The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on Oct. 28. As per the official description, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, 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 instead from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the strongest cards in the history of the game without having to pay the significant money required for tabletop Vintage. Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, such as the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh Arena card printings, but not all of them 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 cause balance problems in Constructed gameplay. According to the announcement, this also facilitated the launch of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already speculating that this move was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.
How It Works and Entry Details
Introducing 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 Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and access cost comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
- Best-of-One: 7 victories or 3 defeats; ranked
- Best-of-Three: Three matches; without ranking
Rewards and Extra Information
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain almost every card permitted in the Timeless mode, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the official announcement. Additionally, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their video platforms.
