iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 10/08/2026

Unsurprisingly, this didn't happen (and failed to mention that decks had to maindeck artifact hate like Oxidize, which made many artifacts from Mirrodin block unplayable.) I uninstalled Arena a few weeks ago because, in part, Standard was awful. I'm at least enjoying not doing the ladder grind.

"There will always be “best cards” and “best decks” Like I said, this discussion was simply about what we would ban if we decided something needed banned. Luckily, the other half of the discussion came to a close and essentially let us off the hook.

Standard is really not a bad format. Affinity is the best deck, and the most played deck, but that happens often in Constructed. What matters is that there are decks that use each of the five colors that can be built to handle Affinity. Look at our archive of Top 8 decks from States. You have options, and many of them actually include cards from Champions of Kamigawa. I've heard from many seasoned players that Affinity is beatable, you just have to put some effort into it. Ravager Affinity took months to perfect; I expect that over a similar period of time a newer generation of decks will shape up into real powerhouses."

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 14/07/2026

Tickets are now on sale. We're so excited to see how it goes, with the hour for lunch, panel about building a cube for dummies, the cubes we have to offer drafters to draft and seeing cube drafters and designers from all over. Big Mac the Cat will not be there, but he would probably draft too.

Big Mac the cat looking like a himbo with his big cheeks and "stink face."

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 24/06/2026

Limited absurd card != good in cube, but this is... Kiora Bests the Sea God-tier (73%.) Despite the lack of hype, in testing, she was absurd and rated her highly in my cube article about Marvel and how having flash really changes the game. Don't get left behind. usmantherad.com/2026/06/15/m...

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 20/06/2026

A potential new icon for the P1S1 cube podcast.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 29/05/2026

I didn't get canned for those reasons (I mainly was bc my articles felt like I was at the bottom of the totem pole, like one of my cube reviews being pushed back *3 weeks*.) When I'd go back, it always seemed so weird how they'd have SEO as one of the tags for they'd use for their articles.

screen grab from a coolstuffinc article that has SEO as one of their article tags. People won't be searching articles for SEO.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 15/05/2026

Based on this - mtgtop8.com/event?e=8499...

Deck
2 Icetill Explorer (EOE) 192
3 Emeritus of Abundance (SOS) 145
2 Aang, Swift Savior (TLA) 204
3 Requiting Hex (ECL) 116
2 Shoot the Sheriff (OTJ) 106
2 Rakshasa's Bargain (TDM) 214
2 Three Steps Ahead (OTJ) 75
4 Consult the Star Charts (EOE) 51
1 Pest Control (BIG) 22
1 Spell Pierce (NEO) 80
1 Duress (STA) 29
2 Witherbloom Charm (SOS) 244
1 Restless Cottage (WOE) 258
4 Fabled Passage (ELD) 244
1 Temple Garden (GRN) 258
1 Plains (BLB) 265
3 Dreamroot Cascade (VOW) 262
2 Watery Grave (GRN) 259
2 Swamp (SOS) 269
4 Starting Town (FIN) 289
2 Concealed Courtyard (OTJ) 268
2 Island (FIN) 299
1 Forest (TMT) 257
1 Restless Reef (LCI) 282
1 Professor Dellian Fel (SOS) 214
1 Get Lost (LCI) 14
1 Deadly Cover-Up (MKM) 83
2 Strategic Betrayal (TDM) 94
1 Stock Up (SOA) 24
1 Glorious Decay (SOS) 150
1 Willowrush Verge (DFT) 270
1 Ba Sing Se (TLA) 266
1 Ancient Cornucopia (BIG) 16
1 Thundertrap Trainer (BLB) 78

Sideboard
2 Duress (STA) 29
2 Ghost Vacuum (DSK) 248
1 Disdainful Stroke (SOA) 17
1 Annul (KHM) 42
1 Heritage Reclamation (TDM) 145
1 Urgent Necropsy (MKM) 240
1 Essence Scatter (DMU) 49
1 Deadly Cover-Up (MKM) 83
1 Strategic Betrayal (TDM) 94
1 Negate (MOM) 68
1 Aang, Swift Savior (TLA) 204
1 Day of Black Sun (TLA) 94
1 Spell Pierce (NEO) 80

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 21/04/2026

Had this as my cube's art for Reanimate (many many many many years before the Secret Lair) and it's likely my favorite. Piece of mind's a close one.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 02/03/2026

Since I'm done with the TMNT review and procrastiating making updates to my regular cube list, I had some thoughts on the roguelike cube idea that premiered at CubeCon 2025. The concept was to be something like a momir cube like in @rhysticstudies.bsky.social's video, drafting cards like this:

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 07/01/2026

I wonder if this card's ability to be rainbow mana for creatures (which IIRC is one of the few ways to do so outside of a strict creature type or taps for colorless mana, which Ancient Ziggurat can't) would be getting more attention in cube if it wasn't for the token ability costing a bazillion mana

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 28/12/2025

I haven't written something this long in a while. It'll be up tomorrow morning. :)

pages: 72
words: 6360
characters: 37913
characters excluding spaces: 31776

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 18/12/2025

This was the deck, overall liked it and the rod was nice when I saw it in play when watching the player play the deck :)

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 01/12/2025

After many many many many many attempts, I finally got a 7-0 in the Standard Metagame Challenge with UW flash deck that whooped me in one of the earlier runs. UW flash is one of my favorite archetypes (also in cube) so it was nice to get there with this. :)

The last play of the game, where I cast No More Lies when the opponent had more than enough mana to pay for it. PIcked a fight since the Anchorage and the 3/3 could deal with a wrath. Opponent revealed that they had an Elspeth, Storm Slayer, which wouldn't have done anything.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 14/11/2025

Earlier this week in a cube draft when trying new cards out, I was the 7th drafter, so I sat in and intentionally didn't take Avatar/TMNT/new Lorwyn cards out so others could have more reps with the nstuf stuff. So I assembled this combo. It was great. :) (Also Wilderness Rec slaps in cube.)

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 22/10/2025

Another W. Usually I took Booster Tutor highly when I had it back in the day but it was well before the FIRE years. Ofc gets better if you have good blue fixing.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 22/10/2025

a slight edit, to note the following :)

You’ll notice that I didn’t post any deck pictures - I only took pics of the pauper cube draft, not including deck pictures is an intentional decision, to highlight the fact that - while it sounds so cliche, it really was much more about the gathering than the game; the best part of CubeCon 2024 and 2025 was hanging out with people, showing pictures of my cats and talking about the format that we love. My wife said that when I came back from CubeCon 2024, I was so energized, jazzed and excited from how it went and how appreciated I felt. I was with my people.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 14/10/2025

This article talking about making #mtgcube changes was started by a @ryanoverdrive.bsky.social tweet from 2016. The article's been in the works for a while. I wanted to finish before CC, as I have an idea brewing for my one - my 60th cube design article. usmantherad.substack.com/p/going-thro...

"Cube design is a cathartic project. I highly recommend it. Like tending a garden for those who aren't about gardening."

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 14/10/2025

This article talking about making cube changes was started by a @ryanoverdrive.bsky.social tweet from 2016. The article's been in the works for a while and something that I had a lot to say about it. Enjoy. :) usmantherad.substack.com/p/going-thro...

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 10/10/2025

I posted this as a response, since on my podcast I mentioned that the SM set was a flop era, and another podcast said that our podcast was saying UB was bad:

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 18/08/2025

magic.wizards.com/en/news/mtg-... Some pretty interesting adds for the arena cubes.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 05/08/2025

usmantherad.substack.com/p/usman-and-...

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 01/08/2025

mystmin is streaming UB control with 4x Consult the Star Charts unsurprisingly, it's absurd in historic too www.twitch.tv/mystmin super glad that I got my foil coming in the mail on the cheap, as I dug it in my cube review too:

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 19/07/2025

whenever I see Sunstar Chaplain, my brain keeps thinking Sinistar like the game @sinistar7510.bsky.social is named after

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 16/07/2025

just needs a weird poster in the background

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 16/07/2025

I keep thinking this is a face o_O

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 08/07/2025

There was a tweet that Ryan did in 2016 about how updating a cube is like tending to a garden. It got me to start an article about cube isn't just about keeping up with new sets. I'd made progress on it in past few weeks but a weird cube idea and life stuff got me sidetracked. I oughta finish that.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 30/06/2025

@eternaldurdles.bsky.social this does lend credence to Phil saying there's no editor, smh

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 26/06/2025

I thought this kind of weird ranking mismatch stuff was just in alchemy, as I'm low diamond and got paired against the #2 in historic. Still won tho B)

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 21/06/2025

ok fine I don't hate this format hahaha

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 13/06/2025

sometimes the algo really lines up, haha

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 13/06/2025

Finally drafted Gogo in cube, highlights of what was copied: -the EOT trigger from Virtue of Loyalty with a few other creatures out, -the activated ability on a white fetchland to get 3 lands EOT, -the ETB trigger on Thundertrap Trainer 3x (and somehow hitting each time) to get 4 cards from it o_O

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 10/06/2025

Then, I got this, so I restarted the application. Now I'm getting a timeout error. D: I'm hoping it's just server load.

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 10/06/2025

I won my first match in a draft, changed a card in my deck and saved it, got this error. Changed the card back to what it was before, same error. Anyone else experiencing this?

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 09/06/2025

Realizing now that I totally missed comparing the 3-chapter Saga creatures to this classic. Smh

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Usman The Rad @usmantherad.com · 01/06/2025

man, getting older fuckin' changes you

Originally, this article was started in 2016 with the whirlwind of great sets in that year. Little did I know just how much more powerful later sets would be and how often sets in a year in more recent years! But it’s something I’d wanted to write about in cube for much longer than that.

Often, designers approach cube changes as merely cutting cards that are bad and putting in new cards or only comparing cards at the same/similar mana cost.

One of the few remnants of the original article from 2016 said “As cube designers interested in crafting environments, we can do better.” Nearly a decade of age and recent thoughts about cube have tempered my tone - it isn’t so much that we can “do better” or “you’re doing it wrong if you’re approaching cube design in this way” but as cube designers, that isn’t the only lens we should be looking at making cube changes from.

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