The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the primary digital service for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to encounter true power when the Powered Cube limited event launches on October 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on MTG Arena and will feature some of the strongest cards from throughout Magic's history, including the legendary Power Nine."
What Is the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of draft format that does not pull cards from particular expansions, but rather from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for Magic fans to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without needing to spend the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the iconic Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, 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 extremely strong cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Fans online are already speculating that this decision was a response to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set to date, according to some reports.
Event Structure and Entry Details
Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft events, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:
- Begins On: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Registration Ends: November 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Entry: 10k gold, or 1500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- 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, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. For more details on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the official announcement. Also, on October 22, MTG pro players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
