The Classic Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital service for playing MTG before MTG Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to experience true power when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, featuring the legendary Power Nine."
Understanding the Vintage Cube?
For seasoned Limited enthusiasts, a cube is a distinctive 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 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 significant money required for tabletop Vintage. Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the Arena Powered Cube
The Arena Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, but not all of them will be collectible at the release of the event. This allows for the inclusion of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed formats. Based on the official news, this also made the release of the latest cube faster. Fans online are already theorizing that this decision was a reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Participation Information
Launching a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft events, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The format details 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)
- Entry: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; ranked
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; unranked
Rewards and Extra Information
The reward packs awarded during the event can include almost every card permitted in the Timeless format, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. For more details on the rewards and the cards present in the Arena Powered Cube, enthusiasts can review the official announcement. Also, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
