Over the past month, there have been some pretty impactful shifts in the Modern metagame. Boros Energy’s metagame percentage is still quite concerning, but a number of other archetypes have become forces to be reckoned with in their own right.
One of Modern’s recent rising stars is Orzhov midrange. Orzhov midrange is a neat archetype revolving around being able to generate tons of value. As this deck has become more popular, we’ve seen some important price spikes to some of the deck’s staples.
A week ago, we covered a major spike to Overlord of the Balemurk, which is quite an impactful card in the deck thanks to its synergy with Phelia, Exuberant Shepherd. Today, we’re going to cover a different value engine in the form of Recruiter of the Guard. This card is beginning to sell for quite a bit of money, so let’s discuss its increased role in Modern and the price increase that’s followed.
Recruiter of the Guard
Recruiter of the Guard is a powerful creature tutor that was originally printed back in Conspiracy: Take the Crown. The card almost immediately became a feature of Death and Taxes decks in Legacy. Getting to search for blink effects like Flickerwisp was a great way to pull ahead on resources, especially if you had a copy of Aether Vial in play to speed things up.
Recruiter’s introduction to Modern came with its release in Modern Horizons 3. At the time, though, there weren’t huge expectations for Recruiter in the format.
After all, the biggest downside associated with Recruiter is that it’s slow, and Modern has been a fast format for quite some time. Imperial Recruiter had already been legal for a couple years. Would Recruiter of the Guard really be a more formidable contender in the format?
As it turns out, the answer is yes. In fact, Orzhov midrange just made it to the finals of the Regional Championship in Canada, showcasing its strength in a powerful field. So, what makes Recruiter so different?
Right away, a huge aspect in favor of Recruiter of the Guard is its ability to search for Solitude. Solitude cleanly answers any problematic threat ranging from Abhorrent Oculus to Phlage, Titan of Fire’s Fury. This alone is super strong, but once you factor in the presence of Ephemerate and Phelia, the whole package gets way better.
Following up Phelia with Recruiter lets you blink Recruiter when you attack and grab another creature of your choice on your end step. Meanwhile, Ephemerate can blink Recruiter or even exile an Evoked Solitude in response to the trigger. This enables you to exile two opposing threats and keep your Solitude around.
You’re free to tutor up other silver bullets depending on the matchup as well. White Orchid Phantom is a house versus Belcher, for instance. Recruiter simply does everything you want, so it makes sense why the card is rising in value.
The Spike
Despite the fact that Orzhov midrange has been a deck for a while at this point, the bulk of Recruiter’s spike has come in the last week.
From October all the way until the second week of January, near mint, non-foil Modern Horizons 3 copies of Recruiter consistently sat between $4 and $6 according to TCGplayer market price history. This number rose to roughly $7 by the start of last week and climbed even more to $9 before the weekend.
Following the deck’s elite performance at the Canadian Regional Championship, however, Recruiter’s market price has since ballooned to just under $14. This reflects a 205% price spike from January 8 to today.
No Sign of Slowing Down
Interestingly, this alone doesn’t reveal the full extent to which Recruiter has spiked. See, while Recruiter’s market price is listed at about $14, recent sales suggest this number should almost certainly be higher moving forward.
Today alone, there have been multiple sales completed for over $29 according to TCGplayer sales history. Current sales listings follow suit.
A similar pattern is starting with Conspiracy: Take the Crown variants of Recruiter. Despite the market price being listed at under $10, copies are consistently selling for more, and most sellers are listing their prices at over $20.
At minimum, this suggests that Recruiter’s demand has risen significantly in the last 24 hours, which makes sense given the results of the Canadian Regional Championship. Orzhov midrange has shown no signs of slowing down, either. The deck is robust, consistent, and well-positioned. It wouldn’t surprise me if other staples from the archetype spike a bit in the coming days.
Make sure to check your collection for any copies of Recruiter you might have, because the card is on its way up.