Mana Inking Problems

Chinese 9th Uncommons

19 different Chinese 9th edition uncommons have an error in the alignment of the shading of circles around mana costs in the text box. The errors vary from being only slightly off, to being so far off that they're not even on the same line as the number they're supposed to be around. While I'm not sure what could have caused this, every printing of these cards that I've seen has this error. Four of the worst offenders are shown above. All of these cards have the shift to some significant degree: Drudge Skeletons (only slightly off), Fellwar Stone (only slightly off), Flowstone Crusher (very slightly off - questionable as to whether to call it a misprint or not), Goblin Baloon Brigade, Icy Manipulator, Ley Druid, Orcish Artillery, Puppeteer, Quicksand, Regeneration, Rod of ruin, Tangle Bloom, Treasure Trove (extremely minor), Ur-Golem's Eye, Urza Lands (all 3, very severe), Vulshok Morningstar, Whip Sergeant, Zealous Inquisitor.

White Chinese Exodus

5 White Cards from Chinese AND Korean Exodus were printed with an odd Casting Cost inking problem. The colorless casting cost is in a yellowish circle, not a gray one. It is important to note that not all White Chinese and Korean Exodus cards were printed with this mistake - most have the correct gray circle around the number in the colorless casting cost. Just these 5 cards - Wall of Nets, Allay, Soltari Visionary, Charging Palladin, and Standing Troops have the yellow circle.

Chinese Tempest Activation Cost Errors

Chinese Master Decoy and Mounted Archers were printed with a gray circle behind their activation costs.

False Warning

Portuguese Ice Age Warning is missing the mana inking behind the white in the casting cost.

White Italian 5th

These two White Italian 5th edition cards have inking problems in their casting cost. The Colorless 1 on the Pegusus is in a Dark Gray circle, that normally goes behind the Black Mana Symbol. The Brainwash has a gray circle behind the White mana symbol.

Cards Missing Pigment in Casting Cost

Here are 3 cards with gray behind a colored casting cost: Italian IA Errantry, Japanese WL Noble Benefactor, and Brainwash.

Blue Activation Blunders

I found these two blue cards that have colorless activation costs in their text, but the numbers are surrounded by BLUE circles instead of gray ones. They are Chinese BB Erosion, and Korean SH Volrath's Shapeshifter.

Korean Skyshroud Troll

The Korean Tempest Skyshroud Troll has an odd inking error in it's activation cost: The 1 is in a yellow circle (usually used behind the White mana symbol). It should be gray.

French Orphe

This is an odd one, and probably hard to see in this scan (can anyone recommend some good scanning software?). The circle behind the tap circle in the activation cost of this card is green!

English Legends Imprison

This Legends card has a unique error: The colorless mana circle around the 1 is off-set, floating above the naked 1.

Artifacts Missing Colorless Circles

A few artifacts lack gray circles behind some or all of the colorless mana in their activation costs. Shown here are two: Korean Amulet of Kroog, and Korean Alladin's Lamp. The English IA Arcum's Whistle also has a similar error in the text box with the second 'X'.

Alpha Mana Misprints

Many cards from the Alpha set have a letter in place of a mana symbol in their text box. I'm not sure if this was because they were too rushed to complete the cards, or if it was the printer's mistake. Either way, quite a few cards were affected. Shown here is Drain Life, but Force of Nature, Demonic Hordes, and Phantasmal Forces were also affected, just to name a few! I don't have a complete list of Alpha cards misprinted this way.

Japanese Raging Spirit

The Japanese Raging Spirit was printed with a RED circle around the '2' in the activation cost. Quite strange.

Korean WB Wild Growth

Recently, when I opened 2 boxes of Korean 5th, I found that 2 of my 4 Wild Growth cards had a mangled mana symbol. I have no way of knowing if half of all of them are like this, or only the two I got. Can anyone confirm?!

Spanish Invasion

Invasion in General has it's fair share of error cards in various languages, but for some reason Spanish Invasion has A LOT of mana inking errors. Here are the ones I know of so far:

Nightscape Apprentice: Gray circle around U

Tinder Farm: Pinkish circle around W

Flood Plain: Gray circle around U

Shoreline Raider: Gray circle around U in casting cost

Oblitterate: Dark shading in the RR of the casting cost

Chinese Geothermal Crevice

The mainland Chinese version of this card has no circle around the B mana symbol.

Spanish Dense Foliage

The Spanish version of this rare from 6th Edition has a coloring error in its casting cost: The circle around the 2 in 2G should be gray, but is GREEN!

Foil Thornscape Battlemage

The English foil Thornscape Battlemage from Planeshift is missing a white background behind the W in the kicker - instead it looks pinkish.

Really Null Rod

The Japanese Null Rod has an inking error in the casting cost - the circle is white instead of brown/gray.

Spanish Hop

This has a black mana shading behind the colorless '0' in the activation cost.

French PO2

French PO2 Seems to have at least a couple of inking errors. I know of 2- Natural Spring (above), and Brimstone Dragon (here) brimmy

Green Nemesis foils...

Matt Miller pointed out to me recently that there seems to be an inking mistake on English Nemesis foils. ALL of the green foils that have a tap symbol or colorless mana symbol in the text box seem to have a mistake, with one exception. All of what is supposed to be gray is actually WHITE in the text box, except with Harvest Mage. For some reason, this common is correct. As you can see below, all of the other mana symbols or tap symbols have a white circle around them.

You can also check out any English or Japanese Urza's Legacy Spawning pool - the second Black Mana Symbol is missing a gray circle that should be around it. It's hard to spot, but it's an error! Other foreign printings of this card have the correct, gray circle around them. From English Invasion, Crosis the Purger has this same problem in his activation cost!

Choked Tethers

The Onslaught Choking Tethers in mainland Chinese was printed without a mana symbol around the reminder text for cycling.

JP Stifle

This may well be the last time a card is printed with the wrong shading behind the casting cost! The new, bland layout of cards is supposed to prevent this from ever happening again. Enjoy the last one!

CH Cannon

S-Chinese Fodder Cannon in 8th is completely missing the circle behind the activation cost. At least this mistake can still happen!

Creatures with Power/Toughness Problems:

Chinese Assasin

The Chinese Suq'Ata Assasin from Visions probably has the most dramatic P/T problem: It's missing both power and toughness!

Alpha Archers

Alpha Elvish Archers have a P/T of 1/2, instead of 2/1 as it has been in all later printings.

Anthologies Mirri

Aside from the wrong rarity, this card also has the incorrect P/T. Exodus Mirri's should be 2/3, but the Anthologies version has it at 2/2.

Chinese Pygmy Troll

Nearly all white letters and numbers on Magic cards are printed with a layer of black 'drop shadow' ink behind them to give them the appearance of depth. On the Chinese Pygmy Troll, the Black ink doesn't match up with the white: In Black ink, he's 2/2(wrong), and in white his P/T is 1/1.

No Black Shadow Ink

These two guys are completely missing the black ink behind their P/T, so it looks very strange - lacking depth. These two are Japanese BB Shapeshifter, and French IA Barbarian Guides.

Spanish Tempest Canyon Drake

This guy is missing the black ink behind his P/T, but there's also a strange black line under the 2.

Chinese Slinking Serpent

Both Chinese versions of this Invasion Uncommon are completely missin P/T! This rare error has only occurred once previously, with the Visions' Assassin.

COP Beatdown

To my knowlege this is the first time an enchantment has been printed with Power and Toughness!! This mistake ONLY happened on the foil version of COP white, in Japanese 7th.

German PO

Several creature cards in German Portal were printed without a toughness listed. Not all printings of these cards are missing the toughness - they seem very rare. The cards I know of that are missing their toughness are: Craven Giant, Raging Minotaur, Charging Bandit, Desert Drake, and Skeletal Snake (thanks Stefan). I still need a mint Charging Bandit!

Problems with the Copyright Date + Numbering

Missing Date

These were the first two cards I discovered that were completely missing the copyright date at the bottom: German IA Pale Bears, and French IA Goblin Ski Patrol.

English/Portuguese 5th

By some accident, 5 Red rare cards in English 5th edition were printed with half of them sporting a Portuguese copyright date. As near as I can tell it's about 50/50 on whether you get an English or Portuguese. The Cards are: Shivan Dragon, Ironclaw Curse, Game of Chaos, Inferno, Manabarbs.

German BB Islands

All German BB (Revised) Islands were printed with the Copyright date in French. There are 3 versions of 'Island' in German revised with this error.

Italian IA Elf

The Italian IA Fyndhorn Elf is one of two cards in that set printed with an English Copyright date.

Wooly IA

Italian IA Wooly spider is the other!

French Leeches

The French HL Leeches have a mistake in the Copyright line: 'Reserves' should be one word, but there is a space there that shouldn't be. This tiny error is the only mistake I could find in all of French Homelands!

Wrong Numbering

With the advent of 'collector's numbering' at the bottom of cards in Exodus, there was something new to get wrong on Magic Cards! Here are the first two that were discovered: Phyrexian Colossus (English Saga), and Portuguese Rancor (Portuguese Legacy).

Red Chinese Legacy

Another mistake in numbering occurred with all Red Chinese Urza's Legacy cards. Every single one is numbered out of 350, when there are only 143 cards in the set!

P3K Numbering

The most drastic numbering error I have yet seen has occurred in Portal Three Kingdoms (not available in the U.S...but that's another issue). I first noticed that two cards, Trained Cheetah and Trained Jackal, were both #155. I also discovered that Trip Wire was #154, although it *should* be AFTER the 'Trained' creatures, since each color is numbered alphabetically. I have a hunch that it was supposed to be Trained Cheetah #154, Trained Jackal #155, Trip Wire #156.

Portuguese Intrepid Mess

This error should probably go in the artist error section, but it was just too unusual! After the name 'Brian Snoddy' there is a string of text that looks like it was meant to be used as notes for the printer about where to place the line over the o in Snoddy. I've never seen another error like this!

Spanish Titan

Although this misprint must have been around since '94, I didn't discover it until '04! This Spanish IA rare is missing the copyright line.

German ROP Artifact

Another numbering problem - it is listed as card #38/350, and should be #35.

Japanese P3K lands

In Japanese Portal Three Kingdoms, EVERY land is #166/180, and only one of them is correct!

More JP P3K Trouble

TWO Japanese P3K rares are missing the number entirely - #10, Kongming's Contraptions, and #7 Guan Yu's 1000-Li March!

Pre-release Kavu Furens

This card shows a copyright line of 1993-1999, and is the ONLY invasion card to have these dates - Invasion was released in late 2000!

Ray of Copyright

Japanese 5th edition Ray of Command has been printed without a date at all!

The following Japanese Torment cards numbered in the hundreds were printed with the "1" missing from the "100" in their number!

Kamahl's Sledge #102/143 ==> 02/143

Longhorn Firebeast #103=> 03/143

Pardic Lancer #107=> 07/143

Petravark #109=> 09/143

Krosan Restorer #130=> 30/143

Also, the Uncommon lands in Japanese and T-Chinese Torment are c 1993-2003!

Guildpact Foil flubs

A small portion of English Guildpact Foil Shadow Lances and Gruul Guildmages were printed without the numbers '4' appearing in their number line, making them both look like they're #1. The proportion of cards with this problem seems to be the same as the proportion of Thunderheads foils that are missing text - very small (maybe 1 to 10). It is theorized that the cards printed with this error were the cards provided for pre-release events, and that subsequent printings were fixed.

Wrong Border

Click Here to go to Page 3!

On Page three I will cover some text errors, by color.

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