The Vintage Cube stands 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 experience immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. According to the announcement, "This thrilling occasion is unlike anything else on Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, featuring the legendary Power Nine."
What Is the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, 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 Vintage Cube has long been 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 substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, including Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these will be obtainable at the launch of the event. This allows for 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 official news, this also facilitated the launch of the new cube faster. Online community members are already speculating that this move was a reaction to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Participation Information
Introducing a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. 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 event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Entry: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: 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; without ranking
Prizes and Extra Information
The reward packs issued as rewards can include almost every card legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. For more details on the prizes and the included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the official announcement. Additionally, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
