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Stock Watch- Chandra, Torch of Defiance

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Chandra opened at a high price, and only climbed from there during pre-order season. Currently, Star City Games has their pre-orders sold out at $60, though this weekend we'll start to see exactly how deserving the new four ability planeswalker is of this level of demand.

If you check out pre-orders on TCG Player, you'll see that the low listings are barely above $40. Realistically, a price higher than that for a large set mythic rare would require complete format dominance. The Masterpiece Series makes that reality even more pronounced, and this price just isn't abstractly maintainable even in the face of format dominance.

What I'm really here to report on though, is that Chandra is not living up to her hype in playtesting. Is she a powerful card? Absolutely! Is she the second coming of Jace? Not even close. She can technically fit into any red Standard deck, though she simply doesn't make the cut in many lists. She's too expensive for Boros, and she's a bit incoherent in aggressive energy decks. Her matchups against both Gideon, Ally of Zendikar and Nissa, Vital Force are also very problematic, as either one of these 'walkers can take Chandra down with relative ease. The resilience of Smuggler's Copter to sorcery speed removal, a card that is looking like it will be in a major player in Standard, is yet another significant point against Chandra.

Will Chandra crack the Top 8 of the Indianapolis Open this weekend? I think I would lean more "probably" than "maybe", though my line is her being in 1.5 decks, not 3.5. All things considered, I expect Chandra to be more of a $15-25 card, and if I had any I'd be in a hurry to sell.

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Ryan Overturf

Ryan has been playing Magic since Legions and playing competitively since Lorwyn. While he fancies himself a Legacy specialist, you'll always find him with strong opinions on every constructed format.

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6 thoughts on “Stock Watch- Chandra, Torch of Defiance

      1. It literally dropped two dollars in value since I wrote this yesterday, and way more copies are listed at the current price. People are exciting and hoping to sell at that slightly south of $40 mark.

  1. WHulett I belive she will drop, but I think 15-20 is a stretch considering how good BR Visions did at the last Property Tour (9-1) and how well she fits the curve.

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