The Classic Cube stands as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital service for playing MTG before MTG Arena came into existence. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to experience true power when the Powered Cube limited event debuts on Oct. 28. According to the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from throughout Magic's history, including the Power Nine."
Understanding the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of draft format that does not pull cards from particular expansions, but instead from a pre-selected collection. The Classic Cube has long been a enjoyable and widely-used way for Magic fans to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the history of the game without needing to spend the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the iconic Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.
Details of the Arena Powered Cube
The Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh Arena card versions, but not all of them will be obtainable at the launch of the event. This enables the inclusion 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 facilitated the launch of the new cube faster. Online community members are already speculating that this decision was a reaction to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Participation Information
Launching a iteration of one of the top draft formats ever will surely boost numbers in MTG Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Arena Powered Cube will adopt 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:
- Event Start: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (3 p.m. UTC)
- Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or one draft token
- Game Style: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the event cards)
- Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- Best-of-Three: 3 matches; unranked
Rewards and Extra Information
The reward packs issued as rewards can include almost every card legal in the Timeless mode, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the cards present in the Arena Powered Cube, interested players can examine the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
