Skylanders Enigma is a Magic-element Trap Master from Skylanders: Trap Team, and his figure is noticeably harder to find than the bulk of common Skylanders. That scarcity, plus collector demand, means he often costs more than the characters you see piled into mixed lots. If you’re in Canada trying to finish a Trap Team set or stock a small resale inventory, the key is to treat Enigma as a premium add-on: you keep costs down by getting most of your figures cheaply in lots, then decide whether Enigma’s extra cost is actually worth it for you.
What Skylanders Enigma Is and Why Collectors Pay a Premium
Enigma is a cloaked, Magic-element Trap Master character introduced in Skylanders: Trap Team. Fandom references like the main Skylanders wiki entry and fan reviews describe him as part of the Trap Master lineup rather than a starter-pack core character, so his figure wasn’t bundled as widely as some early-series Skylanders.
Collector and fan sites that track availability flag Enigma as harder to find than many Trap Team figures, which lines up with community chatter: people often report hunting for him specifically or paying more when he finally shows up. Reviews on sites such as SkylanderNutts treat him as a desirable, somewhat elusive piece rather than a common throw-in.
For your budget, that matters in two ways:
- He rarely appears in ultra-cheap bulk lots. Common Skylanders are routinely sold in big mixed bundles where the seller doesn’t highlight rarer characters.
Enigma is enough of a draw that sellers usually separate him out or price the whole lot higher when he’s included.
- His value is driven by condition and collector appeal more than gameplay. You can clear Trap Team content without Enigma, so the price premium is mainly about completing a set, liking his design, or chasing a full Magic/Trap Master roster.
If you’re primarily buying for gameplay on a tight budget, you can safely treat Enigma as optional. If you’re building a display collection or running a niche Skylanders shop, he’s closer to a “chase” figure whose extra cost needs a conscious decision.
How Much Enigma Really Costs: Price Drivers and Hidden Fees
You won’t find a fixed global price for Enigma; his cost swings based on condition, bundle context, and where you’re buying from. Still, you can structure the decision by separating product price from all the extra charges that Canadian buyers face.
1. Product price: singles vs lots
Skylanders budget guides and marketplace observations show that buying common figures in mixed lots on auction sites can push the per-figure cost down to roughly CAD $1–$2. That’s typical when a seller offloads dozens of basic characters in one go.
Enigma, by contrast:
- Often appears as a single listing or highlighted as the key figure in a small bundle.
- Commands a noticeably higher per-figure price than the $1–$2 lot baseline—sometimes several times that—because buyers recognize he’s less common.
You don’t need exact numbers to make a decision: assume Enigma will sit in the “premium single” tier while the rest of your Trap Team roster can be built from budget lots.
2. Cross-border shipping into Canada
If you’re buying from US or overseas sellers, shipping often matters as much as the sticker price. Small parcels with one or two figures may start cheap, but they hit a bad value ratio: you’re paying a full shipping label for a single Enigma. A medium box containing 20-30 figures spreads that cost.
For Canadian buyers, look carefully at:
- Per-parcel shipping fees. A $10 shipping charge on a $12 figure is very different from $10 shipping on a $60 mixed lot.
- Carrier and service level. Slow but cheap services usually make more sense for collectibles than premium couriers, unless you have a firm resale deadline.
3. Customs and import fees
Used game figures are relatively low-value, but cross-border parcels can still trigger taxes or handling fees. There’s no single rate that applies to every shipment, so budget planning has to be qualitative:
- Small, low-value lots often pass with minimal charges.
- Higher-value or multiple shipments in a short window increase the odds of taxes/fees.
If you expect to place frequent cross-border orders, it’s worth reading a neutral primer on Canadian import costs such as Understand customs, tariffs and import fees to see how duty, GST/HST and brokerage can stack.
4. Marketplace and payment fees for small businesses
If you’re a small ecommerce seller, the total cost of acquiring Enigma includes:
- Marketplace selling fees when you resell.
- Currency conversion or payment-processing fees on the buying side.
You don’t pay these as a casual collector, but they matter for resale margins. A premium figure like Enigma can justify higher resale pricing, yet your real profit is “sale price minus acquisition price minus all fees,” not just the gap between what you paid and what you list.
Per-figure cost snapshot: lots vs singles vs local
Here’s a simplified cost comparison using typical behaviour, not guarantees:
| Channel | How you usually buy | Typical per-figure cost for common Skylanders | Where Enigma tends to land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online mixed lots (e.g. auctions) | 20-50 used figures in one lot | ~CAD $1–$2 for common characters | Rarely included; raises lot price |
| Online singles listings | One specific figure | Varies; often higher than lot average | Priced as a premium/rarer figure |
| Local game/retro stores | Individual or small bundles | Often more than online lots, less shipping | May be scarce; price reflects demand |
For budget collecting, your goal is to push most purchases into the left column (cheap lots) and keep Enigma as a conscious outlier rather than an impulse single.
Best Budget Channels and Strategies to Add Enigma
Once you accept that Enigma is a premium figure, the question becomes: which channel makes that premium tolerable, and how do you keep the rest of your collection cheap enough to offset it?
Picking channels that fit your budget
Common options for Canadian buyers include:
- Online auction and marketplace sites (e.g., eBay and similar platforms). These are the main source of cheap Skylanders lots, often bringing the per-figure cost for commons close to that $1–$2 range.
Enigma may appear here in single listings or high-priced lots; watch completed sales to see realistic numbers before bidding.
- Local game stores and retro shops. Per-figure prices are usually higher than bulk lots, but there’s no cross-border shipping, and you can inspect condition directly.
If a local shop happens to have Enigma, the savings on shipping and customs may offset a slightly higher tag.
- Cross-border marketplaces. Sites like DHgate sometimes carry mixed toy or game lots and individual figures.
A budget-minded buyer should treat these as one more option to check, not an automatic choice: verify seller ratings, make sure the listing is for genuine Skylanders figures (not generic toys), and look closely at shipping costs and delivery origin before you decide whether the total landed cost beats other channels.
For broader marketplace context, you can also read Compare DHgate with AliExpress, Alibaba and Temu to understand how different platforms handle cross-border consumer sales.
Strategies that keep Enigma from blowing up your budget
Budget advice from other collecting hobbies—board games, TCGs, figurines—translates well to Skylanders if you tailor it:
- Set a clear Skylanders budget and ring-fence Enigma. Decide a total monthly or project budget, then carve out a maximum you’re willing to pay for Enigma specifically.
That prevents a single impulse buy from derailing your collection plan.
- Prioritize essentials for gameplay first. Guides on completing Skylanders games cheaply emphasize using starter packs, older portals and a small roster of key figures to reach 100%.
Build that functional set via lots and inexpensive singles before you chase Enigma.
- Use lots to reduce average cost, then splurge once. For a collector:
- Aim to acquire 80-90% of your Trap Team roster from mixed lots.
- Once your average per-figure cost is low, paying a premium for Enigma won’t hurt as much.
For a small reseller:
- Keep inventory stocked with cheap commons from lots.
- Add one or two higher-priced draws like Enigma to anchor “premium” listings or bundles.
- Trade with other collectors. Many Skylanders communities run trade threads where people swap duplicates.
If you have extra Giants or popular core characters, you may be able to trade up for Enigma without writing a big cash cheque.
- Be patient and watch for discounts. Like TCG cards and other collectibles, prices for specific figures fluctuate.
Setting alerts, watching completed listings, and waiting for off-peak moments can save you real money on Enigma compared with buying the first one you see.
A quick scenario: collector vs small reseller
- Collector in Canada: You spend CAD $80 on two large mixed lots, ending up with ~40 figures and most Trap Team coverage.
Your per-figure cost is about $2. You decide you’re willing to spend up to CAD $25–$30 for a good-condition Enigma, knowing your overall average stays reasonable.
- Small reseller: You source three big Skylanders lots at around $1–$2 per common figure.
You list bundles and singles with a healthy margin. When you find Enigma at a premium price, you only buy if your projected resale price plus marketplace fees still leaves profit.
In both scenarios, the decision isn’t “Can I find Enigma cheap?” but “Does paying a premium for Enigma still make sense once I’ve lowered my average cost elsewhere?”
If the answer is yes, Enigma becomes a satisfying capstone to your Trap Team lineup or a standout item in your shop. If the answer is no, you can still fully enjoy the games and run a profitable small business without him—your budget, not collector hype, should make the final call.