🔗 Share this article

The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the premier digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, MTGA players will get the opportunity to encounter true power when the Arena Powered Cube debuts on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, including the Power Nine."

Understanding 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 rather from a pre-selected collection. The Vintage Cube has long been a fun and popular way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the history of the game without having to pay the significant money required for physical Vintage play. 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, such as the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.

Details of the New Cube Event

The Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the release 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. According to the official news, this also made the release of the new cube faster. Fans online are already speculating that this move was a reaction to the negative feedback of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, as indicated by various sources.

Event Structure and Entry Details

Introducing a version of one of the top draft formats ever will certainly boost numbers in Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and access cost comparable with the Premier Draft events, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:

• Event Start: Oct. 28, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
• Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
• Entry: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or one draft token
• Format: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
• Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
• Best-of-Three: 3 matches; without ranking

Rewards and Additional Information

The Cube Prize Packs awarded during the event can include nearly all cards permitted in the Timeless format, plus cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the rewards and the cards present in the Arena Powered Cube, interested players can examine the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, professional Magic players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.