The Classic Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before MTG Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to experience true power when the Powered Cube limited event debuts on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on MTG Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, including the Power Nine."
What Is the Vintage Cube?
For seasoned Limited enthusiasts, a cube is a distinctive form of draft format that doesn't draw cards from one or more specific sets, but rather from a predetermined pool. The Vintage Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the most powerful cards in the game's history without having to pay the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, including Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh Arena card printings, but some of these will be obtainable at the release of the event. This enables the addition of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. According to the official news, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Online community members are already speculating that this decision was a response to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement 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 certainly boost numbers in Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The format details will be the following:
- Event Start: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Registration Ends: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: Three matches; unranked
Prizes and Additional Information
The reward packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards permitted in the Timeless format, plus cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the rewards and the cards present in the Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the official announcement. Also, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their video platforms.
