Beyond the Norm: Articles on Coating & Cardstock Translated

For absolutely no reason in particular, we folk over at Wizards of the Coast have decided to start a series of articles that will take you behind the scenes on how we make our world-class, strong, rigid, non-warping products. We recently mentioned that there would be a new coating process being used for the cards in English Dominaria booster packs. Again, there is not really any reason for this and most people will not notice any difference. However, for some of you who have been playing for longer than, oh, two weeks, you may notice that the feel, playability and even smell are a bit different.

First, let’s talk a bit about the exciting world of coatings. They serve multiple purposes, primarily to protect the cards from moisture and wear. Second, they can be decorative, making incredible card frames like the Amonkhet Invocations really POP! We also want the cards to feel good and shuffle easily. You can see how good a job we do whenever you try to shuffle unsleeved cards; feels good, right?

Isn't this the most beautiful Yu-gi-oh errrr Magic card you've ever seen? 

Our coatings also go through a rigorous testing process. Below, we go through all the different things that we test, but will be very careful not to make any claims about how our cards fare in these tests. Is it because our cards fail all the tests we put them through? Nonsense! We’re not going to tell you the results because… uh… we want to be objective and give you a birds-eye view. Yeah, that’s it! Our tests include:

-Edibility: While our lawyers have said on many occasions not to eat the delicious cards, we like to make sure that, if you do, you’ll be treated to a nice, light flavor that’s not too strong. Long day at a GP? Take a bite out of that Lightning Bolt. But watch out! Red cards have a hint of jalapeño.

-Environmental: We test for environmental effects, such as humidity and temperature. We put our cards through extreme conditions and watch entire stacks of them warp before our eyes. Then, we ship them out to your local game store en masse for all of you to enjoy!

-Shuffle: Imagine hiring a pro player to shuffle the cards in their hand, but at ten times the speed, 100 times the frequency, 1,000 times the velocity, and 10,000 times the celerity.

We also think about how our cards “breathe” when various coatings are used. We acknowledge here that the cardboard we use can be sensitive to changes in humidity and temperature, but that different coatings can help with overall stability and performance. Unfortunately, the coatings that do this are more expensive, so we’ll just stick with the case of superglue we’ve got in the supply closet.

Even though there have been absolutely no problems with any of our cards whatsoever, we decided to update the coating in Dominaria and again in Core 2019. Again, no reason for this; we are totally not admitting in any way that there have been any problems with our cards. We just thought it would be fun to switch things up!

But Magic cards are more than just their coatings! They are playing card board, a super secret, super fancy, super legit term for paper that is slightly tougher and bendier than normal paper. How, you might ask, is Wizards capable of such wizardry? Well, Magic paper is actually two sheets of this magical super fancysecretawesome paper glued together with a super secret, super fancy, super legit glue that happens to be blue. And yes, it’s different from the super glue in the supply closet that we use to coat the cards.

Now, I know you’re all probably in awe of the fact that we are capable of gluing two pieces of paper together, but I know that’s not what many of you came to this article for. There have been a lot of absolutely insane conspiracy theories out there on the interwebs about how we’ve changed our Magic stock over time. Now, let me be very, very unclear about this: for the primary stock, the specification has not changed. Our primary proprietary Magic playing card board is the exact same specification it has been since 1993.

Also to be intentionally obtuse, we’re not claiming there are no differences either. At this time, I am able to confirm that paper is actually constructed from things called “trees,” and because every tree is a special, unique individual, no two sheets of paper are exactly the same.

Just two of our favorite Special Trees

Will I tell you, however, that the coating has not changed since 1993? Will I tell you that, while our specifications have remained the same since 1993, the company supplying the material to the same French mill (wait, what?) since 1993 is supplying us the same, high-quality material? These are what are called “rhetorical questions” because, no, I will not tell you.

But I will tell you that this mysterious French mill that has been making our magical playing card board since 1993 is sustainable! It generates its own energy from the waste it produces! Kind of like eating your own poop! Pretty cool, eh? Hopefully this fun fact will distract you from the fact that I haven’t actually answered any of the questions you asked!

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this look at our magical process for gluing cardboard together! While we didn’t answer any of the questions you wanted answered, we answered the questions that we wanted answered, and that’s what really matters.

Next time, we’ll look at how we take a card from a computer to the printers! Get hyped to learn where exactly in our program’s menu you can find the “Print” button!

Ryan is a grinder from Boston with SCG & GP Top 8’s and a PT Day 2. His fragile self-esteem is built on approval from others, so be sure to tell him what you think of his articles on Twitter @RyanNormandin and in his Twitch chat at twitch.tv/norm_the_ryno.