Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Tracking Goblin Cannon Printings Across MTG Expansions

If you’ve ever dipped into the long arc of MTG artifacts, you know that some cards pop up again and again, becoming familiar touchstones in various formats. Others, like Goblin Cannon, keep their presence intimate and specific, leaving tracks only for those who love the tactile history of printed card stock. This article dives into the print history of Goblin Cannon, a colorless artifact from the Fifth Dawn era, and uses its print frequency as a lens for understanding how Wizards of the Coast rotates props through expansions, reprints, and collector markets 🧙‍♂️🔥.

Goblin Cannon is a four-mana artifact with a deceptively simple but spicy line of text: “{2}: This artifact deals 1 damage to any target. Sacrifice this artifact.” It’s a classic example of the “two-step ping” mechanic that artifacts and colorless strategies often lean on to create predictable value over time. The card’s mana cost and sacrifice clause create a tempo dynamic: you invest 2 mana to deal 1 damage and then pay the price of losing the artifact to keep the engine from stalling. In casual play, that feels like a goblin blitz—hazardous, loud, and oddly satisfying when it lands a last-minute burn in a tough board state 🧨💥.

Print History: One Printing, End of Story—So Far

Goblin Cannon is printed in Fifth Dawn (set code 5dn), released in 2004. Its rarity is uncommon, and its flavor text—“Goblin cannon crews are known not for their aim but for their ability to dive for cover”—paints a vivid image of goblins recklessly loading a barrel with dubious precision. The card’s official prints list shows reprint: false, which means Fifth Dawn is its sole official printing in standard MTG literature, at least up to the present dataset. The card’s collector number is 125 in Fifth Dawn, and the artist Doug Chaffee contributed a memorable illustration that captures the chaotic charm of goblins in battle: a scene that blends humor with a hint of danger 🎨⚔️.

That single printing is part of what makes Goblin Cannon so intriguing to collectors. The set itself, a large block for the “Dawn” storyline, delivered a mix of colorless artifacts and multicolor legends that pushed the artifact theme into some surprisingly aggressive territory. Goblin Cannon sits in the same era as other early colorless efforts that exploited “payoffs” from cheap activated abilities. Because there wasn’t a later reprint, the market’s awareness of Goblin Cannon’s print history tends to be focused on Fifth Dawn-era copies. In the modern era of MTG collecting, that can translate to a tighter window for price movement and a stronger aura of “hunting for the original” among completionists 🧭💎.

Mechanics, Value, and Format Footprint

Mechanically, Goblin Cannon is straightforward but surprisingly versatile: you can activate its ability multiple times, paying 2 mana each time to deal 1 damage to any target, with the artifact sacrificed after each activation. That makes it especially effective in formats that reward incremental value, such as Commander and various kitchen-table formats where ping damage and artifact-based engines can swing the tempo. In terms of legality, Goblin Cannon has maintained a broad presence across legacy and modern-era formats, with print history keeping pace with artifacts’ tradition of flexibility. The card’s mana cost of 4 and its colorless identity lends itself well to colorless and artifact-focused build archetypes, where the ability to repeatedly ping down a troublesome blocker or finish off a player can feel like a miniature explosion from a goblin crew 💣⚙️.

Market data, while always shifting, offers a snapshot you can use when considering a purchase or a sale: non-foil copies hover around USD 0.24 on the low end, foil versions can climb to about USD 5.92, and European prices mirror the general trend with a non-foil around EUR 0.12 and foil around EUR 1.47. While these numbers are imperfect indicators of card value, they illustrate the typical impedance that a single-print uncommon artifact faces in a market built on reprinting and nostalgia. For the Goblin Cannon, the lack of reprints means that supply is finite in a sense, but the card’s age and power level keep it within reach of budget casuals and serious collectors alike 🔬🔎.

From a design perspective, Goblin Cannon embodies several enduring MTG patterns: a reliable activation cost, a consistent damage output, and a built-in self-sacrifice risk that ensures timing matters. The flavor text’s humor also reinforces the idea that goblins aren’t precision engineers—they’re enthusiastic hazard creators who stumble into results that look spectacular on paper. If you’re a fan of artifact-centric wizards’ duels or a nostalgic explorer of early 2000s MTG design, Goblin Cannon is a bookmark in the story of how colorless artifacts carved space for tempo and ramp in parallel with colored spells 🧙‍♂️🎲.

Tracking Prints: A Practical Approach for Fans

For players and collectors who want to track print frequencies across expansions, Goblin Cannon offers a clean case study. Start with a reliable card database (like Scryfall, which houses set data and print histories) and build a mental timeline: original print (Fifth Dawn, 2004) followed by potential reprints in other expansions. In Goblin Cannon’s case, there hasn’t been a confirmed reprint in standard MTG sets, making it a notable example of a single-print artifact with a lasting cultural footprint. If a reprint ever surfaces—whether in Masters sets, reprint bundles, or special commemoratives—it would set off a measurable shift in price and availability across collectors, much like other classic artifacts that emerge from the shadows when Wizards revisits older mechanics with a new chassis 🔔💎.

As you explore print histories, you’ll also notice the way art, flavor, and card text contribute to a card’s staying power. Goblin Cannon’s art by Doug Chaffee, its crisp 2003 frame style, and its iconic flavor text all combine to create a package that feels tangible even today. That tangibility—paired with the card’s practical utility—helps explain why players still search for original 5dn printings and why collectors might watch the market for the occasional premium foil copy. It’s less about sheer power and more about the story and the thrill of the hunt 🧭🎯.

And if you’re balancing MTG with everyday life, you can keep your “hunting” gear stylish. For fans who like to combine hobby with practical everyday gear, our Neon Card Holder Phone Case with MagSafe Polycarbonate makes a perfect companion to those long drafting sessions or casual Friday nights at the local game shop. It pairs nicely with the excitement of uncovering a rare print story, a moment where fantasy and daily life collide in brilliant color.

More from our network

• https://crypto-acolytes.xyz/blog/post/understanding-governance-tokens-for-web3-applications/
• https://crypto-acolytes.xyz/blog/post/nft-stats-solgod-272-from-solgods-collection/
• https://crypto-acolytes.xyz/blog/post/nft-stats-chill-house-804-from-chill-house-pfp-collection/
• https://crypto-acolytes.xyz/blog/post/nft-stats-doodle-bonk-2345-from-doodle-bonk-collection/
• https://crypto-acolytes.xyz/blog/post/nft-stats-lnl-2185-from-long-neck-legends-collection/