Cards from Wilds of Eldraine and Universes Beyond: Doctor Who are still making waves this week, and some big activity from yesterday's previews of the upcoming Universes Beyond: Fallout.
Like every week, just in time for FNM, I'll tell you about the Magic: the Gathering cards that'll be the talk of the town tonight! Come discuss this week's price movements with us on Discord.
Articles
- Make sure you read Greg's first article on MTGStocks! Through the Lens focuses on extracting value from Dinosaur-themed cards that have seen steady growth and could potentially rise in value if they dodge reprints in upcoming sets, while also highlighting the significance of more niche cards.
- Harvey's Over and Under evaluates the market dynamics of Terror of the Peaks and the potential implications of its future reprint, while also discussing the unique value proposition of the Doctor Who themed card Everybody Lives!, emphasizing its dual functionality and potential as a casual staple in the MTG landscape.
- In History, Restapled, Steve delves into the potential Commander staples from the Doctor Who set, spotlighting cards for their unique abilities and potential impact on the format, while also drawing comparisons with existing staples and discussing their financial implications.
- Matt discusses the Doctor Who set, analyzing the thematic coherence and gameplay integration of the new cards, highlighting the standout cards from the set, while also touching upon their potential impact on the Commander format and their financial trajectories in the market in his New Horizons series.
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Onto the Weekly Winners!
Commandeer was originally printed in Coldsnap, meaning it's over 17 years old right now. But not too long ago it received a well-needed reprint in Commander Masters. Right before it was reprinted, the card cost around $20, but dropped to around $15. It can either be cast for its immense cost of , or you can exile two blue cards from your hand and cast it for its alternative cost. By doing so, you get to gain control of a noncreature spell and reassign its targets.
We've talked about Up the Beanstalk before, and its still making waves in the competitive Magic sphere. However, this might be one of its most unexpected pairings, as Commandeer is seeing play in several Modern decks. Sure, when you cast it for its alternative cost, you lose some card advantage, but with Up the Beanstalk on the battlefield you get to draw one right back. Or even more if you happen to have multiple copies on the battlefield.
And we've seen this before. Especially in decks with the dreaded Elemental Incarnations like Solitude and Fury, where you get to Evoke these creatures, but also get to draw cards with them. In Legacy Up the Beanstalk is being played alongside the format-defining card Force of Will.
| Commandeer | | |
| Commandeer (Foil Etched) | | |
| Commandeer | | |
Not sure if you've heard, but cards that do anything with time counters are hot and happening nowadays. And since Rousing Refrain has Suspend, it also has something to do with time counters. For you can suspend this sorcery. When it goes off, you get to put one in your mana pool equal to the number of cards in target opponent's hand. But if you feel a little bit impatient, you can always just cast it for its regular cost , although generally players don't tend to have more than seven cards in their hand during your turn. However, Rousing Refrain will come back every three turns, because after resolution it will exile itself with three time counters on it.
Maybe the effect of Rousing Refrain sounds a bit familiar? Jeska's Will is a very popular Commander card. When you get to cast it on turn two or three, where your opponent's hands are often still full, you get to ramp immensely. This is a very powerful effect, and can define the game pretty quickly. However, there is a huge difference between getting this effect for three mana or five. Let alone having to wait three turns for it to recur.
Fortunately, in the most recent Universes Beyond set (assuming you don't count the Fallout one yet), a lot of cards have been printed that interact with Suspended cards. And the most prominent ones that led to Rousing Refrain's spike are The Tenth Doctor and The Face of Boe. With the first one you can get infinite storm, if an opponent has seven cards in their hand, by either casting Rousing Refrain or activating the Doctor's ability. After Rousing Refrain resolves, you have seven mana, which you can use to activate the Doctor's ability again. If an opponent has more than seven cards in their hand (because they have Reliquary Tower on the battlefield for instance), then you actually can generate infinite mana.
With The Face of Boe you obviously can just cast Rousing Refrain from your hand for only two mana. Nevertheless, it seems to make some sense that people are flocking to get their copies of powerful cards with Suspend since the mechanic has gotten a lot of support lately.
For the same reason we can see a similar effect on Chronomantic Escape this week.
| Rousing Refrain | | |
| Rousing Refrain (Extended Art) | | |
| The Tenth Doctor | | |
| The Face of Boe (Surge Foil) | | |
Hopefully it's on your radar by now, not only because we just talked about the card, but also since we did it in last week's Weekly Winners. The Tenth Doctor is the card that seems to have a lot going on and impacting prices of multiple cards, while only being $0.50 himself. His trademark ability, "Allons-y," triggers when he's on the attack, exiling cards from the top of your library until a nonland spell comes up, which then gets Suspended in exile with three time counters on it.
Now, speaking of time tricks, we also have Sphinx of the Second Sun. Not only is it an impressive 6/6 winged behemoth, but it's also endowed with a peculiar ability. Following your second main phase, it grants you an extra beginning phase. Since you could consider me a "Magic boomer," I had to quickly glance at what that phase was again, and it encompasses your untap, upkeep, and draw steps. Having another untap step and drawing an extra card seems great, but remember that having an extra upkeep is pretty good here, since your upkeep is when you get to remove time counters from your Suspended cards.
No surprise then, Sphinx of the Second Sun's value has taken off. After its reintroduction in the From Cute to Brute precon, its market value had settled to a modest $2. But with the surge in popularity, it's skyrocketing and currently hovers between $7-8.
| Sphinx of the Second Sun | | |
| Sphinx of the Second Sun (Extended Art) | | |
| Sphinx of the Second Sun | | |
A last minute addition, and thus a fourth winner this week. Aetherworks Marvel is not an unknown card, and has seen play in Modern in the past. This week it shot up because the first previews started for Universes Beyond: Fallout. The names and commanders of the decks are now known, and among them is the Science! deck. The Commander of this deck is Dr. Madison Li, and another known card in the deck will be Rex, Cyber-Hound.
As you can see, this deck seems to revolve around Energy counters. And what card loves Energy? Aetherworks Marvel! However, this price increase is pure speculation. Without knowing the rest of the deck, it's hard to know whether a new toy for the Aetherworks is among them. And there's also a possibility that Aetherworks Marvel will be included in the deck. It remains to be seen whether this is a good card to buy into right now, but I can see why this is the chosen card to pick up.
Cheap Pickups
Please note: for our 'record low' we consider the price of the card over the past seven years. Many cards were even cheaper (a) decade(s) ago. Also note: some cards are still going down, and might be even cheaper pickups next week.
Greater Good has been identified by the MTGStocks Premium Penny Stocks feature as a card that has reached its bottom and is starting a consistent uptrend.
| Greater Good | | |
| Flawless Maneuver | | |
| Maze of Ith (Retro Frame) | | |
That's it for this week. Make sure to check back next week for more Weekly Winners!
