I can't believe they released this card in Master's Edition! This is one of the most obscure cards in all of Magic, but Wizards was willing to make it available to the those on the internet. Even if you're willing to drop the serious cash on a physical copy of this card, it's still difficult to find a vendor with one to sell.
@ wgillespie: It's simply supply and demand. Portal: Three Kingdoms was printed in very small quantities, and primarily for Asian markets. The English versions of the cards were (I believe) only released in New Zealand and Australia. This leads to anything being remotely playable from the set reaching sky-high prices.
Imperial Seal is much better than "remotely playable". It costs you two life, which is completely irrelevant. What is important is that it's one black mana to get anything you want. Notice how Vampiric Tutor and Demonic Tutor end up on banned / restricted lists, while Diabolic Tutor doesn't even see the slightest play; paying life is a much... (see all)
Posted By:
scumbling1
(4/13/2011 7:22:29 PM)
Broken in vintage. Black will do anything to win.
Posted By:
Kryptnyt
(11/16/2010 3:29:17 PM)
Vampiric tutor at sorcery speed? I can live with that.
Posted By:
Max_Glycine
(6/24/2011 7:13:25 AM)
Oh boy this card is insane.
Posted By:
coyotemoon722
(11/29/2010 8:04:41 PM)
Why is this card rated higher than the strictly-superior Vampiric Tutor? (Of course, superior is relative; you use both.)
Maybe it's because this card is more obscure; the people who find it are more likely to realize how broken it is, while some people who see Vampiric Tutor don't realize.
Also, what's the flavor here, anyway?
Posted By:
Aquillion
(5/19/2013 11:17:34 PM)
My goodness...
Posted By:
Drewsel
(6/8/2011 10:02:38 PM)
It's expensive because Portal Three Kingdoms was never released in America, so it's very hard to find. And when you're playing vintage and relying on just a few cards in your deck to make your combo happen, you need all the tutors you can get to find those cards. And when most of those tutors are restricted, this looks alright.
Posted By:
GainsBanding
(9/1/2009 12:53:44 AM)
Yay, you get to use a second Vampiric Tutor in some formats. I'm not dropping 300 bucks for one of these.
Posted By:
Kirbster
(7/11/2010 9:55:04 PM)
@ wigglespie
this card is great because as opposed to other tutors, witch are either banned or cost 4-6 mana, this costs ONE mana, so instead of wasting a turn you make your next turn as strong as you want, also its a rare from a really old set,and a boomby one, at that, but once you play the game longer and build more decks you'll see the importance of this card
Posted By:
knob_goblin
(8/9/2010 7:19:18 PM)
This card is now worth $800.
Posted By:
LunarAvenger
(2/20/2012 9:17:49 PM)