Author Archives: Chris Martin

Patron Exclusive: Convoke Requires Your Attention

With the Convoke precon officially spoiled, we know now for certain that there a few clear omissions worth speculating on if you haven’t already. Chris lays them out in this Patreon exclusive!

Patron Exclusive: Battles Revealed and a Spec to Go With

Chris shares a few specs in response to the first “Battle” card type being previewed, and some unofficial rulings that attempt to explain how “Battles” will work.

Pt. 1: The State of Magic, a Quarterly Update from the Chi Style POV

Chris recaps where Magic is at after the first three months of 2023 and he lays the foundation for Part 2 in the series where he will share thoughts on the year ahead.

(Unlocked) Five at Five, a Collaboration with Jake & Joel Are Magic

Conviction Gaming is excited to announce a collaboration with Jake and Joel Are Magic! The Five at Five series will explore specs, future and past, from Chris Martin, as both an article and video series. Check it out and let us know what you think!

Chris’s Commander Corner: My First Spec of 2023

Happy New Year! I have my first spec of the year to share predicated on a combination of price action and precedence of other cards with the similar ability this card possesses. The spec is Prosperous Innkeeper, an uncommon from Adventures in the Forgotten Realms. The rate and utility of this card is fantastic sinceContinue reading “Chris’s Commander Corner: My First Spec of 2023”

(Unlocked) Should You Buy the December Secret Lair Superdrop?

Chris shares a detailed write up covering the December Secret Lair Superdrop. The Just Add Milk Drop is a buy because of Ulamog, but what other ones should you be thinking about? Chris has the answers inside!

Patron Exclusive: Price Alert

This content is available exclusively to members of Conviction’s Patreon at “Any patron” or higher tier, or having at least $.01 pledged in total. Unlock with PatreonAlready a qualifying Patreon member? Refresh to access this content.

Should You Buy the October Secret Lair Superdrop?

Chris shares a detailed write up covering the October Secret Lair Superdrop “Big Bundle”. Should you buy the bundle or individual drops for value? He tells you why or why not!

(Unlocked) Chris’s Commander Corner: Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph

Chris’s Commander Corner is back and he’s talking about Magic’s latest precons from Warhammer 40K. This article is loaded with five picks and an MTG finance analysis for your “Tim” aka Ghyrson Starn, Kelemorph deck!

How To Celebrate Magic 30 The Right Way

“We’re just feeling it really sting right now because Magic 30 might as well have been a slap across everybody’s face by WotC.”

Chris is remaining optimistic in an otherwise downtrodden MTG environment, but how?

New Merfolk Synergy from Dominaria United!

Hi Patrons! I hope you are having a great day as always. Dominaria United has been a loaded set so far with a little something for just about everyone, so why not also include a few new additions to the evergreen (blue? lol) Merfolk tribe. In the midst of the great spoilers today, we wereContinue reading “New Merfolk Synergy from Dominaria United!”

Chris’s Commander Corner: Ivy, Gleeful Spellthief

Hello Patrons! We have a new Simic commander, and whoo-boy is it a unique design for the color pairing! Ivy, Gleeful Spellthief could end up being among the more popular new commander options from Dominaria United, and it should have a shot at moving at least a few cards up in price. The strategies IvyContinue reading “Chris’s Commander Corner: Ivy, Gleeful Spellthief”

Unlocked: Liliana of the Veil Reprint?

Hi Everyone, I’m back with my first write up in a few weeks and it’s to kick off Dominaria United coverage. We’ll have a ton of content pouring out for spoiler coverage over the next few weeks, but first up I want to address the teasers we’ve been seeing regarding a reprint for a LilianaContinue reading “Unlocked: Liliana of the Veil Reprint?”

Unlocked: The Impact of Tasha

In our upcoming episode of Brewin’ With Conviction which posts on Tuesday, June 14th, Jesus and I discuss brews and specs for three of the top five most popular commanders from Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate (CLB). One of the commanders discussed is Tasha, the Witch Queen, and we promise a couple specs wouldContinue reading “Unlocked: The Impact of Tasha”

Dragons, Dragons Everywhere!

Hi All, I wrote a spec alert about the spoilers in CLB which focused on some picks for dragons, and I want to double down on this. I’m seeing movement for key dragon tribal staples once again. A few notable cards to keep an eye on are below: – Dragon’s Hoard: recently reprinted as partContinue reading “Dragons, Dragons Everywhere!”

Evaluating Magic Cards: the Prelude

One question I sometimes get asked by consumers of my MTG finance content is how I approach evaluating the power-level and synergy of cards previewed during spoiler season. If you are reading my content for the first time, context on why I get this question is important. I’m not a professional player, and my credentialsContinue reading “Evaluating Magic Cards: the Prelude”

Patron Exclusive: Price Increase Alert

Hi All, Back with the usual price alert but first, as always, I want to circle back to a prior call and update on where it stands: Tamiyo’s Safekeeping foils. These have been on fire since the original call pegged them as a buy for $0.50-$1. TCG Direct has been selling at $5 consistently, andContinue reading “Patron Exclusive: Price Increase Alert”

Chris’s Commander Corner: Reviewing Piru

Back in August, I didn’t want to use any online search or EDHREC to build my next deck, so I turned to the Twitter MTG community for ideas instead. Here’s the original tweet: What ensued was amazing. For me, a small timer in the community to get so many interactions was awesome. There were 149Continue reading “Chris’s Commander Corner: Reviewing Piru”

Rotation Prep Pt. 4: Core Set 2021

The first three rotation articles are in the books and the final one awaits us! If you missed any of my coverage on the other three rotating sets, you can start from the beginning by clicking here. Core Set 2021 dropped in the heat of the global coronavirus pandemic last year, and it was admittedlyContinue reading “Rotation Prep Pt. 4: Core Set 2021”

Rotation Prep Pt. 3: Ikoria, Lair of Behemoths

Welcome to the third article in my four part series covering the rotating Standard sets from an MTG finance perspective. Check out my respective reviews of Throne of Eldraine and Theros: Beyond Death as well. This rendition of coverage is going to be a shorter article than Theros: Beyond Death because Ikoria: Lair of BehemothsContinue reading “Rotation Prep Pt. 3: Ikoria, Lair of Behemoths”

Rotation Prep Pt. 2: Theros Beyond Death

Welcome back to the second of my four part series covering the rotating Standard sets from an MTG finance perspective. If you missed my review of Throne of Eldraine last week, check it out here. Much like Eldraine before it, Theros: Beyond Death is a deep set, boasting two uncommons worth $2+ and a handfulContinue reading “Rotation Prep Pt. 2: Theros Beyond Death”

Rotation Prep Pt. 1: Throne of Eldraine

For years, the power-level of Standard sets seemed like it had been relatively consistent and stable. Set after set, the storyline and lore fused with limited and Standard design to make for a typically-balanced, almost-always solid drafting experience. This statement includes Dominaria and the Ixalans, the second Return to Ravnica (Guilds of Ravnica and RavnicaContinue reading “Rotation Prep Pt. 1: Throne of Eldraine”

Chris’s Commander Corner: Cx3, the Relaunch

It has been a long time since I have felt a connection to Magic and have had the motivation to write content. I could write multiple articles discussing my burnout, lost focus, etc., but at this point I’d like to make it water under the bridge and capitalize on my resurgence of energy. There isContinue reading “Chris’s Commander Corner: Cx3, the Relaunch”

Playing and Selling: a Balancing Act

For over 20 years, I have been active with Magic: the Gathering in some capacity. There have been many stretches where that activity involved playing some kitchen table Magic or going to FNM. But somewhere into that second decade, I evolved into a financially-focused, money-driven human that saw the value in my cards. It startedContinue reading “Playing and Selling: a Balancing Act”

Conflict, Strife, and a Burnout Later: An Introspective

I decided to take a step back for this article and share a little about my challenges as a content creator, community manager, and a human dealing with all the real-world stuff that happened in 2020. I hope if nothing else that this piece leaves me vulnerable for a moment and exposes relatable experiences forContinue reading “Conflict, Strife, and a Burnout Later: An Introspective”

2020 Rotation Prep: Ravnica Allegiance

My first article covering Guilds of Ravnica posted on 8/27; you can find that one here. I do encourage reading it as I set the table for the purpose and structure of these articles. This one is fluff-less. We’re going straight into the cards to add to our watchlist from Ravnica Allegiance. Investment Plan ArguablyContinue reading “2020 Rotation Prep: Ravnica Allegiance”