Card Condition Guide
We grade our raw singles to the TCGplayer condition standard — the scale most of the hobby buys and sells on. If you're used to eBay's wording instead, there's a cross-reference further down.
Two rules we apply to every card: the most significant flaw sets the grade, and where a card sits between two grades we list it at the lower one.
Near Mint (NM)
Effectively unplayed. Crisp corners, clean edges and an essentially unmarked surface. A small number of very minor flaws are allowed at this grade — slight edge wear or a faint scratch you would have to look for — along with normal factory printing characteristics.
Lightly Played (LP)
Minor wear that becomes visible on closer inspection: light edge wear, scuffing, or a few small scratches. Nothing structural — no creasing, bending or liquid damage. Sleeved, it plays and displays like a clean card.
Moderately Played (MP)
Wear that is obvious at a glance: border or edge whitening, surface scratching or scuffing, corner wear, mild fading, or a light bend or crease — or a combination of moderate flaws. The card is still structurally sound and fine to play sleeved.
Heavily Played (HP)
Major wear across the card: significant whitening, creasing, surface damage, heavy corner wear, or several moderate flaws at once. Still intact and clearly identifiable, but plainly a played card.
Damaged (DMG)
Wear beyond what Heavily Played allows — tearing, splitting, delamination, water damage, writing or markings, or creasing heavy enough to break the card's surface. We describe exactly what is wrong in the listing.
If you're used to eBay's wording
eBay uses four tiers for ungraded cards where TCGplayer uses five, so this is a rough guide rather than an exact conversion:
| Our grade (TCGplayer scale) | Closest eBay tier |
|---|---|
| Near Mint | Near Mint or Better |
| Lightly Played | Near Mint or Better – Excellent |
| Moderately Played | Excellent – Very Good |
| Heavily Played | Very Good |
| Damaged | Poor |
Buying a higher-value single? Ask us for photos first
We strongly recommend it. Condition grades are a shared language, but two cards at the same grade can still look different, and on an expensive single that difference matters. Email info@ryujinhobbies.ca with the listing before you order and we'll send you photos of the actual card, so you know exactly what you're getting rather than being disappointed when it arrives.
Notes that apply to every grade
- Foils and holos. Foil cards can leave the pack with curling, print lines or slight clouding. Those are factory characteristics, not damage, and we grade them on the standard scale rather than penalising the card for how it was printed.
- Language and printing. If a card is not English, or is a first edition, reverse holo, promo or alternate art, that is stated in the listing title.
- Graded slabs are different. Cards in PSA, BGS, CGC, TAG, ACE or KSA holders carry that company's numeric grade, not ours. The certification number is in every graded listing so you can verify it yourself — see the graded collection.
Think we got one wrong?
Email info@ryujinhobbies.ca within 48 hours of delivery with photos and we'll look at it properly.