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Insider: Foil Eternal Masters Picks

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While cards reprinted in Eternal Masters initially caused dips in prices, it's clear now that there is significant demand for many cards in the set relative to the supply. We've seen this previously with Tarmogoyf in Modern Masters---reprinted cards can ultimately end up increasing the value of a card as more players who have acquired their first copy clamor for the rest of their set.

Interestingly, when you compare the price of foil Future Sight Tarmogoyfs to the foil reprints, the original printing is significantly more valuable. The opposite is true when you compare the judge promo Force of Will to the Eternal Masters foil. This is also true with regard to Vampiric Tutor, and a few other cards from the set.

The long and short of it is that despite being a reprint set, EMA isn't exactly Chronicles. Some EMA foils barely exist online currently, such as Toxic Deluge, and there are some great investment opportunities in foils from the set. I've taken the time to go through foil prices from the set to present the best options.

Some of these cards are abstractly good specs, while others are more so great buys for people who would actually play them.


The judge foil Argothian Enchantress is currently priced at about $45, compared to the EMA foil at $30. This isn't the most sought-after card, though it's a casual favorite with some fringe Cube and Legacy implications. The ceiling for this one is likely to closely resemble the price of the judge promo, though if you're in the market for a foil then $30 is the cheapest price you're going to see for a while.


Despite multiple non-foil printings, Eternal Masters is the first foil printing of Baleful Strix. Non-foils are pretty cheap right now, though foils are sitting around $55-$60. A Cube, Commander, and Legacy all-star, I only see this price increasing. If you're in the market for these, I strongly recommend buying soon. It wouldn't surprise me to see a $100 price tag on these foils before long.


Beetleback Chief is another first-time foil, though a significantly less sought-after one. Given the MTGO legality of the card in Pauper and the card's relative power level as an uncommon, the card sees a solid amount of casual and Cube play, and as such I feel it's slightly undervalued in the $4 range. I expect these to at least double in the next six months.


The original Braids foil is currently $15, and the EMA reprint is in the $5-6 range. Braids is better than Sol Ring, so it's banned in Commander, but it shows up in a large number of Cubes. I expect this to be the cheapest you'll be able to find a foil Braids for some time.


Yet another first-time foil and Cube all-star, foil Control Magic can currently be had for about $15. Despite being a rare in EMA, the legality in the peasant format adds some demand to the equation on this one. $15 sounds like a bargain to me, and I expect this to at least double up over the course of the next year.


Dack doesn't quite hack it in Legacy, though he's a Cube and Vintage staple. There's not a ton of people sitting around waiting to buy Dacks, but the disparity between the EMA foil at $155 and the Conspiracy foil at $225 is notable. This is mostly a buy for people who are specifically looking for foil Dacks and less of a growth stock.


Speaking of price disparity, EMA Daze is currently at $35 as compared to Nemesis foils at $75. I largely prefer both the old border and the old art, though I fully expect EMA Dazes to drive demand. Once again you can expect the original foil to more or less function as the ceiling, though there is a good amount of room to grow here.


Diminishing Returns has a very niche market as a sideboard card for Legacy Storm, though with this being the only foil printing $8 seems like a bargain. It's hard to say exactly what the ceiling on such a niche card would be or how easy one would be to move, but given the low cost to entry I like picking up a few of these while they're still sub-$10.


EMA foil Disentomb is currently $22 as compared to the $35 judge promo and the $60 Odyssey foil. I personally think that the new art is great, and this foil being valued at the same price as the Graveborn printing with their goofy foiling seems criminal to me.


Gamble is another first-time foil, and with Cube, Commander, and Legacy appeal it's not surprising to already see the card at $45. If you need these, get them now. I'm not as interested in these as a spec as Baleful Strix, though the growth will be real.


The original foils of Heritage Druid are currently valued at about $30 compared to the EMA foil at $15. This is a Legacy, Modern, and casual card, and I expect to see the EMA version gain value more than I'd expect the Morningtide printing to lose it. This is a solid buy right now.


Hydroblast doesn't see nearly as much play as Pyroblast in Legacy or Vintage, though it's a very popular Pauper sideboard. This is another first-time foil, and while the demand is niche enough that I don't love this card as a spec, I would definitely get them now if I was intending on playing them.


The only previous foil of Hymn to Tourach was the From the Vault version, which basically makes EMA the first foil. At $7, these are priced to move, and I like picking up a few sets at that price. I imagine it won't take long for these to hit the $15-$20 range.


Foil Worldwake Jaces are currently around $300, with the majority of EMA Jaces listed at $220+. A small number of copies are available at $200, and I like the card at that price. There won't be enough foil EMA copies to drive the original prices down, and I expect cheaper copies to dry up pretty fast.


This one is somewhat interesting. EMA foil Maze of Ith is around $30 while the From the Vault printing with the same art is $20. Meanwhile, the judge promo with different art is about $100. I don't believe that the art is nearly bad enough to account for this difference, and I expect that the EMA printing will move closer to the judge promo price than the From the Vault price.


This one is worth pointing out mostly for this being the first foil printing of the new art. The FNM promo with the old art is at $20, compared to the Urza's Legacy foil at $38. I strongly prefer the old art, though I could see players moving in on the new art and pushing its price closer to that of the original foil printing.


The only foil Mystical Tutor printed prior to this was a From the Vault printing, and it's not surprising to see the EMA copy at $30 as opposed to the FtV at $15. Not to mention that the new art is great. Mystical Tutor is deservedly banned in Legacy, though it's a sweet one for Cube, Vintage, and Commander. The demand for this one is fairly limited, but the supply is likewise small. I expect significant growth here, though some difficulty in actually selling the card.


The judge promo Natural Order is $130. The EMA printing is $60. The art is the same, and the judge promo doesn't even have the old border. I expect significant growth for the EMA foil.


This is another first-time foil, though this card's applications are pretty much limited to Pauper. There's not a ton of demand for Pauper foils, though I personally need one for my Cube, and at $4 I know I'm getting a deal.


This is similar to Hymn to Tourach, in that the only existing foil for Price of Progress was from a premium deck. The garbo foil is $4, with the EMA printing sitting at $5-6. Price of Progress is a staple of Legacy Burn, and also sees play in the stock Izzet Delver build. I expect the EMA copy to at least double in the next six months, especially if Eldrazi continues to be a popular Legacy deck for Price to prey on.


Serendib Efreet is mostly just a Cube card, though if you have a foil Cube that includes it now is the time to buy on this one. The only previously existing foil was the FtV printing which is deservedly worth nothing, though I believe that the EMA foil is a nice Cube pickup at $7.


The EMA foil Shardless Agent is currently at $37 as compared to the $55 judge promo. There isn't a ton of room to grow, though the current price for the EMA promo is the best price you'll see on foil Shardless Agents for a while.


Consuming Sinkhole is legal in paper Pauper, fits into a good number of Cubes, and is technically Legacy playable. The judge promo for the card is $45, while the EMA foil is sitting at $20. I would anticipate at least 50% growth for the EMA copy.


The EMA foil Sylvan Library is currently $50 to the $65 Commander's Arsenal printing. Commander's Arsenal is another set with weird foiling, and for most EMA foils we see these price comparisons favoring the EMA foil. I predict that before long the EMA foil will be worth more than the other foil version.


Wasteland has a couple judge promos and an MPT promo that are all worth at least $120. The EMA foil is currently $80. This more or less sets an immediate absolute ceiling at about 50% growth, though more than anything this is just a great price for somebody looking for foil Wastelands.


This is the first foil printing of Winter Orb, and it's already $50. It doesn't make a ton of sense to compare to Alpha and Beta copies at over $200, though I anticipate that foil Winter Orb will be $75-$100 before terribly long.


This is another Cube all-star seeing its first foil printing. I don't expect foil Worn Powerstone to gain a ton of value, though if you ever plan on owning a Cube that would want a foil, I'd lock in now at $13.

~

With foils, you want to be especially mindful of your exit strategy, as the foil market is pretty niche. I believe that some of these picks are strong speculative picks abstractly, though just be careful not to invest too much into cards that are going to take some time to move.

At any rate, Eternal Masters is proving to be a significantly different release than Modern Masters, with the lack of a major sealed Grand Prix for players to open product and a limited run being contributing factors. While researching these prices, I came across a couple promos from the set that are already scarce online, and I don't believe that the window is going to be terribly long for many of these.

Thanks for reading.

-Ryan Overturf
@RyanOverdrive on Twitter

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