Four new Secret Lairs were just revealed, presumably as part of the Marvel’s Spider-Man Superdrop. Unfortunately, this time around, they aren’t all that flashy.
Not only do the Heroic Deeds and Villainous Plots share three of the same five cards (with modified artwork), but the reprint value for both Secret Lairs is extremely disappointing. They do feature format staples, so there’s at least some appeal there, but there’s no doubt the card selection could’ve been stronger.
Shared Cards
Both the Heroic Deeds and Villainous Plots Secret Lairs feature five cards each. This means that these products come with two unique cards, as well as the three reprints that are shared between them.
The first card showcased in both collections is Lightning Greaves. Lightning Greaves is a Commander all-star that appears in a wide variety of decks. Having a cheap way to protect your Commander from targeted removal is nice. Any Commanders with strong attack triggers will be able to make use of the Haste Lightning Greaves provides, too.
Despite its multitude of reprints, the value isn’t actually too bad with Lightning Greaves. It holds a price tag of roughly $4 in its cheapest form, according to TCGplayer. The downside is that Lightning Greaves has appeared in a bunch of previous Secret Lairs, which has caused it to lose some of its luster.
The same thing can be said for the other two shared cards. Sol Ring is undoubtedly one of the most powerful cards legal in EDH. It’s the most feared turn one play, providing a massive amount of acceleration at almost no cost. There’s a reason it’s restricted in Vintage.
Still, given its slew of reprints at low rarity, you can buy the card for just over $1. While there are a ton of different Secret Lair reprints to choose from, as well, Sol Ring does have quite a premium for its rarer variants. While the reprint value of this card is not great, chances are that it will go for more than some expect.
Likewise, Command Tower goes in nearly every Commander deck that’s two or more colors. As such, the demand for the card is always high. So is the supply, though, and nabbing this card for under 25 cents is easy. Chase printings of this card do notably go for $80+, however.
If you’re looking to add some flare to your EDH decks, there are a bunch of Secret Lair printings once again. While it’s cool to see the artwork and flavor text for the two Command Tower versions give off completely different vibes, the reprint value simply isn’t there.
Unique Cards
Moving on to the two unique cards in each Secret Lair, the Villainous Plots product definitely gets the shorter end of the stick. For the Heroic Deeds Secret Lair, at least the two remaining cards hold some value.
Three Visits is a strong ramp element. Its ability to search for nonbasic lands like Triomes or dual lands is a big deal. The land you find can also notably come into play untapped, allowing for stronger mana efficiency in opening turns. It’s functionally just another iteration of Nature’s Lore, but it holds a heftier price tag even after appearing in many Commander Precons. Three Visits is worth roughly $5 apiece.
The other card, Ephemerate, is a Modern staple. Its synergy with Solitude as well as Quantum Riddler makes it an incredible tool. This powerful card is worth almost $4 as a common.
Even with these additions, though, the Heroic Deeds Secret Lair is still below the bar in terms of reprint value, and the Villainous Plots Secret Lair is somehow significantly worse. The two distinct inclusions in this product, Deadly Dispute and Go for the Throat, are both worth under 50 cents in their cheapest forms.
Go for the Throat does see some Pioneer play, though its demand has lowered since it rotated out of Standard. Deadly Dispute also sees some Pioneer play in Food decks, though it also took a recent hit after getting banned in Pauper. The flavor is certainly there for these Secret Lair cards, but that hasn’t stopped players from voicing their frustrations.
Total Value and Player Reaction
When you add up the reprint value of all five cards from the two Secret Lairs, both fall short of expectations. The Heroic Deeds product holds a total reprint value of between $14 and $15. The Villainous Plots sits between $6 and $7, which is absolutely abysmal. Both Secret Lairs are available in non-foil for $29.99 and rainbow foil for $39.99.
As expected, players aren’t thrilled with the card decisions this time around, especially for the Villainous Plots Secret Lair. Many players seem annoyed by how often the same cards are getting repeatedly reprinted in new Secret Lairs, and the choice to reprint three of those cards in two Spider-Man Secret Lairs is unsurprisingly controversial.
Even still, it’s important to note that these versions of Sol Ring, Lightning Greaves, and Command Tower could be worth much more than their traditional counterparts. These Secret Lairs will likely be in high demand regardless due to the popularity of both the Spider-Man franchise and the Commander format, where these three cards reign supreme.
Add on the fact that these Secret Lairs will likely sell out quickly, and there’s reason to believe they could be worth the money you pay up front in spite of the mediocre card choices as a whole. It would’ve been nice to see more variety as well as some exciting, pricy reprints. Just don’t be surprised if these particular printings are more expensive in the long run than others.
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