Posted on Jul 17, 2024
The Ultimate Magic Cube Draft Fantasy Becomes a Reality
Drafting Cubes—a curated selection of Magic cards repacked into randomized boosters—has become a fundamental part of modern Magic, from drafting a friend’s quirky Cube at the kitchen table to attending an entire convention devoted to the format. The Magic Online Vintage Cube, chock full of the most busted cards ever printed, has become the digital realm’s gold standard for Cubes, and is the most-played Cube in all of Magic.
Regardless of which Cube you are playing where, a consistent aspect of the format is that they represent play experiences, not collecting experiences. When the Draft is over, you don’t take the cards with you or add them to your Magic Online collection any more than you would keep the game pieces after playing a friend’s board game—they return to the Cube’s owner or go back to the MTGO pixel bucket. That’s understandable given the ongoing curation work and high card values typically involved! This “phantom” standard of Cube drafts has spawned a Magic fantasy as old as the concept of a Cube itself: Wouldn’t it be cool to draft a Vintage Cube for keeps?
Well, hang on to your pointy hats, Planeswalkers, because for eight talented Magic Online players, the ultimate drafting daydream is about to come true!
Daybreak Games and Ultimate Guard have joined forces to bring you Magic Online Vintage Cube LIVE: Powered by Ultimate Guard at MagicCon: Las Vegas on October 25th and 26th, in which a physical Vintage Cube will go home with the eight players who draft it! Eligible players who win their way through the Magic Online qualifiers starting on Friday, July 19th will earn round-trip airfare to Las Vegas, lodging, a 3-day MagicCon pass, and a seat at the Ultimate Guard Finals Draft! The eight finalists will not only draft a physical Vintage Prize Cube and keep all their picks, but all undrafted cards will be awarded to the finalists as well!
Playing with Power for Power
So, what exactly will the eight finalists be drafting? After all, a Cube made up of a bunch of old, low-demand commons is technically a Vintage Cube, but not one that would be particularly exciting to draft for keeps. The Prize Cube is an iteration of the Magic Online Vintage Cube, though, and that comes with certain curation expectations, starting with the iconic “Power Nine” that debuted in Magic’s first set: Time Walk, Timetwister, Ancestral Recall, Mox Pearl, Mox Sapphire, Mox Jet, Mox Ruby, Mox Emerald, and of course, Black Lotus!
When you start a Cube with the Power Nine, it sets the tone for the rest of the curation, almost demanding to be supported with the most powerful cards Magic has to offer. The complete list will unfold this summer, but as a starting point, the Prize Cube will contain all the powerful, out-of-print cards that have been in every iteration of the Magic Online Vintage Cube under Daybreak Games. That's an impressive addendum to the Power Nine that includes all ten of the original "dual lands" and many iconic cards from early Magic, such as Library of Alexandria, Mishra's Workshop, Mana Crypt, Gaea's Cradle, Mox Diamond, and Lion's Eye Diamond. It will also include Beta versions of common and uncommon classics like Lightning Bolt, Counterspell, Swords to Plowshares, and Channel, and sweet promo cards like the Judge foil Imperial Seal. It's going to be one powerful pile of cards!
The final list is still in design and the physical versions are in the process of being acquired, but the cards you have come to expect in a Vintage Cube from Magic Online will be in it, and the final Prize Cube is guaranteed to have an estimated retail value of at least $65,000 as determined by an independent expert. Check out the Magic Online Vintage Cube LIVE: Powered by Ultimate Guard information page for the full list of guaranteed inclusions. This page will be updated with new cards as we finalize the card list and reveal the contents of the curation!
Qualifying for the Big Event!
Now that you know what the finalists will be playing for at MagicCon Las Vegas, let’s go over how to get there. Spoilers: you’re gonna have to win some Magic Online Vintage Cube Draft matches!
Feeder League > 64-Player Draft > Vegas Qualifier > The Ultimate Guard Finals
Making it to the Finals in Vegas can be summed up in two words: “Keep winning.” Every step of the journey involves a single-elimination Vintage Cube Draft, which means you win until you are in; lose a match and your run is over. Let’s take a look at each step on the path. Each qualifying event is a single-elimination Vintage Cube Draft or two, and to make it to the Finals, a player must win 12 matches in a row across three events. Here is the structure (subject to change):
- Feeder League Course: requires 6 Event Tickets or 80 Play Points to enter, three-round maximum
- 3 match wins: Limited Championship Entry Token
- 2 or fewer wins: Fond memories of a shot taken
- 64-Player Draft: requires a Limited Championship Entry Token to enter, six-round maximum with a second Draft after Round 3
- 6 match wins: Vegas Qualifier Invitation
- 5 wins: “Alternate” designation for that week’s Vegas Qualifier
- 4 or fewer wins: Fond memories of a shot taken
- Vintage Cube LIVE Qualifier: Invitation Only, three-round maximum
- 3 match wins: Finals Invitation + MagicCon Travel Award + avatar
- 2 wins: 4x Vintage Masters full sets (all full set prizes are digital), 4x Modern Horizons 3 full sets + avatar
- 1 win: 1x Vintage Masters full set, 2 Modern Horizons 3 full sets + avatar
- 0 wins: 1 Modern Horizons 3 full set + avatar
If unchanged, this sequence of qualifier events will follow a weekly pattern that will be repeated eight times this summer (with caveats—see Contingency Plans below):
- First, the Feeder League starts Friday, July 19th at 10 a.m. PT and runs through Monday the 22nd at 10 a.m. PT
- Then, the week’s 64-Player Drafts take place at 7:30 a.m. PT and 2:30 p.m. PT on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday following the Feeder League*
- Finally, the Vegas Qualifier for that week’s eight 64-Player Draft winners runs on Saturday, at 9:30 a.m*
- The first two Qualifiers will be run on the same day, August 3
*There are a couple date and time exceptions – consult the information page for full details.
Weeks 1 & 2 will use the current version of the Vintage Cube, then Weeks 3-8 will use an updated version – that Cube’s contents will be public on Monday, August 5.
Players who have Limited Championship Entry Tokens in their accounts left over after Week 8 will have them swapped for 120 Play Points each.
The eight competitors who win Vegas Qualifiers will earn round-trip airfare to Las Vegas, lodging, a 3-day MagicCon pass, and a seat at the Ultimate Guard Finals on October 25th ahead of playing the matches on October 26th. The finals schedule will allow players competing in Worlds to play in the Magic Online Vintage Cube LIVE Ultimate Guard Finals as well if they win a seat! Our partners at Ultimate Guard will be running the tournament and broadcasting it on Twitch for the world to enjoy!
Full details on how the undrafted cards will be distributed to finalists are still to come, but winning matches will be rewarded in the distribution of undrafted cards.
Demand Contingencies
We expect these events to be popular, but we can’t predict demand perfectly. If they are in the range of our expectations, we feel the structure above will work, and we will run it eight times over the summer to determine the eight finalists. If we are significantly off in either direction—way more or way less popular than we expected—we may adjust subsequent qualification structures in response. Our main “knobs” will be:
- Adjusting Feeder League Rounds: We like that the three-win threshold to advance from the Feeder League reflects the three wins needed to win a traditional 8-player, in-pod Magic Draft. However, the play-out-of-pod League structure allows for additional rounds. If demand is significantly higher than expected, we may increase the number of wins it takes to earn a Limited Championship Entry Token. In that event, we would adjust the entry fees and/or add to the prize support to account for the additional match wins needed to advance.
- Adjusting Entry Costs and Prizes: We want to offer a chance at the Finals for a relatively low price so that taking a swing is the most accessible it can be. We also like the simplicity and “Vegas or Bust” nature of the only prize through the first two events being advancement towards a Vegas Qualifier event. We may adjust entry fees to these events (and prize support accordingly) in response to unexpected demand levels.
- 64-Player Draft Entry Tokens in Store: At any point, we may make 64-Player Draft Entry Tokens available in limited quantities in the Magic Online Store for purchase. This would allow the purchaser to skip the Feeder League step and enter directly into a 64-Player draft.
- Capping Feeder League Entries: We will be monitoring the Feeder League’s total number of entries, and if it becomes significantly oversold relative to seats available in the first 16 64-Player Drafts, we will stop taking new entries. They will be somewhat oversold on purpose, as Entry Tokens are valid for any of the eight weeks—you do not have to play in the same week you earn an Entry Token. It is also possible that some number of weeks at the end will not have Feeder Leagues due to the number of outstanding Entry Tokens in circulation.
Other Contingencies
To ensure we determine eight finalists, we have contingency plans in place to allow us to move forward through complications that could arise.
- Replacement 64-Player Drafts: Should a 64-Player Draft fail to fire due to not hitting the minimum number of players, a replacement draft will be scheduled for three hours later. Should a replacement draft fail to fire (with a lowered minimum of 56 players), its replacement will be scheduled for the next day.
- “Alternate” Status for 2nd Place in a 64-Player Draft: Players who lose the finals of a 64-Player Draft will be invited via email to be present online just before that week’s Vegas Qualifier begins. If an invited player invited has not checked in five minutes prior to the Qualifier’s start, an Alternate will be chosen randomly from among those available to replace the invitee.
We hope you are as excited to make a run at the Vintage Cube Draft of a lifetime as we are to bring you this event! Keep an eye on the Magic Online Vintage Cube LIVE: Powered by Ultimate Guard page for all the latest information on this event, and we hope to see you in Las Vegas in October!
