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If you haven't seen the announcement, you're living under a rock. Climb out on, shield your eyes against the sunlight, and read this article here.
Now come back. I'm making a bold claim.
The new Block structure will increase card prices.
It's certainly a possibility at least, thanks to the magic of the "Third-Set effect." You can read the full article here.
It certainly could drive up prices, we’ll just have to wait and see.
On the one hand, cards of a given set will be opened/drafted for a shorter amount of time. The typical big set will have 3 months of drafting chopped off, and the typical small set will be drafted for as long as a 3rd set is drafted now. Lower supply, etc. Cards will be usable for a shorter duration in standard, which I suspect will increase volatility.
On the other hand, people might account for this by being hesitant to value standard cards as high as they have in the past. Knowing that every card they acquire will have a standard lifespan of only 15-18 months might mean that they aren’t willing to spend as much on chase cards, and so dealers will have to lower prices to the point where folks are willing to spend the cash.