There really is a slow down

Total Trade Count: 203,202
Total Foil Count: 3,744

Total Need Count: 1895

This is the second December update, but the only reason I wanted to get this in was to circumvent an update before the year end review update.  I did get some interesting things in, and I am still on target to just picking up sealed product for the collection and I am going to just pick up everything in paper after rotation.  I am not even opening up any sealed product until I feel better about the way things are going.

I have not yet figured out what I am going to do about selling the collection, there seems to be a large downturn on prices so I might wait until things pick back up.  That might just be an excuse to wait this out and not sell, but the more and more I just don't look at the cards anymore.

There is a large part of me that thinks to just stop buying and move on with what I have.  Always keeping the cards and playing with what I have with my friends, but I am still thinking about it.  I am also still going through and grading every card, so that is going to take me a while anyway.

Vintage

I picked up some more cards for the Unlimited set, and now I am only in need of 9 more cards to fill out that set.  These came in from CardSphere, so I am happy some folks are trying to liquidate their older cards while we see the drop in prices.

Here is the other Vintage trade I got.  I know, this is not just in Vintage play, but considering the set they are from, I am calling them Vintage cards and you will just have to deal with it.

Sealed

This was a surprise!  I never get sealed product from CardSphere, but there you go!  Someone sent me this lovely Fat Pack from Conflux and it fits nicely in the collection!

Speculation

I know right!  I am still getting these cards in from CardSphere.  It is still a long bet that these will turn out to be worth anything, but I am just going to say it again.  "Moxen will always prove out to be worth something."  In this game we play, the Moxen always prove out to be worth something.  Mox Opal, Mox Amber, it does not matter.  Someone somewhere will use this card in some way that will prove it's worth.

This is another long bet, but it just plays so well in EDH.  Just too much value.

So this is two trades, and the second time we decided to pick up Ugin's Nexus.  Right now I am only sitting on 35 of them, but I still feel like there is some wicked combo that could turn this card into something special.

Secret Lair

So this was something I just had to get.

I did it.  I am not ashamed!  Ok maybe a little bit.

Of course I needed to get two, one to open and one to keep sealed.

I don't know if I bought them for the collectability or because I am a completionist, but either way I have them in the collection.  They are interesting, but I never play with Foils.  I am not even putting them with the other cards.  They are going into the promo folder, and I have no real desire to use them in decks.  Maybe if I build out a pimped out cube I would use them, but for now they are just there and I don't really care.

I really want to say that it is because it is the first of it's kind, and it is always a good thing to pick up the first printing of anything WoTC puts out.  But I am really not satisfied with this purchase.  But that is also why I am just becoming less and less interested in collecting MTG cards.

And here are the secret lair cards.  I think there are some valuable card, but again I don't care about foils.  I did get a couple of Gideons so that sucks.

All in all some collection cards, some sealed pickups, some speculation cards.  But I am still just down and out about collecting while I consider my move to the new cards coming out in Jan.  Just so much product to pick up, I just get so sad trying to think about it.

For the love of everything holy

Total Needs Count: 1,895

Total Trade Count: 203,450
Total Foil Count: 3,744

Ok so we are still tracking the three different counts.  One for the collection, one for the extra bulk, and one for the foils (I have no idea why).  Big deal this month is that we broke into 203k!  This is pretty cool considering I have been able to keep adding to the collection without adding too much bulk I do no need.

Debt

https://dogonsiereht-mtg.blogspot.com/2019/04/debt.html

So back in April I decided to start to go back into interest free debt and start picking up some sealed product, starting with Mercadian Masques.  I did a purchase on Amazon.com with one of my interest free credit cards, and I would like to share that I have paid that off last month.

I am currently still paying down my Urza's Destiny Booster box with a different interest free credit card, so I decided to pick up some of the Fat Packs I need for the collection.

These were some nice adds, but I was hoping to pick up the block set.  I am not going to complain though considering these are the first ones with the storage box setup, and where I am starting the collection.  I do not think I will go before these Fat Packs, but who knows with me.

Here is the second of the block, and only need the Future Sight to complete the set.  I am not too worried about that one considering that everyone wants that set.  Now with Tarmogoyf on the down slope, this is going to be a much cheaper pick up.  Also with the rise of the Pioneer format a lot of these Modern boxes are on the cheap as well.

I have yet to see if there is an actual Shards of Alara Fat Pack, but I cannot really find anything online that says there is one.  I still need the Conflux one as well, but I do see listings of that one online.

And these two were real treats!  New Phyrexia is a huge favorite of mine, and I did put some extra funds in booster boxes when this was still in print.  I just never snagged up the Fat Packs.  Morningtide on the other hand was not a set I had the privilege to be around when it was in print, and I was not purchasing new sets, but still playing around the kitchen table.  I was pretty excited to be able to get one of these.

I was able to pick these up at some reasonable prices, and considering the downturn we are currently in, I am considering just getting everything that I am looking for to finish the collection.  I know some might say that is not a good idea, and with some of my very own thoughts of getting out completely, to finish the collection might not make the most sense.

But I expect to try and finish everything out next year, and see what happens next.

CardSphere Trades

I did pick these up at the current value, and right after someone decided to send me these cards the prices dropped.  That is why I had them at the price they were set at, and it seems to be working.  As long as I am setting the value at the prices I think they will end up, I am getting the cards I need for my collection without chasing too much.

This helps me finish up my playset, and the other is a trusty spec I am trying to get.  I still do not know why the price of this is still so low, but I do feel like it has room to run.  Like my spec on the Mox Amber, it is only a matter of time for any Mox to go up in price.

Force of Negation is a card I am trying to finish out along with do a small spec on.  Having two playsets is not a bad thing, and I am considering to pick up more, but I do not want to lower my funds too low on CardSphere due to falling Vintage prices.  I am already seeing more Unlimited cards being sent as long as I have my prices set correctly.

This is the last Player Promo card I needed for the easier ones to get.  I still do need all the tokens and the Wasteland, but I am pretty sure I am going to have to get those at a GP or something like that.

I finally got these for my collection and all is good.  There is nothing special about this card outside of being a good EDH card, and it is looking like it is going to get Banded everywhere, but hey, why not just pick them up.  The prices have been falling for a bit, and with Pioneer it is no wonder someone decided to send these to me at the price I had set.

Here is the last Dominaria card I need for my playsets, and a new Spec I am trying out, Thran Temporal Gateway.  I really see this as an EDH spec, but who knows maybe someone will find a good Pioneer / Modern deck to make with it.

Lodestone Buys

So I am at my FLGS picking up my final Dominaria needs and some Modern Horizon needs, and  then I saw a very sexy Beta card.  I did not need another Llanowar Elves, but I could not pass up such a wonderful card.  Then I saw a Judge promo that I have no need for, but thought I could move it on CardSphere and get that Judge Promo badge.  So right now I am just waiting for the price to catch up to what I paid for the card, and I will try and move it. 

I might also try and get more Judge Promo cards since I am pretty much done with the Player Promo cards I am looking for, and need something else to buy.  I doubt it, but who knows.

And to bring my Spec right to the front.  $20 got me these, and I can see these going past $10 each.  Time will only tell, but I do see a lot of value in this card.

Grey Duck Games

So there is my other LGS near the house I like to show up at and pick through their wares, and I also like to support them because I can buy my son presents at their shop.  It is not a normal LGS, but more of a Game / Kite store that holds MTG tournaments.  Anyway, I like to go up there and see what they have.  Since they are not a bigger shop, they normally keep product for longer periods of time, and do not sell out right away.

Can't find these things anywhere, but I was able to grab these at the shop at a pretty decent price.  I really did not want to buy them on Amazon, but I was willing to do so if I could not find them locally.  Either way, BAM!  There they are!  I will not be opening the Collector Booster Pack that comes in these, because they are fucking stupid.

Another good reason to stop up there is because this shop actually picks up product like this to sell.  All around the other shops, no one picks these up to sell because they do not sell.  Luckily the game shop will in order to keep a good name with their distributer, and then I get to buy them locally instead of online.  I will do the same thing, open one and keep the other sealed, but I will not chase the first print cards in this game.

And I broke down and picked up their last one of these.  I know, I said I was not going to buy this at all, and I have no plans to open it.  It was the first of it's kind, so I decided to just bite the bullet and buy one for the collection.  I can only see the price of this product going down in the future, so I might as well get on with it.  Just happy they are not trying to sell the damn things on eBay...

Collection Update

So this blog is really turning into a monthly affair, but really I was waiting for my Avacyn Restored Fat Pack to come in the mail, but it is lost right now and I got tired of waiting.

I am literally sick of all the crap WoTC is releasing.  There is a Secret Lair that is coming out tomorrow, and I will be picking up a single set for the collection, but I am tired.  I am just tired of this hobby of mine.  The plan is to finish the collection ending at War of the Spark.  I will finish up those playsets and just be done with it.  I do not plan to open any Throne f Eldraine or any set after.  I will take 2020 off and only try and pick up sealed product for the collection until I really figure out what is going on.

If I need anything else for playing, I will plan on buying them as singles for the decks I play.  I will just finish up all the sets I have, and I will stop printing labels.  I do plan on reorganizing the collection, just not sure how I am going to do it yet.  I am leaning towards sets, and that will make things easier to grade everything over again.

All in all, it is all in an attempt to sell off the collection.  Piece by piece after I actually finish the collection and take pictures of everything.  I will more than likely sell everything past a single card so I will keep one of every card and one of every sealed product.  That will give me enough time to see if my son is interested in the game.

So for now, I am just going to finish off all the other items I need in the open sets.  That will be Guilds of Ravnica, Ravinca Allegience, War of the Spark, Core 2020, Ultimate Master Box Toppers, and Modern Horizons.  I will also try and finish up my Beta and Unlimited sets, but those are pipe dreams.

More to come, but don't expect another post until the year end review.