Like most MTG sets, while The Hobbit has across-the-board appeal, there are a few standout Commanders. New legends like Smaug the Impenetrable, for instance, have quickly captured players’ attention thanks to its unique and powerful ability. This, in turn, has quickly spawned a series of price spikes, with cards like Blazing Sunsteel dramatically jumping in price.
MTG Blazing Sunsteel
Released as part of 2020’s Commander Legends, Blazing Sunsteel is a unique do-it-all equipment. Thanks to providing a capable buff and threatening removal upon damage, this artifact even serves as pseudo-protection during combat. With many Commander games going wide, too, Blazing Sunsteel more than justifies its hefty equip cost.
That said, while Blazing Sunsteel can be strong, this artifact is far from being a Commander staple, as it appears in fewer than 22,000 decks. This number, however, has been given a significant boost thanks to The Hobbit and Smaug the Impenetrable, in particular.
So far, Smaug is responsible for over 1,250 new decks using Blazing Sunsteel, and it’s easy to see why. Not only does Smaug have Indestructible, but its Treasure generation abilities revolve around it being damaged. While you can do this through combat, leveraging Blazing Sunsteel’s buff, there are tons of self-sustaining options too.
With Smaug equipped with Blazing Sunsteel and Mayhem Devil in play, for instance, you can ping each opponent to death. Since sacrificing a Treasure lets Mayhem Devil ping Smaug to make a new one, this combo is dangerously effective. Even when you’re not going infinite, however, Blazing Sunsteel can consistently keep threats off the board.
Thanks to this potential, it’s little wonder that Blazing Sunsteel is in 47% of Smaug decks already. Given that this card is the second most popular legend from The Hobbit, it’s no surprise that demand and prices have increased so much.
The Spike
While it is hardly the most played equipment in Commander, Blazing Sunsteel has long maintained a pretty healthy price. Back in mid-June, for example, you could pick up a copy for $3.22, which has been the going rate for at least six months. After a consistent string of sales throughout July and August, however, that past price point is long gone.
Currently, if you want to pick up a near-mint copy of Blazing Sunsteel, it’ll set you back $10.50, including shipping. Notably, TCGplayer’s market price is slightly higher right now, thanks to obscene TCGplayer Direct sales for $19.19. While this has pushed the average price up, it’s potentially good news for the longevity of this spike.
Sadly, thanks to demand for Blazing Sunsteel depleting the available supply, worse-condition copies have already been bought up. As such, there are no budget deals to be had for a scuffed copy. Right now, near-mint is actually your cheapest option, as lightly played examples are bafflingly more expensive at $12.
A Strong Stable Spike?
As much as Blazing Sunsteel has been a useful card for a while, this is the first time it’s ever been in demand. Looking back at the price history on MTGStocks, it has never shot up like this before, and it makes sense that’s changed. Having never been reprinted since its release, there was only so much supply to go around, and clearly that has just run out.
Thanks to this low supply, in the short term, it seems highly likely that Blazing Sunsteel will continue to climb. Considering The Hobbit hasn’t been officially released yet, demand for and interest in Smaug could certainly increase. If this happens, there’s bound to be more players looking for a copy of Blazing Sunsteel, furthering this spike.
Considering how much people have paid for this card, too, it does seem that demand is fairly genuine. While there were a few high-sale, likely investment-heavy days early on, the consistency feels more player-driven. If this is the case, it may well take longer for any supply to return to the market, keeping prices higher for longer.
Ultimately, while the MTG markets do have some common trends, predicting the future is practically impossible. As such, we can only really wait and see what happens in the long run.
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