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The Vintage 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 Arena was launched. Now, MTGA players will have the chance to encounter immense strength when the Powered Cube limited event launches on October 28. According to the announcement, "This thrilling occasion is distinct from all others on Arena and will feature some of the most powerful cards from across Magic's legacy, featuring the Power Nine."

What Is 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 rather from a pre-selected collection. The Classic 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 needing to spend the substantial cost required for physical Vintage play. MTG Arena previously offered a comparable option with its Timeless format, but it excluded cards such as the Power Nine — Magic's classic powerhouse cards, such as Black Lotus, the Mox gem series, Time Walk card, Timetwister, and Ancestral Recall ability.

Features of the Arena Powered Cube

The Powered Cube will include 100 new Arena card versions, but some of these 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 cause balance problems in Constructed formats. Based on the announcement, this also made the release of the latest cube quicker. Online community members are already theorizing that this decision was a reaction to the negative feedback of the Omenpaths set — the Arena adaptation of Marvel's Spider-Man and the lowest-engagement Arena set to date, according to some reports.

Event Structure and Participation Information

Launching a iteration of one of the most popular cubes ever will surely increase engagement in MTG Arena, but there is an key point to note. The Arena Powered Cube will use a prize structure and access cost comparable with the Premier Draft tournaments, thus being costlier to play than earlier cube events. The event structure will be the following:

• Event Start: October 28, 8:00 AM Pacific Time (15:00 UTC)
• Registration Ends: Nov. 18, 8 a.m. PT (3 p.m. UTC)
• Participation Cost: 10,000 gold, or 1,500 gems, or 1 Player Draft token
• Format: Powered Cube Phantom Player Draft (Participants won't retain the event cards)
• Best-of-One: Seven wins or three losses; ranked
• Best-of-Three: Three matches; unranked

Rewards and Extra Details

The reward packs awarded during the event can include almost every card permitted in the Timeless format, along with cards from a unique bonus card list. For more details on the prizes and the cards present in the Powered Cube, interested players can review the full details. Additionally, on Oct. 22, MTG pro players LSV and Paul Cheon, long-time Vintage Cube aficionados, will share further insights on their YouTube channels.