The Magic: The Gathering card Debt of Loyalty has erupted in price, going from just $9.60 last week, when Edge of Eternities released, to $40.50 today. That's a pretty sizable percentage rise of 322% and a massive bump in value in such a short period.
Normally, when I'm tracking down the cause of a price movement like this, it doesn't take very long to find a new Standard or Modern deck that's risen to the forefront, a new MTG commander that's getting fans excited, or a card coming out in the next Magic: The Gathering set that works immensely well alongside a niche old playing piece.
None of that seems to be the case here. Instead, it seems like the Magic fanbase has just collectively woken up to this card's potential, and collectors are out buying it up in droves. And since this is a Reserved List card from 1997, it doesn't take much extra interest before copies start to dry up and the price skyrockets.
Tracing recent discussion about the card, it looks like an article on the website MTG Rocks may have been the catalyst. On August 4, just a day before Debt of Loyalty began to creep up, and two days before it truly soared, writer Riley Hicks penned a piece that sung its praises, calling the card an "undiscovered Commander super-staple", and even hinting that "if players start to become more aware of this card and demand increases, it could potentially become more expensive in the near future."
We've previously covered how content creators like The Command Zone are sometimes able to blow up a card's price all by themselves, simply by mentioning its potential, and especially by suggesting that it could soon be valuable, and it appears that might be exactly what's happened here.
While I can't say with 100% certainty that MTG Rocks' article was the cause, as it's possible there's some Youtube video I've missed, this is the most prominent recent shout-out I've found.
So what does Debt of Loyalty actually do? Well, the reason it seems to be generating buzz is it allows white to steal an opponent's commander. The card reads 'Regenerate Target creature. Gain control of that creature' - very powerful for just three mana.
Taking control of creatures is usually an effect found in blue, red, or sometimes black, and in EDH, grabbing an opponent's commander is a powerful move, often neutralizing a player's whole deck. Be prepared for a torrent of salt if you use this trick against the wrong person, however.
Inspecting the card's oracle text reveals it's not quite as strong as it looks. Because you actually only get to grab the creature if it regenerates. You can only use this spell on a creature that's about to die.
That's still decent though, you could use it alongside a removal spell as a 1-2 punch, or in response to a boardwipe to punish whoever cast it. It's easy to picture the card generating some funny moments, which I think is partly why collectors are so bullish on it.
Whether this card's newfound popularity will last remains to be seen. My guess is that it'll slowly fall back down to a lower value - but that process could take months or even years.
If you enjoyed this read, be sure to check out our guides to the most expensive MTG cards or the MTG release schedule. You can also come share your collection, decks, and sweet, sweet plays on the Wargamer Discord.