The Classic Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the premier digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before MTG Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will have the chance to experience true power when the Powered Cube limited event debuts 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, featuring the Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
For seasoned Limited enthusiasts, a cube is a distinctive form of draft format that does not pull cards from one or more specific sets, but instead from a predetermined pool. The Classic Cube has long been a fun and popular 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 significant money required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless play style, but it did not include cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's legendary high-power cards, including Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister spell, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the New Cube Event
The Powered Cube will incorporate a hundred fresh Arena card printings, but some of these will be collectible at the launch of the event. This enables the inclusion of a broader selection of cards, as some of these extremely strong cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. According to the official news, this also made the release of the latest cube faster. Online community members are already theorizing that this decision was a response to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of a Spider-Man themed set and the least-played Arena set ever, according to some reports.
How It Works and Participation Details
Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely boost numbers in Arena, but there is an key point to note. The Arena Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:
- Begins On: October 28, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: 7 victories or 3 defeats; with ranking
- Match Play Mode: 3 matches; without ranking
Rewards and Additional Information
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards legal in the Timeless format, plus cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can examine the full details. Also, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their video platforms.
