I'm Ophelia, an avid gamer and operator of the 3rd largest MTGO eBay store in existence. As such, the Business of Magic is at the core of my existence. What I mean by the "Business of Magic" is simply buying, selling, and/or trading cards for a profit. Let's be honest with ourselves. We ALL are truly involved in the Business of Magic. If you're a Pro Player, you're counting up the prize money to pay the various expenses. Serious local players want to build Uber-Elite Tier 1 decks while attempting to avoid bankruptcy. Casual players want to add to their collections without burning holes in their pockets. Dealers want to make some bucks, plain and simple.
Now, I've read an absolute ton of articles explaining trading specific "chase cards" and other such surface topics that say what you should do and not why. The why of things is very important. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." (Editor’s Note: Lau Tzu, the father of Taoism, is most often credited with this quote.) My goal here is to point out a few specific concepts that will help you stay on top of the Business in what is hopefully the first installment of a series.
Knowledge is Power.
Know your stuff. Know the prices of your cards. Never be ashamed to walk around with the TCGplayer Magazine price guide. Walking around large events and watching people trade, I see people asking the person on the other end of the trade for values. This is a huge mistake. Asking the person you're trading with for values is like asking an opponent what the right play is in the finals of a tournament. The opponent may answer the question, but do you really want to trust him to tell you the truth? Do not do this.
Along the same lines, follow hot decks, cards, and current events. Lots of things effect the value or future value of cards. I cannot begin to tell you how many people I've seen fall into traps like this:
Random dealer has a gigantic inventory of Arcbound Ravagers that he stares at all night in mystified wonder instead of reading about what's going on in the game. Well, because the random dealer didn't keep up with current events, he didn't realize key elements of Ravager.dec were thrown out of Standard. Demand sunk. Prices sunk. The random dealer now has to give blood at Red Cross for free cookies.
Supply and Demand
This is the bread and butter of trading/dealing and I will lead off with another example to explain.
Jinxed Choker for the longest time was considered to be one of the most horrid crap rares. Well, it's not anymore. It is now a staple addition to many aggro decks, Mono Red for example, to give it an edge against Tooth and MUC. If you were paying attention to the environment and noticed how well it performed, you've just gained knowledge other people probably don't have. While everyone thinks Jinxed Choker is trash, you can pick them up CHEAP. Wait till the next big Standard tournament, Regionals *cough*, and then pick up your girlfriend in the Brand new car you just bought with Jinxed Choker money.
These two examples illustrate an economic concept called supply and demand. In terms of Magic: The Gathering, supply means how many of a single item exist, which usually stay relatively constant due to their printing policy. Of course the older a card gets the harder it is to find. The fewer copies of a card that are around, the higher in price it will go. Demand is how many people want it. Demand is the part of the concept which will fluctuate the most. The more people want a card, the more expensive the card. Sound simple? It is.
Take the Arcbound Ravager example. The dealer wanted to have a lot of Arcbound Ravagers because the card and deck were very much in demand, therefore, easy to sell. When the banning happened NOBODY wantedArcbound Ravagers. The price fell.
In the Jinxed Choker example the environment shifted. Jinxed Choker is becoming popular. Demand is rising. Once people start wanting it in droves the card will rise in price. A term for Jinxed Choker in this situation is "sleeper rare."
To explain the Supply side of Magic economics, I'll use everyone's fantasy, the Black Lotus. O, how I love thee. This card is so expensive that bumper stickers have been made that state, "Trading my car for a Gem Mint Alpha Black Lotus." But why!? Why is this card so expensive? Is it because it breaks every single mana acceleration rule in the game? No. Is it because everyone and their mom wants them? No. It is because you cannot find them! There is very little supply! Don't believe me? If there were only 3 hearts on Earth for a transplant you desperately needed how much would you pay? Would you trade a Gem Mint Alpha Black Lotus? Think about it.......... Didn't think so.
Very easy concepts to understand and infinitely powerful. If you pay attention to the environment, Magic news, and learn card values you should never be caught with your pants down. Hopefully, you can take advantage of the same situations and make a buck or two.
Any questions can be directed to OpheliaGoneWild on MTGO. Just call me Ophy.
eBay store name: Ophelia's Digital Store Gone Wild
eBay user name: 3333ophelia3333
Now, I've read an absolute ton of articles explaining trading specific "chase cards" and other such surface topics that say what you should do and not why. The why of things is very important. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." (Editor’s Note: Lau Tzu, the father of Taoism, is most often credited with this quote.) My goal here is to point out a few specific concepts that will help you stay on top of the Business in what is hopefully the first installment of a series.
Knowledge is Power.
Know your stuff. Know the prices of your cards. Never be ashamed to walk around with the TCGplayer Magazine price guide. Walking around large events and watching people trade, I see people asking the person on the other end of the trade for values. This is a huge mistake. Asking the person you're trading with for values is like asking an opponent what the right play is in the finals of a tournament. The opponent may answer the question, but do you really want to trust him to tell you the truth? Do not do this.
Along the same lines, follow hot decks, cards, and current events. Lots of things effect the value or future value of cards. I cannot begin to tell you how many people I've seen fall into traps like this:
Random dealer has a gigantic inventory of Arcbound Ravagers that he stares at all night in mystified wonder instead of reading about what's going on in the game. Well, because the random dealer didn't keep up with current events, he didn't realize key elements of Ravager.dec were thrown out of Standard. Demand sunk. Prices sunk. The random dealer now has to give blood at Red Cross for free cookies.
Supply and Demand
This is the bread and butter of trading/dealing and I will lead off with another example to explain.
Jinxed Choker for the longest time was considered to be one of the most horrid crap rares. Well, it's not anymore. It is now a staple addition to many aggro decks, Mono Red for example, to give it an edge against Tooth and MUC. If you were paying attention to the environment and noticed how well it performed, you've just gained knowledge other people probably don't have. While everyone thinks Jinxed Choker is trash, you can pick them up CHEAP. Wait till the next big Standard tournament, Regionals *cough*, and then pick up your girlfriend in the Brand new car you just bought with Jinxed Choker money.
These two examples illustrate an economic concept called supply and demand. In terms of Magic: The Gathering, supply means how many of a single item exist, which usually stay relatively constant due to their printing policy. Of course the older a card gets the harder it is to find. The fewer copies of a card that are around, the higher in price it will go. Demand is how many people want it. Demand is the part of the concept which will fluctuate the most. The more people want a card, the more expensive the card. Sound simple? It is.
Take the Arcbound Ravager example. The dealer wanted to have a lot of Arcbound Ravagers because the card and deck were very much in demand, therefore, easy to sell. When the banning happened NOBODY wantedArcbound Ravagers. The price fell.
In the Jinxed Choker example the environment shifted. Jinxed Choker is becoming popular. Demand is rising. Once people start wanting it in droves the card will rise in price. A term for Jinxed Choker in this situation is "sleeper rare."
To explain the Supply side of Magic economics, I'll use everyone's fantasy, the Black Lotus. O, how I love thee. This card is so expensive that bumper stickers have been made that state, "Trading my car for a Gem Mint Alpha Black Lotus." But why!? Why is this card so expensive? Is it because it breaks every single mana acceleration rule in the game? No. Is it because everyone and their mom wants them? No. It is because you cannot find them! There is very little supply! Don't believe me? If there were only 3 hearts on Earth for a transplant you desperately needed how much would you pay? Would you trade a Gem Mint Alpha Black Lotus? Think about it.......... Didn't think so.
Very easy concepts to understand and infinitely powerful. If you pay attention to the environment, Magic news, and learn card values you should never be caught with your pants down. Hopefully, you can take advantage of the same situations and make a buck or two.
Any questions can be directed to OpheliaGoneWild on MTGO. Just call me Ophy.
eBay store name: Ophelia's Digital Store Gone Wild
eBay user name: 3333ophelia3333
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