I cut no cards in this update, but did use both of my expansion slots.
A 2/2 for two is fine, but unexciting. Normally, I would not consider this a good card in my cube format, but I want to make a point of pushing Manifest. This powerful new mechanic creates very interesting gameplay situations and tests player's knowledge of the format, while adding variance.
The fact that this can almost always trade with another Morph or generic two toughness Creature means that card will never be dead, and it may result in significant upside.
I was immediately excited by this card when it was spoiled. There are plenty of ways to get value in my cube, but getting value off of your two mana play is a choice moment indeed. There are still plenty of one toughness Creatures in this format and opponent's are not going to want to trade off when you get to replace it with a potentially much higher impact card.
This can be a real game changer when you are behind as well. If you are in a chump blocking situation and get to trade up for a 2/2 you are already doing very well on your investment, but if you ever flip up a Creature off this you are going to eat their attacker for sure. A near-certain 2-for-1 is excellent, but adding the possibility of a 3-for-1 is enough to get me to draft this every time.
Out: Sandstorm
This should be pretty clear. If I am moving away from aggressive decks towards midrange, I don't need a card that hoses aggressive decks. 1/1 tokens will naturally be much worse because of the glut of 2/2 Creatures, so Sandstorm is unnecessary. That being said, I think that Formless Nurturing is the worst of the Manifest cards and I can't imagine it staying in the cube for very long. Creatures with three power and/or toughness are easy to come by and at cheaper costs. Hill Giant isn't really a playable card in my cube.
Out: Shambleshark
Shambleshark has been a strong role-player for some time in the cube, so I was hesitant to cut it, but I don't want to have too many U/G Flash Creatures because I want to keep the complexity down. Ethereal Ambush is more expensive and harder to see coming, but it also gives more value. I expect Shambleshark to come back at some point in the future, but for now I want to play with the shiny new card.
Out: Font of Fortunes
Font of Fortunes has under-performed my expectations. There are better card draw spells available and it just isn't that hard to pick up quality 2-for-1's. I am also moving the focus of the cube to midrange, Creature-heavy decks with this update, so I don't mind shaving a card draw spell. When you are battling it out with nearly equivalent 2/2's, having more is better. Write into Being will hopefully decide games with subtle edges, rather than raw card advantage.
This decision really wasn't difficult because I only have one 'flex slot' to work with in Blue; I wouldn't consider touching the other cards. I am glad that I didn't have to use one of my expansion slots in this color, that allowed me to use them for other colors that actually need some support. I don't expect Write into Being to stay around for very long, but I want to push Manifest.
Out: Dimir House Guard
Dimir House Guard is great and it will be back. Unfortunately, a regenerating 2/3 matches up so well against Morphs that I had to take it out in order to push the theme I want to try out. On a board full of of 2/2's House Guard goes from a role-player to an all-star and that isn't something that I wanted to happen. In the previous edition, Black had no cards that were above cmc 5 so I am happy to add a beefy finisher to this color.
Also, I have two cards that I want to get into Black, so saving an expansion slot for this color is crucial.
Out: Act of Treason
Without support from Dimir House Guard, the Act + sacrifice combo can't happen. So this was a natural cut. Lightning Shrieker will still end most games where Act would be good, but you don't have to give anything back to your opponent at the end of the turn. A 5/5 Flyer is going to be the biggest thing in the sky by far, so I am excited to see this card's potential in action.
Speaking of House Guard and being a 2/3: I considered cutting Flurry of Horns for the same reason, being that 2/3's will become much more powerful in this update. My logic for leaving it is that I am much more comfortable boosting Red's power level than I am Black's. Red has struggled to make good late game decks in my cube and I hope that this change, as well as the next card, will make the color competitive in longer games.
Out: Pharagax Giant
I thought long and hard about what to cut for this card. Eventually I settled on Pharagax Giant because there was too much overlap. They are both trying to the same thing and are likely to be good/bad in similar situations. If Manifest plays out to be less fun, and I end up changing the cube dramatically after Dragons of Tarkir is released, expect Giant to come back.
The fully updated list is available HERE. See you next week Zoners.
-GG
Excellent swaps. I especially like the feel you are going for in swapping out the House Guard. Making it a bit more tempo-y and with a bit more get-up and go.
ReplyDeleteThis is highest threat density that my Cube has ever had. I am excited to see an environment where people are hesitant to draft Capsize control decks for fear of being run over.
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