MTG Secret Lair Zombie card spikes over 400% in price 

Geralf’s Messenger from the Finally! Left-Handed Magic Cards Secret Lair has seen a huge boost in price thanks to some surprising rogue decks in the Modern format. 

Zombies are one of the best-represented Creature types in all of Magic: The Gathering. As one of black mana’s most populous archetypes, Zombies enjoy a wealth of support in most MTG sets, particularly ones with a focus on horror like Innistrad and the upcoming Duskmourn. 

Outlaws of Thunder Junction and Modern Horizons 3 brought Zombie support back into the spotlight in 2024, but a recent zombie-focused price spike is focused not on these premier sets, but a rather obscure Secret Lair instead.  

WotC

The Geralf’s Messenger variant from Finally! Left-Handed Magic Cards has recently shot up from around $3 to an average of $15. 

The Undying ability, coupled with a Sacrifice outlet, recursion, and the ability to remove the counters placed on this card when it returns to the field, makes for a great drain and burn loop in both Commander and Modern where combo pieces are readily available. 

The most well-known pairing that handles multiple aspects of this combo is Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, where Geralf’s Messenger regularly finds a home. 

Geralf’s Messenger is part of a subset of MTG Zombie lore, stretching back to the plane of Innistrad. The mad scientist Necromancer Geralf and his creations have been featured on many high-powered Zombie support over the years, from Gisa and Geralf to Geralf’s Masterpiece. 

Geralf was recently seen in Outlaws of Thunder Junction, with his wanted poster alt-art variant being among the set’s most sought-after cards by collectors. 

As the recent Hatsune Miku Secret Lair sets – Sakura Superstar and Digital Sensation – have proven, Secret Lair cards can be among the magic cards most likely to spike in price after their corresponding set roll-out. 

Secret Lair products do not receive reprints in the traditional sense, meaning that for players looking into a specific Secret Lair variant of a card, their options are highly limited.  

The unpopular switch from the print-to-demand model for Secret Lairs to Limited Run has only exacerbated this problem. For as long as Secret Lair cards remain this difficult to get ahold of, both at and after release, price spikes like Geralf’s Messenger’s are likely to continue.