Wizards of the Coast is about to cough up another collection of premium MTG cards with intriguing artwork – yes, it’s Secret Lair time again. This time, there’s five new drops, all themed around the company’s RPG Dungeons and Dragons, currently celebrating its 50th birthday. They’ll be available to purchase from Tuesday, August 27.
It’s been a half-year of underwhelming MTG Secret Lairs, not helped by the company switching to a limited supply model in 2024 – exploiting FOMO and benefitting scalpers.
To help you decide which (if any) from this drop are worth attempting to buy, we’ll show you all the new art, provide a price breakdown of both regular and foil copies of the cards, and discuss where you might end up playing them.
Karlach’s Rage
- Karlach, Fury of Avernus – $12.12 /$13
- Thrill of Possibility – $0.20/$0.25
- City on Fire – $5.09/$4.65
- Dolmen Gate – $18/$100
- Stranglehold – $6.64/$8.95
- Total – $42.05/$126.85
Karlach herself is a valuable source of extra combat steps for EDH, while City on Fire also has its place in aggressive red decks. Dolmen Gate spiked in price earlier this year when Anzrag came out, and Stranglehold seems fairly niche, but can be a nice tool against tutors and extra turn steps – to make playing red feel like less of a handicap.
Thrill of Possibility is a bit of a disappointing inclusion. Sure, it sees plenty of Commander play, but it’s a super cheap card, reprinted umpteen times over the years. Still, I have a funny feeling people are going to like this particular version.
Overall, this Secret Lair has pretty darn good value for money. It contains a bunch of Commander cards, which – pleasingly – could all go in the same Karlach-themed deck, no trouble.
Astarion’s Thirst
- Astarion, The Decadent – $0.52/$1.70
- Exquisite Blood – $19/$38
- Sanguine Bond – $2.15/$4.40
- Anguished Unmaking – $2.58/$1.56
- Mortify – $0.25/$0.25
- Total – $24.50/45.91
Just as Karlach’s lair is tailor-made for a player looking to put together a Karlach list, you’d probably want to include all of these cards in your Astarion, The Decadent deck, even if they didn’t have such provactive new art.
Unfortunately, it’s a much worse lair than Karlach’s from a value perspective. Most of what’s worthwhile here comes from the expensive half of the Exquisite Blood/Sanguine Bond combo, and then there’s just a few cheap removal spells.
Still, while it doesn’t quite hit the $25 mark we’re generally looking for, this is an eminently playable Secret Lair, and still miles better than some of the dross we’ve seen this year. Plus it’s nice to get an infamous MTG combo sold in one tidy package.
Death is in the Eyes of the Beholder I
- Xanathar, Guild Kingpin – $3.37/$4.36
- Drown in the Loch – $1.20/$1.87
- Bribery – $7.47/$6.68
- Stifle – $16/$32
- Delay – $2.25/$2.85
- Blood Money – $1.05/$1.50
- Total – $31.34/$49.26
So this is just the thing Wizards is doing now? All the Secret Lairs so far contain an MTG commander, plus four or five cards you could play alongside them. I’m honestly all for it, and this one has pretty good bang for your buck, with Stifle and Bribery being particular highlights.
Though I wouldn’t play Delay or Stifle if it weren’t for this lair – not when Counterspell and Negate are right there – these cards all work in a Xanathar deck. The artwork is great, and renaming the cards around the Beholder 5e‘s eyestalk rays is a really nice, flavorful touch. Overall, another banger!
Death is in the Eyes of the Beholder II
- Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant – $13/$5.65
- Snuff Out – $7.45/$11
- Defile – $1.04/$3.88
- Oubliette – $2.63/$2.35
- Fling – $0.15/$0.25
- Fire Covenant – $6.07/$34
- Total – $30.34/$57.13
Continuing right on we have Karazikar, plus a bunch of niche removal spells reskinned as eyestalk attacks. This one has a tiny bit less value than Xanathar (though foil Fire Coveneant is very nice). More importantly, while it wouldn’t be terrible, I’m not sure you’d ever normally include any of these cards in a Karazikar deck (and EDHREC agrees with me).
So far these lairs have been very EDH-centric, but this one seems to be throwing a bone to Pauper, with reprints of Oubliette, Snuff Out, and Defile.
An Exhibition of Adventure
- Fell the Mighty – $0.25/$0.29
- Faithless Looting – $0.26/$0.78
- Goldspan Dragon – $10/$19
- Reality Shift – $0.42/$0.50
- Monster Manual – $4.05/$4.63
- Ponder – $2.25/$7.40
- Acererak, The Archlich – $4.51/$4.43
- Total – $21.74/$37.03
This is looking more like a classic Secret Lair: a couple of good cards, and quite a few from the bargain bin, tied together through a new art style rather than a mechanical theme.
As you might expect, therefore, it’s the worst value of the bunch. But honestly, if this wasn’t such a stellar Secret Lair drop, we would not be looking harshly at this at all. Ponder and Goldspan Dragon, Reality Shift and Faithless Looting – these are all multipurpose cards you’ll be able to find a Commander deck home for.
If you’re a fan of the retro art from old DnD books that’s been repurposed for this SL, we’re certainly not going to tell you not to buy it.
And that’s your lot. Honestly, we’re impressed. After months where it’s felt like Wizards of the Coast is experimenting with how little it can get away giving us, it’s nice to see a Secret Lair where more often than not, you’re getting a good deal for your $25/35.
We can only hope that Wizards makes these in sufficient number that they don’t all sell out instantaneously. It knows DnD is popular, right? Right?
For more Magic: The Gathering content, check out our guides to the MTG release schedule, and our ranking of the best MTG precon decks.
Source: Wargamer
