In the never-ending quest to reduce wallets and bank accounts to cinders, Wizards is giving us the Spring 2024 Superdrop this coming Monday. We know the contents of those drops, and while there might be another one (suspiciously, we don’t have an Artist Series/Spotlight drop, or an all-lands drop), we do have a lot of information and can make some determinations ahead of time.
Remember, these are no longer print-to-demand. Wizards has already made as many as they are going to make (so they say) and they want to ship these relatively soon. Drops can and do sell out, as we saw with the Beauty of the Beasts drop in Winter and almost all of the recent Equinox drop.
Limited-run cards, a fear of missing out, and speculators aplenty: it’s a recipe for potential profits. Let’s take a look at the drops we know about, and figure out what is worth planning to buy.
Be warned, there’s two unknowns to tread carefully on. First, there could be additional drops coming, and I can’t do anything about total unknowns. Two, we don’t know what the bundle discount will be, and those price reductions can play a big part in potential pricing. If there’s no additional drops, and there’s a 20% discount on an all-foil bundle, that puts the average price to $32 plus tax, which is much more attractive.
Now, the drops!
Hatsune Miku (volume 1 of 4)
| Shelter Chandra’s Ignition as “Miku’s Spark” Harmonize Azusa, Lost but Seeking as “Miku, Lost but Singing” Feather, the Redeemed as “Miku, the Renowned” Inspiring Vantage |
If you don’t know who this is (and I didn’t) then here’s the summary, courtesy of Wizards: “Hatsune Miku is a music software developed by Crypton Future Media, INC., which enables anyone to make their computer sing by entering lyrics and melodies. As a massive number of users created music using the software and posted their works on the Internet, Hatsune Miku quickly evolved into a cultural phenomenon. Since then, Hatsune Miku has gained much attention as a character, involved in many fields such as merchandising and live performance as a virtual singer. Now her popularity has spread across the globe.”
Yes, this is a completely virtual being, made and programmed by a company. However, this is a big enough phenomenon to stage concert tours with big audiences, and has been a thing since 2009. Yes, Hatsune Miku is older than Innistrad. There was also a collaboration done during the time of Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty, in case you forgot!
It needs to be said that it’s okay if this is not your fandom, not your cup of tea, not your preferred type of music. Secret Lair/Universes Beyond is going to try a lot of things, and will have a wide range of successes and failures.
I am confident this will be the first drop to sell out, for two reasons.
First of all, this is a bigger fanbase than you think it is, and they love collectibles. That alone will be enough to get me to buy a couple, but there’s an added wrinkle. We’ve been told that there will be a total of four Hatsune Miku drops, spread out across 2024. That means we’ll have four drops’ worth of time (close to the end of the year) to build up demand, and when that last drop arrives, people are going to want the whole set, the perfect time to have an extra couple copies of volume one.
Clearly, the cards are not valuable. Azusa is the only one close to it at $4, with a few sweet copies. Harmonize is a Cube staple, and is in 178,000 Commander decks, though there’s several special versions including a textless Player Rewards. None of those are over $5. The value, though, isn’t the cards but who’s on them and the collectibility therein.
Sans Mercy
| Torment of Hailfire (111k decks, $20 basic, $45 foil) Ruination Mogix, God of Slaughter Doom Blade Massacre |
This drop is 100% predicated on the value of a special frame Torment of Hailfire. The basic nonfoil is $20, and the foil is $45. There’s been no reprints or special versions, so this one has fantastic potential. In a year, I won’t be shocked if it’s $75. The other cards are niche, and while regular Mogis is nearly $10 and the other Secret Lair version is $20, I don’t think this version will hold much value at all.
Poker Face
| Professional Face-Breaker ($8-$12) Rankle, Master of Pranks Jaxis, the Troublemaker Goblin King Coffin Queen ($10, no reprints since Tempest) |
This has a lot of potential. Rankle has very wide price range, with FEA versions from original Eldraine being nearly $30 and the recent Commander reprints being under a dollar. This is the first version with different art, and it’s a very unique look too. Both Jaxis and the Queen should rebound on prices, and Face-Breaker is a must-have in Treasure decks.
All told, the card choices plus the unique look makes this a drop I believe in, and I will get a couple copies.
Wanted!
| Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet ($8 nonfoil, $17 foil, was on The List once) Magda, Brazen Outlaw Dack Fayden Greasefang, Okiba Boss |
All the value here is on Kalitas’ first major reprint and while that’s not a terrible plan, the rest of these are not exciting. We also know that the Wanted! frames from Thunder Junction aren’t mega-price-increasing, so these probably won’t see any big increases from any of these cards. I might not get this bundle, unless the big discount is worth it.
Outlaw Anthology Vol 1: Rebellious Renegades
| Tezzeret, the Seeker 50k decks, has SL from 2022 Griselbrand, banned, but $8, with Liliana SL Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker Grenzo, Havoc Raiser |
This drop is intriguing. Tezzeret and Griselbanned both have a previous drop on their record, so we know those prices can rebound. Unexciting but likely to be solid IF they can both go another two years without reprints. I also personally hate the weathered edges on these. The Creepshow drop has this, and I really don’t like how I can’t tell if a card has edge damage.
Outlaw Anthology Vol 2: Sinister Scoundrels
| Karona, False God ($2/$73 split, no reprints since Scourge in 2003) Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger (45k decks, several reprints, $6) Korvold, Fae-Cursed King (14k decks as commander, #21 all time) Memnarch ($8/$27 split, FTV and Archenemy copies, 12k decks total) |
Now this drop has a lot of potential and should do very well. Korvold has been a top Commander basically since he came on the scene in Throne of Eldraine. It’s easy to see why: great color combination, there’s boatloads of ways to abuse his draw trigger, and Wizards has been making more and more sacrifice tokens: Treasures, Clues, Maps, Junk, Blood, etc.
Vorinclex will be $5 forever now, with this reprint. He’s got oodles of frames to choose from, and while there’s plenty of decks that play the card, there’s also a whole lot of copies out there. Karona is terrifying in any 5-color Kindred deck, but rewards you very well for building the right deck. Memnarch hasn’t been a factor despite the Commander formula of ‘get mana do crimes’ goes off. There’s just easier ways to win nowadays. Still, this should be worth a few dollars as well, making this drop solid all around and worth my budget.
Goblingram
| Brash Taunter (75k decks, nothing over $3) Goblin Chieftain (currently available for $3 nonfoil/$7-8 foil) Goblin Ringleader (bulk, but FNM is $8 and APO foil is $35) Mogg War Marshal Goblin Welder (nothing under $15) |
In a lot of ways, this is like the Hatsune Miku drop. This might not be for you, and that’s okay–the people who like it will LOVE it. All of these are solid Goblin inclusions if you like the tribe, and there’s been enough casual interest over the years to make sure that these are useful. Welder has never had a different frame (though there is a Judge foil at $55+) and the rest are good cards for the archetype. You’re allowed to think the frame is silly, but the cards are worthwhile and the drop should be a good bet to grow nicely.
If I were to rank the drops based on my expectations of future profit, it would be in this order:
- Hatsune Miku vol. 1
- Sans Mercy
- Outlaws vol. 2
- Goblingram
- Poker Face
- Outlaws vol. 1
- Wanted!
The bonus card to this drop, well, it’s a doozy:
You’ll get one of these for every $200 you spend, and this is easily the best SL inclusion card they’ve done so far. Seedborn is a casual all-star, useful in regular and cEDH alike, and a card that demands you get it off the table before someone else goes too wild.
Seedborn’s original foils from Legions are near $200, and while there’s some 8th and 9th edition foils that some purists will like, this version should easily hit $50. If not immediately, it won’t take long.
As a result, I’m exceedingly likely to buy in on some foil bundles. Last time, it was six drops for $210 (instead of $240). With seven, I’m expecting something in the range of $240 instead of $280, about 15% off. If I know I’m getting five drops I feel good about plus the Seedborn, I want in. I’d prefer to leave out the Outlaws vol. 1, as that’s my least favorite of the Drops, but basically getting that one for free feels good too. I’m pretty sure I’ll be buying two or three bundles on Monday.
Disagree with my rankings or plans? Feel free to come tell me, on Twitter or on the ProTrader Discord.
Cliff (@WordOfCommander) has been writing for MTGPrice since 2013, and is an eager Commander player, Draft enthusiast, and Cube fanatic. A high school science teacher by day, he’s also the official substitute teacher of the MTG Fast Finance podcast. If you’re ever at a GP and you see a giant flashing ‘CUBE DRAFT’ sign, go over, say hi, and be ready to draft.