Sphere of Influence: July 19, 2024

Welcome to Sphere of Influence, a pre-FNM look at some potential movers-and-shakers that are worth picking up before their prices increase.

There’s nothing Nadu, Winged Wisdom can’t do. Saturated by the infamous Bird from Modern Horizons 3, Modern decks from the recent Pro Tour went all-in on Nadu, forcing the community to speculate on a potential banning. Meanwhile, Standard prepares to rotate and Pioneer plugs along at a decent clip, temporarily in the shade of Modern’s monolithic deck construction. Here are a few cards to consider for those other formats—grab ‘em while they’re cheap.

Loran of the Third Path

This Reclamation Sage 2.0 is one of the most generically strong white weenies to come along in some time, with the ability to remove even the peskiest of artifacts and enchantments (sans The One Ring, of course), swing in for a bit of damage and draw cards in case of emergency. It's found its way into a number of Standard decks, including one of the most popular ones, Orzhov Midrange, where it lives in the sideboard ready to hop to attention.

The Standard metagame is about to see a significant rotation. Bloomburrow is coming, and because it’s a set that hasn’t yet been fully revealed, there’s no telling how decks will adjust to a new and untested Standard environment. Still, odds are there will be artifacts and enchantments to prove troublesome, and Loran of the Third Path is here to save the day.

There are many unknowns, but a few considerations are certain: Loran is a powerful Commander card that has become a minted staple in very little time; and what was once a $10 card has dipped to $3. This in-between time, before Standard rotation and before folks are freaking out about some new busted card, is an ideal time to snag a Loran on the cheap.

Thoughtseize

If there is a universe where Wizards of the Coast never printed Thoughtseize, I wouldn’t want to live in it. The card is capable of producing gargantuan levels of salt, but I’m good with high sodium if it means keeping combo decks in check or sacrificing a few life and a card to slow an opponent significantly. Thoughtseize has proven itself in almost every format, even Legacy, to be an indispensable staple, often resulting in holding a price north of $25.

Help arrived in Outlaws of Thunder Junction with a reprint in its Breaking News series, causing a dip in price to single digits, currently at $8. While it may be tough to stomach grabbing a playset at that price, Thoughtseize is too powerful and ubiquitous to sink much lower without inclusion in the core pool of a Standard-legal set or an aggressive strategy of inclusions in subsequent Commander preconstructed decks (unlikely, as it’s not very good in Commander). Take advantage of this narrow window of availability so your Pioneer and Modern decks can receive a powerful playset infusion for the price of one-and-a-half Thoughtseizes back in the day.

Blackcleave Cliffs, Inspiring Vantage, Botanical Sanctum and Seachrome Coast

The “Fast land” cycle, lands that produce one of two colors but enter tapped if they’re played when three lands are already on the field, are perennial fixtures of Modern and Pioneer decks (and Standard, when they’re legal) but have held grossly inflated prices at times. Blackcleave Cliffs, Inspiring Vantage, Botanical Sanctum and Seachrome Coast are some of the worst offenders, hovering between $10-$20 for most of their lives—in the case of Blackcleave Cliffs, sometimes double. That’s a Fetchland level of coin for something that plays like a Guildgate most of the time.

Two recent reprints, in Outlaws of Thunder Junction and Phyrexia: All Will Be One, have drastically reduced the prices across the board—all 10 of the series are pretty cheap, with the more expensive ones topping out at a mere $3. Playsets are going for a song, and it’s one you’ll want to start singing as Standard prepares to rotate.

Full Circle

Once Standard rotates, what are some decks you think will climb their way to the top? Any peripheral cards you think will emerge as powerhouses in a new Standard environment? Let us know!