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 came into existence. Now, MTGA players will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event launches on Oct. 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on Arena and will showcase some of the strongest cards from across Magic's legacy, including the 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 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 significant money required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the iconic Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, such as the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.
Features of the Arena Powered Cube
The Arena Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these will be obtainable at the release of the event. This allows for the addition of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. Based on the official news, this also facilitated the launch of the new cube faster. Fans online are already speculating that this move was a reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Participation Information
Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely boost numbers in Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Arena Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The event structure will be the following:
- Event Start: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: Three matches; without ranking
Rewards and Extra Details
The Cube Prize Packs awarded during the event 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 included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, enthusiasts can review the full details. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
