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Set Specifications
Exp sym Revised

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Set Information

The Revised Edition of Magic: The Gathering (also simply known as Revised) was the fifth set released for the game (the first four being Limited, Unlimited, Arabian Nights, and Antiquites) and the third base set. It has also been known as Third Edition with Limited Edition being the first edition, and Unlimited being the second. Like previous core sets, it had no expansion symbol, and had just the artist credit at the bottom left.

The set was released in April, 1994 and contained 302 cards, like Limited and Unlimited before it. It was the first base set to contain cards from black-bordered sets other than Alpha and Beta. Twenty Revised cards were originally in the Arabian Nights expansion, and another nineteen were originally in the Antiquities expansion. Thirty-five cards that were in Unlimited were not in Revised, including the Power Nine. A few of the cards that were removed from the base set reappeared in later sets. Most notably, Icy Manipulator would be reprinted in Ice Age, and a few others would be reprinted in 8th Edition to celebrate the game's 10th anniversary.


Set history
Printing and distribution
Printing of Revised began in early April 1994 and continued until April 1995, when 4th Edition was announced. It is estimated that about 500 million cards of the set were produced, which fully eliminated the distribution problems of earlier sets. The cards of Revised were still widely available even well into 1996.

The cards of Revised all had white borders and no expansion symbol. However, the cards were far paler than their Unlimited counterparts, and the three-dimensional beveling of the cards was cropped out. This made the set seem by some to be unprofessional and "washed out". The beveling was returned in 4th Edition, and the colors were much more vibrant in that set. The large print run meant that Revised basic lands were so numerous and common that it was uncommon to find any other lands in decks until several years later.

The collation of the cards made it possible for a basic land card to appear in the common and uncommon slots of a pack. This was intentional; the land cards were printed on the common and uncommon print sheets. Basic lands would get their own full print sheets in 4th Edition, making Revised the last tournament-legal set until 8th Edition in which basic lands could be found in booster packs.

One card-printing error of note appeared on the card Serendib Efreet. This blue creature card was misprinted with a green border and a picture of another card, Ifh-Bíff Efreet. The name, mana cost and rules text were of Serendib Efreet, however. The Revised version is now the most common due to the limited print run of the original, intended versions.

Cards swapped out
At this stage of development, cards were swapped out to alleviate problems. In later sets, cards were swapped in and out to change the feeling of the game, but the cards removed for the Revised edition were all cut for one of three reasons:

Rules changes
The printing of Revised cleared up a number of rules problems that the Limited Edition and Unlimited Edition rules had. Two changes had a large effect on game play. First, the rule that "multiple effects resolve simultaneously unless a conflict arises" was changed to "effects always resolve last-in-first-out". And second, the rule for Protection from (Color) was changed from "the creature ignores all (Color) effects" to the more precise "the creature cannot be blocked or targeted by (Color) sources, reduces (Color) damage to zero, and cannot be enchanted by (Color) enchantments."

The most visually obvious of Revised's changes was the elimination of the Mono/Poly/Continuous qualifiers to artifacts. With the advent of the game's first tap symbol (a "T" turned forty-five degrees clockwise in a light gray circle), the qualifiers, used to differentiate when and how often an artifact could be used, were no longer needed. Artifacts that were previously classified as Mono artifacts were given the new tap symbol, while Poly and Continuous artifacts were simply re-templated without the tap symbol.


Summer Magic
The Summer Magic print run of Revised Edition were printed in the summer of 1994.[1] This print run intended to fix some of the errors with Revised, including the washed out color. As it turned out, the Summer Magic run had problems of its own, to include colors that were considered too dark, an uncorrected misprint on Plateau and a new misprint that occurred with the card Hurricane. The print run was recalled and destroyed, however some booster box cases that were shipped to England and Texas survived. It is estimated that no more than 5 or 6 of each rare exists.

This print run is known primarily for its extremely scarce and valuable cards and packs. Cards are distinguished by dark coloring and a 1994 copyright date displayed at the bottom, along with the artist credit. Booster packs look identical to normal revised, and as such, telling them apart can often be troublesome. No starter decks were made.


Notable cards

  • The Dual Lands: Tundra, Underground Sea, Badlands, Taiga, Savannah, Scrubland, Volcanic Island, Bayou, Plateau, and Tropical Island. These powerful and versatile lands are the only lands in Magic that can produce two different colors of mana with no drawback, making them highly sought-after.
  • Demonic Tutor: Considered the best "tutor" card in Magic, it was restricted in sanctioned tournaments due to its power level. It has not reappeared in any set since Revised, but it was reprinted for Duel Decks: Divine vs Demonic, as the Demonic deck has one copy. Diabolic Tutor, a more balanced substitute, was first printed in Odyssey.
  • Kird Ape: Together with the dual land Taiga, Kird Ape was potentially a very powerful 1-mana creature, and was a highly popular inclusion in Red-Green decks. After a long hiatus, it was reprinted once again in Ninth Edition. Despite being the same card, Kird Ape lost some of its power without Taiga being in the same set. The Ravnica dual land Stomping Ground has managed to serve as a replacement.
  • Sol Ring: An extremely efficient mana-acceleration card, some feel that it should be included in the Power Nine. Unlike the Power Nine, Sol Ring was an uncommon instead of a rare, making it easier to acquire. Due to power reasons, it is restricted in sanctioned tournaments, and has not been reprinted since Revised with the exception of a DCI Judges foil print run and the official pre-built Commander decks.


Card Sets

External links[]

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