Superfriends has long been a fan-favorite Commander archetype, and Reality Fracture only strengthened the strategy. With powerful new Planeswalkers adding extra support, this deck style has drawn more attention.
That said, Jace, in particular, got the most support of all thanks to the new Empower Jace mechanic. As a result, all kinds of different Jace Walkers, like Jace Reawakened, are now spiking in price.
MTG Jace Reawakened
When Jace Reawakened first dropped in Outlaws of Thunder Junction, it got a ton of praise. Despite the heavy timing restriction, Plotting
Valki, God of Lies
Valki, God of Lies
When Valki enters, each opponent reveals their hand. For each opponent, exile a creature card they revealed this way until Valki leaves the battlefield.
{X}: Choose a creature card exiled with Valki with mana value X. Valki becomes a copy of that card.
, to cast the Tibalt half for free was extremely exciting.
Unfortunately, Jace never really lived up to the hype, rarely appearing in Constructed since its printing. As it turns out, the card proved too weak as a turn four play, especially in games where you failed to draw Valki alongside it.
Even in Commander, Jace Reawakened only appears in decks like
Kellan, the Kid
Kellan, the Kid
Flying, lifelink
Whenever you cast a spell from anywhere other than your hand, you may cast a permanent spell with equal or lesser mana value from your hand without paying its mana cost. If you don't, you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield.
and
Fblthp, Lost on the Range
Fblthp, Lost on the Range
Ward {2}
You may look at the top card of your library any time.
The top card of your library has plot. The plot cost is equal to its mana cost.
You may plot nonland cards from the top of your library.
that maximize the Plot mechanic. As such, it isn’t too shocking that Jace barely eclipses the 20,000 Commander deck mark, according to EDHREC.
Thanks to Reality Fracture, however, Jace Typal Commander decks have received a ton of support. Beyond receiving an entire mechanic and powerful support cards like
Jace’s Machinations
Jace’s Machinations
Until end of turn, you may activate loyalty abilities of Jace planeswalkers you control on any player's turn any time you could cast an instant.
Empower Jace 8. (Put eight loyalty counters on a Jace token you control. If you don't control one, first create a blue Jace planeswalker token with "[−1]: Surveil 1" and "[−3]: Draw a card.")
, Jace Typal also has a new Commander:
Jace, Multiverse Architect
Jace, Multiverse Architect
At the beginning of combat on each opponent's turn, they may pay {2}. If they don't, creatures they control can't attack Jaces you control this turn.
+1: Draw two cards, then put a card from your hand on the bottom of your library.
−3: Exile another target planeswalker or creature you control. Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a creature or planeswalker card. Put that card onto the battlefield and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order.
Jace, Multiverse Architect can be your commander.
. The Legend’s passive is fantastic at protecting all your Jace Planeswalkers, and its -3 can easily repurpose weaker Jaces.
Jace Reawakened has since found a home in 1,100 Jace, Multiverse Architect decks, and that number continues to increase. Naturally, this new utility has helped the card rise in demand, and its price tag rose soon after.
The Spike
Since the reveal of the Empower Jace mechanic, demand for Jace Reawakened has risen steadily. 258 near-mint, non-foil Outlaws of Thunder Junction copies have sold since September 6th, driving Jace’s price up. Now, the cheapest copy of Jace Reawakened sits at $2.16, more than triple its previous price of $0.69.
Unfortunately, other variants have only gotten more expensive, meaning that there are no deals to be had. Near-mint, non-foil promo pack copies start at $2.49, while the borderless version sits at $4.57. The Japanese Exclusive promo and Store Championship versions are worth much more, too, starting at $30.30 and $ 98.99, including shipping, respectively.
May Not Last
While demand hasn’t exactly shown any signs of halting yet, Jace Reawakened’s price spike is unlikely to last long-term. All things considered, Jace simply isn’t a good card. Most of its current appeal stems directly from Jace Typal strategies, and even there, the card is far from a premium Planeswalker inclusion.
As is typical for spikes caused by new Commander cards, demand for Reality Fracture’s Jace support should be temporary. Once new Commander cards release, trends caused by EDH cards from the previous set tend to fade. As a result, cards that spiked because of them, like Jace Reawakened, drop.
Obviously, this could take time since Reality Fracture is the new hotness that dropped just over a week ago, but MTG Star Trek’s release is looming large.
Nonetheless, as is the case with any price spike, predicting exactly how Jace’s value will shift is nearly impossible. After all, if Wizards prints more Jace or Superfriends support cards, demand for this card could stay high longer than expected. Ultimately, as always, we’ll have to wait and see what happens.
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