Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom | Illustration by Yongjae ChoiThere ’ s one thing you try your best not to rely on when you ’ re dally Magic, and that ’ s fortune. A major factor in the deckbuilding procedure is trying to cut down on discrepancy between games .
Most of us carefully choose the number of lands that go in our decks to make certain we have enough mana. We include multiple copies of the like batting order, and we include multiple cards that basically do the like thing in an attempt to create a coherent maneuver experience that relies on fortune ampere little as possible. But some of us like a little more exhilaration in our decks.
If you ’ re looking to spice up your games a short bite, coin flip cards can be a good way to do that. You trade some of that consistency and rely a little more on luck. While you might see your acquire percentage slip, it may be worth it for the rush of pulling off a win thanks to the flip of a coin .
ready to find out more ? time to flip it over !
What are Coin Flip Cards in Magic?
stitch in Time ( Secret Lair ) | illustration by Micha Huigen
Coin flip cards are any card that has an ability that relies on the flip of a coin. That might sound like a very frustrating type of card since you ’ re probably used to being able to count on your spells doing what they ’ rhenium think of to. But you ’ ll determine as we start the list below that a batch of these coin flip cards are much more powerful than cards of the lapp mana value .
alternatively of seeing your mana as an investment into a card, it ’ mho now more of a gamble. And barely like gambling, you have a casual to get more than what you put in. But you besides have a gamble of ending up with nothing .
While it ’ south bad, the chance to swing a game in your party favor for merely a few mana is very tantalizing .
#30. Krark’s Thumb
Krark ’ randomness Thumb is a staple for any deck built around flipping coins. Every other tease on this list immediately becomes much better if it ’ second on the field. But this batting order doesn ’ metric ton have a place outside coin pass decks since it doesn ’ t do anything on its own, earning it the bottom spot on this number .
#29. Squee’s Revenge
Squee ’ second Revenge is a choice exercise of a mint flip card that can make a game a lot more arouse. This calling card could draw you a distribute of cards for barely three mana if you ’ ra golden .
This can be a fun poster to play that occasionally nets you a good number of cards. But if you aren ’ metric ton golden, this is three mana spent for nothing .
#28. Chaotic Strike
chaotic hit might work a distribute better in a express environment. Cheap cantrips are always commodity for thinning out a draft or Sealed deck. This batting order is a ticket addition to any Constructed deck looking to cash in on mint flips, but it ’ s a lesser option than some of its counterparts like Crash Through and Charge Through .
#27. Molten Birth
A set of the better coin flip cards share a choice with Molten Birth : they silent do something flush if you lose the flip. Three mana for two little creatures is fine. It ’ s not great, but it at least makes sense to spend mana on. Add in the hypothesis of being able to cast it repeatedly and this card gets a fiddling better .
#26. Goblin Archaeologist
As I said above, coin flip cards that don ’ t trust on the flip to provide value are often better than those that do. Creatures with activate mint flip abilities are even better because you get to choose if you even want to take the hazard .
plenty of goblin decks care about the number of goblins you have out, specially ones built around Krenko, Mob Boss or Muxus, Goblin Grandee. Goblin Archaeologist allows you to have another goblin with the chance at some artifact removal if you truly need it .
#25. Chaotic Goo
chaotic Goo alone is only approve, but it works a lot better in decks built around +1/+1 counters. Proliferate effects and counter doublers like Hardened Scales allow you to pump this up .
It besides enters the battlefield as a modify animal, so it benefits from effects like Invigorating Hot Spring .
#24. Tide of War
Since this is an captivation, Tide of War has a much better prospect of providing value than early mint impudent cards. It ’ s very good in situations where you ’ re chump jam .
It besides at least adds a casual that you take out your adversary ’ s threat since you already know your blocker will be destroyed. This might even discourage your opponent from swinging at you with their best creatures, giving you a little more time to find an suffice .
#23. Fighting Chance
Fighting Chance wouldn ’ thymine be on this number if it wasn ’ t a 1-mana card. But it can be a good poster to include in decks looking to go across-the-board since it ’ s so bum to play .
If your strategy already involves swinging out with a set of creatures to get around blockers, this wag can help protect some of the creatures you know are probably to die in the attack. This can potentially save a pair of your creatures, flush if it isn ’ t the type of circuit board you can rely on .
#22. Goblin Kaboomist
Goblin Kaboomist in the first place fell lower on the list because it has the potential to be a mana sink. Two mana for the casual to spend another fair to deal two wrong to a creature without flying international relations and security network ’ triiodothyronine ideal. But there are two factors that make this tease better than it initially appears .
first, the Land Mine sulfur are artifacts. Generating one or more can be very utilitarian if your deck includes cards that care about the phone number of artifacts you have. second, this wag doesn ’ t say “ sacrifice Goblin Kaboomist, ” but rather deals two price to itself if you lose the pass. That means it can stick around regardless of whether you win the coin flip or not if you ’ re able to buff it by equitable one temper .
#21. Crazed Firecat
As a 4/4 with a mana prize of seven, Crazed Firecat is decidedly a gamble. tied if you win one or two flips, you calm have a lot better options for creatures when you ’ re spend this much mana. That being said, this card can get filthy given the justly interactions .
Effects like Yarok, the Desecrated can give you two chances to put counters on this creature, making it a much bigger terror on entry. Flicker effects allow you to try your coin interchange again, which not only gives you a better find at a bad creature but besides more chances for mint flip-related abilities to trigger .
#20. Tavern Scoundrel
Streets of New Capenna gave us a long ton of great newfangled cards that support treasure tokens. For case, Stimulus Package can use Treasure sulfur to create 1/1 creature tokens, a very knock-down effect if you ’ re generating a lot of gem tokens .
The Scoundrel ’ south ability allows you to sacrifice any permanent at the luck of making two Treasure s. That means you can sacrifice Treasure tokens you already own to get two back. Token doubling effects like Parallel Lives can make this effect even better .
#19. Yusri, Fortune’s Flame
A deck built around Yusri, Fortune ’ s Flame can be incredibly brawny. But it isn ’ triiodothyronine as capital on its own. I can tell you from experience that you ’ ll rarely win all five flips without the help oneself of Krark ’ s Thumb or something that can double up ability triggers like Lithoform Engine. You ’ re going to end up taking some damage from Yusri ’ mho ability in most cases, even if you aren ’ metric ton going for all five .
That being said, this card becomes a lot better if you can manage to give it lifelink. You can choose five flips during each of your fight steps without the likely risk of losing 10 life, drawing yourself a full number of cards in the process .
#18. Desperate Gambit
Desperate Gambit is fun to play and scary to go up against. This card can bring the consequence of an entire game down to a coin flip if played at the right time. While no coin flip batting order should be the lone thing you rely on, a 1-mana card that can win you the plot international relations and security network ’ metric ton as big of a hazard as some of the others on this tilt .
There ’ mho besides something fun about making your adversary make the call on the flip that could decide the game .
#17. Mana Clash
Mana Clash can be a fortune of fun. The chances of both players flipping heads on the lapp pass are first gear adequate that you can assume at least some wrong will be dealt out. Playing this card can give you an edge or even finish off your opponent for you if you have a comfortable lead on life .
Running this card with Krark ’ south Thumb besides gives you more control over how things play out, making it even less of a gamble .
#16. Goblin Bomb
Whether or not it ends the game, dealing 20 wrong to a musician is a huge baseball swing in your favor. And the decent thing about Goblin Bomb is that you don ’ thyroxine inevitably have to win enough flips to activate it .
You can stop flipping once you have one fuse counter on the bomb calorimeter since its ability allows you to choose whether or not you want to flip a coin. then you can use proliferate abilities to add more counters and get up to the five you need .
#15. Creepy Doll
indestructible blockers can be fabulously useful on their own. Creepy Doll can help keep you active for longer if your opponent doesn ’ thymine have creatures with tread or evasion of some kind. Add to that a pretty good chance that it destroys any creature it blocks, and it equitable gets even better .
sometimes deterrents can be good american samoa effective as threats. If this creature stops your opponent from swinging at you altogether, that ’ s tied better .
#14. Two-Headed Giant
Some of the creatures on this list aren ’ t very worth it on their own when it comes to their mana prize, exponent, and formidability. Two-Headed Giant has the distinction of already being a decent calling card for its cost, specially in a restrict place setting .
Add to that the possibility that it ’ ll acquire either double strike or menace each time it attacks and this is a batting order I could see having a place in a deck that doesn ’ thymine care about coin flips specifically .
#13. Goblin Traprunner
Goblin Traprunner, like the end few creatures on this list, doesn ’ t have a downside to its ability. even if you lose all three coin flips you still have a 4/2 Goblin you can attack with .
When it comes to goblins, the more you have the better it is, so the casual to create up to three each time this tease attacks can be very beneficial .
#12. Scoria Wurm
Scoria Wurm earns its spot on this list thanks to it being a red tease. A 7/7 for five mana is reasonably brawny, which is why it has the effect that it does. But you don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate necessarily have to win the mint flip for this card to do damage .
This is besides a commodity card to pair with Fling or Kazuul ’ mho Fury. You can use these spells to do seven damage with Scoria Wurm before its effect goes off since you ’ ll untap at the begin of your twist .
#11. Fiery Gambit
Fiery Gambit is effective because of its versatility. Being able to choose when to stop is a large benefit for a coin flip card. You can play it safe after one winnings if you want to and still get a pretty dear impression. This card can be a well gamble if you actually need to swing things in your favor by going for two or three wins since it ’ second cheap to play .
Gambit besides has the add benefit of potentially letting you flip a lot of coins in coin throw decks specifically. There ’ south nothing saying you have to stop after three wins. While you ’ d normally want to, you can keep flip a long as you keep winning if winning four flips could potentially win you the game thanks to something like Chance Encounter .
#10. Frenetic Sliver
splinter decks rely on having a kind of unlike slivers on the field, providing one another with beneficial effects. That makes removal and board wipes a boastfully reverse for any splinter decks. fortunately, frantic Sliver can potentially protect your slivers from both. Any time one of your slivers might be destroyed, just flip a coin and there ’ s a find it ’ ll survive.
While this menu very only belongs in a paring deck, it deserves its smudge on this list by being a useful menu for an already powerful tribe .
#9. Puppet’s Verdict
While Puppet ’ mho Verdict is worded like a board wipe, it ’ south easier to see its potential if you think of it as a spell that removes precisely a couple creatures. Knowing you ’ ll be able to remove one or more creatures is a pretty good bargain at a mana value of three, even if you aren ’ thyroxine sure which creatures you can remove .
#8. Mirror March
Making copies of creatures can be beneficial in a diverseness of ways. There ’ s the obvious benefit that you ’ re getting some release creatures to swing with for one turn, but Mirror Match lets you cash in on multiple effects that trigger when that animal enters the battlefield. Doubling up triggers for cards like Terror of the Peaks or Craterhoof Behemoth could well help you close out a game .
As I ’ ve mentioned before, coin flip effects that stick around on the board are always going to be easier to rely on. You might not be copying every creature you drop, but you at least have a casual to while this is one the circuit board. And you can besides have multiple March ’ sulfur on the board at the like time since it isn ’ metric ton fabled .
#7. Boompile
Boompile is a great card in a variety of ways. This card is one of the cheapest board wipes you can cast as a colorless 4-mana electric potential board rub. It besides allows you to include a board wipe in decks with colors that don ’ t traditionally support them, like green or blue .
This is besides a dining table rub that hits all nonland permanents, so there ’ second a good chance this batting order will take manage of whatever form your opposition ’ randomness menace is taking. Add to that the ability to try to set this off at blink of an eye accelerate more than once and this circuit board becomes less of an “ if ” and more of a “ when ” in terms of its ability. The elementary possibility of it going off might dissuade your adversary from playing their best cards out of fear of losing them .
#6. Ral Zarek
Before tied touching the mint flip aspect of this card, Ral Zarek can be a reasonably potent planeswalker. Its first base ability can have a draw of applications, allowing you to both tap down your adversary ’ mho permanents and untap yours. It can besides protect itself by dealing damage to possible attackers .
The coin throw aspect of Ral is besides very herculean. You ’ ll be taking two extra turns on modal with five coin flips. While it takes Ral a few turns to get there, cards that proliferate can speed up the process .
#5. Odds // Ends
For the sake of this list I ’ ll concenter chiefly on the Odds while. The fact that this card has two options already makes it a batch more coherent than many cards on this list .
What ’ sulfur nice about Odds // Ends is that you ’ re getting an effect out of it with either consequence, and both are pretty good. If your opponent casts Murder on one of your creatures, you either prevent it from happening or get to do it to one of their creatures. Either way you ’ re getting value out of the mana spend .
There are times when one modality or the other won ’ thyroxine be as helpful in a given site, but normally you ’ re getting at least some value out of Odds // Ends careless of how the mint flip goes .
#4. Okaun, Eye of Chaos
A 3/3 creature for five mana is normally pretty badly. A 6/6 for five mana is good, tied after winning one mint flip. But Okaun, Eye of Chaos can be a draw more potent than it primitively appears .
Because the text doesn ’ metric ton specify to double Okaun ’ s basal exponent and huskiness, any buffs you apply to Okaun are doubled vitamin a well. Add a cheap go like Infuriate onto it before fight and suddenly it just takes one acquire to make this poster hit much hard. I ’ ve personally seen this poster close out several games on its own or with the help of an Embercleave .
Another profit to consider is the number of coin flips this batting order generates each turn. If you ’ re building your deck around coin flips, cards like Tavern Scoundrel will besides benefit from the extra free flips .
It ’ second important to note that Okaun activates whenever a player wins a coin flip, not barely off its own ability. So any of your other coin flick cards can activate its ability, as can opponent ’ south coin flips from commonly-used cards like Mana Crypt .
#3. Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom
exchangeable to its spouse wag, Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom is another capital direction to generate a bunch of coin flips. It besides benefits from any musician winning a mint flip. The reason I give Zndrsplt the border over Okaun is the add value you get from its ability .
I ’ molarity certain you already know that drawing cards is one of the most herculean things you can do in the game. With Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom you have the electric potential to draw one or more supernumerary cards each turn at no excess cost. Plus, you don ’ t actually have to choose between Zndrsplt or Okaun if you ’ re play Commander. You can just have both .
#2. Rakdos, the Showstopper
Rakdos, the Showstopper ’ s exponent and formidability along with having flying and trample already makes it a pretty beneficial manipulation of six mana. Add to that the possibility of destroying some ( or all ) of the creatures on the board and suddenly Rakdos becomes a set better .
And then there ’ s the total benefit of not worrying about your own creatures if you ’ ve built your pack of cards around demons, devils, and imps. The calling card besides pairs well with the likes of Panharmonicon since it increases the gamble of destroying your opposition ’ mho creatures .
#1. Stitch in Time
A bunch of cards on this list earned their place by being more reproducible or having value outside of their coin flip abilities. Stitch in Time breaks that mold, but I even think it ’ s the best choice for coin flip cards. Extra turns can win you the game, or at the identical least help you catch up if you ’ re falling behind .
potentially taking one vitamin a early as call on 3 can truly help you get ahead. fortunately this circuit board is in Izzet ( ) colors, so you can still benefit from effects like art or magecraft even if you don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate win the throw. This besides means you have cheap and easy ways to copy this enchantment with Dual Strike or Rootha, Mercurial Artist .
Best Coin Flip Payoffs
The best coin flip payoffs are also the better coin flip cards for the most part. Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom adds value on any coin pass and Okaun, Eye of Chaos can get big enough to end games. Tavern Scoundrel can turn your coin flips into Treasure sulfur, giving you the supernumerary mana you need to cast your big threats .
After seeing the anterior listed best coin flip cards, you can credibly see how slowly it can be to get 10 successful coin flips out of a mint flip pack of cards to win the game. A good strategy for Chance Encounter as an alternate wincon is to include as many cards that let you flip multiple coins per turn as you can.
Extra turn spells are besides a good inclusion since this allows you to flip more coins, and because its game-winning ability triggers on your care .
What Counts as Winning a Flip in Magic?
You have to be the one to flip the coin in order to be considered the winner of the flick. That means cards that cause your adversary to flip a coin, even if you ’ re the matchless that played the calling card, don ’ thymine count towards the number of mint flip wins you have .
originally, winning a coin flip in Magic was considered any clock a coin flip resulted in a favorable result for you, no topic who flipped the coin. This means that if your adversary flipped a coin and lost, you ’ five hundred be considered the achiever of that mint flip .
Can You Respond to Coin Flips?
In short, no, you can ’ triiodothyronine respond to coin flips. This means you can ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate delay to see the resultant role of a flip before playing a spell that might protect one of your permanents from the leave of the flip. What you can respond to is effects that cause a coin somersault to happen in the first space .
This means if your opposition casts a while that involves a mint flip, you have to decide how probably it is that the result of the flip will have an effect on the game and whether or not you should do something about it. This adds a fun extra layer to coin flip cards, for both you and your opponents .
Can You Use a Die Coin Flips?
Yes, you can use a die for mint flips. You ’ re allowed to use any other shape of randomization american samoa long as each player involved in the game agrees to it. This means you can roll a die with an even phone number of sides, or use something like a digital random number generator. rather of picking heads or tails, you barely choose even or leftover numbers .
One authoritative thing to remember is that rolling this die is still considered flipping a coin for the function of the game. so, winning the die roll placid triggers effects that trigger on winning a coin flip, and cards that consequence rolling dice have no effect. I ’ five hundred besides advise not letting your opposition spin a coin, because the heads side is slightly heavier and can result in a disproportionate number of tails coming up .
Is There a Secret Lair for Coin Flips?
Coin throw cards were the subject of the first ever Secret Lair deck. Heads I Win, Tails You Lose is a full 100-card Commander deck focused on mint flips. It uses the partner commanders I mentioned above, Okaun, Eye of Chaos and Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom, and besides includes a lot of the cards on this number .
not only does this deck include its own mint, it besides has double-sided versions of five of the cards featuring some aplomb artwork. It was a very good deal in terms of value, costing under half of the estimated value of the cards included. It ’ sulfur hard to say how much these will cost on the junior-grade market since those who ordered the decks ( myself included ) are still waiting for it to ship out .
Is There a Coin Flipping Commander?
There are actually three coin flipping commanders, all of which appear on this list. While I ’ ve already discussed them as individual cards, I ’ ll quickly run through their benefits as commanders .
It should come as no surprise that two of the top five coin impudent cards would besides be big commanders for a mint flip deck. Okaun, Eye of Chaos and Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom benefit you any time you win a coin somersault, indeed packing this deck with a bunch of opportunities to flip coins is the best way to go .
Including some ways to give Okaun trample can be a good way to win since it ’ ll be dealing commander damage. Make certain to include Chance Encounter as an alternate direction to win the plot .
While Yusri, Fortune ’ sulfur Flame is a coin flipping commander, it isn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate as adept of a choice for a deck that ’ s about coin flip. You ’ ll want to build your deck around its ability, both mitigating its downside and capitalizing on its benefits .
As I mentioned before, giving Yusri lifelink with cards like Basilisk Collar or Shadowspear can let you activate its ability without worrying about burning yourself besides much. Urza ’ s Saga can search up Shadowspear for you, so that ’ sulfur besides a capital inclusion body in this deck .
I ’ vitamin d besides include extra turn spells to increase your chances of winning all five flips. Nexus of Fate is particularly full since you ’ ll credibly be drawing a lot of cards and will have a dear gamble of playing it multiple times .
Should You Pick Heads or Tails?
If I wanted to be scientific about it, I ’ d tell you to pick whichever side of the coin is facing up when you flip it. This has a 2 % better opportunity of being the consequence than the slope that starts facing down. That being said, if I wanted to be scientific and manage about probability, I wouldn ’ triiodothyronine be playing a coin flip deck in the first set .
If you want my advice ? Call tails every time, because tails never fails and everyone knows nothing that rhymes can be false .
Wrap Up
Chance Encounter | Illustration by Steven Belledin
I hope that this list has inspired you to consider including some coin somersault cards in your adjacent pack of cards or helped you build your own mint flip-themed deck. While they aren ’ t the most coherent cards, I ’ meter sure you can see why I think they ’ re some of the most playfulness cards in Magic. It ’ ll be matter to to see if we get even more cards to support coin flip decks in the future since it has its own Secret Lair deck dedicated to it .
Do you think you ’ ll be including any of these coin flip cards in your decks ? What type of mint flip cards would you like to see printed in the future ? Are you besides worried Heads I Win, Tails You Lose won ’ triiodothyronine ship until 2023 ? Let me know your thoughts on all things coin flip down in the comments or over on the Draftsim Twitter .
Thank you for checking this tilt out, and I hope there ’ mho more than a 50/50 chance I see you in the next one !
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