Lucky Paper Radio

Andy and Anthony each rank every evergreen creature ability and then, tier by tier, discuss what they love each adds (or doesn’t) to the game. View all cards discussed in this episode. Discussed in this episode: Bloomburrow  and  Bloomburrow Commander  Surveys Evergreen Keyword Abilities Tier List Maker dinrovahorror’s Draft of the Neoclassical Cube The Oldest School Flash Gordon Theme Song Timest...

Andy and Anthony take a first look at Bloomburrow, breaking down the mechanics, flavor, and the cards their interested in giving a try in their on Cube environments. View all cards mentioned in this episode Discussed in this episode: Bloomburrow Community Survey Commander Set Survey Bloomburrow Mechanics Overview Episode 193: 100 Ornithopters in a Trenchcoat Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 2:46 - B...

In the first “book club” episode, Andy, Anthony, and Parker talk about  The Beauty of Games  by Frank Lantz. The book sets out to defend the thesis that games are artistic works (or, more descriptively, “aesthetic works”) worth the same level of appreciation as other art forms and teach sophisticated, systems-thinking. After reading the book, our hosts talk about what they took away from the book...

Andy and Anthony talk about complexity in Magic. After their discussion on the  previous episode  on Andy’s  Neoclassical Cube  comparing arguable simplicity of old school Magic cards, and continued discussion on the  MTG Cube Talk Discord , they talk about the nature and different types of complexity. They compare cards which are simpler to read vs to play with and how different types of complexi...

Andy and Anthony talk about Andy’s  Neoclassical Cube . They talk about some of the changes Andy’s been making leading up to it being played by a wider audience at  Steel City Cube . They talk about how the design philosophy has evolved and their recent experience playing the Cube. View all cards mentioned in this episode. Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction and Airplane Corner 6:04 - Overview of the N...

Andy, Anthony, and Parker review the results of the  Modern Horizons 3 Cube Community Set Review . As usual, we asked the Cube community to share what cards from the set they’re interested in trying in their Cubes, for whatever reasons that are relevant to their own curation goals, and how confident they are the cards will be hits. We compiled the results and our hosts talk through the top cards,...

Fresh off of Boston Cube Party, Andy, Anthony, and Patrick recap their weekend of Cubing. They talk through highlights of the event and the Cubes they drafted over a great weekend of Magic. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Boston Cube Party Episode 206, with Richard Garfield Andy’s Twitter thread recapping the weekend The Devoid Cube Creatureless Cube Da Cube...

Andy and Anthony are joined by Richard Garfield, legendary game designer and the creator of  Magic: the Gathering . Richard talks about how he got interested in modifying and tweaking games, his concept that players can be loosely understood as either ‘honers’ or ‘innovators’, and why some games with great mechanics have no soul as a result of overdevelopment. Andy and Anthony also take advantage...

Anthony is taking a break this week and it takes no less than two other people to fill his shoes, so Andy is joined by two other friends from their Baltimore playgroup to discuss two recent  roto drafts  of the full vintage card pool. They share their strategies surrounding this complicated draft format and talk about whether or not it led to actually fun games, while also touching on how this exe...

Andy and Anthony take a first look at Modern Horizons 3. The latest installment of this Time Spiral-esque series continues the tradition of a huge range of cards and an abundance of callbacks and remixes of classics. Our hosts talk about their overall impressions of the set and go into individual cards their interested in generally and for specific Cubes. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →...

Andy and Anthony talk about the history of architecture and the design of the physical spaces we inhabit. They draw parallels to design more broadly, the design of games as mental spaces, and specifically Cube design. Discussed in this episode: The Beauty of Games Buckminster Fuller Tech Won’t Save Us, Episode 221: Tech’s Plan to ‘Ethnically Cleanse’ San Francisco Cod , by Mark Kurlansky GeoGuessr...

Andy and Anthony read and comment on the entirety of a  recent article  on the early history of Magic and it’s creator’s struggles with the game. The article, including quotes from an interview with Richard Garfield, explores his complex relationship to his creation. It explores his perspective on games, and why he values them. Since it’s first publication, Richard has struggled to re-create the e...

Andy and Anthony talk about novelty Cubes. Many Cubes are built around a novelty concept or design restriction. Novelty designs can be fun and light, but gimmicks can also pigeonhole cubes, making them feel unworthy of serious attention. Our hosts discuss their experience with novelty design, from its benefits to its challenging implications. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed i...

Andy and Anthony celebrate their 200th episode!! They look back at where they were and how they approached Magic when they started the podcast vs now. Andy reverse engineer’s his Cube list from the time and talks about how his tastes in Magic have changed. Anthony goes a little off the rails as they talk about how to still get the most enjoyment out of the game at a less involved level. ⁠View all...

Andy and Anthony talk about “tutors” in Cube and how cards that give you access to any card in your library impact the game. Historically, both of our hosts have tended to avoid them in most of their Cube designs, but the serve a unique function that could make them worth considering. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Intro 100 Ornithopters Neoclassical Cube Ir...

Andy, Anthony, and Parker review the results of our Cube community set survey for Outlaws of Thunder Junction. As with every set, we asked Cube designers which cards they’re excited about from Magic’s latest world of hats, and how confident they are in them remaining in their Cubes long-term. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Outlaws of Thunder Junction Cube Pr...

Andy and Anthony revisit designing a Cube starting with a single card as inspiration. Starting with Goblin Charbelcher, they each explore themes and mechanics that could make the card relevant in a Cube, and build off those to create rough Cube skeletons. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Episode 182: Emergent Cube Design by Example Our Teaser on YouTube UberCu...

Andy and Anthony are joined by Sam from  Rhystic Studies  to talk about his first Cube design project. Sam, who produces thoughtful, carefully written videos on Magic, has been interested in Cube design for years and has finally made the leap to create his own list. They talk about what motivates Sam’s design goals, how he’s approached the project, and what he’s looking forward to in his first exp...

Our Cube Prospective Surveys for  Outlaws of Thunder Junction  is now open! Let us know what you are testing in your cube from the latest set. Andy and Anthony talk about their first impressions of Outlaws of Thunder Junction and the cards their interested in for their own Cube lists. Anthony is not too impressed by the aesthetics of the set, but they manage to power through, talk about the mechan...

Guests  Tara ,  Jenn , and  Haiyue  join Andy and Anthony for a discussion on making play spaces that are more accountable and inclusive to help grow more diverse playgroups. Tara brings her perspective as a professional diversity, equity, and inclusion consultant; Jenn, their experience organizing and judging events; and Haiyue what she’s learned managing the VML, and, from all of them, much much...

Andy and Anthony talk about Andy’s newest Cube experiment:  a cube  who’s only creatures are Ornithopters. Andy couldn’t help but entertain the idea of an all-ornithopter Cube in a  humorous tweet , and a recent draft of it in the  Cube Con  discord inspired him to flesh out the idea even further. Our first playmat is currently available for pre-order! Illustrated by Andy and featuring gold, foile...

Our first, limited edition playmat is now available for pre-order. The playmat is designed and illustrated by Andy and custom printed to order. Orders will only be available for a limited time.  Pre-order a mat here. Andy and Anthony talk about “ART!” loosely as it relates to Magic: The Gathering. They talk about the role of creative work in the game, the nuances of art and illustration, how the a...

Andy and Anthony are joined by Ryan Overturf, sharing his Cube design wisdom. Starting with Ryan’s articles on  power outliers  and  letting fun drive Cube design , they talk about their approach to Cube design and how they let play experience, vibes, and taste inform their processes. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Ryan on Star City Games Power Level Outlier...

Andy, Anthony, and Parker review the results of the Murders at Karlov Manor Cube Community Survey and discuss the top cards, tested by the most Cube designers. They dig into some trends, patterns, and surprises in the cards people are giving a chance in their environments. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: Usman’s Card-by-card MKM Review MKM Community Survey Re...

Andy and Anthony talk about layers of interaction in Cube design. Some cards interact with particular effects. Other cards are, in turn, resistant to those responses. Inevitably  other  cards get around those resistances. Our hosts talk about how they approach these orders of interaction. ⁠View all cards mentioned in the episode →⁠ Discussed in this episode: GeoGuessr Wingspan Splendor Episode 31...