Don’t worry, it’s not just fetchlands
Last week, we looked at the most expensive cards from the first Modern Horizons set, released in 2019. The original Modern Horizons had a huge impact on the Modern format, but this impact was dwarfed by that of 2021’s Modern Horizons 2. MH2 brought about a fundamental and seemingly irreversible shift within Modern, making it feel more like Legacy Lite than ever thanks to its busted one-drops and numerous free spells. These cards have maintained a very high price since they were first released, too – today, we’re going to get across 10 of the most expensive cards from Modern Horizons 2.
Before that, however, let’s address the fetchlands. Including the fetchlands in this list would just make it “The Seven Most Expensive MTG Cards from Modern Horizons 2 Plus Three Reprinted Fetchlands”, so it’s worth talking about them separately. Fetchlands are a foundational aspect of the Modern format, doing everything from enabling smooth mana bases in conjunction with shocklands, filling the graveyard for delve, delirium, etc. and even coming in hand for the Death’s Shadow player as a way to manipulate their life total.
Traditionally, fetchlands were always quite expensive, some more so than others: in particular, blue fetchlands come at a premium due to blue’s historical overrepresentation in older Magic formats. However, they’ve come down a long way in recent times, and the prices of enemy-colored fetches in Modern Horizons reflect this:
- Scalding Tarn: $20
- Misty Rainforest: $18
- Verdant Catacombs: $15
- Arid Mesa: $14
- Marsh Flats: $11
Thankfully, fetches are now a long way off the $100 or so that some of them used to cost a couple of years ago. Nonetheless, fetches are still relatively pricey, and are still well and truly in the discussion when listing the most expensive cards from MH2. Now, onto the others!
10. Murktide Regent
Murktide Regent
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $11.10
The most popularly-played deck in Modern is based around Murktide Regent, and this shouldn’t come as any surprise. Izzet decks filled with interactive spells and high-value threats have been a huge part of Modern’s history (unban Splinter Twin, you cowards!) and Murktide Regent is the latest threat to headline these blue-red spells decks. Synergizing masterfully with all the cheap instants and sorceries played in Izzet decks like these, Murktide Regent is a premier-level threat in Modern.
9. Archon of Cruelty
Archon of Cruelty
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $13.27
Speaking of top-end threats, Archon of Cruelty may not be as commonly-played in Modern as Murktide Regent, but it has definitely caught on in other formats. It sees a little play in Indomitable Creativity decks, sure, but where Archon of Cruelty shines is as a high-impact threat in Legacy Reanimator or Sneak and Show decks. It has also carved out a little niche for itself in Commander, in decks led by Tergrid, God of Fright and Isshin, Two Heavens as One – after all, who can say no to a flying 6/6 three-for-minus-one?
8. Grief
Grief
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $16.49
The first of many Elemental Incarnations we’ll be talking about (but not all of them, sorry, Subtlety), Grief shows us the blueprint for the five-card cycle that has turned Modern on its head. The Elemental Incarnations are all under-statted, keyworded creatures with a powerful enters-the-battlefield effect, and they can all be evoked for zero mana by exiling a card of the same color from your hand. These cards are absolutely busted in half, and Grief – the second-worst of the lot – is still bonkers. A “free” Thoughtseize is massive in combo decks like Living End, and even fairer decks like Rakdos Midrange will happily play it.
7. Cabal Coffers
Cabal Coffers
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $18.88
Like Archon of Cruelty, Cabal Coffers isn’t expensive because of its role in Modern. No – it’s EDH that means Cabal Coffers is a $20 card, because it is absolutely indispensable in mono-black decks. Tergrid, K’rrik, Sheoldred, Yawgmoth – it doesn’t matter, if you’re playing mono-black you absolutely must play Cabal Coffers, no question. MH2 provided a much-needed reprint of this card, which used to cost around $60 or $70 before settling to its current price.
6. Esper Sentinel
Esper Sentinel
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $31.19
In recent years, white has been getting more and more ways to draw cards, and Esper Sentinel is one of the best new card advantage engines offered to a color that has traditionally struggled to keep cards flowing. Perfect in white weenie decks, Esper Sentinel is a very annoying support card to have to deal with, often replacing itself at a minimum before it gets killed, and is a staple of Modern decks like Hammer Time. Additionally, like so many other cards on this list, it makes regular appearances in Commander, where it will often act as a little 1/1 Ancestral Recall!
5. Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $30.55
One of the weirder cards in recent memory, this enchantment land that produces artifacts has retained a very stable price of around $40 or so since it was printed. Played in any deck interested in exploiting artifact synergies or just reliably searching up a cheap artifact (I’m looking at you, Amulet Titan), Urza’s Saga has proven itself across multiple formats, not just Modern. Legacy Painter, Vintage Tinker, even in some artifact-based EDH decks, Urza’s Saga keeps fetching zero and one-drops, churning out Karnstructs all the while.
4. Fury
Fury
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $32.72
Right at the top end of town, we have a pretty heavy overrepresentation of the Elemental Incarnations (although once again, sorry, Subtlety). Fury, a free four-damage burn spell, is only the third-most expensive of the lot, which should tell you everything you need to know about the power level of these cards. Fury is ridiculous, especially against a board of low-toughness creatures, and on top of that it’s also a respectable threat when played as a 3/3 double-striker. Like the other Incarnations, you need to have a good reason not to play Fury in most red decks.
3. Solitude
Solitude
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $36.04
Cut from the same cloth as Fury, Solitude is a free removal spell stapled to a reasonable if unexciting body, but can do all the same tricks as Fury to clear out opposing boards. Evoke Solitude, trigger on the stack, cast Ephemerate, exile two of your creatures and another one next turn, and stabilize the board a little with a 3/2 lifelinker – that’s not even best-case scenario mentality, that’s just the reality of playing Modern these days. These Elemental Incarnations have been literal gamechangers, and the fact that Solitude is still $35 shows us just how strong this card is.
2. Endurance
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $36.82
Going by price, however, Endurance is the best of the lot, at $40. Why? Weirdly enough, because it’s a sideboard card! While most white decks want to play Solitude, some don’t – but every green deck wants Endurance in the sideboard. Unlike the other Elemental Incarnations, Endurance isn’t all that under-statted, and in addition to dealing with graveyards and preventing you from being milled out, it can also ambush a flyer like Dragon’s Rage Channeler as a flash 3/4 with reach.
1. Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
Modern Horizons 2
Market Price: $67.78
Finally, we come to the elephant in the room – or, rather, the Monkey in the room. This card has proven itself to be so absurdly powerful, so unbelievably strong, that it was banned in Legacy. It’s still around in Modern as the best threat in the format, played with the same level of ubiquity as Tarmogoyf in its heyday. Murktide, Rakdos, Grixis Death’s Shadow, Izzet Aggro – all these decks play Ragavan as a matter of course because it turns out that having a Savannah Lions that makes mana, draws you cards and can be cast with haste to avoid sorcery-speed removal is just really, really good. Like, $80 good. Who knew?