To @Erik Twice: Okay, at first, thank you so much for all this feedback! When you're working on something and putting so much thought into it, it can be a huge help to get a view from outside, you know, from someone who can't know your thoughts. Please don't think I'm ungrateful when I have to elaborate my thoughts to some of the points you mentioned
I drafted your cube a couple times. Some thoughts:
1) I had difficulties with the art style. I had to check many cards to see which ones they were and what they did because I did not recognize the picture. Seeing Link does not make me think of Den Protector. Many of your alternate art styles use fonts that are harder to read.
While noone in my playgroup has explained any concerns or problems yet, I totally understand that some people might not like alternate looks for different reasons. I invest a lot of time, work and even money to have my "fake cards" be readable and feel and look as real as possibel though, so I am aware of this potential problem. But it is probably not worse than having complete customs right? At least you knew what Link does after reading the title.
Yeah, I just added over 220 cards to my cube! Of course there will be some stinkers. But I think you might've also be overwhelmed by the amount of unknown cards and the low power level, which you're not used to? I don't think a
Nantuko Vigilant is more complex than any of your green 3-drops, once you know how morph works. And "difficult to evaluate" sounds not all that bad, you know. Makes draft more challenging, adds variety and speaks for a flat power band.
Likewise, I think Winds of Rath is a very strong card. From those 5 you've listed I can only see Collapsing Borders being useless. Also, not that all these are occasionals too.
And it's funny you mentioned this card explicitly ...
... after saying there might be not enough cards you feel like you can rely on, since she's reliability in card form. She does something for 3/5 green archetype (madness, dredge, tokens) and is playable in every green deck ever in this format. A 2/2 for two is no bad place to start in this format, the power level is lower than you might have anticipated if you felt bad picking her. And double-flashback for 5 adds up for a solid early pick-level card.
Later on you've said, that there aren't enough lifegain sources for the "whenever you gain life" cards, but here you say that Recumbent Bliss and Exile could be just more Arrests? How about Cage of Hands re-triggering prowess effects? Arrest rewarding you for holding it up for the creature with the annoying activated ability?
Yeah, they are close in power level, as was the goal, but they are clearly adding variety to the format. So even if I wouldn't be sticking to the singleton rule, I don't see a reason to unify my removal spells, when there are enough cool options at my power level.
Again, some of the new occasionals may turn out to be bad, but all three of these are here to spice up the draft.
Endrek is meant to let black dip into the GWr token theme, while also working great in black sacrifice decks. If you can untap with him, he is strong.
Plate Mail is a very flavourful wildfire/control finisher, that can also work as equipment. Crazy cards like this are what I wanted in the occasionals.
Response just got in because I had to fill another hybrid cycle honestly, but I like that any red or green mage can pick it up for the sideboard to really get the counterspell slinging control player. Weird sideboard cards is another category of things I wanted to try in here.
3) I feel control is hard to draft because the archetypes don't lend themselves to it or there are few cards that could fill a non-attacking role. For example, I don't think Ninjas can be used by slower decks.
There are only four Ninjas in blue in the core. And I think
Sakashima's Student is okay as a straight up clone in control.
Also, I can assure you by heart that control, especially blue-based, is totally fine. There is a lot of relatively high powered countermagic, as well as card draw. Maybe you were just not priotizing those
Miscalculations enough, because they tend to go later in a higher powered cube like yours?
4) I felt there were too many archetype cards and too little in the way of support or bread and butter spells, like removal. It's not an issue of power level, I would have been happy drafting Volcanic Hammer over Incinerate. Either way, I think you need more enablers (Life gain) and less payoffs (cards that trigger on life gain).
I will take note here for sure. It's just that I put a lot of effort into calculating how many support the archetypes would need (in different categories like enablers and payoffs) to make sure they will be well supported, even just by the 12 core cards. It might be, that some of my numbers will prove to be off, but that only time will tell.
Also, just in red, I run all these removal spells in the 360 core cube:
AbradeLightning BoltIncinerateArc LightningBlast from the PastFiery TemperMagma JetSkirk MarauderDisintegrateFireballFirebolt
Not counting very archetype specific removal effects like
Warfire Javelineer.
5) I disliked all the cards with heavy colored requirements or that otherwise rewarded you for it (Clockwork Servant) and I think bouncing your own morph creatures is too optimistic.
I really like to make mono color a thing that happens somewhat regularly. That's why included ~4 card for each color that tend to make you go for it in the occasionals (4 occasionals is = 1 slot in the core in terms of likelyhood of appearance).
All of these are clearly above the average stats in the environment. Since they are just occasionals it's not dramatic if they don't see play all the time, they'll be good once they do.
a) Revise your mana curve. I feel the average cost is too high and slower decks have few options in the early game that aren't removal or generic dorks to trade with.
It is possible that there is too much top end in the occasionals right now, I'll
keep watch there. But my core has a very low curve. Like, conservatively low. To the slow decks point:
What else would you want for these decks? I even have all the signets in the core.
[/quote]b) Cut down the number of ocassionals and consider making them more standalone, if possible. I think as many cards as the cube is too many.[/quote]
I have barely more experience than you, but for now I wanna try to embrace the chaos. Let the people slam their Godzilla-
Titanoth Rex or build around
Death Match and feel clever.
c) Simplify your archetypes. I think you may have too many and some of them have little crossover or too many payoffs. For example, you can rework lifelink or replace it with enchantments. I'm also confused about some of the self-mill options in your cube and I don't think you run enough potential blink targets at lower costs.
I know some of the lifegain payoffs are still narrow, but that's because the options are limited. Still I think most are fine on their own, like
Dawn of Hope fuels itself and
Malakir Familiar has a decent enough body for offense and defense.
Would you mind explaining the self mill point more clearly maybe? I'm curious
Still, I like the unusual direction you've taken with your cube and I think you can go very far just by cleaning it up and revising it. The idea is good and I think you are skilled enough to pull it off
Again, thank you a lot. Please don't think that I'm mad of you or anything, and maybe if we continue this topic we should do it via private message, but I just had the urge to explain some of the edges you stumbled upon to you and everyone who's crazyenough to read all this talk here. Maybe I should
reanimate my cube thread to further explain what I try to achieve with the occasionals project.
To @everyone else who doesn't care: Inscho's Graveyard Combo Cube is next to be drafted and have a wonderful day!
