Overview

Hello and welcome back to another edition of "Cube Stuff Inc." Today we are discussing my favorite line of text on a magic card, Enters the Battlefield, which for the sake of simplicity we'll call "ETB" in this article. More specifically we are discussing an Archetype built around creatures with ETB effects and finding ways to trigger them more than once. The enablers of this Archetype are most often found in the Bant Colors, though payoffs can be found in any color. Most commonly these decks will slot into a Midrange home where they are seeking to get extra value out of their creatures or a Combo/Synergy deck that wants to leverage specific cards like Soulherder. Overall, this Archetype has a 6/10 Synergy rating due to the fact that its enablers are very narrow and rarely useful in other Archetypes, but its payoffs are so universally strong that even if you don't trigger their ETB effect more than once they are still worth putting in most decks.

Blink, Bounce, & Copy

Most players who have spent time around cubes have likely heard of the "Blink" Archetypes that gets its name from Momentary Blink. While these effects can situationally fizzle removal, decks that focus on temporarily exiling their own creatures rarely have the payoff or support to function. Outside of Genku, Future Shaper and Preston, the Vanisher there are very few cards that directly reward you for blinking your permanents. The reward is and always will be the power of getting those ETB triggers to occur more than once. One Primeval Titan is great but a second one backbreaking.

My advice to anyone looking to support this Archetype is to avoid cards that specifically care about Blink effects. Instead, include the best bounce, blink, and copy effects and put the emphasis of your Archetype on triggering those ETB effects more than once. Not only will this make your decks more consistent, but it will also open up better synergies with reanimation Archetypes that can also trigger ETBs more than once.

Strengths & Weaknesses

The strength of this Archetype is that it will function even when your draft doesn't go according to plan. Unlike other Archetypes, if you only get cards with great ETB effects, but no ways to reuse them, you will still have a functional and powerful deck. Nearly 1/5th of the cards in my Legacy power level Cube have some type of ETB effect attached to them. From Solitude to Eternal Witness these cards don't require formal support to be good and most decks would be happy to include them. However, the same can not be said about the other half of this Archetype.

Most of the blink, bounce, and copy effects in Magic: The Gathering are incredibly narrow and inconsistent. Take Ghostly Flicker for instance, in a perfect world it can produce infinite mana alongside Peregrine Drake and Archaeomancer, but that requires a lot of things to go right. In a normal game Ghostly Flicker might blank a piece of removal or untap a surprise blocker. Beyond this issue the majority of genuine Archetype payoffs are very limited and rarely worth including. Panharmonicon lets you double these awesome ETB effects but it requires you to take an entire turn off to do so. Annie Joins Up provides some immediate value, with more color and creature restrictions. Overall these cards will struggle to find a home in higher power level cubes and cubes with a lower card count.

Closing Thoughts

If you plan to support this Archetype in your cube, the best advice I can provide is to first focus on maximizing the number of ETB effects in your cube. After that, I would only include the very best and most flexible enablers. Phelia, Exuberant Shepard can remove blockers, grow itself, and retrigger powerful ETB effects. While Parting Gust is less powerful than Ephemerate in an ETB deck, it does a good job of imitating Path to Exile when needed. Even cards like Sublime Epiphany often go overlooked. Yes it's only viable in the late game, but getting a second copy of your best creature in addition to any of the other modes is all the tempo you need to win.

Lastly, it's important to discuss the actual play patterns of the Archetype and its ideal home. If you want to support a Blink Archetype in your Cube, I would recommend aiming for a lower power level Cube. If you are interested in supporting the broader ETB Archetype detailed above, you can easily slot it into any type of Cube. Furthermore I would only recommend this Archetype to players who prefer grinding out value. The play patterns and timing of this Archetype are intricate and highly reactive based on the game plan of your opponent. If you want your games to end quickly and decisively, don't support this Archetype. ETB Archetypes are for players who like solving puzzles and weighing their options.

If you do want to support an ETB Archetype in your Cube, consider picking up the cards below. Some of them are generically good and flexible, while others are more limited and powerful. Simply pair them with your favorite ETB effect and watch the value multiply. As always, I can be reached on Instagram with comments and questions. Until next time, Happy Drafting!

Adam's Enablers