State of the Program for November 3rd 2017
Magic Coverage: This weekend Wizards will broadcast the Pro Tour. Actually, it is probably broadcasting as this article goes live.
A New(er) Standard Gauntlet: Wizards has announced the final throwback Gauntlet, featuring more recent decks. (Remember Theros? Remember Siege Rhino and Collected Company?) It begins November 8th. More info, including decklists, is available
here. Later this fall, Wizards will bring us the “Gauntlet of Greatness” featuring the best preforming decks from the entire Throwback season.
Redemption Ending Soon: Redemption for Amonkhet and Hour of Devastation ends November 20th. If you want to turn your digital cards from those sets into paper, redeem them now.
This is a list of things we have been promised, or we just want to see coming back. Another good source for dates and times is the
calendar and the weekly blog, while the best source for known bugs is the bug blog which appears sporadically on MTGO.com. Not listed, but important: Wizards offers either one or two online PTQs each weekend, with qualifiers running the three days prior to the PTQ.
Upcoming Events
|
Timing
|
Extended Downtime
|
Nov. 15th & 29th
|
No Downtime Scheduled
|
Nov. 8th & 22nd
|
Constructed Leagues End (maybe)
|
January 15, 2018
|
Sealed Leagues End
|
January 15, 2018
|
Iconic Masters
|
November 17, 2017
|
Rivals of Ixalan
|
January 21, 2018
|
Core Set Magic 2019
|
July 20, 2018
|
Commander 2017 details here.
|
November 2017 on MTGO
|
25th Anniversary Edition Masters
|
March 16, 2018
|
Next B&R Announcement
|
January 15, 2018
|
AKH and HOU Redemption Ends
|
November 22, 2017
|
SOI and EMN Redemption Ends
|
April 28, 2018
|
Ixalan Redemption Ends
|
May 23, 2018
|
Rivals of Ixalan Redemption Ends
|
May 23, 2018
|
2018 Magic Online Championship Series
Complete details, including schedule, rules, and which online events qualify you for which online or paper events is
here. Here are the main dates for the next quarter:
Event Date
|
Event Type
|
Event Format
|
Invites
|
Sunday, November 26
|
Monthly
|
Ixalan Sealed
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Saturday, December 16
|
Monthly
|
Standard
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Friday, December 29
|
Monthly
|
Ixalan Sealed
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Saturday, December 30
|
Open
|
Ixalan Sealed
|
Magic Online Championship, Pro Tour Dominaria, PT Challenge at Pro Tour Dominaria
|
Saturday, January 6
|
Open
|
Ixalan Sealed
|
Magic Online Championship, Pro Tour Dominaria, PT Challenge at Pro Tour Dominaria
|
Sunday, January 7
|
Monthly
|
Modern
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Saturday, January 27
|
Monthly
|
Standard
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Sunday, January 28
|
Monthly
|
Ixalan-Rivals of Ixalan Sealed
|
February 10 MOCS Playoff
|
Saturday, February 10
|
Playoff
|
Standard
|
Magic Online Championship, Pro Tour Dominaria, PT Challenge at Pro Tour Dominaria
|
Magic Online Format Challenges
These are high stakes events that happen every weekend. They cost 25 Tix / 250 play points, and last a number of rounds based on participation (assume 5-8), plus a single elimination Top 8. Details, including prize payouts, are here. Start times are:
Event Type
|
Start Time
|
|
Saturday, 8:00 am PT
|
|
Saturday, 10:00 am PT
|
|
Saturday, 12:00 pm PT
|
|
Sunday, 8:00 am PT
|
|
Sunday, 10:00 am PT
|
Flashback, Throwback Standard and CUBE for 2017
Wizards will be offering either a flashback draft league, a flashback Standard gauntlet, a CUBE league or prerelease / Release events each week. Here’s the schedule so far.
Flashback and Such Rotation
|
Begins
|
Ends
|
Innistrad Era Standard
|
November 1st
|
November 8th
|
Recent Past Standard Gauntlet
|
November 8th
|
November 15th
|
Iconic Masters
|
November 17th
|
???
|
Standard Gauntlet of Greatness
|
???
|
???
|
The Flashback Leagues are still draft, and still you-keep-the-cards. They are 12 TIX / product plus 2 TIX / 120 Play Points. However, they are no longer single elimination. Now you play until you have three wins or two losses. Prizes are 240 play points for three wins and 80 Play points for 2 wins. The leagues run one week.
The Throwback Standard Gauntlet events provide a random choice of prebuilt decks from a past standard environment. These will function like the Pro Tour Gauntlets – you won’t need to own the cards. The entry fee is 10 TIX or 100 Play Points. Prizes are in Play Points: 150 for 3-0, 100 for 2-1, 40 for 1-2 and 10 play points as a bad beats award.
Opinion Section: What Really Matters
|
Standard: We had an online PTQ last weekend. The winning deck was Ramunap Red, and we saw lots of other Ramunap red and Temur Energy decks throughout the
Top 32. The most interesting (as in not Ramunap Red and not something Energy) was the archetype finishing second and fourth.
Modern: SCG ran a Modern Classic last weekend. Humans again captured first place. Since I featured humans last week, here’s second place. The Top 16 is
here.
Legacy: SCG ran a Legacy Open last weekend, and 535 players showed up. The Top 32 is
here – and it is diverse. Well, diverse in that it had a bunch of decks, half of which had Delver of Secrets. No secret that card is good.
Vintage: Eternal Weekend was last weekend, and featured a lot of Shops. It also saw a bunch of Oath, which is supposed to prey on Shops. Decklists and coverage for Vintage Champs are
here.
Note: all my prices come from the fine folks at
MTGOTraders.com. These are retail prices, and generally the price of the lowest priced, actively traded version. (Prices for some rare promo versions are not updated when not in stock, so I skip those.) You can get these cards at
MTGOTraders.com web store, or from their bots: MTGOTradersBot(#) (they have bots 1-10), CardCaddy and CardWareHouse, or sell cards to MTGOTradersBuyBot(#) (they have buybots 1-4). I have bought cards from MTGOTraders for over a decade now, and have never been overcharged or disappointed.
Standard staples: Standard prices are fairly weak across the board. Other than lands and a handful of Mythics, nothing has much real value.
Standard Cards
|
Price
|
Last Week
|
Change
|
% Change
|
|
$7.81
|
$8.90
|
($1.09)
|
-12%
|
|
$10.49
|
$11.90
|
($1.41)
|
-12%
|
|
$37.41
|
$33.86
|
$3.55
|
10%
|
|
$5.38
|
$6.49
|
($1.11)
|
-17%
|
|
$10.82
|
$10.33
|
$0.49
|
5%
|
|
$17.29
|
$15.42
|
$1.87
|
12%
|
|
$12.48
|
$12.50
|
($0.02)
|
0%
|
|
$8.91
|
$10.71
|
($1.80)
|
-17%
|
|
$44.60
|
$46.26
|
($1.66)
|
-4%
|
|
$19.99
|
$19.12
|
$0.87
|
5%
|
|
$15.02
|
$14.76
|
$0.26
|
2%
|
|
$12.87
|
$12.28
|
$0.59
|
5%
|
Modern staples: Modern prices are back to normal now. Not a lot of change – except for cards people need if they want to jump on the Humans bandwagon.
Modern Cards
|
Price
|
Last Week
|
Change
|
% Change
|
|
$14.33
|
$14.46
|
($0.13)
|
-1%
|
|
$32.95
|
$25.44
|
$7.51
|
30%
|
|
$21.61
|
$26.32
|
($4.71)
|
-18%
|
|
$34.09
|
$31.23
|
$2.86
|
9%
|
|
$18.33
|
$20.84
|
($2.51)
|
-12%
|
|
$14.41
|
$11.10
|
$3.31
|
30%
|
|
$19.59
|
$15.81
|
$3.78
|
24%
|
|
$26.02
|
$24.77
|
$1.25
|
5%
|
|
$27.83
|
$28.62
|
($0.79)
|
-3%
|
|
$27.32
|
$22.39
|
$4.93
|
22%
|
|
$32.78
|
$29.04
|
$3.74
|
13%
|
|
$57.64
|
$60.44
|
($2.80)
|
-5%
|
|
$27.02
|
$22.21
|
$4.81
|
22%
|
|
$53.20
|
$47.94
|
$5.26
|
11%
|
|
$27.91
|
$20.62
|
$7.29
|
35%
|
|
$26.85
|
$25.86
|
$0.99
|
4%
|
|
$21.87
|
$28.00
|
($6.13)
|
-22%
|
|
$18.39
|
$17.86
|
$0.53
|
3%
|
|
$22.21
|
$21.42
|
$0.79
|
4%
|
|
$10.42
|
$10.46
|
($0.04)
|
0%
|
Legacy and Vintage: Vintage and Legacy prices are back to a more normal level of churn. It looks like Rishadan Port is finally heading down closer to its
badly framed cousin. Still, that price drop hurts, especially if you had several copies.
Legacy / Vintage Cards
|
Price
|
Last Week
|
Change
|
% Change
|
|
$51.87
|
$50.80
|
$1.07
|
2%
|
|
$20.96
|
$21.14
|
($0.18)
|
-1%
|
|
$18.44
|
$17.79
|
$0.65
|
4%
|
|
$92.00
|
$94.24
|
($2.24)
|
-2%
|
|
$37.11
|
$35.07
|
$2.04
|
6%
|
|
$38.05
|
$38.05
|
$0.00
|
0%
|
|
$23.41
|
$28.73
|
($5.32)
|
-19%
|
|
$25.67
|
$22.39
|
$3.28
|
15%
|
|
$33.21
|
$34.55
|
($1.34)
|
-4%
|
|
$41.24
|
$41.24
|
$0.00
|
0%
|
|
$25.87
|
$29.89
|
($4.02)
|
-13%
|
|
$30.02
|
$23.37
|
$6.65
|
28%
|
|
$19.08
|
$23.91
|
($4.83)
|
-20%
|
|
$85.21
|
$112.53
|
($27.32)
|
-24%
|
|
$21.17
|
$23.30
|
($2.13)
|
-9%
|
|
$17.86
|
$20.50
|
($2.64)
|
-13%
|
|
$33.89
|
$29.28
|
$4.61
|
16%
|
|
$24.32
|
$23.75
|
$0.57
|
2%
|
|
$21.19
|
$20.80
|
$0.39
|
2%
|
|
$33.15
|
$35.65
|
($2.50)
|
-7%
|
* A significantly cheaper promo version of Rishadan Port is available, but I do not include promos prices on the table. MTGO has over 900 promo cards on the list, and occasionally those cards are sold out for months at a time, so their prices do not reflect the market price. I tried checking numbers in stock, but 900+ is too many.
Standard Legal Sets: This table tracks the cost of a single copy of every card in each Standard legal set, plus Treasure Chests and the current booster pack. I’ll keep tracking these because they are interesting (at least to me).
Complete Set
|
Price
|
Last Week
|
Change
|
% Change
|
Aether Revolt
|
$86.87
|
$86.36
|
$0.51
|
1%
|
Amonkhet
|
$95.23
|
$91.27
|
$3.96
|
4%
|
Ixalan
|
$82.97
|
$79.88
|
$3.09
|
4%
|
Hour of Devastation
|
$81.59
|
$83.51
|
($1.92)
|
-2%
|
Kaladesh
|
$138.28
|
$134.91
|
$3.37
|
2%
|
Treasure Chest
|
$2.15
|
$2.17
|
($0.02)
|
-1%
|
Ixalan Booster
|
$3.31
|
$3.33
|
($0.02)
|
-1%
|
The following is a list of all the non-promo, non-foil cards on MTGO that retail for more than $25 per card. These are the big ticket items in the world of MTGO. For the first time in a long time, nothing is above a hundred bucks. Also, Exploration has moved to the top of the list – Rishadan Port is moving closer to the price of the promo version.
Name
|
Set
|
Rarity
|
Price
|
Exploration
|
UZ
|
Rare
|
$ 92.00
|
Rishadan Port
|
MM
|
Rare
|
$ 85.21
|
Liliana of the Veil
|
MM3
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 59.21
|
Liliana of the Veil
|
ISD
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 57.64
|
Mox Opal
|
SOM
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 54.41
|
Mox Diamond
|
TPR
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 53.48
|
Mox Opal
|
MS2
|
Bonus
|
$ 53.29
|
Mox Opal
|
MM2
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 53.20
|
Black Lotus
|
VMA
|
Bonus
|
$ 51.95
|
Mox Diamond
|
ST
|
Rare
|
$ 50.08
|
The Scarab God
|
MS3
|
Special
|
$ 46.57
|
The Scarab God
|
HOU
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 44.60
|
Misdirection
|
MM
|
Rare
|
$ 41.24
|
Force of Will
|
MS3
|
Special
|
$ 40.64
|
Force of Will
|
MED
|
Rare
|
$ 40.63
|
Force of Will
|
EMA
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 38.35
|
Gaea's Cradle
|
UZ
|
Rare
|
$ 38.05
|
Wasteland
|
TE
|
Uncommon
|
$ 37.57
|
Wasteland
|
TPR
|
Rare
|
$ 37.52
|
Chandra, Torch of Defiance
|
KLD
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 37.41
|
Force of Will
|
VMA
|
Rare
|
$ 37.11
|
Dark Depths
|
V16
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 36.52
|
Chalice of the Void
|
MS2
|
Bonus
|
$ 36.08
|
True-Name Nemesis
|
C13
|
Rare
|
$ 35.86
|
Wasteland
|
EMA
|
Rare
|
$ 35.46
|
Unmask
|
V16
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 35.32
|
Cavern of Souls
|
MM3
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 34.32
|
Chalice of the Void
|
MMA
|
Rare
|
$ 34.17
|
Chalice of the Void
|
MRD
|
Rare
|
$ 34.09
|
True-Name Nemesis
|
PZ1
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 33.89
|
Karn Liberated
|
MM2
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 33.23
|
Leovold, Emissary of Trest
|
PZ2
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 33.21
|
Wasteland
|
EXP
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 33.15
|
Cavern of Souls
|
AVR
|
Rare
|
$ 32.95
|
Karn Liberated
|
NPH
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 32.78
|
Underground Sea
|
ME2
|
Rare
|
$ 31.64
|
Horizon Canopy
|
FUT
|
Rare
|
$ 30.73
|
Underground Sea
|
ME4
|
Rare
|
$ 30.32
|
Mox Sapphire
|
VMA
|
Bonus
|
$ 30.02
|
Ensnaring Bridge
|
8ED
|
Rare
|
$ 29.55
|
Scalding Tarn
|
EXP
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 29.46
|
Noble Hierarch
|
MM2
|
Rare
|
$ 28.20
|
Ensnaring Bridge
|
ST
|
Rare
|
$ 28.04
|
Underground Sea
|
VMA
|
Rare
|
$ 27.99
|
Ensnaring Bridge
|
7E
|
Rare
|
$ 27.97
|
Noble Hierarch
|
CON
|
Rare
|
$ 27.91
|
Ensnaring Bridge
|
MS2
|
Bonus
|
$ 27.83
|
Volcanic Island
|
ME4
|
Rare
|
$ 27.35
|
Gorilla Shaman
|
ALL
|
Common
|
$ 27.34
|
Horizon Canopy
|
EXP
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 27.32
|
Engineered Explosives
|
5DN
|
Rare
|
$ 27.03
|
Liliana, the Last Hope
|
EMN
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 27.02
|
Scalding Tarn
|
MM3
|
Rare
|
$ 26.97
|
Scalding Tarn
|
ZEN
|
Rare
|
$ 26.85
|
Engineered Explosives
|
MS2
|
Bonus
|
$ 26.78
|
Engineered Explosives
|
MMA
|
Rare
|
$ 26.02
|
Mox Diamond
|
V10
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 25.87
|
Volcanic Island
|
ME3
|
Rare
|
$ 25.71
|
Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
|
ORI
|
Mythic Rare
|
$ 25.67
|
The big number is the retail price of a playset (4 copies) of every card available on MTGO. Assuming you bought the least expensive versions available, the cost of owning a playset of every card on MTGO is approximately $ 20,070. That’s up about $360 from last week.
For the first time in two months, I will not be judging any Magic events this weekend. I will be at Teslacon, instead, living in a world where the Sci Fi of Jules Verne is real. It will be awesome.
On the not so upside, Word managed to corrupt this article in a weird way. I had to dump and rebuild it from scratch twice. I had to rewrite most of it, so I apologize if I missed anything. I also apologize for the missing opinion section – that will require more work, so look for it next week.
PRJ
“One Million Words” on MTGO
This series is an ongoing tribute to Erik “Hamtastic” Friborg.
HammyBot Super Sale: HammyBot was set up to sell off Erik Friborg’s collection, with all proceeds going to his wife and son. So far, HammyBot has raised over $8,000, but there are a lot of cards left in the collection. Those cards are being sold at MTGOTrader’s Buy Price.
7 Comments
Botanical sanctum should be on the Standard list. It is played in BUG RUG energy. Canal is only played in RUG
Nothing really matters ;)
And here I was hoping the blank what really matters was a philosophical point....
I sold out almost 2 years ago, but I check in occasionally to look at prices cause I still have a few cards in my account. What happened? Nothing seems to be worth anything anymore. Alpha duals have never recovered from their 2014 price drop when VMA came out. Some early Modern cards like from Mirrodin and Kamagawa block are under $1 when they used to be close to $10. I guess I'm glad I sold out when I did. Is MTGO having a dry spell?
Every 3-6 months wizards does something that shakes the confidence of the populace and there is a hysterical mass selloff. Prices drop because of this and continue dropping until the sell off stops...3 mos later the prices start climbing again. Lather, Rinse, Repeat.
The prices of Power have been depressed and remain depressed because of a number of factors that aren't entirely clear but mostly because Treasure Chests make them much more available than one might think based on the old posts of (ex-employee) Worth regarding giving them their due.
The duals have seen print a number of times with VMA just being the latest. Volcanic and Underground Sea sometimes get as high as 35 tix. Then they drop. Apparently speculators keep selling off when the amount gets to certain level and then the prices drop again into the low 20s.
As for others, WHICH cards are high depend a lot on what's being played.
I sold out 5 years ago when I was running 6 bots. Looks like a ton has changed. I was going to come back and start playing and run bots again because I have some free time again. Everything has me on edge.
You definitely should. Beats doing nothing. :D