By: Travis Allen
@wizardbumpin
Don’t miss this week’s installment of MTG Fast Finance! An on-topic, no-nonsense tour through the week’s most important Magic economy changes.
With the first event of the new Standard in the books, there’s finally a Magic format that doesn’t involve fetching. It’s the wild west out there, and gone are the days of Sultai Red or Jeskai purple. In fact, did you hear how many humans made the elimination rounds?
Eight.
There were also five Humans decks. The top eight was rounded out with singleton lists of Bant Company, W/B Eldrazi (a suspect name indeed), and U/R Control, aka Goggles, aka They Do Nothing.
Let’s start with the state of the format: it’s whiter than wearing your Sperrys to lunch at Panera. In fact, only 11/64 decks in the top eight weren’t playing white, with only 3 of those 11 in the T32. That means that a whopping 83 percent of the T64 was playing white. 83 percent! My kingdom for a Gloom.
Here’s the full day two metagame breakdown, via SCG:
W/U Humans – 23
W/B Midrange – 15
Bant Company – 13
G/R Eldrazi – 11
W/B Eldrazi – 10
Esper Dragons – 7
W/G Humans – 7
R/W Eldrazi – 6
G/W Tokens – 5
Mono-Red Eldrazi – 4
G/B Tokens – 3
W/G Midrange – 3
G/B Delirium – 3
U/R Prowess – 2
B/G Company – 2
Mono-White Eldrazi – 2
Naya Midrange – 2
Jund Company – 2
Mono-White Humans – 2
U/R Control – 1
Esper Control – 1
W/U Tokens – 1
Abzan Midrange – 1
G/U Surge – 1
Jund Midrange – 1
G/B Midrange – 1
Atarka Red – 1
G/B Elves – 1
B/R Control – 1
Esper Demonic Pact – 1
Sultai Delirium – 1
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Are you seriously suggesting to sell Always Watching 4 days before the invitationals this weekend?? Surely these will see further increase if we see the same % of white aggro decks?? If not – it’s hardly like they are gonna drop like a rock. I mean – it’s not a huge range they can drop anyways.
If you want to hold because of a large invitational this weekend that’s fine. But remember we’re seeing a lot of cards come out of SOI as playable, and not everything can keep large price tags. If Always Watching is the 7th or 8th most played rare in the set, it’s going to have a tough time keeping much of a price tag. Add to this that a LOT of product is being opened right now, and the market is going to be flooded soon.
Goggles did have a nice spike, but I still think standard specs make better mtgfinance article topics than they do actual specs. Standard spikes are shortlived, and anything that doesn’t spike is a loss. So much risk.
You’re absolutely right, and my response to Jason was partially tongue-in-cheek. Ideally, at least 90% of your Standard specs are when the card is A. at its absolute floor, and B. stands to gain in the long term from forces other than Standard play (as Goggles or Kozilek will).
I can definitely see Radiant Flames and Painful Truths seeing some action. However, copying a spell with Converge means that there were no colours spent to cast the copy, and will resolve for no damage/cards. Just a heads up.
I was all set to come and tell you you’re wrong, but no, it’s right there in the Radiant Flames Gatherer rulings. That’s extremely counter-intuitive, since you can copy Lightning Axe and not have to discard twice, but oh well. Thanks for pointing that out. Converge is weird!