Condition Guidelines

Condition Guidelines for Single Cards

Please read these condition guidelines carefully before placing your order. All evaluations are based on our in-house standards and are intended as a general guide. Actual condition may vary slightly from card to card.

Condition is selected on each product page from the Condition options (A / A- / B / C / D); only grades in stock can be selected. The code in brackets at the end of the product title (for example [SV4a]) is the set, not the condition.

Standard [Condition A] – Lightly Played 
  • May have small edge or surface scratches, slight whitening on the corners, or light cloudiness/handling marks.
  • Most customers will find this condition acceptable for regular collection or play. However, these are not perfect “mint” cards.
  • Recommended for players and casual collectors.
  • The listed types of wear are only examples; actual cards may show a mix of different minor flaws.
Between A / B [Condition A-] 
  • Noticeable minor flaws such as small scratches, light edge wear, tiny dents, slight whitening, or light cloudiness on parts of the card.
  • Clearly not “near-mint” at a glance, but not as heavily worn as [Condition B]. This is an intermediate grade between A and B.
  • Suitable for play and casual use, but not recommended for strict collectors seeking higher-grade condition.
    　　　
Played [Condition B] – Played
  • Shows visible wear such as edge and surface scratches, whitening, cloudiness, or small dents/marks.
  • Because the types and degree of wear vary widely, some cards may feel worse or better than you expected. All of them are graded as [Condition B] based on our criteria.
  • Suitable for gameplay use (especially in sleeves), but not recommended for collection or display purposes.
    　　　
    　　　
Heavily Played [Condition C] – Heavily Played
  • May have extensive wear across the card, such as heavy scratches, noticeable edge wear, bends, dents, light water damage, or minor peeling.
  • Often still usable for gameplay in opaque sleeves, but not recommended for collection, display, or grading.
  • Please understand that the actual card may look significantly worn.
    　　　　　　　
Damaged [Condition D] – Damaged
  • Contains very heavy damage such as large creases, strong scratching, major edge wear, staining, tears, peeling, or noticeable water damage.
  • In some cases, the damage can be felt even through a sleeve. Please be cautious if you intend to use these in gameplay.
  •  Not suitable for collection, display, or grading.
    　　　
    　　　

🔸 Important Notes About Our Grading

  • All condition labels are based on our store’s standards only. Other shops or grading companies may have different criteria.
  • The sample photos shown (if any) are for reference only. Individual cards may differ in the type and degree of wear.
  • Even within the same condition rank, multiple kinds of imperfections may be present at the same time (for example, both edge wear and surface scratches).

🔹 About Print Lines and Factory-Related Features

  • Cards with multiple, clearly noticeable print lines may be graded as [Condition A-] or [Condition B], depending on severity.
  • However, [Condition A] does not guarantee that the card is free of all print lines or factory marks.
  • Differences in cutting (such as small bumps or slight whitening on multiple edges), foil alignment, or color tone caused by the manufacturing process may still be treated as [Condition A], unless they severely affect legibility or the card’s shape.
  • Mild warping due to humidity or drying is generally accepted as [Condition A]. Excessive warping or wrinkling that clearly deforms the card may lower the grade.
  • Discoloration caused by external factors such as strong UV light may result in a lower condition grade.