The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on the original digital platform, the primary digital service for playing MTG before MTG Arena was launched. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to experience true power when the Powered Cube limited event launches on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on Arena and will feature some of the strongest cards from across Magic's legacy, featuring the Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of draft format that does not pull cards from particular expansions, but rather from a pre-selected collection. The Vintage Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without needing to spend the significant money required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless play style, but it did not include cards such as the iconic Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, including the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.
Features of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will incorporate 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these will be obtainable 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. Based on the announcement, this also facilitated the launch of the latest cube quicker. Fans online are already speculating that this decision was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Entry Information
Launching a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and access cost similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The format details will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
- Best-of-One: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Best-of-Three: 3 matches; without ranking
Prizes and Additional Details
The reward packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards legal in the Timeless mode, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the full details. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
