Wow, what is happening to card prices!?

[Sinis]

While I don't doubt that some of the prices (especially for reserved list cards) are manipulated and you have hoarders out there who are buying up at exorbitant rates and then drip-feed selling them higher, I think the newer cards are due to regular market forces of supply and demand. Magic is growing at an insane rate, and even mythics printed two years ago could be in comparatively short supply.

[Cyberium]

This is a $3 card. Did you mean Worldfire?

Sway spiked to 24 after the Worldfire ban, it just didn't stick because people realized it honked.

But I'm sure some people bought into the hype and more than a few stores managed to sell. That's all it needs for people to repeat this kind of heist, because they lose nothing in spiking prices and has a chance to make a profit.

[3drinks]

It really is people afraid they'll miss out on the next spike and/or hot tech. I remember some speculated on sway being the unban, so that explains the seemingly random spike. Can't believe people bought in.

[Hermes_]

I'm considering selling the EDH cards that aren't in decks currently, it would leave me with at least five decks still three precons, two of my own decks.

[3drinks]

I'm considering selling the EDH cards that aren't in decks currently, it would leave me with at least five decks still three precons, two of my own decks.

Same. It hurts me sitting on a memory jar and Necropotence|5ed in a box, just because "I really don't want to buy this again..."

[Hermes_]

I'm considering selling the EDH cards that aren't in decks currently, it would leave me with at least five decks still three precons, two of my own decks.

Same. It hurts me sitting on a memory jar and Necropotence|5ed in a box, just because "I really don't want to buy this again..."

On one hand, I'm sure at the lowest I can get 200-250$ (if not more) but on the other hand, it's like what if I want to use this card in a deck? I think the highest value card I have is a 3rd edition or revised Demonic Tutor if not my Enlightened Tutor


EDIT from CSI, I'm looking at $366.00 before they look and do whatever it is they do. That's only the cards that are above a dollar.

[3drinks]

I'm considering selling the EDH cards that aren't in decks currently, it would leave me with at least five decks still three precons, two of my own decks.

Same. It hurts me sitting on a memory jar and Necropotence|5ed in a box, just because "I really don't want to buy this again..."

On one hand, I'm sure at the lowest I can get 200-250$ (if not more) but on the other hand, it's like what if I want to use this card in a deck? I think the highest value card I have is a 3rd edition or revised Demonic Tutor if not my Enlightened Tutor


EDIT from CSI, I'm looking at $366.00 before they look and do whatever it is they do. That's only the cards that are above a dollar.

CSI? Horatio Caine is doing card valuations? 👀👀 But nah really what's the link? I could easily clear four figures if I sold out entirely.

[Magiqmaster]

I could probably get around 20K$ if I sold my entire collection. Not ready to sell yet, maybe in about 10 years or so. I wonder how bad it will have gotten by then... I will probably be able to clear my mortgage if the price hike continues like that!

[Hermes_]

Same. It hurts me sitting on a memory jar and Necropotence|5ed in a box, just because "I really don't want to buy this again..."

On one hand, I'm sure at the lowest I can get 200-250$ (if not more) but on the other hand, it's like what if I want to use this card in a deck? I think the highest value card I have is a 3rd edition or revised Demonic Tutor if not my Enlightened Tutor


EDIT from CSI, I'm looking at $366.00 before they look and do whatever it is they do. That's only the cards that are above a dollar.

CSI? Horatio Caine is doing card valuations? 👀👀 But nah really what's the link? I could easily clear four figures if I sold out entirely.

https://www.coolstuffinc.com/

[3drinks]

On one hand, I'm sure at the lowest I can get 200-250$ (if not more) but on the other hand, it's like what if I want to use this card in a deck? I think the highest value card I have is a 3rd edition or revised Demonic Tutor if not my Enlightened Tutor


EDIT from CSI, I'm looking at $366.00 before they look and do whatever it is they do. That's only the cards that are above a dollar.

CSI? Horatio Caine is doing card valuations? 👀👀 But nah really what's the link? I could easily clear four figures if I sold out entirely.

https://www.coolstuffinc.com/

Oh, them. How badly do they try to low ball you? I heard CFB was pretty bad at that too.

[Hermes_]

CSI? Horatio Caine is doing card valuations? 👀👀 But nah really what's the link? I could easily clear four figures if I sold out entirely.

https://www.coolstuffinc.com/

Oh, them. How badly do they try to low ball you? I heard CFB was pretty bad at that too.

I honestly, haven't ever done cash with them only credit and i don't look at tcg player, so i'm not the best to ask about it.

EDIT: I'm sure if they were buying demonic tutor the total would be higher

[Hawk]

I feel that same need to hoard, which also doesn't help prices if everyone does it. Like, I somehow have 3 copies of Smothering Tithe and am only playing one. Or for a reserved card that has taken off to the moon in the last two years, I'm currently not playing Metalworker anywhere and that's a quick box of boosters of a newer set right? But that niggling "what if I need it..." keeps me from selling or trading these. I wasn't using my Serra's Sanctum until 2020 when I build Heliod, but I'm sure glad I didn't trade it off three years prior when it was only like $50. My life is filled with terrible, terrible trades/sells/give-aways and my photographic memory remembers them all, so I don't wanna make the same mistake again.

Now I'm just one guy, but I think/hope I'm not alone, and that also exacerbates stuff.

[pokken]

I could probably get around 20K$ if I sold my entire collection. Not ready to sell yet, maybe in about 10 years or so. I wonder how bad it will have gotten by then... I will probably be able to clear my mortgage if the price hike continues like that!

Max that roth first

[scatteredsun]

I just went through and pulled out a bunch of extra cards I have. I'll keep one of each except for some lands and rocks but I really don't need 4 Rhystic Study's and 8 Ashnod Altars. Found 3 Tombstone Stairwells and 3 extra Enlightened Tutors. I wonder if CK will buy the near 100 Sol Rings I found

[Shabbaman]

Hi @scatteredsun, nice to see you again! Still playing Glissa?

On a personal note regarding card prices, since about 3-4 years I'm buying most of cards on MCM. It's a European website where you can buy from individual sellers (both professionals and "amateurs") and you pay only postage (unless you're using MCM as middle man). Before that card prices here were higher than US card prices, even in times when the dollar was worth more. But now the price difference is noticeable, even taking in account currency rates and VAT. Another benefit of living in Europe has since disappeared: Italian Legends (basically some sort of Chronicles) used to be worth a lot less than regular Legends. Those cards are worth... a lot as well nowadays.

[kirkusjones]

I've been having some decent luck with cardsphere. You won't get full value for your cards, but I'll take 75-80% in cash any day. Plus, when you set up your wants, you set a price threshold, so you won't pay more than you want to for something.

[scatteredsun]

Hi @scatteredsun, nice to see you again! Still playing Glissa?

On a personal note regarding card prices, since about 3-4 years I'm buying most of cards on MCM. It's a European website where you can buy from individual sellers (both professionals and "amateurs") and you pay only postage (unless you're using MCM as middle man). Before that card prices here were higher than US card prices, even in times when the dollar was worth more. But now the price difference is noticeable, even taking in account currency rates and VAT. Another benefit of living in Europe has since disappeared: Italian Legends (basically some sort of Chronicles) used to be worth a lot less than regular Legends. Those cards are worth... a lot as well nowadays.

Heh, I put together my old Mayael list but other than that been playing new decks. I tore everything apart when I moved and stopped playing a few years ago. I currently have a Glenn, the Voice of Calm voltron deck that makes me miss my Glissa list. I may have to toss it back together. Phenax/rats too.

[Rumpy5897]

Good that the thread got bumped, as there was an interesting point raised I wanted to respond to but forgot.

The deck I can build for $50 today is about 3-4 times better than one I could build on the same budget in 2012.

Yes and no.

If taking the statement literally, then yes, indeed. We've got almost a decade's worth of cards since then, with an ever rising focus of designing for EDH. There's a ton of forgotten jank which does things, and while those things are not exactly cutting edge they can come together into a serviceable deck. I second your sentiment that this side of the card pool is worth exploring. Does this outweigh staples being ~10 years less bought up? Probably. As that's ultimately higher median card quality.

However, if looking at the overall EDH environment, then I'd say no. The constant hive mind of deck construction, coupled with the very card pool inflation that makes decent budget builds possible, has drastically increased the power level at which the format operates. Add in the popularity increase and accessibility is affected, especially when it comes to narrow or desirable effects. For example, there's some amount of extra land drop redundancy being printed, but even the redundancy tends to cost money. Or for another case, I pulled apart my Eutropia the Twice-Favored deck today, and found out Nature's Will is 30 dollars now somehow.

[TheAmericanSpirit]

Good that the thread got bumped, as there was an interesting point raised I wanted to respond to but forgot.

The deck I can build for $50 today is about 3-4 times better than one I could build on the same budget in 2012.

Yes and no.

If taking the statement literally, then yes, indeed. We've got almost a decade's worth of cards since then, with an ever rising focus of designing for EDH. There's a ton of forgotten jank which does things, and while those things are not exactly cutting edge they can come together into a serviceable deck. I second your sentiment that this side of the card pool is worth exploring. Does this outweigh staples being ~10 years less bought up? Probably. As that's ultimately higher median card quality.

However, if looking at the overall EDH environment, then I'd say no. The constant hive mind of deck construction, coupled with the very card pool inflation that makes decent budget builds possible, has drastically increased the power level at which the format operates. Add in the popularity increase and accessibility is affected, especially when it comes to narrow or desirable effects. For example, there's some amount of extra land drop redundancy being printed, but even the redundancy tends to cost money. Or for another case, I pulled apart my Eutropia the Twice-Favored deck today, and found out Nature's Will is 30 dollars now somehow.

Sure, but I'd say median card quality of today's budget cardpool is the only relevant factor in budget building. Most games are not dictated by singularly powerful effects, but rather the decks' card quality in totality averaged over the course of the game. Necropotence and Sylvan library leading a pile of draft chaff will lose to a superior-by-mean-value pile pf .50 - 1.00 rares.

Price memory has also gotta go. Just because I remember when Necropotence was $7 doesn't mean it has any business being so cheap today. You can depress yourself to bits just by looking at 1960's prices for most things. No reason to focus on that, instead focus on finding the best options of today and move forward on that axis.

I'd also argue that even with 10 years of power creep, the average edh player is not taking the format as seriously as the internet may suggest. All the data available today is based on volunteered information from players invested enough to post online. There is no true format census to actually see the big picture, which radically skews the available information toward only those invested players. The silent majority of non-responsive players is far less cutthroat and progressive than we often assume, imhe.

[pokken]

Or for another case, I pulled apart my Eutropia the Twice-Favored deck today, and found out Nature's Will is 30 dollars now somehow.

Talisman of Progress is like 8 bucks Kodama's Reach maintains >$1 after a billionty printings.

While I think you can still find ways to play the game cheaply, it's getting tougher and tougher the shorter games get and the more efficient things get.

Essentially, the cardpool virtually shrinks every year, and more and more decks need a big pile of staple glue to hold them together.

I'd also argue that even with 10 years of power creep, the average edh player is not taking the format as seriously as the internet may suggest. All the data available today is based on volunteered information from players invested enough to post online. There is no true format census to actually see the big picture, which radically skews the available information toward only those invested players. The silent majority of non-responsive players is far less cutthroat and progressive than we often assume, imhe

I think it's slower with the broader majority but I am seeing a lot more Farseek and Orzhov Signet than Cultivate and Coalition Relic these days.

[3drinks]

Price memory has also gotta go. Just because I remember when Necropotence was $7 doesn't mean it has any business being so cheap today. You can depress yourself to bits just by looking at 1960's prices for most things. No reason to focus on that, instead focus on finding the best options of today and move forward on that axis.

Why? I don't see a reason for a card like Necro - banned in every format and restricted in Vintage - to be necropotence|5ed $40. The card has six printings plus a gold-border copy (that's essentially a fancy proxy). Unless I'm misreading your comment, price memory is a horrible thing and needs to go.

Or for another case, I pulled apart my Eutropia the Twice-Favored deck today, and found out Nature's Will is 30 dollars now somehow.

Talisman of Progress is like 8 bucks Kodama's Reach maintains >$1 after a billionty printings.

While I think you can still find ways to play the game cheaply, it's getting tougher and tougher the shorter games get and the more efficient things get.

Essentially, the cardpool virtually shrinks every year, and more and more decks need a big pile of staple glue to hold them together.

I'd also argue that even with 10 years of power creep, the average edh player is not taking the format as seriously as the internet may suggest. All the data available today is based on volunteered information from players invested enough to post online. There is no true format census to actually see the big picture, which radically skews the available information toward only those invested players. The silent majority of non-responsive players is far less cutthroat and progressive than we often assume, imhe

I think it's slower with the broader majority but I am seeing a lot more Farseek and Orzhov Signet than Cultivate and Coalition Relic these days.

The sooner people realize "there's no such thing as a staple", let alone in a non-sanctioned format, the better off we'll be. You don't "need" to play {card x} just because {card x} exists. Maybe if you need your fixing you need that abundance of rocks. It's funny, I had pined for years wanting enemy talismans to match my signets, now here I am in 2021 playing land tax, KotWO, Tithe, and gift of estates because there's enough incredible type duals I can use to fix and not get blown out by Vandalblast, errant Rec Sages, or Cy Rift. But ain't nobody ready for that conversation yet cause staples go brrrr. It's easy enough to build a list with what most people play, it's next level to find the tools to go over the top of that and save your card slots.

[pokken]

It's not like a tax mana base is budget it's more expensive than signets and natures lore and stuff lol

Land tax and tithe combine to like $70

[Rumpy5897]

There is no true format census to actually see the big picture, which radically skews the available information toward only those invested players. The silent majority of non-responsive players is far less cutthroat and progressive than we often assume, imhe.

From experience, the most casual groups are quite isolated on account of their casualness. Whenever I mingled with an open group, especially one attached to an LGS, the power was quite high. That already takes a certain level of enfranchisement, more than just pulling out your deck and jamming with friends every now and then. I admit my sample may be biased, as I've only lived in two towns since getting into EDH and saw all of ~5 public groups, but this was the case in all of them.

[3drinks]

It's not like a tax mana base is budget it's more expensive than signets and natures lore and stuff lol

Land tax and tithe combine to like $70

I'm in Mardu, so no Three Visits and the like here. Actually I'm not even on Land Tax right now, afaik with just five basics. Tithe, Crucible, 11x Fetches - but things that are evergreen that you'll use anywhere in any deck, and harder to interact with as opposed to some $10 2 drop rocks.

[pokken]

I'm a big believer in hitting land drops but the tech to do it is never cheap

Even thaumatic compass is several bucks now.