The Classic Cube is recognized as one of the most beloved cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, MTGA players will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event launches on Oct. 28. According to the announcement, "This exciting event is distinct from all others on MTG Arena and will feature some of the strongest cards from throughout Magic's history, including the legendary Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a distinctive form of Booster Draft that doesn't draw cards from particular expansions, but instead from a pre-selected collection. The Vintage Cube has consistently served as a fun and popular way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the strongest cards in the game's history without having to pay the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena introduced something similar with its Timeless format, but it did not include cards such as the iconic Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, such as the famed Black Lotus, the five Moxen, Time Walk, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the New Cube Event
The Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, but not all of them will be collectible at the launch of the event. This allows for the inclusion of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed gameplay. Based on the official news, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this decision was a response to the negative feedback of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena version of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Participation Details
Introducing a version of one of the most popular cubes ever will certainly increase engagement in Arena, but there is an important caveat to add. The Powered Cube will adopt a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than previous Arena cubes. The event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Game Style: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
- Best-of-One: 7 victories or 3 defeats; ranked
- Best-of-Three: 3 matches; without ranking
Prizes and Extra Information
The Cube Prize Packs awarded during the event can contain almost every card permitted in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the rewards and the cards present in the Arena Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Also, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
