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:

Hate Cards in Cube Jun 08, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about hate cards, and how they fit into Cube design in particular. Of course, they start by trying to define the term. They talk through the pros and cons of them and how different types may play a role in Cubes. They go through a number of their own cubes, analyzing them from this perspective.

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
0:45 - Main Topic: Hate Cards
9:15 - Examples of Hate Cards
13:05 - Hate Cards We Cube
16:09 - Talking About Constructed
17:14 - Aura Shards
22:09 - Bun Magic Hate Cards
23:53 - Teferi, Time Raveler
28:38 - Changing the Math vs Hate
31:11 - Take Five
34:11 - Hate Combos
36:30 - Neoclassical Cube
38:48 - White in Neoclassical
42:00 - Groundseal
44:37 - Humility
48:47 - Turbo Cube
55:39 - Context Shift Hate
59:57 - Mailbag
1:02:15 - Garfield

Steal Our Cube Ideas Jun 01, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony scour the cutting room floor for unfinished gems. They offer up some of their half-baked, unfinished cube ideas for you to steal. Andy shares his ideas for an aesthetic sun-bleached cube, a cube where your deck is your life total, and an environment built around wishes. Anthony digs up an all alternate win conditions cube and a battle box where the entire game happens in one stack.

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
1:19 - Main Topic: Steal Our Ideas
1:57 - Sunbleached Cube
6:59 - Alternate Win Cons Cube
13:06 - No Life Total Cube
24:33 - Where Do Ideas Come From
27:33 - Omniscience Battlebox
37:24 - Three Wishes Cube
49:02 - Custom Ante Cards

The Scorpion and The Cube with Ollie Beeks May 25, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony are joined by Cube Person of the Year 2024, Ollie, to talk about whether it’s irresponsible to present a cube for drafting without any playtesting. What is the difference between ‘playing’ and ‘playtesting’? Can you design a cube iteratively without playtesting? Just how bad can a cube really be?

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
3:41 - Secret Project: Obscura
9:13 - Playtesting
16:46 - The Case Against Playtesting
21:03 - Non-Playtest Data
23:09 - The Process
29:45 - Playing Vs Playtesting
35:17 - Cube First Impressions
43:33 - Expectations
47:28 - Designing for an Experience
52:10 - Marina Abramovic and Artistic Intent
58:26 - Logistics

Salt Box Recap with Judge Bones May 18, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony are joined by the de facto Cube judge — Bones! The three recap The Salt Box, a small Cube event in Baltimore. At this event, Andy debuted Take Five and Judge Bones Arcane Lessons. They share what they learned from players drafting their cubes for the very first time and their own experience as cube designers drafting cubes for the first time in a public event.

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
0:00 - Special Guest Judge Bones
5:11 - Arcane Lessons
11:31 - Debuting Arcane Lessons
15:38 - Lesson/Learn
17:19 - Arcane
19:35 - Iteration
21:12 - Lessons Learned
29:09 - Take Five Debut
42:45 - Designing Cubes for Events
47:35 - Take Five Feedback
51:48 - Anthony’s Salt Box Highlights
60:08 - Fun Judge Calls with Judge Bones

The Barash Files 006 — Cube Design Lenses May 11, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony are joined by returning guest Zach Barash. They talk about about different lenses Cube designers can use to approach designing a new cube. They finish on a pack 1, pick 1 from Andy’s new cube Take Five.

Previous episodes with Zach:

Discussed in this episode:

Cubes referenced:

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
1:27 - Guest: Zach Barash
4:59 - Lenses for Approaching Cube Design
14:12 - Making a “Good Cube”
15:05 - Duplication
19:28 - Balance
24:13 - Homage
25:18 - Powermaxing Diversion
33:39 - Novelty
37:14 - Balancing Goals vs Taste
42:01 - Icebergs
46:11 - Restrictions
51:33 - Head vs Heart
53:43 - Summary
58:01 - Crack-a-Pack of Take Five

Theory Drafting the Best Decks in Regular Cube May 04, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony and joined by Adam, a local player who suggested a novel way to cube. All players involved built what they thought would be the best deck that could ever be drafted from Anthony’s Regular Cube. They talked about the decks they built, their processes for building, and what it revealed about an environment which is typically intended to be drafted.

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
1:27 - Main Topic: Theory Draft with Adam
7:48 - RW Heroic
18:04 - Metagaming
23:50 - Anthony’s Zombie Deck
26:58 - Comparing Draft, Constructed, and Rotisserie
29:25 - Premium Removal
31:03 - Mana
34:31 - More Theorydrafting
40:17 - Meta Shifts
42:51 - Andy’s Ninjas Deck
46:04 - Splashes
51:05 - Anthony’s WG Landfall Deck
53:51 - Adam’s Mono B Zombies
54:32 - Sideboards
1:03:23 - Reevaluations
1:05:41 - The Control Deck
1:08:31 - Final Thoughts

Playing Proactive Green Decks Apr 27, 2026

Show notes

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Following their previous episode about playing with Young Pyromancer Andy and Anthony talk about how to win with proactive green decks. They look back at some of Anthony’s successful decks and try to get some insight into what makes them tick, exploring card types and distribution and gameplay heuristics.

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
4:33 - Main Topic: How to Play Green
6:39 - Andy’s Midrange Woes
12:05 - Mana Curve & Mulligans
14:28 - Being the Beatdown
20:58 - Combat & Blocking
29:37 - Card Evaluation
34:44 - Synergy
39:23 - More Mana Curve
40:42 - Cantrips
43:54 - Grindy Cards & Flexibility
46:07 - Manlands
48:44 - Summary
52:53 - Mailbag

Tricentennial Q & A Apr 20, 2026

Show notes

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Celebrating 300 episodes, Andy and Anthony answer listener submitted questions. They address their favorite gummy candies, opinions on the free will of jellyfish, the most technologically advanced things they could build from scratch on a desert island, and so much more.

Discussed in this episode:

Books:

A Pattern Language,by Christopher Alexander
A People’s History of the United States) by Howard Zinn
Frostbite by Nicola Twilley
Cod by Mark Kurlansky
The Design of Everythings by Donald Norman
Thomas Thwaites, who attempted to make a toaster from scratch

Artists:

Other Media:

NTS Radio
Off Menu, Podcast hosted by Ed Gamble and James Acaster
Alone, TV Show

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
4:18 - Episode 300 Q&A!
5:03 - Origins of Lucky Paper and the Podcast
8:45 - Shoebox
10:24 - Do Jellyfish Have Free Will?
12:26 - Being Opinionated
13:31 - Processed Cheese
21:00 - Pinatas
23:35 - What do you admire most about each other?
24:44 - Life Improvements
29:49 - Influential Books
34:21 - Who Could Build a More Technologically Advanced Thing?
40:21 - FMK
41:28 - Cube Soundtracks
46:04 - Non Magic LPR Listeners
49:15 - Higher Education
53:09 - Survival Reality Television
57:45 - Our Ideal High Speed Transit
59:13 - Visual Art
1:03:03 - Our Hosts First Impressions of Each Other
1:10:53 - The Future of Cube
1:17:52 - Hopes for Baltimore Cubing
1:22:33 - Mailbag
1:24:19 - Favorite Drinks

How to Win with Young Pyromancer Apr 13, 2026

Show notes

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Andy and Anthony talk about one of Andy’s all time favorite cards Young Pyromancer. After a recent draft of a peasant cube at their weekly cube night, Anthony realized that despite it’s iconic status, it’s not a card he feels like he know’s how to optimize. Andy shares his experience with the card, what he thinks it takes to support it, and a handful of his cube draft decks it headlined.

View the full decklists of Andy’s referenced drafts on the cards page.

Discussed in this episode:

Library of Babel, Local Peasant Cube
Deck Pics!
Alternate Timeline cube by Joe Donkey

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
1:03 - Sorting Cards
9:07 - Helping Anthony with Young Pyromancer
18:40 - Card Quality
24:06 - How to Draft the Young Pyromancer Deck
29:33 - Why Blue-Red Pyromancer
34:51 - Modal Double Faced Cards
36:20 - How Many Counterspells
37:34 - Mulligans
44:30 - Off-Strategy Splashes
49:42 - Wrap Up
55:17 - Andy is Bad at Big Games

On Colorless Cards Apr 06, 2026

Show notes

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Most of the time when listeners suggest topics we’ve already recorded a whole episode dedicated to that subject. Sometimes we’ve even recorded three. It turns out almost six years is a long time to have a weekly podcast about a niche interest like Cube design. So when someone recently suggested we record an episode about ‘colorless cards’ I was surprised to discover that we have never actually dedicated an entire episode to the subject, and it turns out we have a lot to say!

If you have questions for our 300th episodes please send them to mail@luckypaper.co with the subject line ‘Episode 300 Question’.

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