|
Home Decks Combos Articles Visual Spoilers Art Features Links Search Forum |
|
|
|
|
Welcome back to another episode of Words from the Streetz: Uncommon and Common Magical Treasures. In this, part six of the series, I will be talking about the Mirrodin Block, revisiting the Shadowmoor Block (including Shadowmoor and Eventide) and possibly dipping into a bit of Shards of Alara. Interested? Excited? Curious? Whatever your emotion is at the present time, click on the article link. You may find out that your collection of commons and uncommons are worth more than your rares! In the meantime, I'd like a take a moment to pay homage to "Words from the Streetz" in its original fashion: site news. If you are coming back to Magic Deck Vortex from a short or long break, there are a few new things going on within the boundries of the MDV domain. Below are a few of them:
That's all at the moment. Many thanks, as always, to the many figures of the MDV Community which help and give back to the community that makes MDV what it is today. Before I get into the Uncommon and Common Magical Treasures, let’s re-review the different pricing categories for commons and uncommons. Remember that we only talk about the better valued cards:
I am going to stick to the model I used last time which means I’ll talk about the cheaper commons first and then lead into the more expensive commons; same with the uncommons. If you like or dislike this method of ‘Treasure Presentation’, please let me know in the forums. I highly value your feedback and can make this series better only if you give it. Before we get into the juicy, meaty, full of overprice commons-block known as Mirrodin, lets revisted the Shadowmoor Block.
The unfortunate truth is that we won't really see the price of the great commons and uncommons sky rocket for the Shadowmoor Block for several more years when the cards are not as available and more in demand. However, while Shadowmoor and Eventide are available in the Standard Tournament format, the most used cards will still fetch a nice price. Unfortunately, since Shards of Alara came out, many of my watches of certain commons and uncommons did not last. Below is a list of the remaining notable commons and uncommons:
None of the cards above made any drastic changes from where they were before two months ago. Both Tattermunge Maniac and Kitchen Finks came down in price a bit while Unmake and Boggart Ram-Gang went up in price. The rest remained the same.
Without any dilly-dallying around, here are the Noteworthy Commons from the Mirrodin Block.
As a general rule, cards in Mirrodin Block facilitate, on some level, the deck type known as Affinity. Whether it’s the artifact land, like we've seen twice in the above list, or the artifact-enabled power boosting equipment cards known as Cranial Plating ($0.49). A good portion of the cards in Mirrodin block do a good job of enabling the Affinity deck archetype. Now the first of several artifact lands to hit today's list is Darksteel Citadel ($0.49). While it combos very efficiently with any land animation spell or effect, it has two other functions: Powering out an affinity equipped spell a turn sooner and being protected from almost all types of land destruction. My personal favorite use for Darksteel Citadel is enchanting it with Living Terrain. What's not to like about a 5/6 indestructible Treefolk Land?
There are certain cards in Magic that beg to be abused, but also succumb to every cheap removal spell known in Magic. A good example of this is Raven Guild Master. It's a 1/1 and dies to even the worst versions of Shock. All I want to do is attack with it and remove ten cards from your library. That's all... am I asking for too much? Stop playing Engulfing Flames on it right before it deals damage! Now enter one of the cards from our list above, Whispersilk Cloak ($0.49). This was originally printed in Darksteel and then reprinted, like Spark Elemental, in Tenth Edition. It not only makes whatever creature it is equipped to unblockable, but also untargetable. So now all I have to do is make sure the Cloak is on my Raven Guild Master and I can mill you to victory. That's what I want -- a card that makes another card I've been trying to use effectively... effective. Thanks, Wizards. I want to send a box of candy to whoever designed Whispersilk Cloak. Note that Whispersilk Cloak also fetches almost $2.00 at some shops. Seething Song ($0.59), printed in both Mirrodin and Ninth Edition, is like Dark Ritual on food coloring and crack. It is five mana for three mana at instant speed and perfect in any Storm deck. Given the popularity of storm decks in the Extended tournament scene, it’s no wonder this is a better than average common card. It may explain why the Artifact Mountain (Great Furnace) is better than the majority of its brothers and sisters from Mirrodin. On Oblivion's suggestion, here is a link to a popular storm deck of Magic's past. Speaking of Artifact Mountains, the Great Furnace ($0.69) is one of three artifact land cards that actually made it into the lists today. Curious what the last card is? How about a picture of it:
People always joke about Islands being better than any other land, but the value of the basic Island has remained the same as the other basic lands for as long as I can tell. However, the minute you make an Island that is also an artifact, suddenly you have a land that is better than all of its kind. Go figure! Seat of Synod ($0.99) is most likely the best of the bunch because it has a better arsenal of Blue cards to support it. Card drawing, card manipulation, etc... all are things that other artifact aficionado colors like Rred and White don't have. Thus, there are more decks running Blue that use the artifact lands more than any other deck type, which is why this one particular artifact land is twice as valued as the others.
It appears I was totally wrong about the Mirrodin Block commons; I thought there would be a lot more of the commons showing up. Keep reading as I'll touch upon several of the commons missing from the above section. In the meantime, there are at least quite a few uncommons from Mirrodin Block worth discussing. Starting off the uncommons we have the Solid Uncommons:
It wasn't until writing this article that I realized Arcbound Crusher ($0.99) was a Solid Uncommon. I never really considered it much of a good card. However, I must have completely overlooked the fact that it gets bigger and bigger with each new artifact that comes into play. Not just your own artifacts, but anyone's artifacts!!! Thus this card makes a good sideboard option for affinity deck or a great finisher in affinity decks. All thanks to the keyword trample!
If you know anything about Enduring Renewal, you will know why this next card is so valued. If not, know that it’s a great card in an Enduring Renewal combo deck. The card is Ornithopter($1.25) and it’s surprising that this card is still a Solid Uncommon, despite being printed eight times: Antiquities, 3rd Edition, 4th Edition, 5th Edition, 6th Edition, Mirrodin, Ninth Edition and Tenth Edition. Phew! It's also a great first turn play with Unholy Strength... or as Oblivion suggests, its also great with Skullclamp! Magma Jet ($1.49) is one of those very rare cards that offer mono-Red decks a form of library manipulation. In this cards case it’s in the form of Scry 2. Plus its instant speed burn so it fits into any Burn, Sligh or Red Deck Wins strategy. This card also happens to be one of Oblivion's favorites. To quote him, "[Magma Jet] worked wonders in my Ponza deck, as well as other burn decks. It's special because it fits seamlessly into very focused, tight builds where every card has to fit the overall strategy with very little room to wiggle, providing removal, finishing and deck manipulation." I have a good idea. Let's refine Necropotence and then dilute it a little bit and bottle it all up into Night's Whisper ($1.49) and see what happens. The result is a card that fits nicely into any mono-Black control deck's mana curve. Two life for two cards is no big deal to any Black deck strategy. On a side note, does anyone else find the artwork on this card extremely creepy? One thing I didn't mention earlier when talking about Ornithopter is that any artifact that costs zero mana. Wait... any card in general that costs zero mana is ripe for being abused in some combo deck whether or not it involves Enduring Renewal. Paradise Mantle ($1.49) is one of those zero costing artifacts that also adds insult to injury when in an infinite combo deck. Adding mana tapping abilities to some creatures is just against all that’s natural, and apparently Magic players from around the world like the unnatural. That's all I can say about this surprisingly high valued card. Round one of Mirrodin Block Uncommons is complete and we're only a third through the great uncommons. Next up we have our Star Uncommons:
Fabricate ($1.99) is in a small family of cards that can essentially tutor for an artifact card. Among this group of cards are cards like Enlightened Tutor ($6.99), Tezzeret the Seeker ($24.99), Tinker ($3.99) and Transmute Artifact ($7.99). It would appear that just based on card values, that this is a popular ability. What makes Fabricate a little less valuable is that it costs three mana versus one or two like several of the other members of this artifact tutoring family. Skullclamp ($1.99) was banned shortly after infesting the tournament scene. It's broken and definitely combo-licious. Despite being banned in several formats, this card is still worth a lot for an uncommon. Shrapnel Blast ($2.49) is instant speed five damage for only two mana and an artifact. This card reminds me of Goblin Grenade, which is valued at one to two dollars. It would appear, based on costs alone, that artifacts are a little easier to abuse than the annoying goblin tribe. Is this really true? Relentless Rats ($2.99) was destined to be a crazy-valued uncommon the day they printed it. Expect this card to continue to increase in price as more and more Magic players try to complete a set of 40 or so of them... Note: If you really hate your friends, try combining this card with Thrumming Stone from Coldsnap. They will most certainly hate you after a few games. Moving along, next up we have our All Star Uncommons which are $3.49 and up.
Lightning Greaves ($3.99) is another great piece of equipment which makes its impact because of its equip cost of zero. This cost enables it to be attached and unattached to certain Clerics for infinite effects. Haste and Shroud aren't bad either... It all started as a way to work Goblins around blue countermagic. Then Aether Vial ($4.99), a clever uncommon from Darksteel, became a craze across more than just Standard. Extended decks and even some Eternal decks started using this miracle artifact card. It's cheap, enables ways to get around countermagic, and is customizable. Perfect for any Weenie, Zoo, Goblin or Fish strategy. It's no wonder this card is $5.00 a pop. Eternal Witness ($4.99) was originally printed in Fifth Dawn and then DCI promo'd sometime later. Aside from being the better version of Regrowth, as long as there are blink effects to pair it up with, this card will be high in value for a long time. Even in one-of's in decks, it can make all the difference. You have to consider that the 4-of limit of non-basic lands was integrated into Magic for some reason. With Eternal Witness, or Regrowth effects in general, you can get around that rule by just playing the same card over and over again. Eternal Witness and blink and bounce effects are what make this happen. Anyone Kiki-Jiki much?? Spirit Link ($0.49) has always been a solid card, giving life gaining capabilities to its enchanted target. Rancor ($2.99) has also been a solid card, giving trample and +2/+0 to its recipient. Loxodon Warhammer ($4.99) is like a combination of the two cards except that this one sticks around after the original creature it was attached to goes away. So in effect, it is one of the best equipments available to any aggro or beatdown style deck. It can turn a Grizzly Bear into a 5/2 trampling, lifelinking monster. Of course, there are much better targets than a Grizzly Bear... One of the deadliest Lockdown combos that exist in Extended includes Orim's Chant and Isochron Scepter. Also known as Scepter-Chant, its many variants and popularity in Extended formats has been one of the main reasons this is an $8.99 uncommon. Orim's Chant isn't the only card that works very well with the Scepter. Cards like Fire/Ice, Brainstorm, Counterspell, Lightning Bolt, Disenchant, Boomerang, Lightning Helix, Remand... you name it. There are hundreds of cards that work very well with the Scepter. If you do a quick search of Isochron Scepter on Google, you'll find people praising Isochron Scepter on a variety of sites as the best uncommon is all of Magic.
Commons that I expected to make a splash somewhere on the list include: Yotian Soldier ($0.15), AEther Spellbomb ($0.19), Condescend ($0.19), Pentad Prism ($0.19), Raise the Alarm ($0.19), Disciple of the Vault ($0.25), Frogmite ($0.25), Molten Rain ($0.25), Myr Servitor ($0.25), Serum Visions ($0.25), Thoughtcast ($0.25), Welding Jar ($0.25) and Cloudpost ($0.29). Okay, I am biased on Yotian Solider. It's one of my favorites and its a shame it isn't more popular amongst the casual base else it would be valued a little higher. (I own about 40 of the original Antiquities version and I like that art better too...) Some uncommons that I am surprised about include: Dismantle ($0.15), Bottle Gnomes ($0.19), Grab the Reins ($0.19), Skeleton Shard ($0.19), Voltaic Construct ($0.19), Grinding Station ($0.25), Surestrike Trident ($0.25), Blasting Station ($0.49), Genesis Chamber ($0.49), Icy Manipulator ($0.49), Power Conduit ($0.49), Steelshaper's Gift ($0.59), Fireshrieker ($0.69), Myr Retriever ($0.69), Coretapper ($0.79) and Thirst for Knowledge ($0.79). Overall, though, the Mirrodin block was a good set to score some valuable uncommons. I would say commons too, but none of the commons made it to an All-Star Common slot.
I'm not going to go into great detail about Shards of Alara, even though there are quite a few juicy commons and uncommons. I'll provide you with a quick grid of valuable cards and then put this article to a close.
Feel free to discuss or expand on any of the cards I've mentioned in today's articles. I'm sure I've missed a point or two that may have influenced an uncommon to reach the All-Star Uncommon status. If I did -- post it in the forum. Or just talk a bit about what you expect to see from Shard's commons and uncommons. In the meantime, thanks for reading; I hope you enjoyed! Also, many thanks to Oblivion for adding some additional input to this article prior to publication. Sincerely, John Streetz
You can discuss this article in the MDV forums
here.
Articles
Spotlights from 2008: |
|
With Spark Elemental ($0.49) there is no surprise that it's
valued as much as a cheap rare: It's the baby of Ball Lightning!!! Even despite
being reprinted already in Tenth Edition, it has still managed to fetch a
decent, Noteworthy price. It's great as a finisher, as a psuedo-Lightning Bolt
on turn one or even as a mid game way to strike for three damage when your
opponent is tapped down. Haste, trample and 3/1 for the win! To be honest, I'm
surprised this isn't worth more although some sites ask for as much as $2.00 for
the original version of this card (from Fifth Dawn).
Mirrodin's Core ($0.99) is one of the better, toned down,
and nicer versions of City of Brass. It doesn't deal damage to you; it doesn't
come into play tapped; and you can tap it for colorless or you can tap it to set
up any color mana for the next turn by putting a charge counter on it. Let's not
forget it works wonderfully well with Reflecting Pool. 
To start off this batch of cards, we have Energy Chamber
($1.99). At some point prior to Mirrodin Block, Wizards realized that +1/+1
counters and charge counters were loved by many Magic players abroad. They
then capitalized on this concept in the Mirrodin block. Thus, having a card like Energy
Chamber, which can abuse effects on both Artifact Creatures and non-artifact
creatures, is powerful indeed. The charge counter effect works especially nice
on old cards like Magistrate’s Scepter. 
I always thought of the Mirrodin Block, or at least
Mirrodin, on the same level of Urza's Block... which is overpowered. Thus I
expected to see a lot more cards hit the lists of good commons and uncommons;
especially at the common scale. However, there were a whole slew of cards that
didn't make the list. Even despite affinity still being a power house on many
different tournament levels, pauper included.