Vanity card

A Magic: The Gathering vanity card is a card where some creative element references someone who works on the game (or sometimes someone close to someone who works on the game). 
==History==
Early Magic had a slew of vanity cards. R&D chose to stop doing them regularly. The vanity rules now prevent making vanity cards of Wizards employees; however, the specifics are not public. The concern is that vanity cards influence how people behind the scenes make choices about cards, and make ill will among the staff. Words from existing vanity cards are grandfathered in and thus can be reprinted. Vanity cards differ from Easter Eggs due to the latter referencing Magic itself and not a person behind the scenes. Easter Eggs (both about Magic and about the outside world) are still allowable. 
As part of 2024's MagicFest playtest cards, Gavin Verhey paid tribute to dozens of content creators and famous players, with names and mechanical design leaning strongly into their non-legality. As they are not employees, they are not strictly vanity cards.
===List of vanity cards===
*, , , and named for Skaff Elias' friend Aditya Adarkar. 
*<c>Barry's Land</c>, named after Barry Reich.
*, created in honor of Deborah Thomas, CFO of Hasbro, at her retirement. 
* named as a tribute to Michael G. Ryan's mother Irma and his stepfather Dale.Mark Rosewater, Top Ten secrets behind Tempest card names, The Duelist #21 (January 1998), p. 19
* named for Michael S. Elliott (MSE), "Emmessi" is a shortened version of "Emm-ess-ee"
* "Erhnam" is an anagram of "Herman," Richard Garfield's then brother-in-law
* originally named "Feldon's Ice Cone", which was an anagram for "Don Felice's Cone". 
** was a second attempt to make a cone for Don Felice.Mark Rosewater (August 6, 2021), "Vanity Cards" Drive to Work.
* "Ifh-Bíff" was a childhood nickname for Richard Garfield's sister, Elizabeth. Elizabeth was married to "Herman"(). 
* named for Joel L. Mick (JLM), "Jalum" is a shortened version of "Jay-el-em."
**Ma "Mark Rosewater" Ro (October 1998), Chickens and Cows and Clams, Oh My, The Duelist #30
* named for J. Michael Davis (JMD), "Jayemdae" is a shortened version of "Jay-emm-dee"
*, , reference to Kyle Namvar, one of the designers of Homelands. Joven was his nickname.
* "Leshrac" is an anagram of "Charles", a reference to the middle name of early Magic playtester Chris Page.
* short for Mark Rosewater
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* and Mijae and Ydwen are anagrams of "Jamie" and "Wendy," two of Richard Garfield's best friends who got married while he was designing the set. He was the best man. 
* Mons Johnson
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* is named after sci-fi author Larry Niven, of whom Richard Garfield was a fan. (Nevinyrral is Larry Niven backward).
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* Richard Garfield
** an anagram of "Garfield, PhD"
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* named for editor Rhias Hall, who was also known at the time as "Auntie Badger"
* An anagram of designer Elliot Segal's nickname, "Mr. Toilet".
*<c>Wyluli Wolf</c> Wyluli is an anagram of Lily Wu, the maiden name of Richard Garfield's first wife
*All Invitational Cards with the likeness of the professional player in the art
==Characters==
*<c>Arna Kennerüd, Skycaptain</c> named after the future husband of Darla Kennerud.
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*Orim originally concepted as a minor character, Weatherlight co-creator Mike Ryan named her "Oram" (MaRo backwards) as a joke, but the team kept the name, changing the A to an I for readability.
==In the grey area==
* is an anagram of Mobius strip, which in turn is named after August Ferdinand Möbius.
* is an anagram of Klein Bottle, which in turn is named after Felix Klein.
*<c>Phelia, Exuberant Shepherd</c> depicts Michael Majors' dog Ophelia.
*<c>Research // Development</c> references R&D, but is a stock corporate phrase or department name
*<c>Selenia, Dark Angel</c> named after Michael Ryan's cat Selena, which itself was named after a character from a role-playing game Michael played in.
*<c>Timbermare</c> Tribute to Marilyn "The Lovely Mare" Wakefield, wife of long-time Magic writer Jamie Wakefield, who was lost to cancer
* depicts Zack Stella's rabbit Edward. 
*The employee dogs from Secret Lair Drop Series: Every Dog Has Its Day.
==See also==
*List of real-world people depicted on Magic cards
==References==
Category:Cards