What are the Magic Frames and Types?
And how do I use templates related to them?
Under 5 Minute Read.
In this article, we cover what the types of MTG frames are and how to use the templates we have for them.
The original magic frame was used from the start of the game in 1993 until 2003 with the set Scourge. It is the most easily identifiable of the frames as it looks radically different than the current one.
As briefly mentioned before, there are many different frames in the game besides the three major ones. For altering purposes, most of the time you would be targeting one of these three. Some specific mechanics have frame types, some specific lands have a different frame type. To figure out which type of frame you are working on and to find the name of said frame type, check out the wiki’s card frame gallery and try to find the name that matches that in our template’s folder.
It is really important that you alter not only is it set to the right frame or card but also that it has the most accurate tag possible. We strive for having Alter Sleeves tagged in whichever types most suits it. Of course, there may be some overlaps between types, but there will be a single tag or two that are the most accurate for your alter. Over tagging can lead to confusion for the buyers when they are trying to sort through the numerous designs that Alter Sleeves artists have to offer.
A frame is a generic type of sleeve, it can go onto any card that matches the card frame it was intended for. Say, for example, you could design a lattice frame alter that fits any M15 card, but only M15 cards.
Types are what you select when uploading a not-frame alter under the “What kind of alter is this?” drop-down list.
Frames are a generic type of altering that should fit across many different cards. Frames should not
cover the center area of the card. The original artwork, name, and
textbox of the card should be visible. The difference in “frames” and
“adornments” is that “adornments” are for specific cards, while “frames” can work with any in a given amount of sets/mechanics cards.
Adornments
are design elements that are added over the original art to replace or
highlight an element in the card or art. Some examples include, but not
excluded to: Decaying, Costumes on characters, Stained Glass (of the
artbox only)
Borderless extension
is a type of extension that expands over the border to continue the original artwork, If pieces of
the extended art go over the text box to create a 3D effect that’s
okay. The important part is that the borders are completely covered and
the text area is mostly legible.
Extensions
extend a part of the original card further into the card frame to continue the original artwork. This
alter type covers any part of the card but not all of it, especially for the text box.
A Crop out is a type of extension to highlight a specific part of a card while replacing the rest of the art and/or border with new art. The most common sleeve design for these would be the galaxy alters. Similar designs like seasonal alters could also fall into this category if enough of the original art is changed.
This type of alter looks to extend the original art to cover the printed card border, but leaves a piece of the frame. These designs are meant to make the frame look like it is floating above the card’s artwork. These are most commonly done with older sets. Usually, they only cover the black border of the printed card, or the entire frame up to the line borders of the artwork, These work really well with how Alter Sleeves are printed.
Full Art extensions extend out the original art of the card to cover the card completely. One of the key things is that the text box and border of the card should be covered.
Textless
alters are designs that cover the textbox completely, Either with something new, or even a continuation of the original artwork.
An art replacement fully replaces the art of the original card with
completely new art. the specifics are that it's 100% replacing the art
box only.
The Artbox and the textbox are replaced, as well as any additional parts of the card, up to the complete card besides the Name and Mana cost bar.
This type of altering replaces the original Art box plus any additional parts of the frame or card with completely new art, but not the entire card textbox. The key point is that the art box is no longer recognizable by the card’s original art and that the textbox is still legible.