The Vintage Cube stands as one of the highly popular 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 immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube debuts on October 28. As per the announcement, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, including the legendary Power Nine."
Understanding the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of draft format that doesn't draw cards from one or more specific sets, but rather from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a enjoyable and widely-used way for Magic fans to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without having to pay the significant money required for physical Vintage play. Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless play style, but it did not include cards such as the iconic Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, such as the famed Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Features of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the launch of the event. This enables the inclusion of a larger card pool, as some of these extremely strong cards could cause balance problems in Constructed gameplay. According to the official news, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this decision was a reaction to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set ever, as indicated by various sources.
How It Works and Entry Details
Launching a iteration of one of the top draft formats ever will surely increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than previous Arena cubes. The event structure will be the following:
- Event Start: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Registration Ends: November 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; without ranking
Rewards and Additional Information
The reward packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. 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 Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
