🔗 Share this article

The Vintage Cube stands as one of the most beloved cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before MTG Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to encounter immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event debuts on Oct. 28. As per the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on MTG Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, including the Power Nine."

What Is the Vintage Cube?

As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of draft format that does not pull cards from one or more specific sets, but instead from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has long been a fun and popular way for MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the most powerful cards in the history of the game without having to pay the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, including Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.

Details of the Arena Powered Cube

The Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh Arena card printings, but not all of them will be collectible at the release of the event. This allows for the addition of a broader selection of cards, as some of these extremely strong cards could cause balance problems in Constructed gameplay. According to the announcement, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already speculating that this move was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.

Event Structure and Entry Information

Introducing a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to note. The Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:

• Begins On: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
• Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
• Entry: 10k gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
• Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
• Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; with ranking
• Best-of-Three: Three matches; without ranking

Prizes and Additional Details

The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can include almost every card legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the rewards and the included cards in the Powered Cube, enthusiasts can review the official announcement. Also, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their video platforms.