I haven't written since the election. Not one damn word.

Unless it was a text message or an email, mum times tons.

It's not often that the scope of the world becomes such that I can't even summon the will to contemplate Magic, largely because it's historically been a great aid to me in times of suffering, but there we were for most of November. I was at a complete loss for spells.

I wanted to put some Gladiator games to video, but my trusty webcam and mic combo of many, many years gave up the ghost right as I was set to begin. Nothing is trusty forever, it seems.

Well, there are exceptions. For instance, there are certain very evergreen Magic cards where you have two options: keeping them forever under any and all circum-stances; or losing money for no reason.

Before I get back to writing about the heavy stuff and recount 2020, as well as speculate on the dark fates that await us next year (I don't think the universe uses the Julian calendar), I thought I'd help you save a few dollars this holiday season (and all the other holiday seasons to come in your life).

This is priceless advice. Literally (kind of).

Stop. Do Not Get Rid of These Cards.

Picture yourself at a tournament hall or a local game store. You want a few bucks for entry or a slice of pizza or something. You go to the front counter or to a dealer booth and grab your binder. You don't need to give up anything crazy, just a little here and there. Keep all the planeswalkers that are going up, keep the nutso foils, just find something you see all the time. Some common or money uncommon you won't lose any sleep over.

This is where things go wrong.

They're paying 50 cents for Bolts and you've got three. They've been printed a thousand times, and every shop on the planet usually has a handful. You don't have a full playset right now, you're not playing much Magic in formats in which they're legal, and they don't do that much in Commander. Seri-ously, it's either this or a rare that could spike huge. You're going to feel like an idiot if your Zombie Lord or whatever skyrockets.

Some of you have already figured it out.

If you've been playing this game for any significant amount of time, you've probably sold and bought Lightning Bolts several times. If you've been a serious tournament player since way back, you've probably done it more than several times. For most of the duration of Magic, Lightning Bolt has retailed for between a few bucks and a few more bucks. Depending on the time frame, that puts it going into dealer inventory at sometimes dimes, quarters, and once in a while, dollars.

Now, think about how many cards this applies to. Like, seriously, do you have any idea how often the card Counterspell is bought and sold?

So, make Bolt and Counterspell your first two. Get four of them and have them put in your cof-fin at your funeral. Never let them go because eventually, you're going to pay for it. Outwit the system with your enviable restraint on these other classics:

Though a playset is technically only one copy with this monster and they reprint it as often as humanly possi-ble nowadays, there will never be a time where you don't wish you had a few "extra" copies so you don't have to swap the damn things out every time you change Commander decks. Whether it's casual Magic, Commander, or a high octane Cube, they're going to show up. Convenience your-self, please. Commander players have a more specialized list that includes stuff like Command Tow-er, Lightning Greaves, and such. Going into all those would be more of a book than an article. I'll write it, but someone else has to do the Patreon. Your move, public!

Bolt's sister spell is even cheaper. The variant burn spells are the ones that get most of the play these days, but when Shock is legal, it's always a consideration. So just do it already. They cost used napkins.

Now that we're fully aware that the wildcards at Wizards of the Coast will go for plurality on a whim, it pays to just be ready with both reprint options. And since we're talking about Elves deck investments, Gaea's Cradle is probably a decent option for anyone that happens to be reading this from 2009.

The Magic regulators seem to be pretty okay with shocklands being around indefinitely. Go ahead and tuck a few Farseeks and spare yourself the time it takes to dig for them the next several times they go into the spoiler pages of history.

One or two Negate in Standard control sideboards will exist long after human beings have gone extinct.

Speaking of Blue cards, this next one should be customized for your individual needs:

Whatever formats you're into or plan on being into, they will all, without fail, have something in between Ancestral Recall and Opt that you need to possess copies of. It doesn't matter that nobody brought their commons to the big tournament weekend and they're buying Preordain for $3. Don't lie to yourself. Sell whatever cards they're going to ban the next week instead.

What Cards Do You Never Go Without?

Dark Ritual? Daze? Spell Pierce? Dispel? Tron lands?

The list of cards one could reasonably hold onto deep into their Magic lives and beyond is, as the kids say, "thicc." What cards have you given up selling and buying back on? And don't say dual lands or something. Your wealth signaling hurts our feelings.

So, what'll it be, gang? You've got a box with 20 of each basic land and plenty of room to spare. What else goes in with them? What cards did you get so sick of searching for in your bulk year after year that you en-shrined them in permanent ownership?

(~_^)

The Rascal

The Indestructible Danny West