The Vintage Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to encounter immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event launches on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will showcase some of the strongest cards from throughout Magic's history, including the legendary Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
For seasoned Limited enthusiasts, a cube is a unique form of draft format that doesn't draw cards from one or more specific sets, but instead from a predetermined pool. The Vintage Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for Magic fans to experience the thrills of using some of the most powerful cards in the history of the game without having to pay the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless play style, but it did not include cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, such as the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Powered Cube will include 100 new MTG Arena card printings, but some of these will be obtainable at the launch of the event. This enables the addition of a larger card pool, as some of these extremely strong cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. According to the announcement, this also facilitated the launch of the new cube quicker. Fans online are already theorizing that this move was a response to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of Marvel's Spider-Man and the least-played Arena set ever, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Participation Details
Launching a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely boost numbers in Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Powered Cube will use a reward system and access cost comparable with the Premier Draft events, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Registration Ends: November 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Entry: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: Three matches; unranked
Rewards and Extra Details
The reward packs issued as rewards can include almost every card legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the official announcement. Additionally, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
