A previously overlooked Magic: The Gathering planeswalker, Kasmina, Enigma Sage, has experienced a dramatic price increase of over 1,000% on the secondary market. This surge is attributed to a newly revealed combo enabled by a card from the recent expansion, Reality Fracture.
Kasmina, Enigma Sage, originally released in 2021's Strixhaven: School of Mages, had largely been available for around a dollar. However, market data indicates that copies of both the regular and borderless versions have recently climbed into double-digit pricing, with MTG Stocks reporting gains exceeding 1,000% over the past month and over 1,200% in the last week alone. This event follows a pattern of significant price shifts in Magic: The Gathering cards driven by speculation during preview seasons.
The Combo's Engine
The catalyst for Kasmina's price spike is Jace’s Machinations, a three-mana blue instant from Reality Fracture. This card utilizes the set's new Empower Jace mechanic. When cast, it creates a Jace planeswalker token if one isn't already present, then adds eight loyalty counters to it. Crucially, it grants Jace planeswalkers the ability to activate loyalty abilities at instant speed for the remainder of the turn.
When Kasmina, Enigma Sage is on the battlefield, this effect becomes considerably more potent. Kasmina's static ability allows all other planeswalkers under a player's control to use her loyalty abilities, including her powerful ultimate. Because Jace's Machinations immediately leaves its Jace token with eight loyalty, that token can instantly activate Kasmina's ultimate. This allows the player to search their library for an instant or sorcery that shares a color with the blue Jace token and cast it for free, all at instant speed.
Potential Payoffs and Skepticism
Players have identified Enter the Infinite, a 12-mana sorcery, as a particularly devastating spell to cast for free with this combo. Doing so draws the player's entire library, enabling a win condition such as Thassa’s Oracle. Another potential finisher mentioned is Fblthp, Impossibly Lost from Reality Fracture, provided the player can return cards to their library before Fblthp connects in combat. Emergent Ultimatum is also cited as a viable game-ending spell that can be cast through Kasmina's ultimate.
In formats like Pioneer, this engine could theoretically assemble as early as turn three, assuming a favorable sequence of plays including a turn-one mana dork. However, the article cautions that the viability of this combo in actual competitive play remains uncertain. Two-card combos revealed during preview seasons often appear formidable but can falter against removal, counterspells, and inconsistent draws.
Kasmina, Enigma Sage saw minimal competitive play before this interaction surfaced, suggesting that much of the current price surge is speculative. Nevertheless, the rapid and significant increase in value for an otherwise overlooked card highlights how swiftly a card's market price can change based on new developments, demonstrating the unpredictable nature of Magic: The Gathering card values during preview periods.