The 20 Best Flip Cards in Magic

Last updated on April 5, 2023

Budoka Gardener | Illustration by Kev Walker.jpg

Before Innistrad’s transform cards, before MDFCs, before flipwalkers, and definitely before six-sided specialize cards on Arena, before all of that, there were the original flip cards from the Kamigawa block. They were innovative at the time, but they’ve been replaced by newer versions of this design space since.

That doesn’t change the fact that they’re cool, and some are even powerful in the right circumstances. But what exactly are flip cards? Which ones are good and still useful in the current meta? Let’s find out!

What Are Flip Cards in MTG?

Hired Muscle (Betrayers of Kamigawa) | Illustration by Arnie Swekel

Flip cards are one of the original designs that WotC used for cards that could transform from one thing into another (usually a more powerful version). But instead of using the reverse side of the card like similar spells do nowadays, there was different text printed upside-down on the bottom of the card. Once you fulfill a condition you can turn the card upside down to make that part of the card “active.”

Flip cards haven’t been revisited with new designs since, and they’ve effectively been replaced by the various types of double-faced cards. But they’re still a fantastic exploration of design space and deserve to be explored.

Honorable Mention: Curse of the Fire Penguin

What would any list be without an honorable mention? This entry couldn’t make it onto the main list, partially because Curse of the Fire Penguin is from Unhinged, a joke Un-sets.

It works a little differently from the other flip cards. The Curse is an aura that turns the enchanted creature into a 6/5 trampling penguin. When it dies the enchantment comes back on another creature. It’s a cool idea, but one that isn’t technically legal in any format outside of a Rule 0 discussion, which is really kind of a shame!

#20. Budoka Pupil / Ichiga, Who Topples Oaks

The bottom end of this list is filled with a cycle of cards which care about casting spirit or arcane spells. That’s pretty cool in itself, but unfortunately the effect you get is rarely particularly exciting.

Budoka Pupil is pretty dull on this scale. Giving +2/+2 isn’t particularly amazing, especially after the setup needed. It’s just not going to do much no matter which format you try to use it in.

#19. Hired Muscle / Scarmaker

Another on the arcane/spirit cycle, Hired Muscle has a marginally better ability on the flip side: you get to give a creature fear until end of turn.

This isn’t the worst ability in the world, but it still takes so much setup. It’s just not worth it, especially when you probably only get two activations.

#18. Faithful Squire / Kaiso, Memory of Loyalty

The third of the spirit/arcane creatures is Faithful Squire. It’s no +2/+2, but preventing damage to a creature isn’t too exciting. It can save something key to your win, though, so there’s that…

#17. Cunning Bandit / Azamuki, Treachery Incarnate

The last of the spirit/arcane cycle (for now!) is Cunning Bandit with its relatively useful ability.

You only gain control of the creature until end of turn, but it’s a tad better than giving +2/+2. It’s not a permanent mind control effect but it could find a home in the right sac deck.

#16. Orochi Eggwatcher / Shidako, Broodmistress

Orochi Eggwatcher has a relatively interesting ability on the front side, but it isn’t the most exciting card. Six mana for a couple of 1/1s is pretty bad on rate, but some kind of aristocrats deck could make some good use of the ability on the back end.

#15. Nezumi Shortfang / Stabwhisker the Odious

Nezumi Shortfang has a pretty safe discard ability, but it could do some damage if you have a decent untap ability somewhere despite the mana cost. The second side could do some interesting things with cards like Smallpox and Scroll Rack in a 1v1 game,.

#14. Initiate of Blood / Goka the Unjust

Initiate of Blood has another interesting tap ability, but the drawback here is that the target needs to have already been dealt damage this turn. It can be a pretty good removal piece once flipped if you can find a way to ping creatures.

You’re probably just better off equipping something like Basilisk Collar to your pinger.

#13. Sasaya, Orochi Ascendant / Sasaya’s Essence

I’ve complained about setup costs being a tough hurdle for these cards up until now, but Sasaya, Orochi Ascendant has one that’s both tough to meet and incredibly interesting!

How do you get a hand full of lands? Play a deck full of them? Draw a bunch of cards so you have seven lands in by default? However you do it you have to have a good plan going on, which piques my interest. If you manage to get this to go off you effectively get infinite mana, which is always nice!

#12. Akki Lavarunner / Tok-Tok, Volcano Born

Akki Lavarunner coming in mid-table probably isn’t getting there for its Commander playability. But I can see an edge case where it could be a useful addition to a 60-card deck.

At the same time, four mana for a creature that needs to deal damage is a bit steep and the payoff isn’t much to look at either. They really were very safe with these cards, weren’t they?

#11. Callow Jushi / Jaraku the Interloper

You were waiting for the last card in this cycle, weren’t you?

Callow Jushi could see play in a spirits deck as a form of disruption. It’s not the strongest effect, but I can see situations where it sees play. It’s not bad, and it’s at least better than +2/+2.

#10. Student of Elements / Tobita, Master of Winds

I love the design of Student of Elements. It’s an interesting flip condition with a decent (if not busted) flip side. Giving a creature flying that has no way to give itself flying is a really fun way to design that condition. It appeals to my inner Johnny, Combo Player.

The payoff of becoming a creature that gives all your stuff flying is pretty great too, even if it’s susceptible to removal.

#9. Kitsune Mystic / Autumn-Tail, Kitsune Sage

Here’s another one with an interesting flip condition. I can see Kitsune Mystic having a place in an auras deck.

You get a pretty good ability once you get your auras on the creature and flip it, and being able to move your auras around and dodge removal is pretty good. Kitsune Mystic is a useful role-player in a deck built around this.

#8. Bushi Tenderfoot / Kenzo the Hardhearted

Bushi Tenderfoot has a similar activation ability to the last two, and the interestingness of this is what’s pumped it up a place or two.

Once flipped you get a substantial creature and a hell of a beater in a 3/4 with double strike and bushido 2. This is possibly the best 1-drop weenie creature ever printed if you can guarantee the flip. The flip condition is tough to make happen, but not impossible. It’s a really interesting card, and one that deserves a second look.

#7. Erayo, Soratami Ascendant / Erayo’s Essence

Here’s another from the “cool flip condition” collection, Erayo, Soratami Ascendant. It’s a very annoying piece to have out once flipped. Not being able to cast your big haymaker each turn is irritating, and that effect on an enchantment is even better.

This effect alone would probably push this higher up on the list, but flipping isn’t the most trivial task.

#6. Homura, Human Ascendant / Homura’s Essence

A 6-mana 4/4 isn’t the best thing in the world, but things get interesting when Homura, Human Ascendant dies!

If you thought just giving your creatures flying was good, this gives all your creatures flying, +2/+2, and firebreathing. In red! There really aren’t many ways to give flying to your whole team in red, and Homura's Essence could be used in multiple places.

Tribes like goblins could love this, I think.

#5. Kuon, Ogre Ascendant / Kuon’s Essence

Another in the essence cycle, and these look lots better than the previous cycle! Kuon, Ogre Ascendant is a very typically black card with a hateful ability on the flip side.

This can be a really powerful ability in Commander, especially if your opponents only have one or two key creatures. You may become a bit of a target, but isn’t that just a sign of a job well done if you want to frustrate your opponents?

#4. Jushi Apprentice / Tomoya the Revealer

Jushi Apprentice is a blue card that can draw a lot of cards. This isn’t a unique effect, but it is one that blue players absolutely love.

This is another one with a pretty interesting flip condition. It’s a pretty expensive ability on a flimsy body, but it’s still in keeping with what the card does overall. It becomes so much stronger once flipped (as you’d expect!), though I’d prefer if it also gave you an unlimited hand size…

#3. Nezumi Graverobber / Nighteyes the Desecrator

Nezumi Graverobber is a card that was definitely designed with 1v1 Magic in mind. The catch is that you need to empty your opponent’s graveyard before you can start reanimating. You could empty your opponent’s ‘yard and then reanimate from yours, but things get more interesting when you bring more players into the game (which is likely why this one has been reprinted in a couple Commander sets).

The more opponents you have the easier it is to activate the flip condition. It also gives you more targets to reanimate because you only need to empty one opponent’s graveyard. The abilities on either side don’t require you to tap the creature, so you can reanimate everything if you can create a lot of mana!

#2. Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant / Rune-Tail’s Essence

Another card that wasn’t designed for Commander but that fits in so well because of it, Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant is the lifegain entry of the list.

Did I say lifegain? Well, maybe not. It’s definitely a lifegain card in 1v1 Magic where you usually start with 20 life. In Commander it’s generally an enchantment that protects your creatures, which is something white decks can get behind.

Not dying to damage-based removal makes it very difficult to get past your blockers, even if they still die to Wrath of God.

#1. Budoka Gardener / Dokai, Weaver of Life

Top of the list is a card that does what green players like doing more than blue players like drawing cards. It ramps!

Sure, there are better options, but Budoka Gardener still finds its way into lots of decks for having a fairly low mana value and also being somewhat of a late game threat.

Can You Just Flip Cards in MTG?

No, you can’t just flip cards in Magic. You need to fulfil the requirements on the card to flip it. There’s no other way to flip these cards.

Flip Cards vs. Double-Sided Cards

Flip cards were the predecessors of double-faced cards (DFCs), either modal DFCs or transforming DFCs. These cards were generally a positive iteration on flip cards, but they have some advantages to them.

DFCs give a bit more space to designers. They don’t have to fit two bits of art in one frame (as cool as the effect is) or two separate text boxes on the same face of the card. But there have been some complaints from the player base of complexity creep, partially stemming from DFCs. Flip cards, by their nature, don’t have as much of this problem. You have to fit all of the text for both halves on one face of the card, so you need to keep it simple!

Flip cards are also much more striking to look at. You immediately know something’s up when you open a flip card. It’s always fantastic to see a newer player discovering these for the first time and be absolutely blown away by how they work. Having the dual-purpose art is also a very clever touch. You don’t get this on a DFC where you might not realize there’s anything special going on at first glance.

Do Flipped Cards Have a Mana Value? What Is It?

The flipped card has the same mana value as the unflipped card, because it’s the same card.

Do Flip Cards Count Towards Devotion?

Yes flip cards count for devotion, because the flipped card still has the same mana cost as the unflipped card.

Do Flip Cards Keep Counters?

Yes, flip cards keep counters! They don’t leave the battlefield when they flip, so all counters (and auras and equipment) stay on the card.

Can Flip Cards Be Commanders?

All the flip cards are legendary on the flip side, but they aren’t all are legendary on the top. The flip cards can only be used as commanders if the top side is legendary, so that you can’t use Orochi Eggwatcher as your commander without a Rule 0 conversation.

Flipping Out

Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant (Saviors of Kamigawa) | Illustration by Randy Gallegos

What’s the deal with flip cards? They’re an interesting mechanic, but they’ve been replaced by DFCs.

Players are unlikely to see flip cards again, which is a shame because the space has more potential than the relatively underpowered cards that currently exist. The mechanic may pop up in a Horizons set as a callback, but I don’t expect to see it outside of an edge case like that.

Do you run any of these flip cards? Can you think of a way they could be brought back into modern Magic? I’d love to hear more in the comments down below or over on the Draftsim Discord.

Until next time, catch you on the flip side!