By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
Hasbro has officially released the Lord of the Rings set for Magic: The Gathering, even as the ultra-rare One Ring that Rules Them all was found by a buyer in Canada.
The One Ring is certainly one of the biggest collectibles stories of the year, as Hasbro’s Wizards of the Coast division had the brilliant idea of creating Sauron’s ring from the LOTR novels.
The one trading card to rule them all was found in the small Ontario town of Whitby by a retail worker who apparently just purchased two boxes. To his shock, the still anonymous buyer opened one package to find the distinctive card, which features gold lettering printed in the Black Speech of Sauron, one of Tolkien’s fictional languages from the novels.
In an emailed interview with the site Dexerto, the buyer said, “I had a pre-order of a Collectors Box that I was set to pick up on June 17th. But, for some reason, I woke up early on June 16th and decided to head to the store when it opened. I was the first one in. I asked if they had any collector boxes for sale, and they said they had a few left. So, I bought two. I opened the extra boxes at home, and there it was, in the 6th pack of the second box!”
The card is not only rare, but incredibly valuable, currently valued at over $2 million, but with the potential to earn more from avid fans of the game and the Tolkien stories. One Spanish reseller has already posted a public offer of 2 million Euros for the card, which would net the owner $2.9 million Cdn.
The buyer has, perhaps wisely, chosen to remain anonymous for now, but did provide a short statement to Canadian media outlet CBC News through the PR agency The Notable Group, which has been engaged to manage the sale of the One Ring.
“My hands were literally shaking. I couldn’t believe it was real,” the card owner said in an email. “These things don’t happen to people like me.”
The card is so valuable that it had to be flown to California so it could be authenticated by Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA), which is the largest third-party trading card authentication and grading company in the world, according to its website.
CBC News reported that, somewhat hilariously, PSA Canada originally doubted the card had been found. “It was like, yeah, jump in line,” said Brad Hartlin, who represents PSA Canada. “You’re the 20th person that said they had the card.”
Hartlin had to fly to Toronto, collect the card from The Notable Group, and then fly with the card to the PSA headquarters in Santa Ana, near Los Angeles. The card was quickly authenticated, and Hartlin then caught a redeye flight back to Canada.
“This is such a unique moment,” Hartlin told CBC News. “I truly believe when someone buys this card, you’re not going to see it on the marketplace again for a long, long time.”
All of this excitement comes just as Wizards of the Coast division has officially released The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth set for Magic: The Gathering.
There’s a crossover in the fan base for Magic and for the tales of Middle Earth, and the licensed game release may well be the best selling set in the history of the franchise.
“Much like The Lord of the Rings, Magic: The Gathering is about fellowship,” said Magic: The Gathering’s Bill Rose. “We can’t wait for Magic fans and new players to come together on the journey there and back again through the thematic gameplay that Magic fans all over the world have come to love and appreciate.”
Hasbro says the legendary scenes from the Third Age of Middle-earth are brought to life through carefully crafted, original art. The idea was to create each card as a miniature work of art, all while providing a new interpretation of the characters, lands, and relics that Tolkien brought to life in his classic trilogy. There are a wide variety of cards that will be of interest to collectors, as players can assemble special combinations of Magic cards to recreate climactic scenes directly from the novels, like the Battle of the Pelennor Fields at Minas Tirith, or Bilbo’s Birthday party, which kicked off the entire trilogy.
As well, the game allows any creature or person in the game to become a Ringbearer, allowing players to relive the most important role in the books through gameplay in Magic: The Gathering.
However, there are no cards that can match the One Ring. “The One of One Ring Promotion is an extraordinarily rare promotion only for The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth,” Wizards of the Coast says. “The card is mechanically identical to other versions of the card with English text, but this one copy of this premium foil card with raised gold foil will be inserted into an English language Collector Booster pack and printed with 1 of 1 numbering and with Elvish script.
“The precious One Ring could fall into the hands of any player, presenting a unique opportunity for collectors and fans of the franchise.”
Now that has in fact happened, the question will be, who will finally end up with the One Ring that rules them all. The card’s current owner says the experience has been life changing. As a young retail worker, suddenly owning a card worth conservatively $2 million USD will obviously transform his life.
“Every time I read something or see a video, I get hit with a wave of joy” the buyer said. “Like watching Cash Cards Unlimited’s livestream and seeing what he speculates the card to be worth and listening to him talk about the ring. Meanwhile, the whole time I’m smiling from ear to ear with it in my hands! It’s just amazing. This whole experience has been incredible.”
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