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:

Exploring Cube Cobra’s New Winrate Analysis Features Aug 17, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony explore Cube Cobra’s new analytic tools for card and deck winrates. The new features allow you to upload decks and their matchup records, or import matchup data if a Cube has been played at an event using Hedron Network to track matches.

After Andy diligently imported hundreds of decks for 100 Ornithopters, they talk through all the different visualizations and how they might use them as Cube designers.

Discussed in this episode:

Intro Source
Cube Cobra
Hedron Network, the software for running Cube events
100 Ornithopters
Winrate Analysis for 100 Ornithopters
Andy’s Video Deep Dive on the Winrate Analysis for 100 Ornithopters
Jett’s Article on winrate analysis
Elo Rating System

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
1:30 - Draft Data
5:51 - Caveats
12:37 - Takign good Deck Photos
16:50 - Winningest Ornithopter Deck
18:03 - Winrate by Color
24:07 - WR by Type and Mana Value
29:00 - Color Performance
30:50 - Matchup Matrix
32:50 - Color Pair Performance
34:33 - All Color Combos
39:35 - Archetype Map
44:12 - Matchup Matrix
47:24 - Win Rate vs Elo
52:24 - Top Synergies
53:36 - All Cards
55:43 - Surprises and Takeaways

Summertime Mailbag Aug 10, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony first talk about their upcoming series of interviews related to Cube For a Cause: Obscura. The event will feature 17 secret Cubes from 17 well known designers created just for the event. Until the first packs are cracked, the contents of each have been kept completely unknown. Each episode in the series will feature a designer talking about their plans going in before the event and a post-mortem discussion of how their cube played.

With announcements and logistics out of the way, Andy and Anthony open up the mailbag and answer some questions from listeners.

Discussed in this episode:

Our Patreon where you can support us for faster releases of the Obscura Interviews
Andy’s Videos on Youtube
Ryan Overturf’s Videos
Degenerate Cuber featuring Lucky Paper crossed out in the thumbnail

Book Recommendations:

A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein
A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn
Blindsight by Peter Watts. The full text is available here for free from the author.
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

Top Reddits:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
2:03 - Opening up the Mailbag
5:06 - Obscura
9:34 - Patreon Support for Bonus Episode Releases
15:51 - Obscura Interview Series
17:52 - Andy's Youtube Videos
20:45 - How have we managed to keep the podcast going so long?
24:12 - What's a sign a cube isn't for you?
25:30 - What does 'winning' mean for a cube designer?
28:00 - What's up with that time you stabbed yourself?
33:47 - What's the biggest argument Andy and Anthony have had?
38:03 - What are your favorite dishes the other cooks?
40:54 - Recommend some books.
43:22 - What are your top subreddits?
48:59 - What are your other favorite TCGs or other games?

Cross Pod Cube Throw Down: Regular Cube vs Sacred Geometry Aug 03, 2026

Show notes

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In a strange experiment, Andy and Anthony organize drafts of their cubes Sacred Geometry and Regular Cube and then pair players against the opposite cube. The two cubes have some major similarities, and clear differences. They wanted to see how drastically skewed win records would be towards one cube, and see what else they can learn. The experiment highlighted some unexpected differences and individual cards that skewed up or down when played against a different battery of opponents.

Discussed in this episode:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
01:45 - The Experiment - Regular Cube vs Sacred Geometry
11:10 - Post-Draft
12:32 - Anthony’s Draft
13:56 - Andy vs Anthony
18:33 - Max Aggro
20:51 - Control Mirror
26:47 - Impossible Mirror
30:21 - Anthony is Outclassed
33:30 - Results
41:08 - Texture vs Density
42:29 - Subverted Expectations
46:11 - Expanding on the Concept
50:43 - Mana Fixing
53:23 - More Cube vs Cube

Narrow Tutors in Cube Jul 27, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about narrow tutors in Cubes. In contrast to the most open ended ways for players to search up a card from their library, narrow tutor effects give cube designers an opportunity to make specific sets of cards more accessible. Our hosts talk about specific “tutor” cards they include in their cubes. They talk about the ways they can create interesting draft challenges, provide targeted redundancy, or let players construct a toolbox of cards they have more opportunities to find.

Discussed in this episode:

Episode 199: Tutors in Cube Design: Creating Variety by Reducing Variety
Episode 312: Cards that are Cool — Part 2
The next Book Club book: The Score by C. Thi Nguyen

Cubes mentioned:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
2:18 - Narrow Tutors
13:13 - Tutor Apprehensions
15:27 - Stoneforge Mystic
19:57 - Brightglass Gearhulk
24:05 - Tribute Mage
26:45 - Sphinx Summoner
30:06 - Goblin Engineer
33:06 - Mystical Teachings
33:41 - Recruiters
35:19 - Open the Armory
42:32 - Turbo Cube
46:07 - Wizardcycling
46:29 - Scrapyard Recombiner
50:49 - Transmute
56:18 - Appeal to Turbo Cube

CubeCon DMV Tournament Report Jul 20, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony report on their experience at CubeCon DMV — from the organizers of the original CubeCon — a cube event right in their back yard. They talk about their drafts in the event, highlights from games, and lunchtime highs and lows.

Discussed in this episode:

Cube Events Page
The Metabolic Machine
Take Five
Andy’s Take Five Videos
Jarvis Yube
World Championship Museum (96-04)
Sacred Geometry
100 Ornithopters
Genesis - The first Omen Machine, a.k.a. Chris’s “Completely Normal Game of Magic with One Rules Change
Dichotomy Cube
Winston Draft
Regular Cube

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
2:11 - Cubecon DMV
5:53 - Metabolic Machine
15:14 - Take Five
16:40 - Cosmogoyf vs Saw In Half
23:40 - Take Five Round Timer Issues
28:41 - Jarvis Yu’s Jarvis Yube
36:26 - Pasta Pizza
38:41 - Take Five Again
43:05 - More Cool Rulings
45:06 - World Championship Museum
50:46 - Chris’s Custom Winston Format
59:23 - Anthony’s Draft of Sacred Geo
1:00:56 - Top 8

Cards that are Cool — Part 2 Jul 13, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about cards they think are cool. In the long anticipated follow up to episode 108, they just talk about things they think are neat. Anthony shares some cards he’s seen pop up regularly in recent cube drafts that spark some intrigue. Andy shares cards that he thinks over-deliver, in a design and gameplay sense, in his own cubes.

Discussed in this episode:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
2:50 - Main Topic: Cool Cards
6:24 - Botanical Brawler
10:53 - Rot-Curse Rakshasa
13:53 - Oni-Cult Anvil
19:11 - Fear of Isolation
22:11 - Paradoxical Outcome
26:22 - Reinforced Ronin
31:04 - Second Sunrise
38:58 - Fists of Flame
44:19 - Engineered Explosives
46:30 - Kessig Wolf Run
51:44 - Mystical Teachings
55:47 - Honorable Mentions

Board Stalls and Cube Design Jul 06, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about board stalls and Cube. They talk about what they don’t like about this particular genera of board state. They theorize about some aspects of a cube’s design would lead to more stalls, and ways they might, as a designer, try to minimize them.

This weeks topic was suggested by listener MZ. Thanks, MZ!

Discussed in this episode:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
1:01 - Andy’s Pool Adventure
4:14 - Board Stalls
18:33 - Who’s the Beatdown?
22:35 - Equilibrium
26:10 - Creature Sizing
30:11 - Evasion
31:40 - Combat Tricks and Friends
33:12 - Equipment
35:42 - 2 for 1s and Big vs Small Games
42:00 - Great Game in Sacred Geometry
44:32 - Ornithopters and Neutral States
49:18 - Milling Out
55:15 - Conclusion

Token Episode Jun 29, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about the logistics of tokens for Cube. They talk about different ways they’ve managed them over the years and for different Cubes. They make recommendations for the best way to approach the problem, and even how their Cube design is influenced by token makers.

Discussed in this episode:

Cubes Discussed:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
1:44 - Main Topic: Token Logistics
6:15 - Anthony’s Approach to Tokens
9:04 - Challenges Managing Tokens
15:28 - Dry Erase Token Rant
18:03 - Tokencreep
21:29 - Sacred Geometry Tokens
27:00 - Green In Sacred Geometry
32:47 - How Token Restriction Influences Sacred Geometry
34:51 - Bun Magic Tokens
39:16 - Problems with Token Bags
43:06 - New Token System
48:15 - Why Streamline Your Tokens?
51:04 - Andy’s Other Tokens
56:23 - Other Token Solutions

Powering Down Eternal Cubes with Jake and Parker Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony are joined by Jake and Parker to talk about their shifts in approach to each of their eternal cubes. While Jake, Parker, and Andy have long maintained generally “power motivated” eternal cubes, they’ve each grappled with concerns about aesthetics, complexity, or gameplay in the last few years of Magic releases. They talk about how they’ve changed their design philosophies in light of those changes and how they’ve reframed the way they make decisions about the cards they choose to play.

Discussed in this episode:

Bodleian Cube
Bun Magic Cube
Theseus
Turbo Cube
Atavus
Pulp Nouveau
Midwinter
Cascade Cascade
Four TCGs in Magic’s Trench Coat, article by Parker LaMascus

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps

0:00 - Intro
2:57 - Main Topic: Power Motivated Cube
11:21 - The Vibeshift
17:08 - Gameplay Styles
19:33 - Paper Drafting and Taste
24:41 - Why Play High Power Level Magic
30:53 - Stat Inflation
39:33 - Power Motivation in 2026
45:46 - Theorycrafting with Powerful Cards
49:26 - Concluding Games
53:14 - Make Your Cube About Something
55:57 - Advice

Cube Cards That Are Hated Jun 15, 2026

Show notes

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Riffing on last week’s slightly divisive topic, Andy and Anthony talk about cards in their own cubes that players hate. They comb through their cubes discussing the many reasons players might dislike a card and why they might still be justifiable inclusions.

Discussed in this episode:

If you’d like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.

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

You can find the hosts’ Cubes on Cube Cobra:

You can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:

Lucky Paper
PO Box 4855
Baltimore, MD 21211

Musical production by DJ James Nasty.

Timestamps