PriceWatch: Febuary Week #1

Greetings. Today, we will start a new article series entitled [PriceWatch]. As the name suggests, we will be monitoring price surges and spikes in the OCG market, and providing possible reasons for the phenomenons. We will be taking references from Twitter accounts of Japan stores as well as yugiohkoto. From time to time, if there are interesting happenings for the Singapore market, Dueling "C" will try our best to keep you updated as well.

Without further ado, let's get started.


This week's PriceWatch will cover the events of the price market from 29th January to 4th Febuary.

In no particular order...

1) Flying "C"

 

Hand Traps has been popular recently as Zoodiac decks tap into new methods to disrupt their opponent's strategy during their turn. Flying "C" makes a huge return to the competetive tables as Pure Zoodiacs becomes more popular. With only one method of summoning from the Extra Deck - Xyz summoning - in addition to being an easy prey to Dimensional Barrier, if the Zoodiac player starts his play off with Elemental Triangle of the Zoodiacs, he will have a hard time getting rid of Flying "C", leaving a Zoodiac Marmorat standing awkwardly on the field.

Even against other Zoodiac variants, Flying "C" is still a useful Hand Trap to throw at the opponent. And as more players pilot Zoodiac decks, Flying "C" becomes more effective.

As the Artifact engine dies down, Forbidden Chalice has also seen lesser play, making Flying "C" more effective. On that note, it will only be a matter of time before players start being wary of Flying "C" again, and prepare themselves with countermeasures to avoid being lockdowned. Then, Flying "C" usefulness and popularity may take a nosedive, once more.

Flying "C" saw an increase from 500yen to 900yen this week. It would be wise to locate or retain a playset for competetive use.

2) Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon

Strangely, Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon saw an increase in prices despite not being relevant in the OCG since Zoodiac took over.
Its price rose from around 2700yen to 3300yen, signalling a possible rise in demand.
In the OCG, Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon is distributed as a promotional card to privilleged audience of the movie screening. Hence it would be appropriate to assume that its supply is largely limited.

I would guess that given the fall in effectiveness of the iconic white dragon as a competetive deck, collectors are starting to show their interest in purchasing them for collection purposes. Previously, shortly after it was released, Blue-Eyes became a popular meta deck, making its prices soar to beyond 4500yen.

Another possible reason to account for the price rise would be that more Japan shops are promoting non-Zoodiac tournaments. In the absence of Zoodiacs, Blue-Eyes might emerge into the spotlight as the next consistent and explosive deck to pilot. Hence, such players might be looking to form a Blue-Eyes deck, contributing to its price rise.

More stores are also looking to purchase it.

Only time will tell if this is a consistent increase.

3) Evolzar Dolkka

From 500yen to 800yen, Evolzar Dolkka saw a steady increase in price this week in the Japanese market. Players received more news regarding the upcoming Structure Deck R - Tyranno's Rage in recent weeks, but the status of this Rank 4's reprint is still a blur.

I, however, am confident that a reprint will be made to cater to newer players of the game. I am fairly certain that the 20th Anniversary Pack Wave 2 will include it in the list of reprints, seeing how it has touched on some of the most iconic monsters in Yu-Gi-Oh history. After all, Evolzar Laggia has been listed down as a reprint.

Either that or the Structure Deck may also include it.

But don't take my word for it.

Evolzar Dolkka's first print is an Ultra Rare. It is unlikely that a reprint would follow the same rarity. Apart from wary players who fear that a reprint might not be possible, some may simply value its Ultra Rare rarity enough to make the purchase.

4) Abyss Dweller

Abyss Dweller is also seeing a slight increase of its retail price, from 1800yen to a record 2350yen at its highest. While there has no new happenings for the Mermail, Atlantean, or the Abyss archetype, although I did feature an interesting Mermail-Atlantean decklist previously, the Shinryu archetype's Spell/Trap does have annoying trigger effects in the graveyard when they are sent there.

Abyss Dweller is an effective Rank 4 monster to keep those graveyard effects in check. Any deck piloting the Zoodiac engine can summon it with ease.

C-Labo, a shop in Japan, has offered to purchase it at 2300yen.

It is also possible some players are looking to include a second copy in their decks. But perhaps I am overthinking it. Just the mere usefulness of this card against the Shinryu archetype is enough to account for its steady price increase.


5) El-Shaddoll Winda

The previous Forbidden & Limited List shows signs of Shaddoll having some breathing space after it is way past its prime. In addition to Sinister Shaddoll Games being unlimited, there is a high chance for El-Shaddoll Construct to see the outside of a Forbidden List again. The recent reprint of Shaddoll Fusion might be a sign that Shaddolls are gaining some leeway in Konami's radar, but it may also just mean that with one of the most expensive fusion spell being reprinted, more players can afford to build Shaddolls, either as a secondary or a main deck.

Either that or a rogue group of players have found a sneaky new deck involving a Shaddoll engine. Hmmm.... The former reasons seems more likely.

El-Shadoll Winda has a noticeable price increase from 1200yen to 1400yen.
 
Conclusion

That's all for this week's PriceWatch article. Let me know what do you think in the comment section below. Cheers!