The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before MTG Arena was launched. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to experience immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on Oct. 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, featuring the legendary Power Nine."
Understanding the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of Booster Draft 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 Magic fans to experience the thrills of using some of the most powerful cards in the history of the game without having to pay the significant money required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the iconic Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, including the famed Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Features of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh Arena card versions, but not all of them will be obtainable at the release of the event. This enables the inclusion of a broader selection of cards, as some of these extremely strong cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Fans online are already theorizing that this decision was a reaction to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the least-played Arena set ever, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Participation Information
Launching a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to note. The Powered Cube will use a reward system and access cost similar to the Premier Draft events, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- Best-of-Three: Three matches; unranked
Prizes and Additional Details
The reward packs awarded during the event can include nearly all cards legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the cards present in the Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
