Unfortunately, it’s no secret that Magic: the Gathering can be an incredibly expensive game to play. With decks costing hundreds if not thousands of dollars, it’s no surprise the comparatively cost-effective Commander format is so popular. Thankfully, reprints from Masters Sets and beyond do occasionally help to bring the price of cards down. One great medium for this, are new Secret Lair drops.
Typically offering a quintet of reprints, these releases can occasionally offer Commander and Constructed staples for a fixed price. Alongside this, they usually look amazing too, with some of the most striking art in MTG. Unfortunately, while Secret Lair drops do have some price-lowering potential, it’s a guarantee. Sometimes, in fact, due to artistic demand or renewed interest, they can even cause prices to increase!
As you can gather from the title, today is one of those price-increasing days. Putting other blips in interest to shame, a new Secret Lair has caused a staggering $200 price rise. Bizarrely, the new ultra-expensive card isn’t even technically playable.
Princess Twilight Sparkle Hits $250!
To cut right to the chase, the Princess Twilight Sparkle is now worth the staggering sum of $250. If you’ve been keeping up with the latest goings on, the reason for this won’t be a surprise at all. Earlier this week, Wizards debuted and launched Ponies: The Galloping 2, which contains four brand-new MLP MTG cards.
On its own, this new charitable Secret Lair Drop would undoubtedly renew interest in the past cards somewhat. After all, there would be more MLP cards to build a deck around. While this is certainly a factor, these new MLP cards aren’t purely random additions, oh no. Instead, the four new cards are all missing support pieces that Princess Twilight Sparkle needs.
Facilitating Princess Twilight Sparkle’s missing win condition, these cards now make an MLP MTG deck viable! Well, almost, at least. It’s important to note that the MLP cards are still silver-bordered and therefore not playable in any format. Thankfully, this can be fixed with a bit of Rule Zero Wizardry.
Regardless of the card’s playability, MTG players are clearly very interested in Princess Twilight Sparkle. So much so, in fact, that almost every copy of the card has been purchased on TCGplayer. As usual, this has caused the price to absolutely skyrocket as sellers react to the latest craze. Previously, Princess Twilight Sparkle was only worth around $57 according to market averages. Now, however, they’re selling for $248.99!
While price increases following new support aren’t uncommon, this dramatic increase certainly isn’t normal. Thankfully, however, there is a rather simple explanation. Released at HasCon 2017 the supply of original Ponies: The Galloping cards is incredibly limited making the price more volatile. In theory, this means the price may come back down, however, there’s sadly no guarantee of that.
Everypony Is Expensive
Beyond the meteoric rise of Princess Twilight Sparkle, unsurprisingly, there has also been interest in the other MLP cards. Thankfully for the sake of your wallet, however, these price increases haven’t nearly been as daunting. Although, they’re certainly still not cheap.
Out of the old Ponies: The Galloping cards, currently the cheapest by far is Nightmare Moon. Currently costing only $72, this MLP card is arguably the least enticing out of the bunch as they’re lacking any real synergy. Occasionally buffing themselves and only harnessing the powers of friendship after paying another six mana, Nightmare Moon isn’t spectacular.
On the flip side, after paying the required six mana, Princess Luna is more compelling. After all, who doesn’t love friendship and having six more moon-themed cards to cast? While this ability isn’t to be scoffed at, unfortunately, Nightmare Moon still doesn’t have much Commander potential. That being said, however, their price still jumped around $10 to hit its current high.
While Nightmare Moon may have escaped the latest market movements, the same cannot be said for Rarity. Another required piece in the Princess Twilight Sparkle combo, this card has seen an immense surge in demand. Once costing around $43 a few days ago, now Rarity retails for $148!
Beyond being part of the MLP-themed win condition, Rarity also offers cost reduction and protection. Granted, both of these abilities have a bit of Un-Set comedy flare, but they’re still undeniably useful. So much so, that every Rule Zeroed MLP Commander deck will want Rarity, even if not for the automatic win.
What About the New Cards?
Considering the cards are not even in players’ hands yet, it’s incredibly difficult to gauge the price of Ponies: The Galloping 2 cards. Looking at past precedent, you might expect a $40 baseline for each card, however, that’s incredibly optimistic. Since Ponies: The Galloping 2 is a Secret Lair drop, the new cards will be significantly more accessible, causing lower prices.
Alongside this major detail, it’s also worth remembering that the My Little Pony MTG cards are not eternal legal. As a result, they’re always going to have a lower appeal than a powerful once time-limited card like Rick, Steadfast Leader. Due to these factors, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if Ponies: The Galloping 2 cards are far cheaper than expected.
Ultimately, since they’ve not technically been released yet, there’s no telling how expensive the new cards will be. That, however, is also a silver lining, as they’re still available for sale via the Secret Lair website. Thanks to this, if you want Ponies: The Galloping 2, you can simply buy it for a fixed price.
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