Weekly Winners (24) - Or: the Modern Spike Report

12 Jun

by Peter

This was a very, very interesting week. And for some it was a very agonizing week because quite a few Modern cards spiked. I have never seen so many cards increase in price dramatically within a format before. Therefore, this installment of the Weekly Winners is a report, solely on Modern Spike.

So, once again, I present you the cards that will be the talk of the town tonight

Modern Spike Report

Before we get to the three weekly winners, I want to report that a whopping 18 modern cards spiked this week. And quite a few others increased in price, but to a lesser extent. I have never seen this happen before and it is quite a unique event.

The main reason is that we can be sure that some cards will probably not see a reprint soon, since the Modern Masters sets cover a selection of blocks from which cards will be reprinted. It is assumed that other cards from those blocks will not be reprinted anytime soon. Or ever.

Since Modern is a popular format and the supply of certain cards will not increase, and those cards see competitive play, it's a safe target for speculators. Prices are inflated, and eventually fall back to a new, higher price. In other words: a price correction. Others prefer to use the term 'market manipulation'.

These "price corrections" happen all the time, but I have never seen so many in such a short time. I have no reason to suspect that the buyouts were part of some coordinated effort among speculators. If you see or know differently, please let me know, I would really like to know!

I have seen a lot of resentment and even anger on Reddit and other websites about these card spikes. I think I can summarize with these two images:

#1 Deceiver Exarch +291.9% ($4.25)

Deceiver Exarch is a centerpiece in the Twin-Exarch decks in Modern. Since the card is prominent in a very popular deck and that Deceiver Exarch did not get reprinted in MM2, it is a target for speculators. Buying out a uncommon that has been reprinted is not a simple task, but the individual or individuals who did it were pretty successful.

Cards will start losing value right after spikes, but I think that this card will not go back to it's original value. If you have copies somewhere, be sure to trade them in at the GP in Charlotte this weekend, you will probably get a pretty good deal.

#2 Olivia Voldaren +166.8% ($15,74)

Olivia Voldaren is gaining popularity as a sideboard card in Modern Jund decks. Quite a few good tournament results peaked the interest of speculators and the card was bought out. Since the card sees play in EDH, it has some more appeal than just sideboard play. Sadly, there is not much more to say about this card, except that it got bought out.

#3 Huntmaster of the Fells +137.5% ($16.10)

Huntmaster of the Fells has the same story as Olivia Voldaren. It sees sideboard play in Modern Jund decks (sometimes mainboard), and it's a safe bet that the card won't be reprinted soon. Because the card is double sided, it's not as easy to add it to reprint sets or to put in in Magic Origins. That would be a big choice and would probably warrant more double sided cards to be reprinted.

So again: a safe bet for speculators. And they bought out this card hard, in the hope that players will be willing to buy into the card with its inflated price tag. Stores have changed their buylist prices to around $10, at pre-spike buying prices of around $6.60 you can do the math.

Other modern spikes

There were more buyouts/ spikes on modern cards this week. I have listed them below. It seems that the fact that the cards see play in Modern and were not reprinted in MM2 were reason enough to warrant a spike or buyout.