The Vintage Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital service for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to encounter true power when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. According to the official description, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will feature some of the strongest cards from throughout Magic's history, featuring the Power Nine."
Understanding the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of draft format that does not pull cards from one or more specific sets, but instead 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 history of the game without needing to spend 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 iconic Power Nine — MTG's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will incorporate 100 new MTG 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 gameplay. Based on the official news, this also facilitated the launch of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this move was a reaction to the negative feedback of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
Event Structure and Entry Details
Launching a version of one of the top draft formats ever will certainly increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Powered Cube will use a prize structure and access cost similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. 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: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
- Best-of-One: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; without ranking
Rewards and Extra Details
The reward packs issued as rewards can include nearly all cards legal in the Timeless mode, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. Additional information on the rewards and the cards present in the Powered Cube, enthusiasts can review the official announcement. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
