Cubes -> vertex arrays?

[ffish]

Hi.

Here's my problem: I've got a series of primitives, all of which are 8-noded cubes. These can be joined together to form larger shapes. I want to put the cubes into a vertex array, but I don't know if there exists a way to efficiently convert them to one. Anyone know a way? I don't mind if the faces remain as cubes or if I render them as 2 triangles. Ideally, I would want not just individual cubes as vertex arrays, but the whole mesh as a vertex array which I suspect is going to be impossible. For those interested, it's a finite element mesh.

[ffish]

Oh, goes without saying that I was hoping to use either quad strips or triangle strips. Obviously quads or triangles would be trivial. Basically I want to minimize the number of vertices sent.