Collector's Edition

[Roman Candle]

So, I play at a really underdeveloped casual weekly tourney (it's easy wins) and someone brought a Collector's Edition Black Lotus.

I've never even heard of Collector's Edition. Is it legal?

The back is gold-bordered and says "Collector's Edition" in gold leaf. Is this just an extravagant proxy?

If someone could cite the ruling, too, that would be great... this guy is really stubborn.

[Van Phanel]

So, I play at a really underdeveloped casual weekly tourney (it's easy wins) and someone brought a Collector's Edition Black Lotus.

I've never even heard of Collector's Edition. Is it legal?

The back is gold-bordered and says "Collector's Edition" in gold leaf. Is this just an extravagant proxy?

If someone could cite the ruling, too, that would be great... this guy is really stubborn.

Only white- and black-bordered cards are tournament legal.

102. Authorized Cards
[...]

Participants may not use cards from special sets or supplements with alternate backs, squared corners or gold borders. (Examples: Collector’s Edition, Pro Tour Collector’s Set, World Championship decks.) [...]

You can check out the MtG floor rules here

[beastman]

They are most certainly not tournament legal. They don't even have the same backs as real magic cards.

[Roman Candle]

I knew the front had to be white- or black-bordered, but I wasn't sure about the back. Thanks!

To be fair, though, doesn't Alpha have squared corners? Those are legal, though, right?

[Dan Turner]

Alpha has rounded corners just a little more round than beta and forward due to a die sharpening between print runs

[Van Phanel]

There is a section about Alpha under the very same number of the floor rules:

Alpha cards (cards from the first print run of the core set) may be used in decks containing non-Alpha cards only if all cards are placed in completely opaque sleeves and only if the sleeves could not be considered marked. If sleeves are not used, Alpha cards may be used only in decks that consist exclusively of Alpha cards.

[Tosh]

There is a section about Alpha under the very same number of the floor rules:

Alpha cards (cards from the first print run of the core set) may be used in decks containing non-Alpha cards only if all cards are placed in completely opaque sleeves and only if the sleeves could not be considered marked. If sleeves are not used, Alpha cards may be used only in decks that consist exclusively of Alpha cards.

Seems to me like you could make the same type of ruling to make Collector's Edition legal...

[Nihil Credo]

Seems to me like you could make the same type of ruling to make Collector's Edition legal...

No. Two reasons:

1) Collector's Edition, unlike Alpha, was never intended to be tournament legal.

2) The border of a CE card cannot be "disguised" inside sleeves like Alpha borders can. As soon as you lightly brushed a corner it would very clearly stick out to the touch.