysm that cleans up the board in an interesting manner. So far I've got is Balancing Act and Austere Command. I'm not sure what deck wants balancing act (the decks that played it in constructed are neither possible nor desirable in cube) or if Austere Command is really anything other then a fancy wrath. Balance is just a stupid card and completely out of the question. Razia's Purification is along the right lines, but multicolor AND 6 mana is a lot to ask. Is there something I missed (I am willing to edit casting costs if needed!).

 

[Diakonov]

I noticed that on your List page you have Brood of Cockroaches at the top of the 1 cost creatures. Is that a custom change? Also, how has that been for you? I can't decide whether to include that card or simply double up on Reassembling Skeleton.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

Thanks for noticing that, it's now correctly marked as a custom card. It has been a very good inclusion for me. In exchange for the mana savings over the skeleton you lose life and can't gain value by discarding it. Its pretty good as an aggro roadblock for punishing 2/1s, though, unlike, say gravecrawler, so factor that into your decision.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

Running list of cards that might get added next update, along with whatever from the new set:

Divine Reckoning
Springjack Shepherd (at )
Firestorm
Devil's Play

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I'm pretty excited for my next update, but I'm still mulling over whether to increase the weight with some new draft rules to improve consistency, bloat the size a little or just shave back to the bone.

Some things could include:

1) Fixed first pack that includes essential cards (literal staples, so to speak)
2) Option picks that contain a choice of cards.
3) Even more doublepicks for other tenuous in singles stuff

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I'm in the middle of updating. Here are some random thoughts I had at work so I don't forget them:

1) Riptide Chimera cutesy support cards
2) Dead Weight and Rampager and Looter
3) Grave Pact too blah?
4) Renowned Weaver needs more scry
5) Proper cost on Cavern Lampad?
6) Dubs on narrow mini-archs (revered hunter, ajani's pridemate, young pyromancer)?
7) Enough in each crossover theme? (Bestow, Bleed, Doubletap, etc.)
7a) Any other decent bestows?
7b) Exort?
8) Fathom Mage (extra support, increasing savagery, give//take?)
9) Decent black heroic enabler (why do sacrifice effects never target?)
10) Fallen Ideal

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

Oooh, cryptic.

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

Also:

 

[FlowerSunRain]

I made my initial update. I've now moved past the "I want to play everything" phase and am now in the "this whole thing sucks, wtf?" stage where I repeatedly shift out 1-3 cards like it matters until I actually play the thing.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

More random notes

Geistflame
Ordeal of Erebus
Attunement (Almost definite)
Font of (the blue one)
Mana Bloom (but probably not)
Overrun
One with Nature
Zegana vs. Simic Sky Swallower
Green 6 Drop (prob Ramaging Baloths)
Increasing Savagery
Quasali Pridemage (sp?)
Travel Preparations
W/W/W/W/W
Notion thief (could be a stud)
Archetype of Agression
Disciple of Deceit

 

[FlowerSunRain]

Cards with power level concerns:

Fate Foretold (can't realistically be recosted, could add something dumb to it though)
Archetype of Courage (also boring)
Evangel of Heliod (white devotion prob doesn't need this for "support", should it just be big Elspeth, Angel of Serenity or something?)
Shimmering Wings (amazing synergy, low impact, worth?)
Battlefield Thaumaturge (number of targets is low, heroic ability is weak, stupidly fun with a few select cards)
Chromanticore(Can anyone actually cast this?)