Cards With High Potential in Modern Right Now
Hello everyone! Happy Wednesday. Today we’re discussing a couple Magic market movers that are putting up some sizable jumps in the Modern market, and a couple smaller game pieces with relatively stagnant prices representing some uncapitalized potential. Let’s jump in!
Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
The Mother of Machines herself was arguably the poster child of
Enter:
Elesh Norn is one such card that’s seeing some experimentation in Orzhov Blink for obvious reasons: doubling your ETB triggers that bounce your own spells, while simultaneously shutting down your opponent’s ETB triggers. As an asymmetrical stax piece, Elesh Norn both compliments your deck’s strategy while shutting down advantages popular across the format.
It’s worth noting that she’s not seeing play in every Blink shell, hence her relatively stagnant price. Her relatively high mana value is certainly the sticking point for most brewers of the deck. Having said that, the potential of Orzhov Blink and, by extension, Ketramose make her a worthwhile, and relatively low-risk speculation.
| Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines | ||
| Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines (Showcase) | ||
| Atris, Oracle of Half-Truths | ||
| Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines (Concept Praetor) | ||
| Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines (Borderless) |
Scapeshift
Amulet Titan is back on the menu in the Modern meta, sporting pieces like
Scapeshift serves a myriad of functions, but in its simplest use case, it basically reads: sacrifice a ton of lands, and if you have
In the aftermath (pun intended) of RC Portland, renewed interest in Scapeshift is in full force, skyrocketing its market price to the highest it has been since 2018. With sellers demanding around $50, one might ask if its current price will hold. Likely not - Scapeshift solely sees play in Amulet Titan shells, which, while arguably one of the strongest decks in the Modern format, is also one of the most skill-intensive to pilot, rendering the market for this card to be smaller than its potency represents.
Admittedly, there is also a supply-side limitation to this card’s availability. Outside of
Unless you’re keen on jumping into Titan, there’s really no rush to purchase or spec on this particular single in the short run. If you want a copy or two, it’s best to wait a few weeks or so for demand to rebound to where it was prior to RC Portland.
| Scapeshift | ||
| Scapeshift | ||
| Scapeshift (Borderless) |
Seasoned Pyromancer
This used to be an all-star in Jund back in the halcyon days of the format (biased opinion, of course), but fell out of favor as
Now that we live in a
Seasoned Pyromancer also acting as a token generator synergizes with
It’s certainly the most popular archetype in the format, which some may argue is problematic in its own right. Having said that, its play patterns are mostly fair, and the deck’s skill floor is low enough to make it accessible to most players in the format - new, old, or returning. There’s a good argument to be made that Energy is just the new Jund: a widely played, consistent deck that can hold its own squarely against most other decks in the meta.
All of this more than explains the jump in price for Seasoned Pyro, although this price spike seems to be trending downward reflecting some price stabilization. My guess is that this single will level out between $11 or $12.
| Seasoned Pyromancer | ||
| Seasoned Pyromancer (Foil Etched) | ||
| Seasoned Pyromancer (Borderless) |
Sowing Mycospawn
The last card on our list today is also somewhat of a sleeper: good ol’ Sowing Mycospawn. Consistent with most Eldrazi, the most important function of Mycospawn is to, on cast, search your library for any land and put it into play. Because it’s exceedingly difficult to interact with triggered abilities, particularly ones that trigger on cast or that utilize the Channel mechanic.
Eldrazi Ramp (which is in many ways the new face of Eldrazi Tron) leans into Mycospawn as a land tutor. Casting a creature spell and snagging an
The price has trended slightly upward in recent weeks, but is otherwise pretty stagnant and slow-moving. As a mainstay in Eldrazi Ramp and as a single picking up play in cEDH (turns out, an uncounterable way to put
| Sowing Mycospawn | ||
| Sowing Mycospawn (Borderless) |
Closing It Out
While Temur Breach remains the boogeyman of the Modern format, decks new and old are carving out wider positions in the meta (or working hard to maintain their meta share), and the cards we discussed today are some of the tools these decks are using to carve out such a spot in the format.
Relatively speaking, I see Mycospawn is more undercapitalized than Elesh Norn, and I definitely see Scapeshift’s price as the most fragile by comparison to Seasoned Pyromancer. Scapeshift’s price reflects a small surge in popularity in a specific shell, but realistically, its supply is much smaller in quantity by comparison to Pyromancer. While I don’t think we’re due for a Scapeshift reprint anytime soon, all it takes is a preview of a new Scapeshift reprinting to bring its price back down to earth a little bit.
In the meantime, sit back, relax, and we’ll wait and see what
Further Reading
Corey Williams
Corey Williams is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. He considers himself a macroeconometrician with his research body reflecting work in applied macroeconomics and econometrics. Corey is an L1 Judge who started playing Magic around Eighth Edition. He enjoys Modern, Commander, cEDH, and cube drafting. Outside of Magic, he loves running, teaching, and the occasional cult movie.