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The Vintage Cube is recognized as one of the highly popular cubes on the original digital platform, the primary digital service for playing Magic: The Gathering before Arena came into existence. Now, Arena enthusiasts will get the opportunity to experience immense strength when the Arena Powered Cube debuts on Oct. 28. As per the official description, "This exciting event is unlike anything else on MTG Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, including the Power Nine."

Understanding 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 Vintage Cube has long been a fun and popular way for MTG players to enjoy the excitement of using some of the most powerful cards in the history of the game without having to pay the significant money required for tabletop Vintage. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless play style, but it excluded cards such as the iconic Power Nine — MTG's legendary high-power cards, including the famed Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall.

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 obtainable at the release of the event. This allows for the addition of a broader selection of cards, as some of these massively overpowered cards could cause balance problems in Constructed formats. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the new cube faster. Online community members are already theorizing that this move was a reaction to the poor reception of Through the Omenpaths — the Arena adaptation of Marvel's Spider-Man and the least-played Arena set to date, according to some reports.

Event Structure and Participation Details

Introducing a version of one of the top draft formats ever will surely increase engagement in Arena, but there is an key point to note. The Powered Cube will use a prize structure and entry fee comparable with the Premier Draft events, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:

• Begins On: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
• Registration Ends: November 18, 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC)
• Entry: 10k gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
• Format: Phantom Player Draft (Players do not keep the drafted cards)
• Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
• Match Play Mode: 3 matches; unranked

Prizes and Extra Information

The Cube Prize Packs issued as rewards can contain nearly all cards legal in the Timeless format, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the rewards and the included cards in the Powered Cube, interested players can review the official announcement. Additionally, on October 22, professional Magic players Luis Scott-Vargas and Paul Cheon, experienced cube format experts, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.