Like most Universes Beyond sets, MTG Star Trek has a bonus sheet of source material cards. Dubbed “Stardates” this time around, this suite of reprints uses new art depicting characters from the franchise front and center.
Appearing in one out of 25 Play Boosters, and roughly half of all Collector Boosters, sadly, the odds of finding these cards aren’t great. Still, there are some seriously expensive MTG Star Trek Stardates cards to look out for, so it’s well worth knowing what’s what. Thankfully, whether you’re drafting, cracking packs for value, or just curious, we’ve got you covered.
Notably, since MTG Star Trek won’t be playable until November 6th, we’re looking at each card’s raw reprint value right now. Because of the controversial art and the fact that they’re reprints, many prices are expected to crash once the Stardates cards become available. As a result, we’ll be updating this article once MTG Star Trek is released to reflect current prices of the new variants.
With that caveat established, here are all of the most expensive MTG Star Trek Stardates Cards to look out for.
10 | Thada Adel, Acquisitor
Price: $10
Originally released in Worldwake, this MTG Stardates card marks the first reprint of Thada Adel, Acquisitor. While first-time reprints are always good, they can do a number on this card’s value. Currently, an original Worldwake copy runs around $10, but limited supply undoubtedly affects that price.
As for the card itself, Thada Adel, Acquisitor sees decent play in Commander, but it’s by no means a staple. The ability to steal artifacts from an opponent’s deck can come in clutch, especially with built-in evasion, but it’s a touch situational. At worst, you can nab a
Sol Ring
Sol Ring
{T}: Add {C}{C}.
, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get a game-winning bomb.
Due to this somewhat limited appeal, Thada Adel is largely a support card in theft-based and Merfolk Typal Commander decks. While this Merfolk is good in those decks, it being reprinted could do a number on the price point.
9 | Empress Galina
Price: $14
While it has popped up in a Secret Lair drop and via The List before, this is the first major reprint Empress Galina has received. Admittedly, the supply of MTG Stardates cards is still a bit of a mystery, but there’s definitely some exciting potential here. Even if this $14 card doesn’t end up maintaining its value, it’s well worth playing with, especially in this day and age.
With legendary creatures aplenty in Star Trek Limited, not to mention Commander, Empress Galina has no shortage of targets. While it’s not the cheapest creature-stealing effect in MTG, the ability to reuse it every turn has some powerful applications. Provided you can protect it, stealing threat after threat isn’t out of the question, but it is a real removal magnet.
8 | Arcum Dagsson
Price: $15
So long as you have a surplus of artifact creatures, Arcum Dagsson has an insane amount of potential. By simply tapping it, you can tutor out any noncreature artifact from your deck, setting up insane synergies and combos. Thanks to this, this card has long seen steady play in Artifact-focused Commander decks, even seeing cEDH play.
Appearing in around 19,200 decks, according to EDHREC, this card isn’t quite a staple, but it does have a dedicated audience. What this audience will think of this new reprint’s art remains to be seen, of course, but it has been reprinted before. With the past Double Masters reprint at Mythic, Arcum Dagsson’s price may be fairly resilient.
7 | Phyrexian Tower
Price: $31
Featuring art that’s pretty tame as MTG Stardates cards go, Phyrexian Tower is a fantastic reprint to pull. Not only could it retain a lot of its value thanks to this fantastic artwork, but this card is hugely valuable, too. Typically selling for around $31 on average, this card could almost pay for an entire MTG Star Trek Collector Booster.
In terms of play rate, Phyrexian Tower hardly needs any introduction. In Commander, this card is a true staple, appearing in over 491,000 lists so far.
Phyrexian Tower even sees fringe play in Modern and Premodern within sacrifice-focused decks. Thanks to this, it’s little wonder that it’s maintained its lofty price point despite seeing a fair few reprints.
6 | Bristly Bill, Spine Sower
Price: $34
Right now, Bristly Bill, Spine Sower is a fantastic MTG Stardates reprint to find in your Star Trek pack. Selling for around $34 on average, this card is a staple in Counter-focused Commander decks, and even sees strong Standard play. Appearing in Mono Green Landfall decks, Bristly Bill has been a titan of this archetype since being released a few years ago.
Notably, while Bristly Bill does see plenty of play, it will soon be rotating out of Standard. Once that rolls around in February of 2027, the price of this card is surely going to take a hit. Before then, however, this new reprint is bound to knock prices, too, since ol’ Bill hasn’t been reprinted before.
Beyond just being a first-time reprint, this new Bristly Bill, Spine Sower printing has very actor-forward artwork. Potentially, this could cause this reprint to have more impact than usual, becoming a significantly cheaper variant. Whether or not this will happen, however, remains unclear for now, so we have to wait for the set’s release.
5| Shizo, Death’s Storehouse
Price: $34
If you want to sneak damage through in Commander, Shizo, Death’s Storehouse is a fantastic way to do it. Thanks to easily giving a legendary creature Fear, accessing damage and attack-based abilities safely is a breeze. With this in mind, it’s no wonder that Shizo, Death’s Storehouse is a staple in
Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow
Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow
Commander ninjutsu {U}{B} ({U}{B}, Return an unblocked attacker you control to hand: Put this card onto the battlefield from your hand or the command zone tapped and attacking.)
Whenever a Ninja you control deals combat damage to a player, reveal the top card of your library and put that card into your hand. Each opponent loses life equal to that card's mana value.
decks.
Even outside of this specific Ninjutsu Commander, Shizo, Death’s Storehouse sees tons of play in the format. Appearing in over 220,000 decks, having another reprint of this card is a godsend.
While any reprint is good news, I wouldn’t expect the art here to bring prices down significantly, as it’s not as in-your-face as other Stardates cards.
4 | Talon Gates of Madara
Price: $35
Like
Shizo, Death’s Storehouse
Shizo, Death’s Storehouse
{T}: Add {B}.
{B}, {T}: Target legendary creature gains fear until end of turn. (It can't be blocked except by artifact creatures and/or black creatures.)
, this reprint of Talon Gates of Madara has pretty safe art for an MTG Stardates card. While it does have Chris Pine front and center, the bold colors and having him in silhouette keep things looking clean. Potentially, this may prevent a total price crash; however, this is the first time Talon Gates of Madara is being reprinted.
While it was only released in Modern Horizons 3 Tricky Terrain precon, Talon Gates of Madara quickly became a Commander staple. The ability to Phase Out a creature repeatedly thanks to its final ability is a fantastic source of protection. Due to this, Talon Gates of Madara is played in a wide range of Commander archetypes and is even played in Vintage.
For better or worse, it’s difficult to predict how much this new printing of Talon Gates of Madara will cost once released. For now, however, it’s a stellar card to find in an MTG Star Trek pack as it sells for $35 on average.
3 | Bruvac the Grandiloquent
Price: $45
As much as this reprint of Bruvac the Grandiloquent does have very face-forward art, it’s been surprisingly well received. On social media, MTG players were very positive about this art, which could potentially keep its value high. Being a reprint, you’d hope that it ends up cheaper than $45, of course, but supply is still a big unknown.
Unfortunately, unless there’s tons of supply for the new MTG Stardates cards, this new reprint might end up falling short. Thanks to doubling the amount of Mill you do, Bruvac the Grandiloquent has been a staple in Commander since release. Appearing in tons of Mill decks and helping plenty, too, it’d take a lot of supply to meet the current level of demand.
2 | Minamo, School at Water’s Edge
Price: $57
Ideally, this new MTG Stardates reprint of Minamo, School at Water’s Edge will absolutely tank its value. Currently, this legendary land is sitting pretty at $57, even after being reprinted twice before. Admittedly, these past reprints were via The List and as a Box Topper, so they weren’t the best, making a solid reprint long overdue.
Thankfully, we may have finally been given that saving grace, as the art on this reprint is… interesting. It’s not the worst that this bonus sheet has to offer, but it could easily bring the value down significantly. Given how playable this land is, that would definitely be a treat for budget-conscious players.
Speaking of actually using Minamo, School at Water’s Edge, this card unsurprisingly sees tons of Commander play. Basically any blue-aligned deck with a powerful tap-based ability can exploit this card’s cheap untap effect. While it would be great to have this at a more reasonable price point, given it appears in over 225,000 decks, keeping it down won’t be easy.
1 | Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
Price: $101
Last, and the opposite of least, Sheoldred, the Apocalypse is the most expensive MTG Stardates card, and it’s not even close. Selling for a whopping $101 on average, this prolific life-draining Phyrexian has long needed a reprint. Thankfully, we’re finally getting a reprint after four long years, and it looks… well, it looks like Benedict Cumberbatch.
Due to this art, it feels like there’s a very high chance this reprint will be worth significantly less than usual. From the moment it was revealed, this character-focused art proved controversial, and that hasn’t improved over time. That being said, while it could be cheaper than usual, the Phyrexian Language version of Sheoldred, the Apocalypse is already $80.
Given this past undesirable printing, there’s a non-zero chance that Sheoldred, the Apocalypse will stay expensive for quite some time. Admittedly, with just how powerful this legend is, that wouldn’t be massively surprising. After all, this Sheoldred consistently punishes your opponents for drawing cards while rewarding you.
Ultimately, even if this Sheoldred, the Apocalypse reprint, doesn’t bring prices down, it’ll still be an insane pull. Should you get lucky and find this in a Play or Collector Booster, you’ll always make your money back. Just how much this new variant will be worth when the dust settles, however, remains to be seen.
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