Magic the Gathering (MTG) has been going as a popular CCG (Collectable Card Game) now for many years, and one of the main things that defines Magic the Gathering is the Collectable side of its CCG status. By this, I mean that it has a rarity system to its cards. This article describes how you can identify the rarity of your Magic the Gathering cards.
For the majority of the Magic the Gathering cads these days, the rarity of a card is quite clear to see. Here is how to identify the three different categories of MTG card:
1. Look at the colour of the set symbol
If the card has a set icon, then if it is from a set that has been released since the Exodus set in 1998, then the colour of the icon will define its rarity as such:
- Black is Common - Silver is Uncommon - Gold is Rare - Purple is Mythic Rare or Time shifted
A note should be made about the final categorisation of rarities, Mythic Rares have only been introduced to the rarity system since Shards of Alara set in 2008, and Time shifted cards were only introduced for the single set called Time Spiral in 2006.
2. Older cards with a set symbol, but no rarity colour (pre Exodus set)
A number of older sets had set icons on them, but there was no colour rarity given to those icons. These sets were all those released before the Exodus set, which includes Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, The Dark, Fallen Empires, Homelands, Ice Age, Alliances, Cold Snap, Mirage, Visions, Weatherlight, Tempest and Stronghold. Identifying the rarity of these cards by their number in your collection is not a good way to identify rarity, but may be slightly indicative in larger collections, so it is recommended to seek a full card reference such as the one provided by Wizards of the Coast called Gatherer.
3. Cards with no set symbol
All older Core Set cards release before Sixth Edition in 1999 have no set icon. Again, there is little that can be done here to identify the rarity of the card except for visiting the card reference the Wizards of the Coast card reference site called Gatherer to find out.
The rarity of a Magic the Gathering card is generally intrinsic in the value of any Magic the Gathering card. Understanding that rarity can be key in making sure that you accurately value, protect and potentially release that value if you wanted to sell you Magic the Gathering cards.
Author Resource:-
Want to find out more? This article is one of a number of articles and useful resources detailing how you can sell your Magic the Gathering cards, all this information is available at How to Sell your Magic the Gathering (MTG) cards. For further information on this and other Magic the Gathering (MTG) related subjects, go to http://www.sell-magic-the-gathering.com.
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