This week in Magic finance is mostly about Final Fantasy in Commander, although the biggest gainer of the week comes from Modern: Allosaurus Rider, which shot up nearly 500% to over $10. The seven-drop sees play in exactly one deck—Neobrand—which uses Neoform to turn Allosaurus Rider into a Griselbrand and then combo off to win the game immediately. Lately, Neobrand has been on the rise in Modern, climbing toward tier-two status. As a result, the price of Allosaurus Rider is also increasing. However, I’d caution that this has happened multiple times before, with Neobrand breaking out and Allosaurus Rider spiking to $15 or $20, only to slowly fall back down below $2. My guess is that this will happen again, so if you have extra copies you don't need, I'd recommend selling them now while prices are high.

As for Commander, this week was Birds Week. Choco, Seeker of Paradise is currently the sixth most popular commander from Final Fantasy, and cards that synergize with the Chocobo are spiking. Soulcatchers' Aerie gained over 300%, reaching $6; Keeper of the Nine Gales rose 180% to over $5; and Falco Spara, Pactweaver doubled to $4. In general, when cards spike due to a hot new commander, they tend to drop again when the next set—and its wave of new commanders—releases. But for now, it's going to cost a bit more to build Birds.

Finally, the prices of some of the most hyped cards from Final Fantasy itself spiked hard this week, including Cloud, Midgar Mercenary (extended) and Vivi Ornitier (extended), both of which climbed to around $120. It's hard to get an exact price due to low supply. Ignore these prices. It is nearly impossible for an in-print Standard card to be worth $100, and prices are always massively inflated during presales. Look no further than Tarkir: Dragonstorm for an example: just a couple of months ago, it would have cost you $80 to order a Mox Jasper during presales and around $40 for Dracogenesis. Today, both cards are $15. While I'm not saying that Cloud and Vivi will drop to $15, it's incredibly unlikely they'll stay at $100. If you're looking to get the best deal on your Final Fantasy singles, hold off a few more weeks until after the set officially releases to place your order.