The Classic Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on Magic Online, the primary digital platform for playing MTG before Arena was launched. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to experience true power when the Arena Powered Cube launches on October 28. According to the announcement, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on Arena and will feature some of the strongest cards from across Magic's legacy, featuring the legendary Power Nine."
What Is the Classic Cube?
As experienced Limited players know, a cube is a unique form of Booster Draft that doesn't draw 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 MTG players to experience the thrills of using some of the strongest cards in the history of the game without having to pay the substantial cost required for tabletop Vintage. 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, such as the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.
Features of the New Cube Event
The Arena Powered Cube will include a hundred fresh MTG Arena card versions, but some of these will be obtainable at the release of the event. This enables the inclusion of a larger card pool, as some of these massively overpowered cards could create imbalance issues in Constructed gameplay. Based on the announcement, this also facilitated the launch of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this move was a response to the poor reception of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set ever, as indicated by various sources.
Event Structure and Entry Information
Introducing a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely boost numbers in Arena, but there is an important caveat to note. The Powered Cube will adopt a reward system and entry fee similar to the Premier Draft events, 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)
- Signup Close: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
- Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
- Game Style: Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the drafted cards)
- Single Game Mode: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
- Best-of-Three: 3 matches; without ranking
Prizes and Additional Information
The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards permitted in the Timeless format, along with cards from a new, special bonus sheet. Additional information on the prizes and the included cards in the Arena 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 provide more updates on their YouTube channels.
