The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before MTG Arena was launched. Now, MTGA players will get the opportunity to encounter immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on Oct. 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, featuring the 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 one or more specific sets, but instead from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has long been a enjoyable and widely-used way for Magic fans to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the history of the game without having to pay the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Powered Cube will include 100 new MTG Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the launch of the event. This enables the inclusion of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. According to the official news, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Fans online are already theorizing that this decision was a response to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Participation Details
Introducing a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and access cost 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 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; with ranking
- Best-of-Three: Three matches; unranked
Prizes and Additional Details
The reward packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards permitted in the Timeless mode, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the rewards and the included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, interested players can review the official announcement. Also, on October 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
