MTG has amassed a huge number of formats in its 3 decades of existence, and Dandân is among the most unique of all.
While formats like Commander have slowly risen from fan-run curiosities to official pillars of the game, Dandân remains niche but offers a wholly unique MTG experience.
Playing this fish-based format feels like wading into a completely new game, and fans discovering the game for the first time have led to the format’s key card shooting up in price.
Dandân is played with a shared deck of 80 cards. The deck contains 10 copies of Dandân, 20 lands, 8 Memory Lapses, and an assortment of interaction. With Dandân as players’ only source of damage, games rely heavily on control strategies and memory.
Copies of Dandân are currently at a market price of $11.60 on TCGPlayer. This is a huge leap from the average of $4 that the card was selling for prior to May 6.
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Many of MTG’s recent price spikes have been a result of players getting to grips with the Outlaws of Thunder Junction set, adding powerful new Artifact options like Ancient Cornucopia into Modern decks. However, the card Dandân isn’t gaining in price because players have cracked some broken new combo with the card. Rather, Dandân is the undisputed star of the format of the same name.
So, why have so many Magic players suddenly gravitated to this fantastic yet obscure format? Simply enough, it’s because MTG Youtube channel Tolarian Community College has shone a spotlight on Dandân. In a video titled Rhystic Studies And Dandân: A Blue Mage’s Dream, the TCC brought the format to the wider MTG community’s attention, leading to a spike in sales for Dandân.
Dandân’s price will likely flatten out again soon, meaning players who have never given this game mode a shot should soon be able to dive in and try it for themselves.