It's arguable that without duel lands Legacy would actually be cheaper than Modern. The larger card pool creates more variety where fringy cards that aren't worth a lot can find a home in a deck. If you look on MTGoldfish at most of the Legacy decks they would be in the 500-800 range, if not less, if it wasn't for the duels. Compare that to something like Jund in Modern, and there's barely a card below 20 dollars.
Just something of note I've found interesting. It looks like despite the selective reprinting the price of buying into Modern is actually going up.
A look at some super simplified value breakdowns shows Masters 25 lines up fairly evenly with most other Masters sets, outside of the ridiculously overpowered first set.
A look at some super simplified value breakdowns shows Masters 25 lines up fairly evenly with most other Masters sets, outside of the ridiculously overpowered first set.
MM13
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 27
MM15
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 17
EMA
Above $50 - 3
Above $10 - 15
MM17
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 15
IMA
Above $50 - 1
Above $10 - 15
M25
Above $50 - 4
Above $10 - 18
You aren't looking hard enough. Look at IMA and how well that box holds value. Nothing in the set is priced from demand except for a few cards. Do you really think that Rishadan port is worth 50 dollars when it sees less play than Wasteland, and that is sitting at around 15-20? Imperial recruiter isn't even at it's bottom yet and it's basically already lost most of it's value. The only thing to hold this box is Blood Moon, Eidolon of the Great Revel, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Chalice of the Void, and Ensnaring Bridge. Just forget about the land cycle.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
So what would be the best course of action to reprint old, extremely expensive cards, that are expensive because they are old and have not seen reprints? If the goal of these sets is to make the cards more accessible, that is what they are doing and they are doing it fairly successfully.
So what would be the best course of action to reprint old, extremely expensive cards, that are expensive because they are old and have not seen reprints? If the goal of these sets is to make the cards more accessible, that is what they are doing and they are doing it fairly successfully.
Successful like IMA, which is selling for 140 a box fire sale. These cards that are only seeing play in legacy and commander can not be used in a masters set to hold it's price tag. The only way this works is if the set has enough modern cards in it of high value to hold the price up at 240 msrp, which they did do with mm2017. This is not possible with the cards they are picking for IMA and M25.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
So what would be the best course of action to reprint old, extremely expensive cards, that are expensive because they are old and have not seen reprints? If the goal of these sets is to make the cards more accessible, that is what they are doing and they are doing it fairly successfully.
Successful like IMA, which is selling for 140 a box fire sale. These cards that are only seeing play in legacy and commander can not be used in a masters set to hold it's price tag. The only way this works is if the set has enough modern cards in it of high value to hold the price up at 240 msrp, which they did do with mm2017. This is not possible with the cards they are picking for IMA and M25.
It successfully reprinted old, expensive cards, making them more accessible by both reducing prices and increasing supply of the cards.
I agree that the MSRP is too high, and when the MSRP does not reflect the value, the market adjusts accordingly (as it did with IMA).
The question here isn't whether or not IMA had bad value, it's how else do you reprint old, extremely expensive cards without warping Standard or causing people to buy out sealed product, making it unobtainable?
I truthfully thought IMA was fairly loaded with value. Many of the re-prints were of highly priced cards that had low supply’s. In my mind it’s definitely a sleeper set that could look really good in a few years.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
--> Modern <-- RBUSplinter Twin (RIP)/DelverRBU UUUMono U TronUUU GRGGR TronGRG GWURKnight FallGWUR
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
A look at some super simplified value breakdowns shows Masters 25 lines up fairly evenly with most other Masters sets, outside of the ridiculously overpowered first set.
MM13
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 27
MM15
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 17
EMA
Above $50 - 3
Above $10 - 15
MM17
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 15
IMA
Above $50 - 1
Above $10 - 15
M25
Above $50 - 4
Above $10 - 18
Is that prices now, or prices at release? It makes a huge difference, especially in the case of MM3. That set had so much value in the fetchlands and the mythics, that the rest of the set was destroyed. A lot of rares were in need of reprints and in the $10-20 range (Phantasmal Image, Restoration Angel, Basilisk Collar, Zur, etc.), and their prices crashed afterwards due to the increased supply and the incredible, and well spread around, value of this set.
It is not the case here for Masters 25 or for IMA! A lot of the rare cards are already bulk, before they were announced. We can still crack MM3 packs, find a $3-5 dollar card that is heavily played in Modern and will retain some value in the future.
A look at some super simplified value breakdowns shows Masters 25 lines up fairly evenly with most other Masters sets, outside of the ridiculously overpowered first set.
MM13
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 27
MM15
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 17
EMA
Above $50 - 3
Above $10 - 15
MM17
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 15
IMA
Above $50 - 1
Above $10 - 15
M25
Above $50 - 4
Above $10 - 18
Is that prices now, or prices at release? It makes a huge difference, especially in the case of MM3. That set had so much value in the fetchlands and the mythics, that the rest of the set was destroyed. A lot of rares were in need of reprints and in the $10-20 range (Phantasmal Image, Restoration Angel, Basilisk Collar, Zur, etc.), and their prices crashed afterwards due to the increased supply and the incredible, and well spread around, value of this set.
It is not the case here for Masters 25 or for IMA! A lot of the rare cards are already bulk, before they were announced. We can still crack MM3 packs, find a $3-5 dollar card that is heavily played in Modern and will retain some value in the future.
i know a small card store that recently took out a loan to stay afloat, and iconic masters didnt sell for them until they dropped their price on it. at that point they barely made a profit on it though. i know the community is overly obsessed with value but poor products is a valid concern.
So what would be the best course of action to reprint old, extremely expensive cards, that are expensive because they are old and have not seen reprints? If the goal of these sets is to make the cards more accessible, that is what they are doing and they are doing it fairly successfully.
Successful like IMA, which is selling for 140 a box fire sale. These cards that are only seeing play in legacy and commander can not be used in a masters set to hold it's price tag. The only way this works is if the set has enough modern cards in it of high value to hold the price up at 240 msrp, which they did do with mm2017. This is not possible with the cards they are picking for IMA and M25.
I just ordered a sealed box of Iconic for my son and I to open off ebay at 120 USD shipped. I figured at that price 1/2 off MSRP and 5 dollars a pack the risk is lowered enough for me to pull the trigger. And I'm fully expecting to only pull maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of that 120 amount out of the box, anything close or above that will be gravy. I see the same thing happening to M25 in a few months time. Maybe I'll pick up a box at that time for 1/2 off as well. I won't pay any more than that for sure.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
The question here isn't whether or not IMA had bad value, it's how else do you reprint old, extremely expensive cards without warping Standard or causing people to buy out sealed product, making it unobtainable?
Well, what specific cards are we talking about? Many of them would not, in fact, warp Standard... or wouldn't "warp" it any worse than the new cards they print. It's weird to see so many cards ascribed as "too strong for Standard!" and then watch them print something like Siege Rhino which warped Standard way worse than something like Counterspell would have.
In fact, it's a little interesting to look back at the "too strong for Standard!" cards, even limiting ourselves to the expensive ones, that were previously in Standard and observe how (at least from the results I can find) they didn't really seem to see that much play while legal in Standard, like Ensnaring Bridge or Blood Moon.
The question here isn't whether or not IMA had bad value, it's how else do you reprint old, extremely expensive cards without warping Standard or causing people to buy out sealed product, making it unobtainable?
Well, what specific cards are we talking about? Many of them would not, in fact, warp Standard... or wouldn't "warp" it any worse than the new cards they print. It's weird to see so many cards ascribed as "too strong for Standard!" and then watch them print something like Siege Rhino which warped Standard way worse than something like Counterspell would have.
In fact, it's a little interesting to look back at the "too strong for Standard!" cards, even limiting ourselves to the expensive ones, that were previously in Standard and observe how (at least from the results I can find) they didn't really seem to see that much play while legal in Standard, like Ensnaring Bridge or Blood Moon.
Could be anything. Wizards has a really weird interpretation of what would "warp" standard, at least as shown by some of the choices they've made over the past several years.
It's arguable that without duel lands Legacy would actually be cheaper than Modern. The larger card pool creates more variety where fringy cards that aren't worth a lot can find a home in a deck. If you look on MTGoldfish at most of the Legacy decks they would be in the 500-800 range, if not less, if it wasn't for the duels. Compare that to something like Jund in Modern, and there's barely a card below 20 dollars.
Just something of note I've found interesting. It looks like despite the selective reprinting the price of buying into Modern is actually going up.
this is a pretty skewed way of looking at things. legacy prices are where they are at specifically because the format cant grow due to the reserved list. selectively removing the most expensive cards and then comparing deck prices doesnt amount to much. its not like legacy duals would ever be worth 0, even if wotc threw aside the reserved list and started reprinting.
as for the other comments. the only complaint that i think has much merit is the high price of masters boosters. as i said before i think its quite a silly notion to crack packs with the expectation that you will just open money. however pricing it as a premium or exclusive product places quite a burden on sellers. in the very long term its justifiable, but in the short term shops are expected to shell out a good bit of capital for a product that, by its very nature, doesnt exactly fly off the shelves.
personally i think i would have gone about it differently. for a 25th anniversary product i would have eschewed the 'masters' label and pushed the product as a relatively cheap way for players to experience the history of magic. expanding the target demographic to new players, with the intent of churning interest. sort of a 'hey look how crazy and awesome magic has been over all these years', with the hopes of pushing people to look beyond standard. there would still be some value in the set, but the packs are priced cheap, so there is the foreknowledge that some cards would drop in value on the secondary market. however the, hopefully, generated interest for older formats would offset it in the long term.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: UWGSnow-Bant Control BURGrixis Death's Shadow GWBCoCo Elves WCDeath and Taxes (sold)
prices are spiking everywhere. are people actually panic buying this stuff or are stores relisting their inventory at higher prices?
This always happens when a Masters set is released: any important Modern card players were expecting to be printed in the set and that fails to materialize will spike. And, since there are no Masters sets expected in the near future, anyone holding off on their planned purchases will be quick to buy before the inevitable spike.
Despite what WotC thinks, Masters sets exist for a reason: to keep the card pool of Modern supplied with new cards for the new players, since it is the main growing format they have. When they fail to do their job, players panic, especially when they announce that they are moving away from Masters sets based on a format (you know, the ones that were actually successful!). So, buy what you need now, we have dark years ahead of us.
funny though, imagine the type of buyers looking to capitalize at times like these. players who have been priced out of the format arent suddenly buying in out of fear. more likely it is those currently with decks looking to fill out slots, hoarders, and speculators.
ie. we do this to ourselves
Private Mod Note
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Modern: UWGSnow-Bant Control BURGrixis Death's Shadow GWBCoCo Elves WCDeath and Taxes (sold)
prices are spiking everywhere. are people actually panic buying this stuff or are stores relisting their inventory at higher prices?
Probably both. The prices are blowing up at a scary rate on some cards.
They are unfortunately. Just another fail in the long list of fail named Massturds 25.
At this rate Karn is going to pass Jace in price before much longer.
Private Mod Note
():
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
It's not the price jump in isolation that is the problem. The problem is that this price jump has happened regularly and the companies efforts to manage it has resulted in basically not taking the prices down on cards that matter while bombing the price on everything else. The way they have been reprinting modern cards that are core to many decks has been poor because they treat the cards just like they treat something like Rishadan Port or Imperial Recruiter. It feels like the people who make the reprint decisions for the sets need to consult actual players of the game so they know the conditions and demands of these cards.
To illustrate my point, which would you consider more valuable: Mox Opal or Imperial Recruiter? What happened with M25 is after Iconic Masters bombed the guys who did the card selection realized this basic principle, went "oops", and then had to unban a card to make sure there was actual demand for at least two of the cards in a competitive format that had a price over 60 dollars. It's kind of bad that we're at this point, but that's what greed does to a company. Also, I keep getting the feeling that WoTC tries to soft ban cards by not reprinting them, which has effectively rendered a situation where people who bought in early get to keep playing the deck while others are stuck wanting.
Let me put it this way, I'm glad I got my brother's set of Snapcaster Mage from back when Innistrad came out, because if I knew at the time Wizards of the Coast would let a 25 dollar rare go to 70+ dollars in a few years and only reprint it at mythic I would have spent money to get my own playset. Heck, none of us at the time even thought Karn would go to the prices it is seeing, but the level of stupidity this company has seems to know no bounds.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
funny though, imagine the type of buyers looking to capitalize at times like these. players who have been priced out of the format arent suddenly buying in out of fear. more likely it is those currently with decks looking to fill out slots, hoarders, and speculators.
ie. we do this to ourselves
Let's not go down the self-flagellation road: this is a natural response to a "reprint" set that is anything but. Even Iconic Masters has more playable rare cards than this one!
Players who have been assembling Jund after the BBE unban thought "Hey, Jace will be in A25, I am certain BBE will be as well!" or "Raging Ravine is probable being reprinted in A25, so I'll wait a month before buying them". Others wanted Through the Breach, or Fetchlands, or Lily, or Snapcaster Mage, or any other card, and they were holding off in case they were reprinted. Then, when they are not, they rush to the store before the stores adjust their prices.
Players want to pay as little as possible, stores want to make the most money possible, it's how a normal, healthy market works. The problem is that WotC doesn't care as long as they sell boxes.
funny though, imagine the type of buyers looking to capitalize at times like these. players who have been priced out of the format arent suddenly buying in out of fear. more likely it is those currently with decks looking to fill out slots, hoarders, and speculators.
ie. we do this to ourselves
Let's not go down the self-flagellation road: this is a natural response to a "reprint" set that is anything but. Even Iconic Masters has more playable rare cards than this one!
Players who have been assembling Jund after the BBE unban thought "Hey, Jace will be in A25, I am certain BBE will be as well!" or "Raging Ravine is probable being reprinted in A25, so I'll wait a month before buying them". Others wanted Through the Breach, or Fetchlands, or Lily, or Snapcaster Mage, or any other card, and they were holding off in case they were reprinted. Then, when they are not, they rush to the store before the stores adjust their prices.
Players want to pay as little as possible, stores want to make the most money possible, it's how a normal, healthy market works. The problem is that WotC doesn't care as long as they sell boxes.
Which is why nobody like Wizards of the Coast right now. They used to be good, but then ever since they officially started modern it's like they never understood how to manage it and then the guys who pushed modern left the company and left us with the pro draft team. So now the pro draft team is destroying the prices on anything that doesn't actually see a lot of play and underprinting the cards that do... because draft.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
funny though, imagine the type of buyers looking to capitalize at times like these. players who have been priced out of the format arent suddenly buying in out of fear. more likely it is those currently with decks looking to fill out slots, hoarders, and speculators.
ie. we do this to ourselves
Let's not go down the self-flagellation road: this is a natural response to a "reprint" set that is anything but. Even Iconic Masters has more playable rare cards than this one!
Players who have been assembling Jund after the BBE unban thought "Hey, Jace will be in A25, I am certain BBE will be as well!" or "Raging Ravine is probable being reprinted in A25, so I'll wait a month before buying them". Others wanted Through the Breach, or Fetchlands, or Lily, or Snapcaster Mage, or any other card, and they were holding off in case they were reprinted. Then, when they are not, they rush to the store before the stores adjust their prices.
Players want to pay as little as possible, stores want to make the most money possible, it's how a normal, healthy market works. The problem is that WotC doesn't care as long as they sell boxes.
Which is why nobody like Wizards of the Coast right now. They used to be good, but then ever since they officially started modern it's like they never understood how to manage it and then the guys who pushed modern left the company and left us with the pro draft team. So now the pro draft team is destroying the prices on anything that doesn't actually see a lot of play and underprinting the cards that do... because draft.
Wouldn't overprinting extremely expensive cards tank the market economy, just like Yu-Gi-Oh? Or do we want peoples' collections to be worthless and invalidated? It's a difficult and thin line for them to walk.
Just something of note I've found interesting. It looks like despite the selective reprinting the price of buying into Modern is actually going up.
MM13
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 27
MM15
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 17
EMA
Above $50 - 3
Above $10 - 15
MM17
Above $50 - 5
Above $10 - 15
IMA
Above $50 - 1
Above $10 - 15
M25
Above $50 - 4
Above $10 - 18
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
You aren't looking hard enough. Look at IMA and how well that box holds value. Nothing in the set is priced from demand except for a few cards. Do you really think that Rishadan port is worth 50 dollars when it sees less play than Wasteland, and that is sitting at around 15-20? Imperial recruiter isn't even at it's bottom yet and it's basically already lost most of it's value. The only thing to hold this box is Blood Moon, Eidolon of the Great Revel, Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Chalice of the Void, and Ensnaring Bridge. Just forget about the land cycle.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
Successful like IMA, which is selling for 140 a box fire sale. These cards that are only seeing play in legacy and commander can not be used in a masters set to hold it's price tag. The only way this works is if the set has enough modern cards in it of high value to hold the price up at 240 msrp, which they did do with mm2017. This is not possible with the cards they are picking for IMA and M25.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
It successfully reprinted old, expensive cards, making them more accessible by both reducing prices and increasing supply of the cards.
I agree that the MSRP is too high, and when the MSRP does not reflect the value, the market adjusts accordingly (as it did with IMA).
The question here isn't whether or not IMA had bad value, it's how else do you reprint old, extremely expensive cards without warping Standard or causing people to buy out sealed product, making it unobtainable?
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
RBU
Splinter Twin (RIP)/DelverRBUUUUMono U TronUUU
GRGGR TronGRG
GWURKnight FallGWUR
Legacy
GWBDark MaverickGWB
--> EDH <--
BWUErtai, the CorruptedBWU
Also, Will-O'-The-Wisp warping standard?
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Is that prices now, or prices at release? It makes a huge difference, especially in the case of MM3. That set had so much value in the fetchlands and the mythics, that the rest of the set was destroyed. A lot of rares were in need of reprints and in the $10-20 range (Phantasmal Image, Restoration Angel, Basilisk Collar, Zur, etc.), and their prices crashed afterwards due to the increased supply and the incredible, and well spread around, value of this set.
It is not the case here for Masters 25 or for IMA! A lot of the rare cards are already bulk, before they were announced. We can still crack MM3 packs, find a $3-5 dollar card that is heavily played in Modern and will retain some value in the future.
WBC Eldrazi & Taxes CBW
UR Keep on Cantripin' (UR Phoenix) RU
WU Surprise! It's not UW Control! (UW Midrange) UW
BG The Rock, Straight BG
U Mono-Blue Fish U
RBW Mardu Pyromancer BWR
RG Rabble! Rabble! (GR Blood Moon Aggro) GR
Legacy
W Death & Taxes W
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
I just ordered a sealed box of Iconic for my son and I to open off ebay at 120 USD shipped. I figured at that price 1/2 off MSRP and 5 dollars a pack the risk is lowered enough for me to pull the trigger. And I'm fully expecting to only pull maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of that 120 amount out of the box, anything close or above that will be gravy. I see the same thing happening to M25 in a few months time. Maybe I'll pick up a box at that time for 1/2 off as well. I won't pay any more than that for sure.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
In fact, it's a little interesting to look back at the "too strong for Standard!" cards, even limiting ourselves to the expensive ones, that were previously in Standard and observe how (at least from the results I can find) they didn't really seem to see that much play while legal in Standard, like Ensnaring Bridge or Blood Moon.
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
this is a pretty skewed way of looking at things. legacy prices are where they are at specifically because the format cant grow due to the reserved list. selectively removing the most expensive cards and then comparing deck prices doesnt amount to much. its not like legacy duals would ever be worth 0, even if wotc threw aside the reserved list and started reprinting.
as for the other comments. the only complaint that i think has much merit is the high price of masters boosters. as i said before i think its quite a silly notion to crack packs with the expectation that you will just open money. however pricing it as a premium or exclusive product places quite a burden on sellers. in the very long term its justifiable, but in the short term shops are expected to shell out a good bit of capital for a product that, by its very nature, doesnt exactly fly off the shelves.
personally i think i would have gone about it differently. for a 25th anniversary product i would have eschewed the 'masters' label and pushed the product as a relatively cheap way for players to experience the history of magic. expanding the target demographic to new players, with the intent of churning interest. sort of a 'hey look how crazy and awesome magic has been over all these years', with the hopes of pushing people to look beyond standard. there would still be some value in the set, but the packs are priced cheap, so there is the foreknowledge that some cards would drop in value on the secondary market. however the, hopefully, generated interest for older formats would offset it in the long term.
UWGSnow-Bant Control
BURGrixis Death's Shadow
GWBCoCo Elves
WCDeath and Taxes(sold)This always happens when a Masters set is released: any important Modern card players were expecting to be printed in the set and that fails to materialize will spike. And, since there are no Masters sets expected in the near future, anyone holding off on their planned purchases will be quick to buy before the inevitable spike.
Despite what WotC thinks, Masters sets exist for a reason: to keep the card pool of Modern supplied with new cards for the new players, since it is the main growing format they have. When they fail to do their job, players panic, especially when they announce that they are moving away from Masters sets based on a format (you know, the ones that were actually successful!). So, buy what you need now, we have dark years ahead of us.
WBC Eldrazi & Taxes CBW
UR Keep on Cantripin' (UR Phoenix) RU
WU Surprise! It's not UW Control! (UW Midrange) UW
BG The Rock, Straight BG
U Mono-Blue Fish U
RBW Mardu Pyromancer BWR
RG Rabble! Rabble! (GR Blood Moon Aggro) GR
Legacy
W Death & Taxes W
Probably both. The prices are blowing up at a scary rate on some cards.
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Want to play a UW control deck in modern, but don't have jace or snaps?
Please come visit us at the Emeria Titan control thread
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate
funny though, imagine the type of buyers looking to capitalize at times like these. players who have been priced out of the format arent suddenly buying in out of fear. more likely it is those currently with decks looking to fill out slots, hoarders, and speculators.
ie. we do this to ourselves
UWGSnow-Bant Control
BURGrixis Death's Shadow
GWBCoCo Elves
WCDeath and Taxes(sold)They are unfortunately. Just another fail in the long list of fail named Massturds 25.
At this rate Karn is going to pass Jace in price before much longer.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
It's not the price jump in isolation that is the problem. The problem is that this price jump has happened regularly and the companies efforts to manage it has resulted in basically not taking the prices down on cards that matter while bombing the price on everything else. The way they have been reprinting modern cards that are core to many decks has been poor because they treat the cards just like they treat something like Rishadan Port or Imperial Recruiter. It feels like the people who make the reprint decisions for the sets need to consult actual players of the game so they know the conditions and demands of these cards.
To illustrate my point, which would you consider more valuable: Mox Opal or Imperial Recruiter? What happened with M25 is after Iconic Masters bombed the guys who did the card selection realized this basic principle, went "oops", and then had to unban a card to make sure there was actual demand for at least two of the cards in a competitive format that had a price over 60 dollars. It's kind of bad that we're at this point, but that's what greed does to a company. Also, I keep getting the feeling that WoTC tries to soft ban cards by not reprinting them, which has effectively rendered a situation where people who bought in early get to keep playing the deck while others are stuck wanting.
Let me put it this way, I'm glad I got my brother's set of Snapcaster Mage from back when Innistrad came out, because if I knew at the time Wizards of the Coast would let a 25 dollar rare go to 70+ dollars in a few years and only reprint it at mythic I would have spent money to get my own playset. Heck, none of us at the time even thought Karn would go to the prices it is seeing, but the level of stupidity this company has seems to know no bounds.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Let's not go down the self-flagellation road: this is a natural response to a "reprint" set that is anything but. Even Iconic Masters has more playable rare cards than this one!
Players who have been assembling Jund after the BBE unban thought "Hey, Jace will be in A25, I am certain BBE will be as well!" or "Raging Ravine is probable being reprinted in A25, so I'll wait a month before buying them". Others wanted Through the Breach, or Fetchlands, or Lily, or Snapcaster Mage, or any other card, and they were holding off in case they were reprinted. Then, when they are not, they rush to the store before the stores adjust their prices.
Players want to pay as little as possible, stores want to make the most money possible, it's how a normal, healthy market works. The problem is that WotC doesn't care as long as they sell boxes.
WBC Eldrazi & Taxes CBW
UR Keep on Cantripin' (UR Phoenix) RU
WU Surprise! It's not UW Control! (UW Midrange) UW
BG The Rock, Straight BG
U Mono-Blue Fish U
RBW Mardu Pyromancer BWR
RG Rabble! Rabble! (GR Blood Moon Aggro) GR
Legacy
W Death & Taxes W
Which is why nobody like Wizards of the Coast right now.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Wouldn't overprinting extremely expensive cards tank the market economy, just like Yu-Gi-Oh? Or do we want peoples' collections to be worthless and invalidated? It's a difficult and thin line for them to walk.
UR ....... WUBR ........... WB ............. RGW ........ UBR ....... WUB .... BGU
Spells / Blink & Combo / Token Grind / Dino Tribal / Draw Cards / Zombies / Reanimate