Reserved List

[MMogg]

I didn't see any reserved list thread when I searched, and I think this is kind of an interesting topic. Some questions I had upon reading their explanation (http://www.wizards.com/Magic/TCG/Article.aspx?x=magic/products/reprintpolicy) were:


Why are some jank cards (like Kudzu or Oath of Ghouls) on the list and obviously broken cards like Oath of Druids and Mana Drain not on the list? Ostensibly the selection process included a large board and darts.
If – as they say – not being on the reserve list does not automatically mean they will be reprinted, wtf is its purpose?
If they are concerned about card values, again, why put jank like Sedge Troll on the list?

[DrJones]

The reserved list came as a reaction to the printing of the Chronicles set.

Previously, Magic cards were supposed to be one-print runs, and because the first sets were so scarce, a few "players" chose to buy a lot of cards to speculate and inflate prices, ruining the game for the rest.
Then, when Wizards printed Chronicles so that people could get the cards they needed to play, the prices of cards like Petra Sphinx plummeted to their real value. This of course, enragened the "players" who started boicotting wizards.
Wizards's reply was that they would create a list of cards that they would "never reprint, not even in functional form" (a rule that has been broken more times than my car). For every new set printed, a fixed percent of the rares would go into the reserved list. Also, every core set card that wasn't reprinted in fourth edition (the current core set at the time) would also enter the reserved list. However, no card from the Chronicles set entered the no-reprint list, because all cards in that set were reprints, and it would beat the purpose.

This left third edition in a very weird position, because third edition was a "only reprints" set, too. If cards like the dual lands had been reprinted in fourth edition, they wouldn't be on the list, if the policy had been enacted earlier, they wouldn't be on the list either. Cards like Farmstead and Sedge Troll are on the list to "protect collectability", but they were already reprints (and pretty bad)!! Third edition cards have no reason at all to be on the list, and they acknowledge it, but don't want to change it. Except that they changed the list to remove the uncommons from third edition because it was too stupid even for them.

They stopped doing that nonsense with Mercadian Masques, when they realized that they were shooting themselves in the foot. Also, the "players" for which they created the policy had left the game long ago, anyways. Now, they put in core sets from time to time cards like "Tithe" only to realize later that they cannot use it. However, they do print cards like Sanctimony that I can't fathom how it can protect the collectability of Lifeblood.

You don't really understand how much that list hurts the game until you try to design a core set, and then check that list to see how many of your cards that were perfect fits have to be scrapped. There are entire cycles of cards that cannot be reprinted because one of the cards is on the reserved list and you can't just reprint the other four.

Even though the list looks random, they purposely tried to put the best rares in that list. If cards like Oath of Druids evaded it was because they didn't know Oath of Druids would be so strong, because they didn't test Oath of Druids in almost-creatureless decks.

So, the reserved list is a trainwreck, an epic failure, a darwin award for core sets, and ultimately a joke, because everybody knows that it doesn't do what it was designed to do.


http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_A27MrruE65Y/SWhF2kI3k5I/AAAAAAAACQM/JDuKffX8gFc/s400/nelson-1024x768.gif

[MMogg]

Wow, fantastic reply... so now the $1,000,000 question: why keep the list? It's not like Wizards have always "kept their word". Can't they just use common sense when reprinting cards? :confused:

[DrJones]

Maybe they fear they will get sued by the "gold-farmers" they wanted to protect with that rule.

[Dan Turner]

Maybe they fear they will get sued by the "gold-farmers" they wanted to protect with that rule.

Sued for what?

Breach of contract = i do not think it fit fits into this

Maybe False advertising = I think they could get around this one.

I personally think they should dump the reserve list completely.

[rockout]

Dump the reserve list and reprint lots of jank? Sounds awful. Keep the garbage on the "reserve list" and give me From the Vault: Old School featuring foil duals and foil everything else relevant in vintage like P9.

[paK0]

I wondered about the use of that list as well.

How many people out there see themselves more as collectors than players (leave aside mb shopowner).

I think wizards should ask themselves weather the list benefits them, you can do what you want, there are always people who will complain, but if a new set with few rares would contain dual reprints,then 98% of the playerbase of every format would go nuts about this.

[TorpidNinja]

The release of a FTV for the P9 - if it occurred - would be hilarious. Of course, the first thing that would happen are people freaking out about card value. Collectors would yammer about their collections decreasing in value and neophytes would freak-out that they'd finally have access to a format with a large barrier to entry.

But for there to be any substantial effect on the former group, there would have to be a massive print run, dwarfing significantly any previous printing of these kinds of sets. So collectors would only be marginally impacted - save for maybe their pride?

And for the latter, well, they're going to ignore the S in MSRP until the day the set is released, when the actual price of the set sky-rockets. So the barrier of entry to Vintage will still be daunting because now you'll have full access to P9 in one location, and you only need to buy one box.

What would be really interesting about such a release is that Wizards might be able to create sufficient supply such that more Sanctioned Vintage would be available and fully supported.

[Malchar]

Maybe the question is not "will they break it?", but "when?"

Perhaps a more interesting question is this: Does Wizards really need to worry about the reserve list? Recent printings have really made legacy a lot more open to new players. From the Vault: Exiled was a re-release of a number of hard to find legacy cards, and it opened to door for future re-releases. Maybe some kind of combination of power creep, allowing proxies, and functional reprints will make vintage more accessible without having to rip up the reserve list.

[pw709]

None of those cards are hard to find, or even particularly expensive save for Berserk, which is hardly a staple.

I doubt they'll rerelease power. They'll just keep creeping up the curve until they're obsolete.


Maybe the question is not "will they break it?", but "when?"

Perhaps a more interesting question is this: Does Wizards really need to worry about the reserve list? Recent printings have really made legacy a lot more open to new players. From the Vault: Exiled was a re-release of a number of hard to find legacy cards, and it opened to door for future re-releases. Maybe some kind of combination of power creep, allowing proxies, and functional reprints will make vintage more accessible without having to rip up the reserve list.