Anyone know what's going on with Mana Crypt?
Economics forum
Posted on Feb. 17, 2014, 8:51 p.m. by sylvannos
So I recently got a Mana Crypt after trading in for store credit at my LGS. It's in near-mint condition. It only cost me about $90 in trades, which was a pretty fair deal on a Mana Crypt .
The next day, a site had Mana Crypt listed at $200. I assumed it was because places were sold out and it was just a temporary measure to make up for the decreased supply.
However, Mana Crypt hasn't gone down in price at all since then. It's already pushing $250 and even $300 in some places.
I'm absolutely stoked that I managed to score one so cheaply, but I can't help but wonder if I should consider dumping it at an inflated price and getting another one later and net $150~$200 in profit.
My guess is that someone has bought up all the Mana Crypt s on Ebay and TCG Player in order to jack up the price. SCG is currently out of stock, which tells me they pulled them down while they wait for it to go up.
Any thoughts on this?
Yes, I believe it was an artificial price spike due to someone buying them all.
February 17, 2014 9:04 p.m.
Didgeridooda says... #4
I would say a combination of both. Someone buying them all because all the EDH players want one.
February 17, 2014 9:29 p.m.
miracleHat says... #5
You can still get the promo Mana Crypt or book thing Mana Crypt for under $200 on scg. On abugames, you can get a book promo for under $200. this link is for a Mana Crypt on ebay for $100. I don't know where you are getting your prices from, but those are where you can get them for cheaper. Mana Crypt is currently under $100.
February 17, 2014 10:08 p.m.
if you look at completed listings, not a single one sold for under 100 on ebay, most at 140-190
February 17, 2014 10:30 p.m.
@Droxium: That $80 isn't a "buy it now," it's a bid. All of the "buy it now" prices on Ebay are for at least $150.
The cheapest one on TCG Player is for $190, with the near mints going for ~$250.
February 18, 2014 4:30 a.m.
jpgcoleman says... #9
Ebay completed auctions are showing the average is about $120 - $150.
February 19, 2014 8:46 a.m.
Do you know how long they've been going for $120-$150 jpgcoleman? I'm wondering if they'll settle back down at $90.
February 19, 2014 9:54 a.m.
sylvannos for a couple weeks now. I noticed it in late january, one day it was in the 90-100$ range, next it was 150+. It was during spoiler season for BNG.
February 19, 2014 9:57 a.m.
SharuumNyan says... #12
I don't understand the appeal. It's banned in Legacy, and is only useful as an EDH card. It's a good mana rock, but it's not going to significantly change the outcome of an EDH game with any guarantee. It's only slightly better than a Sol Ring in such a slow format.
EDH has been affecting the price of cards more and more, but to jack up a price this much for a (mostly) casual format is silly.
February 19, 2014 10:11 a.m.
jpgcoleman says... #13
sylvannos it looks like the prices started going up at the beginning of January and peaked at the end of January at around $150 (according to what I see on EBay) and has been settled at the $120 mark sense. It looks like the judges promo is what really took off to the high levels you are seeing.
SharuumNyan I play EDH on MTGO exclusively. This card is nuts. I am glad they are only $30 online. Besides EDH this is kind of a staple in vintage. The upward trend could also be based on speculation due to the announcement of the online only vintage masters and an obvious push by Wizards of the vintage format.
February 19, 2014 11:56 a.m.
SharuumNyan says... #14
I haven't noticed a push for Vintage outside of MTGO. I think WotC realized that Vintage is out of most people's price range, which is why they're pushing Modern in paper right now.
Yeah, it's probably one of the best mana rocks available for EDH...but this is still EDH. In Legacy it's justifiable to spend an extra $150 on a card to make it slightly better, but a $5 Sol Ring is fine for me.
February 19, 2014 12:38 p.m.
jpgcoleman says... #15
Sol Ring is a +1 mana boost the turn it comes into pay with the trade off of losing a colored mana. Mana Crypt is +2. I guess it is slightly better in the way that a Mox Jet is slightly better than a Swamp
February 19, 2014 4:10 p.m.
@SharuumNyan: I got this mainly for EDH, but I also play Vintage, so it frees up some of my proxy count (some places will only allow a maximum of five). In Vintage, I hope it goes without saying that Island -> Mana Crypt -> Tinker on turn one is just bonkers. Or when I'm playing what I usually play for low-proxy, a turn two Earwig Squad to cripple combo and control decks.
As for EDH, most of the same reasons for playing Mana Crypt still apply. Since you don't spend mana to cast it, it allows you to still play a land and do something. The problem with early Sol Ring s is that you often have to tap your one land, play Sol Ring , then pass the turn. Mana Crypt opens up plays like Mana Crypt -> Forest -> Nature's Lore -> grab Overgrown Tomb -> Demonic Tutor . Or turn one Rhystic Study . Or turn two Gilded Lotus .
Like Vintage, there are some rules playing with it. For one, you only cast it if you need it. The worst is when you see people play a Mana Crypt , pass turn, then get around to their upkeep and take three to the face. You also have to have ways of getting it off the table in the event your life drops too low. Usually, that's Karn, Silver Golem or Tinker in Vintage. In EDH, most decks already have Beast Within , Nevinyrral's Disk , Capsize , etc.
As they say, decent Vintage players don't take mana burn from Mana Drain , good Vintage players remember to attack with Goblin Welder , and bad Vintage players die to Mana Crypt .
deathtouch_roadrunner says... #2
The only theory I've heard is that suddenly every EDH player wants one. But honestly that sounds rather thin and I have no idea.
February 17, 2014 9:02 p.m.