iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

another benefit I forgot: Unearth plays well in any Black-aligned color pair, and for *different reasons* in each. White has Helping Hand and Blade Splicer. Blue has easy discard outlets. Green has the bulkiest critters and self-mill. Etc. No two Unearth drafts look alike, but all are fun!

And despite all this fanciness, Unearth *still* Just Works! You don’t seed to know about Skaab Ruinator to enjoy playing with Unearth! And the whole thing just costs 5-10 slots! It ROCKS. Study Unearth like a book. Look for more cards with these qualities, and cube them more often.

Importantly, these synergies are both emergent and discoverable by even fresh Cubeheads. To illustrate the importance of these qualities, contrast to Infect or Dungeons (not emergent from Magic’s basic economy and gameplay) or KCI or Dredge (not discoverable within the average pack of cube).

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Fundamentally these “combos” are all still midrange combat, and easily answerable with the usual Doom Blades and combat tricks. But it feels like you’re cheating the system.

Second: If you pepper the draft with just a handful of ”devil’s bargain” drawback creatures, Unearth becomes *busted*. Or… at least busted-feeling, and that’s what matters.

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You actually have to deckbuild around it, and plan to engage in midrange creature combat. Control won’t play enough creatures for Unearth. Aggro isn’t invested enough in any single creature to buy one back, and/or doesn’t want the game to last that long.

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First: Unearth just *works* straight out of the box, but not in the same sense as the universal roleplayers like Duress or Polluted Delta...

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Ben Collins @bencollins.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

This morning I am thinking about the greatest Cube synergy card of all time. Study this one like it’s a cheat code to emergent synergy design, because it is. (🧵)

Unearth: Return target creature with MV 3 or less from grave to battlefield. Cycling 2.

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

Anyway, good piece in the Times here. (It still happens!) People are starting to talk very weird about AI on this site, and honestly it's kind of distressing seeing people fall into the abyss thinking it's alive. That ain't good. The rest of us should expect boring bad stuff and guard against it.

nytimes.com

Opinion | How Scared Should We Be of A.I. Right Now? (Gift Article)

The dark and distressing way that Silicon Valley talks about A.I. can be traced to a philosophy that influenced many tech executives.

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Oh no, my printer malfunctioned! 10% of all readers will see a special COLOR INVERTED Showcase Collage at the end.

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Triske 🔜 Boston, Very Slowly @triske.chicagostylecu.be · 08/09/2026

my face every time my cube pack wheels something good

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

"Y-y-y-ya've got it all WRONG. Quintorius's weird half-human lil' fetus ain't in this Secret Lair Product. It's in Ollie's Sharpie cube, and, and, in Orcish's microfiction, and, y'know, whichever screenshot Cary is splicing a Robert B. Wintermute reference into."

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Dan Sheehan @dansheehan.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

also shoutout to @invisiblewalrus.bsky.social for a couple of the customs I used in the piece :)

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

When @parker.luckypaper.co pitches a piece that includes both a thoughtful takedown of commodified creativity and a handmade collage you say "yeah absolutely"

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Dominarian Plowshare @mtgplowshare.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

The Zeta Set is several firsts for Magic: the first SLD lootbox, the first use of public domain art, and… the first set that begs us to make it ourselves, but better. Have a party. Invite friends, plus Fiskar and Elmer. Let’s DIY this poser set already.

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

today for @cascadecascade.com, I write about multiverses like the Marvel Cinematic Universe--& Reality Fracture. What does it mean for a corporate-owned franchise to suggest that its IP is a metaphysical inevitability in every possible world? give it a read! www.cascadecascade.com/the-corporat...

cascadecascade.com

The Corporate Multiverse

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Parker LaMascus @parker.luckypaper.co · 03/09/2026

Jia Tolentino wrote this essay in Trick Mirror about how “scamming [is] the quintessential American ethos.” Hustle culture was a subset of scam/gamble culture, imo. Wake up early to earn passive income. Move out west to get free* land and a homestead. Gold rush. It’s all gambling and scam.

Parker LaMascus @parker.luckypaper.co · 01/09/2026

cube is literally so cool. people are so creative. d.s.b. rocks.

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

Andy Mangold @andy.luckypaper.co · 01/09/2026

I'm so excited to finally share the concept of this cube, which I had to keep a secret for 9 months! Auction ends Friday. www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLwK...

youtube.com

Can I design a cube where players ONLY draft mono-color or five-color decks?

YouTube video by Lucky Paper

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

Andy Mangold @andy.luckypaper.co · 28/08/2026

I’m also donating a 90 minute video call with the winner to talk about what I learned from this event, the buyer’s goals for the cube, and how I would tweak the list with both in mind.

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Parker LaMascus @parker.luckypaper.co · 30/08/2026

Grenzo, Dungeon Warden. he’s got that 2010s swag

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Reposted by Parker LaMascus

Spice8Rack @spice8rack.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

The Zeta set has a fun aesthetic which has inspired me to jazz up my own proxies in this style! But, to me, SL boosters of cards with art that's "glitched" photo-copy homages to OG play test cards, or even just actual Magic cards, feels very Hot Topic Punk Jacket with Pre-Sewn Anarchy Symbols.

A magic card with a white background, colour printer error stripes, & a cut out picture of a monkey holding a coconut.

Simian Spirit Guide
{2}{R}
Summon Ape Spirit
Exile Simian Spirit Guide from your hand: Add R
2/2

A magic card whose art is a photocopy of Eterny Vessel in a graded case (grade 6)

Eternity Vessel
{6}
Artifact
Eternity Vessel enters the battlefield with X charge counters on it, where X is your life total.
Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may have your life total become the number of charge counters on Eternity Vessel.

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Cube Cobra List: We Are The Stories We Repeat

My design prompt was “Ritual,” and became a cube about the stories we tell through gameplay: cubecobra.com/cube/list/6b...

cubecobra.com

Settler or savage. Saint or sinner. Sovereign or subhuman. Planeswalker or pawn.

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Actually… is this Magic’s first use of existing visual art? Any other examples of directly reusing a classic? (Sheeler’s work is public domain, I think, but it still might be a first…)

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To my knowledge, MtG will quote classic literary sources as flavor text, and the vast majority is attributed as below. But River Rouge *might* be Magic’s first reuse of visual art…

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I believe Sheeler’s work is public domain; he died in 1965. But yeah, I do wish the attributions on the card could lead people to learn about another cool artist.

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Precisionism Art Movement – History, Artworks, and Artists – Artlex

But I still love Sheeler’s way of seeing. It reminds me beauty is everywhere if I look closely enough. Anyways, I get why Magic may not have needed to credit the original artist here, but I wanted to shout out one of my favs. Read more about Sheeler here (end🧵) www.artlex.com/art-movement...

artlex.com

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