In recent years, magic has undergone profound changes that have inevitably had an effect on card prices. Even a format like Standard is now accessible to very few people because of crazy and increasingly high prices. Approaching paper magic becomes very difficult for many people who might want to give it a try. There is however a very high barrier to entry as spending several hundred euros for one of the best decks of the format is not something affordable for everyone.
That’s why I wanted to focus on the cards currently in the format, giving my perspective on possible deals to buy before it is too late.
4 Cards Completely Undervalued
I would start with the card that is, in my opinion, at the moment the most undervalued among them, namely Dollmaker's Shop // Porcelain Gallery. Currently the card is around €3.00 with a minimum of €2.6 and an average price in the last 7 days of €3.56. The price is certainly not insignificant but if we consider that the card is mythic, it was released only a couple of months ago and it will then have a chance to be played in the next 2 years of Standard, the price is likely to be a real bargain. The card has not yet found its place in the current metagame and this is the main reason why the price is still so low. In my opinion, the power level is adequate for the standard format because for only 2 mana we can unlock one of the two doors and start generating several tokens. You can later close the game by opening the second door. The cost of the second door is certainly very high and this is probably also the reason why the card has not yet made a bang. Personally, I think I will get a playset soon as I have no doubts about the strength of this card. With 2 years of Standard ahead, I can hardly believe it will not find its space.
The card I prefer most among these four is perhaps just Sylvan Scavenging both for its cost and for what it does. Currently the price is at a minimum of 2 cents and an average price in the last 7 days of €0.36. A playset, if taken at the average price, will cost you as much as a coffee. We are talking about figures at the moment insignificant but that could perhaps grow in the coming months. This is a card that in the worst case can attract a removal on itself. If instead it remains in the battlefield for a few turns, it will be able to generate an enormous value. I am very surprised that it has not yet been played in any archetype and that the price is so incredibly low. The same applies to this card as above: 2 years of Standard ahead are almost an insurance. If you then manage to take a playset at 8 cents (market minimum), then the risk that the investment can go wrong is equal to 0.
If the price of Demonic Counsel is not yet skyrocketing it's only because the card needs Delirium to be really strong. From my point of view, getting Delirium at the moment in Standard is relatively simple. I am very surprised that we are not yet seeing this card played. The card has its lowest price at only 89 cents and an average price in the last 7 days of €1.61. We are already talking about a different target and risk than Sylvan Scavenging. I think the use of this card is very dependent on the existence of a combo that needs to play it. Not only Standard in this case but also Pioneer. This is a card that I see very well even in a deck with enchantment creatures or artifact creatures so as to facilitate Delirium. The two mana tutors printed in recent years in Standard have always found 0 competitive play both because of the conditions to be respected to play them as real tutors and for the absence of specific archetypes that needed them. A format with a power level that is continuously increasing over the years might perhaps favor such a card? Sincerely I hope so but in this case we are still talking about a price not very low for which it is adequate to move with more caution. I don't think there is a need for a playset of this card though and I think that buying even just a couple of copies can be more reasonable.
Silent Hallcreeper saw some play right after Duskmourn was released but then it completely disappeared from the radar. At the moment, there is a feeling that this card can be played again and this is in fact demonstrated by the price of the card which records an average price over the last 7 days of €0.80 with a minimum of €0.15. In all sincerity, I do not have trouble imagining this card going even beyond 3 or 4 euros if it finds a place in one of the dominant archetypes of the format. If bought at the minimum, it is an investment that I would call safe. The card is strong but needs 2 or 3 turns to generate a lot of value and therefore suffers removal spells thrown before it can attack. We are talking about a creature that costs only 2 mana, which is able to cycle itself and which is also useful for Delirium and in Enchantments Archetypes.
Conclusions
The advice given in this article are obviously entirely personal and therefore subject to error. These are intended to be tips for people who already play paper magic or who want to try to approach the competitive paper environment step by step with small investments. For this reason, we have talked about very cheap cards (just a few euros) and not much more expensive cards. If you are new to the game, then your first concern should be having fun and not thinking about buying cards with the goal of making a profit.