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* Field Guide to Variants *



First of all, an intro to the correct vocabulary...


Variant: any pony that differs from the standard version (which is traditionally the 1st issue or, if applicable, the US issue).


Yellow Moondancer (colour variant)


Exclusive: a pony of restricted distribution (e.g. country exclusive, mail order exclusive or retailer exclusive)


Satin 'n Lace (mail order exclusive)


Prototype: a test specimen not aimed to the market. Please note this term is sometimes misused to indicate a variant. However, a prototype is typically (or usually) one-of-a-kind (OOAK)
    

Unfinished ponies (factory prototypes)


Factory fault: most collectors draw a difference between a real variant and a factory fault. A factory fault is a pony that differs from the standard version because of a mere factory mistake, while a variant is intentional. (Examples of factory faults are badly drawn symbols, wrong colour tail, 'bleached' body paint, and so on)

Milky Way, with factory-sealed, wrong colour tail (factory fault)

Classifying variants...

    Variants are classified by focusing on relevant detailes about them, typically:
  • Country of Make (as opposed to standard, made in Hong Kong or China)
as indicated on the pony's hooves, unless missing (however the lack of a country is considered an ID element as well). Country of make is a primary element in classifying variants, in that ponies made in a certain country tend to share a set of specific features (e.g. eye colour, quality of plastic, symbol paint) useful to identifying them.

     
Different country marks
  • Features
such as symbol colour or symbol design, pose, hair or eye colour, concave or flat hooves, and so on. Sometimes this kind of variants are associated with re-issues of a pony (store version vs. mail order, or first edition vs. second edition) or to different areas of distribution (e.g. the US vs. Europe).
 
Pose variants and...
...colour variants

   
Differences in eye colour, hooves and symbol design

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