The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to encounter immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event launches on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "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 does not pull cards from one or more specific sets, but rather 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 introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, including Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the Arena Powered Cube
The Arena Powered Cube will include 100 new MTG Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the release of the event. This enables the addition of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed formats. According to 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 Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
Event Structure and Participation Information
Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and access cost similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Registration Ends: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; ranked
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; unranked
Prizes and Extra Details
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can include almost every card permitted in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. For more details on the prizes and the cards present in the Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
