As if the 2024 MTG release calendar wasn’t busy enough, even Secret Lair Superdrops have spoiler seasons now. Revealed ahead of their often controversial release, it’s hard not to get excited about Secret Lair drops when they’re revealed. Even if the value isn’t amazing, the flavor, art, and crossovers often make up for that and then some. This is especially true for the D&D 50th Anniversary Secret Lairs Wizards has created.
The latest commemorative Secret Lair drop to be announced is Astarion’s Thirst. Unsurprisingly, this drop continues the long-running trend of not breaking even with raw reprint value. While this may be disappointing to some players, it’s hard not to get excited about the fantastic art and flavor.
Astarion’s Thirst Secret Lair Drop
In terms of financial value, this new Secret Lair drop only has one expensive card. Selling for around $16, Exquisite Blood is a fantastic and surprisingly stable reprint. It’s even had a Secret Lair printing before which sells for around $28. Should this price persist for this new drop, it could practically pay for the entire thing!
Sadly, while there is one fantastic reprint, the value falls off hard after that. Worth only $1.50 Sanguine Bond is not an expensive card anymore. Before you get too disappointed, Sanguine Bond is a very popular Commander card without any particularly rare variants. Since this Secret Lair drop changes it could end up bucking the pricing trend, but that remains to be seen.
Often selling for a similar price, Anguished Unmaking can often be yours for around $1. Thankfully, this new Astarion-themed card shouldn’t sell for that low as this card is hugely popular in Commander. There’s even been a Secret Lair printing before which currently sells for around $8.50.
Despite being the namesake card of this Secret Lair drop, Astarion, The Decadent is not expensive. Worth just $0.17 at their cheapest, this card isn’t that financially exciting, or even that great in Commander. That said, their new shirtless variant is sure to have fans that could create aptly ravenous demand.
Last but not least, Mortify is a bargain basement uncommon that sells for as little as $0.10. Even the fancy Store Championship promos and textless variants of this card are barely worth $1 combined. With this in mind, this new Secret Lair variant probably doesn’t have too high of a ceiling. As handsome as Astarion might be, people seem to have just had their fill.
A Curiously Complete Combo
While the cards in Astarion’s Thirst might not all be winners, they do all fit in the same deck. Specifically, each of these cards can be played in Orzhov Vampires to great effect. This Secret Lair drop even contains a two-card infinite combo that can win you games on the spot!
With both Exquisite Blood and Sanguine Bond in play, all you need to do is gain one life, or have your opponent lose one life, and you win. This triggers an infinite loop in which damaging opponents gains you life, and gaining life damages your opponent. It’s simple and effective, although it does cost ten mana in total.
To make this combo work, you will also need a card or creature to deal damage or gain you life. Thankfully, any Commander deck should have no problem with this, especially Vampire Typal. As a result, this combo is frighteningly consistent and can easily win games in Commander on just turn five.
Outside of being a delectably juicy titbit, the fact all the drops cards are playable together are a big deal. While getting a wide spread of cards can be nice, having everything fit in the same deck is equally fantastic. As stunning as many Secret Lair cards are, they can often stand out against a deck’s otherwise cohesive theme. Drops like Astarion’s Thirst give players the best of both worlds in this regard.
Will It Sell
As always, the big question when any new Secret Lair drop gets announced is ‘Will it sell?’. If it does, the MTG players need to be on their toes come launch day, and the value of the drop increases massively. Should demand massively outstrip supply, secondary market prices will skyrocket.
Sadly, it is an important question, it’s also a very difficult one to answer right now. In theory, Astarion’s Thirst is a crossover, albeit without the Universes Beyond security stamp, which increases potential demand. At the same time, however, the entire Superdrop is themed around the 50th Anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons so it’s not a one-off.
Obviously, while demand is somewhat suspect, Astarion’s Thirst does have the appeal of being all about Astarion. As the second-most kissable Baldur’s Gate 3 companion, there will undoubtedly be fans willing to pick up this drop. Should that happen, this could be the most popular Secret Lair in the entire Superdrop.
Ultimately, there’s still a lot left to see at the moment. While Astarion’s Thirst has been revealed, there are still three more Secret Lairs waiting in the wings. Considering one of these is themed around Karlach, Astarion may have some fierce competition.
Read More: Multiple Gigantic MTG Spoiler Announcements Revealed
