The Classic Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital service for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to encounter immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. As per the official description, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on Arena and will showcase some of the strongest cards from throughout Magic's history, 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 instead from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has long been a enjoyable and widely-used way for MTG players to experience the thrills 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 previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the iconic Power Nine — MTG's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, but not all of them will be collectible at the release of the event. This enables the addition of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed formats. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the new cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this move was a reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set to date, according to some reports.
How It Works and Entry Details
Introducing a version of one of the top draft formats ever will certainly boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Arena Powered Cube will use a reward system and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:
- Event Start: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 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
- Match Play Mode: Three matches; without ranking
Rewards and Extra Information
The reward packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards legal in the Timeless mode, plus cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the rewards and the included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the full details. Also, on October 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
