MY FEBRUARY 2025 MARKET PICKS
Welcome everyone to February's end of the month MTG Game State recap! In this article I go over all of the cards featured on the segment and see where they currently are in pricing as well as inform the reader on why I chose the card, let's see what we got!
1. Stony Silence
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $13.00
Market Listing $8.75
Our first card on the list is proving that once agian the commander era of MTG is coming to a close and the return of the true way to play magic cards (60 card format) is really heating up post Modern Horizons 3 Protour of 2024 and The December 2024 Banned & Restricted announcements, now we're seeing another December unban open up new avenues for ramp in Modern via Mox Opal
an old but gold friend of the format has now made counter decks consider throwing in Stony Silence to stop early ramp strats. Annnd get ready for the first check box ticker of the article, Stony Silence is similar to Ulvenwald Tracker
a big hiter card that did NOT see a reprint in Innistrad: Remastered annnd its also victim to the old Reprints in a premium set check box due to it's limited printings across old and premium sets. As a tech piece this card will be seeing spikes across its cheapest prints.
2. Sands of Time
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $7.33
Market Listing $6.16
It's not often I talk about Reserved list cards, and for a good reason too. It's hard to accurately track the finance of premium cards from just TCG player price listings. Im not talking for Revised dual lands, no I mean on the higher end of the RL like ABU and Arabian Nights. That being said I thought Sands of time had a funny effect and wasnt too bank breaking to have skewed data. It's always a good thing to own RL cards even if ya dont play them since theyll never be reprinted ever again also Sands of time has some cards that it works with in Commander that dropped from Aetherdrift in Unstoppable Plan
as well as a classic card I never put into any of my U/G decks in Wilderness Reclamation
. either one of these cards will turn sands of time in your favor.
3. Kozilek's Return
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $9.00
Market Listing $7.81
An auto include currently in modern decks like Eldrazi Tron we're also seeing this card used outside of the usual archetypes like in Zoo decks because of cards like Nulldrifter
or Scion of Drako. Kozilek's return adds some good removal for Boros strategies and any deck running Nulldrifter in general since that's a great draw engine from Modern Horizons 3. When a rare card starts creeping to the ten dollar mark that's a good sign to get your playset asap, also gotta note the card hits the check boxes of low reprint/premium reprint but I wouldn't get FOMO'd on this card though if youre not currently grinding the Modern format meta. It would be fun in a commander Eldrazi build but you could easily slot in a better card for your 99.
4.Xenagos Ascended
(Hero's path promos)
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $9.09
Market Listing $7.70
Ive been highlighting the funkier unsual Magic: the gathering cards you may see during your time slinging spells. Back when I first started playing in the olden days of 2015 you would occasinally see a Vanguard card or Planechase card. One of my favorite sets that has gotten some traction in value since 2020 has been the Challenge decks from Journey into Nyx game day! Defeat a God was what I had decided to pick on since we covered my favorite, Face the Hydra. This particular self playing deck I dont own or have faced off agaisnt but it's on my list for the humble colleciton and I felt Id sound the alarm on these Challenge decks as each individual card carries a premium price and normally you want 60 cards for each deck to function.
5. Dockside Extortionist
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $42.33
Market Listing $33.39
A card ya hate to see but love to play. Personally I HAAATE this card but I guess life is too short to be emotional over cardbaord... We're seeing cards from the last Commander B&R announcement creep back up to new heights! Mana Crypt
and Jewled Lotus are already making the internet and game stores rumble about possible reversals but I personally dont see a Dockside extortionist reversal since most people felt it is a reasonable ban while a mana crypt ban meant no sense due to all the reprints and Jewled Lotus being specifically designed to be played in Commander. The double masters print still holds a high price and I assume most play groups rule 0 these cards anyways!
6. Ranger-Captain of Eos
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $54.34
Market Listing $51.43
I remember back when Modern Horizons release day happened and people at my table wondering what use Ranger-Captain of Eos could be put to, we joked then that Modern Horizons was the soon to be released at that time Commander Masters set. Many cards from this set were slept on and have been seeing some new life due to the Modern format having new strats for old archtype decks. Recently at the MIT Championship Finals: Taipei City in Taipei, Taiwan, Ranger had helped Lin Shih Feng secure his spot at a pro tour invite with a Boros energy build. Ive been seeing Boros energy decks make huge impacts since the "oops all Nadu" Pro tour for Modern Horizons 3. You're going to want to get a play set of this card as well as consider having one for the collection as it's hitting those classic check boxes of premium set/low print.
7. Scapeshift
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $45.89
Market Listing $25.50
You guys how many articles, how many videos must I ring the bell and sound thee alarm at you about the return of the 60 card format. Cut this commander format stuff out! We're playing Modern dammit and Scapeshift is a card I keep kicking myself in the head for not owning in my commander decks oddly enough which at the time when I saw it's price spike was the reason I included it in my finance watch list (hey it's my show ok?). Amulet Titan combos are the real reason we are seeing this card hit new highs and there's quite a few check boxes this hits. Mainly our two most common factors (low reprints/premium sets) but also due to being released in the Lorwyn-Shadowmoor block series which not only is a fan favorite but didn't have much of a print run released at the time.
8. Urza
(Vanguard)
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $38.95
Market Listing $30.51
Similar to the Planechase cards and Hero's Path cards we mentioned in Last month's article the Vanguard cards are a great piece of MTG history to own and even jam at your kitchen table with your play groups! wether you go the commander route or 60 card format route you'll find some enjoyment from the modifiers on the cards, most of the cards are relatively cheap to pick up off ebay as a full set but the most expensive set will be the series containing The Sliver Queen, Urza and Mishra. do your own research on prices for these but just know each card individually is usually around $1-$5.
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Continuing our article we have our final 4 cards of January 2025's MTG Game state market picks! If you made it to the half way point just know I appreciate you and wanna give you this cookie! 🫳 🥠
9. Blightsteel Colossus (Megatron SLD)
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $45.92
Market Listing $44.50
This article is released a week after MagicCon-Chicago 2025. During my time walking the con floor I was able to ask some gamers about cards they thought were hot on the market or wanted to buy. Our first card is one that oddly enough gets me emotional over a piece of cardboard.. The Megatron Blightsteel Colossus Secret Lair Drop. A pretty powerful card in commander as well as seeing some play over in Vintage (60 card format renaissance baby) and oh you guessed right this card has hit the check boxes that must never be named.. low reprints/premium prints. There's a fun combo you can hit with card in commander I want to try with Araumi of the Dead Tide
and Clone
that causes all opponents to lose the game!
10. The Aetherspark
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $35.90
Market Listing $32.64
The chase card from Aetherdrift that in the MTG story line provides the ability to use a planeswalker's spark to traverse the planes a now "old school" way of travel in the universe after Phyrexia: All will be one and March of the machine. Gameplay wise Aetherspark offers some unique gameplay expeirences. You can turn your creature into a planeswalker similar to Giada's gift turning your Planeswalker's into creatures! A fun new card that should be sought after for your collection!
11. The Ozolith
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $35.96
Market Listing $35.16
The 2nd card chosen by the gentlemen at the table from MagicCon was The Ozolith. When I heard this card come up I got emotional for cardboard, around 2020 I had opened ALOT of Ikoria boxes and had a good cache of Ozolith's ready and waiting to be sold since it's effect isn't usaully what I build around. I had sold mine at the time for about $10.00 thinking they had hit thier ceiling and made their big time debut! Little did I know what happens in a magic cards future once it breaks it to the ten dollar mark!
12. Gilt-Leaf Archdruid
28 Feb 2025
Average Listing $
Market Listing $
The final card chosen from MagicCon was from none other than myself AND it was chosen off camera during my post con train ride home from the convention center. One of the cards revelaed at the panel for 2025's main line sets that I had seen was Teval, the balanced scale. This commander card can create Druids pretty easily and a funny card (from the Lorwyn block) that came to mind was Gilt-Leaf Archdruid. How great would it be to steal an opponents lands?! I for one will be playing for this strategy when the precon drops so I am sounding thee alarm on this card. I dont think it will jump to an insane price but commander will drive it's future price once the Tarkir precon decks release.
That's all of the card's featured from February's MTG Game State!
Check back at the end of February for another follow up article from the month's market picks.
*all finance info sourced from MTGstocks
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