Modern Horizons set preview for Peasant Cube

Set preview time! Let's get into Modern Horizons!

I run a loose grading scale, based on my personal interest in the card:

Slam it - The holy-crap-I-am-so-happy-they-printed-this card.
Cube - This card will go into my cube and I expect to be happy with it.
Needs testing - The card looks like it could be powerful, but may or may not work out.
Playable - Interchangeable with similar cards, depending on the flavor of the moment might see play.
So close - I want to play this, but it's probably better if I don't.
? - No idea what to think of this card.
Pass - Not interested. Every card not listed here automatically gets this grade.

If the card is not on this list, you can assume I'm not interested, is a reprint (or forgot to list it). Some reprints will get listed if it's the first time it gets a modern border. 

Link to Modern Horizons card image gallery on Dailymtg.com

Guilds of Ravnica set preview for Peasant Cube

Set preview time! Let's get into Guilds of Ravnica

I run a loose grading scale, based on my personal interest in the card:

Slam it - The holy-crap-I-am-so-happy-they-printed-this card.
Cube - This card will go into my cube and I expect to be happy with it.
Needs testing - The card looks like it could be powerful, but may or may not work out.
Playable - Interchangeable with similar cards, depending on the flavor of the moment might see play.
So close - I want to play this, but it's probably better if I don't.
? - No idea what to think of this card.
Pass - Every card not listed here.

If the card is not on this list, you can assume I'm not interested (or forgot to list it)

White

Conclave Tribunal
Verdict: Cube
This is a slightly more than we normally pay for this effect, but it makes up for it by having a higher ceiling in certain decks. Convoke makes this more interesting to run, giving you a kind of loose build-around card that rewards token and/or swarm decks. I don't think I've seen a lot of cubes that don't support those decks in white.

Demotion
Verdict: Playable
If you need a cheap removal spell, but you don't need more fuel for control decks. Sometimes you just need to throw aggro a bone. Shutting off activated abilities can be powerful.

Gird for Battle
Verdict: Cube
I think this is a pretty sweet little card. Two +1/+1 counters for a single mana is basically a mini-anthem that you can weave in between casting creatures. I might be biased because of my love for +1/+1 counters, but I think this will prove to be a very potent role-player.

Haazda Marshal
Verdict: So close
Man, I really want to like this card. It makes a lifelink token every turn, right? Attacking with this and 2 others is harder to trigger than I want something like this to be. I'd rather just play a card that makes a couple of tokens for immediate effect.

Inspiring Unicorn
Verdict: Playable
If you need another of this effect, it's playable.

Sunhome Stalwart
Verdict: Cube
Very efficient 2-drop. First strike is good without help, but gets even better when the creature gets pumped. And if this guy gets pumped, he'll make the rest of your team better as well. Also synergizes with +1/+1 counters. Very excited for this.

Blue

Chemister's Insight
Verdict: So close
Anything that can be cast from your graveyard has potential. This is a little slow, but the instant speed part makes it a lot better. That said, paying 8 mana and 2 cards (this and the discarded one) to draw 4.. I don't know.

Murmuring Mystic
Verdict: Needs testing
The Spells Matter archetype is a favorite in a lot of groups, and in mine. This might be a little more expensive than most finishers in the archetype, as you generally want to either cast one before you start slinging spells or cast spells in the turn you cast it to generate some immediate value. However, 1/1 fliers have the potential to close out a game really fast when it gets going. Plus, this being a 1/5 makes it a pretty decent defensive card to run out on turn 4 against aggressive decks. I think this might become a mainstay in my cube, but I want to see it in play before I get really excited.

Nightveil Sprite
Verdict: Playable
I'm not sure what to make of this. I've played Sigiled Starfish before, and it's been fine. This has a better body that carries equipment/auras better, and fits better in tempo decks. It also enables the graveyard a bit. On top of that, I have a thing for Spellstutter Sprite so the Faerie type always makes me sit up.

Sinister Sabotage
Verdict: Playable
Even though 3 mana counterspells are on the slow side, I've found the card selection tacked onto Dissolve good enough to make the card playable. This is slightly better.

Unexplained Disappearance
Verdict: So close
The scry 1 version of this wasn't good enough, so this will likely not be. The fact that surveil puts cards in the yard has me interested though, but I guess there are better cards for that.

Black

Dead Weight
Verdict: Playable (reprint)
This was already playable, especially if your cube has Enchantment Matters stuff like mine.

Lotleth Giant
Verdict: Needs testing
Let me start by saying that I expect this not to be good enough. Having said that, I really want to try it out. There's a certain Golgari deck that has been very good in my cube that's basically all self mill, creatures and ways to get stuff back. The deck generally wins through attrition and incremental value, but can be slow to actually finish games. The Giant can be a fun way to burn people out, maybe even be the focus of a new version of the deck that aims to turbo-mill oneself and reanimate this guy twice with a pile of creatures in the yard.

Pilfering Imp
Verdict: Needs testing
This looks like it could be pretty good. It's selected discard if you need it, and a decent weenie if you don't. Even if your opponent removes it before you can activate it, your opponent is down a good card (removal). Also, it's adorable.

PlaguecrafterVerdict: Cube
A straight up better Fleshbag Marauder, except maybe if you care about Zombies or Warriors. This guy is good. The only thing holding him down is that the forced sacrifice sometimes just nabs a 1/1 token.

Price of Fame
Verdict: ?
How much mana is surveil 2 worth? I remember reading somewhere that scry 2 is worth about a card, and surveil is slightly better. Considering that, I think I'd be willing to pay 4 mana to kill a creature and draw a card at instant speed. The legendary clause might come up nowadays, too. I can imagine this seeing play and do well. On the other hand, maybe 4 mana is just way too much in an eternal cube.

Undercity Necrolisk
Verdict: Needs testing
This looks pretty powerful, actually. In cubes with a +1/+1 counter sub theme in black(/green, aka Winding Constrictor), this looks like a shoe-in. It's a little more expensive than I'd want, and you can only sacrifice creatures at sorcery speed. However, this can get big fast and is hard to block. This might be a fine finisher in creature decks.

Red

Book Devourer
Verdict: ?
I just want to reanimate whatever the heck this is.

Electrostatic Field
Verdict: Cube
When I texted my friend 'how much of this effect is too many?', he replied 'never too many'. While I don't necessarily agree to that degree, I like this one a lot. Four toughness is just enough to be a good blocker against most early drops, which is exactly what the controllish versions of these spell decks want.

Goblin Banneret
Verdict: Playable
One-drops that are relevant in the later stages of the game are always interesting. This one can dish out a lot of damage when left unchecked, or at least trade up. The additional Mentor ability is just a bonus, but a very welcome one that should play well in my cube. It's still a tier/tier-and-a-half below the top red 1-drops, but it is very playable.

Goblin Cratermaker
Verdict: Slam it!
Holy crap is this good. Efficient stats, TWO relevant abilities (both Ember Hauler and Torch Fiend have seen play). You can't target players with the first ability, but you do get to destroy random Eldrazi. It even has relevant creatures types for those that are into that (*points to self*). I have to work really hard to imagine a peasant cube that doesn't want this.

Smelt-Ward Minotaur
Verdict: So close
This is one the other side of the Spells Matter spectrum from Electrostatic Field. The thing that does the Minotaur in is that you need both spells and creatures to take full advantage of it. It still might be decent in 'normal' aggressive decks to push guys through, but I think this generally falls short.

Green

Arboretum Elemental
Verdict: So close
Initially I was higher on this card, but it's just a little too expensive to be really good. Even with three creatures out it still costs 6 mana, event though I guess if you can play creatures the first 4 turns and cast this on turn 5 you're pretty happy. I'd rather just play Overrun if I have that many creatures though.

District Guide
Verdict: Playable
This effect is very playable and has always been. If you don't mind down-grading the duals you run to Guildgates, this is obviously better than the other versions.

Kraul Harpooner
Verdict: Slam it!
Another windmill slam include. A 3/2 reach for 2 mana without drawback is - I think - unprecedented in green as far as raw stats go. And that's without mentioning it being a potential removal spell that gets better in certain archetypes. Pure gravy. I also need to bring up the fact that Warrior is a relevant creature type for me to really hammer it home.

Sprouting Renewal
Verdict: Playable
Not amazing, but the flexibility might give it a home somewhere.

Multicolor

Beacon Bolt
Verdict: Playable
On the one hand, re-usable removal is great. On the other hand, this is a sorcery and requires set-up. I think it's playable, but Izzet is such a stacked guild that this won't see a lot of play.

Beamsplitter Mage
Verdict: ?
This might have some fun build around potential in some cubes. I wish it was in Boros or Gruul as those colors both need the card advantage this gives and run more cards that work with it.

Boros Challenger
Verdict: Playable
I will probably end up playing this as one of the interchangeable Boros 2-drops that are slightly overstatted (3/2 or 2/3) and/or have a decent ability. This one plays well with +1/+1 counters, which makes me favor it slightly over other options for the moment.

Conclave Cavalier/Crackling Drake/Golgari Findbroker/Nightveil Predator/Truefire Captain
Verdict: Playable
Oh man, these are spicy. Great stats, great abilities. On powerlevel alone, every single one could see play. They're just very very hard to cast. Green decks might have an easier time than non-green decks, which makes me think those will see more play in cubes.

Glowspore ShamanVerdict: Playable
If it was only for my cube, I'd given this a higher grade. Satyr Wayfinder is better and easier to cast, but the aggressive stats on the Shaman are just so enticing. This is exactly what my Golgari sections wants to do. Other cubes might not want it as much, but for me the combination of archetype enabler + efficient beater is  enough to be excited about this.


Justice Strike
Verdict: Playable
Good card, just a little bland for my tastes. White has enough removal that most Boros decks will not need to run this, just like Rakdos doesn't need Terminate even though it's very good. I still prefer Lightning Helix over this for being able to burn people out and being insane in racing situations.

League Guildmage
Verdict: Needs testing
Both abilities are expensive, but potent. Especially the doubling ability is interesting. You'd need to build your deck around this, playing a lot of 1 and 2 mana spells, but that seems doable. This might just prove to be a very fun and powerful build around card.

Sumala Woodshaper
Verdict: So close
If only this was a mana cheaper. The effect is good, and something my cube would want, but 4 mana is a lot if the body is basically negligible. Being a creature does make it easier to reuse, but I don't know if that saves it.

Swathcutter Giant
Verdict: Playable
This looks like it could be a very serviceable Boros finisher. It should stabilize a lot of the board when it comes down, and makes short work of any token army if there's no anthem on the board. In a guild as shallow as Boros, I would not mind playing this.

Thought Erasure
Verdict: Playable
Where Boros is on the shallower end, I always seem to have a harder time cutting cards from Dimir. I think this is a good card, but for a guild card it's just shy of powerful enough but still quite playable.

Worldsoul Colossus
Verdict: Needs testing
As a crossover card between tokens, ramp and +1/+1 counters, this looks like a very good fit for my Selesnya section. I don't like that it doesn't have evasion, but the flexibility makes me want to try it out. In practice, it might also turn out to be just another dumb beater that's not good enough to make it into any deck.

Fresh-Faced Recruit/Piston-Fist Cyclops
Verdict: Playable
If you need another Boros or Izzet hybrid for your hybrid section, you could do worse.

Discovery // Dispersal/Integrity // Intervention/Invert // Invent/Status // Statue
Verdict: Needs testing
I'm having a hard time evaluating these. Flexible cards usually walk a very thin line of being *just* good enough that you're happy to run them in multiple different decks or being underpowered enough that you'd rather run a different card altogether. These hybrid/gold split cards have the additional quirk that they're hard to classify. Should you consider them hybrid? Full guild?
Dimir: Discovery looks good on its own, making Dispersal additional bonus. I think I'd classify this as hybrid.
Boros: I like both ends enough, but don't think I would run Integrity in a Gruul deck for example. I'd classify this as Boros.
Izzet: Here, the hybrid part is not something I would consider without the full gold part. This is in part because I have no idea how good this effect is. It's a single mana, so I'm sure it will come in very handy. The gold part though, might be very good. Getting 2 big spells at instant speed is a good way to close out a game for control decks. Straight Izzet card.
Golgari: Both are playable, but bland. This card will always be good in any deck with both G and B mana. Weirdly, the flexibility pushes is out of the guild section because Golgari is stacked and doesn't need more removal. I'm also not sure if this is better than Putrefy.
Selesnya: Not mentioned above, I don't think this is very good.

Rampaging Monument
Verdict: ?
The times where a four mana 3/3 was the gold standard have passed. Four drops also have the problem of generally being over-saturated in any cube. You can only run so many in your deck, and generally should have no problem picking enough up for your deck. However, this has +1/+1 counters to make it a colorless addition to those decks. But the real thing that has me interested is the build around potential. I like cards that care about unique things you don't see a lot. That's the reason I run a couple of creature-type matters cards, and have so many build around cards in my cube in general. This is the first somewhat playable card that cares about 'gold' cards. I think I will try this baby out, and see if I can add a little more hybrid cards in the process to help with the amount of multicolor without actually upping the amount of gold cards.

Conclusion

There we have it. The newest Ravnica set has quite a couple of interesting cards, something that was to expected. At the very least we get 2 staple-level cards in Goblin Cratermaker and Kraul Harpooner  which is always great. I'm very excited to start testing the cards from this set.

Top cards

Best archetype card - Murmuring Mystic

Surprise of the set - League Guildmage

'Best art' - Goblin Locksmith

3 - Subhome Stalwart
2 - Kraul Harpooner
1 - Goblin Cratermaker

Masters 25 downgrades review

Another Masters set, another exciting time of rarity downgrades. With Iconic Master being... less iconic than expected, Masters 25 did not disappoint.

Ancient Craving
Verdict: Pass
Ambition's Cost was already available to us. Not a bad card at all, but also not the first black card draw spell I'd add. The different versions that cost 2 or 3 mana and draw only 2 cards are slightly more efficient, even though the raw drawing power is less.

Balduvian Horde
Verdict: Pass
Pillaging Horde was downgraded in an online set, so technically available to peasant if you consider those (which I, and many peasant cubers with me, do). While the Alliances rare has a special place in my memories, a 5/5 vanilla for 4 with a largely uncontrollable drawback just doesn't really cut it anymore.

Ire Shaman
Verdict: Cube
The first 'real' downgrade of the bunch and it's a great one. A 2/1 menace for 1R is already not the worst floor of a card, and I wouldn't feel bad to play it turn 2 if I didn't have another 2-drop. Drawn later, it's card advantage in red (and becomes bigger). This makes it relevant in all stages of the game, a very very welcome quality for an aggressive card. The fact that it has a +1/+1 counter is icing.
I do want to mention that morphs, like 'free' spells, give a slight advantage to players familiar with your cube. If you don't mind morphs, this is an auto-include.

Iwamori of the Open Fist
Verdict: Cube
Contrary to Balduvian Horde, this 5/5 for 4 is worth it. Not only can't it be chump blocked, its drawback is almost nonexistent in peasant cube. My cube currently has 2 legendary creatures, and I can think of a small handful handful of playable ones on top of that. But even if your opponent does have a legend in hand, it's sure not to be a devastating game-ending bomb like Emrakul or Griselbrand.
Iwamori is probably at or around the powerlevel of Blastoderm, which most people consider a staple. You can target it, but laughs at chump blockers and doesn't fade away. The problem is that you can run only so many 4-drops. While I think it's near the top in power level, it's not very versatile. This means that it will probably see less play than it should.

Jalira, Master Polymorphist
Verdict: Maybe, format dependent
This is a very cool card and an effect we don't get much of. Jalira is a fun build-around that gives reanimate-style decks a different way to cheat out fatties. She asks for a different way to build a deck, which I consider a quality. However, it's quite a risk to build your deck around a card as fragile and slow as Jalira if it takes such a specific way to build your deck to reach the potential of a card. Talking about potential, the uniqueness of the card also makes it hard to gauge exactly how powerful it can be. I think it's solid, but slow. Interesting to add if you're looking for a unique engine-type card, but too clunky for most peasant cubes.

Kongming, "Sleeping Dragon"
Verdict: Cube
I was expecting a white anthem at uncommon in this set, but I was hoping for actual Glorious Anthem. This is still a good card and I'm happy we got it. Having said that, a static anthem on a creature can lead to reverse blowouts if it gets removed at the wrong time. Compare it to Pianna, Nomad Captain (an online downshift), who has a triggered anthem. The effect might be more situational, but removing Pianna mid-combat does not remove the pump. On the other hand, not having to attack with Kongming lets you attack more freely with armies of tokens to push damage through unfavorable defenses. Good card, just be careful with it.

Krosan Colossus
Verdict: Archetype dependent
A 9/9 is obviously huge, but so are both its mana cost and its morph cost. However, if you can circumvent either, this will be the largest thing on the board. It's still not the best reanimate target because it has neither evasion nor self-protection. This means it's basically a blink archetype card. Casting this face down and following it up with a Cloudshift or Flickerwisp is a lot of fun. So if you go deep on blink and want a less value-oriented approach, definitely include this.

Loyal Sentry
Verdict: Playable
Slightly better than the various green and black 1/1 deathtouch creatures, because it's better against abilities like trample and first strike. I don't think that white really needs more (different) defensive options as it already has removal available in various power levels and speeds, and a couple of decent blockers. But, this is not a terrible option if you want your removal to be more situational.
Don't forget that if you have a lot of instant speed blink (or even bounce), you can blink this with the trigger on the stack to keep it around.

Promise of Bunrei
Verdict: Cube
I played a lot of standard in the CHK-RAV standard, and remember Ghost Husk being a great deck. The deck was a black/white aggro deck that used Promise of Bunrei to take advantage of Nantuko Husk, Plagued Rusalka and Ghost Council of the Orzhova (and vice versa).
Every creature deck can use this as removal deterrent or dissentive to attack into your board. Once you put it into a deck that can both trigger it at will AND use the tokens.. the card is absolutely nuts. I don't think this card will ever leave my cube.
Note that the tokens are not white and do not fly though.

Shadowmage Infiltrator
Verdict: Cube
Speaking about cards that will likely be instant staples: welcome Jon Finkel. Barring maybe Baleful Strix (which might still be better), I don't think there are Dimir cards that come close to the power level of Shadowmage Infiltrator. It's the closest thing we have to a peasant legal Phyrexian Arena and a huge boon for each and every Dimir deck. Tempo, control, reanimate, it doesn't matter. Play this, feel good.

Undead Gladiator
Verdict: Maybe, format dependent
A card that has appeared often on downgrade wish lists, the peasant cube community wanted this for years. A mono black discard-outlet for reanimate, a cool value engine for grindy black control decks, and another card to get out of the graveyard for self-mill decks. Though, in the past years we received a couple of decent black discard-outlets in Call the Bloodline and Heir of Falkenrath, self-mill has a plethora of options and peasant has gotten more efficient cards for their control decks. I still think Undead Gladiator has a place as an archetype cross-over in cubes that are a little more archetype based, like mine. For other cubes though, I don't know. A couple of years ago, I would've told everyone to slam this into their cubes, but I think most cubes will find this too slow.
It's fun that we've been asking for this downgrade, and when it finally happens it might be too late.

Will-o'-the-Wisp
Verdict: Playable
I had to double check if this really hadn't been printed at uncommon before, but this is the first time. Will-o'-the-Wisp is a classic, which might be the biggest reason for people to include this. I mean, it's not a bad card. It stops almost everything (barring trample and unblockable/shadow) for a single black mana each turn. While this is good, the cost of B each turn is not negligible. Basically, if you're looking for a black wall, this is an option. I don't expect this to go into tons of decks though.

Zada, Hedron Grinder
Verdict: Archetype dependent
Another cool build-around to finish with. If you set it up well, this is the kind of card that creates stories. The floor on the card, however is very low. I'm still undecided if I want to add it myself. On the one hand I like having cards like these, and I don't mind to just throw it into the cube and have it only work occasionally. On the other hand I'm slightly doubtful it will do enough even if everything comes together. If it's any good, it will be in cubes that support some sort of Berserk/pump archetype in Gruul. So maybe I should just try it.
Zada is more flashy than good, but I can see it going into some cubes.

Top 3 and conclusion

3. Ire Shaman

2. Promise of Bunrei

1. Shadowmage Infiltrator

Masters 25 can be considered a hit in my opinion. Some overall good cards, cool nostalgic cards, and fun build-arounds. I'm looking to add between 6 and 8 cards from the set, which I'm very happy with. 

Three months in: evaluating Ixalan

It's time to start making adjustments for Rivals of Ixalan.
I didn't get around to doing a set preview for Ixalan, this time was as good as any to do an evaluation of the last round of new cards before I go forward.

Cards I added

White
Adanto Vanguard
This was added as a piece for decks with auras, while also just being a decent attacker for any aggressive white deck. It has been playing out exactly as I thought. It's a fine card that can go into multiple decks and gets better in some. It's even a soldier for minor synergies there. If either lifegain matter decks or vampires as a tribe come back into my cube, this will also be a piece in those decks.
Verdict: Keep

Bishop's Soldier
Again, added as a good target for auras and equipment. It's a little more defensive than the Vanguard, and Grizzly Bears are slightly below standard nowadays. That said, it has been working out surprisingly well in decks that have pump. Even as a random 2-drop in white weenie decks with anthems, it's been decent. I've seen it boarded in against aggressive decks as well. The card surprised me, but I would not play it if I didn't have an aura theme. The same thing about vampires and lifegain applies here.
Verdict: Keep

Sheltering Light
Cheap protection spells are interesting and I wanted to try this one out. I didn't have very high hopes for this, and I was surprisingly unimpressed.
Verdict: Cut

Blue
Siren Stormtamer
Solid little card. 1/1 Flyers for 1 are sort of on the verge of playable anyway, especially with the flying matters cards in my cube. It chips in for a couple of points while protecting a more important target. That said, it's not that important/impressive that it's a windmill slam.
Verdict: Keep

Storm Fleet Aerialist
Again, a solid little card. I run enough aggressively slanted cards in blue that there's a decent chance this gets kicked. Playing a 2 mana 2/3 after turn 2 is still fine as well. However, I'm still not sure if I want this over any 2/1 flyer for 2.
Verdict: No strong opinion

Chart a Course
Good role-player. It supports aggression, but it doesn't need it. Because my cube has a lot of graveyard synergy, the 'drawback' of the card is sometimes even the preferred mode. The only downside is that blue doesn't have a shortage of card draw or looting, which means that it might get cut eventually.
Verdict: Keep

Black
none

Red
Rigging Runner
I'm a sucker for red 1-drops, and when they have +1/+1 counter synergy I can't help myself. This one has some weird tension though: it's not really a 1-drop. You want to play something else on turn 1, attack and then cast this (and another 1-drop). It's the first strike part that keeps it in for now, because there's more pump coming, which gives it a little value as a true 1-drop. In most cubes, however, I don't think this comes anywhere close to inclusion.
Verdict: Keep

Charging Monstrosaur
Pretty good card overall, one of the first red 5-drops I'm actually happy running. It also made me remember why I don't like a lot of the red 5-drops (or higher): red usually doesn't want a lot. Even a card of this quality. I'll keep it in because it really is a good card, but I can see cutting it when something else comes along or it just doesn't get picked up a lot because red doesn't want it.
Verdict: Keep

Green
Merfolk Branchwalker
This one has been playing well. Sort-of-Scry 1 is nice on a 2-drop, it has some graveyard synergy, +1/+1 counter synergy and might draw you a card. Having said that, the fact that you can't control any of it makes it less desirable for my cube. We just don't see a lot of good-stuff decks, decks usually want something specific. I would probably snap-include a 1G 2/1 with a +1/+1 counter. We've concluded a while ago that for archetypes to really work in cube you need to run cards that are actually good and reliable in their respective archetypes. While Branchwalker is very solid, and I'm sure other cubes want it for this exact reason, it doesn't fill a reliable role in mine.
Verdict: Cut

New Horizons
The card I cut this for was a similar ramping land enchantment with a different bonus (can't even remember what it was). I've moved towards the enchantments over the sorcery ramp versions because of the synergy with enchantresses. When this came out I remember thinking: sweet it ramps AND can see play in +1/+1 counter decks. Wrong! There have been no +1/+1 counter decks that were remotely interested in this card. This should be a different ramp card.
Verdict: Cut

Gold
Sky Terror
Yeah, it's good. It does a couple things well for my Boros section: it's aggressive and plays well with pumping auras. On the other hand, it's can feel a little bland. In the end it's just a hard-to-block weenie. I mean, I run Jhessian Infiltrator as well (basically the same card), so I'm not saying I don't want to run it. Boros is not bathing in interesting cards anyway. But, if something better comes along, I wouldn't mind cutting this.
Verdict: Keep

Colorless
none


Conclusion

While nothing spectacular, Ixalan gave my cube a handful of solid role-players. There are a couple of cards I didn't test yet that I can see myself trying, most notably Wanted Scoundrels and some of the vampire cards if Rivals makes me want to look into that tribe again.

When we get a tribal set, the chance that there are less cube staples is lower, so no real surprise there. However, I'm still a little sad that there are also no tribal build-arounds that make me want to see if I can support the tribe.

Iconic Masters downgrades for Peasant Cube

What better to write about than one of my favorite things for peasant cube: Masters.

Masters sets (like Commander) have been great sources of rare-to-uncommon downgrades. Sometimes it's in the form of general good stuff like Epochrasite, sometimes it's something archetype-specific like Mesa Enchantress.

The official spoiler isn't out yet, but for this year's Iconic Masters, it looks like we're getting these:

Mahamoti Djinn
Awesome. For me personally, this is super iconic. I remember one of my buddies playing some sort of terrible deck with 4 Serra Angel and 4 Mahamoti Djinn.
It might not be the most resilient finisher we have access to, but it's still a huge flyer. There are a couple of 5/5 flyers in peasant, but they either cost more than 6 mana or have a huge drawback. The closest I can think of is Death by Dragons.
I will definitely include this, if only because I can.

Indulgent Tormentor
5 mana 5 power flyer is quite nice. Dies to bolt and doesn't block very well, which isn't a great quality for a 5-drop, but it's a sweet high-end card for black aggro decks.
Will try this one out.

Sanguine Bond
Yuck.

Dragon Tempest
As much as I would want to support dragons as a tribe, it's just not an option at our rarity (or power level, for that matter).

Hoarding Dragon
I have no idea if red wants a 4/4 flyer for 5, but it is something we don't have in the color. The tutor ability is not completely irrelevant either, but not the main selling point.
Funny enough, I don't run any 5+ drop creatures in red at the moment. I wonder if this is the one that stays.
Also good to mention that a lot of people do not run Serra Angel and Sengir Vampire anymore, but maybe the lack of red's playable fives makes this different.

Assault Formation
Cool card, but no.

Heroes' Bane
I like this one. As a 4/4 for 5 it's not great, but not terrible either. My cube has a ton of +1/+1 counter matters, which this plays well with. Also, as a threat for ramp it finishes the game kinda quickly with enough spare mana. It's fragile, sure, but it's a threat that must be answered.
Having said that, I don't expect this to make it into most peasant cubes simply because there are a lot of cards that are either more resilient as a finisher or are more than a mindless beater.

Ivy Elemental
It's funny that this and Heroes' Bane are in the same set, because they're quite similar. This is more flexible, but also slightly less efficient (and less scary when when it's in play). I'm intending to try both, because of the +1/+1 counters, but I don't think everyone should.

Bladewing the Risen
Not planning to pay 7 mana for a 4/4 flyer that supports a tribe we can't run. Swift Warkite is the better Rakdos dragon. Sadly.

Corpsejack Menace
Love it. It's not for everybody, but if your cube has +1/+1 counters as supported archetype this looks like a good include.
However, there are two issues I have with the card. First, I don't really want to cut anything from my Golgari section (what a bad position to be in, right?) and, second, black is not really the color with a lot of natural +1/+1 counters. This (along with its snake buddy) does make me want to include more though, and green should have quite enough for this to create some great Golgari +1/+1 counter decks.
Even though I will include the card, the fact that black doesn't have many +1/+1 counters is a big downside in my opinion. I try to make sure that my guild cards somewhat loud about which archetypes are supported and want them to be playable as 2-color decks. There's piles of overlap in other colors for most archetypes, and sometimes 3-color decks are the way to go, but I don't want it to be the baseline. Also, it feels bad if you are in an archetype because that's what mono colored cards push you towards, only to get passed an archetype support card IN THE WRONG COLORS.
Long story short, I will include this, but I'm planning to at least put more +1/+1 counters into black.

Rosheen Meanderer
Super fun card, this. I don't think anyone runs nearly enough X-cost spells to make this worth it. I guess this being a hybrid, easily castable and not having terrible stats to begin with might make this an option for people looking for a Gruul hybrid to even out hybrids.

--

In conclusion, there are a couple of cards I'm excited to try but nothing ridiculous. Nothing to patch up holes or to make entirely new archetypes viable. Some fun cards though, and I'm happy I can cast Mahamoti Djinn again for a while.

Amonkhet set preview (+ my top 5 cards) for Peasant Cube

Spoiler time! Let's dive into Amonkhet!

Warning: long article incoming. I'll start off with a review of the most interesting cards per color, and end with my top 5.

First, let's look at the new mechanics:

Embalm X (X, Exile this card from your graveyard: Create a token that's a copy of it, except it's a white Zombie <original creature types> with no mana cost. Embalm only as a sorcery)
So, flashback for creatures. That's bound to be nice, since flashback is one of the better mechanics in the history of Magic. (speaking of great mechanics, cycling's back as well!)
It also looks like a very good glue mechanic, as it synergizes with multiple things: graveyard, sacrifice, tokens.

Exert (An exerted creature won't untap during you next untap step)

Some creatures have the ability to 'exert' them as they attack, to get an effect. I do wonder if this causes memory issues. The mechanic itself doesn't really lend itself to anything specific other then attacking, so we'll see what kinds of effects it brings with it.

White

Cast Out (3W, Enchantment, Flash, When EtB, exile target non land permanent an opponent controls until this LtB. Cycling W)

Looks like good removal. But, we don't have a shortage of good removal in white and cycling is least useful on cards that are likely always to be useful. 

Devoted Crop-Mate (2W, Creature - Human Warrior, 3/2, You may exert this as it attacks. If you do, return a creature with cmc 2 or less from your grave to the battlefield)
We've seen a handful of cards like this in white, each of them with different restrictions. A 3/2 for 2W isn't the worst floor, but I wonder if I ever want to trade my 3/2 for a 1- or 2-drop. I guess if I'm about to suicide this in, I might as well exert it. And if my opponent doesn't block, I'm not down in board presence because I gained a creature.

Forsake the Worldly (2W, Instant, Exile target artifact or enchantment. Cycling 2)
Now this is a cycling card! Disenchant has always been fringe mainboard material, but could sometimes be a little awkward. Most decks will gladly trade an increase in mana cost for the ability to cycle it when needed. Interesting. It still has to compete with the likes of Oblivion Ring for versatility, a battle it will lose most of the time. Also, if we're talking about adding mana, you might as well include Cast Out in your list.

Oketra's Attendant (3WW, Creature - Bird Soldier, 3/3, Flying, Cycling 2, Embalm 3WW)

Not exactly peasant's Eternal Dragon. Thing is, Eternal Dragon's a 5/5 that keeps coming back, which is exactly what a control finisher wants. This still dies to a bolt and is a 7 turn clock on its own. 

Protection of the Hekma (4W, Enchantment, If a source an opponent controls deals damage to you, prevent 1 of it)

This is really expensive, and will not do anything in most decks/cubes. But if you support pillow fort style control decks, it might be worth a spin.

Seraph of the Suns (5WW, Creature - Angel, 4/4, Flying, Indestructible)

I really want to like this, because we don't get big indestructible creatures every day. As is, it's probably too expensive. 

Truehart Duelist (1W, Creature - Human Warrior, 2/2, Can block an additional creature, Embalm 2W)

It's a bear with flashback, so it can't be the worst. Most likely place is as a defensive speed bump, basically a white Moment's Peace.

Vizier of Deferment (2W, Creature - Human Cleric, 2/2 Flash, When EtB you may exile target creature if it attacked or blocked this turn. Return it at eot.)
You can flash it in to save an otherwise dying attacker while you keep attacking, you can prevent some damage by blinking one attacker and blocker the other. Oh, and if you have something with a sweet EtB effect it's even better. I think I like this a decent amount, even though I'm not over the moon about it.


White is allright, nothing to write home about. It gets some decent removal options (which we didn't really need), a couple of unexciting Embalm creatures and some value 3-drops.

Going to try and find room for: Devoted Crop-Mate and Vizier of Deferment, maybe Forsake the Worldly.

--

Blue

Angler Drake (4UU, Creature - Drake, 4/4, Flying, When EtB return target creature to its owner's hand)
I like this one quite a bit. It's a big flying finisher for control decks, that can help stabilize the board when it comes down. However, we also have Phyrexian Ingester, which I didn't really like. I'm not sure if this is better.

Censor (1U, Instant, Cycling U, Counter target spell unless caster pays 1)

This is obviously a toned down Miscalculation, with a lower cycling cost to make up for it. Even though the power level is way lower, I still like it. If my opponent isn't curving out in the first couple of turns (blanking the counter option) I'm quite happy, and even so the cycling is almost free.

Cryptic Serpent (5UU, Creature - Serpent, 6/5, costs 1 less for each instant or sorcery in your grave)
Nothing amazing, but it looks like a solid archetype anchor. If I'm able to reduce the cost to less then 5 (which sounds doable with the amount of self-milling my cube is capable of), I'm pretty happy. Playing this for 2-4 mana as a finisher in control decks, while keeping up mana for removal or counters doesn't sound terrible either.

Galestrike (2U, Instant, Return target tapped creature to its owner's hand. Draw a card)
Again a card that resembles an old standby: Repulse. If you want another of this effect, Galestrike is not bad at all.

Hieroglyphic Illumination (3U, Instant, Draw 2, Cycling U)
Somehow, this card looks really interesting to me. Neither option is terribly good, but it smooths the draw very well. I think I won't include it (I have Think Twice as a similar card, but with better synergy with my cube), but I wouldn't fault anyone for trying it.

Labyrinth Guardian (1U, Creature - Illusion Warrior, 2/3, When becomes the target of a spell, sac it. Embalm 3U)
Again with the unexciting but playable curve fillers. A 2/3 for 2 will probably trade with any 2-drop, making it a decent blocker. At 4 mana, the 2/3 will probably not do a lot of trading so this is closer to 1.5 card than 2 cards. The drawback is close to irrelevant, because most removal already kills this. If it's not removal than I think I'd gladly trade my random 2-drop with flashback for it.

Lay Claim (5UU, Enchant Permanent, Gain control of enchanted permanent. Cycling 2)
So far, nobody seems in a hurry to cube with Confiscate. But that's not because Confiscate is not powerful; it's because it's slow and doesn't do anything in the early turns. This might be even more expensive than Confiscate is, but it also helps smoothing the early game.

Open into Wonder (XUU, Sorcery, X target creatures can't be blocked this turn. Until eot, they gain: draw a card when this deals combat damage)
I remember playing this option on Profane Command a lot. While it's not Command, it's still interesting: either you finish off your opponent with a couple unblockables, or you deal a couple of damage while drawing a couple of cards. I can see this being pretty sweet in U/G ramp decks, mostly. 

Blue, like white, has some decent cards but nothing that really gets me going.

I'll probably find room to try: Censor and Cryptic Serpent, maybe Angler Drake and Open into Wonder.

--

Black

Baleful Ammit (2B, Creature - Crocodile Demon, 4/3, Lifelink, When EtB put a -1/-1 counter on a creature you control)
Right, well this is one beefy croc. If you can find some fodder to put the counter on (not the hardest in black), you get yourself a 4/3 lifelinker for 3 mana, which is a ridiculous rate. Even as a 3/2 lifelinker for 3, it's not the worst ever.

Bone Picker (3B, Creature - Bird, 3/2, Flying, Deathtouch, costs 3 less when a creature died this turn)
Talking about ridiculous rates, a 3/2 Flying Deathtoucher for B is bananas. Of course, something has to have died. I look at it like this: Did I lose a creature this turn? Great, Bone Picker gets cheaper. No? Great, then I still have my creatures in play. Plus, I can always go turn 2 Bolt you guy+this. Seems like a great card.

Cursed Minotaur (2B, Creature - Zombie Minotaur, 3/2, Menace)
Unexciting, but good. Boggart Brute has been good enough, and my black can similarly aggressive. It's also a zombie, which is something that might start mattering.

Doomed Dissenter (1B, Creature - Human, 1/1, When dies create a 2/2 black Zombie token)
Butcher Ghoul, Carrier Thrall and Myr Sire are already in my cube, and get played. I'm not sure if my cube wants another copy, but depending on what I want them to have synergy with I they're somewhat interchangeable.

Festering Mummy (B, Creature - Zombie, 1/1, When dies you may put a -1/-1 counter on a creature)
Not bad, strictly better than the 2 guys that only give -1/-1 until eot when they die.

Lay Bare the Heart (1B, Sorcery, Target player reveals his hand, discard a non-legendary, non-land card from it)
Looks good, but boring. I always seem to have trouble finding room in my decks for the 1 mana versions, let alone 2 mana ones. Still, it's probably good.

Lord of the Accursed (2B, Creature - Zombie, 2/3, Other zombies you control have +1/+1, 1BT: Zombies get Menace until eot)
Yay, a tribal lord. +1/+1 And potential menace looks like a good deal to me, even though this is super mediocre on its own. Time to do a zombie check: 9 zombies in mono black, and 5 more that make zombie tokens. But, I can probably work in some more of both. I've really liked minor tribal support in my cube so far and I will definitely see if I can support this one. Will be continued..

Ruthless Sniper (B, Creature - Human Archer, 1/2, When you discard or cycle a card, pay 1, if you do put a -1/-1 counter on target creature)
I really like the look of this one. I run a decent number of discard effects in my cube, this might be a fun way to use those effects a bit differently aside from using it just to put stuff in my graveyard. Turn 1 Sniper, turn 2 Looter is the dream, but even a turn 2 Wild Mongrel sounds like a lot of fun.

Stir the Sands (4BB, Sorcery, Create 3 2/2 zombie tokens. Cycling 3B. When you cycle this, create a 2/2 Zombie token)
6 Mana for 6 power is not a super good rate, but when you factor in different synergies (mass pump, sacrifice, maybe zombies) it's quite allright. The cycling is decent as well, and likely to catch some people off guard when they attack.

Supernatural Stamina (B, Instant, Until eot target creature gets +2/+0 and: when this dies, put it into play tapped)
A more aggressive Undying Evil that lets the creature trade up on the front side. Looks like a good card.

Wander in Death (2B, Sorcery, Return 2 creatures from you grave to your hand. Cycling 2)

Death's Duet with upside. Probably decent, but like with Cast Out you're probably better off holding this for full value instead of cycling it.

Black has a little more interesting cards than White and Blue so far. Amonkhet is not looking to be the most ridiculous set for peasant cube ever. It's fun, because I can see myself trying out almost all of the above, but still there's not a lot that gets me super excited (well except maybe for the zombie lord if I can get it going).

Looking to find room to test: Baleful Ammit, Bone Picker, Cursed Minotaur, Ruthless Sniper, Lord of the Accursed, Stir the Sands and Supernatural Stamina. 

--

Red

Ahn-Crop Crasher (2R, Creature - Minotaur Warrior, 3/2, Haste. Exert: target creature can't block this turn)
Um, sure, I'd play this. It's got decent base stats, a relevant creature type, haste and a very relevant exert ability. I quite like having the 'can't block' ability on something other than entering the battlefield. Sometimes you just want the body but would rather save the ability for later. This does that. Exerting your guy is not the best though, but you'd probably exert it on an alpha strike or suicide mission most of the time anyway. And if it lives, great, take a turn off to rebuild and finish the job a couple turns later.

Bloodlust Inciter (R, Creature - Human Warrior, 1/1, T: target creature gets haste until eot)
Another solid little red guy. I can see this going into red decks of all sizes, from aggressively slanted decks to midrange Fires of Yavimaya style decks to Rakdos Reanimate. It's not the best topdeck, but most 1-drops aren't and this at least can threaten damage on the turn after.

Bloodrage Brawler (1R, Creature - Minotaur Warrior, 4/3, When EtB discard a card)
So far, red is looking great. I really really like this one. It's a very beefy 2-drop, has the Warrior sub-type, and gives red something I've been pushing: discard. This card is a perfect fit for both Rakdos Reanimate and Gruul midrange graveyard. It also gives Izzet with flashback and delve an aggressive option to create a different speed of Izzet deck than usual. Love it, perfect fit for my cube.

Consuming Fervor (Red Unstable Mutation)
When unchecked, this can deal an extra 6 damage before it starts to shrink the creature from its original size. That's a lot of damage for a single mana. With all the double strike in my cube, I can't not try this. Heck, I even run actual Unstable Mutation in my cube.

Nimble-Blade Khenra (1R, Creature - Jackal Warrior, 1/3, Prowess)
Well, Sanguinary Mage hasn't been making any waves, and Kiln Fiend isn't seeing that much play either. However, I can see a critical mass of similar guys doing some work in the right cube.

Warfire Javelineer (3R, Creature - Minotaur Warrior, 2/3, When EtB deal damage to target creature opponent controls equal to the number of instants and sorceries in your graveyard)
This card was bound to see print one day, and I'm not unhappy it did. Flametongue Kavu is a ridiculous card, even when it's smaller and you have to do more work for it. Plus, this is quite load in communicating archetypes, which I like.


Red may have less cards that caught my eye, the cards that did are also some of the best I've seen yet from Amonkhet.

Will find room to test: Ahn-Crop Crasher, Bloodlust Inciter, Bloodrage Brawler, Consuming Fervor and Warfire Javelineer.

--

Green

Benefaction of Rhonas (2G, Sorcery, Reveal the top 5 cards and put a creature and/or an enchantment into your hand and the rest in your grave)

Commune with the Gods with 'and/' added to the text. Sweet! Commune is very good in my cube as a way to fill the graveyard OR tutor for a key enchantment. I do think, however, that the extra mana makes Benefaction a lot worse. I love my self mill in green, but I think we've gotten to a point where enough is enough. I might still try this though, because it's such a good pivot card between multiple archetypes, but finding room is getting real hard.

Crocodile of the Crossing (3G, Creature - Crocodile, 5/4, Haste, When EtB put a -1/-1 counter on a creature you control)
Awesome, more beefy crocs. It's a good one, as well. The drawback seems very easy to mitigate by nixing a token or a random mana elf. But, while I think this is pretty good, I don't think I'll be including it. First off, the 4 mana spot is very crowded in general with green being particularly competitive. Second, it supports not a lot of the themes I run in green, not even the minor ones: graveyard, enchantments, tokens, warriors, +1/+1 counters, tokens. It would be great in Fires decks, but that's about it. I like it, but I don't think I personally have room for it.

Defiant Greatmaw (2G, Creature - Hippo, 4/5, When EtB put 2 -1/-1 counters on a creature you control. When you put one or more -1/-1 counters on this, remove a -1/-1 counter from another creature you control)
These river-dwellers look fun. Everybody in the jungle is like 'Amonkhet my ass out of the water!' Most everything I've said about Crocodile of the Crossing applies here though, and I think I like the croc better on its own.

Exemplar of Strength (1G, Creature - Human Warrior, 4/4, When EtB put 3 -1/-1 counters on a creature you control. When this attacks, remove a -1/-1 counter from it and gain 1 life)
This, however, looks too good not to add. It's a reverse Slith with a 4/4 ceiling at the worst, attacking as a 2/2 on the first swing. If you have a random creature you could do without, it's a straight up 2 mana 4/4.

Greater Sandwurm (5GG, Creature - Wurm, 7/7, Can't be blocked by creatures with power 2 or less. Cycling 2)
This is a pretty good reanimator card, and the best cycling fatty for this purpose. I personally run none of them, but I know some do run a couple fatties with cycling or landcycling.

Gift of Paradise (2G, Enchant Land, When EtB gain 3 life. Land has: T: add 2 mana of any one color to your pool)
Nice multicolor ramp. I already cut most of my non-creature based ramp for cards like Utopia Sprawl and Fertile Ground, and I'll likely remove Kodama's Reach for this. It may not help me get to my 5th mana like Reach does, but the lifegain is very welcome against aggro decks. Not sure if I would recommend making this swap to everyone, but with all my enchantment-matters cards in green it sounds like a no-brainer. Bonus points for synergizing with effects that untap lands.

Quarry Hauler (3G, Creature - Camel, 4/3, When EtB, for each kind of counter on target permanent, put another one of that counter on it or remove one from it)
A while ago I might have tried this as part of my +1/+1 counters package, but today I feel I don't need to play otherwise underwhelming cards anymore. It's not bad, just that we've gotten spoiled lately.

Scaled Behemoth (4GG, Creature - Crocodile, 6/7, Hexproof)
A cheaper, less tramply, p/t inverted Plated Crusher. This is even harder to remove than Crusher is. Not that the difference between 6 and 7 matters in most games where you ramp or reanimate this out, but still. Losing trample is a shame, but being easier to hard-cast is pretty good. I want to run this. Reanimate can always use another premium target, and ramp doesn't mind either.

Shefet Monitor (5G, Creature - Lizard, 6/5, Cycling 3G. When you cycle this, search your library for a basic land or Desert card and put it into play)
Another ramp target, reminiscent of Krosan Tusker. Depending on what you expect the main mode to be, this is better or worse than Tusk is. Tusk wasn't often hardcast, but 7 is more than 6 so I don't know. Again, it's a good card, but I don't think I can find the room.

Stinging Shot (G, Instant, Put 3 -1/-1 counters on target creature with flying. Cycling 2)
While it's not likely that I include this, I think it's a pretty neat card. Cycling is best on good-but-narrow cards. Would definitely test if my cube wasn't so synergy based

Trial of Strength (2G, Enchantment, When EtB create a green 4/2 beast token. Whenever a Cartouche EtB, return this to your hand)
Nice, the green Sarcomancy. Opposed to a couple of the other green cards, I wouldn't touch this card if I had a more mainstream cube, but think that it might be a very good fit for my cube. I run quite a lot of enchantment-matters cards, and the biggest drawback those cards have is that they require a critical mass of enchantments in your deck to be worthwhile. Sometimes, this means that those decks run lower on creatures than I would ideally want. It can be a hard balance to find. This card, however, ticks both boxes.


Green has some interesting cards for cubes that have less of a focus on archetypes than mine. Overall, it looks more or less similar to white and blue that there are a decent number of playable cards, but nothing 'OH MY GOD I WANTED A CARD LIKE THIS SINCE FOREVER'.

I'm going to try and include: Gift of Paradise and Trial of Strength, and probably Exemplar of Strength. Maybe Benefaction of Rhonas.

--

Multicolor

Ahn-Crop Champion (2WG, Creature - Human Warrior, 4/4. Exert: untap all other creatures you control)
Interesting ability, good stats. I don't think most cubes can find the room for it, either because of a small guild section or because it doesn't fit in Selesnya's archetypes.

Aven Wind Guide (2WU, Creature - Bird Warrior, 2/3, Flying, Vigilance, Creature tokens you control have flying and vigilance. Embalm 4WU)
Well, 2/3 flying, vigilance for 4 is not the worst base, and Intangible Virtue that's not terrible when you happen to be out of tokens at the moment is nice deal. Azorius does also have a 'flying matters' theme available to it, which more or less overlaps with the token theme but hits more creatures. I'm going to have to think some more on this, because I do think it's fun. Amonkhet did make me want to reconsider Intangible Virtue, and this might be a nice addition as well. Another downside I see here is that blue has the least amount of token producers in my cube, so I might have to do something about that.

Enigma Drake (1UR, Creature - Drake, */4, power equal to number of instants and sorceries in your grave)
I actually don't mind this. Having 4 toughness means it survives way more than Spellheart Chimera, which is something I'd gladly trade for the trample. I do want to make room for this as a nice archetype pay-off card for Izzet, because I think that a 3 mana 4/4 flyer might just be a great fit for the spells decks.

Honored Crop-Captain (WR, Creature - Human Warrior, 3/2, When this attacks, all other attacking creatures get +1/+0)
Awesome aggressive card, will try. Boros isn't the deepest ever, so yeah (although I was actually relatively happy with my Boros section at the moment, lol).

Shadowstorm Vizier (UB, Creature - Human Cleric, 1/3, flying, when you cycle or discard a card: +1/+1 until eot)
This looks like fun, even though I probably won't play it. I think that if it would've been either in Rakdos or in Simic, I would.

Start // Finish (2W, Instant, create 2 1/1 soldiers with Vigilance. // 2B, Sorcery, sac a creature: destroy a creature)
Lingering Souls with a different flashback. Well, it's a lot worse than Souls, but I think it's still worth considering. It's quite unique in that it's both an enabler and a 'payoff' card for the same deck. I think I might try this one to see if it works out.

Spring // Mind (2G, Sorcery, Search for a basic land and put into play tapped. // 4UU, Instant, draw 2)
First off, I love the name. Using Spring in 2 different ways (the season and in 'Spring to Mind') is clever. The card actually isn't bad either. The ramp spell with card draw flashback, even though both parts are overcosted, is something Simic ramp could use very well. Another card I might try depending on the available cuts.


Not a lot of gold cards, but some fun ones.

I'm probably going to find room for: Aven Wind Guide, Enigma Drake, Honored Crop-Captain. Maaaaybe Start // Finish and Spring // Mind.


--

Colorless

Edifice of Authority (3, Artifact, 1T: Target creature can't attack and put a brick counter on this. 1T: Target creature can't attack, block or use activated abilities until your next turn. Activate only if 3 more brick counters on this)

Interesting riff on Icy Manipulator, a card that's old, good, but on the expensive side. Before you 'build' this up, it does the same that Icy does in most circumstances: prevent attacks. After you finished 'building' this, it's better than Icy in almost every way.

Gate to the Afterlife (3, Artifact, Whenever a non-token creature you control dies, gain 1 life and you may loot. Then some nonsense about searching for something called God-Pharaoh's Gift)

Seriously, what's God-Pharaoh's Gift. Is it something I care about? Probably in the next set. Anyway, this is probably just too durdly, even for me. The non-token clause is what pushes it from the maybe-pile into the meh-pile.

Grasping Dunes (Land - Desert, Add 1. 1T, sac: Put a -1/-1 counter on target creature. Play only as sorcery)
I got really excited when I read about Deserts being a thing in this set. After seeing the ones spoiled, I'm slightly disappointed, but at the same time I guess I didn't really expect the Deserts to be insane. This is the one I'd be most inclined to run of the new ones (although I might consider the one that makes a Zombie token if I include the Zombie lord). But, more realistically, I might just run good ol' Desert instead.

Rhonas's Monument (3, Artifact, Green creature spells cost 1 less. When you play a creature spell, target creature gets +2/+2 and trample until eot)
The best monument in my opinion. The white one (tokens) takes too long to get enough value from, especially since decks that care about/make tokens often use spells to do so, the blue one (tap for a turn) just looks worse than a colorless tapper, the black one's ability (1 point life steal) is too small. The red one (rummaging) looks decent, until you realize that it does nothing in the lategame when you actual need the rummaging. Not only do you have to draw a creature to use it, you also have draw a blank to be able to dig. Pass.
The green one is the one that's most likely to have its mana discount matter, and the +2/+2 and trample helps making mana elves relevant in the lategame or lets dumb monsters trample over for damage.


Colorless cards are a bit of a let-down (although this is nothing new, really).

Will try to fit in: Edifice of Authority, probably, but maybe nothing.

--

My top 5 cards from Amonkhet

(or: Top 5 cards Amonkhet for my cube, most likely)

5. Censor

4. Bone Picker

3. Bloodlust Inciter
2. Honored Crop-Captain
1. Bloodrage Brawler

Honorable Mentions: Ruthless Sniper and Gift of Paradise

Or something like it. On pure power level, Cast Out should probably be there, probably some other cards.

Overall though, I feel like Amonkhet is a lot lower in power level than other recent sets. I know they do this on purpose sometimes, to not let power creep get us too much. The set does look like a blast to draft.

For my cube, there are a couple of gems (Bloodrage Brawler being the best example) that fill out current archetypes. Sadly though, there are not a lot of new archetype impulses or things that revive  underpowered ones, like with the recent influx of +1/+1 counters. Maybe this is a good thing, and a sign that my cube is in a good place right now.

Anyway, this long-ass article should come to an end. Amonkhet going now.

Top 10 Aether Revolt cards for Peasant Cube

Spoiler time! Kaladesh was absolutely amazing for my cube, let's see if Aether Revolt knocks the block out of the park.

First, let's look at the new abilities:

Revolt - When [this] enters the battlefield, if a permanent you controlled left the battlefield this turn, [do something]
Well, morbid is a fun ability. This looks a little harder to enable because it doesn't trigger off of your opponent's stuff even though this counts all permanents and self-bounce as well. Maybe if the triggers  turn out to be very powerful, or if the base cards are great on their own, but otherwise I don't think this is going to make waves.


Improvise (Your artifacts can help cast this spell. Each artifact you tap after you’re done activating mana abilities pays for 1)

As much as I want this to be great, 'artifacts matter' is just not a thing most peasant cubes are set up to  do. 

Top 10 Aether Revolt cards for Peasant Cube

10: Scrapper Champion (3R, Creature - Human Artificer, 2/2, Double Strike, When [this] etb, get EE. When [this] attacks, you may pay EE. If you do, put a +1/+1 counter on it)

Double strike is one of the more powerful keyword creature abilities in a vacuum. Makes the creature good in combat, and able to deal surprising amounts of damage with even the smallest pump. Generally, we don't get double strikers larger than the occasional 2/2 and if we do they're either rare or horribly overpriced. Still, a 3/3 for 4 (essentially) is not ridiculous or anything, but a 3/3 double striker is at least something to keep an eye on. As a bonus, it has a +1/+1 counter on it for synergy with different +1/+1 counter lords you might run.

9: Invigorated Rampage (1R, Instant, Choose one - Target creature gets +4/+0 and trample until eot, or, Two target creatures each get +2/+0 and trample until eot)

One of the better red combat tricks we've seen in a while. +4 Power and trample is quite a lot, and having the option of spreading it out is great utility in the face of removal, 2 chumped fatties and/or double trade-up in combat.

8: Untethered Express (4, Artifact - Vehicle, 4/4, Crew 1, Trample. When [this] attacks, put a +1/+1 counter on it)

Even after playing with Kaladesh for a while, I still don't feel like I have a firm grasp on how good vehicles are. What I do know, is that a 4/4 trampler for 4 that grows when attacking is pretty good and that Crew 1 is not very hard to do. I think this is good, but it might be even better than that.

7: Aether Chaser (1R, Creature - Human Artificer, 2/1, First Strike, When [this] etb, get EE, When [this] attacks, you may pay EE, if you do, create a Servo)

Most of us played Youthful Knight at one point or another and this is way better. It's good in the early game: hard to block, makes a 'free' 1/1. But, it still has value later on and even less aggressive decks will have use for this 2-drop because of the first strike. 

6: Gifted Aetherborn (BB, Creature - Aetherborn Vampire, 2/3, Deathtouch, Lifelink)

Obviously very good. More toughness than most 2-drops and two abilities to boot. The double black mana cost is a real drawback, although in this case it's a little less of a problem because Gifted Aetherborn has such good stats/abilities that it will still be good even if you play it on turn 4 (or even later).

5: Winding Constrictor (BG, Creature, 2/3, If one or more counters would be placed on an artifact or creature you control, that many of those counters plus one are placed on that permanent instead. If you would get one or more counters, you get that many +1)

This card should probably be a lot lower on the list, but I'm just very excited to try it out. A 2/3 for 2 is already above the curve (which it should be as a double colored 2-drop). The ability is super interesting and unique to peasant. Suddenly, Carrion Feeder gets 2 counters every time you sac a guy to it, Cytoplast Root-Kin becomes a ridiculous ball of durdly synergy and the #3 on this list gets way better. What's not to like? The only thing I'm 'sad' about is that I don't really support +1/+1 counters in black.

4: Monstrous Onslaught (3GG, Sorcery, [This] deals X damage divided as you choose among any number of target creatures, where X is the greatest power among creatures you control as you cast [this])

Green removal always makes me pause. Until now, I haven't really played any (at least not for longer than a couple of weeks), mostly because I think pump is a more interesting way for green to interact with creatures and I just didn't felt I needed it. However, this just looks like so much fun and value that I can't NOT run it. It's situational, so it won't be good in every deck, but in the right deck this is just a 5 mana plague wind. It even shores up the traditional weakness of green's removal by locking the power in on casting instead of on resolution, so it doesn't matter if your opponent manages to remove your biggest guy.

3: Ridgescale Tusker (3GG, Creature - Beast, 5/5, When [this] etb, put a +1/+1 counter on each other creature you control)

Back-to-back green 5 mana 5/5's with value for Kaladesh block it seems. The stats are good enough on their own, but it's so sweet to pump all your mana elves after ramping this out or just curving into this and out-sizing your opponent's board with all your men. It's not as explosive as Overrun, but way more versatile. Also: cue obligatory +1/+1 counter synergy.

2: Maulfist Revolutionary (1GG, Creature - Human Warrior, 3/3, Trample. When [this] etb or dies, for each kind of counter on target permanent or player, give that permanent or player another counter of that kind)

Holy crap this card looks good. It might not have the raw stats Skyship Plunderer does (although a 3/3 trample for 3 is certainly not bad), but the fact that it adds counters on etb is amazing, and again when it dies? First of all, you can't stop the ability by removing or blocking the guy (like with Plunderer). Second, it's in a better color for counters. Third, the combination of etb and sitting a little higher on the curve plays way better with the red +1/+1 counter guys like Gore-House Chainwalker. Imagine going 1-drop into Stormblood Berserker into this. Sounds good, right?

1: Skyship Plunderer (1U, Creature - Human Pirate, Flying, Whenever [this] deals combat damage to a player, for each kind of counter on target permanent or player, give that permanent or player another counter of that kind)

It might be a little boring to put this so high, but this is one of the more blatant powercrept cards we've gotten in a long long time. Traditionally, 2 power flyers for 1U can only block other flyers or have some other drawback or condition. This doesn't, AND has additional upside. Actually, in the right deck, the upside is absolutely huge. For the low cost of having to hit a player (oh hi there, natural evasion), you get to add a counter to a permanent. Play this after a turn 1 Vivid or Gemstone Mine? Never have color issues again. Serrated Arrows? I don't see this one ever leaving my cube. Ever.

Honorable mentions:

Fatal Push (B, Instant, Destroy target creature if it has cmc 2 or less, Revolt - Destroy if it has 4 or less)

Good, efficient removal, but this is something black already does very well. Still probably better than something like a Disfigure. Maybe I'm underselling it, because it will be able to hit and kill a big number of creatures in my cube and more with Revolt turned on. I just think it's better in other formats than in peasant cube.

Restoration Specialist (1W, Creature - Dwarf Artificer, 2/1, W, Sac [this]: Return up to one target artifact card and up to one target enchantment card from your graveyard to your hand)
I'm definitely trying this one. The raw stats are on the lower side, but the flexibility is nice to have especially because artifacts/enchantments are among the more powerful cards in peasant cube. I do run more enchantments than most though, so ymmv.

Foundry Hornet (3B, Creature - Insect, Flying, When [this] etc, if you control a creature with a +1/+1 counter on it, creatures your opp. control get -1/-1 until eot)
Will try to make room for this, because I like it as a build-around and a nice anchor in black for +1/+1 counter synergies. I don't think it's crazy good, but it looks fun.

Vengeful Rebel (2B, Creature - Aetherborn Warrior, 3/2, Revolt - target creature an opp. control gets -3/-3 until eot)
Revolt is likely harder to trigger than I want it to be, but I like that we get a card like this that's basically only good in aggro or midrange instead of being nuts against it.

Reckless Racer (2R, Creature - Human Pilot, 2/3, First Strike, When [this] becomes tapped, you may discard a card. If you do, draw a card)
Not a bad rummager. Has more impact on the board than Rummaging Goblin, as in: it's not completely useless in combat.

Wrangle (1R, Sorcery, Gain control of target creature with power 4 or less until eot. Untap it and it gains haste until eot)
Depending on your use of effects like these, this is one of the better Threatens. My cube has 10 creatures it can't hit naturally that Threaten can. Of course, any pump/equipment/aura will throw off the math. However, being a mana less than Threaten is a huge boon. So, if you use your Threatens mostly as a way for aggro decks to push through: Wrangle is your guy. If your Threatens are cute way to kill creatures with a sac outlet (or your cube has a lot of pump and/or growing creatures): stick with Threaten.

Narnam Renegade (G, Creature - Elf Warrior, 1/2, Deathtouch. Revolt - etb with a +1/+1 counter)
Likely a little too hard to trigger consistently in the early game, but 2/3 deathtouch for a single mana is great potential. The deathtouch makes it useful for a whole swath of decks.

Treasure Keeper (4, Artifact Creature - Construct, 3/3, When [this] dies, cascade)
I like it, and will try it out, but I'm expecting a 4 mana 3/3 that has variable upside when it dies is just a little slower to create value than I want.

Hidden Stockpile (WB, Enchantment, Revolt - At the beginning of your end step, create a Servo. 1, Sac a creature: Scry 1)
Super slow, but good continuous fodder for the grindy sacrifice decks that WB has available to it. Will try, but I can see it being too slow.

Top 5 Commander 2016 cards for Peasant Cube

Since Commander 2013 brought us Curse of Predation and Curse of Shallow Graves, I get excited every time a new Commander product gets released. This time was no different. And, even though there are only a handful of new cards, there are a couple of sweet ones.

Let's get on to the cards:

5: Parting Thoughts (2B, Sorcery, Destroy target creature. You draw X cards and you lose X life, where X is the number of counters on that creature.)

For cubes that are looking to de-power their removal, 2B to destroy any creature at sorcery speed is probably right where you want to be. It's not super efficient, but not super awkward either. The draw part is just gravy. Creatures with +1/+1 counters are quite a common sight nowadays, without a cube having to specifically support a +1/+1 counter archetype.

This comes with a big cost though. The draw part of Parting Thoughts can create random blow-outs. This makes it super swingy and almost a sideboard card. Personally, I've taken most creatures with protection from a color out of my cube because I don't want to have too many cards in my cube that can just randomly hose someone. On top of that, if cubes do support a +1/+1 counter archetype (without going overboard in it), odds are that it's not overpoweringly good to warrant a sideboard card. Reanimate and G/B value decks are good in my cube, but I don't want to invalidate someone's whole draft by having someone randomly drafting a 13th pick Relic of Progenitus.

Having said all this, I do think Parting Thoughts can be an interesting tool for a peasant cube owner. Like how Shatter was a high pick in Mirrodin limited, Parting Thoughts can be a bomb in a cube where every other creature does something with counters.

Verdict: Not making my cube, but I can see myself reconsidering when the format asks for it.

4: Orzhov Advokist (2W, Creature - Human Advisor, 1/4, At the beginning of your upkeep, each player may put two +1/+1 counters on a creature her or she controls. If a player does, creatures that player controls can't attack you or a planeswalker you control until your next upkeep.)

This card is so weird. It's a creature with defensive stats and an ability that both prevents your opponents attacking you AND makes your attackers better. I can see it playing amazing, terrible, and everything in between. This alone makes me want to try it.

Orzhov Advokist is probably best in a deck with a number of small flyers/unblockables or other creatures that benefit from +1/+1 counters. In that deck, it doesn't really matter what your opponent chooses. If he/she chooses counters, you're ahead on attacks. If he/she chooses to attack, your creatures will race faster.

Verdict: Will test

3: Frenzied Fugue (3R, Enchantment - Aura, Enchant Permanent. When Frenzied Fugue enters the battlefield or at the beginning of your upkeep, gain control of target permanent until end of turn. Untap that permanent. It gains haste until end of turn.)

Cool design, and again very unique. I take my hat off for the person who designed this. Being able to steal something and gain value from it over the course of a longer game, while still retaining red's impulsive feel and not being able to use it defensively is a thing of beautiful design.

What's even more amazing (and something I totally missed the first time reading this), is that it's an enchant PERMANENT. Without considering all the fun implications this has, it's a red answer to cards like Propaganda. I'll say that again.

It's a red answer to Propaganda.

Verdict: Will test.

2: Migratory Route (3WU, Sorcery, Create four 1/1 white Bird creature tokens with flying. Basic landcycling 2)

Simply put, this is just a great card. Four flying tokens for 5 mana is already a sweet deal, and this even has basic landcycling. It's also just the perfect crossover card between tokens (white) and flying matters (blue).

Oh, how I remember the days when Azorius as a guild felt super medium. The last year and a half we've gotten Reflector Mage, Thunderclap Wyvern, Cloudblazer, and now this. It's still not the deepest guild in the city, but I think this is the first time that I'm actually having trouble deciding on a configuration. And I run a whopping five guild cards (not counting lands).

Verdict: Definite include.

1: Ash Barrens (Land, t: Add C to your mana pool. Basic landcycling 1)

After the unique coolness of some of the other cards, this is quite the opposite but not less powerful. This innocuous little land is very very good. Like, better than staples Evolving Wilds and Terramorphic Expanse good. Let's compare them:

Turn 1 - Barrens: play for colorless mana or cycle to fix for turn 2. Wilds/Expanse: play to fix for turn 2. Advantage: Barrens.
Turn 2 - Barrens: play to cast a 2-drop or play 1-drop and cycle to fix (immediately, or) for turn 3. Wilds/Expanse: play to fix for turn 3 and cast a 1-drop. Advantage: Barrens.
etc.
Turn 8 - Barrens: top deck and cycle to fix immediately for the splash card you've been holding. Wilds/Expanse: top deck and wait another turn to cast your splash card. Advantage: Barrens.

Obviously, Wilds/Expanse shouldn't leave your cube ever, either.

I was already excited when we got Aether Hub from Kaladesh, but this is even better. It's been a good month for peasant cube fixing.

Verdict: Windmill slam include, never take out.

Honorable mention: Ancient Excavation (2UB, Instant, Draw cards equal to the number of cards in your hand, then discard a card for each card drawn this way. Basic land cycling 2)

Ancient Excavation is probably not really playable, but I put it up here anyway because there wasn't anything better and the ceiling of the card is quite high. Plus, land cycling is an amazing ability.
In reality, it's likely closer to a 4 mana instant speed Careful Study than anything else.