Last updated on November 3, 2025
source: Secret Lair Countdown Kit promo image
Another day, another huge Secret Lair sale that’s going to leave a bunch of scalpers slightly wealthier and a bunch of MTG players and collectors slightly sadder. Following on the heels of the Super Scare Superdrop and the PlayStation Superdrop from previous weeks, Secret Lair’s firing off its new “Countdown Kit”, which takes the form of a 26-card release with a card for each letter of the alphabet. Is it worth $199 though? Let’s find out.
Table of Contents
Let’s peek at the actual cards in the drop. I’ll also attach the lowest TCGplayer market price value of the cards so we can add them all up in the end and see if you’re getting your money’s worth. As someone’s whose last name starts with a Z, I’d love to start from the end and work backwords, like Secret Lair’s been doing on Twitter for the past couple weeks, but I’ll save you the confusion:
Wow, they just couldn’t help themselves with another Secret Lair Sol Ring, could they? The total here comes out to $274.89 across 26 cards. The actual selection of cards is questionable, but there’s enough value in the reprints to make this worth the $200 asking price.
The biggest hits are:
Almost two-thirds of the drop’s value is spread across these five cards, with a handful of other cards in the $10-20 range, and a few 5-dollar bills scattered throughout. To counteract that, there’s a handful of cards worth virtually nothing, including some head-scratching duds like Junji, the Midnight Sky, Hymn to Tourach, and Retrofitter Foundry. That’s not to say these cards aren’t playable or don’t have awesome new art, they’re just not what you want out of a $200 product. Seeing Sol Ring and Llanowar Elves is extra disappointing, since these already have excellent chase rare alternate arts and feel like they’re just taking up space here.
The Secret Lair sale begins at 9:15am PST / 12:15 EST (pushed back 15 minutes due to technical issues), and might sell out immediately. That’s been the case with recent drops, but the hype level or even awareness of this Countdown Kit are lower than the last few sales.
All-in-all, the Encyclopedia countdown kit ain’t too shabby for its price. The value’s there, there are some great reprints scattered throughout, and there’s pretty cool art across the board here. Whether or not you’ll be able to snag a copy for yourself is up in the air though, given Secret Lair’s reputation lately. But here’s to hoping you get what you’re looking for.
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Timothy Zaccagnino
Timothy has been a Magic enthusiast since picking up the game in 2012, with a love of Limited and Commander. He’s the co-creator of Jank Diver Gaming and co-host of The Deep Dive podcast. These days you can find him at the draft table, brewing his 20th EDH deck or cubing with friends on Arena.
