The Magic: The Gathering x Avatar The Last Airbender set has been officially out for five days, and in the hands of dedicated players for a week longer than that. Since we're all opening up packs and testing out the cards, I thought it might be worth taking a look at the pieces that were underrated prior to release.
When a new MTG set comes out, or even shortly beforehand, most cards plummet down from their overinflated preorder price tags. But a few of the best MTG cards in each set prove themselves over time, and actually start to go up in value. That's what we're looking for here - the cards that are already starting to move up and were valued lower on day one than they are today.
Aang, Swift Savior - $3 to $5
Having both airbending and waterbending on one card makes Aang Swift Savior a great inclusion for the Avatar Aang commander deck, and there's even a new airbending combo deck in Standard that uses the card. With Doc Aurlock allowing you to recast your cards for free, you can do a frankly ridiculous amount of bending with Aang.
The Legend of Roku - $5.40 to $8.75
Surprisingly, this card is seeing some play as a sideboard option in the Modern Boros Energy archetype. That deck needs some card draw options it can slot in for grindier matchups, and Roku is replacing Showdown of the Skalds for some players. Given that you only slot it in when you're trying to win the long-game, perhaps a delayed big threat is worth more than some +1/+1 counters.
Ozai, the Phoenix King - $6.70 to $8.80
Just a small rise for Ozai, who is only seeing play in EDH. Thanks to his less restrictive Rakdos color identity, Ozai's able to slot into decks with both his children, each an incredibly popular Avatar commander that use firebending. What a touching family reunion!
The Walls of Ba Sing Se - $16.20 to $20
There's not much to say about this one - it's being played in exactly where we thought it would: in the 99 of Defender decks. It also works well alongside Toph, The First Metalbender, since if you earthbend the walls, your opponents have to tear them down twice in one turn cycle before hitting any of your other permanents.
Run Amok - $0.40 to $5
How much would you pay to read the words 'Zuko Tutorial'? Was the answer $4.70? Apparently that's what it is for most Magic players, since that's the difference in price between this version of Run Amok and the regular one, and the only thing it has going for it is those tiny words printed at the bottom. And to think I just gave you that same thrill, free of charge.
I suppose there aren't many of the Avatar Starter Kits on the market just yet, which has seen some of these tutorial cards inflated way past their worth. My guess is they'll come back down if the product ends up being popular though.
Katara, Waterbending Master - $18 to $35
There's some big price spikes in the eternal-legal set, which is pretty common for Jumpstart, as the desirable cards end up being pretty scarce. This version of Katara is simple but effective, a fantastic source of card draw and a great pick-up for any MTG commander that cares about experience counters…
Toph, Earthbending Master - $43 to $63
…As is Toph, Earthbending Master for that matter, but this time it's the landfall decks that really want to snap this card up. Toph can give you big beaters, plus extra triggers every time your animated lands perish.
Badgermole Cub - $53 to $70
This card needs no introduction. We knew it was broken when we first laid eyes on it, and that might turn out to be an understatement. Every format from Standard to Legacy is having a go with the Badgermole, and we'll have to wait and see where this one's price tag finally rests.
Appa, Steadfast Guardian - $7.70* to $27.50
*Probably the best airbending card in the set, Appa had actually already bounced back pretty hard by the time Avatar released and was valuable on day 1. But it hadn't rebounded yet the week before, when I wrote my list of the top chase cards in the set to look out for, so I'm throwing it in here anyway.
Appa's strong with some good commanders like Avatar Aang and Firelord Zuko, but it's also the lynchpin of the Bant combo deck. I didn't properly explain the build when we looked at Aang because I knew we'd be coming back to it here. The trick is to use airbending effects to make endless tokens with Appa, while holding dangerous creatures at bay.
All this is just buying time so Badgermole Cub can ramp you hard enough to tutor a Craterhoof with Nature's Rhythm and roll over your opponent.
Join in discussions on Magic: The Gathering and everything else in tabletop on the Wargamer Discord, or check out our MTG release schedule guide for more.