One of the awesome qualities of Secret Lair drops is that the cards often boast incredibly extravagant artwork. This makes them perfect products for anyone looking to add some pizzazz to their decks.
Interestingly, when Secret Lairs are released, it’s common for the new artwork to also appear on sleeves on MTG Arena. Players are able to purchase these sleeves in the store, typically following the Secret Lair release.
As it turns out, though, there’s actually a handful of sleeves currently available in the MTG Arena store with artwork that doesn’t appear on any paper card! Furthermore, these sleeves are specifically for the “Secret Lair: Adventures of the Little Witch,” which also doesn’t exist at the moment.
Thanks to the Arena sleeve product itself, we know the four cards that the sleeve arts belong to. With this in mind, today, we’re going to discuss these “leaked” cards under the assumption that a new Secret Lair is on the way. Of course, this hasn’t been officially confirmed. So, if you want to wait for an official announcement, consider this your spoiler warning.
Realms Uncharted
As you can tell from the picture above, the four cards that will presumably be included are Secret Rendezvous, Serenity, Esika’s Chariot, and Realms Uncharted. Each card’s art looks absolutely beautiful based on the sneak peek. Unfortunately, most of these cards are worth very little. Realms Uncharted, however, is the exception.
Realms Uncharted is a neat card from Rise of the Eldrazi that has a very similar feel to Gifts Ungiven. Unlike Gifts Ungiven, though, Realms Uncharted can only search for lands. This definitely restricts where it sees play, but it certainly has an impact in Commander.
Obviously, giving your opponent the choice of what lands go to your hand isn’t ideal. Regardless, for decks that have ways to return lands from the graveyard to play, Realms Uncharted is an awesome inclusion.
Take Lord Windgrace, for example. You can immediately use Lord Windgrace’s -3 ability to bring back the two lands your opponent puts into your graveyard to the battlefield. Being able to tutor up potent combinations such as Thespian’s Stage and Dark Depths makes Realms Uncharted a real threat.
All that being said, it’s the lack of reprints that has driven the price of Realms Uncharted the most. This is the first reprint of any kind that Realms Uncharted would receive, which is quite notable. Right now, the card is worth just under $14 according to TCGplayer’s market price.
Esika’s Chariot
Next, we have Esika’s Chariot which is a strong card that provides a lot of value. Getting four power and four toughness across two bodies is nice. Even if your opponent removes the Chariot itself, you’re left with Cat tokens to attack with.
Esika’s Chariot was a staple in Pioneer for a while alongside Winota, Joiner of Forces. Its competitive viability has definitely decreased over time, but it still shows up in Commander and Vintage Cube.
From a reprint value perspective, there isn’t much to rave about here. The card was recently reprinted in Bloomburrow Commander. Meanwhile, Kaldheim versions are available for under $1.
Serenity
Our third card is Serenity. Serenity is an old card that debuted in Weatherlight. At two mana, the card is very efficient for the effect it provides. This card has seen plenty of Legacy play over the years as a sideboard card.
Any deck that relies on having a high density of artifacts and enchantments does not want to see this card across the table. Legacy Reanimator decks of old made great use of Serenity as well as a way to destroy pieces of graveyard hate.
The problem here is that the card’s appearance in Mystery Booster 2 completely tanked its value. The Weatherlight and Classic Sixth Edition versions still hold a decent price tag of $5+, but the Mystery Booster 2 version is just barely over $1. Therefore, the reprint value of this card is minimal at best.
Secret Rendezvous
Unfortunately, that trend isn’t going to change with the last card. Secret Rendezvous is a lovely card that does have some applications in multiplayer formats as a group hug element. Outside of that, the card is rather weak.
As an uncommon from Strixhaven, it shouldn’t be too surprising that the card is worth under 20 cents. The good news here, at least, is that Secret Rendezvous will be receiving new artwork for the first time.
Collective Value and Foils
Overall, assuming this Secret Lair is on the horizon, it is rather mediocre from a financial perspective. Nearly all the value is placed on Realms Uncharted. Collectively, the reprint value of the cards adds up to roughly $16. Secret Lairs normally go on sale for $29.99 in non-foil.
It should be noted that things get way more interesting when you consider the foil versions of cards. Realms Uncharted may be under $14 in non-foil, but foils come in at almost $62! If you’ve been looking to get your hands on a foil copy of Realms Uncharted without breaking the bank, this may finally be your chance. Foil Secret Lairs usually go on sale for $39.99, for reference.
Don’t forget to check for any updates regarding this Secret Lair in the coming weeks.
