It’s no secret that MTG Spider Man is a rather unusual set. Originally designed to be a smaller Beyond Booster release, Wizards had to beef up this set to make it draftable. This also led to the creation of Pick Two, like licensing issues caused MTG Arena to get an awkward reskinned set.
Thanks to these issues, it’s little wonder that MTG Spider Man hasn’t had a colossal impact on the MTG financial markets. Without Commander decks and format-warping cards, this set hasn’t had anywhere near the impact we’re used to seeing. That said, the set is quietly making waves a few weeks after its official release.
Phyrexian Vindicator
First released in 2023’s Phyrexia: All Will Be One, Phyrexian Vindicator is essentially a white Phyrexian Obliterator. Boasting a similar mana cost, stat line, and damage-based ability, this card is a literal monster. While there’s no denying this card is powerful in a vacuum, it’s basically unplayable in competitive MTG.
Much like Obliterator, Phyrexian Vindicator’s mana cost is simply far too intensive to be viable in competitive formats. Even in Commander, this hurdle can often be too much to overcome, although it’s not quite as daunting. In a dual-colored or especially a mono-colored deck, Vindicator is surprisingly playable and well worth including.
Thankfully for fans of this Phyrexian behemoth, MTG Spider Man provided a fantastic new mono-white Commander option. Anti-Venom, Horrifying Healer, is currently the fourth most popular Spider Man Commander, and for good reason. Offering no strings attached reanimation and a compelling damage prevention ability that grows Anti-Venom too, this card is a real powerhouse.
Loaded up with damage redirection with Pariah’s Shield and extra blocks from Entangler, Anti-Venom can scale incredibly quickly. These cards also work fantastically with Phyrexian Vindicator, allowing it to redistribute more damage into burn or removal. Alternatively, Vindicator can be used to redirect damage at Anti-Venom, to boost its power further.
Thanks to this synergy and the cards’ similarities, Phyrexian Vindicator is an auto-include within most Anti-Venom decks. According to EDHREC, Vindicator appears in 79% of Anti-Venom decks, at the moment. With this impressive play statistic, it’s no wonder that Phyrexian Vindicator has been climbing in price recently.
The Spike
Unlike many of the price spikes that we see thanks to powerful new Commanders, Phyrexian Vindicator didn’t explode in price overnight. Instead, this card has steadily been climbing in value since Anti-Venom was first revealed back in late July. At that time, near mint copies of this card were only selling for around $2 on average.
Since then, a steady volume of sales each day has driven up the price of Vindicator over time. Around ten sales a day have occurred on average since Anti-Venom’s reveal, which has put a sizable dent in the available supply. Currently, there are only 69 near-mint listings for Phyrexian Vindicator on TCGplayer, and prices start at $6.15.
Currently, the TCGplayer market price for Phyrexian Vindicator is higher than the lowest listed price. While this isn’t especially uncommon, the current gulf in price points toward TCGplayer Direct. With multiple $10 sales occurring recently, it seems this convenience-oriented feature has driven up the overall price fairly quickly.
Thankfully, since there are a couple of different Phyrexian Vindicator variants, it’s possible to snag a bargain right now. At the moment, the Showcase variant of Vindicator is selling for around $5.31 on average after seeing a similar price spike. The Oil Slick Raised Foil variant, meanwhile, is currently selling for $21 on average.
The Future
Turning our attention to the future, it feels like the current Phyrexian Vindicator could go either way. In theory, the demand for this card should die out fairly soon, once MTG players have had their fill. This will happen naturally over time, but Avatar: The Last Airbender spoilers starting this month will surely accelerate the process.
That said, while it’s not uncommon to see tastes change in Commander when new cards are spoiled and released, this spike isn’t entirely typical. For better or worse, it doesn’t appear that investors have been the main driving factor behind this spike. Due to the speed of sales, it seems it’s predominantly players just looking to add Phyrexian Vindicator to their decks.
With this in mind, many players may be unwilling to pull apart their newly constructed decks and sell the components. This may mean that supply will be slow to return to the market, keeping prices high. Even if they do dip, it’s unlikely they’ll fall right back to past lows, as a $5 price tag seems more sensible.
Ultimately, while Phyrexian Vindicator does have good synergy with Anti-Venom, it’s a strong card outside of that niche. Its color-intense casting cost will likely always be a hurdle to overcome, but it’s by no means insurmountable. Thanks to this, Vindicator should continue to see Commander play for a good while yet.
Stick with us here at mtgrocks.com: the best site for Magic: The Gathering coverage!