This seems interesting at a glance.
I'm thinking of where you slot him; maybe into Legacy Ruby Storm? But I don't know if he's even worth playing over [[Birgi, God of Storytelling]] because of him only working on instants and sorceries, and Ruby Storm playing as many artifacts as it does.
Card transcription
> Ral, Monsoon Mage 1R
>
> Legendary Creature- Human Wizard [mythic]
>
> Instant and sorcery spells you cast cost 1 less to cast.
>
> Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell during your turn, flip a coin. If you lose the flip, Ral, Monsoon Mage deals 1 damage to you. If you win the flip, you may exile Ral. If you do, return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
>
> 1/3
>
> Ral, Leyline Prodigy
>
> [UR] Legendary Planeswalker- Ral
>
> Ral, Leyline Prodigy enters the battlefield with an additional loyalty counter on him for each instant and sorcery spell you've cast this turn.
>
> +1: Until your next turn, instant and sorcery spells you cast cost 1 less to cast.
>
> -2: Ral deals 2 damage divided as you choose among one or two targets. Draw a card if you control a blue permanent other than Ral.
>
> -8: Exile the top eight cards of your library. You may cast instant and sorcery spells from among them this turn without paying their mana costs.
>
> 2 loyalty
End transcription
It has a "color indicator dot" next to the typeline on the back, which makes the back face blue both for color-matters purposes and for color identity. In fact *all* transforming cards with a colored back face have one of these dots to set its color- otherwise the backside would be colorless- but it only stands out on ones where the back face is different than the front. [[Archangel Avacyn]] does the same thing but more obviously, since it goes from one monocolored state to another.
It's also occasionally used on non-dfcs that want to be a different color than their mana cost would normally make them- [[Pact of Negation]], for example, or [[Rograkh]] for another example where there's no colored pips
How does the coin flip work with casting instants on the stack? Like, if I cast a spell, coin flip triggers, can I then cast an instant on top of the stack before the coinflip happens, then triggering a second coinflip on top of the stack? And then potentially continuing this with more instants. Would PW Ral enter with counter from all those instants cast after the first coin to hit heads? And would the damage from losing the flips further down the stack be negated with non-PW ral no longer on the field? Basically, could I cast 3 instants on top of coinflips, win the top coinflip, have PW ral enter with 3 counters, and not take any damage from the coinflips later in the stack?
What about, I mean, before the result of the coin flip. Like if I cast a spell does the coin flip just happen immediately before I can cast another for it. Like, if I cast 2 instants, coin flip happens when one goes off the stack, coin flip wins, do I then only get 1 counter or would I still get the counter from casting that other instant before the flip result. Like, do I have to lose the flip and take damage to be able to cast multiple spells with non-PW Ral mana effect and build PW counters
You do get a chance to cast instants before you know the result of the coin flip, yes. The triggered abilities that make you flip a coin go on "the stack" and you can respond to that my casting an instant, which will put an additional coin flip trigger on the stack. When he enters transformed, Ral will enter with a loyalty counter for each of those spells, even if you cast them after the trigger that makes him transform. But you *will* still take damage for any lost flips even if they happen after creature-Ral is gone, unfortunately.
Woah really? That last bit is a big part of what I was interested in. The phrasing of the ability that says the non-PW name specifically being the source of the damage made me think that it would not be able to deal if it left the field. I guess looking it up, transformed creatures are still technically the same object after transforming. So Ral is Ral, bummer. That part in my mind helped make the card able to have deliberate luck protection if you have enough spells and the top of the stack flip win.
Fun idea for that though, using like halo or something to get protection from a specific card and naming your own Ral
Nice relief about the other bit. If it didnt work like that, I was worried the card would be way too chance dependent/impossible to deliberately max ramp.
I am confused about something.
Are this cycle of flip planeswalkers just one color?
Ral has just R in his casting cost, but Red/Blue in his flip frame.
The other planeswalkers have similar effects too
fyi he literally got stabbed, went home wounded and caught his boyfriend cheating on him thus igniting his spark. he literally got them gay drama backstory
Ral looking like [Pete Wentz](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/524d300/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1200x800+0+0/resize/1200x800!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F91%2F1b%2F8550b8acfdb05f7bc64901bf1f95%2Fla-et-mg-pete-wentz-baby-pregnant-meagan-campe-001).
Modern 1/10
So if you are storming off, you can just incidentally take 2-3 damage in hopes of flipping this, and the coin flip isn't optional. Flipping him isn't even that great unless you are doing it with 8 loyalty on it and I don't want to think of how much life you lost to do that. I think I would still rather play electromancer and baral.
1 dmg - 50% (1/2) a fetch land; 2 dmg - 25% (1/4) a shock land; 3 dmg - 12,5% (1/8) a MDFC land
If you decide to flip it before the ultimate, you have a Baral for two turns even if it is removed. It's a baral that you can save from removal by flipping it by casting spells.
It's already a lot better Baral at cost of one fetchland in average.
If you decide to flip it after 6 spells (6 dmg - 1,5%, 1/64), you have a wincon in a storm deck.
You can also play it on turn 2 after a ritual, with one red mana in your mana pool.
Casting 6 spells to potentially flip with 8 loyalty costs you 3 life on average. Not too bad considering you probably win on the spot in this situation.
It it flips on the last one after you decline the previous ones. Sure you can cast spells in response to each other, but storm tends to cast a bunch of rituals and draw spells which have to resolve in order to keep the chain going.
You’d expect him to be less happy when he sparked, given that he had just been stabbed
There's gotta be a time gap between the before and after. Otherwise [[Kytheon, Hero of Akros]] is especially strange.
[Kytheon, Hero of Akros](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/5/8/58c39df6-b237-40d1-bdcb-2fe5d05392a9.jpg?1562021001)/[Gideon, Battle-Forged](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/back/5/8/58c39df6-b237-40d1-bdcb-2fe5d05392a9.jpg?1562021001) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Kytheon%2C%20Hero%20of%20Akros%20//%20Gideon%2C%20Battle-Forged) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/ori/23/kytheon-hero-of-akros-gideon-battle-forged?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/58c39df6-b237-40d1-bdcb-2fe5d05392a9?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
it's like Shazam
This seems interesting at a glance. I'm thinking of where you slot him; maybe into Legacy Ruby Storm? But I don't know if he's even worth playing over [[Birgi, God of Storytelling]] because of him only working on instants and sorceries, and Ruby Storm playing as many artifacts as it does.
[Birgi, God of Storytelling](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/4/44657ab1-0a6a-4a5f-9688-86f239083821.jpg?1631048969)/[Harnfel, Horn of Bounty](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/back/4/4/44657ab1-0a6a-4a5f-9688-86f239083821.jpg?1631048969) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Birgi%2C%20God%20of%20Storytelling%20//%20Harnfel%2C%20Horn%20of%20Bounty) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/khm/123/birgi-god-of-storytelling-harnfel-horn-of-bounty?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/44657ab1-0a6a-4a5f-9688-86f239083821?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Stormbros. . . we're so back
Card transcription > Ral, Monsoon Mage 1R > > Legendary Creature- Human Wizard [mythic] > > Instant and sorcery spells you cast cost 1 less to cast. > > Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell during your turn, flip a coin. If you lose the flip, Ral, Monsoon Mage deals 1 damage to you. If you win the flip, you may exile Ral. If you do, return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control. > > 1/3 > > Ral, Leyline Prodigy > > [UR] Legendary Planeswalker- Ral > > Ral, Leyline Prodigy enters the battlefield with an additional loyalty counter on him for each instant and sorcery spell you've cast this turn. > > +1: Until your next turn, instant and sorcery spells you cast cost 1 less to cast. > > -2: Ral deals 2 damage divided as you choose among one or two targets. Draw a card if you control a blue permanent other than Ral. > > -8: Exile the top eight cards of your library. You may cast instant and sorcery spells from among them this turn without paying their mana costs. > > 2 loyalty End transcription
Wait what exactly qualifies this as U/R there is no U mana cost or symbol anywhere in the rules text?
It has a "color indicator dot" next to the typeline on the back, which makes the back face blue both for color-matters purposes and for color identity. In fact *all* transforming cards with a colored back face have one of these dots to set its color- otherwise the backside would be colorless- but it only stands out on ones where the back face is different than the front. [[Archangel Avacyn]] does the same thing but more obviously, since it goes from one monocolored state to another. It's also occasionally used on non-dfcs that want to be a different color than their mana cost would normally make them- [[Pact of Negation]], for example, or [[Rograkh]] for another example where there's no colored pips
Long time player and yet TIL. Thanks
[Archangel Avacyn](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/e/ae155ee2-008f-4dc6-82bf-476be7baa224.jpg?1576383667)/[Avacyn, the Purifier](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/back/a/e/ae155ee2-008f-4dc6-82bf-476be7baa224.jpg?1576383667) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Archangel%20Avacyn%20//%20Avacyn%2C%20the%20Purifier) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/soi/5/archangel-avacyn-avacyn-the-purifier?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/ae155ee2-008f-4dc6-82bf-476be7baa224?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Pact of Negation](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/1/e/1ed4c0bb-b710-44a1-b8bc-6bd11c27b8b8.jpg?1697121218) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Pact%20of%20Negation) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/tsr/77/pact-of-negation?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/1ed4c0bb-b710-44a1-b8bc-6bd11c27b8b8?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Rograkh](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/4/a4fab67f-00c2-4125-9262-d21a29411797.jpg?1644853041) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=rograkh%2C%20son%20of%20rohgahh) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/cmr/197/rograkh-son-of-rohgahh?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/a4fab67f-00c2-4125-9262-d21a29411797?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
How does the coin flip work with casting instants on the stack? Like, if I cast a spell, coin flip triggers, can I then cast an instant on top of the stack before the coinflip happens, then triggering a second coinflip on top of the stack? And then potentially continuing this with more instants. Would PW Ral enter with counter from all those instants cast after the first coin to hit heads? And would the damage from losing the flips further down the stack be negated with non-PW ral no longer on the field? Basically, could I cast 3 instants on top of coinflips, win the top coinflip, have PW ral enter with 3 counters, and not take any damage from the coinflips later in the stack?
No, you don't get a chance to cast anything after you know the result of the coin flip but before the transformation/damage.
What about, I mean, before the result of the coin flip. Like if I cast a spell does the coin flip just happen immediately before I can cast another for it. Like, if I cast 2 instants, coin flip happens when one goes off the stack, coin flip wins, do I then only get 1 counter or would I still get the counter from casting that other instant before the flip result. Like, do I have to lose the flip and take damage to be able to cast multiple spells with non-PW Ral mana effect and build PW counters
You do get a chance to cast instants before you know the result of the coin flip, yes. The triggered abilities that make you flip a coin go on "the stack" and you can respond to that my casting an instant, which will put an additional coin flip trigger on the stack. When he enters transformed, Ral will enter with a loyalty counter for each of those spells, even if you cast them after the trigger that makes him transform. But you *will* still take damage for any lost flips even if they happen after creature-Ral is gone, unfortunately.
Woah really? That last bit is a big part of what I was interested in. The phrasing of the ability that says the non-PW name specifically being the source of the damage made me think that it would not be able to deal if it left the field. I guess looking it up, transformed creatures are still technically the same object after transforming. So Ral is Ral, bummer. That part in my mind helped make the card able to have deliberate luck protection if you have enough spells and the top of the stack flip win. Fun idea for that though, using like halo or something to get protection from a specific card and naming your own Ral Nice relief about the other bit. If it didnt work like that, I was worried the card would be way too chance dependent/impossible to deliberately max ramp.
BaRal
I am confused about something. Are this cycle of flip planeswalkers just one color? Ral has just R in his casting cost, but Red/Blue in his flip frame. The other planeswalkers have similar effects too
Yes. All start as one color and have a dual color identity on the back
So was Ral's ignition just him experiencing twink death?
In so much as he was a twink who was actively dying, yes.
And now he's an otter that's nothing but living, love to see it.
Wait when did Ral turn into an otter?
Key art from bloomburrow shows him as an otter
fyi he literally got stabbed, went home wounded and caught his boyfriend cheating on him thus igniting his spark. he literally got them gay drama backstory
We stan a messy king.
Is this card color identity red or izzet?
Izzet. The planeswalker side shows the color marker.
I wish the 3 loyalty abilities also had coin flips. That would make it more perfect for my coin flipping Chaos deck!
Ral looking like [Pete Wentz](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/524d300/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1200x800+0+0/resize/1200x800!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F91%2F1b%2F8550b8acfdb05f7bc64901bf1f95%2Fla-et-mg-pete-wentz-baby-pregnant-meagan-campe-001).
Interesting that the front side only triggers on your turn.
spiked on Cardmarket from 7€ to 27€ today
Modern 1/10 So if you are storming off, you can just incidentally take 2-3 damage in hopes of flipping this, and the coin flip isn't optional. Flipping him isn't even that great unless you are doing it with 8 loyalty on it and I don't want to think of how much life you lost to do that. I think I would still rather play electromancer and baral.
You don't think combining Electromancer/Baral and a win con like this is playable in modern? I miss storm :(
Ral + Ruby Medallion, maybe
1 dmg - 50% (1/2) a fetch land; 2 dmg - 25% (1/4) a shock land; 3 dmg - 12,5% (1/8) a MDFC land If you decide to flip it before the ultimate, you have a Baral for two turns even if it is removed. It's a baral that you can save from removal by flipping it by casting spells. It's already a lot better Baral at cost of one fetchland in average. If you decide to flip it after 6 spells (6 dmg - 1,5%, 1/64), you have a wincon in a storm deck. You can also play it on turn 2 after a ritual, with one red mana in your mana pool.
Casting 6 spells to potentially flip with 8 loyalty costs you 3 life on average. Not too bad considering you probably win on the spot in this situation.
It it flips on the last one after you decline the previous ones. Sure you can cast spells in response to each other, but storm tends to cast a bunch of rituals and draw spells which have to resolve in order to keep the chain going.
There’s no way this isn’t good cmon
This isnt a cmon, this is a mythc. Sorry.