Games

Lucky Paper Radio

Lucky Paper Radio is a podcast about Magic: the Gathering hosted by lifelong friends Andy Mangold and Anthony Mattox. Focused primarily on sandbox formats like Cube, which are free of banlists, rotation, and net decking, the show is about the best parts of Magic and how to get the most out of the game.

Latest Episodes:

Xerox Theory and You May 29, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony talk about “Xerox Theory” a strategic Magic concept involving cantrips, land count, a balance of resources. Andy explains the history and origins of the idea, as documented by Mike Flores’s 2005 article. They talk about how the concept applies differently in early and contemporary Magic and how it’s relevant, or not, to different types of decks. They also talk about Gunk Slug for some reason.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro

2:27 - Introduction to Topic

6:27 - What is Xerox Theory at its core?

10:08 - What is a cantrip?

13:44 - The baseline of Xerox cantrips and the case for Reach Through Mists

17:25 - The sometimes unstated context to make Xerox Theory work

19:45 - The power of a smaller deck

22:08 - Going beyond “UB Trippin’” — the ramifications of cantrips on the tempo of reactive decks

31:57 - Modern Xerox “Payoffs”

38:29 - Review, conclusions, and abstraction

48:47 - Gunk Slug Corner

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Going Against Your Intuition: A Different Approach to Tuning the Neoclassical Cube May 22, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony talk about the current state of Andy’s Neoclassical Cube. They look at how drafts have played out, potential areas for change, and some specific directions Andy’s considering taking the cube.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps:

00:00 Mind Twist Corner
02:39 Early Impressions of the Neoclassical Cube
15:24 How to deal with the burn deck
29:27 Can we make color hate cool?
38:32 Addressing the Pump Knight Problem

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

All About Ramp May 15, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony talk broadly about [ramp](Rampant Growth). They talk about what the mechanic or strategy is all about, it’s important role as part of Green’s identity, how it’s different in limited and constructed, and how it fits into their own Cubes.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Our listener submitted pack 1, pick 1 this week comes from soskwatch’s Graveyard Cube.

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

01:52 Ramp overall and in retail limited

11:41 Ramp in constructed Magic

14:25 Ramp Decks vs. Decks with Ramp Cards

18:57 Anthony’s Approach to Green in his Cubes

31:12 Andy’s Approach to Ramp in the Bun Magic Cube

37:26 Lets not talk about the Turbo Cube

41:11 Listener Submitted Pack 1, Pick 1

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Talking Cube Cuts with the Boys: Real-Time Regular Cube Update May 08, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony are joined by James from their local play group for an in depth review session of Anthony’s Regular Cube. They bring James in to add his experience and perspective to the conversation. The three of them discuss how the environment has played recently and things that could be improved. They sort through the cards and discuss potential cuts and things they could change.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

02:38 Forgiveness Cube Draft Port Mortem1

07:18 Overview of Episode Structure

15:32 List of provisional additions to The Regular Cube

17:15 Green and Gruul’s Identity in the Regular Cube

26:54 The Blue Green Problem

46:32 Artifacts matter and a Puppet Conjurer diatribe

49:08 Black Red: Overperformance of Oversupport?

1:00:47 Blue Red Recent Results

1:03:23 White and Heroic Themes

1:23:40 Black cards that the black deck pilot thinks he shouldn’t have access to

1:36:00 Wrap Up

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

March of the Machine Cube Community Set Review May 01, 2023

Show notes

Andy, Anthony, and Parker review the results of the March of the Machine community Cube set review. As always we surveyed the community on the cards they’re interested in for their cubes and how likely they expect to keep playing them long term. Our hosts review the results, discussing the top cards in terms of the number of people interested in them, patterns and theories about the community response, and some things that surprised them. They also dive deeper into Battles, Magic’s newest card type that’s been met with some skepticism according to the community survey.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Timestamps:

0:00 - Introduction
4:30 - Scoring System Change
5:40 - Survey Overview
6:32 - Battle deep dive
41:56 - Individual Card Discussion
42:11 - 9. Pile On
43:44 - 8. Invasion of Gobakhan
47:55 - 7. Rampaging Raptor
49:40 - 6. Bloodfeather Phoenix
51:35 - 5. Halo Forager
53:20 - 4. Chrome-Host Seed Shark
57:16 - 3. Deeproot Wayfinder
59:47 - 2. Faerie Mastermind
1:03:21 - 1. Khenra Spellspear
1:09:38 - Overall impressions of MOM
1:15:52 - Death-Greeter’s Champion and March of the Machine Commander
1:19:50 - Seed of Hope: the most popular common from MOM

Discussed in this episode:

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Big and Small Games Revisited Apr 24, 2023

Show notes

View the game size breakdowns for the Bun Magic Cube and Regular Cube. You can also copy this template and fill it out to calculate your own cube’s game size!

Andy and Anthony follow up on their recent discussion with Sam Black on ‘big’ and ‘small’ games of Magic. Sam coined these term in an article he wrote describing a nuanced understanding of card advantage including how effects create, or benefit from, high and low resource games. Our hosts expand on the topic and respond to feedback from the community on the subject. Andy breaks down his Bun Magic Cube and Anthony’s Regular Cube, categorizing each card based on the number of pieces they add or remove from play, and they compare the numerical analysis to their experience playing these environments.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps:

0:00 - Introduction

1:35 - Review of big and small game theory

4:38 - The application of big and small game theory as a player

16:35 - The connection between mana cost and deck size

20:19 - Game size as a cube designer

23:51 - Spreadsheet deep dive on the Bun Magic and Regular Cube’s Size

49:55 - So did we learn anything!?

54:20 - On Nissa, Who Shakes the World and other notable cards

59:05 - Card advantage as the absolute value of game size

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

March of the Machine Mechanics and Cube Additions Apr 17, 2023

Show notes

Our Cube Prospective Surveys for March of the Machine and March of the Machine Commander are now open! Let us know what you are testing in your cube from the latest set.

Andy and Anthony take a first look at March of the Machine: the fist set since Lorwyn to introduce an entirely new card type. They discuss the new mechanics from a design perspective and how they generally apply to any kind of Cube environment. They also pick out individual cards that might end up in their own, varied Cube lists.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Timstamps:

0:00 - Introduction

2:03 - Discussion of changes to set reviews

4:50 - Battles

18:06 - Transforming Double-Faced Cards

22:03 - Backup

25:20 - Incubate

30:37 - Convoke

32:10 - Unnamed themes and mechanics

36:27 - Additions to the Neoclassical Cube

38:15 - Additions to the Regular Cube

50:31 - Additions to the Bun Magic Cube

1:06:02 - Additions to the Turbo Cube

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

How to Play Your Own, Custom Cube on Arena Apr 10, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony are joined by Chris and Tim from the Jank Diver Gaming Community to talk about how to play your own, custom-designed cube on Arena. In an exciting, two-part episode, the boys first walk through the process of playing Cube through Arena, then participate in one of Jank Diver Gaming’s weekly drafts and discuss their experience. Will Andy, who has effectively never played Arena before, punt away all his games by not knowing how to use the interface? Will Anthony hate-draft from our guests, leaving a path of burned bridges behind him? Is Theo still too powerful to defeat? Does anyone actually know the full rules text of Questing Beast? Tune in to find out.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Jank Diver Gaming Discord
Cube Cobra
mtgadraft.tk
Matcherino
Arena card pool on Scryfall
Lucky Paper Rotisserie Draft Template
Theo’s Arena Cube
The Use and Abuse of Archetype Driven Design
Get Some Game LGS in North Charlotte
Jank Diver Gaming on Twitter and YouTube

Timestamps:

1:28 — How to Draft Your Own Cube on Arena
19:33 — Reflections on Andy and Anthony’s First Arena Cube Draft
22:52 — How does the Jank Diver Unrestricted Cube feel to an outsider?
25:21 — How was the Jank Diver Unrestricted Cube designed?
39:56 — Rotisserie Drafting the Jank Diver Unrestricted Cube
40:59 — The differences in perceived tempo when playing digitally
47:23 — Details of the Jank Diver Gaming community
49:01 — Chris and Tim’s top 5 Most Wanted Arena Reprints

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Big and Small Games with Sam Black Apr 03, 2023

Show notes

Andy and Anthony are joined by Sam Black, contender for person who has played the most paper Magic ever. They discuss the concept of “big” and “small” games of Magic Sam presented in his article Elvish Visionary VS Elderfang Disciple: The Nature Of Card Advantage. They cover the nuanced nature of card advantage, how all forms are not equal, and how different strategies aim to push games toward being big or small to maximize their cards.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

Discussed in this episode:

Glen Garry Glen Ross
Patrick Chapin vs. Gabriel Nassif Dragonstorm Mirror Match
Elvish Visionary vs Elderfang Disciple: the Nature of Card Advantage
Brian Coval’s (Bosh N Roll) Two cEDH Tournament Reports One and Two
Sam’s Articles on Hipsters of the Coast
https://eminence.events/articles/my-favorite-way-to-play-magic-commander-cube
Drafting Archetypes Podcast
Sam on:

CubeCon

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Pulp Nouveau and Drafting Your Basics with Parker LaMascus Mar 27, 2023

Show notes

Parker joins Andy and Anthony, in studio, to talk about about his latest cube project: Pulp Nouveau. In this dark, gritty, flavor-forward environment the only freely available basic lands are swamps. In order to play other colors, players need to draft from the limited number of basic and dual lands in the draft. They the creative process of cube design and how disparate interests can suddenly coalesce. In this case, Parker’s interest in the dark aesthetic of Streets of New Capenna, among other things, came together with the mechanical structure of a desert cube with a twist.

⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠

They end the episode with a pack 1, pick 1 the cube in question.

Discussed in this episode:

Timestamps

5:09 — Overview of the Pulp Nouveau Cube
10:02 — What Parker Likes About Having to Draft Your Lands
13:15 — Practical Details of the Pulp Nouveau Cube
24:19 — The Inclusion of the Street Fighter Cards
26:23 — Card Complexity Corner
33:14 — Design Level Up: Threats that Require Investment
1:00:00 — Pack 1, Pick 1 from the Pulp Nouveau Cube

Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

If want us to do a pack 1, pick 1 from your cube submit it on our website. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co. You can also find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord.

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

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