A: Sure, you've wandered into the right place
Dethrone is fine, and it gives you something useful to do with the guy
Common themes include: Aggro thats real : low curves, sticky threats, burn/reach, disruptive creatures Tempo : cheap interaction, evasive threats, protecting a lead Midrange value : two-for-ones, planeswalkers, ETB creatures, grind plans Control : sweepers, card draw, removal suites, win conditions that stabilize Synergy decks (but still interactive): +1/+1 counters / tokens graveyard value (not always full reanimator) spells-matter artifacts (more value engine than Tinker you) The big difference vs Vintage is that Modern cubes generally have more games decided in combat , and fewer games decided by did you draw the broken accelerant. Who this category is for Pick a Modern MTG cube if: You want lower variance and fewer non-games
My ranking: Very Fun Eivor, Battle-Ready I like this take on Boros Equipment
And how you answer that changes how you must approach a match
Trample, first strike and vigilance are three keyworded abilities in Magic that, as it turns out, are three such abilities that are not worth a card on their own