Hey all,
I've done this once with friends, and we keep talking about trying to plan another. This is a pot luck MTG cube. To start, let's go into a bit of terminology:
Magic: the Gathering: (a.k.a. "MTG") a trading card game designed by Wizards of the Coast. A good article of the basics of the game can be found here. It may be easiest to learn the game from experienced players if you have the opportunity.
Booster Draft: a trading card game draft is a way of opening booster packs while building a deck. Here is an article that goes into how a draft works, though it does assume some prior knowledge of how MTG works.
Cube: A cube is a set of cards that is used in lieu of booster packs for drafts. The cards in the cube are divided into fifteen card "packs" and used like booster packs; however, the contents of the cube are completely player defined.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alright, that out of the way, let's talk about your pot luck cube.
Most cubes are made by a single player and are used to turn classic drafting into something more like a deck building game. The cards are in a box, they come out for the game, and they all go back in at the end of the game. If you're looking to make something a little like Magic, but with a board game tone and feel, consider building a cube this way.
Additionally, since most cubes are carefully constructed sets built by a single player; they involve one person working to develop a balanced game, design their cube, and bring others over to play. This is not the style of play we're talking about today.
For a pot luck cube, the game's a little less predictable. Not only are you left wondering what your opponent's are building, but it gradually comes out in subsequent packs what the cube even looks like. You'll know your own contribution, but that leaves a lot of cube that you'll only know when you see it.
The setup for this kind of event involves first bringing together the group to play. You'll ideally want five or six people to play this type of draft. As people RSVP for the event, have them choose a color not yet taken by a prior RSVP. You'll want to get these commitments in early. About a month before the draft, send out a message to let people know who has what color. Stick with single color assignments. For five players, players choose between Red, Blue, Green, White, or Black. For six players, include the option to contribute Colorless to the cube.
For a normal three pack draft, tell each player to bring three rares, nine uncommons, three lands, and thirty commons in their assigned color.
At the event, shuffle together all rares into one pile, all uncommons into another pile, all commons into a third pile, and all lands into the last pile. Once these stacks are shuffled, make each pack with ten commons, three uncommons, one rare, and one land per pack. Some people prefer not to include lands in the drafts, but for this, I like to include them. This gives contributors the option to add non-basic lands to the set.
Then, draft the packs as normal. It's a good idea as well to offer prizes for the contributor elected to have made the best color in the set. This incentivizes people to do well at every stage of the draft, including in building their own contribution to the cube.
. . .and that's it. A pot luck cube can be a bit chaotic, but it's real fun in a casual enough group. What I like best is that, unlike the standard cube, this is a real draft, in that, you bring forty-five cards, and you leave with a different forty-five cards. You get to keep what you draft, unlike standard cubes where the cards get boxed back up for next time.
Happy gaming, all.
No comments:
Post a Comment