Low Power, Core-set Cube

[anotherfan321]

Hi, I'm new to constructing cubes and I am about 14 cards and 500 sleeves short of finishing my first attempt at one. I had decided to use coresets as inspiration and have as such created a list solely of cards that have been printed in them.

Of course, being a traditional cube rather than a "set cube" means that there are likely going to be some issues in terms of power in regards to how it plays out. I am not sure how I am going to work around that as of now.

My intended use of the cube is to introduce drafting to some of the more casual MTG players in my college without having to buy packs. I also am a big fan of Winchester and Winston 2-man drafts, so having a simple recreation of a coreset as a means to kill about an hour's worth of time would be phenomenal.

Anyway, here is a link to the list I have constructed: http://cubetutor.com/visualspoiler/3936

 

[Eric Chan]

This is interesting. My first two cubes, if you could even call them that, were actually M10 and M11 set cubes, with two of each common and one of each uncommon. They were a phenomenal teaching tool and a great way for players who weren't too familiar with the game to get some games in without needing to build their own decks.

My first concern with your list is that of power level. You say you want to recreate the core set experience in cube format, but at a glance, I'm not so sure your cube does that. It's the relatively steep curve in the power level of your cards that could make for unbalanced games that won't feel like your traditional limited format. From poring over your list, I guess my concern is that the likes of Gideon Jura, Primeval Bounty and Mind Spring might be unbeatable when the opponent is packing the likes of Siege Mastodon and Rootwater Commando. Now, granted, these situations can certainly occur in the context of an actual core set draft. But the problem here would be exacerbated by the fact that you're running a small, tight list, with a handful of very powerful mythic rares, alongside a number of draft commons that usually don't make the cut in an M11 draft. So these kinds of imbalanced situations would be routine, rather than happening only every so often.

If you don't mind me leaving a bit of advice for you, I'd recommend that you choose a solid direction, and go forward with it. Either embrace the core set nature of your cube, and build a set cube; or go full on into designing a cube, with all of the design principles that that implies. If you choose the former, I'd go with something like a 3/2/1 design, or even a simplified 2/1 design, where you choose a subset of less powerful cards to double up on, and leave more powerful cards at singleton. You'd be much closer to replicating a core set feel with that makeup than with your current list. If you choose the latter, you can certainly still stick to your core set card pool constraint, and that would make for an interesting design exercise. But you'd want to pick a power band, and make sure that all of your cards are within striking distance of the center of that band. It would make for an improved drafting and gameplay experience for your group.

Right now, I think you're straddling the line, but sitting on the fence may not do anyone any favours. Pick a side, and stick with it!

 

[anotherfan321]

Thank you, I appreciate the advice. If anyone else has any tips, I would really appreciate it.

I might try the simplified 2/1 design. Evening out the power band (short of just cutting the most egregious offenders) seems a bit too herculean a task. Especially since a really even power band makes for very very difficult drafting. I've yet to test the cube seriously, but based on testing, I've found it already daunting trying to construct decks with as many playables.

 

[Alex Blanton]

I guess I'll say hi. First of all, I like that Slumbering Dragon and Goblin Diplomats are in the same set. That is a fearsome pair. Also, don't be afraid of the designing part. It just takes some time.

I'll just expand on Eric's post, since he fleshed things out pretty well. If you continue with designing the cube, just think about what archetypes you want to appear and how they interact with other archetypes. Core sets tend to have generic archetypes plus a couple gimmicky/unique ones. For example, the Act of Treason + sacrifice archetype from M14 came together from cards that were good, decent, or somewhat unwieldy on their own. That matchup turned anything with decent power into a risk, making people question their next move. These aspects turned it into a very fun deck to draft and play with and against, at least for me.

With your current list, I see a LOT of toughness in white middle drops, coupled with a lack of it in red and black. These may lead to balance issues where white can safely attack, but red has to suicide its guys to get past Bell-Tower Sphinx, Palace Guard, and Timely Reinforcements. Some of your lords are grindy enough to deal with that, but faster games are more fun. And won't take all your break time to finish. Besides that, your list seems ok to me.

The flatter power level of the cubes here gives more decisions, so veteran players like it. Newer players also learn subtle differences between cards with similar effects or power level. (Giant Growth vs Ranger's Guile, Enlarge vs Serra Angel) That being said, cards that are "more equal" give players a starting point. It doesn't have to be even, just balanced.

By the way, the Magic Club at my university cooperated with a local store for a free Mini-Masters and a draft in the clubroom. You could try something similar. The LGS would appreciate the advertising and you'd get some Limited out of the deal.

 

[anotherfan321]

I'm glad you noticed that! I was wondering if that bit of interaction would be too cute for most. I will try to see if I can think up a few less generic archetypes that use cards that can work either together or separately.

As for the big butt problem with white, that's a really good point. I will try to fix that. Thank you so much!

Really appreciate all this feedback!

 

[shadowcentaur]

Bit of thread necro here, are you still working on this cube? I've got a similar one and would be interested to hear how your experiences.

 

[Lucre]

Omg the whiteboardered beginner magic cube was an idea I had a looooooong time ago.

I'd love to read a manifesto or hear about any problems / ideas you have about this. It sounds like a great way to be able to sub in and out cards to craft many unique draft formats. The land issues are something I would have no problem editing my restrictions to mollify.

Welcome to the board by the way!