Magic Cards to Buy Now - Dragons, Goblins, Pirates, and Elves

27 Nov
by Deven Dupuis

My first pick for Safe Bets this month is more expensive than all of my picks from last month combined. That being said, it’s still a safe investment and significantly cheaper than it has been in the past, or will be in the future. 

The Ur-Dragon

When Wizards announced Commander Masters, The Ur-Dragon was used as the face of the marketing materials for the set - which makes sense, since The Ur-Dragon was $80 at the time. According to EDHREC, The Ur-Dragon has been the second most popular commander over the previous two years and the previous month. Since its reprint, copies have fallen under $20. 

Due to its continued popularity in the six years since its original printing, The Ur-Dragon will be back towards the $50 mark by this time next year. Additionally, Wizards using it as the face card to promote one of their most expensive sets of all time leads me to believe that it’s a card that they won’t reprint again soon.

For those with a little more disposable income who want something more reprint proof, I recommend the etched foil copy, as they can currently be picked up for under $50 and are the most premium version available, creating a much higher potential price ceiling. 

The Ur-Dragon
The Ur-Dragon
The Ur-Dragon (Foil Etched)
The Ur-Dragon (Borderless)

Leaf-Crowned Visionary and Rundvelt Hordemaster

My next pick is a two-for-one, because both are good investments for the exact same reason. Leaf-Crowned Visionary and Rundvelt Hordemaster are “lords” for some of the oldest creature types in Magic’s history. Both are also the cheapest mana-value lord for their respective type and built-in card advantage engines. Why then, are they so affordable? Despite being well-costed, efficient lords, they are currently homeless outside of Commander. They’re too slow for Modern and Legacy. In Pioneer, Goblins and Elves hold a small portion of the meta, but struggle against many of the top tier decks in the format. Despite all of this, I think both are a safe investment. 

The introduction of Cavern of Souls into Standard and Pioneer opens the door for these cards to find homes in one or both of the formats. Vodalian Hexcatcher can serve as a good point of reference. Prior to The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, Vodalian Hexcatcher could be purchased for around $1. Today, with Merfolk getting more support, copies now sell for around $4. 

Leaf-Crowned Visionary
Leaf-Crowned Visionary (Extended Art)
Rundvelt Hordemaster
Rundvelt Hordemaster (Extended Art)

Kitesail Larcenist

Kitesail Larcenist is without a doubt the worst Pirate-based removal with ward and flying I have ever heard of - but I have heard of it. All jokes aside, Kitesail Larcenist is a card from the new Lost Caverns of Ixalan that can easily slide into any blue Commander deck. It was featured in the Lost Caverns episode of the popular YouTube show, Game Knights. In the exchange, Kitesail was used by Jimmy to turn two blockers and his own commander into a treasure. He then killed one of his opponents before using a board wipe, which his commander avoided by being a treasure. 

A number of creatures have abilities to remove creatures from play until it leaves the battlefield. This ability is usually found in white and usually only targets creatures. Kitesail Larcenist is blue, can also target artifacts, and has built in protection. It will be a Commander staple worthy of more than its current market price of $1.15.

Kitesail Larcenist
Kitesail Larcenist (Extended Art)

Double Down: Triumph of Saint Katherine

Last month I discussed why Triumph of Saint Katherine was a good investment. This month I’m doubling down and recommending you purchase copies if you haven't already. Since discussing Triumph, there have been two major paper Legacy tournaments: Eternal Weekend Europe and SCG Con Pittsburgh. At both tournaments there was a strong 4-color control representation, with about half including Triumph. Popular Legacy content creator Boshnroll piloted a 4CC list to top 16 featuring three Triumphs. 

Since last month Triumph has increased in price by just over 20%. In the coming month we have Eternal Weekend North America and Eternal Weekend Japan. If Triumph has a strong showing at either, then this trend should increase and continue. 

Triumph of Saint Katherine
Triumph of Saint Katherine (Surge Foil)

Check out these other articles:

Commander Staples from Lost Caverns of Ixalan

Deven Dupuis
Deven Dupuis

Deven has played Magic since the release of Lorwyn. While his favorite format is Legacy, he also stays up to date with Pioneer, Modern, and Commander. When not writing for MTG Stocks, Deven also writes fiction stories with Kindle Vella.


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