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By: one million words, Pete Jahn
Oct 13 2017 12:00pm
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 State of the Program for October 13th 2017

 
In the News
1v1 Commander B&R Update:   We have an update.  Wizards has banned a number of cards:     Baral, Chief of Compliance, Demonic Tutor, Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, Enlightened Tutor, Imperial Seal, Mystical Tutor, Vampiric Tutor.  Two cards -  Arcum Dagsson and Yisan, the Wanderer Bard – are unbanned.  Shaking up the format.  Info here.
                                                      
Redemption Deadline Looming:  Redemption of Dragons of Tarkir, Magic Origins, Battle for Zendikar and Oath of the Gatewatch ends November 2nd.   Amonkhet and Hour of Devastation redemption ends November 20th.   If you want to turn your digital cards from those sets into paper, redeem them now.
 
Use your MOCS QP Points:  This season ends November 1st.  Any leftover qualifying points will be removed form accounts at that time.  Last chance to use your QPs is October 21st.    
 
Magic Coverage:  If you want to plan your Magic viewing (best done while drafting MTGO on one screen and Twitch.tv on a second), check out this article.  It details coverage for all of October, including Worlds and US Nats.    
 
The Timeline
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
Oct. 25th, Nov. 15th & 29th  
No Downtime Scheduled
Oct. 18th, Nov. 8th & 22nd 
Standard MOCS Monthly
October 21st
Constructed Leagues End (maybe)
October 18, 2017  (B&R announcement)
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
October 17, 2017
DTK, ORI, BFZ & OGW Redemption Ends
November 2, 2017
AKH and HOU Redemption Ends
November 20, 2017
SOI and EMN Redemption Closes
April 28, 2018
 
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
(break for Ixalan limited)
September 25th
October 25th
???
October 25th
November 1st
???
November 1st
November 8th
???
November 8th
November 15th
Iconic Masters
November 17th
???
 
The new 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. 
 
 
Cutting Edge Tech
 
Standard:  Huey Jensen stomped the field at Worlds, so the choice of deck to feature is obvious. 

Modern: 
Biggest paper event I could find this week was a 44 player PPTQ at Central City Comics.
 

Legacy
:  I found some decklists for last weekend’s Legacy Challenge.   I find that hard to do – if Wizards puts them on their website, neither Google nor I can find them. 
 
Eldrazi Aggro
TonyMontana, Winner, Legacy Challenge - 75 Cards Total
Creature
4 Eldrazi Mimic
2 Endbringer
4 Endless One
4 Matter Reshaper
4 Reality Smasher
3 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Thought-Knot Seer
2 Walking Ballista
27 cards

Instant
2 Dismember
2 cards
Artifact
4 Chalice of the Void
2 Umezawa's Jitte
6 cards
Land
4 Ancient Tomb
4 Cavern of Souls
2 City of Traitors
4 Eldrazi Temple
4 Eye of Ugin
3 Mishra's Factory
4 Wasteland
25 cards


Sideboard
1 Dismember
1 All Is Dust
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Ratchet Bomb
4 Thorn of Amethyst
3 Warping Wail
15 cards

Vintage
:  The VSL “Brewer’s League” is underway.  The rules state that players cannot repeat decks, so we are seeing some interesting decks.  This week’s deck was selected because it features Ixalan cards.   Also, great name.
 
Card Prices
 
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:  The format has rotated.  This list seems so small – and it will get smaller next week.  At least the prices are not falling as badly this week.
 
Standard Cards
Price
Last Week
Change
% Change
$3.70
$6.90
($3.20)
-46%
$6.23
$8.48
($2.25)
-27%
$40.45
$32.81
$7.64
23%
$6.41
$4.81
$1.60
33%
$8.79
$12.46
($3.67)
-29%
$15.27
$11.21
$4.06
36%
$8.30
$8.72
($0.42)
-5%
$4.70
$8.68
($3.98)
-46%
Huatli, Dinosaur Knight
$5.35
$5.35
$0.00
0%
$9.79
$8.09
$1.70
21%
$46.83
$40.25
$6.58
16%
$27.26
$21.39
$5.87
27%
$11.42
$7.89
$3.53
45%
$10.43
$15.67
($5.24)
-33%
Modern staples:   Modern prices took a huge hit last week.  This week is not as bad.  A big hit.  Iconic Masters is one cause, and people are playing lots of limited while they collect the new set.  It will be interesting to see what happens next week.     
 
Modern Cards
Price
Last Week
Change
% Change
$14.25
$17.22
($2.97)
-17%
$15.91
$19.01
($3.10)
-16%
$23.33
$23.96
($0.63)
-3%
$30.58
$32.40
($1.82)
-6%
$16.53
$17.90
($1.37)
-8%
$12.66
$9.42
$3.24
34%
$18.17
$16.99
$1.18
7%
$22.41
$23.81
($1.40)
-6%
$28.59
$31.56
($2.97)
-9%
$10.99
$11.31
($0.32)
-3%
$17.81
$15.51
$2.30
15%
$27.30
$31.56
($4.26)
-13%
$69.58
$77.41
($7.83)
-10%
$22.70
$25.41
($2.71)
-11%
$7.19
$7.88
($0.69)
-9%
$44.51
$51.29
($6.78)
-13%
$15.46
$15.09
$0.37
2%
$23.03
$23.20
($0.17)
-1%
$26.04
$22.43
$3.61
16%
$18.42
$23.48
($5.06)
-22%
$23.78
$24.90
($1.12)
-4%
$9.63
$9.37
$0.26
3%
Legacy and Vintage:  Vintage prices dropped again this week, and Legacy went down as well. Fairly serious drops in many cases.  
 
Legacy / Vintage Cards
Price
Last Week
Change
% Change
$50.82
$55.89
($5.07)
-9%
$19.09
$17.95
$1.14
6%
$26.67
$31.35
($4.68)
-15%
$94.88
$93.71
$1.17
1%
$33.17
$31.35
$1.82
6%
$38.01
$38.07
($0.06)
0%
$16.22
$18.58
($2.36)
-13%
$27.44
$26.43
$1.01
4%
$23.52
$24.60
($1.08)
-4%
$34.75
$36.38
($1.63)
-4%
$41.94
$42.23
($0.29)
-1%
$47.46
$49.07
($1.61)
-3%
$24.60
$29.23
($4.63)
-16%
$33.43
$37.86
($4.43)
-12%
$132.97
$138.97
($6.00)
-4%
$26.60
$28.19
($1.59)
-6%
$26.92
$30.48
($3.56)
-12%
$27.30
$34.47
($7.17)
-21%
$26.00
$25.89
$0.11
0%
$18.07
$21.19
($3.12)
-15%
$39.04
$40.03
($0.99)
-2%
 
* 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).  The price for Ixalan has dropped.  That always happens – the first couple days everyone is scrambling for cards.  After that, prices revert to realistic levels.       
 
Complete Set
Price
Last Week
Change
% Change
Aether Revolt
$73.64
$85.00
($11.36)
-13%
Amonkhet
$93.02
$87.72
$5.30
6%
Ixalan
$72.82
$87.55
($14.73)
-17%
Hour of Devastation
$84.44
$77.06
$7.38
10%
Kaladesh
$144.38
$125.31
$19.07
15%
Treasure Chest
$2.25
$2.46
($0.21)
-9%
Ixalan Booster
$3.40
$3.41
($0.01)
0%
 
 
The Good Stuff
 
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.  Two weeks ago the Power Nine (except Timetwister) made it back on the list.  This week, the last of them (except for Black Lotus) fell back. 
 
Name
Set
Rarity
 Price
Rishadan Port
 MM
Rare
 $ 132.97
Exploration
 UZ
Rare
 $   94.88
Liliana of the Veil
 ISD
Mythic Rare
 $   71.36
Liliana of the Veil
 MM3
Mythic Rare
 $   69.58
Mox Diamond
 TPR
Mythic Rare
 $   56.87
The Scarab God
 MS3
Special
 $   51.38
Black Lotus
 VMA
Bonus
 $   50.82
Mox Diamond
 ST
Rare
 $   50.50
Mox Opal
 MS2
Bonus
 $   50.33
Mox Opal
 SOM
Mythic Rare
 $   49.21
Mox Diamond
 V10
Mythic Rare
 $   47.46
The Scarab God
 HOU
Mythic Rare
 $   46.83
Mox Opal
 MM2
Mythic Rare
 $   44.51
Wasteland
 EXP
Mythic Rare
 $   42.71
Misdirection
 MM
Rare
 $   41.94
Force of Will
 MED
Rare
 $   41.22
Chandra, Torch of Defiance
 KLD
Mythic Rare
 $   40.45
Wasteland
 TPR
Rare
 $   40.43
Wasteland
 TE
Uncommon
 $   39.70
Dark Depths
 V16
Mythic Rare
 $   39.38
Wasteland
 EMA
Rare
 $   39.04
Force of Will
 EMA
Mythic Rare
 $   38.41
Gaea's Cradle
 UZ
Rare
 $   38.01
Unmask
 V16
Mythic Rare
 $   35.65
Leovold, Emissary of Trest
 PZ2
Mythic Rare
 $   34.75
Ensnaring Bridge
 7E
Rare
 $   34.06
Chalice of the Void
 MS2
Bonus
 $   34.02
Force of Will
 VMA
Rare
 $   34.00
Mystic Confluence
 PZ1
Rare
 $   33.43
Force of Will
 MS3
Special
 $   33.17
Underground Sea
 ME4
Rare
 $   32.21
Ensnaring Bridge
 ST
Rare
 $   32.20
True-Name Nemesis
 C13
Rare
 $   31.66
Ensnaring Bridge
 MS2
Bonus
 $   30.89
Chalice of the Void
 MMA
Rare
 $   30.87
Underground Sea
 ME2
Rare
 $   30.62
Chalice of the Void
 MRD
Rare
 $   30.58
Scalding Tarn
 EXP
Mythic Rare
 $   30.35
Horizon Canopy
 EXP
Mythic Rare
 $   29.64
Volcanic Island
 ME3
Rare
 $   29.04
Ensnaring Bridge
 8ED
Rare
 $   28.59
Torrential Gearhulk
 MS2
Bonus
 $   28.52
Karn Liberated
 NPH
Mythic Rare
 $   27.62
Volcanic Island
 ME4
Rare
 $   27.47
Infernal Tutor
 DIS
Rare
 $   27.44
Gorilla Shaman
 ALL
Common
 $   27.32
Karn Liberated
 MM2
Mythic Rare
 $   27.30
True-Name Nemesis
 PZ1
Mythic Rare
 $   27.30
Torrential Gearhulk
 KLD
Mythic Rare
 $   27.26
Tempt with Discovery
 C13
Rare
 $   26.92
Dark Depths
 CSP
Rare
 $   26.67
Show and Tell
 UZ
Rare
 $   26.60
City of Traitors
 EX
Rare
 $   26.23
Scapeshift
 MOR
Rare
 $   26.04
Unmask
 MM
Rare
 $   26.00
Tarmogoyf
 FUT
Rare
 $   25.96
 
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 $ 20,910.  That’s down about $1,525 from last week.  Blame the Modern price drops.
 
Weekly Highlights
 
Worlds was impressive.  The coverage was pretty solid.  And since I was routing for William Jensen, I quite enjoyed the ending.
 
PRJ
 
“One Million Words” on MTGO
 
 
This series is an ongoing tribute to Erik “Hamtastic” Friborg.
 
 
I

1 Comments

The missing flashback weeks by SteveJeltz at Fri, 10/13/2017 - 18:26
SteveJeltz's picture

The missing flashback weeks are: 3x INN; INN standard; 3x Lorwyn