Investing In the Long Run: Standard

Liliana of the Veil is another $$$ card
This card is up to $47 right know.
It sees standard, modern, and legacy play. O_O.
B4 reading this article i had bought
Abrupt decay x20 back when it was down to under $5.00. This card is now $7.64, and it will hit close to $15.
Deathrite Shaman is super awsome and sees play in three formats as well. Everytime i win a my local fnm i turn my credit into shamans lilianas or decays.
Snapcaster mage is a hell of a card. Got a play set of those but i want much more. :-)
Zendikar fetch lands are a must, especially misty rainforest $34 O_O.
Sweet info
Later

Hey everyone! I thought I would write a nice article for you guys. I'd like to discuss a pretty interesting topic that can hopefully help you guys make a bit of value on your cards in the long run. Some of what I'll write might seem obvious to you, some hopefully will not. This information is purely speculation, however. Bear in mind this is my first article, give me feedback!

Without further ado, I give you:

Investing In the Long Run: Standard

There are a plethora of good cards that I think will increase given time. Cards we have access to in standard. Cards we can easily open in boosters at affordable prices. The following are cards I think will increase after they rotate out of Standard and become solely useful in the Eternal formats.

First up. Deathrite Shaman.
This card is probably one of the most versatile one drops ever printed. He fixes mana, puts the game on a clock, and pulls your life total far ahead. Currently, he is a strong contender in Modern, a format oppressively ruled over by Jund, where the Shaman rests comfortably as a four of in almost every Jund deck out there. I think Rest in Peace was printed to limit the Deathrite Shaman's graveyard shenanigans, but it simply isn't working.
While it will be a while before he rotates out, as long as Jund is strong in Modern, there will be a high demand for the creepy little wizard.

Next up: Snapcaster Mage

What doesn't this guy do? Flashy chump blocker, at the least. His ability of granting flashback means blue mages get real bang for their buck. He's played in both Legacy and Modern. Why is he so good? He simply gives you so many answers to whatever your opponent plays. Did they just play a Dark Confidant? You can cast Snapcaster Mage into a timely Counterspell. Crisis averted. Blue is a strong color in Legacy, and while not every blue Mage uses good old Tiago, he is in tons of blue decks and will continue to be blue's favorite creature. Expect him to drop slightly when he rotates out, when standard players try to get rid of their playsets. Buy them up at that point, because they will go up a few months after.

Next: Abrupt Decay
A 2 drop which gets rid of Tarmogoyf, Dark Confidant, and Goblin Piledriver? Count me in!
I think the reason this card went down after release is that it just isn't relevant in standard right now. I think if decks using Delver of Secrets were still prevalent then Abrupt Decay could see some use. It's much more relevant in Modern in Legacy, as it gets rid of so many cards. It's another strong removal tool for Jund decks. Its price should go up a few dollars, but not as much as the previously mentioned cards. The uncounterable aspect of it is very useful in Legacy with the prevalence of blue based decks.

Finally:
Shocklands!
All of them. They will go up. While they may be a reprint, the fact of the matter is that your mana base really makes or breaks your deck. Modern, unlike legacy, doesn't have access to dual lands of the power level of Volcanic Island or Taiga, and with a few exceptions, the Ravnica shocklands are the best Modern has. Easily fetched with fetchlands like Arid Mesa, the reprint of shocklands leaves us lucky players with a golden investment opportunity. Expect these cards to always stay below their older counterparts, but they will increase in time as their predecessors have.

One more addiction:
Delver of Secrets
What a broken card! He is played in legacy in the form of RUG Delved and U/R Delver decks. The amount of cards available that can flip him in Legacy is absurd. He may be a common, but I guarantee he will increase. Get foils, if you can!

Notable cards which I don't think will go up:
Thragtusk- he's only worth so much ecayae of how well positioned he is in the current meta.
Lingering Souls B/W just isn't that strong outside of standard, and the spirits aren't relevant considering the amount of removal we have access to in eternal formats.
Bonfire of the Damned- a nice card in standard, but the fact of the matter is that tapping out for this in Legacy or Modern, with the truly absurd amounts of counterspells, just hurts. Really bad. There are better and more efficient burn cards, and the only reason this card holds value in standard is the lack of counterspells and the power of the miracle mechanic.
Geralf's Messenger- zombies is not a strong archetype out of Standard, and his abilities are nicely counteracted by a timely Kitchen Finks. Ouch!

Thanks for reading everyone, and happy holidays!

Liliana of the Veil is another $$$ card
This card is up to $47 right know.
It sees standard, modern, and legacy play. O_O.
B4 reading this article i had bought
Abrupt decay x20 back when it was down to under $5.00. This card is now $7.64, and it will hit close to $15.
Deathrite Shaman is super awsome and sees play in three formats as well. Everytime i win a my local fnm i turn my credit into shamans lilianas or decays.
Snapcaster mage is a hell of a card. Got a play set of those but i want much more. :-)
Zendikar fetch lands are a must, especially misty rainforest $34 O_O.
Sweet info
Later

Quote from: Xaol on December 23, 2012, 09:44:13 PM

Hey everyone! I thought I would write a nice article for you guys. I'd like to discuss a pretty interesting topic that can hopefully help you guys make a bit of value on your cards in the long run. Some of what I'll write might seem obvious to you, some hopefully will not. This information is purely speculation, however. Bear in mind this is my first article, give me feedback!

Without further ado, I give you:

Investing In the Long Run: Standard

There are a plethora of good cards that I think will increase given time. Cards we have access to in standard. Cards we can easily open in boosters at affordable prices. The following are cards I think will increase after they rotate out of Standard and become solely useful in the Eternal formats.

First up. Deathrite Shaman.
This card is probably one of the most versatile one drops ever printed. He fixes mana, puts the game on a clock, and pulls your life total far ahead. Currently, he is a strong contender in Modern, a format oppressively ruled over by Jund, where the Shaman rests comfortably as a four of in almost every Jund deck out there. I think Rest in Peace was printed to limit the Deathrite Shaman's graveyard shenanigans, but it simply isn't working.
While it will be a while before he rotates out, as long as Jund is strong in Modern, there will be a high demand for the creepy little wizard.

Next up: Snapcaster Mage

What doesn't this guy do? Flashy chump blocker, at the least. His ability of granting flashback means blue mages get real bang for their buck. He's played in both Legacy and Modern. Why is he so good? He simply gives you so many answers to whatever your opponent plays. Did they just play a Dark Confidant? You can cast Snapcaster Mage into a timely Counterspell. Crisis averted. Blue is a strong color in Legacy, and while not every blue Mage uses good old Tiago, he is in tons of blue decks and will continue to be blue's favorite creature. Expect him to drop slightly when he rotates out, when standard players try to get rid of their playsets. Buy them up at that point, because they will go up a few months after.

Next: Abrupt Decay
A 2 drop which gets rid of Tarmogoyf, Dark Confidant, and Goblin Piledriver? Count me in!
I think the reason this card went down after release is that it just isn't relevant in standard right now. I think if decks using Delver of Secrets were still prevalent then Abrupt Decay could see some use. It's much more relevant in Modern in Legacy, as it gets rid of so many cards. It's another strong removal tool for Jund decks. Its price should go up a few dollars, but not as much as the previously mentioned cards. The uncounterable aspect of it is very useful in Legacy with the prevalence of blue based decks.

Finally:
Shocklands!
All of them. They will go up. While they may be a reprint, the fact of the matter is that your mana base really makes or breaks your deck. Modern, unlike legacy, doesn't have access to dual lands of the power level of Volcanic Island or Taiga, and with a few exceptions, the Ravnica shocklands are the best Modern has. Easily fetched with fetchlands like Arid Mesa, the reprint of shocklands leaves us lucky players with a golden investment opportunity. Expect these cards to always stay below their older counterparts, but they will increase in time as their predecessors have.

One more addiction:
Delver of Secrets
What a broken card! He is played in legacy in the form of RUG Delved and U/R Delver decks. The amount of cards available that can flip him in Legacy is absurd. He may be a common, but I guarantee he will increase. Get foils, if you can!

Notable cards which I don't think will go up:
Thragtusk- he's only worth so much ecayae of how well positioned he is in the current meta.
Lingering Souls B/W just isn't that strong outside of standard, and the spirits aren't relevant considering the amount of removal we have access to in eternal formats.
Bonfire of the Damned- a nice card in standard, but the fact of the matter is that tapping out for this in Legacy or Modern, with the truly absurd amounts of counterspells, just hurts. Really bad. There are better and more efficient burn cards, and the only reason this card holds value in standard is the lack of counterspells and the power of the miracle mechanic.
Geralf's Messenger- zombies is not a strong archetype out of Standard, and his abilities are nicely counteracted by a timely Kitchen Finks. Ouch!

Thanks for reading everyone, and happy holidays!

Happy to help!

Awesome article. Thank you.

Awesome article. Thank you.

No problem! It's a bit out of date, but most of the information is still relevant.

dude, I don't think delver ever increased in price or play much, but I want one for my blue-red deck thanks for the article, and btw most info here is still to date.

Another thing is going up is fetch lands

dude, I don't think delver ever increased in price or play much, but I want one for my blue-red deck thanks for the article, and btw most info here is still to date.

It will! RUG Delver is a HUGE Legacy deck. Foil Delvers will be worth a good amount.

I agree with your take on deathrite. 3 abilities for a 1 drop...all are effects that can be used in almost any deck. I pulled 3 and traded for 1. I plan on holding onto them for a long while

You were right about delver.  He went from $1.29 to $4.56 in foil.

You were right about delver.  He went from $1.29 to $4.56 in foil.

Yeah! It's going to go up more too. Guaranteed.

Quote from: Gleemax on July 21, 2013, 05:23:21 PM

You were right about delver.  He went from $1.29 to $4.56 in foil.

Yeah! It's going to go up more too. Guaranteed.

I now have 8 foiled delvers

Why is dark confidant so high? Is disrupting people's draw realy that big of a problem? Is extra drawing realy that broken?

Why is dark confidant so high? Is disrupting people's draw realy that big of a problem? Is extra drawing realy that broken?

Because its awesome. Yes. Yes.

Quote from: Birdbrain on July 23, 2013, 02:14:21 PM

Why is dark confidant so high? Is disrupting people's draw realy that big of a problem? Is extra drawing realy that broken?

It cashes in a resource (life) for card advantage

I understand what the point of it is, but over $70? I disagree.

Quote from: Potticus on August 06, 2013, 08:10:55 PM

Quote from: Birdbrain on July 23, 2013, 02:14:21 PM

Why is dark confidant so high? Is disrupting people's draw realy that big of a problem? Is extra drawing realy that broken?

It cashes in a resource (life) for card advantage

I understand what the point of it is, but over $70? I disagree.

It's a huge modern staple. Plain and simple. You run in Modern, you should probably be running this guy.  Staples always get really high.