Rising and Falling: The Secondary Market

The secondary market for cards is always vigorously changing.  One week a card may be worth mere cents, and the next it can be more than a few dollars.  This is very much like the stock market in many ways as you never know which card will see a rise, however, you always know that something will inevitably go up.  The obvious key to this is timing the market; which is very hard to do, and in the actual stock market, many would argue, virtually impossible.  Occasionally cards do not rise fast, so you can catch them on their way up, which can be risky, however, if you are confident it will continue to rise, then why not?

Whenever there are changes in card legalities, rulings, popularity of decks or certain card choices, etc. can all have a major effect on card prices.  As the ban list was recently released, I felt it would be a good time to review some cards that have potential or just some that have risen that you may not already know.

Potential:

Magical Spring – Secret Rare – Duelist Alliance

Magical Spring has a very interesting effect.  Imagine having Magical Spring in a format dominated by Fire Fists.  It would virtually be at least a Pot of Greed in most situations versus that deck.  In addition, every deck benefits from drawing cards and therefore it would make for a pretty decent side deck option against them, especially given that they can play every floodgate in the game as well.  Magical Spring is currently about $7-8US, and could certainly see some appreciation from there if it ever saw significant play.  I remember when the set initially came out, I often joked that it is the worst card to pull, but the best card to pick-up, because you will undoubtedly be able to find them cheap and you will be able to hopefully see some return on investment. Outlook: $20

Doomstar Magician – Ultra Rare – Duelist Alliance

Doomstar Magician is another card that intrigues me from Duelist Alliance.  Doomstar Magician could be a really powerful card in a deck like Burning Abyss for instance once Pendulum Summons become real after the New Challengers.  Doomstar Magician is a TCG Exclusive, so we have absolutely no concrete history of it “being sided against” Qliphorts with any regularity, because it simply does not exist in the OCG.  At the time of this writing, I was able to find Doomstar Magician as low as $1.50 in decent quantity.  In addition, I have little doubt that you’ll be able to find them pretty consistently at your local tournament and get them as mere throw-ins.  Outlook: $10

 

Powersink Stone – Common – Starstrike Blast

Powersink Stone is a card that has been out for a really long while, being released in Starstrike Blast back in 2010.  Many cards from Starstrike Blast have gone on to have illustrious price histories, thanks to the set’s low sales on release and lack of any sort of reprint in a tin or special edition.  Powersink Stone has not seen any sort of regular play and can be picked up for less than 20 cents.  Some of you may be surprised to learn this, but you used to be able to buy Vanity’s Emptiness for 25 cents at one point in time; a card that is not long removed from being worth between $30-35.  Of course, I am not suggesting that it will be worth anywhere close to that, but if it ever sees serious play, you can bet that it will jump to at least $5 being from Starstrike Blast.  The card has a pretty generic effect, one that can only get better with time, giving it potential. Outlook: $5

Rising:

Daigusto Emeral – All Rarities

This card is currently defying all logic.  It is not seeing any sort of serious play to my knowledge (besides one in Satellarknights?), just saw a reprint in Battle Pack 3, yet it has increased significantly recently.  The Secrets were buyable not too long ago for around $15, they have increased to $25 and the Duel Terminal version to right around $40.

Raigeki – All Rarities

This should be pretty obvious, however, not many would have thought the Battle Pack versions would be nearly as much as they are.  Raigeki was obviously very low prior to it being unbanned, and even the Battle Pack versions are worth around $10 or more. 

Coach Soldier Wolfbark – Both Secret Rares

Another card that has obviously risen recently due to its release from the ban list is Coach Soldier Wolfbark.  The Coach Soldier is back at three, and that means that there will be some demand for it and other Fire Fist cards once again.  Wolfbark has gone from being worth around $5 to being around $15 on most sites!

Dante, Traveller of the Burning Abyss – Secret Rare – Duelist Alliance

Dante was a card that upon its announcement I believed would be worth $100.  When it debuted much lower than I expected, I was sort of disappointed, but still quickly gathered three together for myself.  Well, with the apparent leak of the Burning Abyss tuner’s effect yesterday, Dante’s price has gone absolutely insane.  They have now surpassed $80 and are climbing.  It does not look like it will be long before the $100 mark that is for certain, making Burning Abyss one of, if not, the most expensive current tier one deck, including extra.

Falling

El Shaddoll Construct – Ultra/Ultimate Rare – Duelist Alliance

El Shaddoll Construct is a fabulous card, and is a big reason why Shaddolls are such a good deck.  That said, El Shaddoll Construct, in my opinion, is one of the easiest ultra rares to pull in Duelist Alliance.  If you couple that fact, with the fact that most people playing Shaddolls will want the Ultimate Rare, it consequently drops the price of the ultra.  However, it affects the price of the ultimate as well, because those who are cheap will continue to buy those and not grab ultimates.  Needless to say, because of the unavoidable paradox that exists here, El Shaddoll Constructs price has fallen, and probably will not get up.

Satellerknight Deneb – Ultra Rare – Duelist Alliance

Satellarknight Deneb saw a huge spike after its outstanding performance at ARGCS Atlantic City.  All it took were people to realize after YCS Toronto that Satellarknights were clearly not the best deck, and they lost a lot of their hype.  Subsequently, Satellarknight Deneb has seen a bit of a decline, available for as low as about $28 at the moment.  In addition, Stellarnova Alpha is no different having dropped to about $15, after its similar spike.

Rank-Up Magic Astral Force – Ultra/Ultimate Rare – Legacy of the Valiant

In Burning Abyss’ early days, Rank-Up Magic Astral Force saw a lot of consistent play in many builds, due to the ability to Rank-Up Dante into Constellar Pleiades or Ghostrick Alucard into Crimson Knight Vampire Bram.  Consequently, virtually overnight, Astral Force went from being a $2-3 card to about $10.  Given that many Burning Abyss builds have dropped it entirely from their main and the recent reprint in the 2014 Mega Tin, Astral Force’s price has taken a significant tumble.  It is possible that if some time passes and it begins to see more play again, that it could go back up, but currently it is clinging as hard as it can to its relevancy.

These are the cards that I have noticed significant moves in recently, obviously there are more that I have not listed.  Keeping on top of prices is key in both trading and in buying cards, to ensure that you are getting a good return on investment, both when trading and when buying.  In short, check prices of cards that you have frequently as they fluctuate virtually daily, use a smart phone at tournaments, etc.