In Magic: The Gathering, there are a set of cards known as the Power Nine. These nine cards are considered to be the most powerful from MTG's original print run and are incredibly valuable to collectors. However, none of the Power Nine cards are as valuable as the Black Lotus card. The card's legendary status has lead to it being banned in almost every form of competitive play.
In terms of actual ability, Black Lotus costs no mana to play and allows the user to discard it for three mana. Given that it basically leads to three free mana for cheap, it quickly rose to be one of the most sought out cards in MTG history, with many competitive players referring to it as the greatest MTG card ever. Black Lotus has never seen a reprint or rework in later sets, which has further increased its value with both fans and collectors alike. It was only printed in MTG's Alpha, Beta and Unlimited sets.
Part of Black Lotus's value and power is due to older versions of Magic not limiting how many of a specific type of card players could have in their decks. In short, players were able to load their decks with Black Lotus cards and certain spell cards in order to create extremely powerful decks. Versions of this strategy appearing in competitive tournaments helped raise the value of Black Lotus cards.
Since Black Lotus cards saw a very limited release, many fans are left wondering just how many are still in circulation. This is a fairly difficult number to figure out, though it's possible to estimate by looking at how many were printed. There were roughly 22,800 Black Lotus cards ever printed, though that's using a rough estimate based on the total number of cards released in the Alpha, Beta and Unlimited Sets.
In 2013, Reddit users collaborated to determine there were probably somewhere around 5 thousand Black Lotuses still in circulation at the time. Redditors parsed this number through estimation, guesswork, and an examination of Magic card rarity values. The card is classified as rare, which means there was only a chance of one Black Lotus appearing in any of the sets that the card was included in. Given the card's status as a collector's item that most people would want to keep in close-to-mint condition, it's safe to assume the 5 thousand card estimate is still somewhat accurate eight years later.
However, the exact location of those 5 thousand Black Lotus cards is unknown, as people are still finding unopened packs of Magic sets with Black Lotus cards inside. The card continues to sell for wild amounts of money -- according to Polygon, a Black Lotus sold for $511,100 in an eBay auction in January.
The Black Lotus was in mint condition and was signed by the card's original artist, Christopher Rush, which greatly increased its already staggering value. It's the highest price ever paid for a Black Lotus.
Wizards of the Coast has never reprinted the Black Lotus card, but it has done limited digital runs of the card and referenced it in several others. In a 2019 event in Magic: The Gathering Arena, Black Lotus saw a temporary return in special decks. Multiple cards either featured Black Lotus or referenced it, including numerous other Lotus cards, Goblin Charbelcher, Old Fogey and even the parody Blacker Lotus, which requires players to physically rip up the card to play it.
Black Lotus has reached a near-legendary status among MTG players and Wizards of the Coast staff. Through a combination of the card's immense power and limited run, it quickly ballooned in value and has almost become a card of myth. The exact number of Black Lotus cards still in existence is hard to know for certain, but it's clear the community is fully invested in the legend behind the card.
0 Comments