Wizards of the Coast’s new print model for MTG Secret Lairs is causing many to miss out, and fans aren’t happy with the change.
MTG’s latest Secret Lair Commander deck, Raining Cats and Dogs, had many players excited. This is thanks to its combination of adorably fuzzy art and powerful, much-needed reprints like Anointed Procession.
Unfortunately, it seems that the deck will be difficult for many MTG players to get their hands on. Due to high interest among players and Wizards no longer printing Secret Lairs to demand, this Commander deck sold out just hours after going on sale.
MTG fans wary of Wizards’ new Secret Lair model
Secret Lairs are more niche MTG products than most. Rather than the broad appeal of something like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan and other premier set releases, Secret Lairs focuses on specificity. These smaller, limited-run releases have covered everything from a shirtless Jeff Goldblum to aesthetics like Heavy Metal and even baseball cards.
Since Secret Lair’s inception, these products have been printed to match pre-order demand. However, Wizards of the Coast recently decided to switch Secret Lairs to a limited-run model instead.
The reason for this change was ostensibly to cut down on the wait times between ordering and receiving Secret Lair products. However, many fans at the time were wary of Wizards’ adopting this new model for Secret Lair releases.
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Despite the stated purpose for the change, many took it as a way to drive up demand for Secret Lairs by capitalizing on FOMO at the expense of product accessibility. In response to Wizards’ initial announcement, Reddit user asmallercat posted:
“That’s exactly the point. My guess is that Secret Lairs have been trending down in sales for the last year [plus], and instead of thinking about offering better value, they are instead gonna turn to FOMO.”
Understandably, MTG players are unhappy their fears have been justified and Wizards’ change in production has led to this Secret Lair being inaccessible for most. Whether Wizards releases additional batches of this Commander Deck in the future or adjusts its new model due to fan feedback remains to be seen.
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