[nobthehobbit]

SWCCG product is even worse because the PC decided that virtual cards must be in front of specific physical cards, rather than any old thing. (My advice: go to your favourite FLGS and offer to buy up a ton of their unmoveable Magic: the Gathering bulk.)

About 5 years ago, I was assorting my entire STCCG collection. Everything I didn't need went on a pile and was sold.

What I also did keep was a box containing about 800 Alternate Universe cards (commons and some uncommons).
Why? Because they are PERFECT for glueing printed virtual cards on them, permanently. Unlike the later editions, they don't have this smooth surface, but rather a somewhat rough one.
Premiere cards however are bad because of the white border (and I don't want to use Premiere limited cards).

[Apologies for the multiple posts, but it doesn't appear that these forums allow multi-quoting (someone correct me if there is a way to do so)]

As one of the first people involved with the creation of 'virtual cards', I can pass along a great tip for gluing them. Rubber cement works phenomenally, and - even when you peel a virtual card off years later - does no damage whatsoever to the card. It even works on the smooth cards. The only thing to be wary of is to wait a few minutes before sleeving the card, as the chemicals in the glue will bubble and warp your sleeve if you do so too quickly.

Yes, you can nest quotes!

Anyway, as to what the PC did with regard to virtual cards going in front of specific physical cards, that might have been something Decipher specified in turning the game over, but is that a condition of still being allowed to use Decipher's intellectual property (ie the game mechanics)? Or could they move to a model like the CC does, where any card can be a backer?

[Majestic]

Yes, you can nest quotes!

Anyway, as to what the PC did with regard to virtual cards going in front of specific physical cards, that might have been something Decipher specified in turning the game over, but is that a condition of still being allowed to use Decipher's intellectual property (ie the game mechanics)? Or could they move to a model like the CC does, where any card can be a backer?

Oh, good (on nesting quotes), though it looks like three is the max.

I'm no longer involved with the PC (I'm an Advocate in name only, I guess), but I suppose they could do whatever they want to, now. I don't remember them even ever mandating that the original cards be used, but there were a lot of cards out there, and they turned over more than a million $ of product to us (they could no longer sell it) for use as prizes, to sell, or to give out. With plenty of supply, it made sense (at the time) to have actual cards synch up with their virtual versions.

I don't believe there's anything tying the PC to those rules. As far as I understand it, game mechanics are very difficult to copyright, anyway.

[OLE_ALE]

Talking about regrets.

The store were I was playing in the late 1990s had one mint Black Lotus (Unlimited) for sale. Back then, they wanted 500 DM, which equals about 250 Euro, which is about USD 220.
I said: "Bullocks. You are never going to sell it."

DAMN was I wrong ...


At the time where Star Trek was virtually dead, I bought 5 Motion Pictures boxes for 15 Euro (about USD 12) each.
I sold them for 'only' 100 Euro each, some time later.

Talking about regrets.

I'm convinced there's a Magic bubble. The prices today have to be a result of the older cards transitioning from game pieces to collectibles that are being invested in and speculated upon. What happens when no players can afford the cards? Is demand from the collecting sector enough to carry the market?

I was lucky to trade for the missing cards from TMP while the 1E was dead.

Also I got 7 Alas Poor Queen foils in my AGT box. My friend who got the other box from our game store got a foil Defiant! Got the only WB94 Starter Deck II I ever opened in that box though.

[Klauser]

... Also I got 7 Alas Poor Queen foils in my AGT box. My friend who got the other box from our game store got a foil Defiant! Got the only WB94 Starter Deck II I ever opened in that box though.

I've been around since the game started in 94 and I have NO idea what a "WB94 Starter Deck II" is. Please elaborate!

[OLE_ALE]

It's just a Starter Deck II that has WB94 Premiere cards instead of WB95. Some people have said their Starter Deck IIs usually had the 94s, but I've only ever seen 95 except the one box. Also, I never saw 2000 copyright Starter Deck II premiums until I got several from Hill's a few years ago.

[eberlems]

I only know of black border Starter Deck II from 1998 and the reprint 2000(in second anthology/agt).

[Dukat]

I'm convinced there's a Magic bubble. The prices today have to be a result of the older cards transitioning from game pieces to collectibles that are being invested in and speculated upon. What happens when no players can afford the cards? Is demand from the collecting sector enough to carry the market?

It seems there are always enough people to buy those cards and unopened packs for ridiculous prices.

You should keep in mind that many of the rares like Black Lotus only exist in quantities of several thousand and only a few hundreds are BGS 8 or higher.
The official playerbase of Magic The Gathering is about 14 million, without about one million (!) tournaments per year!
In 2017, the tenth million DCI-sanctioned tournament took place.

So I think this bubble isn't exactly a bubble.

However, I would agree that the younger players won't pay that much for these old cards, because they have no emotional connection to them.
The emotional connection is the primary motivation for (older) player / collectors to buy those cards and packs.

The pricses will fall, slowly, but I think that will take at least a decade.

Although, Reserved List cards seem to know no price drop. Even worthless Reserved List cards have begun to show price increases.


Price development of Magic cards will stay interesting and only someone who actually knows the game and the cards should invest in them.
It's quite some lottery.