Even though the MTG Doctor Who crossover is releasing at the end of this week, some MTG players are already looking past it and towards the next Standard legal set. The Lost Caverns of Ixalan is heavily anticipated by the MTG community and, for some, Dinosaurs are a big reason for that.
Early spoilers have far from disappointed, with Ghalta’s newest iteration showcasing the most ludicrous ETB effect we’ve seen in quite some time. An easily forgotten point is that some Dinosaur typal support is also showing up in Doctor Who releasing this Friday!
Since players appear to be prepping their Dinosaur decks for battle, it only makes sense that popular Dino-related gems are rising in price. Let’s take a look!
Gishath, Sun’s Avatar
If you’re looking for a Dinosaur Commander to welcome the upcoming set, look no further. Gishath offers Dinosaur players the chance to do everything that they could possibly want. Not only does this Dino try to connect with your opponent immediately, but it threatens to spit out a massive army of Dinos as long as it connects with an opponent’s face. Give Gishath Double Strike and pass the turn with more Dinos than your opponents can deal with.
According to EDHREC, Gishath is the most popular Dinosaur typal commander by quite some margin. It has more than four times the number of decks on the platform than the following Commander.
Thanks to excitement regarding upcoming Dinosaur support, Gishath has seen a steep price spike over the last few weeks. Worth around $30 near the end of September, Gishath has since spiked to about a market value of $40, but its base variant is selling for as much as $65 in near mint. Finding a near mint Gishath for under $40 right now is very difficult.
Gishath’s other Secret Lair variant is also seeing a price increase. As may be expected, the current asking price of this Gishath is a little above the other variant, coming in at a $43 market value. Generally, it appears difficult to find a Gishath of this variant for below $42, and $65 also appears to be the current ceiling for this card.
Considering that Gishath sees most of its play as a Commander, the foil multiplier is high. Etched Foil Secret Lair Gishath currently demand prices between $60 and $70 and traditional foil Gishath from Ixalan has a current market value of $55.
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Etali, Primal Conqueror
It’s no secret that Etali, Primal Conqueror is a messed up MTG card. Offering a frontside with an ETB effect powerful enough to let it see play in constructed formats and a ‘Blightsteel Colossus at-home’ on the backside, players’ eyes have been on Etali ever since it released in March of the Machine.
While Etali has been climbing overall for the past three months, it saw a bit of a dip at the beginning of September, hitting $5.75.. Since then, Etali has been climbing consistently, hitting a market average of $9.
Recent sales for Etali, Primal Conqueror suggest that the price for this card may just continue to climb. Near mint copies of Etali still sell for between $9-10, but are now commonly selling for over $12.
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Apex Altisaur
Apex Altisaur only has one printing, and it’s from a Commander set, which means any increase in interest for the Altisaur will cause larger price increases. Apex Altisaur is a fantastic effect for Dinosaur typal strategies, especially if this is something you can cheat into play off a Gishath trigger. It’s not uncommon for Apex Altisaur to take out three or more creatures when it enters play. Otherwise, just dealing damage to the Altisaur will send it on a killing spree – cleaning up your opponent’s boards in short order.
Apex Altisaur has been spiking hard since July. Originally worth $4.19, the Altisaur has continually spiked, currently worth a market value of $11.50. That said, as has been the trend with these Dinosaur cards, Apex Altisaur is selling for more than its market value currently. Near mint copies of the Altisaur are pushing towards $16, but can still be found for as low as $9.50. That said, finding a copy of this card for less than $10.70 will be pretty difficult.
Polyraptor
Polyraptor is a rather infamous little Dino. This card can easily go infinite alongside anything that can consistently damage Polyraptor without killing it. This will trigger Enrage, creating another Polyraptor.
The best way to go infinite with Polyraptor, especially in a dinosaur typal themed deck, is with Marauding Raptor. This Dino not only reduces the cost of your other Dinosuars, but it also damages all of your creatures as they enter play. Since two damage cannnot kill Polyraptor, it will create another one, which gets damaged, creating another one. So on and so fourth.
Because this card can go infinite on a whim, Polyraptor has always demanded a bit of a secondary market price tag. Making things even worse is that Polyraptor, like Apex Altisaur, only has one printing. That can be found in Rivals of Ixalan.
Polyraptor has been climbing up slowly ever since the beginning of August, where it was worth about $13. Nowadays, the market value on Polyraptor is $22. Recent sales are rather volatile, with near mint copies selling for between $20 and $27.
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Regisaur Alpha
This spike is definitely on the smaller side of things, but Regisaur Alpha is one of the hallmark Dinosaur typal payoffs in MTG. Immediately presenting more stats than average for five mana, Regisaur Alpha is a great tempo card that also gives all your other Dinos Haste.
Worth only $1.85 mid-August, Regisaur Alpha currently has a market value of about $2.30 for the basic variant. That said, the card is currently selling for between $3.30 and $4.50.
Dinosaurs Have Been Spiking Slowly
While The Lost Caverns of Ixalan and Doctor Who have definitely brought Dinosaur typal to the spotlight, Dinosaurs overall have been seeing a much slower spike. That said, considering that two sets in a row are giving Dinosaur players something to look forward to, chances are these dinos will remain in the spotlight for the next few months.
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