I'll be adding 31 cards from the main set...this is now the most-represented set in my cube, huh. A new set of reasonable power level with adventures and a cycle of man-lands is liable to do that, I guess!
Cheeky House-Mouse -> Frontier Explorer
Sure, it’s cute, and it’s got great names and flavor across the board. I’m mostly cubing this because my drafters will get legitimately excited to see it every time, and tell stories about how they murdered their friends with a little house-mouse.
Regal Bunnicorn -> Norn’s Inquisitor
White Goyf! A very straightforward and clean card, I can’t help but appreciate it on many levels. Gets gigantic quick and promotes the kinds of decks I want to support more, so even if I find it a bit…plain? I cannot complain.
Pollen-Shield Hare -> Sanwell, Avenger Ace
I'm very down for more explicit token support. At least this one has the storybook frame!
This effect is so much better attached to a bear than on an enchantment, and having the opportunity to use Hare Raising (great name), as infrequent as it may be, is just gravy.
Elusive Otter -> Jace Beleren
It’s hard to find a blue 1-drop creature that’s worth playing in a reasonably powerful cube.
The most-common choices aren’t terribly compelling, and while it’s not strictly necessary to be so prescriptive in the curation of your cube to ensure the slot has at least
some action, I find the gameplay improves the more low-cost creatures you have in every color, especially one-drops.
This otter may be my favorite blue one-drop. Just by nature of being a
1 MV dude with prowess, we would’ve gotten halfway there, and the pseudo-evasion helps the little cutie get through in messy boards, making blockers second-guess the few options they have with a fun threat of activation.
While the green half of this card isn’t terrible, it’s not why I’m running him in most decks, so I’ll classify the elusive dude as mono-blue. Games where you’re adventuring are ones where the otter is pretty much useless.
Horned Loch-Whale -> Iymrith, Desert Doom
This is the kind of adventure creature I was hoping to get more of this return trip to Eldraine, and beyond having lovely art and a good but fair body, the adventure side of the whale is reasonably impressive in slowing down aggro or making a
Retrofitter Assembly player cry when they finally get their first 4/4. This is the kind of modality I want on my blue fatties.
Lord Skitter, Sewer King -> Davriel, Rogue Shadowmage
As red’s Rabblemaster variants get stronger, it only makes sense we’d get one in black. If this were in red, I wouldn’t even consider touching it, which doesn’t speak well of its longevity In black, but the incidental graveyard hate is really nice actually and I like how it doesn’t freeze the board with tokens since they can’t defend you or your ‘walkers.
Faerie Dreamthief -> Nullpriest of Oblivion
Halfway between an
Unwilling Ingredient and a
Stitcher's Supplier, Faerie Dreamthief is a glue card for pretty much every kind of black deck I support, and carries a sword well if you’re making bad decisions while drafting but still want to win a few games. In my (very slow) attempts to drive down the overall curve of my cube,
Virtue of Persistence -> Exsanguinator Cavalry
Other players have already talked about this card to death, but the black Virtue is a serious beating. The removal is totally fine and just barely below rate, nothing that anyone would sneer at if there’s a whiff of upside attached. And yet we get a deluge of upside once you hit the (admittedly high) price of the card’s enchantment half. This card makes you feel like it’s actually worth the mana, which is all I can really ask for a super top-end enchantment.
Beseech the Mirror -> Curse of Disturbance
I’m generally opposed to tutors but this one lets you double-up on Siege Rhinos / Sheoldreds if you’re really going to be like that, and since you have to work for this one, you deserve it if that’s what you’re up to.
Lich-Knight’s Conquest -> Incarnation Technique
Pretty explosive potential here. Fun build-around that kind of builds itself in my list.
Tangled Colony -> Scourge of the Skyclaves
I’m liable to switch this one right back, not only because Scourge of the Skyclaves is a pet card of mine but also because Tangled Colony is marginal outside of the token decks and I worry it’s not good enough in aggro aristocrats. I like what it brings to the table, I like its stats, and I like its vibe, but I’m not sure my players will care at all.
Embereth Veteran -> Falkenrath Gorger
Since this is the only role-related card I was interested in, I was (reasonably) considering axing it from consideration for the additive distraction it provides, and I very well might in not too long. That said, I like the story-in-a-card situation here, and there’s slightly more knight tribal edges in my list than vampire bonuses.
Hearth Elemental -> Den of the Bugbear
One of the more interesting cards of the set. I ran
Dangerous Wager for quite a while when it was first printed and it wasn’t terrible, surprisingly; it just needed a third card to really get there. Hearth Elemental brings it back but with a bonus. I imagine it’ll be a 3-mana 4/5 in the typical scenario, which isn’t super special, but paired with the hellbent ability on its adventure is a compelling test.
Tough Cookie -> The Shire
Trinket Man’s one tough…oh wait, that’s the joke. I like how many options he comes into play with, in addition to being a solid clock on the game if your little cookie 2-drop isn’t immediately dealt with. This guy’s the inspiration for me finally adding
Academy Manufactor to my Cube.
Intrepid Trufflesnout -> Meriadoc Brandybuck
I just like this little boar, OK?
Stormkeld Vanguard -> Edge of Autumn
Honestly? Giving green another 6-drop isn't necessary (it's why I'm not running the very potent and playable
Generous Ent) but this is yet another way to give a flexible Naturalize to the players without making it feel bad when there's not enough targets. I don't love having so much of green's naturalize effects on creatures be attached as an ETB or part of a sacrifice effect, even if those are the most logical ways to do it in most sets. Gotta love Adventures!!
Syr Ginger, the Meal Ender -> Emissary's Ploy
My #1 card of the set, and maybe of the year. I love 3-power on my 2-drops, I love supporting legends-matter, I love the flavor, I love trinket support, I love artifacts-matter-but-not-too-much, I even love the incidental planeswalker support, even if it is realistically just additive distraction most of the time. Can’t wait to rip apart some Garruks with this gal.
Throne of Eldraine -> Thawing Glaciers
You get your mana back! It’s very good!
Hylda’s Crown of Winter -> Smokestack
It’s weaker than
Icy Manipulator but that card still does surprisingly well in my cube, and creatures are really the key to modern day Magic. I like that it’s free to tap if you’re getting a blocker out of the way, and that you can trade it in for a reasonable amount of cards in most situations, especially after just using it.
Agatha’s Soul Cauldron -> Atraxa’s Skitterfang
There’s gotta be something fun to do here, right?
The Goose Mother -> Nissa, Steward of Elements
I desperately wanted this to be good just because I loved the art so much and it's....fine? a 3 mana 3/3 flyer with a food token that draws you a card once is probably the typical scenario. Still trying to figure out how much I like this, but being an X/X flyer for X as a baseline in two colors...would I even prefer this to
Shivan Devastator?
Decadent Dragon -> Rakdos Cackler
A very easy swap. Decadent Dragon is the whole package, with both sides of the card wholly serviceable.
Questing Druid -> Kogla and Yidaro
2+2=6 here, this is where adventures get real sweet. Questing Druid’s card draw half is worth playing on its own, and combining it with a longtime cube incidental of
Quirion Druid.
Heartflame Duelist -> Velomachus Lorehold
Liable to swap this again in 3 months, but I don’t hate bringing back the “give spells lifelink” so soon after I begrudgingly took it out to better utilize my Jeskai slot.
Mosswood Dreadknight -> Meren of Clan Nel Toth
It’s been talked to death, and for good reason. Highly recommend The Green Knight film that came out a few years ago too if you haven’t seen it yet.
Talion, the Kindly Lord -> Fallen Shinobi
Maybe a bit more complicated than I’d like — I know I didn’t fully grok the implications of it at first — but there’s some good fun to be had here, especially if you started things off with a
Thoughtseize.
Likeness Looter -> Sygg, River Cutthroat
The fact that it works very well on several axis before considering it as a graveyard clone thing is why I think this’ll be fun to try out.
Land
Restless Cottage -> Hissing Quagmire
Restless Vinestalk -> Lumbering Falls
Restless Spire -> Wandering Fumarole
Restless Fortress -> Shambling Vent
Restless Bivouac -> Inspiring Vantage
These are just better in flavor, art, and effect than their BFZ block counterparts.
My Top Cards for the Set
