How To Detect A Phony Magic Card?

Identifying fake Magic cards is crucial for players and collectors to ensure the integrity of their decks and collections. Peer and Patrick from Mage go through five methods of spotting fake Magic cards that they use at Magemarket.com to authenticate cards.

One of the fastest ways to check on a Magic card is by taking a look at the holofoil sticker at the bottom of the card. Not all cards have these anti-counterfeit measures, as they were only introduced. The best way to tell if a Magic The Gathering card is fake is to use a magnifying tool to check the printing pattern of the card. MTG sets have a unique printing pattern on cards that is hard to replicate.

The light test is often used to check the authenticity of a Magic card by shining a powerful light through the card. Fake Magic cards will show visible creases and cracks, but a real magic card will appear unaffected. A simple test that is almost foolproof to determine whether a card is a counterfeit is the sniff test, which is when fake cards of all stripes don’t smell like normal Magic cards.

Weaker card stock can’t bounce back as easily, so fake cards will remain bent and show a crease. One of the fastest ways to check on a Magic card is by taking a look at the holofoil sticker at the bottom of the card. Many fakes will have black that’s made up of other colored dots, and edges will fade out into the colors beside them.

The rosette test is another method used to compare the original MTG card with an MTG fake card, which is usually made of paper after tearing the card.