one million words's picture
By: one million words, Pete Jahn
Nov 03 2017 12:00pm
0
Login to post comments
4579 views


 

State of the Program for November 3rd 2017
 
In the News
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.
 
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
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
 
 
Cutting Edge Tech
 
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.
 
Esper God-Pharaoh’s Gift
Michai, Second Place, MTGO PTQ - 75 Cards Total
Creature
4 Angel of Invention
4 Champion of Wits
3 (Hostage Takers)
2 Kitesail Freebooter
4 Seekers' Squire
4 Minister of Inquiries
1 The Scarab God
3 Trophy Mage
4 Walking Ballista
16 cards

Artifact
4 Gate to the Afterlife
2 God-Pharaoh's Gift
4 cards

Sorcery
1 Chart a Course

Enchantment
1 Search for Azcanta

Land
4 Aether Hub
4 Concealed Courtyard
4 Drowned Catacomb
1 Fetid Pools
3 Ipnu Rivulet
5 Island
2 Swamp
23 cards
 

Sideboard
2 Dreamstealer
4 Fatal Push
1 Jace's Defeat
2 Kitesail Freebooter
3 Negate
1 The Scarab God
2 Vraska's Contempt
15 cards

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.
 
UR Breach
Mitchell Forst, Second Place, SCG Modern Classic Washington - 75 Cards Total
Creature
3 Snapcaster Mage
4 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
1 Vendilion Clique
8 cards

Instant
1 Izzet Charm
2 Cryptic Command
2 Electrolyze
4 Remand
4 Through the Breach
1 Peek
3 Opt
4 Lightning Bolt
21 cards
Sorcery
4 Serum Visions
4 cards

Enchantment
2 Spreading Seas
3 Blood Moon
5 cards
Land
2 Desolate Lighthouse
2 Sulfur Falls
1 Misty Rainforest
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Steam Vents
3 Polluted Delta
1 Mountain
7 Island
22 cards
 


Sideboard
2 Abrade
1 Ceremonious Rejection
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
2 Anger of the Gods
3 Young Pyromancer
1 Counterflux
2 Dispel
1 Engineered Explosives
2 Vedalken Shackles
15 cards

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
 
 
 
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: 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 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. 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. 
 
Weekly Highlights
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

Quick lands by Sensei at Fri, 11/03/2017 - 12:37
Sensei's picture

Botanical sanctum should be on the Standard list. It is played in BUG RUG energy. Canal is only played in RUG

Nothing really matters ;) by Cauchy at Sat, 11/04/2017 - 13:23
Cauchy's picture

Nothing really matters ;)

And here I was hoping the by xger at Sun, 11/05/2017 - 12:05
xger's picture

And here I was hoping the blank what really matters was a philosophical point....

Prices by GainsBanding at Sun, 11/05/2017 - 20:58
GainsBanding's picture

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 by Paul Leicht at Mon, 11/06/2017 - 04:48
Paul Leicht's picture

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 by Krommy at Wed, 11/08/2017 - 01:55
Krommy's picture

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 by Paul Leicht at Wed, 11/08/2017 - 16:17
Paul Leicht's picture

You definitely should. Beats doing nothing. :D