MTG Box Label Generator

A local Node.js web app for browsing Magic: The Gathering sets and generating printable PDF labels for your card boxes. Set data comes from the Scryfall API; labels are laid out for Avery 8163 sheets (4" × 2", 2-up × 5 rows = 10 per page).

Requirements

• Node.js v18 or newer
• npm (bundled with Node)

Install & run

npm install      # first time, or after pulling new dependencies
npm start        # equivalent to: node server.js

Then open http://localhost:3000 in a browser. Press Ctrl+C in the terminal to stop.

To use a different port:

$env:PORT = 4000
npm start

How to use

1. Browse sets. All Scryfall sets load on first open. Use the search box (name or code) and the type dropdown to filter. "Hide digital-only" is on by default.
2. Filter by format. The colored format buttons (Standard / Play / Legacy / Vintage) act as toggles — clicking one shows only sets legal in that format. Multiple toggles combine as a union.
   • Play is a custom format used here for organizing physical boxes; it covers tournament-legal expansion/core/starter sets and excludes older non-tournament-legal core sets.
3. Preview a label. Click any row (not the checkbox) to see a live canvas preview in the right panel using the current label size and note.
4. Select sets. Check the boxes next to the sets you want labels for. Use Select All / Select None for quick bulk changes (Select All applies to the current filtered view).
5. Choose a label size. Standard (4" × 2"), Tall (4" × 3"), or Custom (enter width / height in inches).
6. Optional note. Add a custom note (e.g. "Box 1 of 3") — it appears on every label in the batch.
7. Generate PDF. Click Generate PDF. The file mtg-box-labels.pdf downloads automatically and is ready to print on Avery 8163 (or compatible) label sheets.

What's on each label

• Large set symbol (left)
• Set name (top right) with release date, card count, set type, block, and your optional note
• Set code (bottom left) and the Play number (bottom right) when applicable

Play numbers: base sets are pinned (B1 = LEA/LEB/2ED, B2 = M10, …, B12 = FDN); all other Play-legal sets get an incrementing integer in release-date order.

Project layout

server.js              Express server + Scryfall proxy + PDF endpoint
label-generator.js     PDFKit rendering and Avery 8163 layout
config.js              Standard rotation cutoff date
public/
  index.html           UI
  app.js               State, filtering, canvas preview, PDF request
  formats.js           Legality logic (Standard/Play/Legacy/Vintage)
  style.css            Dark gold-on-brown theme

Notes

• Scryfall responses are cached server-side for 1 hour; SVG symbols are converted to PNG with sharp and cached in your OS temp directory under mtg-symbols/.
• After each fall Standard rotation, update STANDARD_CUTOFF_DATE in config.js and public/formats.js.