Parker LaMascus
@parker.luckypaper.co
[he/him] edits luckypaper.co; watches birds; reads a lot
This week I break down "big and small games" of Magic. I first heard the idea from @samuelhblack.bsky.social, where it helped me level up in Retail Draft, but over the years it's become one of my favorite Cube design tools – especially to craft synergy decks!
luckypaper.co/articles/rem...
luckypaper.co/articles/rem...
Removal Vs. Synergies in Cube — Lucky Paper
It might seem like removal spells are incompatible with synergy decks, but the reality is more complex. We discuss an versatile, evergreen tool to fine-tune a cube's synergies.
luckypaper.co
October 28, 2025 at 1:22 PM
This week I break down "big and small games" of Magic. I first heard the idea from @samuelhblack.bsky.social, where it helped me level up in Retail Draft, but over the years it's become one of my favorite Cube design tools – especially to craft synergy decks!
luckypaper.co/articles/rem...
luckypaper.co/articles/rem...
this week I saw one of my top 5 bands live, mouse on the keys.
opener Oavette was new to me, but i was instantly hooked. they played 45 minutes no breaks, the entire album:
tokeirecords.bandcamp.com/album/oavett...
mouse was as awesome as i hoped: mouseonthekeystokyo.bandcamp.com/album/midnight
opener Oavette was new to me, but i was instantly hooked. they played 45 minutes no breaks, the entire album:
tokeirecords.bandcamp.com/album/oavett...
mouse was as awesome as i hoped: mouseonthekeystokyo.bandcamp.com/album/midnight
midnight, by mouse on the keys Tokyo
11 track album
mouseonthekeystokyo.bandcamp.com
October 15, 2025 at 10:40 AM
this week I saw one of my top 5 bands live, mouse on the keys.
opener Oavette was new to me, but i was instantly hooked. they played 45 minutes no breaks, the entire album:
tokeirecords.bandcamp.com/album/oavett...
mouse was as awesome as i hoped: mouseonthekeystokyo.bandcamp.com/album/midnight
opener Oavette was new to me, but i was instantly hooked. they played 45 minutes no breaks, the entire album:
tokeirecords.bandcamp.com/album/oavett...
mouse was as awesome as i hoped: mouseonthekeystokyo.bandcamp.com/album/midnight
This week's #mtgcube piece has been brewing for awhile. Sometimes, you have to show the cards who shuffles whom.
luckypaper.co/articles/uni...
luckypaper.co/articles/uni...
Universes Beyond and the Meaning of Life — Lucky Paper
The typical debate about Universes Beyond's effects on Magic is framed as a matter of market value. But once we start weighing the success of these co-branded products, we've already lost a rigged gam...
luckypaper.co
October 14, 2025 at 12:03 PM
This week's #mtgcube piece has been brewing for awhile. Sometimes, you have to show the cards who shuffles whom.
luckypaper.co/articles/uni...
luckypaper.co/articles/uni...
Okay, it turns out the Phillies will not be winning the 2025 World Series. Otherwise, this Kamigawa #mtgcube retrospective has held up pretty well over the last 48 hours.
I daresay this might be the finest article on baseball, Magic: The Gathering, and world travel ever written.
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
Kamigawa and The New York Yankees — Lucky Paper
Kamigawa is a lightly fictionalized version of real-world Japan. What does that mean for the set? What does it mean for its players? A meditation on trading cards, cultural exchange, and baseball.
luckypaper.co
October 10, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Okay, it turns out the Phillies will not be winning the 2025 World Series. Otherwise, this Kamigawa #mtgcube retrospective has held up pretty well over the last 48 hours.
I daresay this might be the finest article on baseball, Magic: The Gathering, and world travel ever written.
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
Kamigawa and The New York Yankees — Lucky Paper
Kamigawa is a lightly fictionalized version of real-world Japan. What does that mean for the set? What does it mean for its players? A meditation on trading cards, cultural exchange, and baseball.
luckypaper.co
October 8, 2025 at 11:38 AM
I daresay this might be the finest article on baseball, Magic: The Gathering, and world travel ever written.
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
(Granted, that doesn't leave much competition... but you should still read it!)
luckypaper.co/articles/kam...
#mtgcube
Sometimes I get unexplained Magic cravings, like "I want to trainwreck this #mtgcube draft," or "I need to know what the experts think of Amonkhet."
I'm proud to say we can help with that.* Here's Emma Glenister, Egyptology PhD candidate, for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/amo...
I'm proud to say we can help with that.* Here's Emma Glenister, Egyptology PhD candidate, for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/amo...
Amonkhet: Fact and Fiction — Lucky Paper
With Amonkhet, Magic stepped into Ancient Egypt, a culture with three thousand years of history and religion to draw on for inspiration but also a minefield of stereotypes and tropes. Our chief Egypto...
luckypaper.co
September 30, 2025 at 11:17 AM
Sometimes I get unexplained Magic cravings, like "I want to trainwreck this #mtgcube draft," or "I need to know what the experts think of Amonkhet."
I'm proud to say we can help with that.* Here's Emma Glenister, Egyptology PhD candidate, for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/amo...
I'm proud to say we can help with that.* Here's Emma Glenister, Egyptology PhD candidate, for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/amo...
What cards from Spider-Man are you testing in your #mtgcube? We wanna know! Respond to our survey... or else I'll shoot some Tobey finger-guns in your direction.
luckypaper.co/survey/spm/
luckypaper.co/survey/spm/
Marvel's Spider-Man Cube Survey — Lucky Paper
Tell us what cards you're testing in your cube from Marvel's Spider-Man. Results will be compiled, analyzed, and shared with the community.
luckypaper.co
September 9, 2025 at 12:50 PM
What cards from Spider-Man are you testing in your #mtgcube? We wanna know! Respond to our survey... or else I'll shoot some Tobey finger-guns in your direction.
luckypaper.co/survey/spm/
luckypaper.co/survey/spm/
A little jetlag can't stop me from getting another article out the door! This week's piece for Lucky Paper is a design-focused review of Gatecrash.
luckypaper.co/articles/gat...
luckypaper.co/articles/gat...
Gatecrash: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
We reassess the game design of Gatecrash. Though it may be nearly identical to its predecessor, the differences are striking – and instructive for Cube designers!
luckypaper.co
September 9, 2025 at 12:47 PM
A little jetlag can't stop me from getting another article out the door! This week's piece for Lucky Paper is a design-focused review of Gatecrash.
luckypaper.co/articles/gat...
luckypaper.co/articles/gat...
Was really glad to see Jacob's byline on Hipsters again! Magic and Meaning was always a favorite column of mine (along with @improphilo.bsky.social's, of course)
@hipstersofthecoast.com reached out this summer and told me he was getting the band back together. It was good to play with Magic & meaning again.
www.hipstersofthecoast.com/2025/09/phil...
#magicthegathering #MTGEOE
www.hipstersofthecoast.com/2025/09/phil...
#magicthegathering #MTGEOE
Philosophy of Religion through Edge of Eternities
Professor Torbeck returns to Hipsters to plan a new curriculum on Religion and Ethics around the Edge of Eternities setting.
www.hipstersofthecoast.com
September 7, 2025 at 8:52 AM
Was really glad to see Jacob's byline on Hipsters again! Magic and Meaning was always a favorite column of mine (along with @improphilo.bsky.social's, of course)
It's time for our biggest article of the year: the data-driven Cube Standard Retrospective, which looks back on DMU through LTR. Find out which cards survived 3 years in cubes to become true staples!
luckypaper.co/articles/202...
luckypaper.co/articles/202...
2025 Standard Rotation Cube Retrospective — Lucky Paper
There were 2,112 new cards printed between Dominaria United and Lord of the Rings. We follow up on our Cube survey series to ask: which cards survived to become true Cube staples?
luckypaper.co
September 1, 2025 at 1:57 PM
It's time for our biggest article of the year: the data-driven Cube Standard Retrospective, which looks back on DMU through LTR. Find out which cards survived 3 years in cubes to become true staples!
luckypaper.co/articles/202...
luckypaper.co/articles/202...
this is what it looks like when nobody knows what Imotekh does in @improphilo.bsky.social's UMA+ Cube (that cube slaps, btw)
August 25, 2025 at 3:43 PM
this is what it looks like when nobody knows what Imotekh does in @improphilo.bsky.social's UMA+ Cube (that cube slaps, btw)
This week's #mtgcube article is a deep dive on synergy: how it works, why that matters, and design tips for making the synergies of your dreams!
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
Cube Synergy: A Users' Guide — Lucky Paper
The risk-reward tradeoff of synergy contributes to a cube's replayability, strategic depth, and elegance – but it can be tricky to balance. This guide discusses tools to tune any synergy toward your d...
luckypaper.co
August 25, 2025 at 2:07 PM
This week's #mtgcube article is a deep dive on synergy: how it works, why that matters, and design tips for making the synergies of your dreams!
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
This week's retro design review is a HIT PIECE on a CLASSIC #mtgcube set (no i didn't mean it, Odyssey, i'll love you even if you hate your players)
luckypaper.co/articles/ody...
luckypaper.co/articles/ody...
Odyssey: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
To prove that I'm not just a sucker for the Mirrodin border, we're going even further back in time with our design-focused set reviews, to a troubled classic: graveyard-focused Odyssey.
luckypaper.co
August 18, 2025 at 2:39 PM
This week's retro design review is a HIT PIECE on a CLASSIC #mtgcube set (no i didn't mean it, Odyssey, i'll love you even if you hate your players)
luckypaper.co/articles/ody...
luckypaper.co/articles/ody...
Excited to listen -- I was traveling during EOE previews but this is my ideal way to catch up
Good morning, gamers! The first episode of my podcast is here, in which I offer my early impressions of Edge of Eternities for the world of Cube- welcome to 180 MTG!
www.buzzsprout.com/2524885
www.buzzsprout.com/2524885
180 MTG
A Magic: The Gathering Cube podcast hosted by Ryan Overturf.
www.buzzsprout.com
August 15, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Excited to listen -- I was traveling during EOE previews but this is my ideal way to catch up
Reposted by Parker LaMascus
Anya Rainwater taps in and out of SEPTA around 8 times a day. As a traveling case manager, she meets her clients where they are, and that means traversing Philadelphia via public transit. With SEPTA cuts looming, she’s concerned for those clients. (1/4)
🔗 www.inquirer.com/transportati...
🔗 www.inquirer.com/transportati...
August 11, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Anya Rainwater taps in and out of SEPTA around 8 times a day. As a traveling case manager, she meets her clients where they are, and that means traversing Philadelphia via public transit. With SEPTA cuts looming, she’s concerned for those clients. (1/4)
🔗 www.inquirer.com/transportati...
🔗 www.inquirer.com/transportati...
This week I review #mtgeoe from a data-driven #mtgcube perspective! Hard to believe it's the SIX YEAR anniversary of this series!
Find out which cards were most popular among cubeheads (and, bonus, why I think EOE features the best art direction in years).
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
Find out which cards were most popular among cubeheads (and, bonus, why I think EOE features the best art direction in years).
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
Edge of Eternities — Lucky Paper
Edge of Eternities brings an all-new setting and story to Magic's universe! We surveyed the Cube community to find which far-out cards generated the most excitement.
luckypaper.co
August 11, 2025 at 1:16 PM
This week I review #mtgeoe from a data-driven #mtgcube perspective! Hard to believe it's the SIX YEAR anniversary of this series!
Find out which cards were most popular among cubeheads (and, bonus, why I think EOE features the best art direction in years).
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
Find out which cards were most popular among cubeheads (and, bonus, why I think EOE features the best art direction in years).
luckypaper.co/articles/cub...
For my latest design-focused retro review, I went back to my very first set: Return to Ravnica. Mechanically, RTR bats a thousand, and that can be instructive for cube-heads like me.
(RTR does have one big flavor miss: Azorius. UW droolz, Rakdos rulez.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ret...
(RTR does have one big flavor miss: Azorius. UW droolz, Rakdos rulez.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ret...
Return to Ravnica: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
Five incredibly good mechanics, seven-mana rares that rock, and two-color Draft architecture: Return to Ravnica is a special set. In this design-focused review, we'll break down lessons for modern-day...
luckypaper.co
August 4, 2025 at 12:30 PM
For my latest design-focused retro review, I went back to my very first set: Return to Ravnica. Mechanically, RTR bats a thousand, and that can be instructive for cube-heads like me.
(RTR does have one big flavor miss: Azorius. UW droolz, Rakdos rulez.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ret...
(RTR does have one big flavor miss: Azorius. UW droolz, Rakdos rulez.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ret...
Decided to switch it up with a 4-for-1 retro set review, focusing on a historically tricky archetype for Cube designers: creature-type matters decks. They may be hard to design in Draft, but the flavor and intuitiveness make up for it, as these 4 sets show!
luckypaper.co/articles/the...
luckypaper.co/articles/the...
The Typal Paradox: A Historical Design Survey — Lucky Paper
Creature type synergies like Elves or Goblins are incredibly popular in Commander and Constructed, but notoriously tricky in Limited and Cube. We survey four historical formats to see what makes typal...
luckypaper.co
July 29, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Decided to switch it up with a 4-for-1 retro set review, focusing on a historically tricky archetype for Cube designers: creature-type matters decks. They may be hard to design in Draft, but the flavor and intuitiveness make up for it, as these 4 sets show!
luckypaper.co/articles/the...
luckypaper.co/articles/the...
Alara Reborn is up next on what's beginning to look like a recurring series: Lucky Paper design reviews with an eye towards #mtgcube!
ARB has a lot of cool ideas... and one very badly developed mechanic. (Luckily, Cube is the one format where Cascade can be cool.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ala...
ARB has a lot of cool ideas... and one very badly developed mechanic. (Luckily, Cube is the one format where Cascade can be cool.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ala...
Alara Reborn: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
We're finishing a block of Cube-focused design review with Alara Reborn, an ambitious set whose every card was gold-framed. We'll discuss which themes are successful, and which Modern powerhouse is on...
luckypaper.co
July 21, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Alara Reborn is up next on what's beginning to look like a recurring series: Lucky Paper design reviews with an eye towards #mtgcube!
ARB has a lot of cool ideas... and one very badly developed mechanic. (Luckily, Cube is the one format where Cascade can be cool.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ala...
ARB has a lot of cool ideas... and one very badly developed mechanic. (Luckily, Cube is the one format where Cascade can be cool.)
luckypaper.co/articles/ala...
I'm following up my Alara design re-review with Conflux!
Magic's first 5-color Draft set*, CON had plenty of good ideas (landcycling, flavorful color hate) and a few bad ones (Card Attribute Arbitrage, my least favorite "synergy") from which our cubes can benefit:
luckypaper.co/articles/con...
Magic's first 5-color Draft set*, CON had plenty of good ideas (landcycling, flavorful color hate) and a few bad ones (Card Attribute Arbitrage, my least favorite "synergy") from which our cubes can benefit:
luckypaper.co/articles/con...
Conflux: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
It might be a series! Once again, we're reviewing older Magic sets to level up our current-day Cube design. This time: Conflux, a set with good intentions that overcommits to nearly everything Shards ...
luckypaper.co
July 14, 2025 at 4:30 PM
I'm following up my Alara design re-review with Conflux!
Magic's first 5-color Draft set*, CON had plenty of good ideas (landcycling, flavorful color hate) and a few bad ones (Card Attribute Arbitrage, my least favorite "synergy") from which our cubes can benefit:
luckypaper.co/articles/con...
Magic's first 5-color Draft set*, CON had plenty of good ideas (landcycling, flavorful color hate) and a few bad ones (Card Attribute Arbitrage, my least favorite "synergy") from which our cubes can benefit:
luckypaper.co/articles/con...
Someone asked me yesterday, "what if I *don't* have aesthetics in my #mtgcube?"
No such thing, even if you design mechanics-first. In 2018, if you just added cool mechanics, the end result might feel like a love letter to Magic, or a Magic HOF. In 2025 it'll be more like a funko pop bookshelf :/
No such thing, even if you design mechanics-first. In 2018, if you just added cool mechanics, the end result might feel like a love letter to Magic, or a Magic HOF. In 2025 it'll be more like a funko pop bookshelf :/
Cube curators used to pine for "a strong Black 4-drop". Then came 2018. Then we wanted "mechanics to support my rules-modified cube". Then came 2025.
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Synergy is Dead. Long Live Aesthetics. — Lucky Paper
Cube design has historically focused on mechanical novelty because Magic's aesthetics were chosen for us. That time is past. It's time to start designing our cubes' art and flavor with as much care as...
luckypaper.co
July 9, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Someone asked me yesterday, "what if I *don't* have aesthetics in my #mtgcube?"
No such thing, even if you design mechanics-first. In 2018, if you just added cool mechanics, the end result might feel like a love letter to Magic, or a Magic HOF. In 2025 it'll be more like a funko pop bookshelf :/
No such thing, even if you design mechanics-first. In 2018, if you just added cool mechanics, the end result might feel like a love letter to Magic, or a Magic HOF. In 2025 it'll be more like a funko pop bookshelf :/
Cube curators used to pine for "a strong Black 4-drop". Then came 2018. Then we wanted "mechanics to support my rules-modified cube". Then came 2025.
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Synergy is Dead. Long Live Aesthetics. — Lucky Paper
Cube design has historically focused on mechanical novelty because Magic's aesthetics were chosen for us. That time is past. It's time to start designing our cubes' art and flavor with as much care as...
luckypaper.co
July 8, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Cube curators used to pine for "a strong Black 4-drop". Then came 2018. Then we wanted "mechanics to support my rules-modified cube". Then came 2025.
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Magic's big shortage for #mtgcube is no longer about power or mechanics, but aesthetics. My latest for Lucky Paper:
luckypaper.co/articles/syn...
Couldn't resist a throwback set review in my latest Lucky Paper piece. Shards of Alara may be 17 years old, but that's no reason we can't apply its design successes in our cubes!
#mtgcube
luckypaper.co/articles/sha...
#mtgcube
luckypaper.co/articles/sha...
Shards of Alara: A Retro Design Review — Lucky Paper
A look back at one of Magic's first multicolor sets. Which features of Shards of Alara are most useful for present-day Cubes, and which cards might be overlooked? Find out in this design-focused retro...
luckypaper.co
July 7, 2025 at 1:47 PM
Couldn't resist a throwback set review in my latest Lucky Paper piece. Shards of Alara may be 17 years old, but that's no reason we can't apply its design successes in our cubes!
#mtgcube
luckypaper.co/articles/sha...
#mtgcube
luckypaper.co/articles/sha...
NEW CUBE ALERT
Imagine a rules-modified emblem cube with a desert draft. It's a gestalt shift in a BCW longbox. It's the next era of skill-testing, high-power gameplay. An entire match of Magic strategy, compressed into a single turn cycle.
Introducing: 100 Pacts of Negation.
Imagine a rules-modified emblem cube with a desert draft. It's a gestalt shift in a BCW longbox. It's the next era of skill-testing, high-power gameplay. An entire match of Magic strategy, compressed into a single turn cycle.
Introducing: 100 Pacts of Negation.
July 3, 2025 at 3:03 PM
NEW CUBE ALERT
Imagine a rules-modified emblem cube with a desert draft. It's a gestalt shift in a BCW longbox. It's the next era of skill-testing, high-power gameplay. An entire match of Magic strategy, compressed into a single turn cycle.
Introducing: 100 Pacts of Negation.
Imagine a rules-modified emblem cube with a desert draft. It's a gestalt shift in a BCW longbox. It's the next era of skill-testing, high-power gameplay. An entire match of Magic strategy, compressed into a single turn cycle.
Introducing: 100 Pacts of Negation.