This Week in Magic - Week 51

With the holidays upon us, we have much to be grateful for. Me? I'm grateful that my nerdy hobby as a kid has turned into a lifelong obsession that hasn't died down one bit. From casual, to competitive, to collector, we all have our reasons why we love Magic. Let's unwrap this week's winners!

 

Murdering its way to the top, Avatar of Slaughter mutilated its old price point four times over! Quite frankly, this is my type of Magic. Everyone beat everyone else down with monstrous, double striking creatures. NO MERCY! At 8 cmc, this card doesn't come cheap, but it has an immediate game changing impact. I used to think that most Commander players didn't like building super agro decks, but then they printed Saskia the Unyielding and madness ensued. I'd bet that Avatar of Slaughter won't stay high for long, as it has a pretty narrow fan base, so take advantage while you can. 

 

Al-abara's Carpet had a mini buy out, and just seeing the card on the list struck a chord with me. I used to hose my friend with it.  I would fog his Craw Wurm and Force of Nature bum rush. He simply couldn't beat it. In those days, I didn't care what a card was worth, only what it did for me. Seeing this card gave me immediate flashbacks and I literally just purchased my own NM copy at the inflated price. It represents so much more than just a $10 card to me, and that's why even after Magic the game dies, the cards will still hold value, to me at least. 

 

Up next is one of my favorite planeswalkers to cast in super friends. Ajani Steadfast was always underpriced, in my opinion, and the market seems to feel the same way. It's very easy on colored mana requirements, and really is a fantastic support walker. It may not do much on an empty board, but it compliments so many different board states. With the combination of Commander 2016 and a few Aether Revolt spoilers leaning towards planeswalker synergy, I expect this trend to continue. 

 

Jace, Vryn's Prodigy went up, and ironically enough, he's been on my list of cards to talk about. We all remember the days of $75+ Jace, but when it fell to $12, I was really confused. Granted, he rotated out of Standard, but for as good of a card the young prodigy is, it never should have been that cheap. At 1U, it does pretty much everything a blue deck wants to do. Remember when Snapcaster Mage was under $25? As far as which is better for the 2 slot in any given blue deck, it really depends on the deck. Even at $30, I think it's a great pick up!

Cheap pickups of the week!

Return to Ravnica block shock lands are all near all-time lows, with some hitting all-time lows. Temple Garden, Blood Crypt and Overgrown Tomb are all at an all-time low! Commander and Modern players alike can benefit from these prices. I mentioned JJace, Vryn's Prodigy, as I feel he's a $40 card, but with his recent mini spike, he isn't quite as good of a pickup. Still, having a playset can't hurt. Harnessed Lightning, while not a particularly cheap uncommon, is one of the better burn spells printed. It will be the go to Standard burn spell for its life, and may even see Modern play, depending on Aether Revolt.  Super obscure card, but good nonetheless, Shadow of Doubt is Modern playable, but also hilarious to cast in Commander. It's fairly easy to cast and has a powerful effect for a cheap price tag. 

Foils of the week!

Wow! Sleight of Hand sees play in many combo decks, so it's not surprising that the foil is sought after. What is surprising is the price. $55! Manamorphose, also a card found in combo decks has jumped to $13 from $8. Parallax Wave can die in a fire, but the foil price is a healthy $26 now. If you don't know why I feel that way about this card, just imagine infinite uses of it and permanent exile via Opalescence. Countersquall has found its way onto a weekly article before, but it just can't stay out of the spotlight. For a ‘medium' counterspell in Modern, it sure does some solid work. It has more than doubled in price to $12! Lastly, Surgical Extraction isn't ever seen in Commander play, but in constructed play, it's a house! I doubted that it would stay unbanned for as long as it has, but then again, I thought they would ban all the Phyrexian mana cards. The foil is now $15. 

Conversation of the week!

On the same topic as I had brought up talking about Al-abara's Carpet I wanted to talk this week about the differences in generational players. While I have some memories attached to cards as recent as Lorwyn (I was stationed in Japan for 4 years, so I took a break from Magic,) they just don't drum up the same feelings in me that older cards do. I'm always interested to hear stories of newer players and how they have created memories with more recent cards. That brings me to my question, even if Magic the Gathering stops getting printed, can it ever die? Part of me knows that there is a huge portion of the community that is casual only, and those players would carry on the torch. Maybe competitive only players would take up casual, but I also believe that the secondary market would create a system to fill the void. Heck, Star City Games has regular tournaments and their own season. 

The best card you're not playing in Commander!