Magic the Gathering’s Reality Fracture set has been fully previewed, and the Commander precon is already causing a stir in finance. The weekly update from www.mtgpreviews.com breaks down everything that happened, from the biggest price gains to the best decklists.
Spoilers by the Numbers
Reality Fracture’s full gallery ran from September 11-18, with the set’s three color themes — Green Omniscience, Red Demon, and Black Phoenix — shown in the September 11-14 preview. Planeswalkers Living at Zero Loyalty followed on September 15, then Jace previews and the Commander precon on September 16. The gallery wrapped up on September 17-18.
For players who want the whole picture, www.mtgpreviews.com covers the full set of spoilers.
The Price Winners of the Week
This week’s price action was dominated by three cards: Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign, Ichormoon Gauntlet, and Ganax, Astral Hunter. All three saw big gains, but the reasons behind them vary widely.
- Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign was one of the best Sphinx to play in the 99 of The Ur-Dragon, a color and tribal-shifted version of the popular The Ur-Dragon. Before its preview, Unesh could be found for about $1. It now sits around $19, a nearly 2000% gain in just a week. The question is whether the price sticks, since the movement is so recent.
- Ichormoon Gauntlet, an artifact that works with the new empower Jace mechanic, shot from $5 to around $25. The question hangs on whether there will be enough Jace tribal decks to support it. There are 35 cards with the mechanic, but they are split across colors, and there is no dedicated “empower Jace” commander. Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice and Jace, Multiverse Architect could fill that role, though Multiverse might be more popular as a Polymorph commander. For now, buyers should expect to pay a massive premium for the artifact.
- Ganax, Astral Hunter tripled in price from $1 to $4 thanks to a new combo with Draconic Visitor. Playing Ganax and then Draconic Visitor starts an infinite loop of 5/5 Dragon tokens. The catch: if you cannot stop the loop, the game ends in a draw. Players will need an additional combo piece like Impact Tremors or Terror of the Peaks to make it worthwhile. That new synergy is driving interest in the uncommon Dragon, which is now at least worth pulling from your bulk.
The Commander Precon and Its Pieces
Reality Fracture’s mechanics include empower Jace, which uses the Ichormoon Gauntlet as a synergy piece. The Ganax, Astral Hunter combo with Draconic Visitor is another thread running through the set.
The update points to a Boros deck that has crushed opponents in Modern and its Pioneer variant. The deck seems like an absolute menace but fun for the pilot. Joe Dyer has also looked at Sewer-Cam Combo and Jewel Shops, while another reviewer wrapped up the first round of Reality Fracture coverage and gave predictions for the top 32 matchups.
Decklists and Their Price Point
The full gallery of set previews ran from September 11-18. The update directs readers to the Foundations Commander Decklists, which are entirely composed of reprints at a MSRP of $29.99 each.
The Commander precon itself is part of that gallery. The update also points to the full gallery of set spoilers, which covered the three color themes, the Planeswalkers previews, and the Jace cards.
Side Coverage and Where to Go Next
The crew talks Card Kingdom being bought out, Alchemy dying, and Reality Fracture. Other topics include the best colorless cards, how good Infect/Poison is in current Standard, and whether a 100% equipment Dwarven commander deck can win in Brawl.
Joe Dyer’s work includes Sewer-Cam Combo and Jewel Shops. Seth and Richard wrap up the first round of Reality Fracture coverage and give predictions for the top 32 matchups.
The Takeaway on Reality Fracture
Reality Fracture is a reprint set, and the prices are moving fast. Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign has already tripled from $1 to $19 in a week, and Ichormoon Gauntlet has jumped from $5 to around $25. Ganax, Astral Hunter has a new combo with Draconic Visitor that is driving interest.
The set’s full gallery is available, and the Foundations Commander Decklists are a good place to start. The precon is part of that gallery.
This is a reprint set with real price action. The gains are real, but they are early gains. The question is whether they stick.
“Whether it sticks this high is another question since the price movement is so recent, but still, that represents a nearly 2000% gain in just a week, which is wild.”
That is the honest reaction to Reality Fracture’s first week of numbers. The set’s full gallery is available, and the Foundations Commander Decklists are a good place to start.
Source material: “Weekly Update (Sep 20): Reality Fracture Precon Decklist,” MTGGoldfish.
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