by James Chillcott (@MTGCritic)

ROUND 15 Notes:

• I’ve got to check out for the last two rounds guys, but I’ll write up a late night set of notes as necessary, depending on how the Top 8 turns out.
• Breakout cards now definitively include: Dig Through Time, Jeskai Ascendancy, Pearl Lake Ancient, Perilous Vault, Siege Rhino and Sorin, Solemn Visitor and possibly Sidisi. Sarkhan, Swiftspear, Mantis Rider, and Elspeth all looked like continuing staples as expected.
• Stoke The Flames was present in high enough quantities to maintain it’s crazy $4 uncommon price tag.
• Goblin Rabblemaster and Courser of Kruphix are still in the mix but are not outright dominating as feared. The format is very diverse.
• So far Top 8 looks likely to include a couple of Jeskai brews, a couple of Abzan brews, a couple of control decks and possibly a Mardu deck. Very diverse with few surprises left to be discovered.

ROUND 14 Notes:

• Sorin did good work in Ari’s match, advancing the case that he should be sharing a price tag with Sarkhan based on results
• Ari beats Strasky to put Abzan in position to have at least 2 players in the Top 8 alongside McClaren
• In the Orange (Esper Control) vs. Watanabe (Jeskai Burn) match, Orange dropped an Ashiok, one of the first we’ve seen this weekend, and he’s up a game.
• Ari gives Ajani, Mentor of Heroes a bit of face time on camera
• Strasky deck is notable for 2 copies of Ashcloud Phoenix and Hushwing Gryff to mess comes into play abilities on creatures like Siege Rhino and Wingmate Roc
• Ondrei Strasky on Jeskai Wins (combo) vs. Ari Lax on Abzan mid-range is our feature match this round
• Heading into this round Sigrist is again top man with his Aggro Abzan deck
• Also running 4 Hornet Queen + multiple Sagu Mauler
• Running 4 copies of Sidisi, Brood Tyrant + 4 copies of Whip of Erebos (!) and a single Soul of Innistrad in the main.
• Sidisi Whip being featured as a Dech Tech with Christian Seibold

ROUND 13 Notes:

• Now we’re looking at the first appearance on camera of Sidisi Whip, featuring Soul of Innistrad + Sidisi, Brood Tyrant. Deck pilot is 10-3 and still live for Top 8. An appearance like that would push both of these mythics up the list.
• Owen takes down Oiso and makes Pearl Lake Ancient look even better. Floch beats Brad Nelson, putting 2 UB players in line for Top 8.
• Floch on U/B Control with Prognostic Sphinx, playing against Brad Nelson, on Jeskai Tokens
• Owen goes up a game against Green Devotion using Pearl Lake for the win
• Pearl Lake Ancient getting more camera time. Ebay checks show copies going for about $4 shipped now, up ~75% since start of the event.
• Clever Impersonator on camera doing some work. Also worth noting that Oiso is running Prophet of Kruphix. Look for foil Clash Pack versions to climb if this deck makes Top 8.
• Owen on camera with UB Control vs. Mashashi Oiso on Green Devotion, both at 9-3

ROUND 12 Notes:

• Jeskai Aggro is being featured as the first dech tech of the evening…expecting a push on Ascendancy again tonight
• Standard format being discussed as incredibly healthy and diverse with many decks capable of shifting form after sideboarding
• Levy defeats Cuneo, highlighting Mardu Planeswalkers as a deck to beat. Levy calls the deck grindy and calls Chandra a key source of advantage. Refers to Sarkhan emblem as key in victory.
• Brimaz called out as highly effective against UB Control on the play
• Zack just called out Dig Through Time as the breakout spell of the tourney. We concur.
• Innovative Shi Tian deck also seems to have Polukranos out of the board!
• McClaren does 11 damage on the final turn to go up over Shi Tian
• Shi Tian is playing transformational Jeskai combo, choosing to use Savage Knuckleblade against McClaren on Jeskai burn post-board. Good camera time for the Temur monster could help keep it in the $4-5 range.
• Game 1 to Levy, demonstrating that in a post-Revelation world, Mardu can out draw classic control
• Elspeth joins Chandra to ensure we know neither card is dead in the format
• Multiple Chandra’s taken down by Pearl Lake Ancient in some back and forth post Sarkhan emblem
• Utter End takes care of a Perilous Vault for profit
• Sarkhan goes ultimate and provides a permanent source of card advantage against the control deck
• Mardu Charm clearing the way for Sarkhan to sneak under counters demonstrating the ability of this deck to fight control
• Pearl Lake Ancient getting more top table air time. Not feeling ultra confidant on the prospects, but I like a few sets under $2.
• Cuneo on UB Control vs. Raphael Levy on Mardu Planeswalkers should help us further triangulate the metagame
• Helen announces that Regional PTQ participants will be receiving Liliana of the Veil just for attending. This card just turned into a sell signal but distribution isn’t until April 2015 so I’m a buyer below $40/copy.
• Starting at 7pm EST Sat, Oct 11th

---

On to day 2!

Follow along with live video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MHTE3qT3_U

Day 1 of Pro Tour Khans of Tarkir featured 3 fascinating rounds of draft, followed by 5 highly varied and exciting rounds of standard action. So far the field is strongly diversified but at the end of the standard rounds, the theme was clear: Jeskai and Abzan own this tournament. Mardu Planeswalkers, Green Devotion and G/B Constellation builds also still have a shot, but it’s the Ascendancy and Siege Rhino decks that need to be overcome on Day 2 to win through.

See all of our Day 1 coverage here.

Let’s check in on our noteable cards to see how they’re doing:

• Dig Through Time

If there is a break out card this weekend so far, this is it. Jumping this week from $3-4, to as high as $17/copy Friday night, it’s now running in our predicted $10-12 range. A future in Modern and Legacy will only help ensure that this card locks into the top 10 cards of the KTK for the foreseeable future.

• Jeskai Ascendancy

It’s unprecedented. A tri-color rare combo piece that is seeing widespread play in Aggro, Tempo/Burn and Combo decks all in the same format! That flexibility, manifesting with Jeskai as the highest percentage (20%) of the field, along with a couple of Turn 4 kills on camera Friday night, has pushed the card up towards $10 overnight. If it shows up in 2-4 decks in the Top 8 it should easily hold that price until the meta shifts. In at $3, I’m already a seller at these levels, holding back a playset for standard use.

• Sarkhan, Dragonspeaker

With Mardu showing up as the 2nd most played deck of the tournament, Sarkhan seems relatively secure in his role as the most expensive card from Khans of Tarkir. Missing Day 3 could result in a $5-10 slide, but a Top 8 finish should further cement bid red on the throne.

• Sorin, Solemn Visitor

Sorin is an early success story at this tournament, showing up in both Mardu and Abzan decks and making a strong case for an upswing towards $30. If Sigrist makes Top 8 with his Abzan deck (and it looks very possible), Sorin should top $30 with room for growth.

• Rakshasa Deathdealer

Largely overlooked up to this point, the Aggro Abzan build needs this guy as a phenomenal 2-drop in place of the eschewed Sylvan Caryatid. Speaking of Sylvan, I’m a seller above $15 at this point, unless a green ramp/devotion deck playing the card makes Top8.

• Pearl Lake Ancient

This bulk mythic is now on deck for gains, showing up as the finisher of choice alongside Prognostic Sphinx in U/B control decks. Hype is still low, so a top finish is necessary to pull this up to the $3-4 range where getting in around $1 would be seen as worthwhile.

• Clever Impersonator

This casual favorite did show up in the sideboards of the U/B Control builds run by Pantheon and others, but failed to gain any strong camera time. Current price level should stay steady.

• Hornet Queen

The Hornet Queen is all over the tournament acting as the finisher of choice in multiple devotion decks. Playsets are running $20-$26 this weekend, and there is room for growth on par with Rabblemaster if it makes Top 8 in multiples.

• Fetchlands

They’re in play at every table, but very few decks are running more than 4-6 copies. I’m calling these to fall further on schedule, down below $15 by the holidays.

• Goblin Rabblemaster

The Rabblemaster is showing up in force, but with so much recent growth, it will need a Top 8 showing to avoid a possible slideback in price. I’m a seller at current levels, happily reinvesting in other options.

• Wingmate Roc

It’s getting played in Abzan and Mardu decks in as many as 4 copies. A strong Top 8 showing could see it push over $16 from the current $10-12.

• Siege Rhino

Sigrist called it out Friday night as the “best card, no contest” in his 5-0 Abzan Aggro build. If it makes the top tables, expect a bump towards $10.

Stay tuned through the evening as we update this page with additional notes and findings from the early rounds and offer insight into how the rest of the weekend might shape up.

James Chillcott is the CEO of ShelfLife.net, The Future of Collecting, Senior Partner at Advoca, a designer, adventurer, toy fanatic and an avid Magic player and collector since 1994.

 

 

by James Chillcott (@MTGCritic)

ROUND 8 Notes:

• End of Day 1 Coverage: See you Sat evening around 7pm!
• Sigrist just called out Siege Rhino as the “best card in his deck, not close”
• Based on the strong performance of DIg Through Time, you could do a LOT worse than to order a few of these Japanese Foil Promo copies from the Prerelease (http://www.saitocardshop.com/product/15297)
• Hornet Queen just called out as the “best card” in the G/B Constellation deck that also did well today
• Just bought 20 copies of Rakshasa Deathdealer for 1.75 as it should have room to run to $4-5 if this deck keeps pace tomorrow
• Also worth noting this deck is “too aggro” to run Courser of Kruphix.
• Notable that the deck is running 4 Thoughtseize despite the life loss, to nab removal spells and protect their creatures: 4 Fleecemane Lion, Rakshasa Deathdealer (on track to bump to $4-5?), 3 Anafenza, 3 Herald of Torment, 4 Siege Rhino. Also running 3 Sorin. All of these will gain if this deck wins through on Day 2.
• Shout to FacetoFace Games team member and honorary Canadian Mike Sigrist being featured as the 8-0 Abzan Aggro player.
• Abzan Aggro is at 8-0. Don’t count this one out at all. Siege Rhino may be safe around $5-6.
• Brad Nelson beats Jamie to got to 6-2 with R/W tokens.
• At least a few Ascendancy decks are 4-0 going into this round
• Goblin Rabblemaster being featured as a format staple. <crickets>
• Chandra + Elspeth doing some work for Brad Nelson right now
• Next big Standard tourney is Grand Prix LA next weekend
• Brad Nelson (W/R Tokens) vs. Jamie Parke (Jeskai Aggro) 1st on camera this round, both at 5-2. Nothing unusual here so far. Jeskai Charm may hit $2+ based on heavy play.
• Look to whether Finkel makes Day 2 with See the Unwritten to see if the spec is real

ROUND 7 Notes:

• Just bought up a pile of Astral Cornucopia at .40. A half-chance it hits $1-3 if Jeskai Ascendancy continues to do well as it’s a winter rare. I’ve been sitting on a pile of these in regular and foil for a while, and here’s the combo it needed to do something. Note: there are alternates to the card, so the spec is weaker than it would be if that were not true.
• U/B Control Dech Tech with Cifka on camera: he argues that against 12 mana creature decks going 1-for-1 should be good. Runs 3 Clever Impersonator in the SB.
• Lol, apparently  0 pros agree with me that Villainous Wealth, not Hornet Queen, is the strongest thing to do with Nykthos mana. Hornet Queen just looked great in Green/B Devotion facing Abzan.
• Cards I’ve bought in the last hour: 40 copies See the Unwritten under $4, 12 copies Doomwake Giant under $2
• Cards I’ve sold in the last hour: Dig Through Time, Sarkhan, Jeskai Ascendancy, Fetches
• Abzan and G/B Devotion decks now on camera at 3-0 each
• Jeskai Ascendancy combo wins 2nd game easily against RWG Planeswalkers to put Dave Williams to 5-2. This is looking like THE card of the tourney thus far.
• U/B Control being condemned on camera as “not as good as before”
• Jeskai Ascendancy combo now on camera…expect a run on the card based on that Turn 4 combo kill.
• Finkle is now 2-1 with the See the Unwritten ramp deck.

ROUND 6 Notes:

• Less than 10 copies of Jeskai Ascendancy on Ebay under $8. A few prices posted around $12-13 already. Just sold my Korean copy for $9.
• Jeskai Ascendancy Combo being called out in the 3rd Deck Tech…my top pick to gain so far this weekend. Should be over $10-12 by end of weekend. Other deck components include Astral Cornucopia, Dig Through Time and a singleton Altar of the Brood.
• Ari called out Siege Rhino and Thoughtseize as key cards in his deck.
• Ari takes down U/B Control with Abzan. Notable interaction when Perilous Vault failed to wipe the board because Nissa’s lands aren’t impacted.
• Wingmate Roc and Nissa, Worldwaker now on camera in a 2-0 Abzan build piloted by Ari Lax
• Finkle loses the match to Mardu Aggro, leaving the spec potentially stranded.
• Jon Finkel is on camera playing the See the Unwritten deck. He just lost Game 1 but the buyout has already started. I encountered multiple cart thefts while lapping up 4-5 sets at $4/card. A full 60 copies just got snatched. I expect this card to hit $12+ if Finkle wins or someone gets to top 8 with it.

ROUND 5 Notes:

• Jeskai Tokens and Tempo are showing up in numbers, and the Tokens deck has now been featured in the 2nd Deck Tech of the night….Ascendancy looking primed to bump up if this continues
• A big Empty the Pits just went off for a ton out of the Mardu Planeswalker deck (Park) that is holding the top table and just beat Owen Turtenwald
• Randy B just called Perilous Vault “a real card” on camera
• Fellow Canadian Shawn McClaren goes to 5-0 using Jeskai Tempo
• Pantheon U/B control deck is running 2/3 Aetherspouts and 4 Perilous Vaults
• Butcher of the Horde is seeing play in numerous takes on Mardu builds
• Mihara and the other half of the Pantheon Team are on Unwritten Devotion (See the Unwritten + Doomwake Giant + Hornet Queen) ramp

ROUND 4 NOTES:

• Todd Anderson is showing off Ghostfire Blade in his Ensoul Artifact deck
• LSV is on Jeskai Ascendancy combo using Altar of the Brood + Ornithoptre or Astral Cornocopia to mill opponents out, which he did in Round 1. Updates as we see how many Altar are in the list…
• Ben Stark and David Williams are on Jeskai Tempo
• Raphael Levy is on Mardu Planeswalkers
• William Jensen and Flock are on U/B Control with Dig Through Time, Downfall, Prognostic Sphinx. Pantheon version is running Pearl Lake Ancient as the only finisher.

---

So here we are.

6 weeks of hype, pre-release and release events, early results from SCG and State Championships all culminate this weekend at Pro Tour: Khans of Tarkir. The mixed format event started this afternoon with 3 rounds of Booster Draft and wraps up with the

With the Estimated Value of Khans of Tarkir Booster Boxes currently sitting around $140USD (most fall sets should end up between $100-$110), the results of the Standard portion of this Pro Tour are likely to result in the ascendancy and downfall of a larger than usual swath of cards. All eyes are on the 5 rounds of standard playing out between 8pm and 1:30am tonight to see what the key teams like Channel Fireball, SCG and the Japanese powerhouse squads bring to the top tables.

Early word from the tournament seems to indicate a wide open field, with no major clues that anyone has “solved” the format. In such a scenario consistency and great play should rule the day, so it will be fascinating to see what rises to the top and sets up a fresh round of buy and sell signals.

For Magic speculators, the weekend will be an especially important proving grounds for many of the most hyped cards of the format. Here are some early stories to be paying attention to:

• Sarkhan, Dragonspeaker

First folks thought he would replace Stormbreath Dragon. Then we thought the Dragon might be better. Then we thought we’d play both. Either way, he’s managed a reasonable number of showings in early tournaments and is propped up as the Elspeth of Fall 2014. Currently available around $35 online and $50 retail, he stands to lose the most if he doesn’t make the top tables this weekend. Hype and casual interest could still easily keep above $25, but I’m selling into hype at $35 with confidence, looking to enter lower later this season.

• Sorin, Solemn Visitor

So far Sorin, doesn’t have an obvious deck likely to make top tables and as such, could be headed to a $15 price point. A good showing could reverse that trend.

• Clever Impersonator

Originally pre-ordering close to $20, we have basically no indication that this is a major player in standard so far, and nothing short of a top table appearance in multiples will prop it back up.

• Hornet Queen

She was vastly underestimated in her first 8 weeks of release, with plenty of us picking up unlimited copies under a dollar.  Since Monday I’ve gone from selling $10 sets with a smile to selling $25 sets with a shit-eating grin and plenty of MTGFinance types think a good showing this weekend in Green Devotion and Reanimator decks this weekend could push her over $10/copy like her set cousin the Rabblemaster.

• Dig Through Time

A lot of the focus has been on Treasure Cruise as the most broken draw spell since Ancestral Visions, but as a rare it’s actually Dig Through Time that may have the most financial relevance this fall. A broad showing this weekend in control or tempo decks could push the card over $10, at which point I’d be selling into that hype.

• Fetchlands

They’re clearly some of the best lands of all time, but so far they haven’t made a huge splash in Standard, with relatively few decks running full sets. The early dominance of Courser of Kruphix and his excellent interactions with Fetchlands certainly balances the lack of Ravnica duals to fetch for, but the collapse of Khans EV should still begin with these lands moving down towards the $10-14 range from their current $15-20 range. Only a ton of decks running multiple playsets of 4 will have any chance of keeping prices to the higher side of the downhill range as we move deeper into the season.

• Goblin Rabblemaster

He’s already proved his mettle in everything from Aggro Red to Jeskai Temp and R/G Monsters builds and he’s earned his crown as the top rare from M15. The question is whether the metagame will now warp around him to ensure his token aggro driven strategy is nullified. A top 8 will keep him high. Missing that stage, could see him slide back $3-5 so it’s worth watching.

• Wingmate Roc

First we hated it. A bad Broodmate Dragon they said. Then he started showing up as a great value play and potential finisher in a few different decks and he’s a clear candidate for breakout card of the weekend. As a mythic currently sitting around $13, and with an MTGO run-up this week of ~40%, there are plenty of eyes wondering if this powerful flyer can hit $20+.

• Siege Rhino

It’s been trending down, and could easily move towards bulk unless an Abzan mid-range deck puts this powerful beater to work holding off red and black based aggro decks.

Stay tuned through the evening as we update this page with additional notes and findings from the early rounds and offer insight into how the rest of the weekend might shape up.

 

James Chillcott is the CEO of ShelfLife.net, The Future of Collecting, Senior Partner at Advoca, a designer, adventurer, toy fanatic and an avid Magic player and collector since 1994.

 

 

PET CARDS

Khans of Tarkir: Brimming with Potential (Pt1: Hardened Scales)

By James Chillcott (@MTGCritic)

With the forthcoming release of Khans of Tarkir Wizards of the Coast has given us a fresh new take on an Alara style gold set, complete with a bunch of cards that would seem unplayable if we weren’t overloaded with mana fixing options. As with M15 this set is positively brimming with cards that could make a big splash IF they find the right complementary cards in the format, and IF the deck ends up doing well at a significant event. With the Onslaught fetchlands taking up a significant chunk of the set’s EV (estimated value), many of these potential winners will be great pickups next summer when they’ve failed out of standard. A few however, will become triumphant underdogs, just as Goblin Rabblemaster did in M15.

Now most of my investments in MTGFinance rest firmly in the “obvious winners” category, with specs harvested from my own research and tips from the top minds in the game. I spent most of my spring/summer acquiring cards like Mana Confluence, Eidolon of the Great Revel foils, Soldier of the Pantheon, Courser of Kruphix, Keranos and Goblin Rabblemaster.

With every set however, I like to dig for 2-3 cards that seem wildly undervalued, often because they are hard to evaluate or seem underwhelming at first glance.  I tend to go deep on these cards using math that requires at least 1/3 to triple up or I lose money. My time horizon is often targeted at 1-2 years but I try to pick cards that have a shot at imminent success whenever possible.

As with any good MTG spec we’re ideally looking for cards that are:

1. Multi-format playable
2. Mythic or Rare
3. Preferably from small sets (making all KTK and future fall/spring big set specs worse in general)
4. Can benefit strongly from the printing of future complementary cards
5. Strongly undervalued vs. rarity average

For the next few weeks I’ll be selecting one card per week to explore more fully and try to establish whether it has true potential or a destiny in the bulk rare bin.

This week we’re going to be talking about an innocuous little green enchantment that goes by the name of Hardened Scales.

Tail of the Tape

• Casting Cost: At G Hardened Scales is well positioned to come down early ahead of the cards it aims to boost and is easy to cast in any deck with access to the color.

• Resiliency: Post side-boarding enchantments can draw some hate in certain metagames, but at the kitchen table they’re one of the card types most likely to stick around and do their job.

• Usefulness on Curve: A late game Scales into an empty board may be just the stumble an opponent needs to finish you off, but early and mid-game it easily fits on curve among other activity.

• Rarity: This could have been an uncommon in a set with a broader +1/+1 theme, but it’s to our benefit that it’s a rare in KTK.

• Valuation:  Averaging just .75-1.00 USD in pre-orders this card is poised for solid gains if it ends up in a successful standard or modern deck this fall. The potential price range from strong standard play alone is $3-5, but growth beyond that is limited due to the linear nature of the strategy the card suggests. It will need Modern or strong EDH/Casual support to get much further.

• Availability: KTK may end up the most opened set ever, and that will mean continuing bulk status if it doesn’t find a home this year. In that case next summer will be the all-time low, and the time to snap up some copies for decks and specs at .25-.50.

Standard

In standard this card’s future rest squarely in it’s ability to find a home in a few possible decks (in order of likelihood): Abzan, Green Devotion, or Temur.

On first review there doesn’t seem to be anything truly degenerate to do with Hardened Scales in Standard so far, but there are more ways to gain value from it than you probably realized. Actually, dozens more.

So far in Abazan or G/W (the most likely shells) we have the following cards to work with, listed in order of natural affinity. (Warning: this list is exhaustive in the hopes that it will inspire one of you to do something grand with Scales and but may also just result in you losing your FNM games while you durdle around.):

The Green Devotion Players

Working with the pre-existing Green Devotion shell may mean messing with a good thing unnecessarily but it’s certainly worth a look to see whether Hardened Scales can rate a slot in a deck that’s already proven itself Tier 1, perhaps with some previously ignored cousins:

      

• Genesis Hydra: I like getting a slightly better rate on this guy when he was already playable. For 5 mana, we’re getting a 4/4 that digs 3 cards looking for a Banishing Light or Suppression Field to help clear a path.
• Bow of Nylea: Already played in Green Devotion decks this year, it now provides +2/+2, making it that much better.
• Mistcutter Hydra: Gets a bit bigger, and his presence in the main will depend on how the metagame shakes out regardless, since Mono-U is likely done for now.
• Polukranos, World Eater: Getting an extra +1/+1 from his monstrosity trigger isn’t a big deal, but he didn’t really need the help to be good. The rest of the playable Monstrosity guys like Hundred-Handed One and Arbor Colossus are a bit better too.
• Heroes’ Bane: This guy has more fun with Scales than Polukranos, increasing your rate to 5/5 for 5 and allowing him to hit for 11 for 2GG a turn later.
• Hornet Nest: Maybe, just maybe, Hardened Scales into Nest into either Ajani is a disgusting way to slaughter decks without flyers.
• Living Totem: Suddenly this limited staple reads 3G for a 2/3 that boosts a buddy +2/+2 permanently on entry. Not bad.
• Scourge of Skola Vale: He’s now a 3/3 for 2G that gets very large indeed if you give up a dying companion to his hungers. Likely not good enough.
• Hooded Hydra: Gets an additional counter, which is not that exciting and a dubious Standard card regardless (except with Purphoros, where he might win games).
• Nature’s Panoply: For 2GG you now get 4/4 of fresh power/toughness on the table, but you need guys in play first.
• Hunt The Weak/Temur Charm: Now beefs up a creature +2/+2 and makes it that much more likely to win the fight. Hmm. Banishing Light and Suppression field are likely still just better, but perhaps a single copy for the road.
• Nessian Demolok: Bet you didn’t know this card exists. With Scales you get a 3/3 for 3GG that destroys a planeswalker or Banishing Light or you get a 7/7 for 5. They’ll give you the big guy then kill it. The rest of the tribute cards have the same issue. Moving on.

Several of these cards may also be better off joining the Abzan posse below.

The Abzan Crew

       

• Incremental Growth: With Scales this now reads 3GG, Sorcery: Put 2 +1/+1 counters on a creature, 3 on another and 4 on another. That’s adding 9 power/toughness to the table for 5.
• Ajani Steadfast: Putting +2/+2 permanently on each of your creatures and boosting any planeswalkers you happen to be playing seems great since it makes it that much more likely that your Ajani can hide effectively behind his friends.
• Ajani, Mentor of Heroes: Similarly to his other incarnation, the GW version of Ajani coughing up a maximum of 6 +1/+1 counters as his +1 seems excellent.
• Retribution of the Ancients: This is the kill spell this deck needed, turning all those +1/+1 counters into lethal -1/-1 counters on the opposing side for a very low cost and with extreme flexibility. Bad in multiples so it would be 1-2 copy thing.
• Abzan Charm: As if this charm wasn’t useful already killing Sarkhan and drawing cards, now it potentially adds 4 power/toughness to the table instead of 2
• Cruel Sadist: B gets you a 1/1 that ramp easily to 3/3 and 5/5 in two turns and starts picking off small creatures with ease.
• High Sentinels of Arashin: It’s a 3/4 flyer that gets +1/+1 for each other creature you control with a counter on it and it can even provide 2 counters for 3W when necessary. Lovely.
• Feat of Resistance: Putting a two +1/+1 counters on a guy while countering a kill spell or trumping a combat trade for 1W at instant speed looks worthy.
• Mer-Ek Nightblade: 2/3 for a guy that can make himself 2/2 bigger per turn and give everyone Deathtouch seems worth testing.
• Anafenz, the Foremost: Already a great beater at 4/4 for WGB, suddenly she’s permanently boosting a fellow attacker by +2/+2. Seems solid.
• Abzan Ascendancy: Doubles in power adding +2/+2 to every creature on your board, along with the 1/1 flyers you get when your dudes die.
• Ivorytusk Fortress: This card has been written off as limited only, but 5/7 for 5 is an ok rate, and untapping your Outlast/counter guys for defense could be what they need to succeed.
• Athreos, God of Passage: No interactions with Scales directly, but a fantastic value card if we’re trying to recycle Heroic dudes, Sadists and Chroniclers.
• Grim Haruspex: No direct interactions, but in combination with Athreos, could be the foundation of a solid draw/drain engine.
• Fleecemane Lion: A great card gets a bit bigger and still outranks Satyr Grovedancer.
• Ainok-Bond Kin: 1W for a 2/1 that has T, 1W: Permanently gain +2/+2 that gives all your other counter laden creatures first strike might get there.
• Herald of Anafenza: W for a 1/2 that can gain +2/+2 and make a 1/1 for 2W every turn. Again, seems workable though the tap cost on Outlast makes it much worse.
• Feast on the Fallen: for 2B, you get a +2/+2 upgrade on a creature of your choice every turn (I’m assuming you’re attacking hard yeah?)

The Heroic Shell Cards

      

• Phalanx Leader: WW and some heroic triggers starts building up our entire army in +2/+2 increments.
• Fabled Hero: If you were going to try and play a Heroic guy, this might be it, since the first trigger would give you a 4/4 Double Striker for 1WW.
• Hero of Iroas: If we’re going the Bestow route a 4/4 for 1W with cheap trigger costs seems about right.
• Wingsteed Rider/Akroan Skyguard: A 4/4 flyer for 1WW is playable, with the right triggers. So is a 3/3 flyer for 1W. Perhaps both?
• Battlewise Hoplite: A WU 2/2 that Scrys for 1 and becomes a 4/4 on it’s first targeting is interesting if UWG can be made to work.
• Favored Hoplite: I spent most of the spring tooling a W/U deck with Battlefield Thaumaturgist, Favored Hoplite and Triton Shorestalker where I would use Launch the Fleet and Hidden Strings to do dumb things on turns 2/3 and then get blown out by real magic cards. Still, he’s a 3/4 for W off the first trigger so I’ll be testing him again.
• Reap What is Sown: A couple of Heroic guys and a Scales, and then you cast this during combat? Yeah, that’s +4/+4 per guy, permanently…
• Solidarity of Heroes: So then, the next turn, we cast this for 2GG and our 6/6 guys become 11/11s? WTF. Call it win more if you like, it’s still hilarious.
• Chronicler of Heroes: 3/3, Draw a card for 1GW starts to look almost playable in the presence of so many counters.
• Ordeal of Nylea/Erebos: The plethora of kill in this new format makes this pretty dubious, but Ordeal of Nylea on an early Sadist after Scales, could be attacking for 5-7 and fetching 2 lands. The black one makes them discard 2 cards the turn it’s played. Worth fooling with?
• Eidolon of Blossoms: Getting a card off your late Scales to turn them into cantrips with upside is good if there’s already a high enough density of “counters count” cards and enchantments to make Eidolon worthwhile.
• Armory of Iroas: An equipment that gives any creature a permanent +2/+2 for 2 equip cost is possibly playable. It would help push though Courser and Sylvan and that’s important right now.

The Temur Tribe

In Temur we maintain access to the interesting mono green cards above and gain additional access to a few extra toys, at the cost of a lessened overall focus on +1/+1 counters:

        

• Chasm Skulker: Gains 2 +1/+1 counters per turn, necessitating kill sooner lest it get out of control.
• Trap Essence: Countering a key creature on turns 4-6 and getting 3 counters on Chasm Skulker at instant speed seems like something I should at least be trying to do.
• War-Name Aspirant: Could potentially come in as a 4/3 for 2 that can’t be blocked by Elspeth, Brimaz or Mardu tokens.
• Sage of Hours: Taking extra turns is good but this guy needs more help amidst a see of good removal, pressure and sweepers.
• Adamant Negation: If you can get a guy up to 4 power with your token work (or you’re just playing Savage Knuckleblade), this card starts countering other counters, kill and planeswalkers for one blue, and still steals turns early on causing maximum feel bads. Absolutely worth a shot.
• Disdainful Stroke: This is the other half of a wicked good counter package where Adamant Negation handles the early and late game and this card shores up the middle by preventing Xenagos, Sarhkhan, Nissa, Stormbreath, Stoke the Flames, Utter End, etc.
• Treasure Cruise: If U/G Delve can be made to work, using Treasure Cruise to dump 6 counters onto a Chasm Skulker may be a central anthem.
• Temur Charm: As a more flexible Hunt the Weak, a mediocre counter spell or the falter you need to get in there for critical damage, this may have a role to play.

Personally, with Chasm Skulker being one of my pet cards from M15 I’m most excited to see if gaining 2 counters per turn is enough to put it over the top in some kind of UGx shell. There’s an outside chance that it’s actually UGB that is more set to support Skulker with some kind of Sidisi, Treasure Cruise, Jace brew, but I haven’t had chance to look at it very hard yet and figure out if Scales would even make an appearance in such a deck.

Modern

Moving on to Modern we immediately have access to many more options for attempting degeneracy with Hardened Scales.

Option A: Play it in Affinity

    

Imagine the following turn sequence:

• T1: Ornithopter, Memnite, Mox Opal, Darksteel Citadel, Signal Pest
• T2: Glimmervoid, Hardened Scales, Steel Overseer
• T3: Land, Arcbound Ravager (as a 2/2 out the gate), activate Overseer: 2/4 Ornithopter, 2/3 Signal Pest, 4/4 Ravager (with the potential to go to 14/14)

Being able to ramp Ravager this hard really stretches the value of burn spells and leaves him exposed mostly to Path to Exile and counters pre-board. Clearly Modular and Hardened Scales is at least worth fooling around with but it could just be bad to have a non-artifact in the main.

Note: The oft-overlooked Chronomaton goes up +2/+2 per turn with Scales in play, and can take counters from Ravager. Clockwork Beetle would enter as a 3/3 with potential to stay in play through other interactions. IE Energy Chamber which would dole out +2/+2 to your most needy artifact creature every turn for 2  up front and could be converted into +2/+2 for Ravager in a pinch.

Option B: Try to make “Ooze One Out” a thing

Yeah, so here’s a potential modern deck shell that tries to gather together some of the better +1/+1 oriented cards in the format:

Ooze One Out (Deck Shell, James Chillcott, Sep 10/14)

     

• 4 BloodHall Ooze: This + Scales + Cackler or Dark Confidant = +4/+4 per turn!
• 4 Rakdos Cackler: Comes in as a 3/3 for R/B!
• 4 Scavenging Ooze: As if this card wasn’t strong enough, now it gets +2/+2 when it removes creatures from the graveyard.
• 4 Dark Confidant: Low casting cost decks with low redundancy on their primary catalyst need cards like this.
• 2 Kavu Predator: Assuming we’re playing Grove of the Burnwillows for our red splash, this guy boosts +2/2 permanently on the first activation and just gets uglier from there.
• 1 Ashling the Pilgrim: This guy is a 1/1 for 1R that helps with Bloodhall Ooze and can gain +2/+2 permanently for 1R and then threatens to blow up the world if left unchecked. I look forward to stealing a game with this out of nowhere.
• 2 Thrill-Kill Assassin: 3/4 Deathtouch for 1B seems suddenly modern playable.
• 3 Strangleroot Geist: A 2/1 haste for GG, that comes back as a 4/3 haste when it dies is just nasty.
• 1 Predator Ooze: If ever there was a shell for this guy, this might be it. Path and counters still get him but he’s an indestructible creature that grows by either +2/2 or +4/+4 per turn depending on who you’re playing against. Could be tough to cast depending on how we balance the mana.
• 4 Hardened Scales: Our main man in Japan.
• 2 Ulcerate: Cheap and effective removal.
• 2 Tragic Slip: Ditto.
• 2 Dismember: More of the same.
• 1 Bow of Nylea: A dubious addition I’m testing just to see if the flexibility is worth it.

Notes:

• Corpsejack Menace: As a potential top end for this deck he’d cause mayhem with Scales, making all inbound counters go 2(n+1) (1 counter becomes 4, 2 counters become 6, 3 counters become 8.) With Bloodhall Ooze the math is actually doubled to 8 +1/+1 counters per turn because Bloodhall carries two separate triggered abilities!

• Falkenrath Aristocrat: Going to 6/3 on the first trigger and 9/5 on the 2nd is tempting but you’d need to up the synergistic human count.
• Countryside Crusher: Flipping 2 lands off the top with this guy would turn a 3/3 into a 7/7 for 1RR.
• Bond Beetle: Could be a 2/3 for G.
• Young Wolf: 1/1 for G that comes back as a 3/3.
• Solidarity of Heroes might be insane in this deck.

In all likelihood I’m missing some fantastic deck options in Modern. (Brew something up and send it my way and I’ll include it in the next article!)

A few other potential Modern interactions:

• Archangel of Thune now grants +2/+2 to all of your creatures permanently when you gain life.
• Kitchen Finks go “infinite” with a way to get +1/+1 counters onto them easily since -1/-1 counters cancel each other out. Some kind of WGB Aristocrats brew?

   

EDH/Casual

With every card ever at our disposal the broken things we can do with Hardened Scales gets out of control pretty fast. It’s worth noting that in situations where you were only trying to double a single counter anyways, Scales is strictly cheaper than Doubling Season so it should find an auto-home in those pre-existing EDH decks that are already abusing counters.

Tangent 1: Unleash Creatures

   

Check out what a Hardened Scales does to creatures with Unleash:

• Rakdos Cackler: 3/3 for R or B
• Gore-House Chainwalker: 4/3 for 1R
• Thrill-Kill Assassin: 3/4 Deathtouch for 1B
• Splatter Thug: 4/4 First Strike for 2R
• Hellhole Flailer: 5/4 for 1BR w/ Sac, 2BR: Deal 5 to player.

 

Tangent 2: Simic/Doubling Season Decks

   

• Doubling Season: I tried doing the math on this and my brain started to hurt. Suffice to say your creatures are getting massive. Just remember to stack the triggers correctly for maximum benefit.
• Cytoplast Root-Kin:  Goes totally mondo and now reads 2GG, Graft 4, 4/4. ETB: Put an extra 2 +1/+1 counters on every creature that already has a counter.  Another creature ETB: Take a +1/+1 counter off Cytoplast Root-Kin and put 2 on the ETB creature. 2: Remove a +1/+1 counter from a creature and put 2 on CRK. (Wow.)
• Forgotten Ancient:  Gains 2 +1/+1 counters per spell cast by any player. Those counters double again when split to other creatures in your upkeep!
• Vorel, of the Hull Clade: I need a ruling on this one. Does this guy triple +1/+1 counters or just 2N+1?
• Hunting Moa: Is now a 3/2 that puts 2 +1/+1 counters on a creature on ETB, and another 2 when it dies for just 2G.
• Vigean Hydropon: Can distribute up to 12(!) +1/+1 counters to future incoming creatures for 1UG.
• Afiya Grove: Now provides +8/+8  permanently to your board for just 1G. Hot.
• Blessings of Nature: Wow, if you miracle this, you get up to 8 +1/+1 counters for just a single green mana. Gross.
• Curse of Predation: The guy you do this to with Scales on the table is getting him for an extra 2 from every creature. He will hate you for it.
• Simic Guildmage:  Turns a +1/+1 counter into 2 on someone else with every 1G activation.
• Plaxcaster Frogling: Is now a 4/4 for 1UG that can remove a counter when another creature ETB to put 2 on the new creature. It also defends itself and it’s friends for 2.
• Simic Fluxmage: Gets really sexy as a 1/2 that becomes a 3/4 on the next ETB trigger and can reset itself for further growth by removing a counter to place 2 on another creature.
• Elusive Krasis: Goes from 0/4 Unblockable to 2/6 and 4/8 in a hurry with Hardened Scales around.
• Evolution Vat: Upgrades to boosting a creature by +2/+2 and then doubling+1 the resulting total counters.
• Fathom Mage: Gets +2/+2 and draws 2 card per Evolve trigger? Nuts.
• Ghave, Guru of Spores: For 2 mana add a counter to any creature at instant speed.
• Grimgrin, Corpse-Born: Gains +4/+4 in his normal cycle of abuse.

• Gyre Sage: Starts generating silly amounts of mana in a hurry.
• Kalonian Hydra: Hardly needs the help, but he starts at 5/5 and goes to 11/11 while doubling everyone else’s counters +1 on attack. Mental.
• Kavu Predator: With a Grove of the Burnwillows now reads: 1G, 2/2, Trample. Tap Grove to put 2 +1/+1 counters on Kavu Predator.
• Jenara, Asura of War: Gets big fast for 1W per 2/2.
• Fertilid: is a 3/3 for 2G that can Rampant Growth 3 times.
• Lumberknot: is a 1/1 Hexproof creature for 2GG that gains +2/+2 permanently whenever a creature dies.
• Advocate of the Beast: now boosts a Beast by +2/+2 every turn for 2G

Tangent 3: Other Fun Interactions

   

•  Ajani Goldmane: His -1 now places +2/+2 on each creature you control.
• Ajani, Caller of the Pride: Does it for one creature with his +1.
• Ajani’s Pridemate: Now gains +2/+2 whenever you gain life.
• A fully kicked Analvolver is now 4BUG for an 8/8 flyer with regeneration.
• Bramblewood Paragon: Warriors enter the battlefield with +2/+2 and gain trample for 1G. My casual Elf Warrior decks rejoices. Elvish Vanguard plays nicely here too.
• Avenger of Zendikar: The landfall ability now puts +2/+2 on all the plant tokens.
• In your Animar EDH/Commander deck, your commander now gains +2/+2 whenever you cast a creature, and reduces creature costs by 2 for every time this happens. Hot.
• Arcbound Stinger is a 2/2 flyer for 2 that gives another artifact creature +3/+3 permanently when it dies.
• Cathar’s Crusade: In EDH/Commander this card starts giving ALL of your creatures +2/+2 for every creature that comes into play for 3WW. So yeah, that would be +8/+8 from a twice resolved Lingering Souls.
• Carrion Feeder: Gains +2/+2 for every creature sacrified, perhaps in a G/B Zombie deck leveraging Scavenge.
• Champion of the Parish: Likewise, this guy gets +2/+2 for every incoming human. That’s +4/+4 for W if you cast Raise the Alarm into a Scales.
• Cenn’s Tactician: Doles out +2/+2 to a creature per turn for W and lets them block two creatures each.
• Dack’s Duplicate: Boosts +2/+2 every time it attacks the leading player.
• Deathbringer Thoctar: Turns into a machine gun accumulating 2 counters when something dies and taking them off at will to deal 1 damage. Savage.
• Descendant of Musamaro: Suddenly becomes playable as a 2G guy who gains 2n-y counters per turn where n = your hand size and y = the hand of the opponent with the least cards.

• Dirtcowl Wurm: A 3/4 for 5 that gets +2/+2 every time an opponent plays a land will get out of hand fast in EDH.
• Dragon Blood: Doles out +2/+2 counters every turn for 3, presumably for massive value in combination with some of these other cards.
• Etched Oracle: This guy gets easier to cast for full value, easily coming in as a 5/5 that can go to 1/1 to draw you 3 cards for 1 mana.
• Experiment Kraj: Gets all fiesty doling out the +2/+2s every turn.
• Experiment One: Being able to boost him for double value and ditch the counters at will to ensure he gets the next Evolve Trigger or dodge removal/combat damage is great.
• Mikaeus, the Lunarch: Comes in one +1/+1 counter bigger, taps to get 2 counters, and trades a single counter from himself into 2 for the whole team. Excellent!
• Borborygmos: Puts +2/+2 on each creature if he connects.

So as you can see, Hardened Scales, though linear and from a set with dominant fetchlands, may well be usable in multiple formats.  Go forth and break my pet card please. My 100+ copies will thank you.

Bonus MTGFinance notes:

• M15 Pet cards Goblin Rabblemaster and Chasm Skulker are looking good for returns, with Rabblemaster already in 250% territory. I was in at $3 on Rabblemaster and $1.25 on Skulker and will hold 50% of my Skulkers for longer looking to squeeze some more profits in case he finds a role somewhere before starting sell-off post PTKTK.

• Modern Masters boxes from last summer have ripened and I’m having little trouble selling cases of 3 for $1200 overseas, representing 55% profits over the entry point of $220/box after fees. With MM2 surrounded by so many question marks I recommend getting out on these boxes this fall and setting up for fresh profits elsewhere. I’ll hold only a single case past Jan 1/15.

• Modern/Eternal/EDH playable foils from KTK to target so far include: Adamant Negation, Savage Knuckleblade, the Fetchlands, Narset, Enlightened Master and Clever Impersonator. I also like Sidisi, Brood Tyrant, especially if she doesn’t end up Tier 1 in standard, because then we’ll have plenty of time to get her excellent art in foil at lower cost.

• MTGO specs from Vintage Masters selected using my preferred Card Evaluation Formula (% of metagame x # copies played/deck) have yielded very good returns in a very short period of time. My top two VMA picks, Jace, The Mind Sculptor and Force of Will have both achieved 40-45% returns in just 6 weeks, the equivalent of over 350% per annum. The most popular blue dual lands are already sliding up and should easily provide similar returns by October. Good luck getting that out of your mutual funds.

James Chillcott is the CEO of ShelfLife.net, The Future of Collecting, Senior Partner at Advoca, a designer, adventurer, toy fanatic and an avid Magic player and collector since 1994.