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This week is a big one for Fallout fans, what with the release of the long-anticipated Amazon series.Magic: The Gatheringis joining in on the post-nuclear celebrations too, with three Secret Lair drops based on its famous Vault Boy mascot.
Secret Lair is MTG’s direct-to-consumer service that offers exclusive cards for only a limited time. Once the sale ends, or once they’ve sold out, these cards won’t be available again.
TheEquinox 2024 Superdropis smaller than usual, with just six limited-time releases available. However, between them we’ve also got some of the most eyecatching art and noteworthy reprints we’ve seen in a good long while.
Trinisphere
Winter Orb
The first drop brings Vault Boy himself to Magic, with four reprinted cards with Fallout-y art. They’re just like the reprints we saw in Universes Beyond: Fallout Collector boosters, but with a weirdly spherical theme going on.
Sphere of Resistance is a massive pull for this drop, having last been reprinted in paper as a Kaladesh Invention. The cheapest legal version of the card is still over $30, meaning it alone almost justifies the cost of the entire drop.
On top of that, you’ve got thestax staplesWinter Orb and Trinisphere. Combine that with Vault Boy, Cap Collector, which is a reskinned Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, and you’ve got a scary start to a powerful control deck.
Reflecting Pool
Reliquary Tower
The second of three Fallout drops reprints some very useful, if not necessarily valuable, lands.
Bojuka Bog and Reliquary Tower see regular reprints, with Reflecting Pool also popping up a few times in recent years too.
The biggest wins of this drop are Command Beacon, which was just included in one of theOutlaws of Thunder Junction Commander decksbut has a unique ability that makes it popular in the format, and Fabled Passage.
Fabled Passage is a strictly better version of Terramorphic Expanse or Evolving Wilds that we haven’t seen since Core 2021. It isn’t as valuable a card as Command Tower, but it’ll be the perfect upgrade to practically any deck you slot it in.
Anger
Lightning Bolt
One thing that sets Fallout apart from other RPGs is its stats system, known as S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Strength, Perception, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck guide everything your character does, and these seven cards all represent each of the stats.
Drops that feature more than five cards are a rarity, with the last one being the Princess Bride Universes Beyond drop last year.
None of these cards is worth a massive amount on their own, with Idyllic Tutor leading the way at under ten dollars. However, Universes Beyond Secret Lair prints of Lightning Bolt have been known to spike in the past, with the Street Fighter art being over ten, and the Secret Lair promo that came with the Nerf tie-in over $20.
What it lacks in value it makes up for in playability, with every card here being useful in several high-profile Commander decks. Idyllic Tutor is a great enchantment tutor, Propaganda works inpillow fortdecks, and Steelshaper’s Gift fits into just about any artifacts or Voltron deck.
Fiend Artisan
Karador, Ghost Chieftain
The first of three non-Fallout drops is exactly what I love about Secret Lair. Artists being given free reign to do what they do best, while also highlighting older cards that might have been muscled out of the game in recent years.
Diabolical Dioramas features four cards by Laura Plansker, that feature photographs of actual dioramas made by her. The tie-in videos for the cards are excellent, with a mix of stop-motion and puppetry that shows this is a drop Plansker had fun with.
The cards themselves aren’t anything to write home about, with Fiend Artisan and Aura Shards both being the most valuable at under ten dollars. But that’s not the point, as fall four cards can be run in a Karador Commander deck and have stunningly unique art style. This is my favourite Secret Lair drop in a good long while.
Arcane Signet
Sword of the Animist
Artist Series allow long-time Magic artists the chance to curate their own drops, including choosing the cards and the art they use to represent them. Rovina Cai is known for her whispy, muted art on cards like Void Rend, Fading Hope, and Rite of Harmony, as well as numerous contributions to Strixhaven’s Mystical Archive bonus sheet.
For this drop, Cai has drawn from tarot for inspiration, giving each card a unique frame and monochromatic blue art that looks amazing. The cards themselves are good too, with the most interesting being Inalla, Archmage Ritualist, who is receiving her first reprint since her debut in Commander 2017.
Eminence is a powerful ability we don’t see used anymore, so having a new version of an eminence commander is always a big deal. Throwing in staples like Sword of the Animist and Arcane Signet alongside her just sweetens the deal, even if the former is the most valuable card at just over eight dollars.
Dockside Chef
Door of Destinies
Wilds of Eldraine put Faeries back on the map, and this drop can spice up your Faerie decks with some really charming art by children’s illustrate Phoebe Wahl.
Though every card here can fit in the sameFaerie kindred deck, the value is perhaps the most lacking of the superdrop. The only card worth more than a dollar is Door of Destinies, and even that only barely manages to brush past five bucks.
But, again, this is one of those drops where the art is the appeal. Wahl’s art is delightful, and really helps sell the storybook feel of Faeries incredibly well. If you’ve already got an Alela deck, or have been interested in making one, this is a nice way to spruce it up a bit.
Bundles
Bundles help you get the drops cheaper than buying them seperately, and, refreshingly, this time the Fallout drops are bundled up with the non-Fallout ones instead of being annoyingly separate.
The first three bundles also get you one more goodie: an exclusive version of Ignoble Hierarch. Though this isn’t a valuable card on its own, the difficulty in getting this Secret Lair version of it is sure to drive its value up.
A Celebration Of Everything Foil And Non-Foil
$349.99
$159.99
$209.99
$74.99
$99.99
Sunlight and Moonbeams Bundle Non-Foil Edition
Sunlight and Moonbeams Bundle Foil Edition
