People have been talking about a lull in the Magic finance world even though there was quite a bit of Magic going on this past weekend with Grand Prix Lille, Grand Prix New Jersey, and the SCG Open in Charlotte. The beauty of tournaments is that there’s always something to take away from them to help build your collection or get the most value out of the cards you're already playing with. My goal every time I write one of these articles is to identify those trends.

Article Series Main Focus Points

• Cards that you should hold on to or pick up for tournaments if you need them before they rise in price. These cards are either seeing increased play in one or more formats, the supply is drying up, or they’re pretty far from the next reprint.
• Cards that you should consider selling or trading away. Their prices are pretty much at the ceiling owing to inflation from speculation, reprint inevitability in the near future, a lull in tournament play, or some combination of these.

Holds

Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Kaladesh (Any Version)

Target Purchase Price
Under $10

This just rotated out of Standard, so it could drop a little bit more, but not a huge amount. It sees a decent amount of play in Modern and Legacy.

And as proof of its viability, take a look at Braxton Leddon’s winning list from the Modern Classic at SCG Charlotte.

If you need or want these, I’d go for the SDCC 2018 version if you have the extra cash.

Molten Rain - Modern Masters 2017 (Foil)

Target Purchased Price
Under $4

This is another card that sticks out from Braxton Leddon’s list even though there are only two copies. It also sees a good amount of play in various Modern decks as well as Pauper.

It’s even seeing play in the new Izzet Phoenix decks, which has some card overlap with Mardu Pyromancer decks. Take a look at BloopBlop’s list.

Folds

Hieroglyphic Illumination - Amonkhet (Foil)

Target Sell Price
$10+

This only sees play in UWx Control in Modern like Galanator’s. And while this just rotated out of Standard and cycling make it a tad tougher to reprint, it’s still a pretty easily reprintable common. Not to mention, the rise of Dredge has put a damper on control decks.

Needle Drop - Lorwyn (Foil)

Target Sell Price
$7-10

Pauper is what really made this card spike with the past year. However, it’s finally made its way into a top-tier Modern deck thanks to Arclight Phoenix. Take a look at Pimmonds’s list.

And just like Hieroglyphic Illumination, this is another common that can easily be reprinted in something like the next Masters set, especially because there’s only been one printing.

The Immortal Sun - Rivals of Ixalan (Non-Foil)

Target Sell Price
$15

This was one of the cards on my buylist order to Card Kingdom that I featured in Hold 'Em Fold 'Em #16. Did I sell them a little too early? Maybe. Did I also sell some of the other cards on the list for a little lower than I could have? Maybe. These were some of the discussion points that came up with people in the Discord channel after that article went live.

So, The Immortal Sun. This card is popping up all over Standard. So if you have these and don’t need or want them, sell into the demand.

Foils are a little bit different on this card, though. It’s a mythic artifact, so that means it can go in any deck, which is part of the reason why it’s seeing so much play in Standard right now. But I have a hard time seeing this pop up in Modern since it costs six mana. However, it shows up in over 1,000 decks on EDHREC. And since it has the word "players" on it, it's a card that more and more people will consider putting in their EDH/Commander decks over time.

Arclight Phoenix - Guilds of Ravnica (Non-Foil & Foil)

Target Sell Prices
Non-Foil: $15-20
Foil: $30-35

This card is starting to pop up all over the place in Standard and Modern, making this quite the sleeper from Guilds of Ravnica.

If you have these and don’t plan on playing them, you can easily sell or trade them away. You can get them later as more supply becomes available or when there’s a dip in graveyard strategies.

Resplendent Angel - Core Set 2019 (Non-Foil & Foil)

Target Sell Prices
Non-Foil: $10+
Foil: $20+

This is another card that I might have sold a little too early. But that was over a month ago. Since then, this card has shot up in popularity in Standard. But that’s the only place we see it, so I would definitely sell into the demand. You can make twice as much as I did when I sold it on September 29. Card Kingdom is buying non-foils for $11 and foils for $21 cash.

Chromatic Star - Time Spiral & 10th Edition (Non-Foil & Foil)

Target Sell Prices
Non-Foil: $7
Foil: $30

Here’s another easily reprintable common that’s due for a reprint. And the demand is there. Just take a look at all the decks is sees play in.

For reference, take a look at Card Kingdom’s buylist prices on the card. They’re pretty attractive.

Office Hours

The recent Office Hours #2 on Thursday, October 25 with Christopher Martin went pretty well, just as the first one with Sigmund Ausfresser did. Look out for another post featuring a quick bulletpoint writeup and audio from that session. And don’t forget to join the Discord channel if you haven’t already. There’s a good amount of insight there.

Public Spreadsheet

Stay up to the minute on what I’m looking at on a daily basis via the Hold ‘Em & Fold ‘Em - Public MTG Finance Spreadsheet. Don’t forget to bookmark it, because I update it on the fly so you can see what’s going on as the market moves and before articles about certain cards are published.

Summary

Holds

• Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Any Version
• Molten Rain - Modern Masters 2017 (Foil)

Folds

• Hieroglyphic Illumination - Amonkhet (Foil)
• Needle Drop - Lorwyn (Non-Foil & Foil)
• The Immortal Sun - Rivals of Ixalan (Non-Foil)
• Arclight Phoenix - Guilds of Ravnica (Non-Foil & Foil)
• Resplendent Angel - Core Set 2019 (Non-Foil & Foil)
• Chromatic Star - Time Spiral & 10th Edition (Non-Foil & Foil)

Public Spreadsheet

Hold ‘Em & Fold ‘Em Spreadsheet

Let me know what you think in the comments below. Agree? Disagree? Why? You can also connect with me on Twitter at @edwardeng. I’m also open to suggestions on how to make this series more valuable. Hit me up.

Have fun,
Eddie