The Vintage Cube stands as one of the most beloved cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to encounter immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on Oct. 28. As per the official description, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, including the Power Nine."
What Is the Vintage Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of Booster Draft that does not pull cards from particular expansions, but rather from a pre-selected collection. The Vintage Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without needing to spend the significant money required for tabletop Vintage. Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's classic powerhouse cards, including Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card printings, but not all of them will be obtainable 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 create imbalance issues in Constructed formats. 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 reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, according to some reports.
How It Works and Entry Information
Launching a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Arena Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:
- Event Start: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Entry: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
- Best-of-One: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Best-of-Three: Three matches; unranked
Rewards and Additional Details
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain almost every card legal in the Timeless format, plus cards from a unique bonus card list. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the official announcement. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time cube format experts, will share further insights on their video platforms.
