Finally we get to go to Kaldheim! Northern lights, viking themes, and some potential cube staples? We'll have to see about that!
First I want to address the title of today's post in that while the monarch package I included in my list with the release of Commander Legends has been a fun experiment, I feel like it is time to set it aside again, at least for the time being. Many of these Kaldheim cards will be swapped in directly for the monarch cards in my list.
The upside is that I now have a lot of slots to test some of these new cards and I am mostly excited to try out the new mechanic: Foretell.
Obviously, some of these cards are better than others but what I am most curious about is seeing if finding a correct balance of Foretell effects to keep some mystery about what card is foretold is possible in cube. By focusing the cards in fewer colours and with effects that will often be played in decks together I think these 6 can make Foretell work. I can easily see an Azorius control list playing several of these options, or a Simic or Selesnya midrange list playing multiple Foretell cards from these 6.
Starnheim Unleashed is the obvious power outlier and is one of the cards I am most confident about from Kaldheim. Doomskar will be a nice replacement for Shatter the Sky and these two play very interestingly together. It was pointed out on MTGSalvation that if you have both in your deck it can put your opponent in a very precarious position. If Doomskar is foretold then your opponent will want to avoid over committing to the board, but if it is Starnheim foretold, they will want to commit as much as possible. Guess wrong and they are probably going to take the L. Can definitely see both of these being used in a white heavy control shell as finisher and sweeper, and now also mind game.
Glorious Protector does a nice job of being an imitation Restoration Angel, protecting from removal and especially sweepers. Battle Mammoth is a big dummy but if you are currently on Elder Gargaroth I think taking a look at the "Foretellephant" might be rewarding.
Ravenform provides some flexible artifact hate that specifically exiles. Having clean answers for things like Phoenix of Ash, Uro, Kroxa, Woodfall Primus and Wurmcoil is very nice. The downside of a 1/1 flyer is hardly downside for Blue as it will be easy to handle on defense. Behold the Multiverse is a nice mini Dig Through Time and I'm curious to see how it will play out while providing more to the Foretold mind game.
Usher of the Fallen:
Savannah Lion variants are already pretty much cube staples so it's always nice when we get a new one with upside. The boast ability won't always be relevant but it is more functional than Skymarcher Aspirant's flying ability.
I think this will be a great addition over Skymarcher Aspirant, Student of Warfare, Soldier of the Patheon, or any of the other less useful Savannah Lions if you have met your density threshold.
Clarion Spirit:
I think calling this White's Young Pyromancer is a stretch but I do think this has some legs for cube. A bear that can provide an evasive attacker for free by playing magic has pretty good potential. Playing this on turn three and following up with a 1 cmc spell to get the spirit right away seems like a strong play.
Having a 2nd toughness also makes it more useful as a blocker eating up those pesky goblins and soldiers where pyromancer can't.
Cosima, God of the Voyage:
I think this card is one of the toughest to evaluate in the set. It can be a strong blocker early to buy you time, it can be card advantage when there isn't pressure, It can be a 3/3 vehicle that finds lands and mills your opponent. Its not a slam dunk in any of these roles but it can do so many things that I think it can potentially be a good kind of Swiss Army knife creature for blue and at least warrants a test.
I'm really hoping that the fact this creature warranted the title of "god" that it plays better than you might expect. Also the alternate frame version has dolphins on the vehicle side which is awesome!
Dragonkin Berserker:
This card seems okay. I don't have a ton of praise to give this card because it isn't too flashy, but it does fit into a lot of red decks and isn't pigeonholed into red aggro where a lot of red 1 and 2 drops are.
This can be played in aggro and provide flood insurance with a late game evasive threat or it can go in bigger midrangey red decks that are fully planning on taking advantage of the Boast ability.
For that I like it as an option and am going to give it a test.
The rule with vehicles in cube has typically been that Crew 3 was too much but we haven't had a vehicle that supplies it's own power before.
Opponents with spot removal are going to be in a bind. Instant speed removal will likely take out the chariot and that leaves the caster with 4 P/T across two bodies and your opponent down a piece of premium removal which is a good rate for a green 4. If they have sorcery speed removal they are going to have to try and limit your board power to keep the chariot off but if you have any follow up creatures the chariot will likely get turned on again and replace the cat that was chain lightning'd. So again they are in a tough spot.
This card is going to do some serious work in grindy green midrange decks that can take advantage of the many tokens flying around cube lists these days. Plus: Cats.
Masked Vandal:
I'm always trying to find Naturalize effects that can be more consistently mainboarded and I always test them all. Wilt is the current king, but I think this has some potential. Just like Wilt, this isn't ever going to be a dead card. Where you might have to cycle wilt away and hope for a solution against aggro, Vandal just lets you brick wall the many 2 power first strikers and Savannah Lion variants.
In later game situations this can cleanly answer a Wurmcoil Engine or Hangarback Walker and deal with some of those late game enchantments. It can't disrupt early mana rocks which is big knock against it, but I still think it's worth a test.
Firja's Retribution:
This card is pretty cool and seems bonkers with things like Flickerwisp.
I'm a little skeptical that a single spot removal spell negates the rest of the saga but it provides a threat up front and at worst is going to trade 1 for 1 in card advantage.
If the angel isn't killed on the spot its a pretty small window for your opponent to find a solution before they feel the retribution.
Shimmerdrift Vale:
Snow if officially coming into my cube!
Not really, but I want to give this a test run as an Evolving Wilds variant, and while we have the colour aligned thriving lands which are almost strictly better, my OCD for cube balance likes that this doesn't favour one colour over another.
If you are super against running functional reprints this might be decent over Evolving Wilds/Terramorphic Expanse if you only want one of those in your list. Also it's going to be gorgeous in foil.
Conclusion:
I'm being pretty generous with my testing here. A lot of people are only on 3-4 cards and I'm here putting in 14 like a mad man. Partly I want to try and see if the mind game aspect of Foretell is at all achievable for cube. I'm well aware that many of these cards will only be in the list for a handful of drafts before they get the axe, but I think it is important to test more and make cut backs than to be too conservative and not have an idea of what might work in your list.
Remember when people thought Palace Jailer was too expensive and risky and essentially hot garbage before it became a powerhouse cube card? You will never have regrets about testing more cards than less. It keeps the cube fresh, gives everyone a chance to test something new in their deck, and you might just surprise yourself to see what works for you or your playlist!
Happy Cubing!