Magic: The Gathering has returned to Strixhaven, and it’s doing so in style. The set is fantastic, including great Elder Dragons, awesome Prepare spells, and college-specific mechanics.
Perhaps the best part? At the time of writing, just after the prerelease weekend, the cards aren’t as expensive as you may be expecting – at least until you get to the Mystical Archive.
Here are the most valuable cards for launch week, with the caveat that these will shift quite heavily in the coming days. We’ll update this article when they do.
Quandrix, the Proof (Borderless)
Quandrix, the Proof (Borderless)
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More dragons? Sure, why not? First up is Quandrix, the Proof, the Simic Elder Dragon that has Cascade and gives instant and sorcery spells Cascade, too. In short? It snowballs very quickly, while also being a 6/6 with flying and trample.
This borderless variant is up to $21 at the time of writing.
Lorehold, the Historian (Borderless)
Lorehold, the Historian (Borderless)
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You already know what to expect here, but Lorehold, the Historian’s borderless treatment has reached around $25 in value.
It’s another Elder Dragon, but this one is a 5/5 with flying and haste, while also giving instants and sorceries in your hand miracle 2. That gets even easier to trigger when you can discard a card to draw a card on an opponent’s upkeep.
Prismari, the Inspiration (Borderless)
Prismari, the Inspiration (Borderless)
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Another Elder Dragon that’s particularly aggressive while also having a solid defence of ‘Ward – Pay 5 Life’, Prismari, the Inspiration is a 7/7 that gives your instants and sorceries the storm keyword.
It’s up to around $28, but the foil will set you back closer to $40.
Emeritus of Truce (Extended Art)
Emeritus of Truce (Extended Art)
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Another Elder Dra… oh, wait, it’s a Cat Cleric. Emeritus of Truce is the first card on this list with a Prepare spell, meaning you’re getting a 3/3 body attached to Swords to Plowshares – a very handy removal spell.
It becomes prepared if an opponent controls more creatures than you (after it creates an Inkling token), and it’s hit just shy of $30 at the time of writing.
Emeritus of Ideation
Emeritus of Ideation
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This card is going to come up again shortly, but it’s easy to see the appeal. Emeritus of Ideation is a five-cost, 5/5 flying creature with ward 2 that enters Prepared. Its spell of choice? Ancestral Recall, a single mana draw engine.
It’ll slot nicely into just about any blue deck, and can prepare itself again by exiling cards from the graveyard post-attack. It’s also going for $30.
Emeritus of Woe
Emeritus of Woe
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Emeritus of Woe is another card that’s just as desirable because of its Prepared spell as it is its own stats. It’s a 5/4 in its own right, but it’s also attached to Demonic Tutor to let you find any card you need and put it into your hand.
It’ll set you back around $34 right now, and as with the card before it on this list, you can prepare it again.
Witherbloom, the Balancer (Borderless)
Witherbloom, the Balancer (Borderless)
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The most valuable Elder Dragon in the set, and top of our list, Witherbloom, the Balancer, is an $18 card right now that can trigger an infinite combo with Sprout Swarm.
It’s also a 5/5 with flying and deathtouch, and you can cast it for less than its steep eight mana cost if you have a few creatures on the battlefield already.
Emeritus of Woe (Extended Art)
Demonic Tutor (Japanese Alt Art Foil Etched)
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One of the big draws of the new set is the Mystical Archive, which essentially includes a bunch of iconic spells from Magic’s past in new treatments. They look amazing, but it’s worth noting that the prices are jumping all over the place.
Demonic Tutor (sans Emeritus of Woe) is $75 for the Mystical Archive version, but the Japanese alternate art reaches $300, or closer to $400 for the foil etched version.
Tainted Pact
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We’ll dig deeper into these once prices settle down.
Where to Buy MTG Secrets of Strixhaven
Strixhaven’s school of magic is opening its doors once more with Secrets of Strixhaven, and it’s creeping up on us. The set is likely to be popular for anyone who held back from Universes Beyond with TMNT, and we’re hopeful of big things.
And if you’re curious about what to expect from Magic in 2026, we have a helpful roadmap guide to explain it all. The next big release after this one is Marvel Super Heroes, which is also available to preorder right now (because of course it is).
Lloyd Coombes is an experienced freelancer in tech, gaming and fitness seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar and many more. He’s a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife’s dismay.
