Unsurprisingly, given the source material and its name, heroes and villains are at the core of Marvel Super Heroes. Beyond just having tons of named characters appear in the main set, each of these typal archetypes also got its own precon. As good as these precons are out of the box, as always, they can be pushed even further with upgrades.
If you’re looking to upgrade the Doom Prevails precon, there are several different routes you can go down. While our upgrade guide pushed the deck in a discard direction, you can alternatively make it a fearsome Villain Typal deck. If this is the game plan that calls to you, then Doctor Octopus, Master Planner is an auto-include.
MTG Doctor Octopus, Master Planner
Released as part of last year’s Spider Man MTG set, it’s no surprise that Doctor Octopus, Master Planner is growing in popularity. When it was first released, Villain Typal was just getting started, but now it’s really up and running. As such, there are more decks than ever before looking to run this card for its sweet typal lord.
That said, while a solid +2/+2 buff to basically all of your creatures is solid, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Doctor Octopus’ real party trick is the insane card draw it offers. Even if you’re not playing your entire hand every turn, drawing up to eight cards for seven mana isn’t bad at all.
With this potential in mind, it’s no wonder that Doctor Octopus, Master Planner is seeing widespread play already. According to EDHREC, Doc Oc can be found in over 11,000 decks, and there’s no signs of it slowing down. While Norman Osborn is currently this card’s most popular home, Doctor Doom, King of Latveria has caused a notable uptick in demand.
Accounting for 1,700 of Doctor Octopus’ total decks, this card is unsurprisingly popular in the Marvel Super Heroes precon. On top of this, Loki, the Deciver and Thanos, the Mad Titan have also caused play rate bumps. In total, Marvel Super Heroes is responsible for over 3,000 new lists using Doctor Octopus, Master Planner, so it’s no wonder prices are up.
Slow and Steady
Admittedly, while Doctor Octopus, Master Planner is capable, its mana cost has prevented it from being a Commander staple. If there’s any silver lining to this, it’s that Doctor Octopus isn’t a particularly expensive MTG card. Hell, even post price spike, this card won’t break the bank, though it’s not necessarily a budget card anymore.
Currently, if you’re looking for a copy of Doctor Octopus, Master Planner, a neat-mint example will set you back $5.79. This might not be an obscene price, but it was a fair bit cheaper back in June. This time last month, for instance, a near-mint Doctor Octopus, Master Planner would only cost you $1.58.
Curiously, if you don’t care about which variant you get, the borderless Doctor Octopus, Master Planner is slightly cheaper right now. Offering a striking comic book-style aesthetic, this variant is available for just $5 right now. Notably, there aren’t a ton of copies available at this price, but this variant is definitely worth keeping in mind.
A Compelling Future
While prices have already spiked by 266% in one month, Doctor Octopus might not stop there. Even though there are 78 listings left on TCGplayer, prices do climb rapidly to $6 and beyond. Looking even further ahead, however, Doctor Octopus, Master Planner just gets better and better.
Since we know we’re getting a bunch more MTG Marvel sets, we’re bound to get more compelling Villain Typal support. Even if we don’t get a new precon themed around this, new cards will surely increase demand for Doctor Octopus, Master Planner. So long as it doesn’t get reprinted, this could push its prices up dramatically, especially since it is a mythic.
Ultimately, as always, it remains to be seen what will happen to Doctor Octopus, Master Planner going forward. Realistically, outside of Villain Typal decks, this card is somewhat niche, so there’s likely to be a lid on its price point. Given the consistent demand we’ve been seeing recently, however, it’s unlikely we’re at that point yet.
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