The Reign of Jafar is currently making waves in both the game and the second-hand market. Before the market inevitably changes with the new cards joining the roster, it’s time to give the month of May a review.
As a quick disclaimer, we will not be including cards from the Reign of Jafar in this list. While the expansion was released in May, it was in the final days of the month.
5. Beast - Tragic Hero
It’s just the start of this list, and we can already see the differences from last month. Beast - Tragic Hero started off the month at a $23 average. The card dropped to its lowest point at $16 around the 22nd of May before starting an upward trend.
Tragic Hero is currently sitting at a $19 average at the moment, while some cold foil copies are demanding anywhere between $40 to $50.
As a card, Beast - Tragic Hero seems to be finding a place with Emerald, Sapphire, and Amber ink combinations.
For Emerald, players seem to be taking advantage of Morph - Space Goo while it’s still in rotation to give Beast a shift line. Sapphire is using its usual ink acceleration tactics for a faster deployment window.
Additionally, it looks like Amber is using Just in Time as a way to cheat out Beast or any other potential mid-ranged targets.
Beast - Tragic Hero offers a very stable mid-game drop that functions as either a draw engine or one-to-one exchange on the challenge front. As usual, these capabilities are reflected in his current rising trend in the market.
That said, this success may not last. Tragic Hero was originally released in the second set of the game, Rise of the Floodborn. With Fabled and the set rotation slated for the 29th of August, this card’s value may start to plummet soon.
4. Diablo - Devoted Herald
Much like Tragic Hero, Devoted Herald started the month of May with a $23 average. Unfortunately, there was a sharp decline to a $19 average around the 2nd week of the month, which is also when the majority of sales occurred.
From there, Diablo - Devoted Herald bottomed out at a $17 average. Currently, there has been some upward movement since copies of Devoted Herald are exchanging hands anywhere between $18 to $20.
Some cold foil copies are bumping up the price a bit to about $26, depending on the seller.
At the moment, Devoted Herald’s value is more than likely being held up by its rarity and how powerful it is when paired with Amethyst.
3. Maui - Half-Shark
It looks like Maui - Half-Shark has lost some of its dominance since last we looked. The card started May with a commanding $52 average and slid down to a $42 average after two weeks.
Half-Shark clawed its way back up in value to about $47 (its peak for the month) before another slide to a $37 average at the month’s closing. Currently, Maui - Half-Shark is seeing a positive tick up, but it’s pretty minuscule; an average of $39 at the moment.
Half-Shark is currently seeing use in Sapphire and Amethyst. The former takes advantage of its native ink acceleration for an early deployment. The latter, meanwhile, has a lot of powerful utility Actions that Maui could recur like Friends On The Other Side.
It’s possible we may not see Maui - Half-Shark return to the peak of dominance he once had, thanks to Reign of Jafar.
Being safe from the set rotation means he’s a tool any Ruby deck can dip into for mid to late-game firepower and recursion for the foreseeable future.
2. Rapunzel - Gifted with Healing
It looks like Rapunzel - Gifted with Healing isn’t willing to go screaming into the night of obscurity despite the looming set rotation.
Despite its $44 average start and its subsequent cratering to a $37 average at the end of May, Gifted with Healing is slowly struggling back up to a $39 average currently.
Beyond this average, it looks like the cold foil versions of Gifted with Healing still command a formidable asking price of about $80 to $90.
Even with the threat of the set rotation right around the corner, Amber players are making full use of Rapunzel’s double-duty package.
More than likely, Gifted with Healing will continue to see a downward trend in market price occasionally peppered with upward ticks. The latter happening only due to the sheer power of her performance in Amber decks.
That said, it will be interesting to see what will happen to this card’s second-hand market value once Ravensburger clarifies the details on their legacy support, Infinity Constructed.
1. Tamatoa - Happy as a Clam
Jockeying for the top spot once again, Tamatoa - Happy as a Clam is showcasing its staying power in Sapphire decks.
Happy as a Clam started the month of May at $37, where it saw some average ups and downs.
This card peaked in value around the middle of May at about a $40 average. From there it has slowly declined to a $35 price point, where it’s currently holding steady with a few pluses and minuses here and there.
For cold foil copies, they’re not so far from the average market value. They’re sitting at about $44 to $47.
As far as performance goes, Sapphire still has access to Pawpsicle. Even without other viable targets in the deck, Happy as Clam represents a sturdy mid to late body that can access some draw for the grind game.
With Ruby, Tamatoa has more targets to recur with Vitalisphere and Maurice’s Machine. While the odd copy or two appear with Amethyst in Emerald, we can only see Pawpsicicles as the only viable target.
It’s also possible that players are running Tamatoa as a small bulwark for discard shenanigans. A player could easily have a Pawpsicle (or another item card) in hand for discard fodder and bring it back with Happy as Clam the following turn.
With how things stand, it looks like Tamatoa’s value might be linked to its ability to recur Pawpsicle.
The latter is still in rotation for the moment. But when Fabled rolls around, we aren’t sure if players will be as keen to run Tamatoa - Happy as a Clam as often as he is now.