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The Classic Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the primary digital platform for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to encounter immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube launches on Oct. 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on Arena and will showcase 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 rather from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a enjoyable and widely-used way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the most powerful cards in the history of the game without having to pay the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, including Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall.

Details of the Arena Powered Cube

The Powered Cube will incorporate 100 new Arena card printings, but not all of them will be obtainable at the release of the event. This enables the addition of a broader selection of cards, 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 decision was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.

Event Structure and Participation Information

Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to add. The Powered Cube will use a reward system and access cost similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being more expensive to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:

• Begins On: Oct. 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
• Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
• Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
• Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
• Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
• Match Play Mode: Three matches; without ranking

Rewards and Additional Information

The Cube Prize Packs awarded during the event can include nearly all cards 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, enthusiasts can review the official announcement. Additionally, on October 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.