Most MTG players are naturally concerned about the prices of Rare and Mythic Rare MTG cards since they are harder to pull from a pack. Commons and Uncommons are printed in higher quantities, so many assume they can be had for way less than dollar, or even for free. Not necessarily.
The reality is there are several rather pricey Uncommon MTG cards that go above $10 for a piece. Even if we ignore Uncommons that are valuable due to age (the Alpha, Beta and Unlimited sets), or Uncommons that have been upshifted to Rare or higher (Force of Will is a good example), some cards have bucked the trend and command premium prices.
For collectors, seeing their bulk inventory rise in value often puts a smile on their faces. Let’s take a look at some unshifted Uncommons that fetch a pretty penny*:
*Prices based on MTGGoldfish
Nazgul – $15
No one could have foreseen that an Uncommon card released just months ago would soar the price charts.
Nazgul is extra special because there are 9 variants of the same card (in theme with the Lord of the Rings henchmen), and is the youngest card on this list, having been released just in June 2023.
Despite having 9 variants, Nazgul is notoriously hard to pull from booster packs, regardless of what type of pack you buy. There have been multiple stories of a mere 1 copy per box, with some boxes having 0. In our own Collector Booster box opening, we were considered lucky to get 2.
When players started realising how hard it is to land a copy, cards were quickly snapped from online shops. Initially going up to $5, it is now broken through to an average of $15. Can it possibly break the $20? Time will tell but there’s a good chance it will, since there isn’t going to be a reprint for quite some time.
Pitiless Plunderer – $12.70
Introduced in more recent times (2018’s Rivals of Ixalan), this inconspicuous black pirate actually has a very nifty ability for infinite combos in the Commander format. It reads: “Whenever another creature you control dies, create a Treasure token.”
The fact that it includes even token Creature means your options are so much wider. Commander Spellbook lists 272 infinite combos that include Pitiless Plunderer – it’s no wonder why this Uncommon commands a price above $10.
The other primary reason why this Uncommon has broken the $10 barrier is it has yet to be reprinted. Loose copies are harder to find now, hence the increased price that will entice players to let go of it. From what we’ve seen, it’s only a matter of time before Plunderer gets a reprint to calm the growing demand.
Counterbalance – $20
Counterbalance has the unfortunate label of being overlooked, but it is a powerful card in many scenarios. This permanent Enchantment gives you a chance to counter any spell an opponent plays, provided your Library’s top card shares the same Mana Value as the cast spell.
Is it still up to chance? Absolutely, but any chance is better than none. Plus, blue has the ability to Scry a lot and thus rearrange cards on the top of your deck. Counterbalance has a place in many control decks that just want to give an opponent pause as they cast their spells.
Counterbalance was first printed in 2006’s Coldsnap, and hasn’t seen a reprint in a main set since. A Secret Lair edition is currently priced around the same as the original – $20. Without another reprint in the horizon, expect this Uncommon to sit strongly above the $10 range.
Grinding Station – $13
Another Commander combo staple that hasn’t been reprinted (at all!) in the history of MTG. There might be a good reason for that, as Grinding Station has the abilities to both Mill an opponent’s Library, and also untap itself whenever another Artifact enters the Battlefield.
That allows the Station to be an enabler for infinite combos, which often involve a 0-costing Artifact such as Mana Crypt, and Underworld Breach. Since Grinding Station can fuel up your own Graveyard, this lets you use Underworld Breach to recast Mana Crypt again and again for near-infinite colourless Mana.
Meltdown – $11.20
What happens when a card can bring forth a lot of destruction for just 1 Mana? This red Uncommon has 1 specific use, and that is to destroy Treasure tokens as well as Mana rocks like Mana Crypt, the various Moxes, and even Sol Ring and Mana Vault. In a Commander game where each player can be expected to have a bunch of Treasures or various Artifacts, Meltdown always comes in very handy.
While Meltdown also affects your Artifacts, it’s easy to play around this. Just hold off casting your Artifacts before Meltdown and you’ll be fine. The card was first printed in Urza’s Saga and has strangely never been seen since. Just like the other powerful cards from Urza’s Saga, Meltdown has steadily been priced over $10 for years. Unless there’s a reprint coming, don’t expect the price to drop.
Triumph of the Hordes – $14
Who knew this was just an Uncommon? Its incredible ability to give all your Creatures Infect, Trample and +1/+1 till end of turn is a potential game-ender and people can mistake this for a Rare. Player with 10 Poison counters (given by the Infect mechanic) will lose the game, so just a few attackers with Triumph of the Hordes is enough to seal the deal.
Triumph of the Hordes has only been reprinted once, in the niche Mystery Booster set, so there really aren’t many copies floating in the market. Triumph rests peacefully in the $14 range today, but it was as expensive as $20 in 2021.
Carpet of Flowers – $15.50
The other shining Uncommon from the infamous Urza’s Saga set is Carpet of Flower, which flourished thanks to the rise of the Commander format. As blue is one of the more popular colours in the format, Carpet of Flowers’ ability to give you free Mana becomes much more effective and devastating.
Just like Triumph of the Hordes earlier, Carpet of Flowers has only been reprinted once in Mystery Booster, despite not being on the Reserved List. It also has a Secret Lair edition but that hasn’t brought the price down that much, and today it can only be bought for about $15. With more reprints in affordable sets, one day Carpet of Flowers might fall below $10.
Reanimate – $11
This is an oldie but an eternal goldie. For 1 Mana, Reanimate will help you return any Creature from the Graveyard directly onto the Battlefield. The downside is you lose life (potentially a lot of it). However, since you have a higher starting life total of 40 in Commander, it has become less of a problem.
To understand how much Reanimate has weathered the test of time, we must see how many times it’s been reprinted since its first showing in 1997’s Tempest. According to Scryfall, there have been at least 4 major reprints in recent years – Ultimate Masters, Jumpstart, Commander Collection: Black, and the Lord of the Rings Preconstructed Commander Decks.
Even with more Reanimates in the secondary market, it still manages to fetch a price of over $10. The cheapest of all the prints is $11. Because of its high usability in pretty much any black Commander deck, we would expect its price to hold firm even if a new reprint comes in the 2 to 3 years.
End Step
It’s nice to see some Uncommons get their day in the limelight, and actually be more desirable than the high number of bulk Rares in each set. However, a valuable Uncommon is still the exception rather than the norm. The silver lining here is that with more Uncommons expected to be printed compared to Rares, this in theory should make them more accessible. As long as Wizards continues on its reprint strategy on steroids, this should bode well for players.
Are there any pure and high-value Uncommons that we’ve missed out? Let us know in the comments!
