Every time Wizards of the Coast releases a new Magic: The Gathering set, there is a huge appeal towards the most expensive cards due to their increasing value. Many Magic players buy cards just for the purpose of reselling them later at a higher price.
The newest Magic set, Rivals of Ixalan, has finally arrived, and if you want to know which Rares and Mythic Rares will have the highest value, then follow this guide. Of course, such a volatile market can change drastically from time to time, but the overall trend is already clear.
These 11 cards will definitely find their way into many competitive Standard and Modern decks, making them stay at or rise up to a good price.
Angrath, Minotaur Pirate
- Current price: $10.75
This is the first of the two Angrath planeswalkers from Rivals of Ixalan. And like every other planeswaker, it has several abilities and an ultimate one, which in this case, is incredibly powerful.
The +2 ability is a perfect solution against token decks, which are plenty in Standard right now. Even the most popular deck, Temur Energy, uses Whirler Virtuoso that often stalls the victory due to the never-ending stream of tokens.
The -3 ability isn't particularly exciting, so you'll want to go up to the ultimate one and destroy all of the opponent's creatures and deal that much damage to an opponent, which in most cases will result in instant victory.
Angrath, the Flame-Chained
- Current price: $7.03
The second Angrath planeswalker has a similar approach, but this time it would fit Modern format better. The +1 discard ability is often used in format with such planeswalkers asLiliana, so it will definitely see play.
The -3 ability is interesting but can only deal with cheap minions, which is fine in most cases. But if you really want to reach the ultimate ability, then this is where Angrath will blow out of the water any deck that relies heavily on its graveyard.
Grixis Death's Shadow and Dredge decks will not be able to resist against such power, although it may take some effort before that -8 can be activated.
Azor's Gateway
- Current price: $6.82
In order to fully appreciate the greatness of this legendary artifact, you must first take a look at the flip side of it (see below). It does take some effort to flip it, but when you do, this card can become your biggest source of mana.
This would be a perfect match for any ramp deck in Standard or Modern. At the very least, you will generate 6 points of mana, giving the minimum life total of 1 and another 5 gained after flipping the artifact.
Blood Sun
- Current price: $8.97
Anyone who plays in Modern is well familiar with the card named Blood Moon, an enchantment that turns all non-basic lands into mountains. It is a perfect tool for disrupting decks that use non-basic lands, such as Tron decks, and thus became extremely popular.
Blood Sun is similar in effect, but instead of turning all non-basic lands into mountains, it deactivates all of their abilities, except mana abilities. This means that the card is not as effective against Tron decks, but it will do wonders against Grixis Death's Shadow or any other deck that utilizes lots of fetch lands.
Dire Fleet Daredevil
- Current price: $6.19
Here is the reverse effect of another modern staple -- Snapcaster Mage. Instead of being able to cast sorcery and instant cards from your graveyard, it allows you to do the same but from an opponent's graveyard.
So this hits the spot twice: you get to cast a spell from a graveyard, and at the same time, you exile it from your opponent's reach. This is a pretty insane effect, and everyone and their grandmother will want to play this card.
The price will definitely spike on Dire Fleet Daredevil as soon as players will realize just how strong it is.
Huatli, Radiant Champion
- Current price: $8.99
This is the second Huatli planeswalker showcased in the Ixalan block, the first one being released in September 2017. This one is focused around its second ability that can signficantly buff your creatures.
The ultimate ability is good, but it's nothing to write home about. If you can get it, good -- if not, no problem. Huatli will do nothing without creatures, so decks that utilize many creatures will win the most.
Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
- Current price: $10.75
Kumena is an auto-include in all Merfolk decks, whether in Standard or Modern. It has three powerful abilities that rely on the number of Merfolks you control, so it is undoubtedly an exclusively tribal card, and a very potent one at that.
The fact that this card costs only three mana will make it one of the highest-priced Merfolk cards on the market. You could sacrifice a set of typical Merfolk lords that are often used in Modern and use Kumena instead of them.
Rekindling Phoenix
- Current price: $9.63
There's a lot of text on Rekindling Phoenix, but it's totally worth reading, because when you realize what it does, you will want to play this card no matter what. It basically offers an infinite value, so you will always have this flying creature on board.
It's even better if your opponent kills the Phoenix, because every time, it returns with a haste, giving you a chance to attack in air for 4 each turn. This is another card that is priced pretty low as of right now but will surely rise when both metas settle.
The Immortal Sun
- Current price: $8.01
Immortal Sun is a very strange but also a very sweet card. It has plenty of unrelated abilities, but they're all pretty good. Many decks will want to have it either in sideboard or 1-2 copies in the main deck just for the anti-planeswalkers effect. But other abilities are usable, too.
It won't spike in price, as it is quite an unusual card, but that is exactly why it will have its appeal in certain circles of the Magic community.
Twilight Prophet
- Current price: $7.04
This vampire cleric introduces a few new concepts in Magic, such as keyword Ascend, and the effect of the city's blessing. Ascend activates the city's blessing after you control at least 10 permanents on board, including lands, which is a pretty good deal.
All this means that it will be possible to play Twilight Prophet quite early in the game, especially if you have a ramp deck. And if you do, then you will slowly but surely kill your opponent just by drawing extra cards.
Vraska, Scheming Gorgon
- Current price: $10.14
The final card on this list is Vraska the planeswalker, also a second one in the Ixalan block. This one, just like Huatli, buffs your creatures but is capable of destroying enemy creatures as well, just like its predecessor.
The ultimate ability is quite fascinating, as it gives your creatures a deathtouch effect that not only affects the enemy creatures but also your opponents. This is another game-winning card that will have a solid price on the market for as long as creatures will dominate the meta.
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The prices on these cards may change in time, and they definitely will. If you agree or disagree with these choices, then be sure to leave your feedback in the comments below.
Published: Jan 12, 2018 08:11 am