Boom's Type 4 Communal Stack

boomdooger
Posts: 5
Joined: 4 years ago
Pronoun: he / him

Post by boomdooger » 4 years ago

Welcome to the thread for my Type 4 Communal Stack! I'll be posting updates, possible set reviews, and thoughts about the format and its impact on my stack here to generate discussion about one of the strangest and craziest casual formats out there.

Not sure what Type 4 is, or if it's for you? Wizards' article on the format does a great job showcasing both the format's rules and style of play.

See the stack at CubeTutor.
Type 4 Rules
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Standard Rules
Infinite Mana
You are considered to have infinite mana of all colors and types (including snow) at all times. Type 4's infinite mana allows formerly unplayable, over-costed, and powerful cards their time in the spotlight, from the jankiest of Fallen Empires commons to bulk Standard mythics

One Spell Per Turn
Each player can only cast one spell per turn. This limits some of the explosiveness of having infinite mana, but also makes a playable format. The trick of playing Type 4 requires finding the right time to use your spell for turn and finding ways to exploit the rule. Plays that do not require casting a spell - such as playing a land, cycling a card, or using activated abilities - are highly prized.

House Rules
No Errata
Some stacks allow spells with alternate costs - such as morphs, overloaded spells, etc - to skirt the 'one spell per turn' rule. In an effort to keep the stack friendly for folks new to the format, no such rules apply here. You cast a spell, you cast a spell, that was your spell.

Communal Stack
All players draw from the same library, the entire stack. If cards would be put on the bottom or shuffled in, remove them from the game. All other zones - graveyard, hands, etc. - are considered separate.

Hand Size
Players start with 5 cards in their hand, and max hand size is 5 cards. This rule is taken from Kirblinx's excellent stack, which has provided plenty of inspiration and thought for mine.

Handling Infinity
If two spells are infinitely used to top or stop one another, the defender wins and the instigator loses.
Philosophy and Inspiration
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Big props to the random gentleman who first introduced me to Type 4 back in 2007, when I was first getting serious about Magic. The itch for crazy plays and even crazier situations was never really satisfied in any other format.

Both Tev's and Kirblinx's stacks have provided a huge inspiration for this stack and my philosophy in building, as well as catching me up on the past ten years of Type 4 goodies. While Tev's stack has unfortunately not been updated in several years, Kirblinx continues to update his CubeTutor information.
Change Log and House Keeping
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Last edited by boomdooger 2 years ago, edited 9 times in total.
Want to check out one of the craziest formats available? Want the thrill of infinite mana, a shared library, and countless insane interactions? Check out my Type 4 Communal Phat Stack here!

boomdooger
Posts: 5
Joined: 4 years ago
Pronoun: he / him

Post by boomdooger » 4 years ago

Another month, another few changes! Most are straight additions - there's no harm in increasing the stack size, and more options make for more fun.

The biggest changes come from a trade day at my local store, finally adding in some counter staples in Commandeer and Mindbreak Trap, some fat in Blightsteel Colossus and Worldspine Wurm, cool utility in quite a few cards, and a ball of joy in Nicol Bolas, God-Pharaoh.

With Throne of Eldraine a few weeks away, I'm hoping to get a small set review in for the cards I'm interested. There's not a ton of over-priced items, but there may be a few gems hiding in the dregs.
Want to check out one of the craziest formats available? Want the thrill of infinite mana, a shared library, and countless insane interactions? Check out my Type 4 Communal Phat Stack here!

boomdooger
Posts: 5
Joined: 4 years ago
Pronoun: he / him

Post by boomdooger » 4 years ago

It has been a while, though for good reason. The holiday season brought a few changes to the stack, including a leap up to 500 cards! That's the largest that can fit in my box at the moment, so I imagine it will stay that size for the foreseeable future as there is plenty to switch in and out. I also made a few philosophical changes to try out new ideas:

- Limiting hate enablers and infinite beaters. Though the game does have to end at some point, these two offenders ended things a bit too quickly and out of nowhere, leading to anticlimactic ends to a game of weirdness. Though there are still enablers here - and one hit killers - I'll be keeping a close eye on them.
- Upping the card draw power. This is a test that I've avoided in the past due to other stack owners' experiences. However, I'd like to see the power with my own eyes to see how much is too much. Several added cards are already on the watch-list for providing too many resources, so this may be a quick trial.
- Tons of trial and fun cards. It may seen obvious, but the whole point of the stack is fun. Wild, wacky fun at the expense of sanity. As such, I'm throwing in a few pet cards, odd bits and bobs, and strange inclusions to get a rise out of folks. These should never be bad - nothing is worse than following up a Blightsteel Colossus with a Grizzly Bear - but they should provide a unique experience every time the stack is pulled out.

I'm also planning on tackling a few questions I have about the stack:

- Optimizing the card draw suite. Though I did upgrade the power level of my card draw, I am hoping to have it settle in a modest place. This means keeping a tight rein on the changes as they come, and searching for a more expansive suite of dedicated spells, incidental enablers, and card advantage engines.
- Upping answers. The delicate balance between creatures, removal, and counters is a very particular dance, and one I haven't mastered yet. This will be forever in the making, but I want to get a better feel on the balance in the stack.
- More flash creatures and effective instants. If the number one goal of the stack is fun, the second is timing abuse. The limitations of the format are meant to be abused, and that requires enabling. Flash creatures and instants are the lifeblood of the format, so I plan on searching and supporting those two card types moving forward.

Other than that, keep an eye out for updates from Theros, as there are a few tasty additions. I hope to make more consistent updates at I go through the year. As always, comments and suggestions are always welcome!
Want to check out one of the craziest formats available? Want the thrill of infinite mana, a shared library, and countless insane interactions? Check out my Type 4 Communal Phat Stack here!

boomdooger
Posts: 5
Joined: 4 years ago
Pronoun: he / him

Post by boomdooger » 3 years ago

3 months later, and here comes another post!

This is mainly excitement about the Ikoria additions. After a safely-distanced home prerelease with my fiancé (she was Grixis mutate, I was Abzan humans with some godly rares; she had a ton of fun, and has started getting back into Magic a bit!), I poured through the spoilers looking for adds and impressions. I came away with a few too:
SPOILER
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- Mutate is just horrible in the stack. There are a few cool ideas - some of the larger mythics, some of the flash mutators (Sea-Dasher Octopus, Dirge Bat) - but the final decision comes down to reliance. Since mutate abilities don't trigger ETB, you need another creature (non-human at that; a not insignificant portion of stack creatures) to even make a difference. Typically, if you start your turn with a living creature, you're doing fine; if you don't you'll need something better than what mutate is serving up to make an impact. Even beyond the reliance issue, most of the abilities are too minor to justify the additional need AND you're placing your hope in a single creature, another foolish play in a world where everything is expendable. It's a sweet mechanic, if a bit of a burden once you have any sort of rules question, but one that just doesn't fit in the stack.

- Cycling is BACK baby! And with it comes the best part of cycling in the stack - cycling with abilities. Even minor abilities are so much better when they're free, uncountable, and don't eat up your spell for turn. For a while, I was running a large number of cyclers int he cube just to pad out the numbers while I assembled cards. Ideally, the best cycler is good when it's cycled, and better when it's cast, forcing a choice how it should be used. The cycling engine cards are still too weak on their own to survive in the cube without a dedicated cycling section, but more cyclers are always appreciated.

- Mechanical counters (death touch counters, flying counters, etc) are cute, but they fall into the trap of reliance again. If they come for free on another, already acceptable or borderline card, however...
With that, I was able to make a few additions and cuts.
Adds
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]Kogla, the Titan Ape is another beater with a nice ETB, a conditional 'on-hit' trigger, and something that will never come up, but it just might; love it.
I like Titanoth Rex the most of the cycling, key-word granters, as it's normal mode is still fine and instant speed trample could surprise folks.
Yidaro, Wandering Monster is a bit of a test - the cycling ability will never come up, but whether you do or do not need a hasty monster, it does the trick.
I've envisioned the exact card Neutralize in my head for years, but never thought it would be here. Now that it's here, I'm..unsure. Would I ever cycle a counter spell? Not sure, but I'm willing to give it a try.
Mythos of Nethroi is a nice catch-all removal spell, though with the increased number of lands in the stack, I may have to look into what can get rid of them.
Instant-speed reanimation can be dangerous, but I feel like Back for More is worth it, as it's a clean card with some removal potential.
Clash of Titans is hilarious, and I had to reread the card to realize how much possibility space exists with the card. I'm looking forward to making my opponents' creatures kill each other.
Inspired Ultimatum is probably too powerful for the stack (which makes for two such draw spells in as many sets, along with Allure of the Unknown) but it's too cool not to try out.
Whirlwind of Thought would be better if I drafted the stack, but I'm a big fan of these kind of engine enchantments. If things line up, they're amazing, and I feel like Whirlwind should be good even if you get only a couple uses out of it.
Death's Oasis is another engine enchantment, and one I'm less sure about. Bringing creatures back to your hand is far less valuable than onto the battlefield, but it's a free future ability and can keep your hand stocked. We'll be keeping an eye on this one.
Cuts
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Angel of Sanctions is a flawed piece of removal that often fails at the worst time.
Honored Hydra is interesting, and may return as its ability to come back can be helpful when you draw poorly, but it's taking some time on the bench for being boring.
Ethersworn Adjudicator has long been one of the weaker machine gun creatures purely for its tap ability. While I like the limitation somewhat - it gives people a chance to respond, it's more of a rattlesnake - the stack is becoming more powerful, and it's losing some of it's value.
Sylvan Reclamation and Crush Contraband are both to narrow in their removal abilities, even being two for ones. Narrow can be fun, but these are too often dead cards, and versatility is far more satisfying.
Cauldron Dance is a bit too confusing for my players, and I'd prefer a clean reanimation spell.
Sudden Death should probably stay in, but the -4/-4 has been lack luster the last few times I've seen it. If it's not guaranteed to kill something, it becomes a bit too risky.
Blast of Genius is another cute card that may return, as the tension of discarding a valuable spell to kill something important is a nice decision space. But for now, it's taking a sideline seat for new trials.
Though sturdier than Angel of Sanctions, Grasp of Fate is a dangerous card to play with, especially because every other player is probably interested in killing it.
Gaze of Granite is fine, though I like the effect on a permanent instead - more political play.
Sigil of the New Dawn is powerful and more reliable than Death's Oasis, but the later...feels more fun, to be honest.
There are still quite a few Ikoria cards I'm hoping to track down as the world opens up, but for now, that's it. Let me know if you see anything that might make a great impact.
Want to check out one of the craziest formats available? Want the thrill of infinite mana, a shared library, and countless insane interactions? Check out my Type 4 Communal Phat Stack here!

boomdooger
Posts: 5
Joined: 4 years ago
Pronoun: he / him

Post by boomdooger » 3 years ago

Welp, I finally took quite a plunge. I sold a large portion of my collection to my LGS for quite a bit of store credit after sorting through and culling 90% of my cards. Why? Not exactly sure - maybe just a frustration at having so many and being spoiled for choice, while also not using most of them. Plus, I'm finally the proud owner of a few OG duels and quite a few hard-to-find pick ups.

And don't worry - Type 4 benefitted.
Adds
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Type 4 is one of the few formats where a card like Blood Tyrant can shine, with player death actually affecting the game.
Avatar of Slaughter will bring carnage to the world.
Flash creatures are always welcome, and Seht's Tiger can save your a** quite often.
Sudden Substitution is an experimental pseudo-counter that could do some crazy things. Get in here.
Swift Silence - card draw and a counter? Yes sir.
Angel of Salvation - flash and protection? Yes ma'am.
Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign is a bit of a weird include, but it makes sense if you ignore most of the text and just see it as a Fact or Fiction on a beatstick.
Kaervek the Merciless will shoot you in the face and not even call the next day.
Mindslicer? more like Mind killer.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker has been in and out quite a few times, mostly for use in EDH decks, but makes its return here for some more limelight.
Dragonlord Ojutai will hopefully draw quite a few cards while beating face.
Sudden Death is another removal spell that has been in and out - it's uncounterability is nice, but it really only works against utility creatures or as a combat trick.
A pet card of sorts, as OG Ravniva Golgari and Orzhov were my first real journeys into deck building, Sisters of Stone Death is an overcosted, mana intensive bomb of a card. Steal your board? Yes please.
Identity Crisis represents what discard in this format can be - devastating.
Blast of Genius is a trial draw spell with some removal potential.
One of the cards that is most frequently in and out of the stack, Rakdos Charm provides instant speed graveyard interaction, can randomly punish token strats, or just kill a Memnarch
Storm Herd: a card I've spent years searching for. For some reason, no-one had one! But now it's here to make massive flying armies.
Abzan Charm is efficient instant speed card draw with some modularity.
Plague Wind and Decree of Annihilation are some slightly stronger wraths that play well with the format. Highlight: DoA is one of the few cards in the stack that can deal with problematic lands.
Vampiric Dragon one of the OG machine gun creatures mixed with an efficient beater.
Door to Nothingness is what I would call the archetypal Type 4 card: undeniably powerful, but too unwieldy to be of conventional use in any but the most casual of formats. Luckily for us, Type 4 was made for cards like these.
Pearl Lake Ancient - uncounterable flash beats.
Honored Hydra - I think I underrated the hydra's ability to act as a free 6/6 on any given turn after it dies. The ability to double spell even a single turn can make a huge difference.
Winding Canyons is another impossible to find card that makes a huge difference, even after the printing of Alchemist's Refuge.
Castle Vantress is a nice bonus of a land - not back breaking, but worth getting out there for great little effect.
Cuts
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Eight-and-a-Half-Tails never protected quite like I wanted it to, and made color way too important.
Platinum Angel was never enough protection. It's Type 4, things die, like, all the time.
Reviving Vapors didn't draw enough to be powerful, and didn't gain enough life to be impactful. Even at instant speed.
Ojutai's Command, Spell Snuff, Psychic Strike, and Scatter to the Winds were all less impactful counters that came out to re-fit the percentages and make room for better cards. The Command may return at some point.
Consecrate // Consume was too minor of an effect.
Wake the Dead was too restrictive of an effect.
Kaya's Guile was too...random and minor, which sucks because I love the character.
Naya Charm did too little.
Annihilate is a bit of a shame, because I love attaching card draw to everything. The non-black clause was a bit too much.
Wretched Confluence was a surprise disappointment. Instant speed draw 3 can be done better in other places, and the other abilities were less good than I had hoped.
Opportunity is slightly over where I want card draw to be. Sorcery speed draw 4 is fine; instant speed, not so much, and represents the line I don't want to cross (unless the spell is cool).
Cyclonic Rift is way over where I want wrath technology to be. Wipe opponent's boards then swing for the win? Naw dog.
Hypothesizzle is weak.
Selvala's Stampede is less good than it reads, and I would rather just have a creature.
Planewide Celebration is also less good than it reads, but it doesn't read great anyways.
Fumigate, Terminus, and Hallowed Burial are all wraths that were removed to make room for better things. Bottom of the library stuff is the same as exile for a communal stack, so why not add some benefits?
Boseiju, Who Shelters All does literally nothing. You think it would, but no.
Creeping Tar Pit and Celestial Colonnade are both fine - basically being indestructible for most of the time - but I feel as if their slots can be filled with more interesting cards.
Mirrorpool doesn't do...anything. Sorry pool, you were cool.
Slayers' Stronghold creates too many 'out of nowhere' wins, which is what it's build to do, I suppose, but is so hard to remove in this format.
Want to check out one of the craziest formats available? Want the thrill of infinite mana, a shared library, and countless insane interactions? Check out my Type 4 Communal Phat Stack here!

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