Revised Edition contains one of early Magic’s most obvious card errors: Serendib Efreet keeps its blue identity but shows a green frame and the artwork of a different Arabian Nights Efreet. Revised also changed the physical wording or type line of Fungusaur, Goblin Balloon Brigade and Goblin King. The existing Unlimited vs Revised identification guide does not discuss any of these four cases.
Quick answer: Revised Serendib Efreet keeps Serendib’s name, blue mana cost, text and 3/4 statistics, but uses a green frame, green text box and Jesper Myrfors’s artwork for Ifh-Bíff Efreet. English Revised copies use this configuration; it is not a one-copy defect. Fungusaur, Goblin Balloon Brigade and Goblin King provide three separate examples of deliberate printed-card corrections in the same edition.[1] [2] [3]
What is wrong with Revised Serendib Efreet?
The Revised card combines elements that belong to two different Arabian Nights cards.
The identity data belongs to Serendib Efreet:
- the name is Serendib Efreet;
- the mana cost is {2}{U};
- the printed statistics are 3/4;
- the text describes a flying Efreet that deals 1 damage to its controller during upkeep.[1]
The visual treatment instead points to Ifh-Bíff Efreet:
- the frame and text box are green;
- the illustration matches Jesper Myrfors’s artwork for Arabian Nights Ifh-Bíff Efreet;
- the Revised artist credit is Jesper Myrfors, matching that borrowed illustration.[1] [3]
The result is not simply Serendib Efreet with the wrong frame color. Both the color treatment and the artwork came from the other Efreet.
The three-card comparison identifies every borrowed element
The original Arabian Nights Serendib Efreet uses a blue frame and Anson Maddocks’s artwork. Revised kept its name, cost and 3/4 statistics.[2]
Jesper Myrfors illustrated the green-framed 3/3 Arabian Nights Ifh-Bíff Efreet. Its artwork shows the dark-haired figure that appears on the Revised Serendib Efreet.[3]
The Revised printing therefore combines:
- Serendib Efreet’s identity: name, blue cost, card text and 3/4 statistics;
- Ifh-Bíff Efreet’s presentation: green frame, green text box, Jesper Myrfors artwork and corresponding artist credit.[1] [2] [3]
This comparison works better than judging the Revised card in isolation. The Arabian Nights originals identify precisely which elements Revised kept and which ones it replaced.
Is the green Serendib Efreet a one-off misprint?
No. Scryfall lists the green-frame, wrong-art card as the normal English Revised Edition Serendib Efreet. Unlike an isolated ink obstruction, registration shift or damaged sheet, this error affects the edition’s standard card object.[1]
Collectors commonly call it a misprint because the physical card is visibly incorrect. More precisely, it is an edition-level card error: the Revised production process combined the wrong visual assets.
This distinction matters when describing a copy. A seller does not need to prove that one Revised Serendib Efreet differs from another correct Revised version. Collectors should expect the green card when examining an English Revised copy.
Fungusaur: the counter moved to the end of the turn
Fungusaur kept the same Daniel Gelon artwork, {3}{G} mana cost and 2/2 statistics between Unlimited and Revised. Revised changed only the printed ability.[4] [5]
Unlimited says:
“Each time Fungusaur is damaged but not destroyed, put a +1/+1 counter on it.”
Revised says:
“At the end of any turn during which Fungusaur was damaged but not destroyed, put a +1/+1 counter on it.”
The distinction is visible without consulting later rules databases. Unlimited connects a counter to each qualifying damage event. Revised checks the turn and places the counter at its end. Multiple damage events during one turn therefore do not create multiple counters under the Revised wording.[4] [5] [11]
The card keeps its illustration and numerical characteristics. Only the printed ability changes.
Goblin Balloon Brigade: “Goblins” became the card itself
Unlimited Goblin Balloon Brigade uses the wording:
“Goblins gain flying ability until end of turn.”
Read literally, the plural subject can appear to grant flying to Goblins generally. Revised instead prints:
“Gains flying ability until end of turn.”
The Revised sentence refers to Goblin Balloon Brigade itself. The artwork by Andi Rusu, red mana cost and 1/1 statistics remain the same.[6] [7]
Wizards later explained that the earlier wording conflicted with Richard Garfield’s intent and that Revised corrected it.[8]
The paired scans isolate both revisions. Fungusaur changes when Revised places the counter; Goblin Balloon Brigade changes which object the sentence describes. Neither comparison depends on the edition-wide identification cues that the other guide covers.
Goblin King: “Summon Goblin King” became “Summon Lord”
Unlimited Goblin King has the printed creature line “Summon Goblin King.” Revised replaces it with “Summon Lord.” The Jesper Myrfors artwork, mana cost and 2/2 statistics remain unchanged.[8] [9] [10]
The old line created an internal ambiguity because “Goblin” appeared both in the card’s name and in its printed creature description. Wizards’ archived account explains that Richard Garfield intended Goblin King to enhance other Goblins rather than itself. Revised addressed that problem on the physical card by changing the creature line to “Summon Lord.”[8]
Later Magic terminology changed again, so a modern database may not reproduce either historical line as the primary display. For this comparison, the relevant evidence is visible on the Unlimited and Revised scans themselves.[9] [10]
Production error and editorial corrections are not the same thing
The four examples fall into two different categories.
Serendib Efreet is an erroneous combination
The Revised card combines the correct Serendib identity with the wrong frame and artwork. Nothing in the card’s intended identity requires a green presentation or the Ifh-Bíff illustration. The mismatch is the error.[1] [2] [3]
The other three cards are intentional revisions
Fungusaur, Goblin Balloon Brigade and Goblin King retain their established identities while specific printed elements change:
- Fungusaur receives new timing text;
- Goblin Balloon Brigade receives self-referential wording;
- Goblin King receives a different creature line.[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
Calling every difference a “misprint” would therefore be inaccurate. Serendib Efreet documents an incorrect assembly of card assets. The other three document deliberate editorial corrections that Wizards introduced in Revised.
What remained unchanged on the corrected cards
The scans also show targeted changes rather than complete redesigns.
- Fungusaur: same name, cost, artwork, artist and 2/2 statistics; different ability text.
- Goblin Balloon Brigade: same name, cost, artwork, artist and 1/1 statistics; different subject in the ability text.
- Goblin King: same name, cost, artwork, artist and 2/2 statistics; different creature line.
This is why side-by-side card imagery is essential for the topic. Each pair makes the altered field visible while holding the surrounding card identity constant.
What these cards reveal about Revised Edition
Revised did not apply one uniform kind of change to every card. The surviving objects show at least two distinct processes: deliberate editorial correction and accidental asset substitution.
Fungusaur, Goblin Balloon Brigade and Goblin King show Wizards revising specific text or classification printed on earlier cards. Serendib Efreet shows the opposite outcome: Revised preserved the card identity, but its visual construction introduced a new and conspicuous error.
The existing Unlimited vs Revised identification guide explains how to distinguish the two sets. This article has a narrower purpose: documenting four individual cards whose Revised objects contain changes beyond those normal edition-wide identification cues.
The complete set context remains available in the Revised Edition database.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Revised Serendib Efreet green?
Its name, blue mana cost, text and 3/4 statistics belong to Serendib Efreet, but Revised gives the card a green frame, green text box and Jesper Myrfors’s Ifh-Bíff Efreet artwork.[1] [3]
Whose artwork appears on Revised Serendib Efreet?
Jesper Myrfors created the artwork for Arabian Nights Ifh-Bíff Efreet, and Revised reused it on Serendib Efreet. Anson Maddocks created the original Arabian Nights Serendib Efreet artwork.[1] [2] [3]
Is every English Revised Serendib Efreet green?
Scryfall lists the green-frame, wrong-art configuration as the standard English Revised printing, not a rare one-copy variation.[1]
What changed on Revised Fungusaur?
Revised moves the counter from each qualifying damage event to the end of a turn after Fungusaur survives damage.[4] [5]
What changed on Revised Goblin Balloon Brigade?
Unlimited says “Goblins gain flying ability,” while Revised makes the ability self-referential with “Gains flying ability.”[6] [7] [8]
What changed on Revised Goblin King?
Revised changes its printed creature line from Unlimited’s “Summon Goblin King” to “Summon Lord.”[8] [9] [10]
References
- Scryfall — Serendib Efreet, Revised Edition
- Scryfall — Serendib Efreet, Arabian Nights
- Scryfall — Ifh-Bíff Efreet, Arabian Nights
- Scryfall — Fungusaur, Unlimited Edition
- Scryfall — Fungusaur, Revised Edition
- Scryfall — Goblin Balloon Brigade, Unlimited Edition
- Scryfall — Goblin Balloon Brigade, Revised Edition
- Wizards of the Coast — “Alpha Typos” (archived)
- Scryfall — Goblin King, Unlimited Edition
- Scryfall — Goblin King, Revised Edition
- Magic: The Gathering Wiki — Revised Edition card changes