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Browse > Home / Strategy / Articles / Weekly Update (Dec 15): Theros: Beyond Death Elspeth and Ashiok

Weekly Update (Dec 15): Theros: Beyond Death Elspeth and Ashiok



Theros: Beyond Death Previews


Theros: Beyond Death previews are here! This week we got the two new face planeswalkers of the set: Elspeth and Ashiok. In addition, we saw what this iteration of Gods will look like with Athreos, and we see the "no-art" lands. Be sure to check out the latest previews at mtgpreviews.com

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Budget Magic: $100 (17 tix) Mono-Green Stompy (Pioneer, Magic Online)


How competitive is Mono-Green Stompy in Pioneer on a budget? Let's find out!Read more


Finance Update w/ Saffron Olive


Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis Ashiok, Nightmare Muse Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord

This week, the biggest finance news involves the early start of Theros: Beyond Death spoiler season with the previewing of two planeswalkers: Ashiok, Nightmare Muse andElspeth, Sun's Nemesis. While both planeswalker look strong, at four- and five-mana, it seems unlikely that either will end up being the Oko, Thief of Crowns of the new set. As a result, the current asking price of around $30 seems extremely high. Not a single mythic currently legal in Standard hits the $30 mark, topping out at Brazen Borrower at $26. You'll probably end up wanting both cards in your collection since they do seem Standard playable (especially Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis thanks to the escape mechanic), but financially, you're better off waiting a bit. You should be able to get copies for $20 or less in the not too distant future as more sites list presales and as the set is opened.

Meanwhile in older formats, Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord is on the rise, ticking up 9% on the week to $11 based on Pioneer and even a little Modern play in various Vampire decks. Sorin is a hard planeswalker to judge. Its power-level is on part with some of the best planeswalker of all time, but its demand is limited by the fact that it's only playable in a deck with a bunch of Vampires. Considering that Vampires are one of the most popular creature types in Magic and tend to get regular support and new cards, I wouldn't be surprised if, at some point in the future, we look back at $11 copies of Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord as being cheap. If Vampires ever become legitimate in any constructed format, Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord will likely be a big reason why. It could take a while for the right vampire(s) to come along to support Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord, but it's a card I'm more than happy holding long-term since it seems likely to happen eventually. 

Finally, some Magic Online finance to keep in mind as we head towards the release of Theros: Beyond Death. Thanks to limited play shifting from Magic Online to Magic Arena, there's a lack of supply of newly printed cards that break out in formats like Modern or Pioneer. Limited is the main way cards enter the Magic Online ecosystem, but with many players drafting on Arena, there are simply less copies of cards like Oko, Thief of Crowns, Vivien, Arkbow Ranger, Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord, and Teferi, Time Raveler floating around on the client. When a card like this becomes a staple in Modern or Pioneer (the most played formats on Magic Online) they become extremely expensive, since supply lags far behind demand. This has created an opportunity for the savvy investor. All of these cards started out fairly cheap when their draft formats first came to Magic Online as players opened and immediately sold their copies to keep funding more prerelease events. Vivien, Arkbow Ranger was under 2 tix before spiking to almost 80 tix during Mono-Green's heyday in Pioneer. This means a playset that costs you around $7 would have netted nearly $300 in profit in just a couple of months. If there are some Theros; Beyond Death cards you think have a chance in Pioneer or Modern, try to pick them up during prerelease events on the cheap. They might end up extremely expensive in the not too distant future thanks to the lack of supply. 


Much Abrew: Powerstone Shard Combo (Pioneer, Magic Online)


How practical is it to play through our entire deck in a single turn with Powerstone Shard and Paradox Engine in Pioneer? Let's find out!Read more

Modern Mayhem: Dimir Shadow (Modern, Magic Online)

Budget Commander: Toshiro Umezawa | Spellslinger Control | $25, $50, $100, $200

Can Death's Shadow work without red? Lets find out! Read more

Mono Black ... Spellslinger? Yup! Check out what this cool Samurai can do in this unique Spellslinger deck! Read more

Against the Odds: Bearer of Gifts (Pioneer, Magic Online)

Vintage 101: I Heard it Through the Hollow Vine

What are the odds of winning with Bearer of the Heavens in Pioneer? Let's find out! Read more

Joe Dyer gets down and funky with HanChoBai's Hollow Vine! Read more

Fish Five-0: Azorius Control (Standard, Magic Arena)

Pioneer Peak: Wheels and Deals (Pioneer, Magic Online)

Azorius Control might be able to help with the current state of the meta! Read more

Narset, Notion Thief, and Day's Undoing sound like your type of fun? Lets see if it can work in a Pioneer league! Read more


Commander Clash S7 E13: Random Week! | Ghired vs. Marchesa vs. Mirri vs. Tariel


The crew are each given a random card to build an entire deck around!Read more

The Fish Tank: Sweet and Spicy User-Submitted Decks (Dec. 8-14, 2019)

Podcast 254: Mythic Championship VII

What interesting decks did viewers submit this week? Let's find out! Read more

The crew discusses Standard in the context of Mythic Championship VII and answers #MTGFishmail. Read more


Instant Deck Techs


Each day we'll be posting a short, three minute deck tech featuring some of the coolest decks that come across the site. The most popular deck will be made into videos the following week based on your views, likes and comments in the videos. Here's this week's Instant Deck Techs:


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