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The Vintage Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube debuts on Oct. 28. According to the official description, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, featuring the legendary Power Nine."

Understanding the Vintage Cube?

For seasoned Limited enthusiasts, a cube is a unique form of draft format that doesn't draw cards from particular expansions, but instead from a pre-selected collection. The Vintage Cube has long been a enjoyable and widely-used way for Magic fans to experience the thrills of using some of the most powerful cards in the game's history without having to pay the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. 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 card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.

Details of the Arena Powered Cube

The Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card versions, but not all of them will be collectible at the release of the event. This allows for the inclusion of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed formats. According to the official news, this also facilitated the launch of the new cube quicker. Fans online are already theorizing that this decision was a reaction to the negative feedback 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 surely boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The format details will be the following:

• Begins On: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
• Signup Close: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
• Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
• Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
• Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; with ranking
• Match Play Mode: Three matches; without ranking

Prizes and Extra Details

The reward packs issued as rewards can include 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 Powered Cube, enthusiasts can examine the official announcement. Also, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their video platforms.