25. Volrath’s Stronghold
Black and green will always be the deck that will want to bring things back from the graveyard, and here is the perfect card for every mono-black or golgari deck.
Graveyard recursion will always be one of the best ways to play Magic period. Being able to bring back a creature from the tomb to the top of your deck will constantly give you a way to win a game.
Market Value: $49.99
24. Cabal Coffers (foil)
Nothing will truly be better than urborg, but Cabal coffers will be a close second to any mono-black player.
Being able to play this land and instantly double your mana would always be a good thing when you play magic. Not only can your tapped swamps that you used to trigger this ability be doubled, but all swamps you control (even dual lands).
An older rare foil card, will always be expensive. Remember that.
Market Value: $55.24
23. Command Tower (Foil)
This card doesn’t really need an introduction.
You’ll hear me talk about commander a lot throughout the article and here is a sneak peek into why I love it so much. Not only is it a great chance to learn all the old cards, but to be apart of the community that’s changing the game. Command tower is legal in everything except standard, and that’s value.
If you can play land that doesn’t tap when it enters the battlefield, and it can tap for any mana, that’s basically a win turn one.
Market Value: $76.49
22. Karakas
Blink, blink, blink, trigger, trigger, trigger.
Conjurer's closet, Karakas, and anything else that can blink a creature is basically amazing. Trigger effects on creatures can sometimes be a huge setback to some of your opponents. A disclaimer is that this really isn’t blinking, but basically, a quick way to save your commander or another legendary creature from a board wipe.
AGAIN another amazing land that doesn’t tap and has a pretty amazing effect.
Market Value: $79.99
21. Celestial Colonnade
Don’t you hate when your lands get more gains than you do?
Okay so here’s a reasonable land, it enters tapped and you have to wait until your next upkeep to untap it which again isn’t bad, but not preferable.
But you pay five mana and BOOM you have a 4/4 flying rock with vigilance. So you can swing at your opponent with this, AND still be able to tap this for mana. Yeah, the price to make it into a flying unstoppable rock is high, but after a board wipe, it could chump block or even be an attacker for you.
Market Value: $79.99
20. Rishadan Port (foil)
Me: How much mana do you have open?
Friend: well I only have three lands so three, but I am gonna tap thre-
Me: actually I’m gonna pay one and tap rishadan, to tap down one of your mountains
Friend: seriously...
I feel like my little stories do tell you guys what this land really is about. That’s basically it’s value right there.
Market Value: $79.99
19. Mana Confluence
Bouncer: Yeah, what makes you so tuff.
Me: I play shocklands
Bouncer: So, all good players play shock lands.
Me: All my lands are shock lands. I make them all enter untapped.
Bouncer: Oh… I’m sorry sir, please enter…
As a knowledgeable magic player I don’t see the need for shock land that hurts you, but again it all matters on what kind of format and deck you are playing. If you’re playing commander and have trostani, you are constantly gaining life when you play creatures. You also have fourty life to chop away, so it’s not much. If you’re playing anything else you have to be careful.
I will say this time in and time out, but mana that enters untapped and available to tap for any many is a huge win in your corner and could change the course of everything. This could be the last blue you need for a counterspell or a flash creature in your hand. Having mana open is always value.
Market Value: $79.99
18. Serra’s Sanctum
Basically Gaea’s Cradle on a shorter stick
Remember Gaea’s Cradle? Yeah, here it is again but not as good. If you are running an enchantment deck than this is game-changing especially with an enchantment angel deck? Why? Because angels are expensive and getting all this mana from your enchantments lets you basically play anything from your hand.
Once again a land that can do this for free always has an amazing amount of value behind it. A Voltron deck in commander based around enchantments could be deadly with white card pumps.
Market Value: $98.99
17. Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
This is the most beautiful land in the world in my opinion.
I could go on and on about how much I love this land, not only does it just double all of your swamps but imagine having mana abilities or running demons. This land could win you the game. The player with the most land has a good chance at running the game themselves.
Once again the amazing art on this card drives up the value by going border to border due to the box topper from Ultimate Masters
Market Value: $99.99
16. Elephant Graveyard
1 word: ELEPHANTS
2 Words: TRIBAL ELEPHANTS
Also, it taps for any many so that right there is value
Market Value: $125.99
15. Strip Mine
Friend: Yes, finally I can untap my land now after 5 turns. I haven’t drawn into anymore.
Me: That's cool. I play strip mine as land for turn.
Friend: that's cool, what does it do?
Me: lets just say you have one less land again.
Friend: k…
This part of the lands are where we start getting a little repetitive on why these cards are so valuable. Due to the want to reprint, but not to blow up the market, Wizards makes similar lands to help lower the value of some of the cards, but not destroy the collectability.
Also once again, a Zendikar masterpiece
Market Value: $129.99
14. Steam Vents
The infamous shock land!
The shocklands are just about as good as the original dual lands except it makes you take two life, which again isn’t too much if you’re able to play a card that can win you the game!
Also once again a masterpiece from Zendikar, always beautiful to see
Market Value: $149.99
13. Horizon Canopy (Foil)
Ummm yeah I’m not too sure on this one…
Well it’s a masterpiece from Zendikar
You get to draw a card?
Market Value: $159.99
12. Wasteland (Foil)
Friend: Alright well I am mana screwed, your go
Me: How many lands do you have?
Friend: Two now cause you blew up my land last turn. Why?
Me: I count one.
Friend: Ummm no. 1… 2-
Me: I am tapping wasteland to destroy your mountain
Friend: Yup. That’s one land.
Every time we have a land that taps for any mana we have an advantage, but the reason this card is so good is that if your opponent has even better land than you, or has a Gaea's cradle than BOOM! Not anymore!
Blowing up land. That’s basically it. I mean for 206 bucks, you can blow up lands with your foil land. Seems deec.
Market Value: $206.99
11. Cavern of Souls (Foil)
There are plenty of ways to make your decks look nice, and using a box topper from ultimate masters is one way of getting there.
Ultimate Masters is one of the sets for reprinting several of the decent old cards, but it getting put as a box topper (basically making it legendary to pull) is one way of blasting the price upward.
Masterpiece/box toppers of Master sets are usually nice looking cards with their art, but the card feels completely different due to the type of ink they use on the card. Now the card is still legal, but the card is a higher quality boosting the price also.
Also, this card makes it so the creature cards you do cast from this card CAN’T be countered. This card is so good because any creature you feel could be a threat to your opponent's counterspell, you could use this land to cast it.
Market Value: $229.99
10. Ancient Tomb (Foil Masterpiece)
It’s one thing to have a deck that is completely foiled, but to have masterpieces is like coating you cards in solid gold.
Once again a land that can tap for two colorless mana that deals damage, but that’s not what mainly makes this card so pricey. Due to the foil we all know that a card can go up by ten to twenty dollars, so that is one aspect of Ancient Tomb.
Masterpieces were brought into magic in 2016 with the release of Zendikar Expedition. This is a Masterpiece from Zendikar Expedition. There really isn’t too much to explain other than it’s the first of its kind and it is just beautiful artwork.
Market Price: $229.99
9. City of Traitors
For most new Magic players, this card could be confusing on why it’s so good.
Most older cards aren’t good. I would know because I have too many of the bulk rares from 7th edition till now. With City of Traitors though you have to look at other cards that exist. In commander, there are several cards (even entire decks) that use the graveyard to get cards back, especially lands.
Also, any card that is able to tap for multiple mana is great. Temple of the False Gods lets you tap for two, but it has restrictions. City of Traitors, you can play it and go on your merry way playing more cards than your opponent.
Market Value: $239.99
8. Mishra’s Factory
“It’s the most wonderful time of the year”
Once again we are going back to Mishra because apparently, she is oh so special in this set. Mishra’s Factory is a land that can not only give you colorless mana for anything you want but also does a number of cool things!
Now not only can you tap this for colorless mana, but you can also give “assembly workers” +1/+1 if you decide not to use your mana, It can ALSO become a 2/2 creature if you need more for blockers
Market Value: $269.99
7. City of Brass
Need more mana… ow. Maybe just one more time… ow. Alright, I’ll cast this… ow... Okay I should be okay
Shock lands are lands that enter the battlefield tapped unless you pay 2 life. Now that’s a one time deal, City of Brass deals 1 damage of any color but if it is tapped you’re going to pain town. The reason this is so good is that it’s a land that doesn’t take anything (mana) away from your mana pool.
In commander 1 life doesn’t mean too much, but any type of mana could make or break who the winner will be.
Market Price: $305.99
6. Promotional Mutavault (Foil)
Friend: Alright I’m going to tap this land, then untap it using kiora’s follower.
You: Okay, seems decent.
Friend: Alright now I am going to pay one, make it into a creature, and swing at you.
You: uhhhh
A land that can become a creature breaks the game every single time, but always in the best way. If you are playing a token or populate deck, creating a creature token of it, giving it haste, and attacking (or using it for mana) would make anyone scope with anger.
This is also a promotional card which is even rarer than most foils. These promotional cards are usually obtained when a card shop has a competitive match and gives these away to winners. Another way is to pull one out of a pre-release of the set.
Market Price: $619.99
5. Gaea’s Cradle (Foil)
If you’re rich then the first thing anyone would do is bling out their deck, but doing so with such an amazing card… makes you look like a king!
I love running cards like Axebane Guardian that tap for multiple mana depending on if you have other cards put, but land that does that is so good! If you are running a green token deck then Gaea’s Cradle would destroy any opponent!
A foil card is kind of like having a special edition of the card. A card that is foil is a special way of saying “hey look I have a cool card that I like and it’s aesthetically pleasing” and that’s a big reason for why this card is a thousand dollars
Market price: $1099.99
4. Library of Alexandria
I love playing cards that let me draw more cards, especially since I play a lot of commander. But land that can tap for mana draw cards for free?! That’s too good!
Value is basically the name of the game. If you can play and run this land, then you will be golden if you are running a lot of card draw in your deck. As long as you have seven cards you can draw even more! So this starts an engine that’s constant card draw!
In commander (the format I play) you can only have one of each card in a deck, but having several of these in a deck for fun is amazing! Which is why this card is banned in every form except Vintage.
Market Value: $1199.99
3. Mishra’s workshop
Sol ring is an artifact that casts for 1 and taps for two, what can beat that! Well, a land that taps for three mana for free!
Mishra’s workshops can tap for three colorless mana but only for artifacts, the reason it’s so expensive is that it sees a lot of play in Vintage (a certain type of Magic play style)
This card was not part of the Alpha set, but was the second set ever released “Antiquities”. From the name and this card, this set was focused on artifacts in magic, making it a value engine for any and all artifact decks.
In the format of Vintage, players can only play with older cards, and cards form special sets, making Mishra's workshop a high want in any vintage player with an artifact in hand.
Market Value: $1619.99
2. Underground Sea
What’s better than taping a land for just one type of color? A land that can tap for two different types!
Dual lands in the Alpha era, all expensive but have different prices behind them, still having land that taps for two is good in multi-color decks
Underground Sea is less than Volcanic Island because of the marketplace. Due to this land floating around the internet so much, card kingdom has decided to drop its price
Market Value: $7999.99
1. Volcanic Island
What’s better than taping a land for just one type of color? A land that can tap for two different types… wait woah deja vu.
What makes this land so good:
This land is special because dual lands, like this, in current sets usually come into play tapped before you can use it, with this one it just enters and is ready to use.
Unlike the shock lands that go for $50, this card enters untapped and doesn't make you pay life or mana to keep it on the field or untapped.
Volcanic Island is an Alpha card which is a whole other article piece, but in short, this was one of the first cards printed ever in the game of Magic, making this a collectible for any who buy it.
Another reason it is a collectible is that most of these cards have misprints, meaning that the boards may be off a cm, meaning it can go for even more on the market.
Market Value: $9999.99
You Might Also Interested In:
15 Most Expensive Magic Cards (2019 Edition) https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/15-most-expensive-magic-cards-2018
'MTG Arena Best Packs' To Buy – A Guide for Beginners and Intermediate Players https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/mtg-arena-best-packs
MTG Best Counterspells of Today https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/mtg-best-counterspells-today
