Burgeoning has been reprinted often enough that a new player asking about it in a shop could get five different answers about what it actually looks like. The rules text has never changed once across nearly thirty years of printings, but the border, the art, and the price tag absolutely have.
Six distinct printings exist today, spanning a 1998 Stronghold rare all the way to a hand-picked art collaboration released as recently as 2026. Each one carries a genuinely different price and a different appeal to collectors.
This guide walks through what each printing actually is, roughly what it costs on today's market, and which version makes the most sense depending on whether you are building a deck or building a collection.
None of this changes how Burgeoning plays at the table. It only changes what you are actually paying for when you pick up a copy.
Burgeoning debuted in Stronghold as card number 102, in the classic black-border frame typical of late-1990s Magic sets. It has held steady collector interest for decades simply as the first appearance of a card that would go on to become a Commander staple.
Market pricing on the original Stronghold copy currently sits in the roughly $29-45 range depending on retailer and condition, with online marketplaces trending closer to the middle of that band. The card is not on the Reserved List, so pricing reflects age and demand rather than a printing guarantee.
Both reprints landed the same year. The Commander 2016 version came out of the Entropic Uprising precon deck and carries the modern card frame, while Conspiracy: Take the Crown printed its own separate version that year for the draft-focused Conspiracy product line.
Prices on both sit close together, generally in the low-to-mid $30s. Functionally they are identical to every other printing, making either one a reasonable pickup for a player who just wants a legible, modern-frame copy to sleeve up.
A more recent showcase-frame version appeared through the Special Guests product line, giving the card a distinct visual treatment separate from its original art while keeping the modern card frame collectors expect from recent products.
This printing tends to price a touch below the Commander-era reprints, generally in the low $30s, making it one of the more accessible ways to get a modern-frame copy with a visually distinct look on the shelf.
The most striking modern printing comes from a Secret Lair Special Guest drop featuring Australian artist Kelogsloops, who also illustrated borderless versions of Mystic Remora, Retreat to Coralhelm, and Utopia Sprawl for the same release. Retreat to Coralhelm is itself a card Burgeoning pairs well with in a landfall shell, making the drop a small in-joke for players who already build around the enchantment.
This borderless version currently commands the highest price among the readily available printings, in the ballpark of $47, reflecting both the limited print run typical of Secret Lair drops and the strength of the artwork itself.
Burgeoning has also surfaced through The List, the rotating reprint program that seeds older cards into modern set and collector boosters at a low but real pull rate. This printing tends to lean on a style closer to the card's earlier printings rather than the fully modern frame.
Because The List copies are found in booster packs rather than sold directly as singles from the outset, pricing runs a bit higher on the secondary market, generally in the low-to-mid $40s, and availability is less predictable than simply buying a listed single.
Lined up together, the six printings span roughly $30 to $47 as of current market data, with the original Stronghold copy and the Secret Lair borderless version anchoring the higher end and the Commander-era and Special Guests reprints anchoring the lower end. These figures move constantly, so treat them as a snapshot rather than a fixed number.
The spread here is not about power level, since every printing plays exactly the same card. It is about scarcity, print run size, and how much collectors value a particular art treatment or frame style.
For a copy that is actually going into a Commander deck and getting shuffled every game, the cheapest functional reprint is the right call. A Commander 2016, Conspiracy: Take the Crown, or Special Guests copy sleeved up looks identical to any other printing once it is in play.
For a display piece or a long-term collection, the original Stronghold rare or the Secret Lair borderless version carry the most genuine premium. Either way, a copy worth real money deserves individual protection, such as toploaders for individual protection, rather than getting tossed loose into a deck box with ninety-nine other cards.
No, Burgeoning has never appeared on a Reserved List set and can be reprinted again at any time.
The Commander 2016, Conspiracy: Take the Crown, and Special Guests printings are generally the least expensive functional copies available.
No, every printing shares identical rules text regardless of frame, border, or art treatment.
The borderless Secret Lair Special Guest: Kelogsloops version currently commands the highest price among the widely available printings.
Whichever printing you end up chasing, a card that has held value for almost thirty years deserves better than a loose spot in a shoebox. A 9-pocket binder with an elastic closure keeps every printing organized side by side without them sliding around in transit.
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