Weekly Winners (2016-16)

This was a very interesting week finance-wise. The release of Shadows over Innistrad, and the recent Modern ban-update are starting to influence the metagame, causing cards to spike. So, once again,  just in time for FNM, I present you the cards that will be the talk of the town tonight.

 

See something interesting, or do you have a question? Send me a tweet: @MTGPeter

 

#1 Wheel of Sun and Moon +452% ($25.50)

Wheel of Sun and Moon's spike seems like one that seems logical after it happened, but if you would have asked someone a few days ago, not many people would have predicted a spike so high. Sure, Wheel of Sun and Moon is a Modern playable rare, from Shadowmoor (so not that many copies available), and it is sideboard tech against Control decks that use Sword of the Meek, even for mirror matches. The card was even played in a recent Control deck that ended in the Top-8 of a SCG Tournament.

But, why play Wheel of Sun and Moon, instead of Leyline of the Void or Grafdigger's Cage? If you want to clear the graveyard, or prevent anything from happening, why choose a prohibitive costed aura over a 'free' enchantment or a cheap artifact? Well, Wheel of Sun and Moon is not only good against Thopter/Sword decks, but it also shuts down Tarmogoyf strategies (if played soon enough), as well as dredge and delve strategies. The fact that Wheel of Sun and Moon is an enchantment makes it a tad harder to destroy when artifacts are a threat in the metagame.

That said, there are many other graveyard-hate options that work as well. We just might see other graveyard-restricting cards pop up in brews or top lists in the coming week. Wheel of Sun and Moon might be here to stay, but it could as well be a panic buyout for a card that does not live up to its expectations.

 

#2 Talisman of Progress +112.5% ($4.93)

When I first saw Talisman of Progress pop up in our interests, I thought that it was some kind of glitch. Just by the look of it, Talisman of Progress seems like an underwhelming card. But, the card sees play in UW Thopter decks since the card gives acceleration to a deck that needs mana for its combo. Talisman of Progress is a fast mana-artifact since it costs you (2) to cast, but you can tap it for (1, U or W) right away. On top of that, you can sacrifice it to create a Thopter token when you really have to. 

#3 Burgeoning +105.6% ($29.96)

Always keep your eyes on cards like Burgeoning. It is one of those cards that fit into this profile:

• An unique ability
• From an older set (or set with limited print run or open rate)
• Surprisingly powerful and/or cheap for what it does
• Fun to play
• Someone could ask: "why doesn't this card see competitive play?"
• That one friend totally abuses the card in kitchen table magic
• Said friend wins, mainly because nobody bothers to play removal of any kind

Cards like this regularly pop up in interests and most of them are either dumb buyouts or price corrections. Another recent example is City of Solitude.

Where City of Solitude is only a $5 card, Burgeoning now almost has a $30 price tag. The big difference is the influence of EDH. Burgeoning sees play in Hypnotoad decks (Gitrog Monster-decks), a recent, very popular EDH deck.

But that is not the only thing, since Burgeoning is so good when you have it, so cheap (only G), it can be added into any deck that plays green, needs a lot of lands and has a slot open. It's psychological. When you see an opponent in an EDH game drop one land after another, speeding up the deck and leaving you behind with only one question: "and it only costs you G?". 

Record breakers

This week, I will present you the record breakers of this week. Below you will see cards that are at their all time high or at their all time low. These cards could get more expensive, cheaper, or remain at the same price level in the near future. 

Ancestral Vision ($51.30) ALL TIME HIGH

 

Thing in the Ice ($11.56) ALL TIME LOW

 

Sword of Fire and Ice ($48.59) ALL TIME HIGH

 

The Gitrog Monster ($7.02) ALL TIME LOW

 

Ensnaring Bridge ($47.45) ALL TIME HIGH

Dark Confidant ($41.69) ALL TIME LOW

See something interesting, or do you have a question? Send me a tweet: @MTGPeter