The Complete Guide to Chromatic Cube

Last updated on July 18, 2025

Doubling Cube | Illustration by Mark Tedin

As someone from Reddit once described them, Chromatic Cubes should be called Magic Christmas Land – the place where all your big, 5-color dreams can come true!

If you haven't drafted before, cubes are perhaps not the best jumping off point into the world of Limited formats (if you want to get your toes wet, Niels' in-depth introduction to MTG Arena drafts has you covered!), but if you already have a few Quick Drafts under your belt and would like to try something a bit more off-the-wall than what Standard sets have to offer, then Chromatic Cubes may be up your alley.

Let's take a look at the whats, hows, and whys of this wacky format!

What is Chromatic Cube?

Gelatinous Cube | Illustration by Olivier Bernard

Chromatic Cube is an Arena Cube Draft format featuring the biggest most colorful Limited experience you can find.

In MTG parlance a Cube draft, or “Cube”, is a custom Draft format. They’re like regular drafts but with the cards hand-picked from all across Magic Arena by the cube's designer. Rather than players opening boosters from a specific set, a Cube's creator curates a pool of cards from whichever sets they think are the most fun, and then players draft from that pool.

For tabletop, you could design a high-powered cube that uses only Modern-legal rares. Or go for Pauper Cube levels and just include Standard-legal commons. Or mesh only bonus sheets like The Big Score, Final Fantasy: Through the Ages, and Wilds of Eldraine‘s Enchanting Tales. Designing and building cubes is, for some folks, the Magic in MTG.

Cube is to Limited what Commander is to Constructed: a format in which players take the reins from Wizards, and where each playgroup can tailor the rules and which cards are allowed. But in MTG's online platforms, namely MTGO and MTG Arena, there are a few Cube formats that Wizards of the Coast has curated themselves.

Take the three types of cubes on MTGA: Arena Cube, the Tinkerer's Cube, and Chromatic Cube. Their only difference is their pool of cards, with Chromatic Cube having:

• A lot less cheap, aggressive creatures,
• A lot more mana rocks and ample access to mana fixing,
• Lots of big, cool things that cost a lot of mana to cast, and often of multiple colors (hence its “chromatic” name).

The different pools of cards do lead to a very different drafting experience. According to MTG Arena's David McDarby: “Tinkerer's Cube asks you to build a synergistic machine and express yourself, your drafting skills, and your deck-building prowess. Arena Cube asks you to play with the strongest cards around and prove that you can handle the power and demonstrate your amazing abilities. And Chromatic Cube asks you to play cards with lots of colors, lots of mana, and experience thrilling turns of wacky action.”

Who is Chromatic Cube For?

The power gamers of Magic, sometimes called Timmy or Tammy, want to put the strongest cards to work and love Chromatic Cube. Cubes in Arena are mostly about three things: playing with lots of powerful cards, combining cards from different sets, and pulling off crazy stuff.

Chromatic Cube's favorite flavor of crazy is, as its name implies, multi-color shenanigans: Breach the Multiverse, Chandra, Hope's Beacon, One with the Multiverse, The Great Henge, and Sune's Intervention are great examples of cards in this cube.

In other words, cubes offer Arena drafters a departure from drafting with Standard sets, and are ideal for players that enjoy high-powered formats.

That being said, there are a few caveats to keep in mind:

• Cubes are a special event and therefore not always available.
• Cubes are phantom drafts, so unlike the usual Draft formats in Arena (Quick Draft, Premier Draft, and Traditional Draft), you do not keep the cards.
• Cube rewards are in gold and Individual Card Rewards (ICRs), rather than gems and packs.

The entry fee is either 4,000 gold or 600 gems, both for the Best-of-One mode or Traditional Best-of-Three.

Here are the rewards if you play Best-of-One, with each Draft run lasting until you reach either seven wins or three losses:

BO1 Reward Table

And here are the rewards if you play Best-of-Three with sideboards; in this case, you play three Bo3 matches regardless of win/loss record and you get rewards based on how many wins you get:

BO3 Reward Table

You can check out our Arena Cube article for more details, but the bottom line is: If you want to improve your collection and are looking for the best-value events, cubes are probably not the best choice (unless you’re an insanely strong drafter). And even if you are good enough to give LSV a run for his money, you can't convert gold into gems with cubes.

But if you’re after a bit of high-powered fun and a break of pace from Standard drafts, and see the event as entertainment rather than investment, Chromatic Cubes are great, and different from anything else that Arena or MTG as a whole has to offer.

Chromatic Cube – Legal Sets

The Chromatic Cubes are designed with cards from the Historic card pool – that's to say, from pretty much every card that exists on MTG Arena.

You’re not drafting from any specific sets, though, but rather from the cube's curated list. Wizards of the Coast always publishes the most recent pool a few days before a cube goes live (here's the official article from the Chromatic Cube).

The core idea of Chromatic Cube is still live in the latest iteration: It encourages players to build colorful, high-mana decks that go big. But this version brings some fresh updates to keep things interesting, with 45 cards swapped out from the 540-card list.

Some cards got the boot because they’re too weak (like last-pick fodder or cards with low win rates like The Wandering Rescuer), they’re too strong in a not-so-fun way like Crabomination, or they just lack synergy with the rest of the cube. Others were cut because they went against the spirit of the cube—they penalized players for trying to ramp or cast expensive spells, which isn’t the vibe here.

The new additions bring a breath of fresh air. Many are popular in other formats, have cool design space, or are fun to build around.

On the mana base side, there’s a big upgrade: The scry lands are out, and the full cycle of verge lands from Duskmourn and Aetherdrift is in! Verge lands help you fix your mana early and come in untapped, which is perfect for getting to your flashy multicolor plays sooner. With surveil lands already in the mix, it didn’t make sense to keep two very similar land cycles. This should make gameplay feel smoother and drafting a little more dynamic.

In short: better mana, more fun cards to build around, and a cleaner cube experience that rewards bold multicolor dreams.

Chromatic Cube Rules

Except for the pricing, rewards, and of course the card pool, cubes work exactly the same as regular, run-of-the-mill Premier or Traditional drafts on Arena.

Cubes tend to be singleton formats where you won't see the same card twice – but that's simply how the card pool is designed, not a specific rule.

Cubes always have the Best-of-One option (like Premier Drafts) or Best-of-Three (like Traditional, with sideboards), with the same number of wins/losses to finish each run as the respective regular mode.

Where to Play Chromatic Cube

Chromatic Cube is an exclusive format of the MTG Arena platform. It uses Alchemy cards with digital-only mechanics.

Cubes are special events, so they’re not always available. As a rule of thumb, they tend to fire off during the weeks before the release of a Standard set, and remain available for about a week or two.

Chromatic Cube Archetypes

This Draft environment's design leans towards lots of crazy interactions to feel like Commander, all in the context of a cube.

This format is particularly tailored to have few aggro options, with more focus on expensive payoffs. Chromatic Cube replaces aggressive creatures with ramp so you can get to the good stuff. Don't try too hard to draft a low-curve deck that aims to take over in the early turns with small creatures.

Below we'll list a few of the archetypes that you can go for. Three observations before we dive into them:

• To keep things fresh and interesting, Wizards loves to change a cube's card pool every iteration (and they publish the whole list a few days before said iteration goes live). There's no way to know precisely how the next Chromatic Cube will look, so take these archetypes as just overall examples.
• Remember that these events only last a week or two – nobody really has the time to “solve” the format or gather enough data to crack it, so let your own experience and intuition guide your picks.
• Have fun! These events are all about exploring off-the-wall stuff, to break the pace of the more Standard drafts. You’ll be missing out if you try to draft “by the book”!

White Value Blink (ETB Control)

This archetype uses creatures with enters abilities and ways to flicker them for repeat value. Think of cards like Charming Prince, Restoration Angel, and Teleportation Circle. You can loop your best effects, whether it's Elite Spellbinder that peeks at your opponent’s hand or Blade Splicer that gives you an aggressive Golem token. Ephemerate is a signature card here—it turns any ETB into a two-for-one.

Token Strategies (Go-Wide & Buff)

Token generators like God-Eternal Oketra, Blade Splicer, and Elspeth, Sun's Champion form the backbone of this archetype. Once you’ve got a board, pump effects like Intrepid Adversary, Angel of Invention, or even the enchantment side of Virtue of Loyalty help you close out the game. Mondrak, Glory Dominus and Ojer Taq, Deepest Foundation are absurd here because they double (or triple!) your token output.

Lifegain Payoffs

This archetype rewards you for gaining life—and white has tons of it. Lyra Dawnbringer, Inspiring Overseer, and Archangel of Thune all either grant lifelink or care when you gain life. Exemplar of Light is a newer twist, drawing cards when you put counters on it, while Saint Elenda gives you huge payoffs for bursts of lifegain.

Control / Removal Suite

White’s classic role: tons of removal and board wipes. Cards like Day of Judgment, Fell the Mighty, and Final Showdown reset the board. Meanwhile, exile-based removal spells like Skyclave Apparition, Banishing Light, and Touch the Spirit Realm give you clean answers to sticky threats. Get Lost and Stroke of Midnight are versatile picks, too.

Enchantress / Enchantment Synergy

This cube has a sneaky enchantment subtheme. Starfield of Nyx, Smile at Death, and Elspeth Conquers Death reward you for playing enchantments. Loran of the Third Path and Witch Enchanter also double as artifact/enchantment hate in the main deck. Enchantress-style cards love to stack value, and with white’s enchantment-based removal, you’re always in business.

Low-to-the-Ground Aggro

White weenie still shows up in Cube. Thraben Inspector, Cathar Commando, and Knight of the White Orchid hit the ground early. With Lurrus of the Dream-Den as your companion, you’re incentivized to play a low curve deck and recur cheap threats like Lion Sash and Spirited Companion. Elite Spellbinder even adds disruption on a body outside of a Lurrus build.

Multicolor / Domain Support

While white isn't the main color for multicolor payoffs, cards like Scrutiny of the Guildpact, Leyline Binding, and Prismatic Ending hint at color diversity mattering. In domain-heavy builds, white often provides cheap removal for control while you splash for bombs.

Thanks to all the fixing available, it's pretty easy to splash high-impact cards like Breach the Multiverse, Chandra, Hope's Beacon, or Sune's Intervention. You can also support flexible value engines like The Kami War or Nicol Bolas, Dragon-God if you're brave. Even less flashy options like General Ferrous Rokiric become real threats in a deck with multiple color pips.

If you see powerful multicolor spells early, don’t be afraid to commit—as long as you’re picking up the lands and mana rocks to make them work.

Mana Rocks and Mana Fixers

As its name implies, the Chromatic Cube has a lot of access to mana-fixing and ramping, letting your decks live the multicolor dreams.

Mana rocks fit any archetype, so if you need ramp or mana fixing, keep an eye out for them. Here are a few:

• Chromatic Lantern
• Coldsteel Heart
• Mind Stone
• The Celestus

As for lands, the cube features a full suite of dual lands, triomes, and even utility lands that help with fixing or provide late-game value. Tri-lands and the shock lands like Steam Vents go a long way in enabling 3-color decks. And if you’re running cards like Leyline Binding or Prismatic Ending, which scale with the number of land types you control, grabbing lands with varied types is especially important.

If you're drafting a heavy multicolor brew, prioritize your fixing early—you’ll thank yourself when you cast Breach the Multiverse and Sune's Intervention in the same game.

Getting Started with Chromatic Cube

As a very broad rule of thumb, I'd say your early pick priorities for the Chromatic Cube should be:

• Pick bombs, if you see them – This goes for almost any Draft format.
• Always keep an eye out for mana fixers and ramp.
• Try to stay open at first: Although you’ll have ample opportunity to play cards with three or more colors, during your first picks it's usually better to go for cards that require less commitment.

Also, don't forget your curve! While this cube is definitely biased towards the most expensive stuff, you still want to be doing things every turn, even if that's just ramping early on. While aggro strategies are not too common in this format, you can still go pretty aggressive with tokens, for example.

Last but not least: Remember that these events, like perhaps life in general, are too short. Yes, value is important, and even crucial… but don't forget to splash a bit of fun in the mix!

Chromatic Cube Communities

Cubes take place once every several months on Arena, and they’re available for one to two weeks – too little time for a specific community to really develop around them, or even generate much discussion.

On the other hand, cubes in general do have dedicated, die-hard fans. I recommend checking:

• The MTG Cube subreddit (www.reddit.com/r/mtgcube).
• The subreddit for the Limited Resources podcast (www.reddit.com/r/lrcast), which is a bit of the de-facto subreddit for MTG drafting in general.

Wrap Up

Planar Bridge (Secret Lair) | Illustration by Alexandre Leoni

There's no accounting for taste and your mileage may vary, of course, but I personally find Arena cubes a nice bit of fresh air… and I have a hunch that's exactly why Wizards tends to make them available by the tail-end of a set, when us Draft grinders have already had our fill of the Standard Draft format.

You know what they say: The only way to know if you like it is to try it out, so I hope this brief overview of the whats and hows of Chromatic Cubes has been helpful.

If you have any comments, feedback, or further questions, or are in the mood for a chat, do stop by the Draftsim Discord or ping me on the social network formerly known as Twitter.

And may all your 5-color dreams come true!