Commander Cube v3.5

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williamslade

Lands (60)

Grixis Storm (32)

Mardu Politics (32)

Temur Piss (32)

Multicolor Staples (20)

White Staples (10)

Generals (40)

Esper Fort (32)

Jund Sacrifice (32)

Sultai Poop (32)

Colorless Staples (20)

Black Staples (10)

Green Staples (10)

Abzan Vomit (32)

Bant Flicker (32)

Jeskai Spellslinger (32)

Naya Stompy (32)

Mana Rocks (30)

Blue Staples (10)

Red Staples (10)

Close your eyes. Open your mind. Feel the geometry flow through you. It's time to CUBE.

EUCLIDIAN GEOMETRY - Welcome and Introduction

Time to draft EDH

This is the Commander Cube, Magic's premier multiplayer format condensed into 540 of the most geometrically enthralling and cubically confounding cards that define its constructed counterpart. If you are looking for a captivating and memorable draft experience with 4-6 players (equal to the sides/faces of a square/cube), then this cube is for you. Format hallmarks and table haymakers draft alongside compact and efficient interaction to generate decks of all speeds, power levels, and playstyles. Everything you love about constructed EDH is present here, combined with the variability and decision-making of an intense draft setting. Each pack is full of bangers, and every card feels like it has a home somewhere.

Formed out of a love for deckbuilding and game design, my playgroup and I built, test, and continuously update this cube and its rules to ensure every card counts. We have a lot of passion for this cube; it has really taken over constructed as our go-to format. We hope you enjoy it too!

Cube design goals

1. "Budgetless Casual" EDH, drafted.

This cube is based on the idea that EDH is best enjoyed at a focused power level without being competitive. We design for big, flashy, fun synergies rather than game-ending combos that would take away from a meaningful game environment where all players can see their deck function. Its cards are selected to enable as many powerful strategies as possible. For this reason, we did our best to avoid all infinite combos in this cube. Whether you win through value grind, explosive storm, balls-to-the-wall aggro, or aristocrat stax, every deck has an opportunity to thrive.

2. Limit decks to two colors (or three if you are lucky).

Deck limitation inspires creativity. By making 3 color commanders rare (only one of each, for a total of 10), it forces players to draft carefully instead of simply taking all of the best cards out of each pack to build 5c piles of nonsense. This nudges players into synergistic deckbuilding lanes, while also ensuring everyone has plenty of playables by the end of the deckbuilding phase.

3. High deck diversity.

EDH as a constructed format is so compelling for its diversity, and high multitude of countless strategies. Our cube attempts to capture this sensation of boundless possibility in every draft. Every commander in this cube can be used in many different ways, based on the rest of the cards that you draft.

PLATONIC SOLIDS - Cube Archetypes

Our cube has ten primary archetypes, arranged under one 3-color Commander and three 2-color commanders. Each of these ten archetypes is paired off with another to ensure plenty of overlap and therefore high card value. In addition to 32 cards loosely assigned to each archetype, we have also designated a list of "core" staples in each single color, multicolor, and colorless categories to round out the card selection to 540. It goes without saying that these categories are primarily signpost guides to ensure the archetypes receive equal treatment, rather than prescribing specific lists.

Abzan Reanimator and Jund Aristocrats

These creature-based archetypes make heavy use of graveyard loops or sac outlets to gain card advantage and amass a resilient board presence. These decks excel at staying ahead of removal and wipes, as well as grinding value steadily over the course of the game.

Main Generals: Karador, Ghost Chieftain and Korvold, Fae-Cursed King

Grixis Storm and Jeskai Spellslinger

These archetypes vary from hard control or pure glass-cannon storm depending on your pickups and commander. Although UR or URx storm has proven to be one of the most powerful archetypes in the cube, these decks can sometimes be very fragile to a well placed counterspell, a silver-bullet stax piece, or simply getting beat out of the game by creature decks. In general, these spell-based combo decks or control decks are the best at controlling the board and setting up a safe victory.

Main Generals: Kess, Dissident Mage and Kykar, Wind's Fury

Bant Flicker and Sultai Poop

Like Abzan and Jund, these two creature-based archetypes are designed to be the greatest value-grinds in the cube. Instead of making extensive use of the graveyard, these decks attempt to abuse ETB-triggers and get ahead of opponents by squeezing out immense synergy from every card.

Main Generals: Roon of the Hidden Realm and Yarok, the Desecrated

Mardu Politics and Esper Fort

This pairing of archetypes represents the "pillow fort" strategy. The Mardu politics decks attempt to manipulate the combat step of its opponents, either through fog effects or treason/goad effects, whereas Esper forts tend to lean more heavily into taxation or prison strategies. Both may easily dip into hatebear or stax card pool in order to slow down storm players or protect against aggro beats.

Main Generals: Queen Marchesa and Alela, Artful Provocateur

Naya Stompy and Temur Piss

This final pair of archetype represents the purest forms of creature-based aggro in the cube. Trading value-grind gameplay for large haymakers and bombs, these decks cheat out big things fast to win the game by turning creatures sideways.

Main Generals: Atla Palani, Nest Tender and Animar, Soul of Elements

THE CARTESIAN PLANE - Setup and Gameplay

Like any other draft setting, players take turns opening packs, taking one card, and passing to the next player. Players build 60 card decks (1 commander and 59 mainboard cards), and basic lands are supplied after the draft has concluded.

Taking cues from the Commander Legends draft set, it is important to ensure that each pack is guaranteed to have one of the 40 Generals. This typically means dealing out packs according to the formulas below. Importantly, this also means the Generals are not only randomized, but not all of them are opened in a given draft. With 4 or 6 players, this adds up to only 24 of the 40 Generals opened in a given draft. 3-color decks are risky because their commanders are much rarer than 2-color commanders, as there is only one of each. We highly encourage sticking to two colors rather than hedging your bets and hoping to open one of these special 3-color Generals.

The number of packs and size of packs is determined by the number of players in the game. Each pack is sized to make sure every player sees the pack exactly 3 times. In order to balance out seeing enough cards and finding enough playables, without opening every single card in the cube, we have found that the following arrangements work best:

4 Players: 6 packs of 12 cards each (11 mainboard and 1 General) = 72 total
5 Players: 5 packs of 15 cards each (14 mainboard and 1 General) = 75 total
6 Players: 4 packs of 18 cards each (17 mainboard and 1 General) = 72 total

The cube is most balanced at 4 and 6 players, but 5 works just as well. We also recommend splitting into two 3-player games with 6 players, but this is no more than a house rule. Play Emperor! Play Spheres of Influence! Go crazy.

VERTECES OF INTEREST - Specific Rules and Additional Notes

The elements on the following list range from house rules to general encouragements. If you want to build this cube and run it yourself, then these rules are subject to change based on however you and your playgroup wish.

1. Any land and any "Mana Rock" card is allowed in any deck. Yes, this means you can run Simic Signet in your Kaervek the Merciless deck (hopefully you won't have to do that, yikes). Critically, my playgroup also allows any land in any deck. This rule stemmed from the inclusion of the trilands like Arcane Sanctum; these are intended to be used as generous, flexible guildgates. Arcane Sanctum may be functionally just an Orzhov Guildgate in your Kambal, Consul of Allocation, but it can also be a Dimir Guildgate or a Azorius Guildgate. Building on this concept, we've also made the decision to green-light shocklands and ABUR Duals in any deck as well. In practice, this simply improves mana bases in conjunction with fetchlands. For example, you can run a Verdant Catacombs to grab a Scrubland in your Kykar, Wind's Fury deck if you really need white but never found a better fetchland or dual. This is a pretty extreme corner case due to its rarity, but if it helps a game go more smoothly or it helps Omnath, Locus of Rage go off a bit harder, then we'll allow it!

2. You can run any General card you open in the mainboard of your deck.

3. In very rare cases (almost never), you might not open a commander in your colors at all. Again following suit from Commander Legends, we allow partnering 2 Prismatic Pipers in these rare instances.

4. Speaking of partner, it isn't allowed. In older versions of the cube, this was more relevant than it is in v3.3. You cannot partner Kodama of the East Tree with a Prismatic Piper.

5. Monocolor is not only allowed, but encouraged! All of the monocolor legendary creatures in the cube are shuffled into the packs alongside everything else, but if you open one and want to play it then you certainly can. It may be difficult to determine which color is the most open during the draft, but if you find a monocolor legend then go for it.

6. Colorless is not only allowed, but absolutely maniacal and only for the boldest (or dumbest) of drafters! You can certainly build colorless EDH with an Eldrazi titan. God help you.

DISPROVEN THEOREMS - Cube Banlist

Mana Geyser: Storm OP pls nerf

THE MATHEMATICIANS - Credits

Huge thank you to the members of my fantastic playgroup who helped design, build, fund, and playtest this amazing format with me. Here's to many more games!

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Date added	2 years
Last updated	1 year
Legality	This deck is Custom legal.
Rarity (main - side)	90 - 0 Mythic Rares 284 - 0 Rares 105 - 0 Uncommons 61 - 0 Commons
Cards	540
Avg. CMC	3.59
Tokens	Angel 4/4 W, Assassin 1/1 B w/ Haste, Beast 3/3 G, Bird 1/1 W, Bird 2/2 U, Citizen 1/1 GW, City's Blessing, Clue, Copy Clone, Day, Dragon 5/5 R, Egg 0/1 G, Eldrazi Scion 1/1 C, Eldrazi Spawn 0/1 C, Elemental 5/5 RG, Elephant 3-3 G, Experience Token, Faerie 1/1 U, Food, Goblin 1/1 R, Gold, Inkling 2/1 WB, Insect 1/1 G, Lightning Rager, Manifest 2/2 C, Monk 1/1 W, Morph 2/2 C, Night, Ogre 3/3 R, Plant 0/1 G, Saproling 1/1 G, Slug 1-1 B, Soldier 1/1 W, Spirit 1/1 W, Survivor 1/1 R, The Monarch, Timeless Witness 4/4 B, Treasure, Wolf 2/2 G, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	cube
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