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In light of the changes to the Extended format, cards rotating out of Standard will likely lose far less value than previously expected. While according to the charts, Alara Block cards should be sinking like the Titanic right now, some have actually retained their value very well. Considering that Extended is much more shallow than it was a few weeks ago, it would do well to review some of the cards in Standard that will not take as large a dive. In some rare cases, a card's value might even increase.
Key removal in Zoo archetypes. Path is currently a super Uncommon, which basically classifies it as a Rare. While it won't see play in Faeries or Jund, it will surely see play in the myriad of white decks that Spectral Procession will fuel. Path is a good candidate for a small drop in price, but it will stay reasonably high for the coming Extended season.
Speaking of White decks and Spectral Procession, Goldmane is the natural progression when developing these decks. I was messing about with a GW tokens deck last night, and I'd forgotten what an utter beating his -1 ability can be. We even have some insane cards at the top end of the token curve - Nomads' Assembly, Knight-Captain of Eos (have fun racing that guy when he drops on T3 thanks to a Cobra....), and Conqueror's Pledge. There are a whole host of cards that can leverage the power of tokens, and Ajani Goldmane is only one of many.
I feel like this is in every deck in Standard, or it should be. There are so many ways to ensure that it just wins you the game. It complements Ajani and other such token-buffers, and it provides essential Wrath defense, especially when combined with Dauntless Escort (who is sadly not a Knight, because he'd be quite good with the new Knight lord!) Eldrazi Monument is probably one of the scariest tools in an Aggro deck's arsenal, and they're already expensive. I can see them staying high, and even perhaps surging higher for Extended play. Beastmaster Ascension is also in consideration, since a GW Tokens deck was dominant towards the end of LRW-ALA Standard.
Holy Jeebus. Look how many good Merfolk there are in Extended! Silvergill Adept! Merrow Reejerey! Cursecatcher! Mutavault! Then there's Mana Leak! Cryptic Command! Spell Pierce and Negate! Let's not forget that Merfolk Sovereign will be around too. That's 12 Lords, including one that turns into a 4/4 flier. The deck could have serious legs (fins?) in the new format, and Commander will surely fit in. They're a candidate for a big spike, but only if the deck turns out to be any good. Regardless, you heard it from me :)
He's $10 any time an Elf deck is Tier 1 in Standard, easy. Considering the power level of Elves in Extended (Heritage Druid, Devoted Druid, Bloodbraid Elf, Imperious Perfect), he could be an absolute doomsday machine. Don't forget that Elves still have Joraga Warcaller as a sink for all that mana, as well as Elf-Drazi Monument to protect them. The Devoted Druid + Nettle Sentinel + Heritage Druid Engine is pretty absurd, especially when you roll in Imperious Perfect to make elves and Elvish Promenade to double them. For grins, you can even splash Black using all the sick mana fixing to play Prowess of the Fair. Good luck beating a deck with Monument and Prowess out! They even get to sideboard Gutteral Response to shut off Faeries!
In a format where Five Color Control and Faeries ran the show, Stag was the perfect counter. Granted, decks using the Vivid mana base can just point a Bolt at the beastie, but he is still a quality road-block and an even better clock against the little blue menace.
Faeries hates this card, and considering it will slot nicely next to Boggart Ram Gang, Flame Javelin, Figure of Destiny and all the other Burn Deck staples. While it's not too good against Jund, it's a valuable part of any Red Deck Wins type strategy and thus, it will be in demand. Such decks are not terribly good in Standard right now, which is why Goblin Guide's price is so depressed.
This hearkens back to the Token Deck discussion. To be honest, most token decks would do better to run Ajani Goldmane and Eldrazi Monument, but for decks that want to be quicker and not so "grind you out" style, Honor of the Pure could be the solution. There's no better way to bolster an army of Kithkin in the early game, but I can't help but think that token decks will take a more midrange approach in Extended.
The interaction with tokens is well-documented, but my favorite interaction is between Knotty and Ajani G. Giving your guys Vigilance means that they willingly grant their bonus to the Paladin even when they themselves attack. Yes, he just dies to removal, but he's a 2/2 for 2 at the worst. If they Bolt him, they still get run over by a ton of tokens and don't get to kill your Planeswalker. I've pulled these from my $1 box and stashed them in my secret hiding spot in the store. I believe!
I'm not sure if this will actually see a rise in price, but it's not too far from being useful. The fact that 
for a 2/2 Elf Lord being pretty mediocre is overshadowed by the fact that he's the best possible mana sink in the late game. Once again, if you can accelerate out an Eldrazi Monument using Elf Shenanigans, Joraga Warcaller goes from "support guy" to "big guy" really fast. While he may not be a four-of, and his price may be dampened from being a prerelease card, he has a lot of room to grow.
This card is simply too good not to be used in Extended. Its post-rotation price will be determined by the deck that uses it, but it seems like a safe bet that Knight of the Reliquary, and her little buddy Noble Hierarch, will be format staples until they rotate. They're not Tarmogoyf-level good, but they do similar things and can really gum up an early board while you develop. I'd not be selling these any time soon.
While none of these are sure bets, many have the potential to be format All-Stars. We will have our work cut out for us as speculators come the Fall, so this summer is a good time to stock up on all the cheap stuff that might blow up. Rather than trying to play catch-up when news breaks, and risk having orders canceled or dealers run out, grab them before the news breaks and enjoy the ride. While it's not always possible, a thorough thinking-through of the format can save you a lot of money down the road. Happy brewing!
