The newest Universes Beyond Magic set, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, officially ships starting March 6th, but players have already gotten their hands on the cards through their local Prelease events. If you're planning on picking up some sealed product to crack open at a local event or amongst a group of friends, you may be wondering what cards would be the best to open from a value standpoint.

After all, booster pack prices keep climbing. While we can't expect to make a profit on every booster we open, we also want to feel like we at least recoup our input costs some of the time. To that end, this week I want to review the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles singles selling for the most out the gate. These are the cards that will most likely help you freeroll your Prelease, Sealed, and/or Draft events. Interestingly, the list isn't that long...

Two Heavy Hitters: Super Shredder and Krang, Utrom Warlord

These two cards are not only the most valuable in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (normal printings), they're also the only cards consistently selling for north of $20. That's it. Two cards alone that singlehandedly pay for your Draft.

Now the question is, do they merit such a premium? Super Shredder is a 1/1 Menace for two mana that collects +1/+1 counters whenever another permanent leaves the battlefield. Notice it doesn't state that Super Shredder gets a counter when something dies, nor does it specify that the permanent leaving the battlefield had to be under your control. Any permanent can leave from any player's side, and Super Shredder grows.

This has potential to grow quickly. My only concern is that you'll want to play this creature in early stages of the game for it to collect the most +1/+1 counters, but sticking this on turn two leaves it awfully vulnerable to a removal spell. The success of this card will depend heavily on the metagame - time will tell if it can hold its current $22 price tag.

Contrast the two-mana 1/1 with TMT's other valuable hit, Krang, Utrom Warlord. This is a nine-mana 9/9 with flying, trample, indestructible, and haste. If that's not enough to excite you, may I point out that Krang also grants all your other artifact creatures these same four abilities? I remember the days of Antiquities, when the best you could get for nine mana was Colossus of Sardia, a 9/9 trampler that didn't untap unless you paid nine mana!

In sixty-card formats, Krang will be sleeved up only if it can be cheated into play somehow. In Commander, however, anything is possible.

A Trio of Second-Tier Bangers

If you're hoping to pull the "big hit" from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles play booster packs, then your list is over. Super Shredder and Krang, Utrom Warlord are not only the only $20+ cards, they are also two of the only three that are pre-selling for double digits.

The only other card that is flirting with $10 (depending on which seller has copies posted for sale) is Cool but Rude, an Enchantment - Class that's begging to be tested in Izzet Lessons.

With Artist's Talent, you rummage whenever you cast a noncreature spell. Cool but Rude has a different trigger - whenever you attack, you rummage. I'm not an expert on Izzet Lessons, so I don't know if there's a way to include this card in the deck, but I have to imagine players will try.

At level two, discarding a card deals two damage to an opponent (that's on top of the damage your Monument to Endurance is already doing). I don't know how useful level three is - it's essentially casting Gamble - but for just two mana, I suspect Cool but Rude will be ticking up to level three plenty often.

It's worth noting that Cool but Rude is a rare, whereas other valuable cards from this set are all mythic rare. Cool but Rude has the potential to be the format-defining breakout card of the set. Keep a close watch on it.

Two other noteworthy cards preselling favorably well out the gate are Dark Leo & Shredder and North Wind Avatar.

I am a fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle franchise, but I must admit I'm unfamiliar with these card references. I've seen the original three movies, and I'm certain I saw the cartoon back in the day. I even remember playing the impossibly difficult Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Sega game. I don't remember ever coming across a dark Leo nor a dragon. They must make appearances in other spots throughout the franchise's history.

In any event, Dark Leo & Shredder is a legendary Mutant Ninja Turtle Human card. How's that for a type line? The mythic rare has Sneak and grants all your attacking Ninjas deathtouch (making them much more painful to block). If you choose to let Dark Leo & Shredder through, then you create a 1/1 Ninja, which will also have deathtouch when attacking. Lastly, if you control five or more Ninjas, the player damaged by Dark Leo & Shredder loses half their life, rounded up.

This two-mana creature creates an army over time and is almost assuredly going to force trades from your opponent, whether through removal or blocking. I like the potential.

There are all sorts of strange and bizarre creature type combinations in this set, but North Wind Avatar is the only Dragon. I didn't even know there was a dragon in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle lore, so this is one more Dragon than I would have guessed.

The fact that this is a 5/5 flying Dragon for five mana isn't enough to drive its $8 preorder price tag. Instead, the only reason this is popular is because of its second ability. It's very infrequent that we see a card that lets you fetch any card from outside the game (typically your sideboard) in Standard.

The Learn mechanic specifically let you pull a Lesson card from outside the game. A cycle of wishes (Cunning Wish, Living Wish, Burning Wish, Golden Wish) allowed you to fetch only a certain card type. Death Wish was banned in Standard (and Modern) for letting you pull any card you own from outside the game, and this cost half your life.

North Wind Avatar lets you grab any card, no life payment needed. All you need to do is cast it and have it resolve. Is there some sort of combo potential with Airbending? I can see an interesting combo forming where you Airbend North Wind Avatar, allowing you to cast it again for just 2 mana - this tutors up another card from your sideboard, and you can rinse and repeat.

A Couple Honorable Mentions

These five cards are just about the only cards that will pay for a play booster pack. It's a pretty short list, and it makes me wonder if this is a set where the standout card has potential to climb higher in price while the value of the remaining cards of this set languish.

Before wrapping up, there are a handful of other cards worth about the same as a Play booster pack, in the $5-$6 range. This list includes:

• Splinter's Technique
• Triceraton Commander
• Donatello, Mutant Mechanic
• The Cloning of Shredder
• Leonardo, Sewer Samurai
• Michelangelo, Improviser

These each have varying preorder prices from one retailer to the next, but they are all largely in the same $5 price range. If you pull one of these from a booster pack, you can at least try to trade it quickly to recoup the cost of the pack. Chances are most of these will drop in price once the set releases, narrowing your odds of recouping your costs even further.

Wrapping It Up

With each new set, I run through the exercise of scanning for the most valuable cards (normal printings). I tend to ignore special printings and special guests only findable in Collector Boosters, but of course this set has no shortage of whacky, ultra-rare treatments that are selling for hundreds of dollars.

Instead, I create this helpful reference for players looking for the most valuable cards worth opening at their upcoming Limited events. In the case of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the list of cards worth keeping an eye out for is relatively small.

Does this say something about the demand for TMT singles? Is it a reflection of an underpowered set? Typically, we have at least a few cards worth over $10 in addition to the one or two worth $30+ at prerelease. To have zero cards worth over $25 and just two worth north of $10 indicates weak demand out the gate.

Time will tell if TMT singles continue to underwhelm. If this happens, keep a close watch for the one breakout card of the set. If one card rises to the top and shakes up Standard while the rest of the set fades to the background, that one card has potential to shoot up in price. My figurative bet (I am not going to preorder any copies) is on Cool but Rude, but time will tell if the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set is cooler or ruder.