Card Condition and Grading Guide

Card Condition Guide

Game Grid currently sells and buys cards in Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played or Heavily Played condition. We do not accept Damaged cards on our Buylist.

If you have any questions regarding these grades, please feel free to contact staff@gglehi.com. We are happy to answer any questions or hear any suggestions for improvement to this guide.  

 

Near Mint (NM):


A card graded as Near Mint will show little to no wear.
Near Mint cards are nearly indistinguishable from other cards of the same condition. Because we do not offer a "Mint" condition, cards that would be considered "Mint" are listed and purchased as Near Mint.

A card in this category may have the following types of wear:


Surface Wear:
Scratches (only visible from "the right angle")
Light clouding (dust/dirt)
Light scuffing
Some printing flaws or variations 
Card Back Wear:
Small nicks/dings
Up to 3 small nicks/dings are allowed on Near Mint cards.
Any wear on a card graded as Near Mint should be insignificant enough that it is unnoticeable when the card is in a sleeve.
If a card has multiple types of wear, it may be downgraded from Near Mint to Light Play.
 



Light Play (LP):
A card graded as Light Play may have visible, minor or mild wear.
Cards in this category may range from almost Near Mint to barely above Moderate Play. 
i.e. a card with 4 small nicks/dings that is otherwise Near Mint will be graded as Light Play.

Light Play cards may have one or more of the wear types described in the Near Mint section or some of the following additional types of wear:



Surface Wear
Light Scratches
Some Clouding (dust/dirt damage)
Minor Scuffing
Printing flaws or variations
Small indentations on the card surface
Some discoloration or fading
Card Back Wear
Small nicks/dings
4 or more small nick/dings automatically are graded as Light Play even if there is no other wear.
Edge wear/whitening on a single border
Corner wear/whitening on a single corner
Shuffle creases that do not pass the border of the card
If a card has multiple types of wear, it may be downgraded from Light Play to Moderate Play.

 


Moderate Play (MP):

A card graded as Moderate Play will show clearly visible moderate wear.
Moderate Play cards are still legal for tournament play if sleeved.
Cards in this category may range from nearly Light Play to barely above Heavy Play.
i.e. a card with edge wear on multiple edges that is otherwise Light Play will be graded as Moderate Play.

A Moderate Play card may have one or more of the wear types described in the Light Play section or some of the following additional types of wear:



Clearly Visible Surface Wear
Scratches
Clouding (dust/dirt damage)
Scuffing
Printing flaws or variation
Indentations on the card surface
Clearly Visible Card Back Wear
Significant nicks/dings
Binder Bending
Edge wear/whitening on more than 1 edge
Corner wear/whitening on more than 1corner
Discoloration or fading
Creases that may extend passed the border of the card
Will not affect tournament playability in sleeves
If a card has multiple types of wear, it may be downgraded from Moderate Play to Heavy Play.

Heavy Play (HP):

A card graded as Heavy Play will show significant wear.

Heavy Play cards are still "sleeve playable" - ask your judge before tournament play.
Cards in this category may range from nearly Heavy Play to barely above Damaged.
i.e. a card with a significant crease that is otherwise Moderate Play will be graded as Heavy Play.


A card in this category may have several instances of the wear described in the Moderately Played section as well as the following additional types of wear:


Clearly Visible Surface Conditions
Deep scratches
Obvious/Heavy clouding (dust/dirt damage)
Significant scuffing
Major printing flaws
Binder "crimping"
Deep indentations on the card surface
Full card discoloration or fading
Clearly Visible Card Back Wear
Full border wear/whitening
All 4 corners show wear/whitening
Full card discoloration or fading
Creases that may affect tournament playability
Will still be "sleeve playable" - ask a judge before using in a tournament.
Dirt build up that is more than mild or minor

 

Writing, including signatures and alters, will automatically be considered HP.

If you have an Alter or Artist Signed card that you believe should be evaluated as better than heavy play, please contact us before adding your card to our buylist - we may be interested :-)

 


Damaged (DMG):


Game Grid does not currently buy or sell damaged cards.

Any card that is not sleeve playable or has water damage is considered damaged and will be returned if submitted for a buylist.

 


Expectations & Guidelines

Buying Cards

If you receive a card from us that does not match the condition that you ordered, please let us know!

Email us at staff@gglehi.com or text/call us at (801) 477-7680.

Please include your order number and, if possible, an image of the card front/back.

After reviewing the images of the card, if we find that it did not meet our grading criteria, you have the following options:


Exchange the card for the correct condition
We will cover the cost of shipping the card back to us and ship the correct single to you for no additional charge.

Receive a partial refund
Keep the card you already have!
We will offer a refund equal to the difference in price in cash
If you prefer store credit, you can get a refund for the difference +20%

Return the card for a full refund
Return shipping will be at your expense.

If you pick up your order in store, you are welcome to verify the condition while you're here. For high end singles, if you would like to look at other copies of a card, you can ask our staff to pull more copies for you to choose from.
i.e. While in store you are purchasing an Underground Sea and we have 3 NM copies in stock, but the one we pulled has a nick/ding on the edge - you are welcome to look at the other 2 copies and select one that you prefer.

Selling Cards

Game Grid Lehi will use the same grading criteria as listed above when reviewing your buylist. You are welcome to submit any/all of your cards as "NM" if you are unsure of how to grade them. However, that may result in a difference in price once they have been reviewed.

After we review/grade your buylist, if there is more than a 10% difference in price, we will contact you to confirm the new total before finalizing the buylist.

If there are any grades that you disagree with, we will return them to you before finalizing the buylist.