I'm actually having second thoughts about WoTC at the moment and the new direction they are taking after taking apart the products they are releasing this spring. First, Masters 25 doesn't need any more introduction on just how bad of a set it is. The demand on the cards just isn't there and it's full of casual staples outside of a few select cards, with the total package being charged at 240 msrp. The other problem is the challenger decks. I said in a previous thread that I hope they do something similar for modern, but then realized they actually can't. They deliberately picked cards that are going to drop like a boulder once rotation hits and avoided cards like Vraska's Contempt because of it being present in Ixalan. In fact, the vast majority of the cards are from the soon to be rotating sets and anything that is from the recent sets are either bulk common status or just happened to become valuable due to modern. Case in point Field of Ruin.
So, the reality is that they created a very time sensitive precon product for standard that will be irrelevant in only a few short months and also produced a subpar masters set alongside it. I'm at the point that Dominaria better be spewing rainbows and unicorns because I'm about to just drop out of this annoying mouse wheel entirely.
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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!
I think people are just a little bummed that mox opal or noble hierarch didnt get reprinted. I try to buy singles of reprinted cards and see what modern decks I can make with them.
I personally am a bit salty only because the fact that this is supposed to celebrate 25 years of this awesome game that I've played for a fair amount of those years doesn't seem to really be doing that.
When I heard this set was advertised in the above way, I figured at least a COUPLE of the awesome cards that I remember first playing with would be reprinted. Shivan dragon, hypnotic specter, frozen shade, etc. I guess I just think differently when I think of 25 years of magic.
Do you know what? Even if this set was just ok instead of a rip off, it wouldn't be good enough. It's the 25th Anniversary of the game; Wizards should be blowing us away with an amazing line of products that remind us just how great the game is, how much fun it can be, and how much they value us as their customers. Instead, they just rolled a greasy hot turd of a product in some Jace glitter and tried to convince us it was the absolute nuts. Way to go, Wizards
This set was so bad that they faked a Chinese Leak so they could start Spoiler Season for Dominaria, that way they have an excuse when Masters 25 tanks.
This set was so bad that they faked a Chinese Leak so they could start Spoiler Season for Dominaria, that way they have an excuse when Masters 25 tanks.
Bingo!!!
They sure responded to the "leak" quickly and seem to be prepared to share things with us rather quickly as well. This one was planned.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I'd actually like a reserve list expansion too, primarily on cards like the fluff stuff that won't ever be format staples. It would add a bit of value to sets based on collectors interest, value beyond the couple of mythics each set that usually retain their prices after rotation out of standard
Literally the last thing we need is the reserve list being expanded. I know it sounds like a good idea to do it, but the Reserved List itself is not what gives the cards the value they have it's the number of copies that are present that are dwindling because of attrition until the eventual heat death takes the last one to the fiery pits of hades. Pretty much every soft reserve list idea I've seen pitched can be done without even using a reserved list, such as not reusing an older artwork on newer versions of the same card. The vast majority of cards from the oldest sets in magic that are still in good condition are in graded plastic hard cases and the ones that are traded raw are going to eventually get destroyed in the course of their changing of hands.
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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!
Hey great "randomization" Wizards. Rudy from Alpha Investments pulls 23 out of 24 of the same rares from 2 consecutive box openings.
If this is the case, you will be able to box map the Hell out of this set. Beware of buying loose packs if this turns out to be the case. I guess WotC just dialed it on just about everything in this set.
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
1. Not enough actually memorable cards. No Wrath of G$d, no change to Reserve List, not even a Shivan Dragon!
2. The insult of filter lands (FILTER LANDS!) as the dual lands to reprint in a set that is supposed to enshrine 25 years of a game. Not Dual Lands, not Shock Lands or Fetches, not even Painlands! Filter lands, as Iconic!!!!
I will also add that too many great cards are Mythic. Why even have a mythic rarity in a $10 a pack reprint set? Seems ludicrous.
I think the idea that people will pay $30 for a draft is absurd, and self-deluded. No matter how many shill articles they publish on MTG.com pushing draft strategies, it will not work. Making videos about how much fun it is to crash Ferraris for sport will not increase said activity's viability.
1. Not enough actually memorable cards. No Wrath of G$d, no change to Reserve List, not even a Shivan Dragon!
2. The insult of filter lands (FILTER LANDS!) as the dual lands to reprint in a set that is supposed to enshrine 25 years of a game. Not Dual Lands, not Shock Lands or Fetches, not even Painlands! Filter lands, as Iconic!!!!
They cannot print Dual Lands. Shock Lands are likely being saved for a second return to Ravnica, which is likely coming in the next year or so. Pain Lands are all really cheap. People would have complained if they reprinted the pain lands at rare.
1. Not enough actually memorable cards. No Wrath of G$d, no change to Reserve List, not even a Shivan Dragon!
2. The insult of filter lands (FILTER LANDS!) as the dual lands to reprint in a set that is supposed to enshrine 25 years of a game. Not Dual Lands, not Shock Lands or Fetches, not even Painlands! Filter lands, as Iconic!!!!
They cannot print Dual Lands. Shock Lands are likely being saved for a second return to Ravnica, which is likely coming in the next year or so. Pain Lands are all really cheap. People would have complained if they reprinted the pain lands at rare.
I know about the Restricted List, and believe it to be tragic. If they wanted to do this set, those were the way to go. Shocklands are too integral to Modern, as are Fetchlands. There is no reason not to reprint them, or, then, no dual lands at rare.
Too late. Already bought a box. Very happy with it, thankyou very much.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
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!
Too late. Already bought a box. Very happy with it, thankyou very much.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
Yep. Right now its value in nosediving towards Iconic with Iconic actually creeping up a bit. Its why I bought a box of Iconic at 120 USD shipped a couple of weeks ago. Got lucky that it was a very good box, still I could have lost money at 120 on it. Again, that is just from a monetary standpoint, not draft or personal value. A $180 MSRP is probably more reasonable. Again I'm not going to buy until I see boxes drop lower than 140, which they will in a few months time. Too much variability in boxes for me to buy on a whim, just for the "new" or "gotta have it" factor. I'll let others take the depreciation hit then buy singles as the prices bottom out and maybe pick up a box on the tail end when they hit rock bottom of 140 USD or less.
I'd urge others to consider this tactic as well.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Too late. Already bought a box. Very happy with it, thankyou very much.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
Yep. Right now its value in nosediving towards Iconic with Iconic actually creeping up a bit. Its why I bought a box of Iconic at 120 USD shipped a couple of weeks ago. Got lucky that it was a very good box, still I could have lost money at 120 on it. Again, that is just from a monetary standpoint, not draft or personal value. A $180 MSRP is probably more reasonable. Again I'm not going to buy until I see boxes drop lower than 140, which they will in a few months time. Too much variability in boxes for me to buy on a whim, just for the "new" or "gotta have it" factor. I'll let others take the depreciation hit then buy singles as the prices bottom out and maybe pick up a box on the tail end when they hit rock bottom of 140 USD or less.
I'd urge others to consider this tactic as well.
I can't "lose money" on these boxes because I don't hold the stock-market mentality when it comes to purchasing sealed product. I pay no attention to EV, don't sell off the contents, so what does it matter?
Also I see a lot of people equating the contents of their opened boxes to a dollar value. This only makes sense if you actually sell your cards. You'd never *ever* purchase a box of mtg in order to get specific singles you need, so if you aren't selling those cards, stop equating them to money. If they stay in a drawer in your spare room for years, they are worth as much as the enjoyment you get from them and that's basically it.
I enjoy my cards. Bottom line.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Modern: G Tron, Vannifar, Jund, Druid/Vizier combo, Humans, Eldrazi Stompy (Serum Powder), Amulet, Grishoalbrand, Breach Titan, Turns, Eternal Command, As Foretold Living End, Elves, Cheerios, RUG Scapeshift
Too late. Already bought a box. Very happy with it, thankyou very much.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
Yep. Right now its value in nosediving towards Iconic with Iconic actually creeping up a bit. Its why I bought a box of Iconic at 120 USD shipped a couple of weeks ago. Got lucky that it was a very good box, still I could have lost money at 120 on it. Again, that is just from a monetary standpoint, not draft or personal value. A $180 MSRP is probably more reasonable. Again I'm not going to buy until I see boxes drop lower than 140, which they will in a few months time. Too much variability in boxes for me to buy on a whim, just for the "new" or "gotta have it" factor. I'll let others take the depreciation hit then buy singles as the prices bottom out and maybe pick up a box on the tail end when they hit rock bottom of 140 USD or less.
I'd urge others to consider this tactic as well.
I can't "lose money" on these boxes because I don't hold the stock-market mentality when it comes to purchasing sealed product. I pay no attention to EV, don't sell off the contents, so what does it matter?
Also I see a lot of people equating the contents of their opened boxes to a dollar value. This only makes sense if you actually sell your cards. You'd never *ever* purchase a box of mtg in order to get specific singles you need, so if you aren't selling those cards, stop equating them to money. If they stay in a drawer in your spare room for years, they are worth as much as the enjoyment you get from them and that's basically it.
I enjoy my cards. Bottom line.
No problem my friend, enjoy. I won't live forever and will be handing my collection over to my son someday. I'm hoping it retains value and he can do the same with his children or if he so desires when I'm gone sell them off and use the money as he sees fit. Collectibles are always going to have a money element to them. You can ignore it but it doesn't make it go away. If the market dries up someday, so be it. Supply and Demand will always be driving factors, you, me, no one can escape that. Keep it in mind, do what you need to do and we have to leave it at that.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Too late. Already bought a box. Very happy with it, thankyou very much.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
Yep. Right now its value in nosediving towards Iconic with Iconic actually creeping up a bit. Its why I bought a box of Iconic at 120 USD shipped a couple of weeks ago. Got lucky that it was a very good box, still I could have lost money at 120 on it. Again, that is just from a monetary standpoint, not draft or personal value. A $180 MSRP is probably more reasonable. Again I'm not going to buy until I see boxes drop lower than 140, which they will in a few months time. Too much variability in boxes for me to buy on a whim, just for the "new" or "gotta have it" factor. I'll let others take the depreciation hit then buy singles as the prices bottom out and maybe pick up a box on the tail end when they hit rock bottom of 140 USD or less.
I'd urge others to consider this tactic as well.
I can't "lose money" on these boxes because I don't hold the stock-market mentality when it comes to purchasing sealed product. I pay no attention to EV, don't sell off the contents, so what does it matter?
Also I see a lot of people equating the contents of their opened boxes to a dollar value. This only makes sense if you actually sell your cards. You'd never *ever* purchase a box of mtg in order to get specific singles you need, so if you aren't selling those cards, stop equating them to money. If they stay in a drawer in your spare room for years, they are worth as much as the enjoyment you get from them and that's basically it.
I enjoy my cards. Bottom line.
It's not about selling the cards. The secondary market reacts to the demands of players and often tells the story of how heavily played the card is in it's given format(s). That's why Mox Opal and Chalice of the void are expensive cards: one is a sideboard card in legacy that sees extensive play and the other is a 4-of in just about any type of artifact centric deck, including cheerios, affinity, lantern control, and other established decks. That's also why I like commander because the played cards aren't through the roof, but have some indicator they see some play. Of course, then there's the old cards that are just expensive because of scarcity...
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!
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So, the reality is that they created a very time sensitive precon product for standard that will be irrelevant in only a few short months and also produced a subpar masters set alongside it. I'm at the point that Dominaria better be spewing rainbows and unicorns because I'm about to just drop out of this annoying mouse wheel entirely.
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!
When I heard this set was advertised in the above way, I figured at least a COUPLE of the awesome cards that I remember first playing with would be reprinted. Shivan dragon, hypnotic specter, frozen shade, etc. I guess I just think differently when I think of 25 years of magic.
Bingo!!!
They sure responded to the "leak" quickly and seem to be prepared to share things with us rather quickly as well. This one was planned.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
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!
If this is the case, you will be able to box map the Hell out of this set. Beware of buying loose packs if this turns out to be the case. I guess WotC just dialed it on just about everything in this set.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1btKaGDB3JQ
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
1. Not enough actually memorable cards. No Wrath of G$d, no change to Reserve List, not even a Shivan Dragon!
2. The insult of filter lands (FILTER LANDS!) as the dual lands to reprint in a set that is supposed to enshrine 25 years of a game. Not Dual Lands, not Shock Lands or Fetches, not even Painlands! Filter lands, as Iconic!!!!
I will also add that too many great cards are Mythic. Why even have a mythic rarity in a $10 a pack reprint set? Seems ludicrous.
I think the idea that people will pay $30 for a draft is absurd, and self-deluded. No matter how many shill articles they publish on MTG.com pushing draft strategies, it will not work. Making videos about how much fun it is to crash Ferraris for sport will not increase said activity's viability.
They cannot print Dual Lands. Shock Lands are likely being saved for a second return to Ravnica, which is likely coming in the next year or so. Pain Lands are all really cheap. People would have complained if they reprinted the pain lands at rare.
I know about the Restricted List, and believe it to be tragic. If they wanted to do this set, those were the way to go. Shocklands are too integral to Modern, as are Fetchlands. There is no reason not to reprint them, or, then, no dual lands at rare.
Oh dear. Did I ignore your whiny post about jace and actually *enjoy* a magic product? The sky is falling.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with buying a box of it. The primary thing to take away is just don't go crazy with buying a lot of it because the set is going to depreciate into the floor. Iconic Masters actually has a better selection of cards long term than Masters 25 does, it just suffered due to some bad marketing and a really nasty Christmas Season. I'd say picking up Eternal Masters is probably a better buy than either iconic or masters 25 and a week ago I'd have said getting a box of masters 2017 would have been worth the extra 80 dollars. I think that boat has sailed, though.
But yeah, the reasons to not buy a box are pretty good ones:
1) Very high RNG. You can be blown into the floor with this set due to the card distribution and the choice of mythics / rares.
2) Potential issues with the run. They've had some really bad randomization issues that don't appear like it would lead to box mapping, but the distribution does look kind of predictable so you sort of lose the excitement knowing you're about to get a blow out box or are about to get hosed.
3) Limited environment looks weak. Not that having strong archetypes is important, but they could have done better. At least it isn't as bad as metalcraft and Daybreak Coronet was. Then again is there even enough morph and cycling cards to do something in this set?
At the end of the day is the set going to sell? Yes, because if someone drops the price low enough and the hype train hasn't completely left the station like it did with iconic, the boxes should move. But, should this set have been sold as a 240 msrp set? Probably not. The company should probably keep the msrp flexible on the masters sets so if they need to print a legacy based one they can put the price down to 180 msrp or something.
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!
Yep. Right now its value in nosediving towards Iconic with Iconic actually creeping up a bit. Its why I bought a box of Iconic at 120 USD shipped a couple of weeks ago. Got lucky that it was a very good box, still I could have lost money at 120 on it. Again, that is just from a monetary standpoint, not draft or personal value. A $180 MSRP is probably more reasonable. Again I'm not going to buy until I see boxes drop lower than 140, which they will in a few months time. Too much variability in boxes for me to buy on a whim, just for the "new" or "gotta have it" factor. I'll let others take the depreciation hit then buy singles as the prices bottom out and maybe pick up a box on the tail end when they hit rock bottom of 140 USD or less.
I'd urge others to consider this tactic as well.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I can't "lose money" on these boxes because I don't hold the stock-market mentality when it comes to purchasing sealed product. I pay no attention to EV, don't sell off the contents, so what does it matter?
Also I see a lot of people equating the contents of their opened boxes to a dollar value. This only makes sense if you actually sell your cards. You'd never *ever* purchase a box of mtg in order to get specific singles you need, so if you aren't selling those cards, stop equating them to money. If they stay in a drawer in your spare room for years, they are worth as much as the enjoyment you get from them and that's basically it.
I enjoy my cards. Bottom line.
No problem my friend, enjoy. I won't live forever and will be handing my collection over to my son someday. I'm hoping it retains value and he can do the same with his children or if he so desires when I'm gone sell them off and use the money as he sees fit. Collectibles are always going to have a money element to them. You can ignore it but it doesn't make it go away. If the market dries up someday, so be it. Supply and Demand will always be driving factors, you, me, no one can escape that. Keep it in mind, do what you need to do and we have to leave it at that.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
It's not about selling the cards. The secondary market reacts to the demands of players and often tells the story of how heavily played the card is in it's given format(s). That's why Mox Opal and Chalice of the void are expensive cards: one is a sideboard card in legacy that sees extensive play and the other is a 4-of in just about any type of artifact centric deck, including cheerios, affinity, lantern control, and other established decks. That's also why I like commander because the played cards aren't through the roof, but have some indicator they see some play. Of course, then there's the old cards that are just expensive because of scarcity...
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!