41 Moats at 375 a pop is 15375 dollars, shipping and transaction costs not included. The streets aren't exactly paved with Moats, but I have a hard time believing that buying probably less than 1/10th of a percent of all printed copies could lead to such a booming. Has to be coordinated by multiple people doing the same thing.
Either way, we accept worse behaviour from banks than this, and yet people like this guy get called all sorts of names for playing the system, and making money out of a situation he didn't create himself. Those cards are a luxury product. Nobody gets hurt or hungry.
"And it raised the total cost of the deck by a few hundred dollars. So if you were going to pay $2,500 for the deck before, you’re going to pay $2,800 for it now. People are complaining, but they’re still going to buy them. It’s like taxing sugary drinks — people will complain but they’ll buy them anyway. It’s the same with Magic."
"The people who complain about prices don’t affect the market. They weren’t the ones who were going to spend money from the beginning. With Moat, I’ve never seen so many people complain about a card they were never going to buy. It’s really easy to have trigger fingers and complain about something, but it doesn’t affect the market."
No holes in that logic.
I've managed to build Miracles, Grixis Delver, Storm ANT over the last 14 months (all before EMA spikes)....I'm 1 tropical island away from completing RUG Delver and a 1 USea and a couple "modern" staples to complete Shardless. I hope they stay away from duals for another couple of weeks lol.
Nope, he is spot on....Originally Posted by Stan
Dual lands prices will adjust accordingly, even if there's no buyout. I'd get them as soon as possible.
"...If you REALLY intend to play the format (and not just with friends, because you could use proxies as well), then you either have those cards already or you have to bite the bullet. But there is no logical reason other that you WANT TO play Legacy. You do not HAVE to play Legacy...."
More words of wisdom, this time coming from one of the guys who commented on the article.
I think the article shows the issues facing the game in bight blue lights. Sadly while highlighting the issue is simple, solving it...
On the bright side, I can sell a single card and buy a HTC Vive. As a flight sim enthusiast that's more appealing then playing with Moat. I will get far more use out of a headset then I will a Moat.
Once I look at it that way, I do not know why I would bother with most of the cards I have. Instead of looking at the prices and thing "Fuck, how will I build X" I look at them and think "Why am I still fucking around in this playground". Every time this thread gets bumped I cringe a little, because that's another card that's stupidly expensive. That's another buy out, that's another kid who will never play this format.
And I am as much to blame as this guy. I own a full set of fetches, Duals, multiple Tabernacle, Power. I own them only in amounts needed to play with while long ago decided I was going to focus on one deck. I don't need 36 of my duals but they still sit at home while some kid is trying to build Delver. I don't need those Fetches while some kid is trying to get Tarns for Modern. I am as much to blame in my own way. So are many of you.
And why do I hold onto this stuff? So if I want to play something different later I don't have to swallow the price. But at the same time would I not just be better off with a house deposit, a new GPU and a VR headset? I can still play the 3 decks I keep, stop hoarding and on the nights I can't be bothered leaving the house, jump into a Airbus and relax.
I can't hate this guy, I hate the source of the issue and the unwillingness to look at a solution to things like Snow Duals and just fucking off that list...
I hate what has become of this format. I miss the days when my Goblin deck lost to Soulless One because I did not have access to graveyard hate yet...
It is better to ask and look stupid then keep your mouth shut and remain so.
I hope your afterlife is filled with eternal torment.
Fuck. Which one of my quotes do I drop for this?
While I still think he's a complete bastard, this guy is far from the main problem. SCG have been buying up duals and power for years and hiking the prices, they pretty much control the market. It wasn't that long ago they jumped Seas from $150 to $300 overnight.
I'm happy this interview was conducted as it's bringing more attention to this 'mtg finance' (for lack of a better term) problem. There's just got to be a ceiling for it, if this trend keeps happening it's going to put pressure on WotC to either scrap Legacy as a GP format (more likely unfortunately), or to take some action on the RL. Let's hope for the latter.
By changing prices the only thing that changes is who plays. As prices go up, only the most enthusiast will be willing to keep playing, either by paying the higher prices or by bearing the opportunity cost of not selling. The big issue is that supply can't grow, and therefore, the player base can't grow. That's the really sad part. For each new player, another player must be selling his cards.
Isn't a major factor in these buyouts the fact that everyone depends on TCGPlayer for pricing information? Maybe I am misunderstanding the situation but it looks like what happens a lot of the time in these buyouts is that people buy out the card at the lower price end of the spectrum and either relist or leave the card on the higher end of the spectrum. The result is the mid price rising and people panic buying things because they think a buyout is going on and don't want to miss the train.
Also lol @ the interview. I don't know about his family's economic situation but it seems a little silly for a guy to think that flipping cards is a sustainable way to support his family.
No plant has ever grown until it hit the heavens, eventually this market will crash, like every other market has crashed at one point in history. I have no problem with his occupation, but he will end up with a lot of unmovable cardboard stock and a very low supply of cash one day, no steady occupation when it happens, and no job qualifications out of it all which will help him find other occupation. It's possible to make a very decent living with more positive prospects for the long term, and doing it without pissing away 14 hours every day.
Imagine the salt you'll get from guys like that though, when our Chinese overlords perfect their 'proxy printing technique' in the near future.
Here we go.
Massive buyout on MKM happening right now, NM sanctum starts at 90.
Fucking disgusting.
"You either die a Onesto-Player, or live long enough to see yourself become a Dredger"
All this considered, I couldn't help but giggle at the gaudy Louis Vuitton belt he's sporting in the selfie in the article.
Dang. I've been expecting Sanctums to go up based on combination of Starfield of Nyx being totally busted in certain settings (recurring Pernicious Deed) as well as recent reprint of Argothian Enchantress in EMA. Only managed to find one at a good price though. It's certainly worth more than what it has been priced at recently.
Is Enchantress even good enough to merit any $100 cards? I know I wouldn't have built the deck if I'd had to drop $300 on 3 lands.
At least City, Moat, and LED go in Tier 1 decks.
Updated thread title.
It is better to ask and look stupid then keep your mouth shut and remain so.
I hope your afterlife is filled with eternal torment.
Fuck. Which one of my quotes do I drop for this?
Well, he did say he has been doing this for about a year and made videos for his friends during the time. His previous videos only had a couple hundred views, but the LED one went viral and got him all this attention. So he's been at it for a while and certainly has friends/followers who are helping him. I don't think any of them would have gone in on 41 Moats but I'm sure he's directly responsible for at least 75-80 Moats.
We can't think about "all the printed copies" though, because that's deceptively misleading. The relevant number is the amount currently available in the market; i.e. the TCG, SCG, ebay, etc. listings. With a card like Moat, I'd imagine 90-95% of the printed copies are locked up in decks and collections, with a few stuck in some guy's attic, so the amount actually available for purchase is comparatively very low.
http://www.mtgstocks.com/interests
Serra's Sanctum up to $140 from $47, City of Traitors up to $180 from $130, and Eureka up to $200 from $170.
Eureka already shot up over $200 this past winter. Maybe my desire to play janky Eureka-Order will pay off.
OMG OMG What's next? What should I buy before it spikes?
A set of shallow graves for $25 seems solid
I'd say Null Rod.
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