Today, we are getting our first looks at a new set in Topps Valor, set to hit the shelves tomorrow. These cards are the first hard signed relic cards with game photography for the rookies, and for the most part, they look to be VERY well done. I think that Topps has a big focus on creating high end looking cards for many of their products, and I definitely get that vibe off this set.

2012 Valor David Wilson Glory Auto RC /25

2012 Valor Robert Griffin III Rookie Patch 3 Color

2012 Valor Luke Kuechly Honor Auto RC /50

2012 Valor Victor Cruz Honor Auto 50/50

2012 Valor Robert Turbin Auto Patch 3 Color /26

2012 Valor LaMichael James Discipline Auto RC /50

My favorite cards of the entire release are the rookie auto patch cards, that Topps has said fall one per case. For the price of this box, I was hoping to see they would be much more of an easy pull, if not one per box, as the price point is quite high. There are veteran autographs in the product, which will help in some cases, but the focus is mostly on the rookies. When that is the case, these patch autos are going to be the best of the best. In fact, I think they are so good looking, that they do give Five Star a run for its money, as I think the shield design is really well done.

The other on card autos are definitely impressive looking as well, as the simple design with a HUGE space for the player to sign is rarely a bad thing. I also love when companies use the filter that makes the photography look like paintings or sketches, as I think it adds texture and dynamic appeal to the look of the card. Valor uses this in spades and I really like it.

I am not as much a fan of the veteran autos, as the white box design behind the sticker is pretty distracting. I do think that the overall thought is the right one, as there is a need to have autos like this in a product that costs this much. There just needs to be more execution in making the cards look as high end as the others. The white box, as always, isnt needed.

The base cards look tremendous, under the same sort of filter used for the whole set, and I think this might be one of the better base sets to collect all year. Many base cards from higher end releases are lost in the shuffle, but the Valor base and parallels are completely awesome.

There are comparisons being drawn to Topps Precision in that valor has a lot of hype, but box price could limit success. I dont disagree with this assessment, especially in the fact that Precision looked pretty good, and still flopped. Its just hard to put out a set at this MSRP without a unique reason for doing so. Valor has the best packaging I have seen, well, ever – but that is not usually enough to keep a product going. If a patch auto was every box, it might be a different story, but hey, at least the cards look GOOD.