Secret Lair has been top of mind for many MTG players lately. The Marvel Secret Lair drop was a massive hit that was unfortunately tainted by a lot of technical problems. This was followed up by a unique preconstructed Commander deck that received much less demand despite its unique gimmicks. Perhaps the most unusual thing about the 20 Ways to Win sale had nothing to do with it. A new Chaos Vault was announced around the same time, and players had no idea what this meant.
Many suspected that this was a way for Wizards of the Coast to sell Secret Lairs that may not have sold out on their first go. What no one expected, however, was that this would be a new and discounted Secret Lair drop. Lo and behold, and that’s exactly what happened. Best of all, this might be one of the best reprint value Secret Lair drops we’ve seen all year.
The Fairest Drop of All, Foil Edition
We don’t know what the Chaos Vault is exactly yet. We just know that it’s open and that a new Secret Lair drop has appeared.
The Fairest of All Drop is only available in Foil for now. Four cards await players with fresh, fairy tale-inspired artwork. There is a decent reprint among the four, but the rest are likely tailored strictly to a player who can use this collection of cards in a Commander deck.
The highlight reprint in The Fairest Drop of All is Steely Resolve. This card has only been printed once, appearing in Onslaught 22 years ago. Cards from old sets like these have a massive foil multiplier, which drives the reprint value of this card up to $50. Even in nonfoil, the card still goes for $20.
If you’re playing a Typal deck, Steely Resolve is one of the strongest enchantments in your arsenal. Giving all of your creatures of the same type, essentially, Hexproof, your board can become nigh-untouchable once Steely Resolve hits the battlefield.
This, alone, makes the $25 Fairest of All Drop a decent purchase, but three other cards are available in this drop. Sadly, they aren’t too interesting for a majority of players.
Adaptive Enchantment Reprints
Tuvasa, the Sunlit is the next most expensive card in this drop. Retailing for about $4, this is a secondary Commander from the Adaptive Enchantment preconstructed deck. The card can become a Voltron win condition combined with some card advantage in Enchantress strategies. Sadly, the Bant Commander pales in comparison to Sythis, Harvest’s Hand for this kind of strategy.
The other two cards in this Precon were also introduced in Adaptive Enchantment. Estrid, the Masked, the intended Commander for the deck, can be powerful when built around. Enchanting your lands with Auras can allow for Estrid to create some explosive plays. Sadly, this is far from a popular Commander, making the reprint value of this card a measly $1.
Estrid’s Invocation is a powerful enchantment in Enchantress strategies but is not particularly sought after. Copying enchantments repetitively can be pretty powerful in the right deck, but the card doesn’t provide value on its own, making it a tough sell. This card is only worth about 50 cents regarding reprint value.
A Good Deal
This Secret Lair purchase is a no-brainer if you’re in the market for a Steely Resolve. Remember that Secret Lair promos have a premium attached to them, too, so the other reprints are likely to go for more than their reprint value. That said, Steely Resolve itself may actually get a bit cheaper thanks to this reprint.
If Steely Resolve isn’t your cup of tea, you’re still likely to get your value’s worth if you buy this for financial purposes. The reprint value of a Secret Lair is rarely this strong. If the rest of the Chaos Vault is similar to this, players will be watching it like hawks.
If you’re interested in acquiring this drop for yourself, you can check out the Chaos Vault here.
