The Economic Future of WL Hal Jordan and Friends.

[Zephyrpower]

Hey Everyone,

Well, it seems like after a few weeks of White Lantern Insanity (specifically, White Lantern HAL JORDAN Insanity), the prices have peaked and are starting to drop again. I just noticed Hal Jordan plummeted from $100 to $75 on Ebay, just when I was comtemplating selling him for $100.

I also posted Hal Jordan up for trade on my tradelist, and I'm surprised that I haven't received many offers...other than a few lackluster offers like 3 SR's, Thorbuster or Superman + a few rares. The best offer I've probably received was a KC Green Lantern + my choice of some Crisis SR's, which I'm actually tempted to take.

I'm still contemplating selling or trading him, but I also have this desire to keep him, or regain him at some point in the near future. So, I'm wondering what you guys think of the future of Hal Jordan and other WL's now that the set has been out for a whole month. Do you think the prices are pretty stabilized, or perhaps we'll see an increase or decrease in prices?

And if I do get rid of him, how hard do you think it would be to regain him in the near future (ie 3-4 wks).

Also, I was wondering how you think he ranks in playability. He's not too bad for his point cost, but his dial seems a bit shorter than I would prefer.

So let's discuss the future of the "Flash-in-a-Pan" White Lanterns!

[naeblis501]

I think he will hold his value for the most part. I have been tempted to deal mine but I already traded one away and it was semi-difficult to replace even before demand went through the roof. I would hold onto Hal out of all of the white lanterns due to the trait.

[Zephyrpower]

Anyone else interested in speculatin' on this?

I'm still considering trading WL Hal for KC Green Lantern + 2-3 SR's from Crisis. Probably SR Flash and SR Black Adam...not sure if that would work or not.

I'm thinking Hal will still around the the $65-$75 mark myself, with occasional drops or higher auctions.

[Immortal_Raven]

Considering KC Green Lantern is hard to come by, I'd take that trade. I think prices will stabilize, then dip when the new set comes out when people scramble for the new hotness. I traded my Hal and a SR Wonder Twins for a Crisis KC Superman, very happy with the trade.

Hal is very playable, but so are the pieces you'd get for him. Just depends on your play-style/venue rules.

[Jarosa]

I'm in the same boat. I have more than Hal though. Almost an entire second set.

[jolt]

I have more than Hal though. Almost an entire second set.

I am now required to hate you. Sorry, but it's the law. ;)

jolt

[Perplexinator]

Nobody would have expected the prices for the figures to be going down as soon as they are.

Personally, I'd sell now because they aren't going to go back up. There's no World Championship to boost their popularity anywhere in the future. When Giant-Sized X-Men come out, people are going to be trading away their white lanterns to get the super-booster figures.

What I'm saying is that there are already others selling their items and clearing their stock. That is why the price is coming down. If you don't take advantage of the opportunity to sell now, you most definitely won't get the value you want later.

That's how I see it.

[Troma99]

Nobody would have expected the prices for the figures to be going down as soon as they are.

Personally, I'd sell now because they aren't going to go back up. There's no World Championship to boost their popularity anywhere in the future. When Giant-Sized X-Men come out, people are going to be trading away their white lanterns to get the super-booster figures.

What I'm saying is that there are already others selling their items and clearing their stock. That is why the price is coming down. If you don't take advantage of the opportunity to sell now, you most definitely won't get the value you want later.

That's how I see it.
Then again: Logically because everyone's clearing their stock prices are going down but once everyone who wants to sell them do...and the people who bought have them....then what about the others who still want them? If there's more demand than supply (which it may come to be) then price could eventually go up?


OH wait no these are like Skrull Chases they're from a single storyline and don't have staying power.

[2Face]

I think that the high prices have led to the early price drop. A lot of people who were considering keeping them seem to have sold them when they started selling for so much, which increased the supply. The high prices also decrease the demand since many (myself included) then see them as unattainable. The quick sell-out also had a lot of people buying extra cases and then selling singles. Right now, the supply is probably pretty close its peak. I expect prices to continue to drop for about a month and then go up slightly once the supply decreases, but I think we've already seen the peak.

[Jarimy123]

OH wait no these are like Skrull Chases they're from a single storyline and don't have staying power.

Not sure I'd use that comparison. A really awful story, and Skrulls are infinitely less popular than anything Green Lantern related, just makes them not really work in comparison.

I get what you are saying, but they are not close IMO.

Edit: Not that Blackest/Brightest Day has been the best story ever in comics - but Secret Invasion was epic in being awful.

[2Face]

OH wait no these are like Skrull Chases they're from a single storyline and don't have staying power.

I somewhat agree, but at the same time, anything Lantern related will be hot for a while. Hal in particular will be sought after. Anything Lantern related will be hot for a while, especially with the upcoming movie. That gives them some advantage over the Skrull Chases. As long as Johns in writing GL, the Lanterns are going to be playing a prominent role in the DCU, which will keep these figs popular for a while.

Edit: Jarimy beat me to it.

[Troma99]

Oh I agree but it seems that Snapshot figures....ones that have tons of other versions have less staying power.

Like The First E-2 Superman Powerhouse (Not origin but the Crisis Chase) or KC Superman.

hmmm sorry just thinking. But yeah Skrull chases are garbage that's why I was happy to get Nekron for one. But I could see the White lantern prices dropping and SPiking and evening out after a while.

[Jarosa]

I think X-Mas has alot to do with the sellout. Honestly I don't remember a holiday release since I've been playing hardcore. I got double the amount of cases I wanted do to this. To add to the problem my buddy wanted a case. We thought the sellout would drive up the price. So when MM only had 3 left at $180 I bought him one, not knowing I had another on the way from my Grandma, so what could have been a solution has turned into a problem. If it arrived 2 days sooner I would have said I have an extra case. Now I'm stuck with 2 more cases, could be worse,because he doesn't have the cash and said he'd rather buy a C/UnC/R set from me and I can sell the case. I have 5 extra complete C/UnC/R sets. I have alot of mod fodder and actually made $10 off Aquaman and Batman. I have quite a few modded figures, did wonder Woman in the black vest uniform with some green stuff and paint. Was Green Arrow a Black Lantern as well?

[supremepontiff]

i think as long as Hal and his friends diversify their stocks and funds into a money market account, and allow for a 15% IRA, and invest lightly in bonds with a 25% sell-thru rate, their economic future will be a-OK.....

-RmL

[Zephyrpower]

I'm in the same boat. I have more than Hal though. Almost an entire second set.

Honestly, I think your solution is easy. I would sell them for cash..WL Hal and WL Flash could still fetch you probably $75 and $50 respectively, so that's about $135. I'm sure the rest would sell for at least $120 or more (depending on what you have...and considering the average prices for WL's seem to be around $30). So that's $250 in your pocket AND YOU still have a whole set of WL's good to go.

Set that $250 aside for emegencies, but assuming nothing comes up in the next 2 months.....Buy yourself a Case of GSX!!! That's good for at least 1 case, and almost another brick, depending on what discounts your LGS Offers. With that, you should be able to acquire a good amount of your Needs from GSX. If not, at least you should have extras of the "New hawtness" from GSX to trade + tons of other figs that you want from the set...as opposed to just some WL's that you might try to trade individually...but I'm sure most of them will lose some value because everyone will be chasing the new FOTM.

At least that's what I would do, but then again...I don't have people buying me cases left and right so I end up with 10x cases full of chases that I don't know what to do with, LOL.

Seriously though, I think WL's will lose their value. Cash won't. Just my 2cents.

[The Incredible Mate]

I've actually been contemplating trading/selling all my White Lantern's except for one of my hal's, my Superman, and my flash and one of my Sinestro's when I get them.

[maddragon13]

I don't think the WLs will hold a high asking price for much longer. The hype will wear down on DC 75th, GSX-Men will be the new flavor, and people will be poor from spending their money on super-boosters. So if you're going to sell or trade, now is the time to do it. I bet you in about 3 months, WL Hal will be in the $30-$35 range.

And as far as his playability, I don't think he's anywhere as good as alot of the other WLs. Green Arrow is the most playable in my opinion.

[Sharkbite]

I would guess Hal will level out around $50, with Supes, Flash, and Ollie around $35 and the rest in the $20-25 range.

While Hal is highly playable, Hal is a svelt 155 points. Crisis Hal, an Uncommon readily available at a cheap price, weighs in at 157. Blackest Hal, also a highly playable dial, a modest 150. There are other very playable options without the huge pricetag in the same point bracket if you're just looking for Hal Jordan. Hal's unique playability seems to stem from his trait, theme-teaming him to other Corps.

I humbly propose that other than the Sinestro Corp and Green Lantern Corp, the other Corps will see few future installments. BN starter brought us the Deputy Lanterns and DC75 brought us the Corps Leaders; the key players have been covered. Occupying 7 slots of an upcoming set to give us the 2nd string members (and then expecting them to continue to regularly give us more, getting into the 4th and 5th members) is a bit unrealistic. We have DC sets release with no Titans and no Legion, two long standing, highly popular teams. Everything is circular; we will not be getting Orange Lantern construct figures before we get a Catwoman or Max Lord. You can appease most fans with just 2-3 figures from their team in a set, but to focus in on these realitively new characters and build up their Corps further, they require 5+ slots per set.

Long story short, WL Hal being able to attach to Indigo, Blue, Black, White, or Orange Lantern Corps will decrease in imporance as those teams fail to expand. GL's have other Hal options, so basically WL Hal Jordan will be sought by Sinestro Corp fans as a completionist figure. Add to that, when his Rainbow Corps keyword trait decreases in usefulness, WL Hal can't even be themed to the Justice League; he actually starts to be the less desireable version. Had WL Hal been some 300 point Hal, he'd have retained his value and been the new E-2 Superman, but there are too many other options of Hal Jordan at the same point value for pennies on the dollar. That's what's going to kill his pricetag. You don't have another option if you're looking for a Black Lantern or E-2 Superman, but you have plenty of alternatives for Hal Jordan.

Like Cosmic Spiderman and Superman Prime, I believe Superman, Flash, and Green Arrow will retain that high SR price tag because of their playability, which after the initial fad wears off will be the measuring stick for all the WLs. The rest will drop into that low 20s bracket more on par with Regular SRs.

I obtained the ones I wanted for play purposes (Titans) and sold the rest of mine while price was high. I do not regret the decision in the slightest. The money they brought in paid for over half the cost of my DC75 purchases. When the hobby supports itself, it becomes even more fun.

[Jarimy123]

I bet you in about 3 months, WL Hal will be in the $30-$35 range.

And as far as his playability, I don't think he's anywhere as good as alot of the other WLs. Green Arrow is the most playable in my opinion.

What's the bet? I'm in.

I haven't had much of a chance to play them yet, but just from dials I believe Flash is the best. I think they are all relatively playable, some of them are top tier, most of them are just playable pieces, more importantly they all take finesse to play for sure.

As far as Hal dropping to $30-$35 - I'm not sure that you can bet that a figure that has sold for $100 multiple times, and even if it is slightly dropping now it is still going for $75-$80+. I just think the demand for Hal will continue to be enough to keep him high. Not sure people will ever want to sell him below $50-$60.

[anonym0use]

What's the bet? I'm in.

I haven't had much of a chance to play them yet, but just from dials I believe Flash is the best. I think they are all relatively playable, some of them are top tier, most of them are just playable pieces, more importantly they all take finesse to play for sure.

As far as Hal dropping to $30-$35 - I'm not sure that you can bet that a figure that has sold for $100 multiple times, and even if it is slightly dropping now it is still going for $75-$80+. I just think the demand for Hal will continue to be enough to keep him high. Not sure people will ever want to sell him below $50-$60.

For Hal I think the biggest thing driving the price is threefold:

1.) most importantly his keyword flexibility.
2.) as an A-list character from the BN/BD storyline.
3.) (least important) he has a higher end sculpt.

I'd bet that if FCBD Hal has some kind of flexibility with Keywords, WL Hal will dip fast.

[dreven]

I'd bet that if FCBD Hal has some kind of flexibility with Keywords, WL Hal will dip fast.

wouldn't that make those people who bought WL Hal at $100+ happy.

[Jarosa]

I don't see the people who paid top dollar for him selling him for much less than what they paid. I've also noticed that since the price-tag on the auctions have been dropping so have the numbers being auctioned. Leaving behind the $50 and higher BIN pricetags. I just checked and there's 7 or less of most on E-bay. The majority being high BIN. The lower BIN have all been scooped up. For instance Ollie sold for $57.95 because that's the lowest BIN left. There's still auctions, actually he still has quite a few. The Flash has 4 listings, 2 of which are over $65BIN. There's no Animal Man auctions but plenty of BIN most over $30 only 1 below $30 actually. Both Hal and Supes have 9 listings. A good mixture of actions ad BIN, but the BIN are expensive. 7 listings for Wonder Woman, too. 2 auctions the rest BIN over $40. 1 auction is already close to $40 so actually 1 auction that's viable.
It's almost like they're like diamonds, there's probably plenty but when the price dipped a little the suppliers pulled them back off the market until the demand returns. I personally have had great experiences with them. I've won with them far more than I've lost. I've had the chance to play Ollie and WW in sealed. Won both times. I've played Bart on a Teen Titans theme team, Flash is amazing, I tried a 800 pt. WL team against a 800 pt. BL team. Only lost Hal.
I think the novelty with them will keep them in demand instead of hurt them. Even the novel White bases is really cool.

[Thrumble Funk]

other than a few lackluster offers like 3 SR's, Thorbuster or Superman + a few rares.

Christ, man, I love that deals involving $70 - $80 chases are now "lackluster."

I suppose next we'll start trading replacement organs for our little pieces of plastic. :tired:

[anonym0use]

wouldn't that make those people who bought WL Hal at $100+ happy.

I can't tell what the tone of your post is, so excuse me if I misinterpret it, but it seems like you're against the idea of another Hal that has flexible keywords, or at the very least against the thought of a sudden drop in price of the figure on the secondary market.


With that in mind, my response is:

Frankly, I don't think high spenders should care. People who shell out $100+ for a small plastic figure in a volatile market shouldn't give a darn if that figure drops in price $10-$100 overnight or in a few months. If you *do* care, then you shouldn't spend the money.

This isn't gold. This isn't stock in big oil. This is not an investment. This is a demand driven game that is not guaranteed to hold value. It's really a mater of time before something changes the demand (and something eventually will).

Really, the people who spent that kind of money:

1.) had that kind of money to spend in the first place.
2.) had the satisfaction of getting what they wanted when they wanted it.

To some people, $100 is chump change for their hobby. To others it's a month's groceries. By all rights the supply of WL Hal Jordan will remain constant - it's still a rare figure so it should hold some value.

My personal opinion is that the market is inflated right now. Hal's not as good as some of the others in the set. Barry and Donna easily trump him. There seems to be a "White Fever" though, and in true Pokemon style the gotta have 'em all crowd is going rabid (self included), throwing tons of money and trade credit toward any and all lanterns. I highly suspect there's going to be serious buyer's remorse in about two months time, and people will be scratching their heads saying "Why did I trade SR Ultron *and* SR Hela for WL Ice?..."

[KO Bossy]

Christ, man, I love that deals involving $70 - $80 chases are now "lackluster."

I suppose next we'll start trading replacement organs for our little pieces of plastic. :tired:

There you go again, amusing me.

I don't care what anyone says, these WLs are not chases to me. Call them chases all you want, but a chase is something that's really rare and is not guaranteed. WLs are 1 per 8 packs, guaranteed 1 per brick. That right there is not chase.

[tom730]

There you go again, amusing me.

I don't care what anyone says, these WLs are not chases to me. Call them chases all you want, but a chase is something that's really rare and is not guaranteed. WLs are 1 per 8 packs, guaranteed 1 per brick. That right there is not chase.

The thing that makes them "Chase-ish" is that while they may be 1 per 8 boosters, there are 10 of them, so a specific WL is 1 per 80 boosters, or 1 per 4 cases, which is certainly "Chase-ish!"

[Zephyrpower]

Christ, man, I love that deals involving $70 - $80 chases are now "lackluster."

I suppose next we'll start trading replacement organs for our little pieces of plastic. :tired:


I'm sorry if I offended you or struck a nerve (which I seem to have done in a couple of posts now), but perhaps I should've been more clear. They seem to be "lackluster" compared to a week ago when people were throwing multiple High-Medium WL's + 2-3 SR's to obtain White Lantern Hal Jordan. I recall one person said they were offered a choice of Superman or FLash + Green Arrow or WW + 2-3 SR's. Other people were getting 15-20 offers within a few days and then take whichever suited they're fancy..usually they involved mutiple figs of high-medium value, some probably involved chases worth $90-$100 + because of Hal Jordan's sudden spike in value.

So that, compared to being offered 1 WL or $50-60 Chase, or 3 $10-$15 SR's makes the more recent offers feel a bit "lackluster" for lack of a better term. I think Hal is just droppin a bit in desireability for the time being him, now that his "Craze" has peaked.

It's all a bit ridiculous if you ask me, I would never pay or trade $100 worth of figs for one White Lantern, but if people are willing to do that, and you have the figs, why not?

[malakim2099]

The thing that makes them "Chase-ish" is that while they may be 1 per 8 boosters, there are 10 of them, so a specific WL is 1 per 80 boosters, or 1 per 4 cases, which is certainly "Chase-ish!"

There's 12 SRs in the set, 1 per 3 boosters, and a specific one is roughly 1 per 2 cases.

Does that make THEM "chase-ish"? :cheeky:

[weaponzer0]

There's 12 SRs in the set, 1 per 3 boosters, and a specific one is roughly 1 per 2 cases.

Does that make THEM "chase-ish"? :cheeky:

This... WL no matter how you look at it are not chases.
DONE.
on the up side I was able to trade my WL hal for KC supes chase!
:grin:

[Thrumble Funk]

I'm sorry if I offended you or struck a nerve (which I seem to have done in a couple of posts now), but perhaps I should've been more clear. They seem to be "lackluster" compared to a week ago when people were throwing multiple High-Medium WL's + 2-3 SR's to obtain White Lantern Hal Jordan. I recall one person said they were offered a choice of Superman or FLash + Green Arrow or WW + 2-3 SR's. Other people were getting 15-20 offers within a few days and then take whichever suited they're fancy..usually they involved mutiple figs of high-medium value, some probably involved chases worth $90-$100 + because of Hal Jordan's sudden spike in value.

So that, compared to being offered 1 WL or $50-60 Chase, or 3 $10-$15 SR's makes the more recent offers feel a bit "lackluster" for lack of a better term. I think Hal is just droppin a bit in desireability for the time being him, now that his "Craze" has peaked.

It's all a bit ridiculous if you ask me, I would never pay or trade $100 worth of figs for one White Lantern, but if people are willing to do that, and you have the figs, why not?

No, you didn't offend me, its just that the value of figures seems to be skewing WAY out of whack.

I do so miss the days when trading was like "Hey! I've got a Ka-Zar! I'd like your Stilt-Man! Wanna do that? You do? Nice!"

Not so much a fan of the days of "Well, this ridiculously uber-rare figure is SLIGHTLY more ridiculously uber-rare than your ridiculously uber-rare figure, so you give me your ridiculously uber-rare figure and your first born son and I'd call that fair."

Not anyone's fault, per se, but its getting to the point that we should practically have two trade forums: the z0mg Chase! forum and the Everything Else forum.

[Thrumble Funk]

wouldn't that make those people who bought WL Hal at $100+ happy.

I literally do not care one bit. You want to pay $100 for a figure? Cool. But don't pay it if you're not happy paying it.

Most I've paid for a single figure is $55 (Colonel America), and I've traded colossals and high-end SRs/Us for other chases. I was happy to do it.

If they released the Marvel Zombies in an action pack tomorrow, I'd be just as happy.

Then again, I don't see these things as gold-backed commodities, so there you go...