# Strategy Specifications
## Deck Name And Archetype
Ruby Storm is a Historic combo-storm deck registered as 60 main-deck cards and 15 sideboard cards, with active validation passing the stated Historic deck-size contract. The registered main deck contains 4 Ral, Monsoon Mage; 4 Pinnacle Monk; 4 Ruby Medallion; 3 Goblin Charbelcher; 4 Manamorphose; 4 Pyretic Ritual; 4 Valakut Awakening; 4 Strike It Rich; 3 Reckless Impulse; 4 Shatterskull Smashing; 3 Wrenn's Resolve; 4 Jeska's Will; 4 Sundering Eruption; 3 Wish; 1 Irencrag Feat; 3 Storm of Memories; and 4 Bloodsoaked Insight. The registered sideboard contains 1 Mox Amber; 2 Lithomantic Barrage; 1 Vexing Bauble; 1 Grapeshot; 1 Underworld Breach; 1 Untimely Malfunction; 1 Alchemist's Gambit; 1 Galvanic Relay; 1 Empty the Warrens; 1 Goblin Charbelcher; 2 Irencrag Feat; 1 Tendrils of Agony; and 1 Storm of Memories.

Use the archetype tags `combo` and `storm` as the primary strategy labels, and treat the duplicate supplied tag string `combo,storm` as the same strategic identity rather than a separate plan. This is not a normal midrange or control deck: most decisions should be evaluated by whether they assemble mana, reduce costs, generate storm count, see more cards, or convert a decisive turn into a win through Goblin Charbelcher, Wish access, or sideboard payoffs.

Classify the list as a hybrid Ruby Storm build rather than a purely stock shell unless local testing proves it matches a known exact archetype. Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Storm of Memories, Bloodsoaked Insight, and Wish define the storm-engine posture; Goblin Charbelcher, Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk create a spell-dense mana and payoff structure that requires runtime care. Do not assume a familiar stock sideboard plan from another Ruby Storm list, because this registered sideboard has exact singletons and two-copy packages that constrain legal Wish and sideboarding choices.

Respect the legality boundary at runtime: Veles may choose only engine-enumerated legal actions, and this guide should never override the rules engine on castability, mana payment, timing, target legality, storm count, or whether a modal card can be played as a land or cast as a spell. If the visible legal actions do not offer the expected combo action, the pilot must choose from the available actions instead of inventing a missing ritual, draw spell, Wish target, Goblin Charbelcher activation, or sideboard card.

Flag the mana model as a major role concern because this registration appears to rely on spell-lands and nontraditional red sources rather than a conventional land suite. The pilot must track visible land drops, tapped-versus-untapped mana availability, treasure or temporary mana if produced by legal card actions, cost reduction from Ruby Medallion only when the engine confirms it applies, and color conversion through Manamorphose only when Manamorphose is a legal cast. Card text check required for any ambiguous modal-face, discount, storm, exile-cast, or temporary-permission interaction before treating it as deterministic.

Treat the role assignment as proactive combo first and emergency damage-control second. The default seat should mulligan and sequence toward a compact engine of mana plus card flow, then commit only when visible mana, action chain, payoff access, and opponent pressure make going now better than passing. Combat is normally incidental unless Ral, Monsoon Mage or Pinnacle Monk creates a visible creature-action decision, and the pilot should not trade engine pieces in combat without a survival or deterministic win reason from the board state.

Opponent information status is currently unsupplied, so matchup reads must come from public format context, revealed cards, battlefield state, graveyards, exile, stack contents, life totals, and Veles logs. Do not name specific opponent cards in policy `Cards:` fields unless they are registered in Ruby Storm; use prose or `opponent:` prefixes only when a later matchup section needs metagame examples. Hidden hand contents, library contents, counterspell availability, removal, graveyard hate, and speed of the opposing kill remain unknown until revealed by the rules engine or public actions.

## Thesis
Ruby Storm assembles a cost-reduced red spell chain that turns cheap mana, exile-card velocity, and Wish access into a single decisive turn. The deck is trying to begin with a functional mana base from Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, Pinnacle Monk, and temporary mana spells, then convert Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, and Storm of Memories into enough resources to finish through Goblin Charbelcher or a sideboard payoff found by Wish.

Prioritize engine integrity over small battlefield exchanges. Ruby Storm is not trying to win by fair combat, incremental removal, or holding up reactive answers for many turns; it is trying to preserve life total long enough to execute a high-resource turn. Treat every early decision as a question of whether it increases the chance of reaching a legal chain with mana, cards, cost reduction, and a payoff before the opponent's visible clock or disruption makes waiting worse.

Commit only when the visible resources justify the storm turn. The pilot should prefer a delayed combo turn when the hand lacks a payoff, card flow, or mana continuity, but should go now when waiting exposes Goblin Charbelcher, Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or Wish lines to lethal pressure or known interaction. Do not assume a hidden payoff exists; use only visible hand, exile permissions, graveyard, stack, battlefield, and legal actions.

Respect card-text uncertainty in all non-obvious lines. Card text check required for Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pinnacle Monk, Storm of Memories, Bloodsoaked Insight, Untimely Malfunction, Alchemist's Gambit, Galvanic Relay, and any modal-face or temporary-cast interaction before treating a choice as deterministic. If the rules engine presents the legal action, the pilot may use the strategic role in this guide, but the guide must not invent timing, cost, target, storm, recursion, or transformation rules.

## Role Package
- Threats: Goblin Charbelcher is the primary main-deck permanent payoff and should be protected from low-value deployment when activation mana or follow-up access is not visible. Ral, Monsoon Mage is an engine-threat hybrid; use it as a combo enabler or payoff only when legal text and visible board state support that role, and avoid treating it as a normal attacker unless combat is forced by lethal math or pressure. Pinnacle Monk is a spell-land or creature-adjacent resource piece in this registration; Card text check required before assigning it a combat, mana, or spell-chain role.

- Payoffs: Wish converts a live combo turn into access to sideboard win conditions or continuation tools, so preserve Wish when the hand can plausibly produce enough mana and storm count to make the chosen sideboard card matter. Sideboard payoff access includes Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, Alchemist's Gambit, Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Irencrag Feat, and Storm of Memories, but choose among them only from legal actions and visible resources.

- Engines: Ruby Medallion is the defining setup permanent because cost reduction increases the density of castable red spells across the combo turn. Ral, Monsoon Mage is a secondary engine if its visible legal actions support cost reduction, copying, transformation, or storm payoff patterns; Card text check required before prioritizing any specific Ral line. Storm of Memories and Bloodsoaked Insight are registered as engine cards, but their exact tactical use depends on confirmed legal text and runtime action labels.

- Velocity: Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Valakut Awakening, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, and Wish should be treated as ways to see or access more cards during the combo turn. Prefer velocity before irreversible payoff commitment when mana remains available and the visible line needs more resources, but avoid exiling cards or consuming Wish access when the current legal line already wins.

- Interaction: Main-deck interaction is limited and largely incidental through Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Ral, Monsoon Mage, and Goblin Charbelcher if legal actions allow damage or removal-like play. Sideboard interaction is concentrated in Lithomantic Barrage, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, and possibly Mox Amber or Alchemist's Gambit depending on confirmed text and matchup role. Use interaction to buy a combo turn, clear a hate piece, or answer lethal pressure; do not drift into a control plan without a visible reason.

- Protection: Protection is mostly structural rather than card-specific: sequence Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Wish, and Goblin Charbelcher to minimize exposure to visible pressure and known disruption. Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, and Lithomantic Barrage can become sideboard protection or anti-interaction tools only when their legal actions match the opposing board or stack context.

- Recursion: Underworld Breach is the sideboard recursion module and should be valued when graveyard density, mana, and payoff access are visible. Do not assume a deterministic loop; choose Underworld Breach lines only when Veles shows legal casts and the graveyard contains enough relevant cards to continue.

- Mana: Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, Pinnacle Monk, and Mox Amber form the mana package. Track land drops, temporary mana, color conversion, cost reduction, and treasure-like resources exactly as the rules engine exposes them.

- Sideboard modules: Irencrag Feat, Storm of Memories, Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Alchemist's Gambit, Empty the Warrens, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Goblin Charbelcher, Mox Amber, Lithomantic Barrage, Vexing Bauble, and Untimely Malfunction provide Wish targets and post-board tools. Keep each sideboard card in its registered lane, because singletons make careless boarding or Wish selection costly.

## Primary Win Conditions
- Goblin Charbelcher is the cleanest main-deck kill when the battlefield or hand can produce both the permanent and activation mana. Set up with Ruby Medallion, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Manamorphose, Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk as mana or spell-land resources, then cast Goblin Charbelcher only when Veles shows a legal path to activate soon or when delaying risks lethal pressure or known discard/removal. Prioritize this line when the visible deck configuration makes Goblin Charbelcher lethal or near-lethal and the opponent cannot immediately punish a tapped-out artifact deployment.

- Wish is the flexible storm-turn finisher when mana and spell count are already developing but the main hand lacks a direct payoff. Use Wish after rituals, Ruby Medallion reduction, Manamorphose fixing, and impulse effects have clarified available resources, then choose among legal sideboard actions such as Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, Underworld Breach, Galvanic Relay, Alchemist's Gambit, Irencrag Feat, or Storm of Memories from visible mana, storm count, board state, graveyard, and opponent life. Prioritize Wish when the current turn can convert sideboard access into lethal damage, a decisive board, or a protected continuation turn; do not spend Wish early merely because it is castable.

- Ral, Monsoon Mage is an engine-payoff route only when its current legal actions show that it advances the chain or threatens a win. Card text check required before assuming cost reduction, copying, transformation, damage, or storm scaling, but treat visible Ral actions as high-value when they increase mana efficiency with Ruby Medallion, reward repeated spells, or create a payoff without exposing Goblin Charbelcher. Prioritize Ral, Monsoon Mage when the hand has several cheap red spells but lacks a clean Wish or Goblin Charbelcher finish.

- Ruby Medallion chain turns win by converting many small spells into excess mana and cards before selecting the payoff. Set up Ruby Medallion first when safe, then chain Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, and Valakut Awakening until a legal Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, or Ral, Monsoon Mage payoff appears. Prioritize this line when the hand is dense with red spells and card access but short on raw mana.

## Secondary Win Conditions
- Empty the Warrens is the backup sideboard payoff when lethal storm damage is not visible but a wide board can beat the opponent's clock. Choose it through Wish when opponent life is high, Grapeshot or Tendrils of Agony is not lethal, and the visible battlefield suggests tokens survive long enough to attack. Do not rely on Empty the Warrens into obvious sweepers or lethal crack-back unless no stronger legal line exists.

- Grapeshot and Tendrils of Agony are sideboard damage or drain payoffs when storm count and mana are already established. Use Grapeshot for precise creature or player damage only when Veles exposes legal targets and count; use Tendrils of Agony when the legal action text and visible storm count indicate enough life swing or lethal pressure. Card text check required if runtime action labels do not expose storm copies, targets, or life-total impact clearly.

- Underworld Breach is the recursion recovery line when the graveyard contains rituals, card flow, or payoff access and the turn has enough mana to recast meaningful spells. Choose it through Wish only after checking visible graveyard contents, available mana, Ruby Medallion, and whether recasting Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, or Wish creates a concrete continuation. Do not assume a loop if the rules engine has not exposed legal graveyard casts.

- Galvanic Relay and Storm of Memories are continuation payoffs when the current turn cannot kill but can stock a next turn. Card text check required for Storm of Memories and Galvanic Relay details, but use them when legal actions show they preserve or expand resources better than passing with no engine. Prioritize continuation over a low-count payoff when the opponent's visible clock is not immediately lethal.

- Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, and Ral, Monsoon Mage can become incidental removal or pressure lines only when legal actions show relevant damage, combat, or board impact. Use these as bridges to the next combo turn, not as the primary plan, unless all direct payoffs are gone and visible life totals make damage-based cleanup realistic.

## Emergency Lines
- When behind on life, shorten the setup window and prefer a legal combo attempt over preserving theoretical value. Use Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Manamorphose, and Ruby Medallion to force a Wish or Goblin Charbelcher line if the opponent's visible board threatens lethal before another draw step.

- When behind on board, spend interaction-like legal actions only if they buy a full combo turn. Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Lithomantic Barrage after sideboarding, Untimely Malfunction after sideboarding, or visible Ral, Monsoon Mage actions should answer lethal attackers, hate permanents, or blockers relevant to Empty the Warrens; otherwise prioritize resources toward winning.

- When behind on cards, treat impulse and recursion as survival tools. Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, Storm of Memories, Galvanic Relay, and Underworld Breach should be chosen when they expose more legal resources before the opponent's clock ends the game, but avoid exiling more cards than the current and next-turn mana can use.

- When behind on mana, play spell-lands and cost reducers before speculative payoffs. Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, Pinnacle Monk, Ruby Medallion, Strike It Rich, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, and Irencrag Feat are the recovery tools; sequence them so color requirements and one-shot mana do not strand Wish or Goblin Charbelcher.

- When engines are removed, pivot to the most concrete remaining payoff rather than rebuilding slowly. A hand without Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage can still win through ritual-heavy Goblin Charbelcher, Wish into sideboard payoff, or Underworld Breach recursion if visible mana and cards support it.

- When graveyard recursion is unavailable, do not choose Underworld Breach or graveyard-dependent continuation out of habit. Prefer direct Goblin Charbelcher, Wish into Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Irencrag Feat, or Storm of Memories only when the legal action text and visible resources justify that route.

- When win conditions are removed or inaccessible, preserve live outs and maximize redraws. Use Valakut Awakening, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, and Manamorphose to find remaining Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or sideboard access; if only combat remains, attack with legal creatures only when it does not reduce survival or a future combo turn.

## Resource Model
- Mana is the primary resource, and every nonlethal choice should increase immediate red mana, reduce spell costs, or expose more castable cards. Ruby Medallion, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, Manamorphose, and spell-land sequencing decide whether a turn becomes a real chain or a stranded hand.

- Hand size matters less than castable velocity, so convert low-impact cards into new looks when mana is available. Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, Valakut Awakening, and Manamorphose should be valued by how many same-turn legal spells they create, not by raw card count alone.

- Life is a combo clock buffer, not a resource to spend freely. Take damage when it preserves a faster Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Ruby Medallion, or Ral, Monsoon Mage turn; shift to emergency combo attempts when visible attackers or burn-like pressure threaten to remove another draw step.

- Board presence is mostly engine texture, not a fair combat plan. Ral, Monsoon Mage and Pinnacle Monk can matter as permanents or bodies only when legal actions show relevant cost reduction, mana, spell access, blocking, or pressure; do not trade them casually if they are enabling the next chain.

- Graveyard value is conditional and must be verified by legal actions. Strike It Rich can create later mana from the graveyard if the engine exposes the action, and Underworld Breach from the sideboard can convert the graveyard into a second hand only when visible graveyard spells, escape costs, and available mana support actual recasts.

- Exile is a temporary hand for impulse effects, not a storage zone. Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, and Galvanic Relay should be timed so the deck can cast the exiled cards before permissions expire; avoid impulse lines before land drops or mana setup if they risk wasting revealed resources.

- Lands are spells in this deck, so treat land drops as commitment decisions. Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk can function as mana sources or spell effects; play them as lands when the hand lacks stable mana, and preserve them as spells only when current mana already supports the combo turn.

- Sacrifice fodder is minimal, so do not assume expendable permanents exist. Treasure or other tokens from Strike It Rich can be spent for mana, but sacrificing or consuming them should advance a defined chain, pay for a key Wish line, or satisfy a visible rules-engine cost.

- Tempo converts into safety windows. A turn spent casting Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage is correct when the opponent's visible board does not punish the delay; under pressure, prefer same-turn rituals, impulse draw, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher lines over slow setup.

- Information is strongest when it narrows payoff selection. Use visible opponent life, blockers, hate permanents, open mana, graveyard state, and known revealed cards to decide whether Wish should find Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Underworld Breach, Irencrag Feat, Galvanic Relay, Storm of Memories, Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, or Lithomantic Barrage.

- Sideboard bullets are strategic access points, not free value. Wish should spend sideboard access only when the fetched card changes the current turn or the next protected turn; exact sideboarding remains separate from in-game Wish selection.

## Mana Guide
- Prioritize red mana because nearly every engine and payoff path starts red. Keep hands that can cast Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Manamorphose, or Wish on time; mulligan hands that rely on drawing a first red source without meaningful interim action.

- Treat black mana as conditional for Bloodsoaked Insight and Tendrils of Agony lines. Card text check required for Bloodsoaked Insight details; use Manamorphose, Treasure from Strike It Rich, or other engine-exposed fixing when the legal action requires black, and do not strand a combo turn by spending the only fixing before black-dependent actions are resolved.

- Play spell-lands as lands early when the hand needs mana stability. Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk should usually become land drops in one- or two-source hands, while extra copies can be preserved for spell utility once Ruby Medallion, rituals, and draw effects are live.

- Delay the land drop before impulse draw when legal and safe. If Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, or Valakut Awakening may reveal a better land or spell-land choice, cast the draw first only when current mana can still use the revealed card and the land drop is not needed to cast the draw spell.

- Make the land drop first when the draw spell needs the mana or the turn has strict color requirements. If casting Wish, Jeska's Will, Goblin Charbelcher, Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or a ritual chain depends on the land, play the needed source before draw effects rather than gambling on reveal quality.

- Sequence Ruby Medallion before chains when it reduces multiple following spells. If legal mana allows Ruby Medallion plus at least one follow-up, deploy Ruby Medallion before Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Manamorphose, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Jeska's Will, Wish, or Storm of Memories unless a same-turn payoff requires immediate ritual mana first.

- Spend rituals after confirming the chain has a destination. Pyretic Ritual, Irencrag Feat, Jeska's Will, and Treasure from Strike It Rich should lead into Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, major card access, or a clear continuation; avoid making mana that empties at step changes with no legal use.

- Use Manamorphose to fix bottlenecks and preserve storm velocity. Choose colors based on visible legal actions, especially black for Bloodsoaked Insight or Tendrils of Agony, red for continuing rituals and Wish, and mixed colors only when the next spells require them.

- Keep mana floating visible and purposeful. Before choosing optional payments, activations, or sideboard bullets, check whether the mana is needed for Goblin Charbelcher activation, Wish follow-up, Underworld Breach recasts, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Lithomantic Barrage, or a payoff spell.

- Mulligan mana-light hands without a first engine action. A keep should usually contain a red source or spell-land source plus Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Strike It Rich, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, or Valakut Awakening; hands with payoff only and no mana acceleration should be sent back unless the rules-engine context shows a special reason.

## Mulligan Guide
- Strong keep: keep hands with a red source from Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, or Pinnacle Monk plus Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage and at least one engine spell such as Manamorphose, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Jeska's Will, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher. These hands have setup, velocity, and a payoff path.

- Strong keep: keep Ruby Medallion plus Pyretic Ritual plus Manamorphose or an impulse spell when the hand can make its first two mana. Ruby Medallion converts ordinary red spells into a chain, so prioritize hands where the reducer enters before the rituals and draw effects.

- Medium keep: keep Ral, Monsoon Mage plus two mana sources plus Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, or Storm of Memories when the opponent is not presenting visible fast pressure. Card text check required for Bloodsoaked Insight and Storm of Memories, but treat them as conditional card-access actions only when the engine exposes useful legal casts.

- Medium keep: keep Goblin Charbelcher plus Ruby Medallion, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, or Jeska's Will when the hand has enough mana to cast or quickly threaten activation. Goblin Charbelcher hands need a mana plan, not just the artifact.

- Risky keep: keep one-source hands only when that source is a red-producing spell-land and the hand has Strike It Rich, Ruby Medallion, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, or Manamorphose. Ship one-source hands that need the first draw step to find both mana and action.

- Risky keep: keep Wish hands only when the hand can reasonably cast Wish and then use the selected sideboard card soon. Wish without mana acceleration, cost reduction, or a clear next-turn target is too slow against pressure and too speculative against interaction.

- Automatic ship: ship hands with no red source, no castable spell-land, and no first action. Ruby Storm cannot afford hands that begin by passing and hoping to draw mana.

- Automatic ship: ship hands that are mostly payoffs and expensive engines, such as Goblin Charbelcher, Irencrag Feat, Jeska's Will, Wish, Storm of Memories, and no cheap mana or card access. A hand full of destinations is not a combo hand.

- Matchup-dependent keep: keep slower Ruby Medallion plus multiple card-access hands on the play against low-pressure visible starts, but mulligan them on the draw when the opponent's public board or known archetype threatens a short clock. The deck can sculpt, but it must not spend too many turns doing nothing.

- Matchup-dependent keep: keep Goblin Charbelcher-heavy hands against opponents with little visible artifact pressure or counterplay, but prefer Ral, Monsoon Mage, Ruby Medallion, and impulse redundancy against opponents representing interaction. Use public information only; do not assume hidden removal or counters.

- Play/draw rule: on the play, prefer hands that deploy Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage before the opponent can pressure the engine. On the draw, prefer hands with immediate velocity such as Strike It Rich, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, or Bloodsoaked Insight so the extra card becomes a faster chain.

- Trap hand: do not keep Valakut Awakening, Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Pinnacle Monk, and expensive spells just because the land count looks high. Spell-lands enter the mana plan, but too many tapped or opportunity-cost land choices can leave no engine.

- Trap hand: do not keep Ruby Medallion with no follow-up spells. Ruby Medallion is an enabler, not a payoff, and it must be paired with rituals, card access, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher.

## Turn Arc
- Turn 1: prioritize establishing red mana and preserving future spell density. Play Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, or Pinnacle Monk as a land when needed, cast Strike It Rich when legal and useful, and avoid spending Manamorphose unless it unlocks a same-turn action or fixes a real bottleneck.

- Turn 1 deviation: if the hand has multiple spell-lands and no cheap action, choose the land drop that best supports turn 2 Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Pyretic Ritual, or Wish. Preserve Valakut Awakening as a spell only when mana is already secure and hand quality needs a later reset.

- Turn 2: prefer Ruby Medallion when it will reduce at least one meaningful follow-up on turn 2 or turn 3. If Ruby Medallion is absent, deploy Ral, Monsoon Mage when legal and safe, or use Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, or Manamorphose to keep land drops and action flowing.

- Turn 2 deviation: cast Pyretic Ritual into Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher only when the legal follow-up is already visible. Do not ritual just to float mana before an uncertain draw spell unless passing the turn is clearly worse.

- Turn 3: look for the first real commitment turn. Ruby Medallion plus Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher can become a chain; commit when visible mana and legal actions show continuation or payoff.

- Turn 3 deviation: against visible pressure, favor direct Goblin Charbelcher deployment, Wish for an immediately useful sideboard payoff, or a ritual-supported draw chain over slow sculpting. Against open interaction or hate permanents, use light reasoning before committing Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher.

- Turns 4-5: treat every turn as a potential combo turn unless the rules engine shows no productive line. Sequence Ruby Medallion before red spells, use Manamorphose for exact colors, convert Strike It Rich Treasure into payoff mana, and choose Wish targets based on visible life totals, storm count, mana, graveyard, and sideboard availability.

- Turns 4-5 deviation: if a chain stalls, preserve resources that matter next turn. Do not exile more cards with Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, or Galvanic Relay unless the deck can cast the revealed cards within their permission window.

- Late game: shift from setup to forced conversion. Prioritize Goblin Charbelcher activation lines, Wish into Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Underworld Breach, Galvanic Relay, Irencrag Feat, Storm of Memories, Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, or Lithomantic Barrage only when legal actions and visible state make that card relevant.

- Late game deviation: when life total, visible attackers, or known public resources imply no safe extra draw step, accept higher-risk ritual and impulse chains. When the opponent is low on pressure and the hand contains Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage plus multiple card-access spells, take the protected setup line instead of firing a weak payoff.

## Card Roles
- Ral, Monsoon Mage is an early engine permanent that turns cheap red spells into a storm chain and can become a deeper payoff if the rules engine exposes transformation or planeswalker actions. Cast Ral, Monsoon Mage before a planned multi-spell turn when the opponent cannot immediately punish the tempo loss, and avoid sending it into combat when its reducer or future trigger matters more than one damage. Card text check required for exact transformation and loyalty behavior.

- Ruby Medallion is the cleanest cost reducer and the most important noncreature setup piece. Cast Ruby Medallion before Manamorphose, Pyretic Ritual, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Jeska's Will, Wish, Storm of Memories, Bloodsoaked Insight, or spell-land faces whenever the turn can still continue or the next turn becomes decisive. The common mistake is casting card access first, then finding the reducer too late to use the discounted cards before their permission window expires.

- Goblin Charbelcher is the main deterministic-style payoff, but activation decisions must still follow current rules-engine output. Cast Goblin Charbelcher when mana can activate it immediately or soon, when Irencrag Feat can convert into artifact plus activation, or when waiting exposes the hand to pressure. Hold Goblin Charbelcher against visible artifact interaction or open stack pressure if the hand can instead build redundancy through Wish, Storm of Memories, or impulse cards.

- Manamorphose is mana fixing, storm count, and card replacement, not a random cantrip. Use Manamorphose after Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage when it can become mana-positive or unlock exact colors for Bloodsoaked Insight, Wish lines, sideboard Tendrils of Agony, or other nonred costs. Do not spend it early just to draw when the current hand already has a land drop and no color bottleneck.

- Pyretic Ritual is the basic burst-mana spell and should usually be saved for commitment turns. Use Pyretic Ritual to deploy Ruby Medallion plus follow-up, cast Wish with enough mana to use the chosen card, cast Storm of Memories, or bridge into Goblin Charbelcher and activation math. Do not ritual into an impulse spell unless the visible remaining mana can cast likely hits before they expire.

- Strike It Rich is early acceleration, Treasure fixing, storm count, and delayed fuel. Cast Strike It Rich early when it enables turn-two Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, or Wish; preserve the Treasure when it is the only source for black, sideboard costs, Goblin Charbelcher activation, or a post-Wish spell. Graveyard use is conditional on legal actions, so never assume it is available until Veles exposes it.

- Reckless Impulse is short-window card access for setup or combo turns. Cast Reckless Impulse when the deck has mana to use the exiled cards by the allowed window, preferably after Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage. Against fast pressure, use it to find immediate mana, Shatterskull Smashing, Goblin Charbelcher, or Wish; against slower decks, use it before committing scarce rituals so the chain has direction.

- Wrenn's Resolve is redundant Reckless Impulse and should be sequenced with the same discipline. Cast Wrenn's Resolve when the hand needs action and the mana base can play the cards it reveals; hold it when casting it would strand a land drop choice, consume the only red mana before Pyretic Ritual, or expose cards that cannot be used before expiration. Redundant impulse effects are strong, but overlapping expiring piles can create forced mistakes.

- Jeska's Will is a high-ceiling mana or card-access spell whose mode choice must use public information and legal prompts. In Historic, do not assume both modes unless the engine exposes both; normally choose the mana mode when the opponent's visible hand count produces a decisive Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, or Storm of Memories turn, and choose the exile mode when mana is already sufficient but action is missing. Avoid firing it into low hand counts without a reducer.

- Wish is the sideboard access card and should be treated as a commitment or setup spell, not a generic value play. Cast Wish only when the selected sideboard card can be used this turn or next turn with a clear purpose, such as Goblin Charbelcher, Irencrag Feat, Grapeshot, Empty the Warrens, Underworld Breach, Tendrils of Agony, Storm of Memories, Galvanic Relay, Vexing Bauble, Lithomantic Barrage, Untimely Malfunction, Alchemist's Gambit, or Mox Amber. Do not Wish before checking mana after the selection.

- Irencrag Feat is the single-copy main-deck burst that most cleanly supports Goblin Charbelcher. Use Irencrag Feat when the one-more-spell restriction still leaves a winning or decisive line, especially casting Goblin Charbelcher and using remaining mana to activate it. Avoid sequencing Irencrag Feat into Wish if that prevents casting the card Wish finds; Wish before Irencrag Feat is often cleaner when sideboard Irencrag Feat is the chosen bridge.

- Storm of Memories is a major top-end engine or reload spell, but Card text check required for exact card access, storm interaction, and timing. Cast Storm of Memories only when reducers, rituals, or Jeska's Will make it part of a continuing chain, or when the game is slow enough that a five-mana sorcery can rebuild. Do not cast it as the first expensive spell under pressure unless the current hand otherwise fails to act.

- Bloodsoaked Insight is both a land-source option and an expensive card-access spell; Card text check required for exact spell output. Use Bloodsoaked Insight as mana when the hand needs stable development, especially when early red sources are scarce. Cast the spell face only when Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Treasure, or Jeska's Will makes the cost realistic and the deck can use the cards or resources it produces.

- Valakut Awakening is hand repair and mana infrastructure. Play it as a land when the curve needs mana for Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Wish, Storm of Memories, or Goblin Charbelcher; cast it when the hand contains redundant spell-lands, extra payoffs, stranded top-end, or expiring cards that cannot be used. The mistake is cycling away a functional combo hand instead of fixing only the missing category.

- Shatterskull Smashing is usually a red source first and scalable removal second. Preserve it as mana when the combo clock matters more than killing a creature, but cast it when a visible creature, planeswalker, or small board prevents survival through the next setup turn. It is especially important against creature pressure; against control or combo, using it as a spell is often unnecessary unless it clears a hate permanent exposed by legal target text.

- Sundering Eruption is primarily part of the spell-land mana base, with a disruptive spell face only when the target and payoff are visible. Card text check required for exact land-destruction or damage details. Use it as mana in normal hands; cast the spell face when a visible land is constraining the matchup, enabling lethal against you, or preventing a safe combo window. Do not spend an early land drop on speculative disruption.

- Pinnacle Monk is a flexible spell-land and late resource, but Card text check required for exact creature text and card-access timing. Use Pinnacle Monk as mana in hands that need early red development, and cast the creature face only when mana is stable, the body or triggered value matters, and the deck can use any generated cards within the legal window. It is weakest when treated as a five-mana threat before the combo engine is assembled.

## Interaction Priorities

- Priority: remove or neutralize visible hate that prevents the next committed combo action before spending rituals. Use Shatterskull Smashing, sideboard Lithomantic Barrage, sideboard Grapeshot, sideboard Untimely Malfunction, sideboard Vexing Bauble, or Wish only when Veles exposes a legal action that answers the specific permanent, spell, or trigger; Card text check required for exact sideboard interaction modes.

- Priority: answer pressure only when it changes the combo turn count. Shatterskull Smashing should kill a creature or planeswalker when the visible attack step would force a win this turn or next turn; otherwise preserve Shatterskull Smashing as a land or burst spell because Ruby Storm normally wins by assembling mana plus payoff, not by trading resources.

- Priority: counterplay against permission starts with baiting, not fighting. Lead with expendable setup such as Strike It Rich, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, or a second Ruby Medallion when the hand can still function after a counter; commit Goblin Charbelcher, Jeska's Will, Wish, Irencrag Feat, or Storm of Memories only after visible shields are lowered, mana is forced, or waiting is worse.

- Priority: protect Ruby Medallion and Ral, Monsoon Mage when they are the cost engine for the current hand. If the opponent points removal, bounce, exile, or discard at a reducer and the deck has no replacement, route through any legal Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, or timing response only if the action text clearly interacts; otherwise update the line around fewer discounts instead of assuming protection exists.

- Priority: discard pressure makes redundancy more valuable than perfect timing. Keep hands and sequences that split threats across Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Storm of Memories, and impulse effects; do not expose a single all-in payoff to known discard if casting Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Strike It Rich, or Valakut Awakening can create more live draws.

- Priority: graveyard hate matters mainly for Strike It Rich flashback-style use and sideboard Underworld Breach lines. Ignore graveyard hate when the active line is Ruby Medallion into rituals, Wish into Goblin Charbelcher, or direct Goblin Charbelcher activation; answer or route around it when the visible plan depends on Underworld Breach, replaying Strike It Rich, or other graveyard legal actions.

- Priority: ignore low-impact creatures, tapped utility permanents, and value engines when the current hand can win before they matter. Do not spend Wish, Shatterskull Smashing, Lithomantic Barrage, or Grapeshot on a permanent that neither shortens the opponent clock nor stops Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Jeska's Will, or Storm of Memories from resolving.

- Priority: archetype changes drive interaction thresholds. Against aggro, spend removal to buy exactly the turn needed for Ruby Medallion plus payoff; against control, save interaction for counters, taxing permanents, and end-step windows; against combo, race first and disrupt only a visible must-answer engine; against midrange, treat discard and permanent removal as reasons to diversify engines before the commitment turn.

## Combat And Trading Rules

- Priority: Ruby Storm almost never wins by attacking, so combat decisions should preserve life and engine pieces. Attack only when Veles exposes a legal attack that costs no relevant blocker, does not expose Ral, Monsoon Mage or Pinnacle Monk to a bad trade, and does not reduce the next combo turn's mana or spell count.

- Priority: Ral, Monsoon Mage is an engine before it is a creature. Do not trade Ral, Monsoon Mage in combat when its cost reduction, spell trigger, or transformation path is needed for Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, Wish, Storm of Memories, or Goblin Charbelcher sequencing; block with it only when the visible damage would otherwise prevent a winning next turn or the copy is redundant.

- Priority: Pinnacle Monk should be treated as a land or resource card first unless already cast and tactically relevant. If Pinnacle Monk is on battlefield, block with it only when life total pressure is the bottleneck or when the body has already delivered its value; do not trade it away just to reduce incidental damage while a combo turn is still being built.

- Priority: life total thresholds decide blocking. Above a two-turn visible clock, prioritize preserving Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pinnacle Monk, Treasures from Strike It Rich, and mana development; at a one-turn visible clock, block with any nonessential creature if the block survives to a known combo turn; at lethal-on-board, accept bad trades unless the only path to win is an immediate no-block kill.

- Priority: do not bluff combat tricks that are not in the registered list. Ruby Storm can interact through visible legal actions such as Shatterskull Smashing, sideboard Lithomantic Barrage, sideboard Grapeshot, sideboard Untimely Malfunction, or sideboard Alchemist's Gambit only when Veles exposes them; do not assume hidden pump, protection, or removal lines.

- Priority: preserve engine permanents against creature decks until the combo turn is secure. A small hit is acceptable if keeping Ral, Monsoon Mage or Pinnacle Monk enables Ruby Medallion discounts, ritual chaining, or Wish access; a block becomes correct when the opponent's next attack would make a safe Storm of Memories, Goblin Charbelcher, or sideboard payoff turn impossible.

- Priority: pressure control and combo opponents only with free attacks. If Ral, Monsoon Mage or Pinnacle Monk can attack without risking a trade, losing a blocker, or tapping out of a relevant postcombat action, damage can matter as a fallback; if attacking creates vulnerability to a counterattack or removal window, keep the creature back and focus on hand sculpting.

- Priority: post-sideboard creature plans remain secondary. Empty the Warrens can create blockers or a lethal board after Wish, and Grapeshot or Tendrils of Agony can finish without combat; choose creature combat lines only when the token board is already visible and legal, the opponent cannot present immediate lethal, and racing through attacks is faster than rebuilding a spell-chain kill.

## Selection And Tutor Rules

- Selection: treat the deck as a pseudo-tutor combo shell, not a true tutor deck. Wish is the only registered card that reliably converts a decision into a specific outside-game option, while Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Valakut Awakening, Manamorphose, Bloodsoaked Insight, Storm of Memories, and Jeska's Will are velocity or resource-selection tools that must be sequenced around visible mana and the current turn's commitment gate.

- Selection: use impulse effects when the deck can spend the exiled cards before timing expires. Cast Reckless Impulse or Wrenn's Resolve before rituals only if land/spell access is the bottleneck; cast them after Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, or Jeska's Will when extra mana lets the agent immediately convert revealed cards into storm count, Wish, Goblin Charbelcher, or Storm of Memories.

- Selection: use Valakut Awakening to repair hands that have too many redundant payoff cards, modal land faces, or uncastable expensive spells. Preserve Valakut Awakening as a land when missing early mana, but cast it as selection when the hand already has enough mana sources and needs Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Jeska's Will, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher.

- Selection: use Manamorphose as a color and information bridge. Delay Manamorphose until the turn's color needs are known when possible; cast it earlier when the hand needs one more draw to decide whether to play a modal land, commit Ruby Medallion, or start the ritual chain.

- Selection: do not spend Wish without a target role. Choose sideboard Goblin Charbelcher when the visible line needs a deterministic Belcher payoff, Grapeshot or Tendrils of Agony when storm count and opponent life make a spell payoff plausible, Empty the Warrens when a token board is safer than a single spell kill, Underworld Breach when graveyard resources and mana are visibly sufficient, and Galvanic Relay or Storm of Memories when the correct play is to extend resources rather than finish immediately; Card text check required for exact timing and restriction details on Storm of Memories and Bloodsoaked Insight.

- Selection: choose sideboard interaction only for a named obstacle. Wish for Lithomantic Barrage, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, or Alchemist's Gambit only when Veles shows a legal line and the visible board, stack, or clock makes that card's role necessary; Card text check required for exact modes and legality before assuming any interaction covers a specific permanent or spell.

- Land timing: play modal land faces early only when mana development is the bottleneck. If the hand can already cast Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or a draw spell, delay committing Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, or Pinnacle Monk as lands until after selection reveals whether their spell faces are needed for removal, storm count, mana conversion, or payoff setup.

## Priority And Stack Rules

- Priority: pass through low-impact windows unless the visible action advances a combo turn, protects a key engine, or prevents lethal. Ruby Storm should not spend time or cards reacting to ordinary creature combat, value permanents, or end-step tricks unless those objects change the turn count or stop Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Wish, Goblin Charbelcher, Jeska's Will, or Storm of Memories.

- Priority: commit on the main phase when mana and follow-up actions are visible. Start ritual chains with Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage already active when possible, then sequence Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, impulse effects, Wish, and payoff actions so each resolved spell either adds mana, adds cards, or moves directly toward Goblin Charbelcher or storm payoff.

- Priority: let opposing spells resolve when they do not affect the current combo window. If the opponent's stack object does not remove an engine, counter a payoff, tax a spell, present lethal, or alter available mana, preserve actions and continue sculpting; do not fire Wish-accessed interaction or Shatterskull Smashing into irrelevant stack objects.

- Priority: respond to disruption only with legal, visible protection or alternate execution. If Veles exposes Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, or another sideboard line that clearly interacts with a counter, tax, redirection, or removal effect, evaluate it before passing; otherwise assume the spell may resolve and switch to redundancy rather than inventing protection.

- Priority: activate Goblin Charbelcher only after checking visible mana, summoning/timing restrictions, and whether waiting exposes it to removal. If activation is legal and the opponent is tapped low or forced to answer on board, prefer activating before passing priority; if a known blocker to activation exists, consider Wish, Storm of Memories, impulse draw, or a spell payoff instead.

- Priority: treat optional payments and extra-action effects as commitment decisions. Pay for Strike It Rich flashback-style lines, Underworld Breach lines, Irencrag Feat chains, Alchemist's Gambit, or any optional cost only when Veles shows the legal action and the payment keeps enough mana/cards to finish, stabilize, or build a protected next turn; Card text check required for exact restrictions on Irencrag Feat and Alchemist's Gambit.

- Stack: stack spell payoffs after resource spells unless lethal or survival requires immediate action. Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, and Storm of Memories are payoff or reload cards; cast them after available cheap spells when storm count or resources matter, but cast immediately when the opponent can untap into lethal, discard, counter mana, or permanent removal.

- Graveyard timing: use the graveyard only when the active line explicitly depends on it. Strike It Rich and Underworld Breach can turn graveyard contents into resources if legal, but the main plan can win without graveyard reliance; do not route into graveyard actions through visible hate unless the alternative line fails.

## Sideboard Map

- Sideboarding rule: preserve Ruby Storm's density of mana, velocity, and payoffs unless a specific opposing axis forces role cards. The deck should remain a combo deck after sideboarding; do not dilute Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, Wish, Goblin Charbelcher, Storm of Memories, and impulse effects unless the matchup makes one axis clearly weak.

- Wish-board rule: keep at least one clean Wish payoff in the sideboard when Wish remains in the main deck. Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, Underworld Breach, Galvanic Relay, Alchemist's Gambit, Irencrag Feat, Storm of Memories, Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, Mox Amber, and Lithomantic Barrage are not just post-board cards; they are also registered Wish options, so bringing in too many singletons can weaken game-one-style Wish flexibility.

Anti-counterspell control
Side in: 1 Vexing Bauble; 1 Untimely Malfunction; 1 Galvanic Relay; 1 Goblin Charbelcher; 1 Storm of Memories
Cut: 1 Irencrag Feat; 1 Bloodsoaked Insight; 1 Shatterskull Smashing; 1 Sundering Eruption; 1 Strike It Rich

- Add role cards: Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Galvanic Relay, Goblin Charbelcher, and Storm of Memories increase threat density and improve resilience when the opponent is trying to counter or trade one-for-one with the first payoff. Card text check required before assuming Vexing Bauble or Untimely Malfunction answers a specific visible stack object; use them only when the engine exposes a legal action that covers the obstruction.

- Reduce main-deck emphasis: Irencrag Feat and the most conditional mana or modal-damage cards become less attractive when passing with one fragile all-in spell loses to open interaction. Keep enough Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk to function as mana sources, but favor redundant engines and reloads over narrow removal text.

Creature pressure and small permanent disruption
Side in: 2 Lithomantic Barrage; 1 Empty the Warrens; 1 Goblin Charbelcher; 1 Irencrag Feat
Cut: 1 Bloodsoaked Insight; 1 Storm of Memories; 1 Wrenn's Resolve; 1 Reckless Impulse; 1 Strike It Rich

- Add role cards: Lithomantic Barrage is for visible creatures or planeswalkers that materially shorten the clock, disrupt Ral, Monsoon Mage, or block a token pivot. Empty the Warrens gives a board-based route when the opponent can pressure life totals but is weak to a wide battlefield; Goblin Charbelcher and Irencrag Feat raise the chance of ending the game before combat damage becomes decisive.

- Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow reloads and delayed card access are weaker when the opponent presents lethal pressure or forces early defensive decisions. Do not overload on Lithomantic Barrage when Veles shows no legal targets or when the opponent's threats are too large or nonmatching; Card text check required for exact legal target restrictions.

Fast noninteractive race
Side in: 1 Grapeshot; 1 Tendrils of Agony; 1 Irencrag Feat; 1 Alchemist's Gambit
Cut: 1 Bloodsoaked Insight; 1 Storm of Memories; 1 Reckless Impulse; 1 Shatterskull Smashing

- Add role cards: Grapeshot and Tendrils of Agony are payoff options when storm count and opponent life total make a same-turn spell kill plausible. Irencrag Feat and Alchemist's Gambit are commitment tools only when Veles shows legal sequencing and the current turn requires speed; Card text check required for exact restrictions, extra-turn effects, and post-resolution consequences.

- Reduce main-deck emphasis: expensive reloads and damage-modal cards lose value when the game is determined by who executes first. Keep Wish when it can find the missing payoff, but avoid lines that spend a full turn generating delayed resources while the opponent has a visible near-lethal clock.

Graveyard or resource-grind matchup
Side in: 1 Underworld Breach; 1 Galvanic Relay; 1 Storm of Memories; 1 Mox Amber
Cut: 1 Irencrag Feat; 1 Shatterskull Smashing; 1 Sundering Eruption; 1 Strike It Rich

- Add role cards: Underworld Breach is strongest when graveyard contents, mana, and storm count are already visible enough to convert it into immediate resources. Galvanic Relay and Storm of Memories support staged combo turns where the first wave builds future access instead of killing immediately; Card text check required for Storm of Memories and Bloodsoaked Insight interactions before assuming any exact resource loop.

- Reduce main-deck emphasis: one-shot mana that commits the turn too hard is weaker against grind plans if it does not lead to a payoff. Mox Amber is good only when Ral, Monsoon Mage or another qualifying visible permanent makes it produce mana under the real rules text; Card text check required before treating it as live mana.

- Grapeshot role: use Grapeshot as a precise storm payoff, cleanup spell, or Wish target when the legal action text and visible storm count make damage assignment clear. Grapeshot is bad when storm count is low, opposing life is high, targets are protected, or the line spends a Wish without creating lethal pressure.

- Tendrils of Agony role: use Tendrils of Agony as the life-swing storm payoff when black mana is legally available and storm count can convert the turn into lethal or stabilization. Tendrils of Agony is bad when color fixing is absent, the opponent can interact with the payoff, or the line requires assuming hidden resources; confirm Manamorphose or other visible mana access before selecting it.

- Empty the Warrens role: use Empty the Warrens when a wide token battlefield is better than exposing one spell payoff or one Goblin Charbelcher. Empty the Warrens is bad against visible sweepers, large lifelinking pressure, instant-speed token punishment, or board states where tokens cannot race.

- Goblin Charbelcher role: bring in the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher when permanent-based payoff redundancy matters or when Wish should remain free for another role. It is bad when the opponent has visible artifact removal pressure, counter mana plus time, or when adding another expensive payoff crowds hands that lack Ruby Medallion, rituals, or land-modal mana.

- Irencrag Feat role: use sideboard Irencrag Feat as speed support for Charbelcher-style or high-cost payoff turns only after checking legal follow-up actions. It is bad when the hand needs multiple colored spells after resolution, when timing restrictions stop the planned sequence, or when the opponent can punish a single all-in spell; Card text check required.

- Lithomantic Barrage role: use Lithomantic Barrage against small creatures or planeswalkers that directly constrain combo timing. It is bad when there are no legal targets, when removal does not change the clock, or when spending mana breaks the combo turn.

- Vexing Bauble role: use Vexing Bauble against visible counterspell, free-spell, or tax patterns only when its legal text matters. It is bad when the opponent wins on board, when the stack is empty and speed is the priority, or when it slows the decisive Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage turn; Card text check required.

- Untimely Malfunction role: use Untimely Malfunction as flexible protection or interaction only for a visible problem Veles exposes through legal actions. It is bad as speculative insurance when the combo line already wins through known public information; Card text check required for modes and targets.

- Alchemist's Gambit role: use Alchemist's Gambit only when the extra turn or immediate tempo line is legally exposed and the current turn cannot safely wait. It is bad when the drawback can lose the game, when the extra turn lacks resources, or when the same mana could produce lethal now; Card text check required.

- Mox Amber role: use Mox Amber when post-board games emphasize Ral, Monsoon Mage and the engine can verify that it produces mana. It is bad in hands without a qualifying visible permanent, in mulligans that need every card to be live alone, or when Wish access is more valuable than drawing the singleton.

- Storm of Memories role: bring in Storm of Memories when longer games need another large reload or Wish target for rebuilding after disruption. It is bad against fast clocks, graveyard hate if the exact text depends on graveyard resources, or hands that need cheap setup; Card text check required.

- Underworld Breach role: use Underworld Breach when the graveyard already contains enough cheap spells, mana, and payoff access to justify committing. It is bad into visible graveyard hate, low-graveyard openings, or lines that require inventing hidden card access.

- Galvanic Relay role: use Galvanic Relay as a bridge card for staged storm turns against interaction or attrition. It is bad when immediate lethal is available, when exiled-card timing cannot be used, or when passing gives the opponent a decisive untap.

## Matchup Guidance

- Aggro: prioritize hands that produce a fast Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or ritual chain before the opponent's battlefield forces defensive spending. Shatterskull Smashing and Sundering Eruption matter when Veles exposes legal removal or land-mode sequencing that preserves a combo turn; do not spend them merely to look busy if the visible clock still gives time to assemble Jeska's Will, Manamorphose, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher. Add role cards: Grapeshot can convert storm count into creature cleanup or lethal, Empty the Warrens can create blockers plus a clock when one spell payoff is too fragile, Lithomantic Barrage can answer a visible small threat or planeswalker if legal, and Alchemist's Gambit is only for turns where waiting clearly loses; Card text check required for exact restrictions and drawback. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow reloads such as Storm of Memories and some Bloodsoaked Insight lines are lower priority when they do not affect the current turn or next-turn survival.

- Burn: treat life total as a hard resource gate and prefer wins that do not pass back after spending the turn on setup. Manamorphose should fix colors only when the follow-up legal actions are visible; Strike It Rich and Pyretic Ritual should be saved for the turn that converts mana into payoff unless using them now unlocks Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, or a guaranteed next-turn chain. Add role cards: Tendrils of Agony is the best sideboard payoff when Veles shows legal black mana and enough storm for a stabilizing life swing; Grapeshot is a backup when damage math is exact; Alchemist's Gambit is dangerous unless the extra turn wins before its consequence matters, and Card text check required. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Goblin Charbelcher setup that passes with no activation is risky if the opponent can finish from visible resources.

- Control: force the opponent to answer layered threats instead of one fragile all-in spell. Ruby Medallion and Ral, Monsoon Mage are premium early permanents because they make every later Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, and Storm of Memories more punishing; however, do not assume they resolve through hidden interaction. Add role cards: Galvanic Relay and Storm of Memories support staged turns after interaction, Vexing Bauble is relevant only when its exact text interacts with the opponent's visible or strongly represented counterplay, Untimely Malfunction is for a legal mode that protects or redirects a decisive spell, Underworld Breach can punish spent interaction if graveyard contents and mana are visible, and the extra Goblin Charbelcher increases permanent payoff density. Reduce main-deck emphasis: pure speed pieces such as Irencrag Feat are weaker when they create one stack point that loses to a single answer; Card text check required for Irencrag Feat restrictions.

- Tempo: respect the opponent's clock while sequencing around open mana and cheap interaction. Ruby Medallion is still important, but a turn that taps down for it must be judged against visible attackers and the chance that the next turn's payoff is disrupted; Veles should prefer lines that leave multiple follow-up spells after one interaction point. Add role cards: Lithomantic Barrage is useful against a visible threat that both clocks and disrupts, Untimely Malfunction can matter when legal action text answers a stack or combat problem, and Vexing Bauble is conditional protection when the exact text is relevant; Card text check required. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow exile-draw chains from Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, or Bloodsoaked Insight are weaker when passing gives tempo lethal, but they remain correct when the current hand lacks a real payoff.

- Midrange: play for inevitability through repeated resource bursts, not just raw speed. Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Valakut Awakening, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, and Storm of Memories are the tools that rebuild after discard or removal; Goblin Charbelcher and Wish are payoff access, not cards to expose before they can matter. Add role cards: Underworld Breach and Galvanic Relay are strong when public graveyard or exile resources support a second wave, Storm of Memories adds reload density, Mox Amber is playable only when the engine verifies a qualifying visible permanent, and the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher is useful when permanent payoff redundancy beats hand disruption. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Shatterskull Smashing and Sundering Eruption removal modes are lower priority unless they remove a threat that changes the combo clock.

- Removal-heavy decks: make creature and planeswalker removal awkward by leaning on Ruby Medallion, spell chains, Wish, and Goblin Charbelcher. Ral, Monsoon Mage is valuable but should not be treated as the only engine if the opponent has visible removal mana; Pinnacle Monk should be sequenced according to legal text and current role, with Card text check required before assuming recursion, body, or spell-mode details. Add role cards: Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, and Storm of Memories help recover from one-for-one trading; Empty the Warrens can punish opponents overloaded on single-target removal if the token line races visible board states. Reduce main-deck emphasis: spending Shatterskull Smashing or Sundering Eruption defensively is poor when the opponent's removal does not pressure life total or stop the combo.

- Combo: identify whether this deck is faster, more resilient, or forced to interact through Wish. Opening hands should either accelerate into Ruby Medallion plus multiple cheap spells, present Goblin Charbelcher with activation prospects, or use Jeska's Will, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, and Strike It Rich to threaten a same-turn payoff. Add role cards: Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Irencrag Feat, and Alchemist's Gambit increase kill-speed or payoff access when Veles exposes legal mana and storm math; Vexing Bauble is only for opponent combo lines where its exact text matters; Untimely Malfunction is only for a visible legal disruption or protection mode. Reduce main-deck emphasis: grind cards are weaker when the opponent's deterministic line is imminent, but Galvanic Relay can be correct if it creates a protected next-turn kill.

- Big mana: race their payoff turn and avoid over-investing in small interaction. Ruby Medallion into Jeska's Will, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Valakut Awakening, and Wish should be evaluated by whether it produces a kill or a nearly locked next turn before the opponent's visible mana crosses a decisive threshold. Add role cards: Goblin Charbelcher, Irencrag Feat, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, and Alchemist's Gambit are speed tools; Empty the Warrens is acceptable only when tokens race their visible board and expected next turn. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Lithomantic Barrage-style removal plans are low priority unless a specific legal target blocks the combo.

- Graveyard decks: win quickly unless graveyard interaction is available through a legal Wish or sideboard configuration. Do not assume Underworld Breach is safe if the opponent's public graveyard plan is faster or if visible graveyard hate affects this deck too. Add role cards: Underworld Breach is strongest when this deck's graveyard is already stocked with cheap mana and draw, Grapeshot can clear graveyard-enabling creatures if legal targets exist, Tendrils of Agony can race life totals, and Vexing Bauble is conditional on exact text. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow Storm of Memories lines are risky if they pass while the opponent's graveyard already represents a next-turn kill; Card text check required for Storm of Memories.

- Artifact/enchantment decks: race first, interact only with visible permanents that actually stop the combo or create lethal pressure. Goblin Charbelcher is powerful but exposed if the opponent can answer artifacts before activation, so Veles should favor same-turn deployment and activation when legal. Add role cards: Lithomantic Barrage only matters for legal targets under its exact text, Vexing Bauble can fight specific noncreature patterns if text applies, Untimely Malfunction can answer or redirect a visible problem if a legal mode exists, and the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher improves redundancy when artifact removal is not dominant; Card text check required for Lithomantic Barrage, Vexing Bauble, and Untimely Malfunction details. Reduce main-deck emphasis: removal-modal lands are poor when they do not touch the relevant permanent.

- Go-wide decks: decide whether the correct answer is racing, sweeping through storm damage, or making a wider board. Grapeshot is the cleanest sideboard tool when storm count and legal targets allow multiple creature damage assignments; Empty the Warrens is a defensive-offensive pivot when tokens can block and then race; Shatterskull Smashing is conditional removal when the rules engine exposes legal targets and enough mana. Add role cards: Grapeshot, Empty the Warrens, Lithomantic Barrage, and Tendrils of Agony cover cleanup, board presence, spot interaction, and life swing. Reduce main-deck emphasis: expensive single payoff setup is weak if it cannot activate before the next attack.

- Single-threat decks: remove or ignore the threat based on the clock math, not the card's reputation. If Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Lithomantic Barrage, or Grapeshot legally answer the only threat and buy a full turn, interaction can be correct; if the combo can win through it now, spend resources on Jeska's Will, Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Wish, or Goblin Charbelcher instead. Add role cards: Untimely Malfunction is relevant only when legal modes interact with the single threat or its protection; Tendrils of Agony can undo race pressure if black mana is verified. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Empty the Warrens is worse when one evasive or oversized threat ignores tokens.

## Specific Matchup Notes
- General/archetype-only note: revealed cards, legal actions, public zones, and rules-engine prompts override these assumptions. Treat unknown opponents by pressure type: faster combo demands immediate Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, or Alchemist's Gambit lines; slower decks allow Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Storm of Memories, Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Valakut Awakening, and Bloodsoaked Insight to build a protected chain.

- Aggro and burn: prioritize life-preserving speed over perfect storm size. Use Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Grapeshot, Lithomantic Barrage, or Untimely Malfunction only when the legal target or mode buys a full turn, removes lethal pressure, or keeps Ral, Monsoon Mage alive for a decisive chain. Add role cards: Grapeshot, Empty the Warrens, Tendrils of Agony, Lithomantic Barrage, and Untimely Malfunction. Reduce main-deck emphasis: slow Storm of Memories reloads and speculative Bloodsoaked Insight lines are risky when the next combat step is lethal.

- Countermagic and discard: sequence redundant engines before exposing the single closer. Ruby Medallion is the safest permanent engine when not immediately answered; Ral, Monsoon Mage and Goblin Charbelcher should be committed when the same turn can extract value, activate, or force a decisive answer. Add role cards: Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Storm of Memories, Mox Amber, Vexing Bauble, and the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher. Reduce main-deck emphasis: Irencrag Feat or Jeska's Will into a single payoff is fragile if the opponent has open interaction and no backup card advantage.

- Removal-heavy creature decks: make their removal misalign by leaning on Ruby Medallion, Wish, exile-draw effects, and Goblin Charbelcher. Ral, Monsoon Mage is strong when it survives or immediately contributes, but do not make the whole turn depend on it unless visible pressure requires speed. Add role cards: Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Storm of Memories, Empty the Warrens, and Lithomantic Barrage for exact legal targets. Priority targets: creatures that shorten the clock, creatures that tax or block combo lines under exact text, and permanents preventing spell chains.

- Graveyard pressure or graveyard hate: check public graveyards before choosing Underworld Breach or Storm of Memories. Underworld Breach is a recovery engine only when this deck's graveyard contains enough cheap mana, draw, and payoff access; it is poor into visible graveyard restriction or when the opponent's graveyard clock wins first. Add role cards: Underworld Breach, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Vexing Bauble, and Galvanic Relay. Reduce main-deck emphasis: passing after a low-impact Wrenn's Resolve, Reckless Impulse, or Bloodsoaked Insight is risky if the opponent already represents a faster public graveyard line.

- Big mana and slow noninteractive decks: race with mana density and payoff access. Ruby Medallion plus Pyretic Ritual, Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, and Wish should be measured by whether it produces Goblin Charbelcher activation, Tendrils of Agony, Grapeshot, Empty the Warrens, or Alchemist's Gambit before their next large turn. Add role cards: Irencrag Feat, Goblin Charbelcher, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Alchemist's Gambit, and Galvanic Relay. Reduce main-deck emphasis: defensive Shatterskull Smashing and Sundering Eruption modes unless they remove the only relevant clock or lock piece.

- Artifact, enchantment, and prison-style boards: answer only permanents that legally stop the combo or create lethal tempo. Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Lithomantic Barrage, and Grapeshot all require exact legal text and visible targets; Card text check required for Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Lithomantic Barrage, Pinnacle Monk, Storm of Memories, and Bloodsoaked Insight before assuming a specific mode or restriction.

## Risk Summary
- Mana risk: the deck can look mana-rich while having too few actual red-producing starts because Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Valakut Awakening, and Pinnacle Monk may present modal land or spell tension. Do not spend Manamorphose, Strike It Rich, Pyretic Ritual, Jeska's Will, or Irencrag Feat until the current legal line has enough colored mana, storm count, and payoff access to justify the conversion.

- Matchup risk: racing the wrong axis loses games. Against fast pressure, prioritize a shorter Goblin Charbelcher, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, or removal line; against slow disruption, prioritize Ruby Medallion, Ral, Monsoon Mage, Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Storm of Memories, and redundant Wish access.

- Draw risk: Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Valakut Awakening, Bloodsoaked Insight, and Storm of Memories can create action without solving mana or payoff. If the visible hand already has Goblin Charbelcher or Wish but lacks activation mana, prefer mana-positive lines; if the hand has rituals but no closer, prefer selection and Wish lines before burning the last mana source.

- Over-sideboarding risk: too many narrow sideboard cards dilute the chain. Mox Amber, Lithomantic Barrage, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Empty the Warrens, and the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher should enter plans only for a specific role; keep enough Ruby Medallion, Manamorphose, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, and draw effects to actually combo.

- Graveyard risk: Underworld Breach and graveyard-assisted reload plans are powerful but public and disruptable. Check visible graveyard quantity, available mana, storm count, exile restrictions, and opponent graveyard pressure before committing; when graveyard quality is low, Galvanic Relay or direct Wish payoff access may be safer.

- Sweeper/removal risk: Empty the Warrens exposes a board-based closer to sweepers and blockers, while Ral, Monsoon Mage exposes an engine to removal. Prefer Empty the Warrens when tokens race the visible board or force lethal next turn; prefer Goblin Charbelcher, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, or Alchemist's Gambit when permanent or token exposure is punished.

- Closer risk: Wish can access the right sideboard payoff, but only if mana, color, and timing are legal. Do not choose Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Goblin Charbelcher, Irencrag Feat, Alchemist's Gambit, Underworld Breach, or Storm of Memories by reputation; choose the closer that the current rules-engine action set can actually cast, pay for, target, and resolve profitably from visible information.

- Interaction and sequencing risk: passing priority with open combo resources can give the opponent a full turn, but jamming into visible open interaction can waste the only payoff. Build chains in the order that preserves maximum legal information: establish Ruby Medallion when safe, float or filter mana with Manamorphose only when needed, spend rituals when the payoff path is identified, and hold Valakut Awakening until it improves a stalled or redundant hand.

## Test Feedback Checklist
- Deciding factor: record whether the game was decided by a resolved Goblin Charbelcher, storm payoff through Wish, Empty the Warrens pressure, Ral, Monsoon Mage engine value, or a stalled chain after spending rituals.
- Mulligan quality: note whether opening hands had a red source, Ruby Medallion or Ral, Monsoon Mage, velocity from Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, or Storm of Memories, and a realistic payoff path.
- Mana execution: track every loss where Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, Shatterskull Smashing, Sundering Eruption, Pinnacle Monk, or Valakut Awakening created modal-land or color tension.
- Engine timing: identify whether Ruby Medallion was deployed early enough, whether Ral, Monsoon Mage survived or immediately mattered, and whether Goblin Charbelcher was committed only when activation or protection from visible pressure was plausible.
- Velocity failures: flag turns where Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, or Storm of Memories produced cards that could not be used before the opponent's next decisive turn.
- Ritual discipline: review whether Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Manamorphose, Jeska's Will, and Irencrag Feat were spent after a payoff line was identified or merely converted resources into a pass.
- Closing accuracy: compare Wish targets and natural payoffs; ask whether Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, Alchemist's Gambit, Underworld Breach, Galvanic Relay, Irencrag Feat, or Storm of Memories would have closed faster or more safely from visible actions.
- Interaction impact: record whether Lithomantic Barrage, Untimely Malfunction, Vexing Bauble, or removal modes from Shatterskull Smashing and Sundering Eruption had exact legal targets and changed the clock or combo access. Card text check required before attributing a specific effect to Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, Lithomantic Barrage, Pinnacle Monk, Storm of Memories, or Bloodsoaked Insight.
- Sideboard performance: note which configured role cards mattered, which sideboard cards were stranded, and whether Mox Amber, Underworld Breach, Galvanic Relay, Empty the Warrens, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Goblin Charbelcher, Irencrag Feat, Storm of Memories, Alchemist's Gambit, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, or Lithomantic Barrage matched the opponent's visible plan.
- Role mistakes: mark games where the deck played too slowly against pressure, too all-in against open interaction, or too defensively against a slower opponent.
- Stranded-card audit: count uncastable or low-impact copies of Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Jeska's Will, Irencrag Feat, Storm of Memories, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, Shatterskull Smashing, and Sundering Eruption.
- Overperformer and underperformer notes: tie each card judgment to a visible game state, legal action, and result rather than reputation.

## First Tuning Questions
- Card quantity question: should the main deck remain at 3 Goblin Charbelcher and 3 Wish, or did games show too many payoff-light chains or too many expensive closers stranded before sufficient mana?
- Engine density question: did 4 Ruby Medallion and 4 Ral, Monsoon Mage create enough early engines, or did removal-heavy and counterspell-heavy games require more sideboard reliance on Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Storm of Memories, or the sideboard Goblin Charbelcher?
- Mana base question: did 4 Shatterskull Smashing, 4 Sundering Eruption, 4 Valakut Awakening, and 4 Pinnacle Monk support early red consistently, or did modal-land choices repeatedly block Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, and Manamorphose sequencing?
- Velocity mix question: did Reckless Impulse, Wrenn's Resolve, Bloodsoaked Insight, Valakut Awakening, and Storm of Memories find the right balance between raw cards and immediate mana, or did exile-window pressure make some draw effects worse than additional payoff or ritual density?
- Ritual quantity question: did 4 Pyretic Ritual, 4 Strike It Rich, 4 Manamorphose, 4 Jeska's Will, and 1 Irencrag Feat produce enough deterministic combo turns, or were losses caused by having mana without Wish, Goblin Charbelcher, Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, or Alchemist's Gambit access?
- Aggro plan question: did the deck close before creature pressure mattered, or should sideboard emphasis shift toward Empty the Warrens, Grapeshot, Lithomantic Barrage, and faster Goblin Charbelcher lines for visible short-clock matchups?
- Control plan question: did the deck lose to single-point disruption, or should sideboard emphasis shift toward Galvanic Relay, Underworld Breach, Storm of Memories, Vexing Bauble, Mox Amber, and redundant Wish targets?
- Graveyard plan question: did Underworld Breach win games with public graveyard quality, or was it too often weakened by visible graveyard pressure, low cheap-spell density, or insufficient mana after the commitment?
- Closer spread question: were Grapeshot, Tendrils of Agony, Empty the Warrens, Goblin Charbelcher, and Alchemist's Gambit each selected in the matchups where their risk profile fit, or is one payoff occupying a sideboard slot without a clear tactical job?
- Sideboard slot question: did two Lithomantic Barrage and two sideboard Irencrag Feat earn their counts, or did the data favor more resilient engines, another closer, or more interaction for exact visible hate pieces?
- Role conflict question: did sideboard plans dilute the main chain by lowering Ruby Medallion, Manamorphose, Pyretic Ritual, Strike It Rich, Jeska's Will, or card-velocity density below the threshold needed to execute Ruby Storm's core plan?

## Veles Tactical Policy

### Policy: Opening Hand Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: mulligan
Cards: Ruby Medallion; Ral, Monsoon Mage; Manamorphose; Pyretic Ritual; Strike It Rich; Reckless Impulse; Wrenn's Resolve; Bloodsoaked Insight; Valakut Awakening; Goblin Charbelcher; Wish
Phase windows: pregame mulligan
Runtime cues: prompt:mulligan; hand; visible opening hand
Use when: Keep only hands with red access, at least one engine or velocity piece, and a payoff path through Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, Storm of Memories, or chained impulse effects.
Avoid when: Ship hands with no red source, no castable early action, only expensive payoff, or multiple modal lands that cannot support turn-one or turn-two development.
Instructions: Prefer six-card functional hands over seven-card piles that require drawing both mana and action; bottom redundant expensive payoff before cutting red access or the first engine.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: First Engine Setup
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mana; priority
Cards: Ruby Medallion; Ral, Monsoon Mage; Strike It Rich; Pinnacle Monk; Valakut Awakening; Shatterskull Smashing; Sundering Eruption
Phase windows: turns 1-3 main phase
Runtime cues: action:cast Ruby Medallion; action:cast Ral, Monsoon Mage; action:play land
Use when: Establish the first cost reducer or engine before spending rituals if the hand still has follow-up velocity and the opponent is not presenting an immediate lethal clock.
Avoid when: The current turn can already convert rituals into a payoff, or visible interaction/pressure makes a tap-out engine unlikely to matter before the next decision.
Instructions: Sequence modal lands to preserve red; deploy Ruby Medallion before red instants and sorceries when it changes same-turn spell count.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Modal Land Commitment
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mana; selection
Cards: Valakut Awakening; Shatterskull Smashing; Sundering Eruption; Pinnacle Monk
Phase windows: main phase; land play prompt
Runtime cues: action:play Valakut Awakening; action:play Shatterskull Smashing; action:play Sundering Eruption; action:play Pinnacle Monk
Use when: Choose land mode to unlock red mana, hit early land count, or make future Jeska's Will, Goblin Charbelcher, Wish, and ritual chains castable.
Avoid when: The spell side is the only visible removal, velocity, or payoff needed this turn and land count is already sufficient.
Instructions: Treat the first red-producing land as mandatory infrastructure; after enough mana is secured, keep spell-side modal cards if the action text indicates immediate combo or interaction relevance.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Ritual Commitment Gate
Priority: High
Decision families: mana; priority
Cards: Pyretic Ritual; Strike It Rich; Manamorphose; Jeska's Will; Irencrag Feat; Ruby Medallion; Ral, Monsoon Mage
Phase windows: main phase; priority with stack empty
Runtime cues: action:cast Pyretic Ritual; action:cast Strike It Rich; action:cast Jeska's Will; action:cast Irencrag Feat
Use when: Start ritual chaining only when visible hand, exile cards, graveyard permissions, or Wish access show a realistic route to payoff or a protected reload.
Avoid when: Rituals only produce floating mana into pass, or spending them reduces the ability to cast the next visible engine after interruption.
Instructions: Count exact floating mana, discounts, storm count, exile windows, and remaining red sources before the first non-reversible ritual.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Manamorphose Color Fix
Priority: Low
Decision families: mana; selection
Cards: Manamorphose; Wish; Tendrils of Agony; Underworld Breach; Grapeshot
Phase windows: main phase; mana choice prompt
Runtime cues: action:choose red Manamorphose; action:choose black Manamorphose; action:choose mana Manamorphose
Use when: Select colors that cast the next visible spell in hand, exile, graveyard permission, or sideboard access this turn.
Avoid when: The needed color is unknown because the payoff line has not been chosen.
Instructions: Favor red for ongoing chain spells; choose black only when a visible Tendrils of Agony or Bloodsoaked Insight line requires it and legal mana text supports that choice.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Velocity Before Payoff
Priority: Medium
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Reckless Impulse; Wrenn's Resolve; Bloodsoaked Insight; Valakut Awakening; Storm of Memories; Ruby Medallion
Phase windows: main phase; stack empty
Runtime cues: action:cast Reckless Impulse; action:cast Wrenn's Resolve; action:cast Bloodsoaked Insight; action:cast Storm of Memories
Use when: Cast velocity before payoff when mana remains to use the revealed cards and the chain needs more rituals, discount pieces, or a closer.
Avoid when: The current visible line already has lethal payoff, or exile timing would strand high-impact cards before they can be cast.
Instructions: Use Ruby Medallion discounts before low-cost velocity when possible; Card text check required for Bloodsoaked Insight and Storm of Memories, so follow only legal action text and visible generated options.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Goblin Charbelcher Commitment
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; mana
Cards: Goblin Charbelcher; Irencrag Feat; Jeska's Will; Pyretic Ritual; Strike It Rich; Manamorphose
Phase windows: main phase; priority with stack empty
Runtime cues: action:cast Goblin Charbelcher; action:activate Goblin Charbelcher
Use when: Commit Goblin Charbelcher when the deck can cast and activate it soon, or when waiting exposes the hand to a faster visible loss.
Avoid when: Casting it consumes all mana with no activation path and the opponent has visible pressure or open interaction that makes another engine line safer.
Instructions: Prefer same-turn activation when available; otherwise ensure the board state permits surviving to untap.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Goblin Charbelcher Opponent Target
Priority: High
Decision families: interaction; selection
Cards: Goblin Charbelcher
Phase windows: target prompt after activation
Runtime cues: action:target opponent Goblin Charbelcher
Use when: The pending prompt is for Goblin Charbelcher target selection and exactly one opponent player target is listed by the legal actions.
Avoid when: Multiple non-opponent targets are listed and the action text does not identify an opponent player target.
Instructions: Select the opponent player target for the deterministic kill attempt after activation has already been chosen.
Pilot skill floor: no-api
No-API allowed: yes
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Wish Payoff Selection
Priority: High
Decision families: selection; priority
Cards: Wish; Grapeshot; Tendrils of Agony; Empty the Warrens; Underworld Breach; Galvanic Relay; Alchemist's Gambit; Goblin Charbelcher; Irencrag Feat; Storm of Memories
Phase windows: main phase; Wish resolution
Runtime cues: action:choose Grapeshot; action:choose Tendrils of Agony; action:choose Empty the Warrens; action:choose Underworld Breach; action:choose Goblin Charbelcher
Use when: Choose the sideboard card that converts the current mana, storm count, graveyard, and opponent life/board state into a win or a durable reload.
Avoid when: A target is attractive by name but cannot be cast, cannot matter before the next opponent turn, or depends on unverified card text.
Instructions: Prefer deterministic lethal over delayed pressure; use Empty the Warrens when tokens are enough against visible interaction and life totals; Card text check required for Alchemist's Gambit, Galvanic Relay, Vexing Bauble, Untimely Malfunction, and Lithomantic Barrage.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Grapeshot Opponent Target
Priority: High
Decision families: selection; interaction
Cards: Grapeshot; Wish
Phase windows: target prompt during payoff resolution
Runtime cues: action:target opponent Grapeshot
Use when: The pending Grapeshot or copied Grapeshot action lists an opponent player target and the line selected Grapeshot as the payoff.
Avoid when: The prompt asks for divided or multiple targets and opponent lethal is not determined from visible copy count and life total.
Instructions: Target the opponent player with each deterministic lethal copy when legal action text exposes that target.
Pilot skill floor: no-api
No-API allowed: yes
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Tendrils Opponent Target
Priority: High
Decision families: selection; interaction
Cards: Tendrils of Agony; Wish
Phase windows: target prompt during payoff resolution
Runtime cues: action:target opponent Tendrils of Agony
Use when: The pending Tendrils of Agony or copied Tendrils of Agony action lists an opponent player target and visible storm copies are the selected payoff line.
Avoid when: The legal action text does not identify the opponent player target.
Instructions: Target the opponent player with deterministic drain copies after choosing the Tendrils line.
Pilot skill floor: no-api
No-API allowed: yes
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Underworld Breach Commitment
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Underworld Breach; Wish; Pyretic Ritual; Manamorphose; Strike It Rich; Jeska's Will; Grapeshot; Tendrils of Agony
Phase windows: main phase; graveyard permission windows
Runtime cues: action:cast Underworld Breach; action:cast card from graveyard
Use when: Commit to Underworld Breach only when public graveyard, mana, and visible payoff access can sustain repeated casts this turn.
Avoid when: Graveyard count is too small, required colors are missing, or visible hate/pressure makes a partial reload insufficient.
Instructions: Recalculate escape costs and remaining graveyard cards after every cast; never assume hidden cards or unlisted graveyard access.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Storm Payoff Threshold
Priority: High
Decision families: priority; selection
Cards: Grapeshot; Tendrils of Agony; Empty the Warrens; Storm of Memories; Wish
Phase windows: main phase; payoff casting window
Runtime cues: action:cast Grapeshot; action:cast Tendrils of Agony; action:cast Empty the Warrens; action:cast Storm of Memories
Use when: Fire a storm payoff when visible storm count, mana, and opponent life or board state make the result immediately decisive or clearly safer than waiting.
Avoid when: The payoff creates nonlethal damage or tokens while the hand can still increase storm without exposing a new vulnerability.
Instructions: Count copies from rules-engine output, not memory; use Empty the Warrens as pressure only when it beats the visible clock or interaction profile.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Shatterskull And Sundering Interaction
Priority: Medium
Decision families: interaction; mana
Cards: Shatterskull Smashing; Sundering Eruption; Lithomantic Barrage; Untimely Malfunction
Phase windows: main phase; combat-adjacent priority; removal target prompts
Runtime cues: action:cast Shatterskull Smashing; action:cast Sundering Eruption; action:cast Lithomantic Barrage; action:cast Untimely Malfunction
Use when: Use interaction only when it removes a visible blocker, hate piece, planeswalker, or lethal-clock source that prevents the combo from resolving or surviving.
Avoid when: Removal consumes mana needed for a same-turn combo and the target does not change the current clock or legality of the planned line.
Instructions: Card text check required for Lithomantic Barrage, Untimely Malfunction, and Sundering Eruption; obey exact legal targets and damage modes shown by Forge.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Combat Minimalism
Priority: Low
Decision families: combat
Cards: Ral, Monsoon Mage; Pinnacle Monk; Empty the Warrens
Phase windows: beginning of combat; declare attackers; declare blockers
Runtime cues: action:attack; action:block
Use when: Attack only when damage advances a visible lethal plan without risking an engine creature or needed blocker; block only to preserve life against a short clock.
Avoid when: Combat trades away Ral, Monsoon Mage or Pinnacle Monk before their mana/engine role is exhausted, or when token pressure from Empty the Warrens already wins by staying wide.
Instructions: Treat combat as secondary to spell-chain execution; route any multi-attacker, multi-blocker, or lethal-race choice through light-model.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Pass Priority Discipline
Priority: Medium
Decision families: priority; interaction
Cards: none
Phase windows: opponent turn; end step; stack interaction window
Runtime cues: action:pass priority; action:pass turn
Use when: Pass only after confirming no legal action improves mana, preserves survival, protects a selected line, or converts floating mana before it empties.
Avoid when: Floating mana, exile-window cards, pending storm count, or visible opponent lethal pressure makes a current legal action time-sensitive.
Instructions: Passing with interaction available requires a reason tied to visible stack, mana, or clock; never assume the opponent lacks follow-up.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Exact Mana Payment After Line Selection
Priority: Medium
Decision families: mana
Cards: Ruby Medallion; Manamorphose; Pyretic Ritual; Strike It Rich; Jeska's Will; Irencrag Feat; Mox Amber
Phase windows: mana payment prompts
Runtime cues: action:pay mana; action:activate mana ability; action:choose mana source
Use when: The spell or ability to cast has already been selected and the legal prompt lists exact mana-source or color choices.
Avoid when: Multiple payment choices affect future colors, floating mana, or whether another visible spell remains castable.
Instructions: Preserve red first, preserve black only for visible Tendrils of Agony or Bloodsoaked Insight requirements, and use temporary mana before permanent sources when legal text makes that distinction visible.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes

### Policy: Sideboard Role Selection
Priority: Medium
Decision families: sideboard
Cards: Mox Amber; Lithomantic Barrage; Vexing Bauble; Grapeshot; Underworld Breach; Untimely Malfunction; Alchemist's Gambit; Galvanic Relay; Empty the Warrens; Goblin Charbelcher; Irencrag Feat; Tendrils of Agony; Storm of Memories
Phase windows: between games; sideboard submission
Runtime cues: prompt:sideboard; match_stage:post-board
Use when: Adjust only within registered 75, matching sideboard roles to visible opponent speed, disruption, hate permanents, and whether the maindeck combo was too slow or too fragile.
Avoid when: Changes reduce red source access, Ruby Medallion density, ritual density, or payoff access below a functional combo threshold without a matchup-specific reason.
Instructions: Follow exact Sideboard Map plans when available; otherwise add role cards conservatively and preserve the core chain of Ruby Medallion, rituals, velocity, Wish, and Goblin Charbelcher.
Pilot skill floor: light-model
No-API allowed: no
Light-model allowed: yes
