Card Condition Guide

At Ripperholics, we grade every card honestly and conservatively so you know exactly what you're getting. Below is the full list of Trading Card Game (TCG) condition levels used in our store, with abbreviations and plain-English descriptions.

🔵 Mint (M)
Pristine pack-fresh cards with no visible wear even under bright light. Corners are sharp, surfaces flawless and centering within factory tolerance. A true collector's piece.

🟢 Near Mint (NM)
Clean cards showing little to no handling. At most a tiny edge nick or micro-scratch visible only on close inspection or under angled light. Perfect for collectors and competitive players.

🟡 Lightly Played (LP)
Slight edge whitening, a few small surface scratches, or subtle shuffle wear. Imperfections are minor and do not distract from overall eye appeal. Excellent for play and casual display.

🟠 Moderately Played (MP)
Noticeable wear such as pronounced edge whitening, light creases, scuffing, or small indentations. Still sleeves up fine for everyday play, but collectors will note the wear immediately.

🔴 Heavily Played (HP)
Obvious creases, heavy edge wear, surface clouding, or multiple scratches. Remains tournament legal in an opaque sleeve yet is well below collector grade. Best for budget decks and trades.

âš« Damaged or Poor (DMG or PO)
Tears, bends, water damage, ink, or major structural issues. Priced strictly for gameplay or placeholders and may not be tournament legal even in sleeves.

Notes and synonyms

  • Some marketplaces use Poor (PO) instead of Damaged (DMG); they describe the same lowest tier.

  • Slightly Played (SP) and Played (PL) are regional terms roughly matching Lightly Played and Moderately or Heavily Played respectively.

  • Professional numeric grading services (PSA, BGS, CGC) translate approximately as: Mint ≈ PSA 9 - 10, Near Mint ≈ PSA 7 - 8, Lightly Played ≈ PSA 5 - 6, Moderately Played ≈ PSA 3 - 4, Heavily Played ≈ PSA 2, Damaged/Poor ≈ PSA 1.