Post RIX my large LGS achieved a whopping 12 people for FNM Standard. That's a big uptick since it hasn't fired in 2 months... however I still find that disappointing. They should be pushing all special packs/promos/deals to FNM. Like if you participate in FNM Standard you get 10% off product or something subsidized by WotC. Things are fresh so people are trying them out but I can already see it's not going to last.
Modern FNM same night had 36 people. Draft was lower than normal with 48 people which is usually around 60.
Post RIX my large LGS achieved a whopping 12 people for FNM Standard. That's a big uptick since it hasn't fired in 2 months... however I still find that disappointing. They should be pushing all special packs/promos/deals to FNM. Like if you participate in FNM Standard you get 10% off product or something subsidized by WotC. Things are fresh so people are trying them out but I can already see it's not going to last.
Modern FNM same night had 36 people. Draft was lower than normal with 48 people which is usually around 60.
Their you have it. If Modern and Limited are pulling between 30-60 people and Standard pulls a all new high of....12.... The format thats "easyest to get in to". Limited and standard should have compairable turn out in a healthy standard. Eternal formats should have around half. This is around that ratio except for the standard bit.
one of my local stores ran a standard PPTQ on Sunday and had 41 people show up. Not sure if it's because he had an insane prize pool or people care more about standard after the bans
one of my local stores ran a standard PPTQ on Sunday and had 41 people show up. Not sure if it's because he had an insane prize pool or people care more about standard after the bans
Standard should increase in attendance two weeks after release of a set since it takes about that long for mail order cards to all arrive without using someone like Card Kingdom, who are basically like crack commandos when it comes to shipping. You end up paying more per card, but boy those guys get them to you at record pace. I placed my orders with TCGPlayer and I'm still waiting on a few stragglers to arrive.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
A lot of people are also staying away from Standard right now while they wait for the pros to "solve" the format so they can let other people do all the hard work for them.
There were already 2 twinks trying to fill out their decks, the Vehicles was straight up copy (though he was short on phoenix) and the merfolk guy admitted to copying some 8th place list. He was bitter he didn't play Ramred which is his other deck. There are always those players, I expect it. My LGS used to have a lot of brewers and fun players though to balance it out.
Standard should increase in attendance two weeks after release of a set since it takes about that long for mail order cards to all arrive without using someone like Card Kingdom, who are basically like crack commandos when it comes to shipping. You end up paying more per card, but boy those guys get them to you at record pace. I placed my orders with TCGPlayer and I'm still waiting on a few stragglers to arrive.
On TCGPlayer, are you buying cards from vendors that are designated as "TCGPlayer Direct"? If a vendor is designated as "TCGPlayer Direct," TCGPlayer will ship cards directly on behalf of the vendor, and that is reliable. I have only had one problem resulting from a TCGPlayer Direct delivery, and their customer support resolved that problem quickly without hassle. If you picked vendor that wasn't designated as TCGPlayer Direct, then the vendor itself has to ship the cards to you, and you're at the mercy of whatever shipping methods and schedule that vendor has. Note that you do pay more for cards using TCGPlayer Direct, as TCGPlayer gets a commission for the sale. Even then, sometimes TCGPlayer Direct prices can be cheaper than CardKingdom's prices, as the vendor still sets the prices, not TCGPlayer.
If the vendors are shipping reliably, Standard players should be getting their cards in a reasonable amount of time for tournament play.
Standard should increase in attendance two weeks after release of a set since it takes about that long for mail order cards to all arrive without using someone like Card Kingdom, who are basically like crack commandos when it comes to shipping. You end up paying more per card, but boy those guys get them to you at record pace. I placed my orders with TCGPlayer and I'm still waiting on a few stragglers to arrive.
On TCGPlayer, are you buying cards from vendors that are designated as "TCGPlayer Direct"? If a vendor is designated as "TCGPlayer Direct," TCGPlayer will ship cards directly on behalf of the vendor, and that is reliable. I have only had one problem resulting from a TCGPlayer Direct delivery, and their customer support resolved that problem quickly without hassle. If you picked vendor that wasn't designated as TCGPlayer Direct, then the vendor itself has to ship the cards to you, and you're at the mercy of whatever shipping methods and schedule that vendor has. Note that you do pay more for cards using TCGPlayer Direct, as TCGPlayer gets a commission for the sale. Even then, sometimes TCGPlayer Direct prices can be cheaper than CardKingdom's prices, as the vendor still sets the prices, not TCGPlayer.
If the vendors are shipping reliably, Standard players should be getting their cards in a reasonable amount of time for tournament play.
I always pick TCGPlayer direct when possible, but sometimes you end up with the orders getting shipped by individual sellers last minute because the warehouse supply runs dry or something. It's not a knock against TCG Player, just that you tend to get what you pay for with shipping. When I've done large orders I always assume about 10 weekdays to get everything delivered.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
A lot of people are also staying away from Standard right now while they wait for the pros to "solve" the format so they can let other people do all the hard work for them.
I feel like I know a lot of people who are excited that there wasn't a standard PT for this set, as it will mean the format will go longer without being solved. That could just be my area but that's what I've noticed.
Personally, I've stayed out of Standard for a while now because I simply hate it. The last time I really enjoyed the format was prior to the rotation of Origins/Dragons of Tarkir. I think a not-insignificant number of people have similar feelings, and are waiting to see if Dominaria is the saving grace that it needs to be.
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Can you name all of the creature types with at least 20 cards? Try my Sporcle Quiz! Last Updated: 6/29/20 (Core Set 2021).
My LGSs haven't seen too much change with FNMs and sanctioned constructed stuff. Limited stuff like releases and showdowns pact the place. Last year I'd have to imagine because of all the sets and product releases that it kinda sank some sales, but this year I think it's partly improved.
I think product fatigue and changes to standard are what's driving this supposed exodus although I also think that if Ravnica/Innistrad saw a spike in player count, recoiling after those sets is also to be expected.
Like many before me, I disagree with the number of masters products and their cost. Conspiracy 2 was a draft orientated set with some valuable reprints that launched at normal pack price and did very well. £3 masters packs will never happen but £10 a pack is overly expensive and the limited printing of the product means it does not have a long lasting effect on the price of entry to formats like modern.
With the return of core sets I think standard has the potential to improve significantly. It adds a space for useful cards (like artifact hate or simple removal) to be kept in standard for a few years as essentially non rotating features. The only problem now is will WOTC be brave enough to power standard up again with reliable answers to the high quality threats that have been printed lately.
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EDH BRGKresh the BloodbraidedBRG, A box of lands and ideas.
Modern: RG Titanshift. A deck made of cards too stupid for EDH.
Retired: Lots. More than I feel you should suffer through or I should type out.
I guess this proves that the Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game business model is nothing more than a pyramid scheme that enables people to get away with money laundering. Given the recent decline of LGS profit margins, it probably shouldn't be all that surprising that they don't want to handle the cost of background checks on all their employees. To avoid being held responsible for their actions they'd much rather cut their losses and move on.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
"attendance for Magic the Gathering tournaments" not all magic events ever. People don't go to tournaments as much because only minimal effort is made to advertise them and it requires the most expensive cards, so people play more commander and pauper or budget legacy now, go to open play nights and of course some standard, that's where the money is going. I've seen plenty of places stay in business, so if they can't afford background checks it likely means they aren't running their store economically. But, there might also be details of the background checks that discriminate against people arbitrarily which might be the trolling they're talking about.
JBC seems to be leading the charge on this entire movement. As a player who returned at the inception of BFZ and the removal of core sets, as well as seeing what wizards has done to their product line up, they are simply a disfunctional company that has become increasingly concerned more with their stockholders than with maintaining the game.
The entire gaming industry has been getting hit by inflation and a lack of price increases on products for the last decade, including card games, board games, and everything else involved. This has lead to increases in DLC packs, freemium game loot markets selling in game benefits and collectibles, and a high dependency on hype and pre-order culture to keep the industry going. WoTC is no different and they aren't being open about the increased costs on their own end.
Additionally, they have a design lead that is trying to take the game in a direction that the player base doesn't like and they are trying to cover this up by making a storyline in the game, going as far as making a MtG movie (which I've heard about, but not seen any trailers or anything for). Also, I'm very tired of the lack of support from the company on land cycles. Modern is their baby: they made it, they got to support it. But instead of supporting the non-rotating format that was supposed to replace legacy, they have MaRo constantly designing sets that can't fit needed cards, the one time they did do it they got squimish because the messed up standard or something with Thought seize (really? I think they are doing a bang up job now), and they aren't even bold or brave enough to just say "okay, we printed this but it's too powerful to ever print again, so we are removing it from the non-rotating format". What WotC has done they did to themselves, they are the reason we have drama channels on youtube, and the player base feels like they are pretty close to having a enough of it, even the more positive ones.
We have outrageously expensive decks in modern because of the no-reprint-in-standard clause, their half hearted attempt to reprint anything without going through standard is being sabotaged with their own subsidization scheme, and now we're stuck in a complete mess with paper pauper being the only affordable non-rotating format left. This is like Sega and the Sonic franchise.
Okay, hopefully that's all the ranting I got in me today after reading that JBC article.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Forcing retailers to pay for background checks is a poor solution to an imagined problem.
They need more events not fewer and they're giving little to no support to LGS and the industry they live off of.
Maro and co, I predict, will not get their heads out in the next year and sales will continue to decline along with a standard that will continue to not fire past the first 2 months of new sets.
Forcing retailers to pay for background checks is a poor solution to an imagined problem.
They need more events not fewer and they're giving little to no support to LGS and the industry they live off of.
Maro and co, I predict, will not get their heads out in the next year and sales will continue to decline along with a standard that will continue to not fire past the first 2 months of new sets.
While not positive that will likely also trigger a huge problem because I beleave that would suggest that Return to demaria was terrible, ALOT of players have hopes pinned on that set in a "final straw" kind of way where if this set sucks their out. A very "I came in with Domaria I will leave with it should I find my old home runed"
This period of decline is not unprecedented in Magic's history. If anyone remembers Mirrodin's overpowered dominance, which was succeeded by Kamigawa's underwhelming mediocrity, then you may recall that it was a pretty dark time. Standard was awful, attendance was in decline; there was doom in the air. But then, we got Ravnica. Things were good, we were chugging along. Then came M10 and Zendikar, and we were picking up steam. Then, mutha**kin' Innistrad and Return to Ravnica blew the roof off the game and we were on fire. Fast forward to BFZ, and...well...here we are; it sucks.
The point of all of this is to say that all is not lost, but Wizards has lost the plot. Things need to change, and all signs point to Dominaria, which makes it one of the most important sets in Magic's history. It's make or break, as far as I'm concerned, but I'm hopeful. It is a little scary, though. I mean, if Dominaria sucks, where will that leave the game? Standard will be on life support, and consumer confidence will be at an all time low. I don't want to think about it.
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Can you name all of the creature types with at least 20 cards? Try my Sporcle Quiz! Last Updated: 6/29/20 (Core Set 2021).
I can remember that time frame. While I may have a different view then most ( I loved Mirrodin alot..... almost as much as Urza's which is some dam high praise. I prefer a VERY high power competitive environment where decks with minimal modification can be ported to higher teir formats) I don't think we had standard not poping back then though attendance was lower yes, but we still got enough people playing that games went. (it was an affinity VS antiaffinity VS tooth grind fest but still it fired) I find it funny that standard is paradoxly at its most powerful point in years and at the same time its weakest from a greater format prespective.
I've mostly been picking up old products I missed that actually turn out are good. Nissa vs Ob Nix is loaded to bear with good playables. Blessed vs Cursed is also fairly good for a precon product. The more recent ones have been underwhelming to say the least, though.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Even during that time of decline standard was firing consistently. The months of November and December saw almost zero standard FNM or other day firings in my large metro area at any store. That is unprecedented.
We are at the bottom of a 2 year slump because Maro's team has gone further and further down the rabbit hole and refuses to go all in on 'we are wrong'.
Dominaria is the last chance. They return balance to mtg or done, done, and done.
We have outrageously expensive decks in modern because of the no-reprint-in-standard clause, their half hearted attempt to reprint anything without going through standard is being sabotaged with their own subsidization scheme, and now we're stuck in a complete mess with paper pauper being the only affordable non-rotating format left. This is like Sega and the Sonic franchise.
This again? Come on Colt.
I'd rather pay once, for a great format, than over and over for a dumpster fire.
And so would most people it seems. The price of Modern is irrelevant in the extrememe. Its probably the only thing keeping ANYONE in Standard.
We have outrageously expensive decks in modern because of the no-reprint-in-standard clause, their half hearted attempt to reprint anything without going through standard is being sabotaged with their own subsidization scheme, and now we're stuck in a complete mess with paper pauper being the only affordable non-rotating format left. This is like Sega and the Sonic franchise.
This again? Come on Colt.
I'd rather pay once, for a great format, than over and over for a dumpster fire.
And so would most people it seems. The price of Modern is irrelevant in the extrememe. Its probably the only thing keeping ANYONE in Standard.
Your in the serious minority in wanting high priced cards that get chipped away in cost for a few weeks post masters set and then bounce back up to below what they were originally. The company never actually supported the format after they said the format has their support. What they did do is cash in on it though. I'm fine with it at this point if that is all they want to do.
The thing is they mostly just want your money and the high priced cards on the secondary market do this by allowing them to justify the 240 msrp master sets. The company doesn't care if the card is played a lot or not, they just want to cash in on the moment that the card is at its peak price. Hence iconic masters and eternal masters.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Yes, it would kill it to be the same price. For the same investment you could have a deck for 10 years or 2. Seems like a no brainer.
They have to find a balance between keeping Modern affordable but keeping it more expensive than Standard, and so far they have generally failed.
The key is to reprint good Modern legal cards in Standard from time to time as well as the Masters sets that often don't do too much damage to collection values, and to design new cards for Modern and put them in Standard. They won't do that. They still don't get that the answer to Thoughtseize being too good for its Standard is to make other good cards and the format they reprint it in be faster and more aggressive. At the moment Modern is a bit too expensive, sure, it should come down and Masters sets need to be twice a normal booster, not >3 as they are in Europe. The main issue is that people who play Modern and Legacy don't want to play bloody creatures and planeswalkers every set- their design paradigm is awful, truly awful. They would have more players for Standard if it looked more like Modern or Legacy- i.e. it had some actual nasty hate cards.........
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People with belligerent signatures are trying to compensate for something....
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Modern FNM same night had 36 people. Draft was lower than normal with 48 people which is usually around 60.
Their you have it. If Modern and Limited are pulling between 30-60 people and Standard pulls a all new high of....12.... The format thats "easyest to get in to". Limited and standard should have compairable turn out in a healthy standard. Eternal formats should have around half. This is around that ratio except for the standard bit.
Standard should increase in attendance two weeks after release of a set since it takes about that long for mail order cards to all arrive without using someone like Card Kingdom, who are basically like crack commandos when it comes to shipping. You end up paying more per card, but boy those guys get them to you at record pace. I placed my orders with TCGPlayer and I'm still waiting on a few stragglers to arrive.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
On TCGPlayer, are you buying cards from vendors that are designated as "TCGPlayer Direct"? If a vendor is designated as "TCGPlayer Direct," TCGPlayer will ship cards directly on behalf of the vendor, and that is reliable. I have only had one problem resulting from a TCGPlayer Direct delivery, and their customer support resolved that problem quickly without hassle. If you picked vendor that wasn't designated as TCGPlayer Direct, then the vendor itself has to ship the cards to you, and you're at the mercy of whatever shipping methods and schedule that vendor has. Note that you do pay more for cards using TCGPlayer Direct, as TCGPlayer gets a commission for the sale. Even then, sometimes TCGPlayer Direct prices can be cheaper than CardKingdom's prices, as the vendor still sets the prices, not TCGPlayer.
If the vendors are shipping reliably, Standard players should be getting their cards in a reasonable amount of time for tournament play.
I always pick TCGPlayer direct when possible, but sometimes you end up with the orders getting shipped by individual sellers last minute because the warehouse supply runs dry or something. It's not a knock against TCG Player, just that you tend to get what you pay for with shipping. When I've done large orders I always assume about 10 weekdays to get everything delivered.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I feel like I know a lot of people who are excited that there wasn't a standard PT for this set, as it will mean the format will go longer without being solved. That could just be my area but that's what I've noticed.
My 720 Peasant Cube
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
Like many before me, I disagree with the number of masters products and their cost. Conspiracy 2 was a draft orientated set with some valuable reprints that launched at normal pack price and did very well. £3 masters packs will never happen but £10 a pack is overly expensive and the limited printing of the product means it does not have a long lasting effect on the price of entry to formats like modern.
With the return of core sets I think standard has the potential to improve significantly. It adds a space for useful cards (like artifact hate or simple removal) to be kept in standard for a few years as essentially non rotating features. The only problem now is will WOTC be brave enough to power standard up again with reliable answers to the high quality threats that have been printed lately.
BRGKresh the BloodbraidedBRG, A box of lands and ideas.
Modern:
RG Titanshift. A deck made of cards too stupid for EDH.
Retired: Lots. More than I feel you should suffer through or I should type out.
http://www.justbychancegames.ca/ending-magic-tournaments-at-jbc/
I guess this proves that the Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game business model is nothing more than a pyramid scheme that enables people to get away with money laundering. Given the recent decline of LGS profit margins, it probably shouldn't be all that surprising that they don't want to handle the cost of background checks on all their employees. To avoid being held responsible for their actions they'd much rather cut their losses and move on.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
The entire gaming industry has been getting hit by inflation and a lack of price increases on products for the last decade, including card games, board games, and everything else involved. This has lead to increases in DLC packs, freemium game loot markets selling in game benefits and collectibles, and a high dependency on hype and pre-order culture to keep the industry going. WoTC is no different and they aren't being open about the increased costs on their own end.
Additionally, they have a design lead that is trying to take the game in a direction that the player base doesn't like and they are trying to cover this up by making a storyline in the game, going as far as making a MtG movie (which I've heard about, but not seen any trailers or anything for). Also, I'm very tired of the lack of support from the company on land cycles. Modern is their baby: they made it, they got to support it. But instead of supporting the non-rotating format that was supposed to replace legacy, they have MaRo constantly designing sets that can't fit needed cards, the one time they did do it they got squimish because the messed up standard or something with Thought seize (really? I think they are doing a bang up job now), and they aren't even bold or brave enough to just say "okay, we printed this but it's too powerful to ever print again, so we are removing it from the non-rotating format". What WotC has done they did to themselves, they are the reason we have drama channels on youtube, and the player base feels like they are pretty close to having a enough of it, even the more positive ones.
We have outrageously expensive decks in modern because of the no-reprint-in-standard clause, their half hearted attempt to reprint anything without going through standard is being sabotaged with their own subsidization scheme, and now we're stuck in a complete mess with paper pauper being the only affordable non-rotating format left. This is like Sega and the Sonic franchise.
Okay, hopefully that's all the ranting I got in me today after reading that JBC article.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
They need more events not fewer and they're giving little to no support to LGS and the industry they live off of.
Maro and co, I predict, will not get their heads out in the next year and sales will continue to decline along with a standard that will continue to not fire past the first 2 months of new sets.
While not positive that will likely also trigger a huge problem because I beleave that would suggest that Return to demaria was terrible, ALOT of players have hopes pinned on that set in a "final straw" kind of way where if this set sucks their out. A very "I came in with Domaria I will leave with it should I find my old home runed"
The point of all of this is to say that all is not lost, but Wizards has lost the plot. Things need to change, and all signs point to Dominaria, which makes it one of the most important sets in Magic's history. It's make or break, as far as I'm concerned, but I'm hopeful. It is a little scary, though. I mean, if Dominaria sucks, where will that leave the game? Standard will be on life support, and consumer confidence will be at an all time low. I don't want to think about it.
My 720 Peasant Cube
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
We are at the bottom of a 2 year slump because Maro's team has gone further and further down the rabbit hole and refuses to go all in on 'we are wrong'.
Dominaria is the last chance. They return balance to mtg or done, done, and done.
This again? Come on Colt.
I'd rather pay once, for a great format, than over and over for a dumpster fire.
And so would most people it seems. The price of Modern is irrelevant in the extrememe. Its probably the only thing keeping ANYONE in Standard.
Spirits
Your in the serious minority in wanting high priced cards that get chipped away in cost for a few weeks post masters set and then bounce back up to below what they were originally. The company never actually supported the format after they said the format has their support. What they did do is cash in on it though. I'm fine with it at this point if that is all they want to do.
The thing is they mostly just want your money and the high priced cards on the secondary market do this by allowing them to justify the 240 msrp master sets. The company doesn't care if the card is played a lot or not, they just want to cash in on the moment that the card is at its peak price. Hence iconic masters and eternal masters.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Now the company doesnt support Modern? As I look back at all the decks I built full of reprints...hmm.
If Modern was 'affordable' to you, what do you think that would do to Standard?
Personally, I think that would kill Standard, fully.
Spirits
They have to find a balance between keeping Modern affordable but keeping it more expensive than Standard, and so far they have generally failed.
The key is to reprint good Modern legal cards in Standard from time to time as well as the Masters sets that often don't do too much damage to collection values, and to design new cards for Modern and put them in Standard. They won't do that. They still don't get that the answer to Thoughtseize being too good for its Standard is to make other good cards and the format they reprint it in be faster and more aggressive. At the moment Modern is a bit too expensive, sure, it should come down and Masters sets need to be twice a normal booster, not >3 as they are in Europe. The main issue is that people who play Modern and Legacy don't want to play bloody creatures and planeswalkers every set- their design paradigm is awful, truly awful. They would have more players for Standard if it looked more like Modern or Legacy- i.e. it had some actual nasty hate cards.........