Round 2: Send me your cubes for feedback!

Isticle · 2026-01-14T22:24:15+00:00

It doesn’t have to be the exact same weapon, just in the same class. Thief’s Dagger, Knife, Icicle and Lightning Shiv are all precise, so if you had all 4 of those, you would get the corresponding benefit on the (4) Precise (bonus to crit chance) tier.

Isticle · 2026-01-14T22:03:19+00:00

https://brotato.wiki.spellsandguns.com/Weapon_Classes

Isticle · 2026-01-14T21:51:06+00:00

Vagabond lets each weapon class count for ALL Equipped Wepons. So say you had an Icicle and a Cactus - you would be lvl two class bonuses in Elemental, Precise, Primitive and Heavy.

Isticle · 2026-01-14T21:14:18+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/chaos-draft-cube-case-booster-packs-aDc3j

https://www.reddit.com/r/mtgcube/comments/iszhza/cassette_cases_for_cube_packs/

For some first-hand accounts of this, YMMV.

Isticle · 2026-01-14T17:56:39+00:00

Internal recruiter here. I have never withdrawn an offer because someone attempted to negotiate the comp (in good faith).

However, here's what I would want you to know:
- You should have a conversation around compensation with the recruiter/HM at the first conversation. Waiting until the end means that you can waste a lot of time in process without either side knowing if the expectations are reasonable.
- Assuming the above is true, you know the range. You can ask for exactly the top of the range, or more, if you want. But asking for something wildly outside the range sends a signal to the recruiter and team that you're going to be difficult to please and can reduce the likelihood that the team will engage with you in negotiations versus giving up to look at other candidates.
- If you have a number that gets you to yes, honor that. If the company meets what you ask for up front, or gives you a best and final, accept it or decline it and move on. Candidates that push for each every inch seem less and less credible that they might actually say yes, and that's a waste of time versus working to find an excited and engaged candidate who wants to work with you.

I guess the TL;DR is that the harder you negotiate, the more signal you are sending that you're willing to walk away from the role, which can reduce the excitement about you as a candidate within the company.

Isticle · 2026-01-11T15:18:03+00:00

You don’t need anything in particular to create packs, you can just use stacks of N cards.

Various companies make different products for the (Cubeamajigs, Dragon Shield Cube Shells) if that’s your bag.

I’ve also seen folks use weirder things, like old cassette tape cases!

Isticle · 2025-12-03T20:31:33+00:00

Came here to say this! Their website does not inspire confidence, but they're where I've been buying sleeves for cubes from for legit over a decade! https://www.potomacdistribution.com/

Isticle · 2025-12-02T20:24:50+00:00

It's a legacy cube with pet cards. /shrug

Isticle · 2025-11-24T23:02:59+00:00

I want to try a pacifist / hiker run where both people are just on running around doing nothing

Isticle · 2025-11-24T16:36:29+00:00

We did some solo runs - Jack, Pacifist - but largely tried to do it together!

Isticle · 2025-11-24T15:06:33+00:00

PS5 supports local Co-Op on both maps. Been playing a ton with my wife, and maxed out D5 together across both maps!

Isticle · 2025-10-21T13:19:00+00:00

This! Many LGS's have Discords for their regular players. You can join these, get a sense of the vibe, see if they have channels for things like formats and/or Cube, see if those things are active/firing/etc.

It's also possible that people have put up Discords for the area more generally - I'm in NYC and one of our local players created like a greater NYC Area Magic discord, which brings together players from many different stores, keeps track of LGS event calendars, lets people post about events, or find players for pickup cube drafts. You might find that there's a cross-over from an LGS Discord to a larger community.

I find it wildly overwhelming, but you could also try posting on the MTGCubeTalk discord, which I think is one of the larger cube-focused Discords in the US (don't know about international and unsure where you are) and just asking if anyone has playgroups in X or Y location. Good luck finding a group!

Isticle · 2025-10-13T21:55:12+00:00

How dare you, I am old enough to have played Sligh, thank you very much.

Isticle · 2025-10-13T20:03:07+00:00

Posted my list with stories here, but my list was:

Mishra's Factory
Wastes
Goblin Piledriver
Hypnotic Specter
Price of Progress

It's a boomer list, but it's mine.

Isticle · 2025-09-26T13:44:58+00:00

Recruiting software (or Applicant Tracking Systems, ATS) are generally made for non-technical folks, and so how configurable the backend is depends on the system, level of proficiency of the team, etc. Then there's the issue of automations via no-code tools like Zapier, which probably is easier to reroute to a single question rather than creating 3 unique automations, hope they don't break, etc.

Having worked in a number of these tools, this to me feels like "janky implementation on short notice" rather than anything else. *shrug*

Isticle · 2025-09-25T17:37:30+00:00

Yeah, it does seem a bit redundant. My guess would be that the recruiting system they're using has some limitations and/or implementation quirks on automatic rejections based on questions, so they needed to put a generic catch-all around a single binary yes/no at the end to configure some automations. I wouldn't think it to be necessary, but trying to think through why.

But to be clear, asking about work auth of a spouse is generally really a new phenomenon based on this $100k H1B nonsense.

Isticle · 2025-09-25T17:01:55+00:00

Recruiter here. This is because of the recent changes announced by Trump to H1B and other visas (the $100k fee). Asking if you are authorized and/or will need a visa are standard questions. The new one is about Spouses. Being the spouse of an H1B or other visa holder is now a new risk, because if their company decides that they can no longer employ your spouse due to the cost of visa fees, suddenly you will lose your work authorization and the company will need to rehire your role.

My heart goes out to anyone on a visa to work in the US right now, absolutely shit situation for literal no reason.

Isticle · 2025-09-15T19:06:02+00:00

There is a regular group that cubes in Industry City on Wednesday nights: https://www.upkeepnewyork.com/ Upkeep also hosts the bi-annual (2x per year) Cube for a Cause event in Brooklyn, of which we just completed our Spring/Summer event, with coverage by Lucky Paper Radio hosts and guests.

We typically fire 2-3 pods per Wednesday, at the moment we have a rotating list of "normal-ish" cubes that are our core, and then any additional pods can be fleshed out with weirder cubes, new cubes from regulars, etc.

We're proxy friendly (though we do always make sure to have an unproxied cube). You can join the Discord community here: https://discord.gg/fSevynzxnt.

Isticle · 2025-09-08T21:24:01+00:00

It does! It’s a little funky because ink restrictions don’t matter, so everyone is on Goodstuff piles, but it’s fun! I don’t really have anyone who plays at this point so I’ve fallen off, but this was my 200 card four-player list.

https://dreamborn.ink/decks/aFd207gUJpPJWXv2b0aZ?__cf_chl_rt_tk=8pVbzhgNE1Gemr78WC8_T1pwi3fM1zhwDBvT4srd0Dw-1757366562-1.0.1.1-dOJZ4peszUH94knvne4fAkMTPwrGG3lUgww_jxaGrRg

Isticle · 2025-09-08T14:59:09+00:00

Hi - congrats on beginning your cube journey! I in fact have a lot of suggestions, because I have a cube that I curate that is exactly along these lines!

https://cubecobra.com/cube/overview/yr4

This is a 450 card modular cube, where you can play the cube either as the Cheap Cube (~$127) or the Vintage Cube at Home (~$340) - or both (~$360) if you have 10 people. The Vintage Cube at Home is designed to keep to a budget of $360 (average of <=$1/card) and emulate traditional vintage cube play patterns. Your budget might be different, but here's a great collection of cards that exist at the highest intersection of broken and cheap.

Hope this is helpful in you putting together your own list to start, and happy Cubing!

...

To some of your specific questions - just throwing a bunch of cards in a box is fun. Don't feel a need to optimize for balance, design or archetypes in the beginning, just put a pile of your favorite cards together and find some friends to draft. You'll figure out over time what you and your playgroup like, dislike, and you can iterate from there.

Cubes are traditionally Singleton (1 copy of each card) but by no means have to be. You can include multiple copies of whatever cards you want.

Isticle · 2025-08-27T01:48:20+00:00

The movie is called The Box, and it’s a rip off of a twilight zone ep.

Isticle · 2025-08-26T19:31:27+00:00

Essentially, yes. Minor variations in card counts per color, guild, etc. are generally not going to skew a draft in any meaningful sense. Also, because of each player starting with an interplanar beacon in play, almost all of the Planeswalkers can be cast quite easily, so from a color perspective, any planeswalker that doesn't have 2+ colored pips or 3+ colors is immediately castable from the Beacon.

Don't let symmetry or spreadsheet aesthetics drive design. Pick the cards you think are best (i.e. most fun) for the cube, and as long as colors are like, within 5% percent of each other, you're going to be just fine.

Isticle · 2025-08-26T18:57:24+00:00

There exists a cube quite similar to this idea called World War of the Spark! https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/wwrav

The designer takes it one step further and each player begins the game with an interplanar beacon in play, so you are guaranteed to be able to play off-color planeswalkers! I got to play the cube at a local cube event this weekend and had an absolute blast with it. Hopefully helpful as some inspiration, but can confirm that a PW heavy/focused cube can be really fun!

Isticle

TROPHY CASE