The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to experience true power when the Arena Powered Cube debuts on October 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 Power Nine."
Understanding the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of Booster Draft that doesn't draw cards from particular expansions, but instead from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has long been a enjoyable and widely-used way for MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without needing to spend the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, including the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the Arena Powered Cube
The Arena Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh Arena card printings, but not all of them will be obtainable at the release of the event. This enables the addition of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Fans online are already theorizing that this move was a reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the least-played Arena set to date, according to some reports.
How It Works and Entry Details
Launching a iteration of one of the top draft formats ever will certainly increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Entry: 10k gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; ranked
- Best-of-Three: Three matches; unranked
Rewards and Extra Details
The reward packs awarded during the event can include nearly all cards legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the rewards and the cards present in the Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their video platforms.
