Retro Magic: Arabian Nights! - Old School Magic the Gathering (MTG)

by    R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of   Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

As the first ever expansion for Magic: the Gathering, Arabian Nights is obviously one of the most sought after sets by collectors of the game. It had some extremely powerful cards, one major oddity (only one basic land was printed in the set by accident), and possibly the craziest card ever to be printed in any trading card game: Shahrazad.
 
Arabian Nights actually has many cards reprinted in later sets. Many cards from Arabian Nights were reprinted in Chronicles, the later compilation set. Some other notable cards were reprinted in later Core Sets and expansions. For example, Desert  was reprinted in Time Spiral.

The most notable card that has been reprinted from this set is City of Brass.  This is a land that allows you to tap for any color of mana, but you must pay one life to do so. It was only an uncommon in Arabian Nights, but has been reprinted as a rare in Chronicles, and the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th edition Core Sets. It would also be reprinted in Modern Masters and the Modern Event Deck. One of these later reprints can be had for about $3-4 USD a copy, but original Arabian Nights versions can sell for over $300 USD a copy!
 
Only 28 cards from this set have never been reprinted. 22 of them are on Wizards of the Coast's Reserved List. Being on the Reserved List means that they will never be reprinted, mainly because of their power level and also to protect their collectors value. These 22 cards remain some of the rarest cards in all of Magic.

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Besides these, there is a major oddity in the set: a basic Mountain! Since Arabian Nights was originally meant to be printed as a stand-alone product, it initially had basic lands as part of the set. When it was decided that it would instead be an expansion to Alpha, Beta & Unlimited, the basic lands were removed.

However, in the first print run of the set, Mountain was accidentally left in. This makes the Arabian Nights Mountains highly sought after by players & collectors alike. A single copy of this particular printing of Mountain is worth about $125 USD or more. Even in less than perfect condition, they're worth holding onto, even if only for trade stock for Red Deck Wins lovers.
 
Stick around for more Retro Magic, where we look at some of the oldest and rarest cards in Magic: the Gathering!

Some Retro Magic articles to enjoy:

Ali from Cairo - Arabian Nights Card Review
Ancestral Recall - Retro Magic Card Review
Juzam Djinn - Arabian Nights Card Review

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