While a double-faced card isn't on the battlefield, consider only the characteristics of its front face. For example, Nicol Bolas has the characteristics of its creature face in the graveyard, even if it was a planeswalker on the battlefield before it was put into the graveyard.
The mana value of a double-faced card is the mana value of its front face, even while it's on the battlefield with its back face up. For example, the mana value of Nicol Bolas, the Arisen is 4.
A double-faced card enters the battlefield with its front face up by default, unless a spell or ability instructs you to put it onto the battlefield transformed, in which case it enters with its back face up. The back face of a double-faced card can't be played.
Last observed on Scryfall 2 months ago at $26.91. Over the trailing 90 days the price moved between $15.91 and $26.91 across 53 observations. Cross-checked across TCGplayer, eBay sold, Cardmarket EU, and Star City.
This printing is one of 2 catalogued treatments from SLD — the lineup includes Borderless alongside the standard finish. Across our catalog the Rarix library tracks every variant in the same family so collectors can compare price, scarcity and demand inside a single lineage.
Card #1211 of *Secret Lair Drop*, the set that shipped alongside the May 2023 Secret Lair Drop release.
Card type: Legendary Creature — Elder Dragon // Legendary Planeswalker — Bolas, color identity black/red/blue, printed at mythic. Mythic rares historically land in roughly one out of every eight boosters at standard print densities. Keyword abilities: Flying and Transform.
Legal across the major constructed formats — Modern, Legacy, Vintage, and Commander — plus Standard rotation play.
EDHrec ranks this card #5,173 in Commander, putting it in the niche-pick tier of the format's playable pool.
Illustrated by Nana Qi & GodMachine. Rarix catalogs 10 other cards credited to this artist.
Magic: The Gathering · ™ & © Wizards of the Coast · Illus. Nana Qi & GodMachine
Card data via Scryfall. Rarix is fan-made; not endorsed by the rights holders.
Nicol Bolas, the Arisen has a color indicator on its typeline. This color indicator means that it's a blue, black, and red permanent.
In a multiplayer game, if a player leaves the game, all cards that player owns leave as well. If you leave the game, any permanents you control from Nicol Bolas's third loyalty ability that came from other players' graveyards are exiled.
If another permanent that isn't a double-faced card (such as Mirror Image) becomes a copy of Nicol Bolas, the Ravager, activating the ability to exile it and return it transformed will only exile it. It won't return to the battlefield at all.
In some rare cases, a spell or ability may cause Nicol Bolas to transform while it's a creature on the battlefield. If this happens, the resulting planeswalker won't have any loyalty counters on it and will subsequently be put into its owner's graveyard.
Each face of a double-faced card has its own set of characteristics: name, types, subtypes, abilities, and so on. While a double-faced card is on the battlefield, consider only the characteristics of the face that's currently up. The other set of characteristics is ignored.
You can activate one of the planeswalker's loyalty abilities the turn it enters the battlefield.
If Nicol Bolas leaves the battlefield after his creature face's activated ability has been activated but before it resolves, the card remains in whichever zone it moves to. It won't be exiled or return transformed.
When Nicol Bolas's enters-the-battlefield triggered ability resolves, first the next opponent in turn order (or, if it's an opponent's turn, that opponent) chooses a card in their hand without revealing it, then each other opponent in turn order does the same. Then all the chosen cards are discarded at the same time.
