Despite being largely unloved for almost an entire decade, Allies are back in vogue right now. Thanks to recent reveals for the Avatar: The Last Airbender set, we know we’re getting more Ally support soon. Even though the new cards we’ve seen don’t play into the archetype’s usual synergy, this has nevertheless sparked a lot of interest.
Recently, we’ve seen several staple Ally cards spike significantly in price. While these have offered little synergy with the new Avatar cards themselves, they’ll undoubtedly be needed in a typal deck. Thankfully, it’s not just typal all-stars that are on the up and up, as a compelling copy card has just spiked over 1200%.
Jwari Shapeshifter
Much like many of the recently spiked Ally cards, Jwari Shapeshifter is very simple on the surface. Only offering one ability, this aptly named Shapeshifter can copy any Ally on the battlefield. Notably, this includes any Allies that your opponents may control, should they be running any.
While this is all fairly straightforward, Jwari Shapeshifter isn’t a popular MTG card. According to EDHREC, this card is played in just under 3000 Commander decks. Considering how restricted the copy ability is, this might not be the biggest surprise in MTG. Despite this, it is possible to get some decent value out of Jwari Shapeshifter.
For starters, any ability that turns off the Legend Rule, like Mirror Box, is a must for maximum copying shenanigans. Similarly, Rukarumel, Biologist can make all your creatures Allies, allowing this Shapeshifter to copy anything. Jump through these hoops, and you can easily copy the preferred Ally Commander, General Tazri, or even Katara, the Fearless.
Even if you don’t jump through these hoops, copying the recently spiked Sea Gate Loremaster or Harabaz Druid is always solid. Whichever route you go down, Jwari Shapeshifter can definitely provide a good amount of value. While this is already true right now, Jwari Shapeshifter stands to get even better as time goes on.
As previously mentioned, while it’s still just about four months out, the Avatar: The Last Airbender MTG set should contain some pretty powerful Allies. Several of these are bound to be compelling copy targets, increasing demand even more. If, or rather when, this happens, this price spike could just be the tip of the iceberg.
The Spike
Despite being supported in a couple of MTG sets, Allies have always been a fairly unpopular Typal archetype. As mentioned, Jwari Shapeshifter really doesn’t see a lot of play in Commander, so there’s little demand overall. Due to this, this card has long been incredibly cheap, with copies very rarely being sold.
As you can see above, all this changed recently once Katara, the Fearless was revealed. As much as the reveal of Avatar Aang tipped some players off, it was unclear if Allies were going to be a major theme. Thanks to their specific doubling ability, Katara left no room for uncertainty, kicking off the current price spikes.
Unsurprisingly, this confirmation of additional Ally support coming soon led to an immense surge in sales. This was enough to quickly push the price of Jwari Shapeshifter from $0.53 to $7.40. New near-mint listings are even more dear at the moment, as they start at $8.49, including shipping.
Notably, while there have been a few sales around the $7.40 mark, sales have considerably slowed down. This is likely due to MTG players investing in Jwari Shapeshifter, rather than buying it to play with. If you got the timing right, there’s potentially a lot of money to be made here. That being said, this spike is far from guaranteed.
Currently, there has been one reprint of Jwari Shapeshifter via The List. Unfortunately, this hasn’t massively upped supply for the card, and this variant is currently even more expensive. Following a similar rush of demand, there’s now only one listing available on TCGplayer, priced at $8.99.
The Future
If you’ve been following the recent spikes to Ally cards, you’ll know what’s coming here. Thanks to Avatar: The Last Airbender, there’s no denying that these cards have huge potential going forward. Demand for staples in this archetype is understandably exploding as players try to get ahead of the game.
While this is all well and good for the moment, there’s a non-zero chance that reprints are coming. Potentially, this could be in the main set; however, the Avatar theming does make this somewhat unlikely. Instead, the ideal avenue for reprints will be in yet-to-be-confirmed Commander decks.
If these hypothetical Commander decks do exist, there’s a very strong, albeit not 100%, chance Jwari Shapeshifter will be reprinted. Should there be an Ally Typal-focused Commander precon, this card would be a shoo-in for a reprint. The same is true for Sea Gate Loremaster and Harabaz Druid, which could easily be reprinted too.
If these reprints do happen, the price of Jwari Shapeshifter and other Ally Typal cards, will crash hard. As mentioned, these cards are largely rare due to their rarity, since they haven’t been reprinted since their debut. If this changes, there’s a good chance that the new supply will be able to more than match current demand.
Ultimately, we’re still many months away from learning more about the Avatar: The Last Airbender MTG set. When we learn more, the security of this spike should become a lot clearer. Until then, the price and future of Jwari Shapeshifter will always be somewhat suspect.
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