The Ultimate Standard Rotation Finance Guide

Getting the most out of your investments with rotation in mind.

Ah, Standard. For over a decade, it was the primary engine of the tabletop Magic economy. Then came Commander, the pandemic, the erosion of organized play, and the rise of MTG Arena. By late 2020, Standard playability would barely move the needle on a card’s value, and you could build top Standard decks for next to nothing.

But that was then, and this is now. While tabletop Standard isn’t back to where it was in the late 2010s, it’s still in a far better place than it was even just a few years ago. Organized Play is back on track, and folks are gathering to play in weekly Standard events at their LGS again. Standard playability may not matter as much as Commander, Pioneer, or Modern demand, but the top Standard staples are once again among the hottest commodities on the Magic market.

Back in the before times, Standard sets would rotate out after two years, and rotation occurred alongside the release of the fall set. That changed in May of 2023, however, when Wizards of the Coast announced that they were moving to a three-year rotation. Nothing rotated last autumn, and the first rotation in nearly two full years occurred just a few weeks ago when Bloomburrow first hit shelves. Since then, Standard players and brewers alike have been experimenting with the new metagame and honing in on the best decks. At this point, there has been enough data for me to formulate my own thoughts. Hence, this guide to Standard finance in the brand-new meta.

Let’s begin, shall we?

Zooming Out on Standard

Market Price: $31.69

Based on deck popularity data via MTGGoldfish, there are currently two top decks in Standard: Golgari Midrange and Domain Ramp. Orzhov Midrange is alone in the second tier, while the third tier includes aggro and tempo decks like Gruul Prowess, Mono-Red Aggro, and Boros Convoke. The first true control build, Azorius Control, shows up at the top of the fourth tier, alongside Jeskai Aggro, Boros Token Control, and Rakdos Lizards.

For anyone playing pre-rotation Standard, this tier list should look similar enough. Boros Convoke, Domain Ramp, Orzhov Midrange, and Mono-Red Aggro were the four most popular decks back in July, and here they’re all still among the top six. While the metagame did shift a bit due to Bloomburrow additions, the key subtractions thanks to rotation were far more impactful. This was especially true for Esper Midrange and Azorius Control, as Wedding Announcement, Raffine, Scheming Seer, The Wandering Emperor, and Memory Deluge were key spells in those decks. Azorius Control looks to be hanging on and looking for a new way to attack the current meta, but Esper Midrange will probably not return for a while.

The other huge losses due to rotation? The Kamigawa Channel Lands and New Capenna Tri-Lands. The lack of both of these cycles is a pretty big deal, as the Four-Color Legends deck basically can’t exist without the former while Domain Ramp is severely hampered without the latter. The fact that Domain Ramp is still a top-tier deck in Standard despite having to pay more for Leyline Binding and getting less value out of Herd Migration says a lot about the power of those cards. Meanwhile, the other top deck, Gruul Midrange, lost almost nothing.

Color-wise, there’s more parity in the top decks than there has been in a while. Of the ten most popular decks in Standard right now, six run White and/or Red, Blue, Black, and Green are represented by three decks apiece. The top deck runs Black and Green, though, while the second-best runs Blue and Green. Whatever your color preferences, there’s a deck or two out there for you.

What doesn’t exist right now is a true top-tier Control deck. Azorius Control is the most popular right now, but it seems like it might be a key spell or two short. That said, control always takes the longest to develop, since it relies on a stable metagame and the ability to have specific ways to stop whatever plans your opponent is likely to try. While this doesn’t look like a great environment for control right now, that may change as time passes.

Golgari Midrange

Let’s start by looking at the most popular deck in Standard right now. Golgari Midrange will run you between $400 and $550 to build from scratch, making it the most expensive tiered deck in the format at the time of publication. 

Standard

Golgari Midrange

Market Price:$512.75

Maindeck, 60 cards

Sortsort deckCreature (15)

• 3Caustic Bronco
• 4Deep-Cavern Bat
• 2Glissa Sunslayer
• 4Mosswood Dreadknight//
• 2Sheoldred, the Apocalypse

Planeswalker (7)

• 3Liliana of the Veil
• 4Vraska, Betrayal’s Sting

Sorcery (2)

• 2Duress

Instant (6)

• 2Cut Down
• 4Go for the Throat

Enchantment (4)

• 4Innkeeper’s Talent

Land (26)

• 4Blooming Marsh
• 2Fabled Passage
• 4Forest
• 2Fountainport
• 4Llanowar Wastes
• 4Restless Cottage
• 6Swamp

Sideboard (15)

• 4Choking Miasma
• 2Duress
• 2Gix’s Command
• 1Liliana of the Veil
• 2Nissa, Ascended Animist
• 2Tear Asunder
• 2Tranquil Frillback

The big reason for this is Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, which is still an absurdly expensive card despite not seeing as much play as it used to. Check out its price chart since Dominaria United’s release:

Market Price: $91.01

Market Price: $76.45

Market Price: $71.01

While Sheoldred has come down some since last winter, it’s on the rise again, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Even though it sees a little less play in Standard, it’s still a key card in Modern and Pioneer, which is why the price tag is so high. I’m sure Sheoldred will be reprinted a few times and eventually outclassed by future creatures, as has happened to so many competitive stalwarts over the years, but its days of flying high aren’t close to over yet. If you need to buy a copy for Standard play at current retail, you’ll likely be able to cash out at or close to current value at any point over the next year or so, barring an unlikely reprint. 

Sheoldred isn’t the only pricey card in Golgari Midrange, though. Shockingly, Innkeeper’s Talent has become one of the most expensive cards in Bloomburrow over the past few weeks, despite being a Rare. Check it out:

I was quite high on this cycle in my Bloomburrow Buyer’s Guide, but I still didn’t expect it would end up in the realm of $20. Unlike Sheoldred, the culprit here isn’t Pioneer and Modern, but Standard and Commander. In Standard, Innkeeper’s Talent sees play in both Golgari Midrange and Gruul Prowess while in Commander, it’s a staple in decks like Helga, Skittish Seer, Ms. Bumbleflower, and Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice.

While I don’t expect Innkeeper’s Talent to crash, I do think the price will come down considerably over the coming months. More and more Bloomburrow is being opened right now, increasing the available supply while demand is super high due to the card being a four-of in the top Standard deck along with two of the most popular Commander decks at the time of publication. It’s quite likely that the Standard metagame will shift, while other decks will earn the spotlight in the world of Commander. I’d expect this one to settle down at or near the $10 mark once that happens.

Market Price: $13.99

Golgari Midrange has a few other key Rares and Mythics, too. Caustic Bronco, Mosswood Dreadknight, Glissa Sunslayer, Liliana of the Veil, and Vraska, Betrayal’s Sting (which combos with Innkeeper’s Talent) are all in the deck, and they vary a lot in price. This isn’t Caustic Bronco’s first rodeo, but its price chart really interests me regardless. Take a look:

As you can see, there’s been a slight uptick in demand for Caustic Bronco after a pretty quiet summer. We know this card is good because it saw play back when it was first printed, and it shows up in both Golgari Midrange and Orzhov Midrange in Standard as well as Rakdos Midrange and Rakdos Vampires in Pioneer. With supply dwindling and prices rising, this is a must-buy for me right now. There’s a $10+ upside here, and everyone who likes playing this sort of Midrange strategy should own a playset.

This chart belongs to Mosswood Dreadknight, and it looks similar at first glance, but I don’t think it has quite as much upside as Caustic Bronco. Dreadknight only really sees play in one deck: this one. That has caused enough demand to create a small spike, and this card may end up in the $5-$10 range if Golgari Midrange spends a long time as the top deck in the format, but the price will collapse if that changes or there’s a shift away from it. Feel free to snag a few copies if you want to play Golgari Midrange, but it’s not a must-buy or anything.

I’m more bullish on the short-term future of Liliana of the Veil. Take a look:

Market Price: $17.68

Market Price: $14.92

Market Price: $18.21

So yeah, Liliana isn’t reaching the $80+ heights of 2022, before it was reprinted, but look at what’s been happening since the end of last year. Last November, you could snag these for just $10 each. Now, they’re getting close to $20 — a $5 rise since early July. Liliana of the Veil has a stellar pedigree, it’s just coming off a major reprint, and it sees play in pretty much every Black-based Midrange deck in Standard and Pioneer. It won’t take much to get Liliana over $30 again, and if you don’t have a set of these yet, this is your last chance to buy in under $20 each.

Sadly, the time to buy Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal has already come and gone. This card is seeing play in both Golgari and Orzhov Midrange, and the fact that it’s a Mythic from almost a year ago now means that the supply is pretty low. The price tag jumped from $5 in late July to almost $25 now and demand remains strong. If the card continues to be a staple in two of the best Standard decks, it can absolutely maintain that price tag going forward. Selling into the hype is nearly always the right move, but I wouldn’t fault anyone for holding here. 

Lastly, we’ve got Vraska, Betrayal’s Sting:

Market Price: $13.92

Market Price: $21.24

I’d put this one more in the Mosswood Dreadknight camp than the Liliana of the Veil one since Vraska only sees play in one competitive deck right now: Golgari Midrange. There’s still some short-term upside here, though, as you can see demand and price have shot up over the past few weeks as Golgari Midrange ascended. Vraska also has one more thing that Mosswood Dreadknight doesn’t: a huge fanbase in Commander, where Vraska is a staple in Atraxa, Praetors Voice decks. That gives this card a decently high floor, though the ceiling will depend on how dominant Golgari Midrange becomes, and how long it stays on top. Feel free to snag copies if needed, but be aware that it’ll be back in the $7-$10 range if Golgari Midrange sinks in the standings.

Domain Ramp

Market Price: $40.65

Domain Ramp has been around for a while, and I’m not sure I’d recommend it to anyone just getting into Standard. It’ll run you around $400, and most of that value is in the mana base. Cavern of Souls is the big one, but you also need almost a playset for each of the multiple Surveil Lands. If you have those in your collection already, great! If not, you may want to look for something a little more up-and-coming to play in Standard.

Standard

Domain Ramp

Market Price:$429.61

Maindeck, 60 cards

Sortsort deckCreature (7)

• 4Archangel of Wrath
• 3Atraxa, Grand Unifier

Planeswalker (2)

• 2Jace, the Perfected Mind

Sorcery (8)

• 4Herd Migration
• 4Sunfall

Instant (2)

• 2Get Lost

Artifact (4)

• 4Heaped Harvest

Enchantment (11)

• 4Leyline Binding
• 3Temporary Lockdown
• 4Up the Beanstalk

Land (26)

• 3Cavern of Souls
• 4Fabled Passage
• 3Forest
• 3Hedge Maze
• 1Island
• 4Lush Portico
• 3Meticulous Archive
• 1Mountain
• 3Plains
• 1Swamp

Sideboard (15)

• 3Elspeth’s Smite
• 3Negate
• 2Nissa, Ascended Animist
• 3Obstinate Baloth
• 1Temporary Lockdown
• 3Tranquil Frillback

Speaking of the Surveil Lands, let’s look at their price chart. Here’s the combined chart for Hedge Maze, Lush Portico, and Meticulous Archive, which feature in Domain Ramp:

Market Price: $11.14

This is a pretty clear trend. These Surveil Lands have done nothing but gain value since Murders at Karlov Manor dropped, and they’re now about to crest the $10 mark with no apparent slowdown in demand. In fact, demand continues to rise despite the price increases. 

Interestingly enough, these lands don’t actually see much play in Standard beyond this deck. They do show up all the time in Modern, Legacy, and Commander, though, which is good news for their future price tags. While Wizards of the Coast will eventually reprint these and the price will drop, the fact that Murders at Karlov Manor was a poorly-reviewed set that wasn’t widely opened means that there really aren’t enough of these to go around. The price chart also seems to indicate that demand continues to outstrip supply, and we haven’t reached its peak yet. I wouldn’t be shocked if these cards are closer to $20 than $10 in six months to a year. 

Other than the lands, the big money card here is Atraxa, Grand Unifier from Phyrexia: All Will Be One. Check out its chart:

Market Price: $18.66

Market Price: $23.55

Market Price: $73.61

As you can see, Atraxa has bounced between $10 and $30 over the past few years. It’s currently around $17, which is closer to the bottom of that market than the top. Atraxa sees play in every single format where it’s legal, and its value will go up or down depending on the whims of the future metagame. I don’t think this deck in particular will make much of a difference on the card’s bottom line, but we do seem close to the bottom of its recent dip, and there’s some evidence that it might start heading upward again soon. If you’re in the market, buy a bling copy if you can. Commander is part of this card’s demand, and those copies will hold their value better.

Orzhov Midrange

Market Price: $24.67

Orzhov Midrange is what the Esper Midrange deck morphed into during rotation, so if you’re familiar with that build and you liked it, you should consider picking this one up as a replacement. This is the first deck we’ve looked at so far that relies on more than one Bloomburrow card, as Zoraline, Cosmos Caller, Beza, the Bounding Spring, and Season of the Burrow are all included. 

Standard

Orzhov Midrange

Market Price:$520.95

Maindeck, 60 cards

Sortsort deckCreature (22)

• 2Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
• 2Beza, the Bounding Spring
• 4Deep-Cavern Bat
• 1Doorkeeper Thrull
• 1Dust Animus
• 1Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor
• 1Harvester of Misery
• 4Preacher of the Schism
• 2Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 1Shrouded Shepherd// 
• 3Zoraline, Cosmos Caller

Sorcery (3)

• 1Legions to Ashes
• 2Season of the Burrow

Instant (7)

• 3Cut Down
• 4Go for the Throat

Enchantment (3)

• 2Virtue of Loyalty//
• 1Virtue of Persistence//

Land (25)

• 4Caves of Koilos
• 4Concealed Courtyard
• 4Fabled Passage
• 2Fountainport
• 2Plains
• 2Restless Fortress
• 4Shadowy Backstreet
• 3Swamp

Sideboard (15)

• 3Doorkeeper Thrull
• 1Duress
• 1Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
• 1Gix’s Command
• 1Harvester of Misery
• 1Hostile Investigator
• 1Kaya, Intangible Slayer
• 2Liliana of the Veil
• 2Pest Control
• 2Temporary Lockdown

I’d like to go into greater depth on the latter two cards. Here’s the chart for Season of the Burrow:

And here’s Beza:

Market Price: $12.02

Looking at these two cards side by side, I’m more bullish on the future prize of Beza than on Season of the Burrow. The price of the Season card leveled out and has started to drop already, and you can see that demand softened considerably once the price tag jumped from $4 up to $7. My guess is that it’ll settle down back in the $4-$5 range for now, though it might have legs beyond that if it ends up being a key card in Azorius Control as well. 

Meanwhile, Beza, the Boundless Spring’s demand has been slow and steady, and it keeps increasing. Demand hasn’t dropped off either, which bodes well for future gains. Beza also sees play in more Standard decks as well as Azorius Control in Pioneer. My guess is that whatever White-based Control strategies ends up near the top tables in Standard over the coming months will run a few copies of Beza, and that could spike the price into the $25 range. I’d buy in now if you like playing that style of deck.

This chart belongs to Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor, the other key card in Orzhov Midrange. While the card doesn’t see nearly as much play as it used to, it does show up in multiple Standard brews as well as Commander, and it seems to be at or near the very bottom of its market. If you’re interested in playing with Gix over the next year or so, this is a great time to buy in. I wouldn’t be shocked if it rebounds back up over the $20 mark at some point.

Gruul Prowess & Mono-Red Aggro

I’m lumping these two decks in together since they share a lot of the same foundations, and together they have a metagame share that would put them below Domain Ramp but above Orzhov Midrange. These are pretty cheap decks, and you should be able to buy all the pieces to both for less than $200 all in.

Standard

Gruul Prowess

Market Price:$192.44

Maindeck, 60 cards

Sortsort deckCreature (22)

• 4Emberheart Challenger
• 2Fugitive Codebreaker
• 4Heartfire Hero
• 4Monastery Swiftspear
• 4Questing Druid// 
• 4Slickshot Show-Off

Instant (16)

• 4Might of the Meek
• 4Monstrous Rage
• 4Royal Treatment
• 4Shock

Enchantment (2)

• 2Audacity

Land (20)

• 4Copperline Gorge
• 1Forest
• 4Karplusan Forest
• 7Mountain
• 4Thran Portal

Sideboard (15)

• 2Koth, Fire of Resistance
• 1Obliterating Bolt
• 3Pick Your Poison
• 3Tectonic Hazard
• 3Urabrask’s Forge
• 3Witchstalker Frenzy

Slickshot Show-Off is the most expensive card in either deck, and both run a full four copies of it. Here’s its price chart:

I don’t see Slickshot Show-Off slowing down anytime soon. Demand is still high, and it sees play in pretty much every aggressive Red strategy in Standard as well as some in Modern and Pioneer as well. Wherever the Standard metagame goes, this is going to be a must-play in every Red-based aggressive strategy going forward for the next few years, and the price will likely remain between $8 and $20 during that time. I expect the card to rise in price over the coming months, so if you want to play Red this fall, make sure you grab these sooner rather than later.

This exciting chart belongs to Urabrask’s Forge, another card seeing absolutely massive amounts of play right now. All the Red aggro decks in the format are running the Forge, either in their mainboard or (usually) sideboard, but it’s so good in the matchups where it works that the price has absolutely exploded. While I do think this is an excellent card that will continue seeing play, I nearly always recommend selling immediately when you see a nearly vertical spike like that. Hype is through the roof at the moment due to the recent success of Boros Token Control, and you should take advantage if you can. Otherwise, try to wait a month or two for the price to drop.

Market Price: $13.23

Market Price: $11.87

The last Red aggro card I want to talk about today is Emberheart Challenger, which is also runs a playset in most of these decks. Its price tag is also on the way up, but the chart looks more like Season of the Burrow than Urabrask’s Forge, especially with that drop in demand as the price continues to increase. Don’t forget: Urabrask’s Forge is in a set that’s pretty old now, while Bloomburrow is still being opened. While I do think this card could settle in around $5, or maybe a tick above if you’re lucky, Emberheart Challenger has the profile of a $3 card to me. Buying in now is totally fine if you want to play Red aggro, but I wouldn’t speculate on it or anything.

Azorius Control

I’m honestly not sure where Control ends up, and whether Azorius is even the right shell for it anymore, but this is what we’ve got to work with so far. Most current brews tend to use Beza, the Bounding Spring, while some use Season of the Burrow as well.

Standard

Azorius Control

Market Price:$330.87

Maindeck, 60 cards

Sortsort deckCreature (6)

• 3Beza, the Bounding Spring
• 1Loran of the Third Path
• 2Tishana’s Tidebinder

Planeswalker (1)

• 1Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim

Sorcery (7)

• 3Lay Down Arms
• 4Sunfall

Instant (18)

• 4Deduce
• 1Final Showdown
• 1Get Lost
• 4No More Lies
• 1Quick Study
• 3Spellgyre
• 4Three Steps Ahead

Enchantment (2)

• 2Temporary Lockdown

Land (26)

• 1Adarkar Wastes
• 3Demolition Field
• 4Fabled Passage
• 2Fountainport
• 3Island
• 4Meticulous Archive
• 5Plains
• 2Restless Anchorage
• 2Seachrome Coast

Sideboard (15)

• 1Beza, the Bounding Spring
• 1Destroy Evil
• 1Dust Animus
• 2Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
• 2Jace, the Perfected Mind
• 2Loran of the Third Path
• 2Negate
• 1See Double
• 1Temporary Lockdown
• 2Tishana’s Tidebinder

Let’s talk about some of the other key Rares and Mythics, though, because there are some pretty interesting Standard staples here that we haven’t had a chance to cover yet.

Here’s the chart for Caretaker’s Talent, which has shown up in multiple Standard Token Control brews recently as well as in Commander. This is an absolutely excellent card, and even though both price and demand do appear to be tailing off now, I don’t think it’ll drop too much. Casual demand should be enough to keep it in the $5+ range, and there’s $15-$20 upside if it ends up as a four-of in the top Standard control decks. Buying in now is unlikely to make you a profit, but paying current retail for personal copies isn’t a bad deal.

I’ve also got my eye on Three Steps Ahead. While Blue seems somewhat weaker in the current Standard metagame, this card sees a ton of play in Pioneer, where it’s a popular sideboard card in both Azorius Control and Spirits. Demand seems steady despite the price rising from $3.50 to $7 over the past few months, and any Blue-based Standard Control strategy that shows up over the next year or so at least is going to run Three Steps Ahead. Buying in now seems relatively safe to me.

If you’re looking for a card that’s already on the rise, check out Sunfall:

This sorcery is quickly becoming a top tier staple, showing up in Domain Ramp and all the Control decks currently in Standard as well as Azorius Control and Niv-to-Light in Pioneer. That’s a lot of play for a $4 card, especially one that has a price history of being worth $10+ as recently as the start of the year. You should buy your copies immediately, as this is likely going to be close to a $10 card again before long.

While we’re here, let’s talk about Fountainport. This utility land from Bloomburrow is seeing a ton of play in Standard right now, and I could have mentioned it far earlier, since it sees play in Golgari Midrange, Orzhov Midrange, Azorius Control, and even Mono-Red Aggro. That’s a heck of a range for a utility land, so it’s no wonder the price is on the move. While demand is starting to drop off a bit as the price skyrockets, I still think this is a $5-$10 land if not more over the long-term. You should snag a personal playset now, since there’s very little downside and plenty of possible upside.

Quick Hits on Other Interesting Standard Cards

While I can’t go into great depth on every deck in Standard, especially since I’m already well past the 3,000-word mark, there are a few other cards I want to talk about before we close.

This chart belongs to Warleader’s Call, which looks to have rebounded some since the post-rotation picture came into sharper focus. It sees play in Boros and Jeskai Convoke as well as Commander, and it was as high as $11 back in March. With very little Murders at Karlov Manor out there, I expect this card will break the $10 mark again at some point over the next year or two.

Knight-Errant of Eos looks ready to pop off as well. This was a $10 card back in February, but it was under $2 as recently as last week. Knight-Errant of Eos sees play the same brews as Warleader’s Call, and even shows up now and again in Pioneer and Modern. At current retail, it’s a screaming buy.

I also have my eye on Get Lost. Yet again, this was a $10+ card back in March, and it was down to $2 by July. It’s at $5 and rising now, and it sees play in Domain Ramp, Azorius Control, Boros Aggro, Boros Token Control, and bunch of Pioneer decks to boot. This will be a $10 card again soon, so snag your copies now if you want to play with it.

I don’t talk about Uncommons much, but make sure you don’t have any copies of Deep-Cavern Bat kicking around in your bulk. This card sees play in pretty much in any Black-based Midrange strategy in Standard right now, as well as a few in Pioneer. It should remain at least a $2-$3 Uncommon going forward.

Last up for today, we’ve got Thran Portal. This card has started to see post-rotation play in Gruul and Boros Aggro archetypes. It’s a great fixing option for quicker decks, and we lost a decent amount of fixing in set rotation. This card has been threatening to shoot toward $10 for a few weeks now, and it may well get there. If you need a set of them, this is your last chance for a while.