The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital platform for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to encounter immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. As per the official description, "This thrilling occasion is unlike anything else on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, featuring the Power Nine."
What Is 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 instead from a predetermined pool. The Vintage 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 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 — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, including the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card printings, but some of these will be collectible at the release of the event. This enables the inclusion of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed gameplay. According to the official news, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Fans online are already speculating that this decision was a response to the negative feedback of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the least-played Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Participation Details
Launching a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure 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: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; without ranking
Rewards and Additional Information
The Cube Prize Packs awarded during the event can contain almost every card legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Arena Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
