It is quite popular in EDH and Horde, and also is played in some UB control lists. Also it is Mythic.
You also have to mention that it makes Zombies - that seems irrelevant to most people, but there is a big "Zombies are cool" thing that has driven prices for a while too. It's not as bad as Angels though.... Storm Herd would be a $5 card if it made Angels.
I think the other thing going on is that casual Zombie fans see their much-loved tribe getting the first measurable breath of fresh air since, what, 2002? (For example, when Vampires showed up, I personally took apart my Zombie deck years ago and had basically no interest in ever playing them again until we got 'new era of design' options for it. The difference between Zen-block Vampire.tribe vs Onslaught-block Zombies.tribe was night and day in terms of both design & flavor.)
And yes, I realize Bridge from Below came during that period, but let's face it..that card's primary home is not Zombies.dec. It's Dredge.
So yeah, Zombie fans have been waiting a loooong time for interesting new Zombie cards, and Army is easily the splashiest card among them. It's not to hard to see why it'd be popular.
You also have to mention that it makes Zombies - that seems irrelevant to most people, but there is a big "Zombies are cool" thing that has driven prices for a while too. It's not as bad as Angels though.... Storm Herd would be a $5 card if it made Angels.
I mean, that's mostly implied by "It is popular in Horde Magic" -- the only format to make various set's Zombie tokens trend as a "Suggested purchase" on CoolStuffInc.
Between Horde Magic, an underrepresented (but popular) tribe getting a push with this set, and speculators waiting to see what other Zombies come out over the course of Innistrad block, it's safe to say that Army of the Damned is well positioned to merit a non-arbitrary price tag.
Well, to say this is late would be a massive understatement. But as they say, better late than never :p. Anyhow, Im finally fully updated and ready to get back on track with my ebaying and everything else (been a heck of a month to say the least). So without further adeiu, here is my initial pricing list for the set. As always my prices come from a combination of looking at the low end of ebay buy it nows, average ebay completed listings, and cross referencing with combined online store sites like tcgplayer:
Top valued mythics/rares for Innistrad:
Liliana of the Veil: $33
Garruk Relentless: $22
Snapcaster Mage: $22
Geist of Saint Traft: $14
Olivia Voldaren: $14
Stromkirk Noble: $5.50
Isolated Chapel: $5
Mikaeus the Lunarch: $5
Army of the Damned: $4.50
Bloodline Keeper: $4
Sulfur Falls: $4
Hinterland Harbor: $4
Woodland Cemetery: $4
Skaab Ruinator: $4
Angelic Overseer: $3.50
Champion of the Parish: $3.50
Kessig Wolf Run: $3.50
Tree of Redemption: $3
Past in Flames: $3
Clifftop Retreat: $3
Mayor of Avabruck: $3
Grimoire of the Dead: $2.50
Gavony Township: $2.50
Mentor of the Meek: $2.50
Grimgrin Corpse-Born: $2
Heartless Summoning: $2
Balefire Dragon: $1.50
Essence of the Wild: $1.50
Reaper of the Abyss: $1.50
Daybreak Ranger: $1.50
Endless Ranks of the Dead: $1.50
Kruin Outlaw: $1.50
Moorland Haunt: $1.50
Parallel Lives: $1.50
Everything else is $1 or less
Total Value of Mythics: $116
Total Value of Rares: $90
Value of 1 Uncommon/Common set: $6
Total Set Value: $212
Average Box Value:
(For the sake of simplicity, and given that the flip cards are in addition to the normal regular card distributions within a box, but do contribute to the average value, Im simply taking the total value of the mythics and dividing by the normal amount of mythics in a given box, and the same for the rares, it should all average out approx or at least close to my number):
Mythics: $35
Rares: $54
Uncommon/common sets: $11
Foils: $6
Total average box value: $106
Average Pack Value:
$106/36 = $2.95
All I can say is WOW, what a list. 34 rares/mythics from the set currently going for $1.50 or more. An average box value that is STILL $106/box, and an amazingly close distribution of value between the total value of the rares/mythics from the set. Whats even more amazing is that these values, in many cases are down a decent amount from the highs that were had within even a month of the release of the set. This set has been the hottest set (BY FAR) since Zendikar. This set has something for everyone in it, and its reflected upon in the sales of the set, and how universally well liked the set has been. BUT! Just remember, mtgo redemptions will begin hitting the market in a week or two, so just bear that in mind, as once that happens we should see some additional cooling in the prices of many of the cards in the set (especially mythics). So just be wary of that in advance.
Anyhow, enjoy the update, and Ill be posting updates regularly (at least once a week) from here on :).
I was really down on this set from a design standpoint, but from a value standpoint, it's awesome. Are you surprised by Snapcaster's price? Do you think it will stick once redemptions start?
ISD has really surprised on the sales front, and it's timing with the latest Twilight movie release is serendipidous to say the least. I'm shocked it's held its value so well, but very happy for WotC.
Hopefully, they'll make enough from this set to stop ending rewards for players and start adding some.
Can I add something to your analysis...as I've seen it appears that between the flip cards and the regular cards, on average you open 41 rares/mythics per box. This is a boon for financial value of the box and seems to increase the final value by another $10 at least.
Just my $.02
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Can I add something to your analysis...as I've seen it appears that between the flip cards and the regular cards, on average you open 41 rares/mythics per box. This is a boon for financial value of the box and seems to increase the final value by another $10 at least.
Just my $.02
I seemed to average about 3-4 of the flip cards per box. For the sake of simplicity I simply added up all the rares (including the flip cards) and divided by the normal number and then just multiplied by the normal number one would get per box. All in all I agree if I took the extra time to seperate it all out correctly, I would likely end up with a number slightly higher than the one I gave. Probably $108-$110 would be a more accurate number for average box value.
ISD has really surprised on the sales front, and it's timing with the latest Twilight movie release is serendipidous to say the least. I'm shocked it's held its value so well, but very happy for WotC.
What? What does a fall set release, which happens around the same exact week year after year have anything to do with some random movie release almost two months afterwards? Do people seriously forget that vampires existed in the horror fan's mind BEFORE the book was ever released?
On topic, I'm more happy for the stores. ISD is "flying off the shelves" according to some of my local contacts, and it makes up for the craptastic time they had this time last year with Scars. People wouldn't show up for drafts for that set... last week I attended a draft with close to 65-70 people. Unbelievable.
Found a local shop selling boxes for 84 dollars, no tax, was thrilled and immediately bought a box. Now don't know whether I should open it or save it for a draft. So torn lol!
6 cards woth more than $5? 9 cards worth more than a pack? (and those are retail prices, which non retailers are not going to get)
Yes, what a list. A terrible list.
People at my LGS have started taking NPH packs as thier prizes from ISD drafts. That's how worthless the packs are.
Those are ebay prices. Anyone can get those prices (or darned close to it) if they choose to sell them on ebay (minus the usual ebay fees). If people choose to take NPH thats certainly up to them, but the following are what the overall average pack values for the various standard sets actually are which you can see from the various running tally threads on this page of market street:
Right now MBS and ISD are the two best valued sets, with all three of the rest right around the same price.
Also, looking at our pack/box sales. We sell 5x more ISD right now than any other standard set. Everyone has their own preferences for sets, and what is available in the sets. NPH is a popular one, but at least at our shop the order of most popular pack sales goes: ISD, M12, MBS, NPH, SOM.
I can't believe Snapcaster is still hovering so high, even if it is being played as a 4-of in so many formats. I'm really wanting to pick up three more but I'm still afraid that I'll be over-trading for them at current value. I thought it would have at least dropped a few more dollars by this point.
While online redemptions do usually affect prices, usually it's by tanking mythic prices; there are fewer mythics in the market for a given demand pre-redemption than there are rares vs. demand. Snapcaster's value point could buck that trend, or not; there's a heck of a lot of demand out there, which has kept the price high. I don't expect it to drop much soon, although redemptions and continuing drafts should help it slowly settle--unless it increases its presence in various formats' top 8s.
Doesn't always mean much. If the set's a dog, people don't buy packs "just 'cause" and certainly don't buy boxes. ISD is selling better than Scars was at this point, and has far more "value" rares and mythics than Scars did at this same point. By now, Scars initial new set interest was way down, and so was tournament attendance.
I can't believe Snapcaster is still hovering so high, even if it is being played as a 4-of in so many formats. I'm really wanting to pick up three more but I'm still afraid that I'll be over-trading for them at current value. I thought it would have at least dropped a few more dollars by this point.
High demand, if your playing blue, you should have this guy in your decks. I really don't see this card going below 20 dollars. I'm trading for these guys anytime I can, it's just a good card to have.
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Caw-Blade by Me!
Format: Standard - NPH
Location: 2011 MMS Qualifier - Minneapolis, MN (6/4)
Players: 99
Finished: 2nd Place
(Key: The card's most recent move is on the right. This indicates the hottest mover of the update. indicates no movement. is a card that wasn't on the list last update. Data is from here.)
Grimoire of the Dead and Mentor of the Meek fell off the tally this update as they are both now worth less than the booster packs they come out of.
Liliana and Garruk held about where there were last update. Snapcaster drifted slightly lower despite seeing heavy play. Olivia fell by a few dollars, allowing Geist to retake 4th spot. Army of the Damned has risen consistently since the set came out and is now one of the chase cards of the set. Stromkirk Noble seems to have fallen out of favour with players. Isolated Chapel slipped down to the value of a Bloodline Keeper, which is on the rise. Sulfur Falls is one of the only rares to hold or increase its price tag this update, and Champion of the Parish right underneath is another. Hinterland Harbor and Woodland Cemetery both fell. Past in Flames flies up the chart again this update, now sitting somewhere around where it began several weeks ago. Skaab Ruinator continues to slide miserably, joining Daybreak Ranger as the most overvalued cards early on for this wet. Ruinator suffered from being legitimately overvalued, whereas in my opinion Daybreak Ranger was the subject of an unfortunate pump-and-dump technique - hopefully we don't see more of that in the future. Rare lands like Kessig Wolf Run and Gavony Township all lost out this update and have been losing price for a while. Grimgrin looks finally set to drop off the list next time I update.
Sales over the past two weeks have been very slow despite setting prices below what they're going for on eBay (and free shipping as always). I believe I've had one small order in the past week. I take this to indicate the speculative buying is over for this set (a lot of my customers are speculators trying to out-smart me lol). Now players are actually buying for decks. As Constructed has fallen out of favour in the past several years, this means it's "quiet time" for the set. Nonetheless, there are plenty of fluctuations to keep the updates interesting. Lots of trends to take note of and use to make plans for playing/buying/selling in the next week or so.
Prices overall are down about 5 to 10% since last update and I expect to see that continue as we head into MTGO redemptions and the rumours of the next set take shape.
I especially like the approach of only listing those cards worth more than the price of a booster. It provides a nice bit of visual information to the update - the shorter the list, the fewer valuable cards in the set, and vice versa.
Army of the Damned is still busy showing us all that 'casual demand' is not an oxymoron but a significant price driver.
I will surprise no one by predicting a continuing strong price for Snapcaster given the number of formats it is relevant in. It additionally has the collector value of being an invitational card, probably the last we will see for some time.
I especially like the approach of only listing those cards worth more than the price of a booster. It provides a nice bit of visual information to the update - the shorter the list, the fewer valuable cards in the set, and vice versa.
Thanks for your feedback. Yeah, that's something I think I'll make a permanent feature of my contribution to the thread. I agree that it packs a little bit more info into the update posts. A booster costs me $2.64 plus tax when I buy at least 3 booster boxes at a time. So I round that to $2.50 for the sake of this thread. Note that sometimes Standard legal sets (ie: sets that I will make running tally updates for) can go up in price, in terms of unopened product, due to lower print runs or higher demand. That would be factored into the thread, so that the running tally only includes cards it would be worth me opening in a booster pack.
I think that made sense, sorry, the beer is getting in my way again!
Makes sense, because really for anyone still buying packs and product at this point is pretty much only doing so at a discount as well, either as a shop owner buying from a distributor, or as someone who is buying from an online retailer that sells for less than a brick and mortar shop.
It is quite popular in EDH and Horde, and also is played in some UB control lists. Also it is Mythic.
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You also have to mention that it makes Zombies - that seems irrelevant to most people, but there is a big "Zombies are cool" thing that has driven prices for a while too. It's not as bad as Angels though.... Storm Herd would be a $5 card if it made Angels.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
And yes, I realize Bridge from Below came during that period, but let's face it..that card's primary home is not Zombies.dec. It's Dredge.
So yeah, Zombie fans have been waiting a loooong time for interesting new Zombie cards, and Army is easily the splashiest card among them. It's not to hard to see why it'd be popular.
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I think this will be dependent of Modern results, but she is dropping in price right now.
.
I mean, that's mostly implied by "It is popular in Horde Magic" -- the only format to make various set's Zombie tokens trend as a "Suggested purchase" on CoolStuffInc.
Between Horde Magic, an underrepresented (but popular) tribe getting a push with this set, and speculators waiting to see what other Zombies come out over the course of Innistrad block, it's safe to say that Army of the Damned is well positioned to merit a non-arbitrary price tag.
Buy from me on TCGPlayer::Twitter::Flickr
Top valued mythics/rares for Innistrad:
Liliana of the Veil: $33
Garruk Relentless: $22
Snapcaster Mage: $22
Geist of Saint Traft: $14
Olivia Voldaren: $14
Stromkirk Noble: $5.50
Isolated Chapel: $5
Mikaeus the Lunarch: $5
Army of the Damned: $4.50
Bloodline Keeper: $4
Sulfur Falls: $4
Hinterland Harbor: $4
Woodland Cemetery: $4
Skaab Ruinator: $4
Angelic Overseer: $3.50
Champion of the Parish: $3.50
Kessig Wolf Run: $3.50
Tree of Redemption: $3
Past in Flames: $3
Clifftop Retreat: $3
Mayor of Avabruck: $3
Grimoire of the Dead: $2.50
Gavony Township: $2.50
Mentor of the Meek: $2.50
Grimgrin Corpse-Born: $2
Heartless Summoning: $2
Balefire Dragon: $1.50
Essence of the Wild: $1.50
Reaper of the Abyss: $1.50
Daybreak Ranger: $1.50
Endless Ranks of the Dead: $1.50
Kruin Outlaw: $1.50
Moorland Haunt: $1.50
Parallel Lives: $1.50
Everything else is $1 or less
Total Value of Mythics: $116
Total Value of Rares: $90
Value of 1 Uncommon/Common set: $6
Total Set Value: $212
Average Box Value:
(For the sake of simplicity, and given that the flip cards are in addition to the normal regular card distributions within a box, but do contribute to the average value, Im simply taking the total value of the mythics and dividing by the normal amount of mythics in a given box, and the same for the rares, it should all average out approx or at least close to my number):
Mythics: $35
Rares: $54
Uncommon/common sets: $11
Foils: $6
Total average box value: $106
Average Pack Value:
$106/36 = $2.95
All I can say is WOW, what a list. 34 rares/mythics from the set currently going for $1.50 or more. An average box value that is STILL $106/box, and an amazingly close distribution of value between the total value of the rares/mythics from the set. Whats even more amazing is that these values, in many cases are down a decent amount from the highs that were had within even a month of the release of the set. This set has been the hottest set (BY FAR) since Zendikar. This set has something for everyone in it, and its reflected upon in the sales of the set, and how universally well liked the set has been. BUT! Just remember, mtgo redemptions will begin hitting the market in a week or two, so just bear that in mind, as once that happens we should see some additional cooling in the prices of many of the cards in the set (especially mythics). So just be wary of that in advance.
Anyhow, enjoy the update, and Ill be posting updates regularly (at least once a week) from here on :).
I was really down on this set from a design standpoint, but from a value standpoint, it's awesome. Are you surprised by Snapcaster's price? Do you think it will stick once redemptions start?
ISD has really surprised on the sales front, and it's timing with the latest Twilight movie release is serendipidous to say the least. I'm shocked it's held its value so well, but very happy for WotC.
Hopefully, they'll make enough from this set to stop ending rewards for players and start adding some.
Can I add something to your analysis...as I've seen it appears that between the flip cards and the regular cards, on average you open 41 rares/mythics per box. This is a boon for financial value of the box and seems to increase the final value by another $10 at least.
Just my $.02
I seemed to average about 3-4 of the flip cards per box. For the sake of simplicity I simply added up all the rares (including the flip cards) and divided by the normal number and then just multiplied by the normal number one would get per box. All in all I agree if I took the extra time to seperate it all out correctly, I would likely end up with a number slightly higher than the one I gave. Probably $108-$110 would be a more accurate number for average box value.
What? What does a fall set release, which happens around the same exact week year after year have anything to do with some random movie release almost two months afterwards? Do people seriously forget that vampires existed in the horror fan's mind BEFORE the book was ever released?
On topic, I'm more happy for the stores. ISD is "flying off the shelves" according to some of my local contacts, and it makes up for the craptastic time they had this time last year with Scars. People wouldn't show up for drafts for that set... last week I attended a draft with close to 65-70 people. Unbelievable.
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6 cards woth more than $5? 9 cards worth more than a pack? (and those are retail prices, which non retailers are not going to get)
Yes, what a list. A terrible list.
People at my LGS have started taking NPH packs as thier prizes from ISD drafts. That's how worthless the packs are.
Those are ebay prices. Anyone can get those prices (or darned close to it) if they choose to sell them on ebay (minus the usual ebay fees). If people choose to take NPH thats certainly up to them, but the following are what the overall average pack values for the various standard sets actually are which you can see from the various running tally threads on this page of market street:
SOM: $2.45/pack
MBS: $2.97/pack
NPH: $2.47/pack
M12: $2.42/pack
ISD: $2.95/pack
Right now MBS and ISD are the two best valued sets, with all three of the rest right around the same price.
Also, looking at our pack/box sales. We sell 5x more ISD right now than any other standard set. Everyone has their own preferences for sets, and what is available in the sets. NPH is a popular one, but at least at our shop the order of most popular pack sales goes: ISD, M12, MBS, NPH, SOM.
It's also the newest set.
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Doesn't always mean much. If the set's a dog, people don't buy packs "just 'cause" and certainly don't buy boxes. ISD is selling better than Scars was at this point, and has far more "value" rares and mythics than Scars did at this same point. By now, Scars initial new set interest was way down, and so was tournament attendance.
High demand, if your playing blue, you should have this guy in your decks. I really don't see this card going below 20 dollars. I'm trading for these guys anytime I can, it's just a good card to have.
Format: Standard - NPH
Location: 2011 MMS Qualifier - Minneapolis, MN (6/4)
Players: 99
Finished: 2nd Place
TRADE THREAD
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=347708
All sorts of movement, some which may surprise you:
1) Liliana of the Veil / / / / / / / /
2) Garruk Relentless the Veil-Cursed / / / / / / / /
3) Snapcaster Mage / / / / / / / /
4) Geist of Saint Traft / / / / / / / /
5) Olivia Voldaren / / / / / / / /
6) Army of the Damned / / / / / / / /
7) Mikaeus, the Lunarch / / / / / / / /
8) Stromkirk Noble / / / / / / / /
9) Isolated Chapel / / / / / / /
10) Bloodline Keeper Lord of Lineage / / / / / / / /
11) Sulfur Falls / / / / / / / /
12) Champion of the Parish / / / / / / /
13) Hinterland Harbor / / / / / / / /
14) Woodland Cemetery / / / / / / / /
15) Past in Flames / / / / / / / /
16) Skaab Ruinator / / / / / / / /
17) Tree of Redemption / / / / / / / /
18) Kessig Wolf Run / / / / /
19) Angelic Overseer / / / / / / / /
20) Mayor of Avabruck Howlpack Alpha / / / / / / /
21) Clifftop Retreat / / / / / / / /
22) Gavony Township / / / /
23) Grimgrin, Corpse-Born / / / / / / / /
(Key: The card's most recent move is on the right. This indicates the hottest mover of the update. indicates no movement. is a card that wasn't on the list last update. Data is from here.)
Grimoire of the Dead and Mentor of the Meek fell off the tally this update as they are both now worth less than the booster packs they come out of.
Liliana and Garruk held about where there were last update. Snapcaster drifted slightly lower despite seeing heavy play. Olivia fell by a few dollars, allowing Geist to retake 4th spot. Army of the Damned has risen consistently since the set came out and is now one of the chase cards of the set. Stromkirk Noble seems to have fallen out of favour with players. Isolated Chapel slipped down to the value of a Bloodline Keeper, which is on the rise. Sulfur Falls is one of the only rares to hold or increase its price tag this update, and Champion of the Parish right underneath is another. Hinterland Harbor and Woodland Cemetery both fell. Past in Flames flies up the chart again this update, now sitting somewhere around where it began several weeks ago. Skaab Ruinator continues to slide miserably, joining Daybreak Ranger as the most overvalued cards early on for this wet. Ruinator suffered from being legitimately overvalued, whereas in my opinion Daybreak Ranger was the subject of an unfortunate pump-and-dump technique - hopefully we don't see more of that in the future. Rare lands like Kessig Wolf Run and Gavony Township all lost out this update and have been losing price for a while. Grimgrin looks finally set to drop off the list next time I update.
Sales over the past two weeks have been very slow despite setting prices below what they're going for on eBay (and free shipping as always). I believe I've had one small order in the past week. I take this to indicate the speculative buying is over for this set (a lot of my customers are speculators trying to out-smart me lol). Now players are actually buying for decks. As Constructed has fallen out of favour in the past several years, this means it's "quiet time" for the set. Nonetheless, there are plenty of fluctuations to keep the updates interesting. Lots of trends to take note of and use to make plans for playing/buying/selling in the next week or so.
Prices overall are down about 5 to 10% since last update and I expect to see that continue as we head into MTGO redemptions and the rumours of the next set take shape.
.
I especially like the approach of only listing those cards worth more than the price of a booster. It provides a nice bit of visual information to the update - the shorter the list, the fewer valuable cards in the set, and vice versa.
Army of the Damned is still busy showing us all that 'casual demand' is not an oxymoron but a significant price driver.
I will surprise no one by predicting a continuing strong price for Snapcaster given the number of formats it is relevant in. It additionally has the collector value of being an invitational card, probably the last we will see for some time.
Thanks for your feedback. Yeah, that's something I think I'll make a permanent feature of my contribution to the thread. I agree that it packs a little bit more info into the update posts. A booster costs me $2.64 plus tax when I buy at least 3 booster boxes at a time. So I round that to $2.50 for the sake of this thread. Note that sometimes Standard legal sets (ie: sets that I will make running tally updates for) can go up in price, in terms of unopened product, due to lower print runs or higher demand. That would be factored into the thread, so that the running tally only includes cards it would be worth me opening in a booster pack.
I think that made sense, sorry, the beer is getting in my way again!
.