The changes to The Brothers’ War List released just this afternoon, and some heavy hitters are being added to The List. A unique thing with many of the inclusions for this particular list is that almost all the cards do not currently have widely available printings. While a lot of bulk is being added to The List, they are all thematically interesting and, at least, were somewhat difficult to find before this. Here, we will take a look at the best cards coming to The Brothers’ War List, as well as the most expensive cards that will be leaving it. At the end, we have added a small review of each and every new addition to The List, so you can take a look at the potential cards you can get!
The Best Cards Coming to The Brothers’ War List
There are some absolute killers that you could open on this List! Some Modern staples that most MTG players expected to make an appearance and some EDH staples with financial value mainly tied to their printings are getting a refresh that should help knock their prices down a bit!
Urza’s Saga is, by far, the best new card coming to The List with the introduction of The Brothers’ War. This card fits the set thematically like a glove, so it’s not surprising to see it included as a part of The Brothers’ War in some way, shape or form. It’s important to note that this is Urza’s Saga’s first-ever reprint. This card is worth around $30.
Urza’s Saga is a competitive pillar to Modern, Legacy, and Vintage (every single MTG format it’s legal in). The card also sees a significant amount of cEDH play due to its potential to tutor powerful mana rocks like Mana Crypt and Sol Ring to the battlefield. While it takes a bit of a back seat in Legacy and Vintage, the card defines the Modern metagame almost singlehandedly. Urza’s Saga has some exciting interaction with a new card coming in The Brothers’ War. We wrote about it here.
Force of Vigor is another Modern staple that has seen its first-ever reprint on The List for The Brothers’ War. Having an option to consistently out cards like Blood Moon and Urza’s Saga for minimal costs can help to swing games that would typically be unwinnable. Force of Vigor, like Urza’s Saga, is also worth about $30. Also, like Urza’s Saga, Force of Vigor is another competitive staple that is insanely good in MTG’s most popular format: Commander.
Crescendo of War became a popular Commander option after multiple MTG personalities, including The Command Zone, started shining a light on it. This ‘underrated’ Commander card quickly took the scene by storm, rising in price as it went. A significant portion of this price increase was due to it only having one printing that is not widely available. While a List printing is a far cry from printing in a core set, this reprint should, hopefully, help reduce the price of Crescendo of War on the secondary market for Commander players.
Next up in the value slot for new cards is K’rrik, Son of Yawgmoth. You’ll notice that I included a picture of the recently printed Post Malone version of this card coming out in his Secret Lair. This highlights that K’rrik will get multiple reprintings in a concise window. That said, all of these reprintings are not part of a core set, so they will likely affect supply and demand for the card for a shorter period. In its cheapest form, the card is currently worth $14, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it drops below $10 for a period of time.
Like K’rrik, Smokestack is another MTG card that is seeing a reprint with the newest inclusion of Secret Lair product. Unlike the Post Malone Secret Lair, this one created some major controversy in the community, selling out in about 30 minutes. Because of how quickly the 30th Anniversary Countdown kit sold out, I am not expecting that reprint to affect Smokestack’s price as much. That said, the demand for Smokestack seems somewhat questionable since it is one of the star cards in the archetype hated most of all in MTG: Stax. Either way, a reprint to a $12 card that looks to reduce the card’s price on the secondary market is a good one.
Now we get into some of the genuinely bizarre reprints that have a surprising amount of secondary market value. Thran Quarry is a land card I did not even know existed until this article was written. As is evident with its restrictive clause, this land is meant primarily for creature decks. In exchange for having a land that enters untapped while adding a mana of any color comes a restriction that kills Thran Quarry at any end step if you don’t control a creature. The card has only seen one non-promo printing and has a $10 price tag. This is another example of a fantastic reprint since at least a portion of this card’s value seems to be tied up in its scarcity.
World at War from Rise of the Eldrazi is $10 sorcery that offers its wielder a supply of extra combat steps. For the cost of five mana, both of your subsequent turns offer two additional attack steps. Like many of the cards being added to this list, World at War only has one scarce printing before this. This printing should, therefore, heavily reduce the card’s price as it meets expected demand. This should also allow this powerful combat trick to wind up in the hands of more budget-friendly decks, making this reprint a win for EDH players everywhere.
While other $5-10 cards are being added with The Brothers’ War, this is the last one I wanted to discuss individually. Alongside Crescendo of War, Argivian Find was an old Uncommon card identified by The Command Zone as one of the most underrated Commander cards out there. This card quickly went from being worth ten cents overnight to suddenly sporting a $7(ish) price tag. Like Crescendo of War, a significant portion of this card’s current pricing is because of how scarce copies of the card are. This reprinting should, therefore, help to ease the financial burdens of those who want to play it in their Commander decks.
Other $10+ additions include Archaeomancer’s Map and Mechanized Production.
Most Expensive Cards Leaving The List
Alongside some fantastic new reprints are some valuable cards being taken away from The List. There are some massive players here that consistently ended up being among the most expensive List cards, so these changes may impact the financial value of Set Booster packs more than expected.
Anointed Procession is, without a doubt, the most expensive card leaving The List with the release of The Brothers’ War. This $30 card is a fantastic option for players who want to create a massive amount of tokens. Initially printed in Amonkhet, this card does not have many printings, only available in its namesake set and previous versions of The List.
Blood Crypt, the card flavorfully added with the Vampire Wedding set known as Crimson Vow, is now leaving The List. This card is worth about $17 in its cheapest form and, regardless of its massive number of printings, still holds a respectable price tag. Part of a cycle of Land cards known as Shock Lands, Blood Crypt is the land of choice for competitive Rakdos players in multiple formats, including Pioneer, Modern, and Commander.
Another card constantly in the top ten of most expensive List cards, Bloodchief Ascension has been on The List for a long time, yet its price seems to keep increasing. Even though this card has experienced a lot of highs and lows, its $23ish dollar price tag has remained rather unaffected. This indicates that the card still has interest, and it’s a shame to see it go.
While less relevant financially than some of the other cards leaving The List, Blood Moon has remained a card just under the $10 range that will randomly ‘get’ players who forget to search for their basic lands. This will always show up in competitive formats where it’s legal and will brutally remind players repetitively that they should have fetched an Island instead of a fancy Dual Land.
Once as much as $80, Sakashima’s Student has seen a massive decline in price thanks to its overabundant reprint on the New Capenna List. Now only worth about $10-15, many players who want a copy of this of their own have had an excellent opportunity to obtain one.
Sensei’s Divining Top has seen a lot of reprints lately. Regardless of these, the top still has about a $20 price tag for its cheapest copies. This card’s value has halved from where it was not too long ago, and it’s not a bad idea to give some other cards a chance at seeing the light again in place of this card that we have seemed to have seen at every corner. That said, this will remain to be an absolute powerhouse in MTG’s most popular format.
This Legendary Land from Kamigawa is quietly stepping away from the Reserved List. Worth about $11, this land gave red players an edge in combat, giving Legendary creatures First Strike on a slight whim. If you have a red Commander that likes to attack, this is an excellent addition to your deck. It is, in particular, a powerful upgrade to the Mardu Legend-themed prebuilt deck from Dominaria United.
Considering that this artifact is amongst the Retro Artifacts coming out with The Brothers’ War, it makes a lot of sense to remove Unwinding Clock from The List. Those artifacts will be everywhere, so expect this card to see a significant downtick in price in the coming months.
Alongside these cards are a few other $5-10 cards leaving The List, like Noxious Revival, Geralf’s Messenger, and Illusionist’s Bracers. A ton of bulk not mentioned here is also leaving to be replaced with other bulk, but the bulk here, in our opinion, is also a strict upgrade.
All the Other Cards
There are many bizarre bulk cards from ancient sets that have never seen a reprint before coming back on The Brothers’ War List. As a result, I had to take some time and look up all the old Urza’s Saga (the set, not the card) cards that I did not recognize. Since there are so many of them, as a parting gift, I will leave you my quick thoughts on all of the new cards coming to The List so that you don’t have to look them up for yourselves. As a quick note, if the rarity of the reprint is not mentioned, consider them to be from an old set and, therefore, relatively scarce.
Acidic Soil – bulk with one printing Archaeomancer’s Map – $10 Edh Card never reprinted. Great reprint! Argivian Find – $7 Edh card never reprinted. Great reprint! Argivian Restoration – bulk Argothian Elder – $4 card with two scarce printings. Good reprint! Bane of Progress – $5 Commander powerhouse with multiple printings. Decent reprint. Beacon of Unrest – Bulk, but good in Commander Blessed Reversal – Bulk Brand – $5 Niche Cycling card that has only one scarce printing. Good reprint! Catastrophe – $8(ish) card with two niche printings that is a great way to get your Commander table to hate you. Good reprint! Citanul Hierophants – $4 card seeing a reprint in the new Commander starter deck cycle, but was not reprinted before that. This card has a ton of Commander potential. Decent Reprint. Collector Ouphe – $4-5 Recently printed card that has one accessible and one scarce reprint. Sees some play in competitive formats and Commander. Decent Reprint. Colossus of Sardia – bulk Crescendo of War – $15 Commander card that has recently gained a lot of popularity that has not seen a reprint. Great Reprint! Crumbling Colossus – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint before. Dark Suspicions – Bizarre bulk card that may have some niche Commander applications. Has never seen a reprint before. Death or Glory – Unique bulk card that has never seen a reprint. Could also have some Commander applications. Detonate – Bulk Endoskeleton – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint Energy Flux – Bulk, but a hidden gem in Commander. We wrote an article about it. Eye of Yawgmoth – Bulk, but could have niche applications in Commander. Never seen a reprint before. Fall of the Thran – Bulk, but a great way to get Commander players to hate you. Feldon of the Third Path – A decent Commander card reprinted into bulk status. Force of Vigor – $35(ish) reprint that sees play in multiple competitive formats. Also very strong in Commander and the few reprints available are all scarce. Fantastic reprint! Gaea’s Embrace – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint before. Gaea’s Revenge – Bulk with reprints, but has Commander potential Glacian, Powerstone Engineer – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint. That said, the original copy of this card is still widely available. Grisly Transformation – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint. Original printing of the card is moderately available. Hurkyl’s Recall – $4(ish) card that has multiple printings and sees both constructed and Commander play. Decent Reprint. In the Web of War – $2.5 card that seems to have excellent Commander potential. Has not been reprinted before, and the original printing is scarce. March of the Machines – $1.5 card that can be a win condition in decks that build around it. Mechanized Production – $10 fan-favorite Commander card that has never seen a reprint from an out-of-print set. Good reprint! Memorial to Genius – Bulk Mishra’s Factory – Bulk Mishra’s Helix – Bizarre $3(ish) card that has never seen a reprinting from a very scarce set. Mishra’s Self-Replicator – Bulk but has never seen a reprint before. Has some Commander potential. Molder Slug – Bulk card with two scarce printings that seems very strong at casual Commander tables. Mouth of Ronom – $2.5 card that has never seen a reprint before from a scarce set. Opportunity – Bulk Order of Yawgmoth – Bulk card with a few scarce printings. Pentavus – Bulk card with some Commander applications that has been reprinted into oblivion. Phyrexian Colossus – bulk, but the artwork on some of these printings look sweet. Pledge of Loyalty – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Power Armor – Bulk card with a few scarce printings. Powerstone Minefield – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. May have some niche Commander applications. Powerstone Shard – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Original printing is not extraordinarily rare. Priest of Gix – Bulk card with a few scarce printings that could have Commander applications. Priest of Titania – $7 card with a decent number of printings that are all quite scarce. Decent reprint! Prototype Portal – Bulk Retaliation – Bulk card that has not been reprinted before. Saheeli Rai – $2-3 dollar Planeswalker card that is a part of a ton of infinite combos. Also has never seen a reprint before. Shatterstorm – Bulk card that is fantastic in Commander. Honestly, its price is kind of baffling. Smokestack – $12 card that is infamous in creating the most hated MTG archetype in existence – stax. Decent reprint? Tempting Wurm – Bizarre $6 card that has never seen a reprint before. Good reprint! The Antiquities War – Bulk, but could have Commander potential Thopter Foundry – Bulk card that sees competitive play, as it can enable some infinite combos. Card has a lot of printings. Thran Forge – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Thran Quarry – $10 land that has not seen a widely accessible reprint. Great reprint! Thran War Machine – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint before. Toymaker – Bulk, but has never seen a reprint before. Urza’s Armor – Bulk, with a few scarce printings. Urza’s Factory – Bulk Urza’s Saga – $30 premier competitive card in multiple formats, and also sees cEDH play. Also has not been reprinted. The best reprint addition to The List. Verdurous Gearhulk – Bulk that has a few printings not widely available. Great option for Commander on a budget. Witch Engine – Bizarre bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Words of War – Interesting bulk card that has never been reprinted before. World at War – Flashy $10 card mostly played in Commander that has never seen a reprint before. Great reprint! Yawgmoth’s Agenda – Bulk card that has never seen a reprint before. Yotian Soldier – Bulk card with multiple printings, all of which are somewhat scarce. Kataki, War’s Wage – $5 card that commonly sees competitive sideboard play. There are a few somewhat scarce printings of this. Decent reprint! K’rrik, Son of Yawgmoth – $14 Commander favorite that widely varies in price depending on its printing. There aren’t a ton of printings of this, so it’s a pretty strong reprint. Mishra, Artificer Prodigy – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Printing is more recent than others. Tawnos, Urza’s Apprentice – Bulk card that has never been reprinted before. Printing is more recent than others. Can be quite good in Commander. Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools – $7 Commander card that occasionally sees some competitive play in the format. Has never been reprinted before, but has a somewhat recent printing. Good reprint considering its significance lore-wise. Titania, Protector of Argoth – Bulk reprint that packs a punch. Best value amongst the bulk reprints on this list.