The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the primary digital platform for playing MTG before Arena came into existence. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to experience true power when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, including the Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of Booster Draft that doesn't draw cards from one or more specific sets, but instead from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the most powerful cards in the game's history without having to pay the significant money required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the launch of the event. This enables the inclusion of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. According to the announcement, this also facilitated the launch of the new cube quicker. Online community members are already speculating that this decision was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Entry Information
Launching a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Arena Powered Cube will use a prize structure and access cost comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The event structure will be the following:
- Event Start: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Entry: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Best-of-Three: 3 matches; without ranking
Rewards and Additional Information
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain almost every card permitted in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the rewards and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the official announcement. Also, on October 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their video platforms.
