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I recently bought cards from cardmarket and I suspect that some of them might be fake. The two fact that make me suspect are the unusual corners and the less rigid, more paper-like touching they have (although it is not paper at all).

I contacted the seller and he assured me that they are not fake, that all of his cards have been opened from Magic official products. He has more of 55K sells in his profile and all of his reviews are 100% Very Good. Moreover, all the cards that I bought cost between 0.02€ and 0.10€.

The seller also says that Magic has many manufacturers, so it is normal that all cards are different from each other.

Is this true? What should I do or believe?

I attach 3 image with link to drive (they are too big to attach them directly) from Spit Flame and Graf Rats, two from a bunch of the set I received which I suspect they might not be real. Behind them is a card from my collection that I know it is real for comparing them.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n1FHE27JS8chvUrw6G2Gewg-ZKTRAofo/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L-qhaCKDOQ8No_EDWJWlTl6a7QlBsSrC/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TcJm8ISVCbQHu0Y7Yi8k8xpMlNJswR3X/view?usp=sharing

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  • It's hard to say from de images. Did you by them in a european country or in the USA? I know paper can feel different according to the printing house / continent.
    – sinsedrix
    Commented Oct 26, 2023 at 13:52
  • @sinsedrix has to be Europe, Cardmarket operates out of Germany and as far as I know won't even ship to North America
    – Andrew
    Commented Oct 31, 2023 at 0:39
  • Cards printed in North America tend to smell of chemicals, have a rougher feeling and sometimes different colours than those printed in Belgium(?) or Japan. Quality also differs between printruns/editions.
    – Erik
    Commented Nov 1, 2023 at 14:32

1 Answer 1

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I don't think the pics you've provided give us enough information to determine whether those cards are genuine, but I do have a few thoughts:

  • It seems unlikely that anyone would go through the trouble to counterfeit penny commons, since printing them would be more expensive than the real thing.
  • Print variation is a real thing, even on genuine cards
  • Print errors are also a thing (super dark or light, missing colors, weird textures, miscut corners)

Those lead me to think they are probably genuine cards, with print variation and/or print errors.

If you want to be absolutely sure, use a jeweler's loupe or microscope to look at the precise color detail of the green dot on the card back (do a search for "mtg green dot test" to see examples of real and fake green dots).

Do not rely on the "light test" (shining light through the cards) or the "bend test" (or, God forbid, the "tear test"), those are not considered reliable.

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