Zendikar Priceless Treasures

~

OH MAH GAWD ! Do we have news for you. Perhaps one of the most newsworthy items every posted to this blog.

It all started out late last night when an employee at Kidforce Collectibles telephoned Kelly Reid of one of our fav websites, Quiet Speculation. The question regarded a very interesting card which they had just pulled out of a booster pack. The card in question was a card which did not belong to the new set - it was 'Candelabra of Tawnos' a rare artifact from the Antiquities expansion which happens to be going for about $50 on eBay right now.

Kidforce claimed that the odd card was in the booster pack slot where the Basic Land sits, and rotated 180 degrees. They further indicated that his rare and a foil were still there. Many calls of 'Shenanigans !' were heard throughout the forums as well as the usual social networking sites - some even provided by me as shown here in my Twitter feed . .


After I had my chuckle, I rolled into bed and as I slipped into slumber, I recalled a specific update to the official MTG tournament rules that indicated something along the lines of cards opened in packs not belonging to that set aren't limited legal, and if deck swaps are done, you keep the cards not belonging to the set . . .

MAGIC: THE GATHERING® TOURNAMENT RULES
Effective October 1, 2009
Excerpt - 7.3 : Card Use in Limited Tournaments
Other than basic land, only cards from the expansions of the boosters opened (and only cards opened in that player’s pool) may be used in a player’s deck. For example, in a Magic 2010 Sealed Deck tournament, any card in a booster other then the Magic 2010 game cards received by the player and basic land may not be used in a player’s deck during that tournament.



Fast forward to this morning . . .

Reports from stores around Europe and North America are reporting similar events of opening up booster packs and finding 'priceless treasures' similar to Kidforce's Candelabra of Tawnos. At the time of posting, reports of cards like Ancestral Recall (worth >$1,000), Bayou (worth $35), Lion's Eye Diamond (worth $25), Lich (worth $35), Taiga (worth $200), Mox Diamond (worth $40), and Underground Sea (worth $150). All cards appear to be original - not printed, thus complying with the WoTC Reserve List policy.

Well apparently this seems to be a worldwide promotion hatched by Wizards of the Coast . . . brilliant ! This will make more players want to open packs and also create an interest in other formats other than standard. Sure opening up one of these cards would be akin to winning the lottery but there are reports that one player found two such cards in one Zendikar Booster Box (36 packs per box). NOTE : It is rumoured that ONLY the very first shipment of Zendikar has these treasures. To this end, I think that I may purchase additional product even though I had already pre-ordered. The downside to this is that the price of booster boxes may be going up by a bit. 'Get thee to a Pre-Release - this is one heck of a chance to open up cardboard awe'!


We leave you with this very witty post by Magnus Magicus from the boards . . .
I do wonder....if they put Priceless Treasures in boosters...would they put Deadly Perils in as well? So you open up a booster and it has some white powder instead of a basic land....

~

In less dramatic news, WoTC posted the Zendikar FAQs yesterday - here is a quick summary ->




GENERAL NOTES

Theme: Full-Art Basic Lands

Returning Keyword Ability: Kicker (represents an additional cost)

Keyword Ability: Intimidate (A creature with intimidate can't be blocked except by artifact creatures and/or creatures that share a color with it. )

Ability Word: Landfall (A an ability that triggers whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control.)

Theme: Allies (Nearly every Ally has an ability that triggers whenever it or another Ally enters the battlefield under your control.)

Theme: Traps (Trap is a new subtype that appears on instants. Although the subtype Trap has no specific rules meaning, each Trap has an alternative cost you can pay to cast it if a certain condition has been met.)

Theme: "Quests" ("Quests" is the nickname for a set of Zendikar enchantments that reward you for certain achievements while playing the game.

Theme: Caring about Basic Land Types (The Zendikar set contains a number of cards that refer to Plains, Islands, Swamps, Mountains, and/or Forests, including a cycle of "fetch lands" such as Arid Mesa.)

Theme: Bloodthirsty Vampires (The Zendikar set contains a number of Vampires that get better if an opponent has 10 or less life.)


CARD-SPECIFIC NOTES
Many cards from Adventuring Gear to World Queller have specific explanations, notes or clarifications about rules.
~