Weekly Winners 2022 - 03

Finance seems a bit slow and it is most likely in anticipation of the upcoming set Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty of which spoilers should start in a week. The last time we visited Kamigawa the sets were pretty lacklustre, but what we have seen so far that will not be the case this time around.

Like every week, just in time for FNM, I'll now tell you about the cards that will be the talk of the town tonight!

Come discuss this week's price movements with us on Reddit.

 

#1 Frankenstein's Monster $82.43 (+230%)

 

In last week's article we discussed Eater of the Dead and this spike of Frankenstein's Monster seems very similar. Both cards from 11401 with a pretty unique flavor and art. However, this card is on the reserved list, making it an easy target to buy out and drive up the price. Some leaks of the upcoming Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty set indicate there will be some cards printed with graveyard interaction, and while I have heard that being mentioned as a minor reason that Frankenstein's Monster is moving, I seriously doubt that's the case.

In my opinion it seems more likely that people saw Eater of the Dead and found this card to be "similar enough". We have seen spikes the past weeks where exile from graveyard effects work well in Umbris, Fear Manifest decks and also enables Gravestorm that we have seen spiking recently. Frankenstein's Monster being an old (reserved list) card with synergy with a popular commander deck for which multiple cards have been bought out seems like a good target.

But also there seems to be a run on cards from The Dark. When this set came out it was received as kind of gimmicky and janky. The cards used to be pretty cheap, but a lot of cards from this set are now iconic and people really want to complete the set for their collection.

Umbris, Fear Manifest		TCGPlayer $9.65
Frankenstein's Monster	CardKingdom $29.99	TCGPlayer $82.43
Eater of the Dead	CardKingdom $32.99	TCGPlayer $65.00

 

#2 Elvish Reclaimer $6.33 (+25%)

 

It wouldn't surprise me if you know this card. It's a popular staple nowadays in both Modern and Legacy and rightfully so. Getting three land cards in your graveyard is quite easy to achieve with fetch lands, and with Elvish Reclaimer ability you can get more into your graveyard and find a different (utility) land in play at instant speed. Quickly need that Karakas to get rid of a Legendary? You got it! Need to fetch that Bojuka Bog to remove your opponent's graveyard at instant speed? Reclaimer has got you covered!

But it seems likely that this card moved up a bit because of some Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty leaks. I will not show the leaked cards in the article, because some people don't want to know until the official spoiling. I will however link the card, mention the names, and discuss the abilities in the next paragraph. So if you don't want to know, skip it.

SPOILER ALERT: I AM NOW GOING TO DISCUSS THESE LEAKED CARDS. IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW I SUGGEST YOU SKIP TO THE NEXT WINNER

In the Kamigawa leaks two lands are shown with Channel. Channel cards have an activated ability that lets you discard them to get a temporary effect. These cards are Takenuma, Abandoned Mire and Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire . If these leaks turn out to be correct then it's likely that we will also see similar lands in green, blue and red. And if the Channel abilities are powerful enough to may see play in constructed formats, where discarding them will add to the static ability of Elvish Reclaimer.

Elvish Reclaimer
Core Set 2020	CardKingdom $7.49	TCGPlayer $6.88
Prerelease Cards	CardKingdom $13.99	TCGPlayer $13.68
Promo Pack: Core Set 2020	CardKingdom $14.99	TCGPlayer $5.84

 

#3 Helm of Possession $9.95 (+36%)

 

This artifact from Tempest, and is thus quite old by now, is still waiting for a reprint. And personally I am a bit surprised it took this long to spike again. It has been steadily moving up quickly since June 2020, but has a positive trends for years now. And while it does not see any competitive play, when I check EDHRec for this card I see plenty of commanders that can (or should) include this card in the 100.

One of the most popular examples of this is Starke of Rath that clearly has the "steal your stuff"-theme going on. The same goes for Empress Galina.

Empress Galina	CardKingdom $21.99	TCGPlayer $19.69
Starke of Rath	CardKingdom $1.99	TCGPlayer $2.15
Helm of Possession	CardKingdom $7.99	TCGPlayer $8.99

 

Cheap Pickups

Please note: for our 'record low' we consider the price of the card over the past 7 years. Many cards have been even cheaper (a) decade(s) ago. Also note: some cards are still going down, and might be even cheaper pickups next week.

 

The Book of Exalted Deeds $5.07 - Trending down

 

Manaform Hellkite $5.99 - Slowly trending down

 

Kaldra Compleat $6.00 - Slowly trending down

 

Kaldra Compleat	CardKingdom $6.99	TCGPlayer $6.00
The Book of Exalted Deeds	CardKingdom $5.99	TCGPlayer $5.07
Manaform Hellkite	CardKingdom $7.99	TCGPlayer $6.00