The Classic Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing MTG before MTG Arena came into existence. Now, MTGA players will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event debuts on October 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on MTG Arena and will showcase some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, featuring the legendary Power Nine."
Understanding the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of Booster Draft that doesn't draw cards from one or more specific sets, but rather from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has consistently served as a enjoyable and widely-used way for Magic fans to enjoy the excitement of using some of the most powerful cards in the game's history without needing to spend the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — MTG's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Details of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will incorporate 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these will be collectible at the release of the event. This allows for the addition of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. According to the official news, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Fans online are already speculating that this move 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 to date, according to some reports.
Event Structure and Participation Details
Introducing a iteration 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 use a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft events, 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 (15:00 UTC)
- Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Entry: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
- Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; unranked
Rewards and Extra Details
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain almost every card legal in the Timeless format, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. For more details on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Also, on October 22, MTG pro players LSV and Paul Cheon, experienced Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.
