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Is It Worth It To Buy 5 Basic Lands For $29.99? | MTG Secret Lair: Godzilla Lands Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 เม.ย. 2020
- Watch me sit down with none other than Magic: The Gathering's Head Designer, Mark Rosewater, and discuss everything from local game stores to the value of paper Magic: • Magic: The Gathering I...
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You can all do me a huge favor! If you have not watch my interview with Magic: The Gathering's Head Designer, Mr. Mark Rosewater, please give it a watch here: th-cam.com/video/vVrwnCNiqY8/w-d-xo.html. The TH-cam apparently did NOT like the title WE chose (see for yourself and you'll see why....chuckle) but would really mean a lot if you watched if you have not already!
To be honest, it not being a more aggressive interview turned me off of it. Sorry to hear that the algorithm has dorked with you though.
So, totodile?
Watched it already, performed the necessary engagement rituals so that TH-cam can’t hide it....
Watched it. Appreciated it for what it was. Thanks for doing it!
@@shadogiant apparently he agreed to a more combative interview afterwards.
Someone needs to clip the bit where he says "I got other problems and I'll talk about them in a moment!". This encapsulates the professor perfectly.
It’s all good. Wizards wants to make shiny collectors pieces out of basic lands or cards that have been reprinted into the dirt or aren’t even played in commander? Have at it.
But don’t you dare come at us with 400$ fetchlands promos and act like it’s reasonable.
This
This still seems too expensive for one of each basic to me, but yeah, there's no need to complain about this.
Calm down Dyrus
"It's your opinion to have"
Axel duh
I love how the Prof is using wizard's own logic and words against them.
Marcello Marrazzo you watch desolater magic?
@ Gyro sorrin damn goblins taking over zimbabwe
@@carnibucle I have not heard of them but will check them out
Desolator Magic is immature garbage. A broken clock is right twice a day, but he's a raving jackass all around the clock.
Desolatormagic is definitely a stopped-clock magic pundit. He itches for wotc to do idiotic things like ban 3 color decks because they are too good.
5 Lands with new art: "A little over $165"
5 Lands with new art: $30
"We at WOTC do not acknowledge the secondary market"
Elijah Davila dude but one of those is fOiL lAnDs... oh wait a second....
This is the perfect comment.
This 100%. Say it again for those in the back.
@@Pistolsatsean Yeah but you forgot one is full-art lands ! oh wait another second...
What about the DiSpLaY BoX?
"...and errect a firm manabase" showing the snow covered lands. Great!!
… an arousing success.”
The prof had me laughing pretty good with that whole segment.
Humor like this really inspires viewer engorgement... I mean engagement.
I think humor like this is what has caused his subscriber count to become so swollen.
This
I see what you did there
Really glad to see this Prof - I've mentioned it in the past and I know that you're running a business so making money is important. Holding WotC's feet to fire can't be great for your relationship with them - but you're here for the consumer, not the company. My trust is restored.
The math is simple, the development and production cost of Fetchlands is obviously much higher than basic lands because it includes:
* 4 lines of rules text - $5 per line, $20 per card
* holo-stamp at the bottom - $4 per card
* removing foiling so that they don't curve - $5 per card
* bigger box - $25
= total of $170 difference
well played
Maximum effort for maximum rekt!!
5$ for 1 line Text ?? Wtf
So a non-foil Yargle is worth $30.
Glad I bought 70 of them.
I love that you used this to say again that Secret Lair Fetches was a terrible thing. Keep fighting the good fight Prof
Thats pure bling. Thats exactly what secret lairs should have done since the beginning.
"... with the Johto starters!"
Proof that the Professor is a man of taste.
Eh, I'll keep my Kanto Krew.
... don't judge me, I was a much younger person when I named them that.
Agreed, Johto is best.
@@kereminde Kereminde's Kanto Krew?
With the johto starters, but tape a picture of Ampharos over Chikorita :)
@@user-et3xn2jm1u YOU TAKE THAT BACK.
"It's okay, Chikorita, don't listen to what that mean man says" *hugs*
"We do not officially acknowledge the secondary market"
*proceeds to litteraly sell a Bitterblossom and 4 tokens*
Not OFFICIALLY because than they would be affected by the gambling laws
They can not aknowlege it
@@redstonepro5412 Sure, but if you dragged them into court, what's their excuse for why they priced the fetch lands significantly higher than the other 2 secret lairs? You can't just say "just because" because that's a fucked up precedent and, ultimately, they say on their boosters that the cards are worth .05 cents each and all of their lands cards are same in purpose: to play the game.
I'm certain a lawyer could start whipping up something from this video if they REALLY felt like pressuring wizards to openly answer some of these questions, or perhaps even Hasbro.
@@bobby45825 Couldn't their 'courtroom excuse' be just 'our analists predicted this will be a highly demanded product therefore its just much more expensive because of that and only because of tht? European here, no idea how american legal system works, so thats why im asking :DDDDDDD
@@dago6410 Then the prosecuting lawyer could ask what the analytical process was that was used to determine the price. EVENTUALLY wizards would be forced to acknowledge the secondary market or be accused of price gouging.
@@bobby45825 Wouldn't the huge usage of these in official tournaments be kind of enough of a reason? IDK for me the whole problem is hilarious and im totally on the Wizards' side (not from the legal stand point, as i dont know ur legal system at all, but from a 'moral' point of view they do nothing wrong IMHO. Its their fucking product, and its not something you NEED to survive lol ;/ And also they are not making the secondary market prices go down and that is a good thing as people selling these would be hit by such a drop of prices, and THESE are the people who actually matter, as its their job. Its not ur job to play this game most likely, and you can really survive without a fetchland. Just stop playing magic or play some pauper stuff or something, jeees. :D
Wizards: "Buy these 5 non-foil lands for only $300", 2 weeks later, "Hey guys here's 5 foil lands for $30", "What secondary market?"
WotC doesn't officially recognize the secondary market because that would essentially be them admitting that boosters are gambling, which they've been fighting forever.
Can we please use the secret lairs as legal evidence and throw the book at them?
@@RealGairos These secret lairs are as official as it gets for them to not be officially recognizing the secondary market XD.
We need to stop demanding them because that drives the price and assures that they have a reprint equity on those fetches.
Picture this 6 months of quiet in forums, reddit and even youtubers. MTG Online without a single fetch in their decks and even after this pandemic we start playing without fetches. Wizards will reprint these lands at an unprecedented rate to reignite that desire for these lands.
I have my full collection on these and I could care less if they went down in value. I just want people to be able to play and enjoy the game at an affordable level. If I spend $100 on upgrading the deck I dont want half that budget to be one land or two lands.
@@xAnonymousss I do not respect the opinion or character of anyone who says 'XD' unironically. Not to mention you are straight up wrong.
@GamerBear Actually it would (or at least should) as the price a company pays WOTC for a case of fetch lairs compared to a case of godzilla lairs is WAAAAY different. The only reason they "dropped" having MSRP's was for this exact loophole. Same reason it has a big box and wasn't purchasable direct, using loopholes to get around the fact they use and recognise the secondary market on a daily basis.
You can hear the disdain and tiredness is Prof's voice. He's so tired of MTG bullshit. 😂
But he gave it an A- lmao 🤣
But aren't you also tired of it?
No... I love magic and I love that we're getting all these secret lairs for more sweet art. I think the Prof wanted to reiterate the issues with Secret Lair Ultimate Edition, but it seems his general opinion on Secret Lairs (the print to demand kind) is positive.
@@sankethbhaskar4236 Exactly my thought. I've bought three of them: Killer Kaleidoscope, Year of the Rat, and Int'l Woman's Day (traded Narset and Oona recently of that set) and did highly debate buying all the Theros gods but passed (same w/ Thalia as I liked the artwork, etc. but don't play Modern).
If it something I want at what I consider to be a fair price I will buy it; however, if it isn't something I want at the price I won't. I like having the options available and getting something fun when I have the opportunity.
Note: Since I am not a fan of Godzilla stuff really I'm 100% okay passing on this
@cak01vej I see that viewpoint, but personally, I wouldn't have given it an A- even without the overall implications of it all. The set is purely aesthetic sure, but there's still value to aesthetic, and 30 bucks for only 5 lands is still a steep price, despite the artwork on those cards. Not only is the product expensive for what it brings of value, but it is also likewise inflexible in that you can only buy all 5 colored lands together and for a full playset you could "need" up to 10 to 20. So yes I agree with the prof's point on aesthetic absolutely being fine to monetize when reprints are present to a large degree, but beyond that, there's still grading the product for what it is and what it brings to the table for someone interested in the product.
Well, that calls for a slight update of an old Friday Nights scene:
Matt from LRR: "Did you know Magic had layers?"
Alex from LRR: "Yes - it's a deep game."
Matt from LRR: "No, lairs..."
This reminds me, I'm genuinely surprised that Ikoria didn't see the printing of wedge Lairs, since we have the apex predators.
They had them for some time... scryfall.com/card/pls/138/dromars-cavern :P
@@shataraterevar those are shards, not wedges
Still haven’t received my Secret Lair Stargazing several months after ordering it. What’s even crazier is that I also got the Thalia SL, and that arrived just fine - and that was on sale a MONTH after Stargazing!
I've gotten every lair after theros and have received all but theros.
Tbh man im pretty sure a class action lawsuit could be filed
I still haven't gotten my stargazing lair yet and what makes it even more annoying is that I was able to order the lair art Iroas and Kruphix off CardKingdom and they still got here before my lair is even supposed to ship
WotC: Let's create two secret lairs containing reskins of lands, one priced at almost $200 and the other at $30.
Also WotC: tHe SeCoNdArY mArKeT dOeSn'T eXiSt
For almost 200 you mean 400?
doggo poggo wizards intention was a bit over $165.
There's literally no defending this. Both had new art, same number of lands, same cost to print.
@@MINECRAFT-uu8zp And its release price was $400.
Crazy Khespar obviously
I'm so frustrated with this because I really like the art, I just think 30.00 is too much for a single copy of each land.
Unless I'm running a 5 color deck I would rarely even see them. So silly to do one of each like that.
Fully agree. If it was a playset of each for $30, that would actually be worth considering
Yeah. It's not fair to say "If it's optional, it's not too expensive." I mean, it is, because people can sell whatever they want, but it doesn't mean the product is not overpriced.
Then the blind is not for you. I like expedition fetch lands but can't afford them. But I can afford basic fetch lands. So thats what I have.
Wow, I honestly thought there was a playset of each. A single copy? Sadly, pass. (I know "playset" doesn't really apply to basic lands, but you know what I mean)
"This just in... announcing Secret Lair: Ad Cards! All the ad cards you know and love, from the entire history* of Magic: The Gathering. $49.99 for 5 foils with brand new art, for one day only!
@Nick Fanchette Definitely the ad cards for the movie The Sorcerer's Apprentice. That was a brilliant piece of cross promotion with an epic, unforgettable film!
Im a fan of the tip cards from worldwake and Zendikar. I'd be in for those bad boys
Jackson Stein 500 dollars is realistic.
Right.... Like foil thing in the ice flip card placeholders, cities blessing, energy token, or secret lair token foils
Wondering when we’ll get the “sword of-“ secret lair for $299.
Secret Lair: Masterwork Armory
All 7 Sword ofs in non-foil but new not extended artwork, plus if you buy all the secret lairs in that month's bundle, you get a Sword of the Animist!
Only $299.99*
*may be $600 on the secondary market.
@@a.velderrain8849 *Sword of Dungeons and Dragons
This is what secret lairs should be, stupidly expensive versions of regular cards everyone already has access to. Purposefully not reprinting good cards so then you can gouge people's eyes out for them in secret lairs will always be BS coporate greed that will only ever distance players.
I completely agree that this is what Secret Lairs should be. Tho, I would like it if 5 lands weren't stupidly expensive to the tune of $30 - the "premium" markup just seems too high (to me at least). I'd love to have the premium cards that interest me, just can't justify spending $30 on 5 cards that I could get for a $0.25
No. Secret Lairs should contain reprints to drive prices down of expensive staples.
@@kangamagic1206 I disagree, expensive staples should always be printed in standard/commander/modern sets.
@@kangamagic1206 Except that's not how it works. Secret lair, having the printrun it does as well as the alternate art, won't drive the price down at all. Only reprints in a set do that.
@@johnbunceiii2668 limited prints can have a minor effect, but it's not a solution. I'm fine with them using secret lairs to print of premium versions of whatever cards they want, if, and only if, they're at least doing something to make sure that card has a healthy price.
It is about time you just came out and said it. Good for you. Wizards DO abuse the secondary market and legitimate legal action should be taken. There is blatant proof of their scumminess and abuse, and they need to be held accountable.
I went looking for what the potential litigation would entail for these products and couldn't find anything that would lead me to believe a lawsuit would even be considered by any court. Can you explain what you think would be the basis of the suit?
Something along the lines of insider trading? They literally create the demand for their products and then price them based on that demand. It's as close to insider trading as loot boxes are to aggressive gambling/ child predation
I don't think what they are doing is inherently illegal. What we CAN do, as costumers, is refusing to buy this artificially overpriced products.
I like the homage to Community. Garrett: CRISIS ALERT! CRISIS ALERT!
You even nailed the tone he used in his voice. You make great content as always! And it's great to find out you are also a Community fan :)
"with the Johto starters"
Clearly the professor is a man of good taste.
I'm a huge fan of Godzilla but I can't support this. Give us a 20 of each land and I don't want them foiled.
wait, according to the guy of the fetch lands, shouldnt they cost like $400? I mean, new art commision are expensive, right? and these are full art, which means twice the art...
They aren't painted directly on the fucking card.
@@HarryBuddhaPalm r/wooosh
Routinetrafficstop indeed loool
Yeah, they can't hide their face behind their stupid lies anymore
“ Erect. Firm...a rousing success.” I sense some snow-covered ribaldry!
I love, love, love Godzilla. My Saturday afternoons growing up we’re all about this wonderful creature. But I will never pay for these lands which should have simply been included in booster packs.
Scott Fridinger dame man but it just hurts that something that should have been pulled in a pack is now almost the price of a damn bundle or 1/3 of a box for 5 basic lands. I love Godzilla A LOT but that is hard to justify.
I've said it once, and I've said it twice, and I've said it time and time again:
If Secret Lair was a monthly "loot crate" for like $19.99 or maybe $24.99 max containing at least 5 fun cards with custom art, I would subscribe in a heartbeat.
As it stands I still refuse to buy a single Secret Lair because the current business model is just so greedy.
I would be interested in buying some of the Secret Lair if they weren't short time offers. I don't like that I would have to go through third party resellers instead of being able to order the ones I like straight from Wizards.
Secret lair is exhausting
"Is it worth it to buy five basic lands for $29.99?"
"No!"
[The Professor then ends this five second video with the Looney Tunes ending theme]
5 full art foil lands at $6 each is pretty worth it. These will go up. Just a quick search, a full art foil NM Plains is $30.
No(!). FFS. I can load up at my local shop for free. I hate that lands cost more than the actual business part of the deck in today's magic. At least I can still build a good 25 dollar deck with a couple of cheap rares and solid utility cards...
I'm all over this lair. My 14 year old has been a huge G-fan since he was 5 (started with the original toho movies). He came to mtg much later (a couple months before guilds of ravnica came out), but now that these two worlds have come together, he will absolutely flip.
I have up to this point been able to keep him off the interwebs and in the dark to the whole Godzilla guest appearances. We have planned a family pre-release event since covid has shut our (along with every other) lgs down and the reward will be a box topper. Letting him win will be hard, as we are all very competitive, but his reaction will be priceless.
7:59 YES!! I've been saying this since Secret Lairs were first announced. WOTC is absolutely in on their own secondary market. It's cardboard insider trading.
At least the original secret lairs were premium versions of cards that were relatively easy to obtain, aimed at fans of a specific theme (goblins, cats, Theros Gods,...)
The Ultimate Secret Lair is aimed at tournament players and clearly a ploy to exploit the secondary market. I dont have $400 to spend, but if I had, i would outright REFUSE to buy it.
New secret lair alert! worth watching for it everytime
Thanks for continuing to do these very critical videos Prof. We need people like you in the community, who have the reach and the presence that you do, to speak out on our behalf. Best of luck out there.
I kind of wish this excellent analysis would be a video of its own.
Your conclusion that WOTC is profiting from the secondary market is both important and worrying, and I think we, the customers, should hold them responsible for this practice. Keep up the good work Professor!
I see Tolarian CC post a video.
I click :)
Loving how the hair is coming back in.
I like godzilla so id only get em for that.
But who knows whats the future for the secondary market.
Still haven't received my Theros Stargazing secret lair bundle that I ordered back in FEBRUARY.
Thanks Prof. You and Mitch helped me get back into Magic years ago without destroying my finances while also supporting my LGS’
It is so important and good that Prof has a larger channel than WotC on TH-cam and that he is highly critical and shining a spotlight on any bad practices and loudly, firmly stating that these products are obviously based on secondary market prices regardless of what excuses WotC makes for it.
Professor: "You do not in any way, however small need to purchase this to play any version of the game"
*2 days later* Wotc: "We are proud to announce the replacement format for Modern and Pioneer called *The Godzilla Format* the rules are simple you are forced to use cards with alternate Godzilla art IF they were ever printed"
A replacement for Modern and Pioneer? Oh, you mean Companion
Honestly if Wizards wanna keep going like this in the future fine, but surely the gambling and trading standards agencies need to be involved now.
Yeah, I'd like to hear them justify this price and not mention the secondary market. If they want to play stupid games, they're gonna win stupid prizes.
Wait can you elaborate? This is interesting
They wont be involved. Where is the gambling here?
@@dandiaz19934 They have to have the public line that they "do not recognise or act based upon the secondary market" to not be classed as gambling, only through the secondary market can certain cards be classed as more expensive than others, otherwise every time you buy a pack you are gambling on getting a card that is worth more than what you paid or not.
I must say, I am very pleased to see proph look at this objectively, and from what i have seen, objectively every time no matter what the product is and no matter how much he likes or dislikes it.
Many people i have seen review various different products talk about how they feel about it from an emotional point of view rather than an objective one.
It is always refreshing to watch proph and see his point of view based of of stats and facts no matter how corny the presentation 🤣🤣
Thanks proph!
Keep it up!
Thank you Prof for another fantastic video! I love your videos because they go in-depth not just about the product but also the problems WotC has with how they market and print certain cards. You are slowly becoming my favourite MTG TH-camr and I am glad I joined this Community College.
I have not received my Theros Gods Secret Lair collection yet
Me either, im also waiting on my thalia replacement
Same here. I ordered Gods and Thalia, and for some bizarre reason, Thalia has arrived even though it got put on sale a month later. Getting pretty fed up at this point.
Same here. I kinda want a refund at this point.
I didn't know this was a problem.. ugh
Nick Fanchette I believe it is. One of my friends ordered specific gods and got his in early March, I ordered all 15 and only got the MTG area code which I do not care for.
I’ve never bought any of the Secret Lair products and I don’t intend to in the future. I don’t find them necessary and it feels like a
quick money grab.
I bought 2 of the first 5: Kaleidoscopic Killers (because Sliver Overlord alone was worth it for cost) and OMG kitties, because I liked the art.
because it IS a quick money grab.
It's actually a slow money grab. A lot of effort goes into cards that get produced in small numbers and that's also where the price comes from. The artist wage cost has to be paid by selling a lot fewer cards and the production of only a few sheets is also a lot more costly for each card produced.
So why do it that way? It makes their product line wider which they do to stop their continuous revenue drops.
They could mass produce these and sell for normal prices. But then it would eat away from the other regular products they are already selling.
Their big revenue comes from the regular products but they want more more more more. So if short term thinking about revenue is the only goal, it makes sense to add those "high-end" products for buyers who will also already be buying the mass produced products.
I bought the one with Reaper King, Sliver Overlord and Ur, because I will actively use them and enjoy the artwork. Other than that, they've all just seemed grossly overpriced to me, and blatantly pointing out that WotC is basing them off of the second-hand market. I really hope someone files legal action for this at some point.
You hit on all the major points, but a few things I would add:
- For Card Alters, the more troubling aspect is that these are tournament-legal alternate art, but a custom alter is impossible to guarantee as tournament legal (due to judge interpretation, weight, scope of alter, etc.)
- One of my qualms with this specific product is that it's 5 lands for $30. Make it reasonable sized playsets for $50 or so, and we're talking. As is, it's either 'ooh, look, this is the 1-in-5 games where I pulled my Godzilla Forest' or 'OK, to have a reasonable full playset for all lands Godzilla, I'm spending.... around $800.' Neither feels good.
- Reprints need a dedicated product. In fact, in MTG Arena, I think they may have stumbled on the right formula: The 'Historic' card bundles. If I could pay, say, $100 for a full playset (4x) of all 25 of those cards - an average cost of $1/card - I'm on board. Adjust it to approximately the size of a sheet or half-sheet if that makes it easier. Mystery Boosters cut too wide of a swath; they only get more copies onto the secondary market as a practical measure. Spellbooks and Secret Lairs are more focused on being a premium product. They shouldn't need premium packaging - a simpler version of the Commander boxes or a slightly larger version of the Challenger boxes would do. They should also be an evergreen product, or at least a large print run.
- Let's be honest on the secondary market issue - if they admit to paying attention to the secondary market, we start getting into the situation that caused the Reserve List. At the same time, not admitting that doesn't help them with that argument when there is pricing like the Secret Lair Ultimate Edition, which as you noted clearly is not cost of production + any reasonable profit margin, nor is there anything truly special about the card quality or art.
I've enjoyed getting back into MTG over the last couple years - but some of these new products just rub me the wrong way. MTG was never a cheap game to play, but this is... different.
That new secret lair alert intro was hilarious. Definitely do something in that style again. Keep up the good content!
On it!
Edit: In my opinion, the collector booster packs is where set related premium content should be. EVERY collector booster pack should come with a foil godzilla land.
As a godzilla fan and artist viewing these as a limited-release collectible pieces of art rather than just run-of-the-mill basic lands? Big yes.
"A rousing success"
"A rousing success"
"A rousing success"
"A.rousing success"
I love the content of these videos, but what got me was the "Secret Lair Alert!" floating prof heads in the beginning. Love when he has fun with the editing of these!
You nailed it again, professor!!
Not only is Wizards using the secondary market, but not profiteering from it. All that because they target cards that are ridiculously high... because they don't reprint them in the first place!!
Now THAT's devious!
It's called I'm gonna proxy all of them
Can the "Oh yeah, it's money" bit be turned into a GIF for everyone to use, all the time, every day?
I have a friend who is a magic the gathering fan. He’s been trying to get me to play this game for a few years now, but I’ve staunchly refused never having been much interested in these kind of card games. But he does know I love godzilla, and things that are pretty. The card with Mothra and the one with the ocean sunset are just exactly what tickles my fancy. Though I still am unsure if I want to fully invest into this whole shebang (a lot of which comes from seeing the other less appealing card art) this is tipping the scales a bit in their favor. Nice video! You’ve explained the product objectively well and also spoken up on the problem to someone foreign to the magic the gathering community.
Loving the beard! Keep the great content rolling! Very much has helped a new player like myself.
They're something that's incredibly accessible, just a fancy version for those who want it. If you're into it, then yes! If not, then no.
@baerleon With fetches the chance increases a lot. Fortunately they just made perfect product for you, called Secret Lair Fetches(or whatever they wanted to call it). Get 4 copies of that and your 30$ Godzilla lands will appear in basically every game!
"Baby Yoda Enlightened Tutor"
Don't give WOTC any ideas XD
Hey.. I'd buy it. ;)
Props to you professor. While you made your feelings on Godzilla in general, and Godzilla in MtG in particular quite clear, your opinion seemed detached from it to a point where if it was secret lair: pokémon lands, or secret lair: Star trek TNG Vehicle alters, it would have been the same ratings, while still going at the heart of the problem. I won't be bold enough to praise objectivity or anything, but appreciate the distanced and nuanced review very much.
Again the professors analysis is so good, I really do feel Wizards should take note of what the professor is saying; you can tell he has such passion for the game and that’s incredibly valuable. 🙏
What's this TCC video so early this morning! :)
Man, Wizards' greed is just insane nowadays.
BASIC LANDS for $30?!
I...... just can't even....
They're exclusive foil lands with godzilla art on them. If you don't want them, don't buy them. They literally don't change anything, they are just a novelty for anyone who wants them.
The snow one was the same price and as The Professor showed, the Island alone is going for the price of what the drop was. These will probably be the same
Nathan Hale not really, these are basic lands therefore are practically unplayable in all nonstandard pioneer formats. Snow lands were already kinda premium and blue is the best color of magic therefore the snow lands were expensive
50 basics with godzilla on them and I would go "eh, I guess"
Great video. Still making wonderful points and acting like our magic union representative. Love it!
NEW SECRET LAIR ALERT! lol
As usual, you've stepped up and delivered a well thought out response. I'm not someone who enjoys these products, and seeing how blatantly obvious it is that they follow and try to match up the secondary market bums me out. To each their own I suppose, I just play casually myself!
Im still waiting for my secret lairs for International Women's day and the Stargazer one.
no
thanks for watching!
lol
I knew youre point about wizards profiting off the secondary market directly, that much was apparent in yugioh as well when they started printing entire sealed boxes of staple cards... this seems to be a broader trend. but it was very smart of you to notice how they are also doing this with alter art cards as well, as a way to profit off of that aspect of the secondary. I hadnt considered it that way.
I can agree. I bought Secret Lair Goblins, I play Goblins in Legacy and it was a nice way to bling out the deck! Especially because it was my favorite art for cards like Goblin Lackey. It had the added benefit of supporting really cool artists. I bought a print and artist proof from Mike Uziel (SL: Goblins artist). And its really nice and I value that a lot. It was a nice easy way to get cool versions of relatively cheap cards. I liked that a lot.
Hasbro is publicly traded. Why doesn't somebody dig into their tax returns and find some proof that it costs pennies to make this stuff?
Imaging if wizards actually tried to make the game better, playable, and accessible
I was going to make a post about how it's playable and accessible the way it is, but I realized instead:
Many players don't actually want the game to change that way. In my experience, the people who go out to local stores to play in FNM or Prereleases are far more interested in "looking cool". And people who stick to the kitchen tables or "game nights" generally just want to have fun drinking sodas and throwing out junky decks because it's fun to play some multiplayer and beat up on the first person to start whining the words "mana screw".
It's incredible really. Just incredible how the game is still alive and thriving despite how the wizards have continuously decided to monetize their game this way. I think, beyond anything, it's a testament to the passion from the players of the game as well as the designers that it is still running, because frankly for something so absurd to be able to happen again and again and still getting sold out, the passion has to be huge and immovable, lol.
The point made at 8 min mark is spot on and really serious. WotC claims to ignore secondary market because of everything on that slide, which assumes that to be false, is describing predatory business practices.
Thee reviews are getting better and better, great job Prof!!!!
Next Secret Lair: Baby Yoda Edition.
Baby ya ya bings
"MTG: Godzilla lands....... so that's where we are now" ;D
@4:17 Prof, honestly... I love the comedy you infuse into your videos/scripts. Always makes me smile - great writing :) (Unlike mine)
Great video, as well - finding it hard to disagree with your evaluation.
New to your channel & returning to MTG after 15 years or so gone so I'm glad you're presenting products with a very subjective point of view.
"to be fair, that is what foils are and do these days" - Prof, that isn't being fair, that's the sound of a man who has been beaten into submission and accepted Stockholm Syndrome into his life :D
Stockholm Syndrome would mean I liked them. This is more me giving up. I dunno. I am working on an entire video about foils.
@@TolarianCommunityCollege Honestly, the foils are disgusting. Just take a look a pokemon foils. THey're beautiful! They're gorgeous and I've had pokemon foils from almost 10 years that haven't curled. It's shameful.
Loved the mystery boosters, but with a foil in every pack it made the state of foils abundantly clear. I opened a box and had a stack of foils at the end, all severely curled. Such a bittersweet note to open all those previously expensive cards and see them in such bad shape.
@@TolarianCommunityCollege If you do a video, I hope you'll mention ways to uncurl the foils. I'm still trying to get my Thalia Secret Lair cards to flatten, I've been placing them under heavy books or computers for days and they're still pringles. It's really frustrating.
@@starnik I have been trying to figure out a way to uncurl foils, and the method I've found with the most success is to (I would try it out before using it on valuable cards) is to put it in a very dry environment and leave it for a while. Then try to keep moisture away from the cards afterward with silica gel packets. Here's a link to a decent article:
www.manaleak.com/mtguk/2017/10/foil-mtg-cards-how-to-cure-curling-bending-and-tournament-tips/
One time I had a bunch of foils that were really curled and I brought them on a plane (not on purpose) in an open deckbox, and when I got off they were less curled.
If I can say this: I've been playing Magic since Onslaught, and have gone through thousands of dollars worth of cards in my life, building every format at one point or another. However, if you would believe it, I'm an even greater Godzilla fan. I have a collectible figurine collection that is worth more than my Magic collection. So, when Wizards announced that they'd be printing Godzilla cards, I was absolutely blown away.
However, making Godzilla cards locked behind a price point like Box Toppers and a $30 set of basic lands.... Right now, I just honestly feel exploited and I dont even want to play Magic anymore :/
Take the pauperpill
You are the best Prof! I really feel that you are the voice of the community, a voice that I hope WoTC will hear. Keep up the good work!
Hi Prof, I've been watching your videos a long time and I respect you a great deal. I share many of your viewpoints but particularly on the rising cost of Magic and the inaccessibility of formats. I've been waiting a long time to hear you say the words 'legally and morally questionable' and make it clear in no uncertain terms that Wizards uses the secondary market to profit. I'm behind you 100%. If this is something you want to say then say you don't have to hide it in a product review (the comedic timing of that A- grade gave me a good laugh though).
I should add that I know you've said similar things in Dies To Removal and I love the show, but this felt succinct and was probably the clearest I've heard you be on the issue.
Haven't watched this yet and I'm guessing no. Here's a good question: WHY DO WE NOT GET A PLAYSET?
EDIT: Turns out I'm wrong.
nope hes pretty postive on the product
@@danaholland6686 Surprisingly so.
how would they sell 4 of these to the same person then?
Because outside of Mono-color decks, you aren’t running that many Basics typically.
1 of each has been the standard when they release special printings.
Zakana in standard I run at least two in a three color deck, and this is with a ton of nonbasic lands, people def need more than a singleton copy
Looks like wotc is trying to tire the prof out so he can’t keep up and then spring something extreme
That bit at the end... love it. Professor really knows how to sting where it hurts while mantaining his composure
Hey. I love ypur channel. Just found it recently. I just got back into MTG when my son told me about Commander format. Funny I first started playing it when he was first born. (1993 Revised) Now he likes playing with me.
"is it worth it to buy 5 basic lands for 29.99."
*Looks at receipt for alpha basics 15 for about 300 dollars*
Well, if the next move that WOTC do is selling five tokens for 29.99$ I'm not going to be surprised anymore.
Bitter blossom secret lair?
@@pistolpete1358 but there are four tokens and one bitterblossom in there
Five foil ad cards for $29.99!
That title is the most hilarious video title of any mtg related video of 2020. Well done sir
Hello @Tolatian Community College,
I think that the fetch lands were "economic boosts" for all the magic infrastructure, like local shops and distributors - they printed something that they knew people wanted, and gave the local stores a free reign in what to sell it for - it's perfect to help those stores stay afloat.
Secret Lairs don't really feel special anymore.
I really don't give a shit about it and I won't be buying it.
@baerleon When Secret Lairs first came out, I thought they were really cool.
I still think Serum Visions are the coolest thing ever printed in Magic History.
Now, Secret Lairs are becoming less experimental and new ones are coming out EVERY MONTH.
Secret Lair: Tom Nook Basic Lands
As a customer who is still waiting on the complete set of Theros Stargazing I'm glad you brought that to attention. I wrote to Wotc requesting simply to get specific stain glass Planeswalkers maybe an extra or 2 nothing difficult. Met with inadequate responses. I'm located in NZ so the $150 was actually $300, and I know of someone in the country who received 4 copies of Thalia about a month ago.
Happily told wotc I'm never buying another one of these stupid products after all this fiasco.
Also fun fact. Cardkingdom has or had singles of all the Secret Lairs to date including ones people are still waiting on. So if you want specific cards, juts buy from the people who know how to sell cards for a living in a timely manner.
I will certainly be getting these. My son is a huge Godzilla fan and loves Magic. Perfect combo!
Still haven't got my theros gods and I honestly don't believe I ever will. I'll never buy this product again.
I haven't received them either. But then again, I understand that shipping cards during the pandemic is a bit of a rough time. Wizards has already told us that it's going to take some time to ship. A bit of patience helps.
I got mine within a week or two, but I did get the full suite of them
@@Foxpawed I bought 3 full sets and still have not received mine.
@@silverfox4107 each drop has a small amount of cards that are pre-printed and ready to ship so if you ordered them later in the weekend (like me) when the original printing was sold out, they would have had to print them. Unfortunately the rest of the world shut down at the same time.
@@curtisbraham5309 I mean if most of the system wasn't automated as is I guess that is a good excuse. I just don't believe mailing prepackaged goods is hard in the automated world.
I'll be so happy when someone finally files a class action lawsuit against WOTC for what is essentially price fixing on a market they're on record as claiming to disavow.
So, so happy.
Hopefully it tanks them tbh. Wotc is such a scummy company
THANK YOU!! I had been saying the exact same points you made about the difference between the secret lairs (compared to fetchland edition) and how WotC reeaaally can't pretend that they don't monitor the secondary market anymore...but if a regular person says something, it's not gunna make even a ripple against the mega-fortress that WotC is. But if someone as big as YOU says something and calls them out on youtube, they will be nearly forced to acknowledge this and make some form of action. If anyone has seen the Netflix series Cernobyl; Thank you for being our Legasov and speaking for the rest of us, knowing they will listen to *you* at least!
...I know you're going to be in very hot water with WotC after this, I just hope they won't completely cut you off from all your previews/interviews >.
This is a great analysis of how these lairs can be appropriate products. Well done!
I wish someone would address how the quality in printing hasn’t really improved. Foils still bend and cards are still miscut (such as most of the Mystery Boosters in some rarity sheets). AND, there doesn’t seem to be any consistency in card stock. Even the finish varies from set to set. I could have sworn WotC said they were going to address all these issues.
Wouldn't the miscuts on the Mystery Boosters, which reprints a lot of old cards where miscuts were pretty common, more of a salute than a mistake? hahaha.
"Now I personally am not a Godzilla fan..." - can anyone interpret this for me? It makes no sense whatsoever.
Very good dissertation on the underlying motives of Secret Lair.
Will be picking upi 4 sets of these. One to display and three to use in decks. Realistically the best iteration of Secret Lair.