Not a single one of the cards you mention is actually over costed when compared to an actual modern(I don't mean the format, it contains some old badly developed cards) day similar card.
Act on Impulse compared to Divination. Three cards vs two, not quite as strong as the Siege comparison but its still fairly costed.
A best comparison is between act on impulse and painful truths, also consider that with act on impulsion you are "drawing" cards only if you have a ton of mana (at least 6 mana, 5 if one of those is a land card) compare it with a straight draw 3 card and it's a really big difference. Wizard should cost this effects way more aggresively or make them instants.
Comparing Act on Impulse to Painful Truths is a terrible comparison. One is essentially a three color card while the other is mono color, would you compare Fiery Justice and Boulderfall and say that Boulderfall is overcosted? If you want to compare cards you have to actually consider what and how the card does what it does. Act simply hits the top three, just like Divination hits the top two, while cards like Truths 'can' hit the top three but needs three colors of mana, so if actually comparing them it only hits the top card. If you want an actual comparison in black use Painful Lesson, both cost 3 and neither have extra limiters. So you can see that as I said, its hardly overcosted, it looks at 1 more card and doesn't cost you life.
Not a single one of the cards you mention is actually over costed when compared to an actual modern(I don't mean the format, it contains some old badly developed cards) day similar card.
I'm not certain what the question is here. Either way Gray Merchant of Asphodel doesn't damage its controller so it should never cause its user to drop to 0.
Though the question that seems to be being asked(answered?) here is if an effect causes you to drop to 0 then gain you life, if you would lose when you hit 0. The answer is no, if in the same effect you drop to 0 then gain life to above 0 then you won't lose the game. A simple way to do this is Fiery Justice. If you have Justice deal 5 damage to an opponent, they will gain 5 life before the game sees that they are at 0.
Renzala is a strange one. The gambling nature is interesting but it is a red technique caring about a green preference on a blue card. If you want to gamble then care about a blue thing, number of cards in hand, number of instants and/or sorcerys cast or in graveyard. Also they are probably too strong. Not because of how easily you can get its ability to work but because of how absurd its ability is if you get it to work. Three cards is a lot of advantage and could reasonably put you in a position to ensure that the next number you choose will be right. While it might be less fun and powerful making it a simple even/odd choice and only drawing one card would make the card play much better. As is, I would say too strong for standard, or as commander, but reasonable in eternal formats and part of the 99.
Sucram is weird. How many creatures am I supposed to play to ensure his ability is active? How many is too many? How many is too little? This is a nice little deck building game that could become far too frustrating when actually playing. The bonus is in a weird place too. The buff is reasonable but the impulse draw is vexing, if you hit a creature do you play it and lose the bonus, do you try and stack your deck with instants to take advantage of this? Overall probably too strong for standard but possibly fine for eternal and commander.
Rashmi's planar portal is merely 'redirecting aether' in the same way that television is merely 'redirecting electricity'. We don't have even the most basic of information about how her device actually works other than its POWERED by aether and required her aether condenser(this was originally going to be her submission to the fair but she found a use for it in the transporter) to function. Nahiri is more like Nissa, both manipulate leylines, one directly the other indirectly. So if they want to go the route of "all you need to cross planes is control of leylines/lots of mana" then Nahiri could build gates and Nissa could open portals.
605.1a An activated ability is a mana ability if it meets all of the following criteria: it doesn’t have a
target, it could put mana into a player’s mana pool when it resolves, and it’s not a loyalty
ability. (See rule 606, “Loyalty Abilities.”)
605.1b A triggered ability is a mana ability if it meets all of the following criteria: it doesn’t have a
target, it triggers from the resolution of an activated mana ability (see rule 106.11a), and it could
put mana into a player’s mana pool when it resolves
So yes, you can remove counters form Ramos to produce mana with its ability in reponse to KGrip
He also woke up the current dead and made them servants, so that could easily be the whole "he took them"
Second, he opened the tombs under the city and led the enchanted bodies of the dead out of their mausoleums and into the light. There were so many orphaned infants now, and the children would need caretakers.
We know that he hates being subservient to Niv, and can reasonably assume he'd find Bolas even worse.
Where are you getting this idea? You've floated it at least twice in this thread and its gone either unchallenged or unnoticed, but my understanding has been that Ral basically worships Niv and more fears disappointing him then hates being subservient. If you could point to what makes you think this it would really help.
It has been shown on the Secretist (return to Ravnica novella) and both stories Ral has appeared in. Ral worships the ideals of the Izzet but sees Niv as a nuisance that is holding him back and ignores his genious. Also he is afraid that if Niv discovers the existence of planeswalkers he will be the first specimen strapped in the dragons table to be cut open in order to find out what makes them planeswalk.
I've read those and they gave me the exact opposite understanding of Ral's opinion of Niv. The main reason he gives for not outing walkers is the damage it would do to Niv's ego, which implies he is trying to protect Niv first and then is concerned that he 'might' end up on a table.
So any quotes that specifically call this out would be much appreciated, because until Oathboundone mentioned it I had never considered Ral to be upset serving dragons. And obviously they are not the only one who views Ral's relationship this way; with you jumping in here.
I have been thinking about that as well and had an idea as I was watching the Black Panther trailer. My theory is this: From what we know the story of ixalan will have to do with finding a mythical lost city (think El Dorado). What if the plane itself is the multiverse's El Dorado? Something about it makes it hidden from magical means of detection like the Lightning Bug and possibly the Planar Portal. Not an actual void but a cloaking device. What if the only way to get to Ixalan is by accident or if you know how to find it, with a map or a guide? Pure speculation of course.
I dunno, in his conversation with Jace, Ral made it a point that Vraska didn't just planeswalk to an unknown plane, but that she really just vanished. I honestly expect more from this mystery than a hidden plane. I mean, if she planeswalked to a hidden plane, wouldn't she still leave a trail in the blind eternities?
The description of what happened matches a cloaked plane rather perfectly. In This Very Arena
Ral gave an impatient flick of his hand. "The experiment performed perfectly. The pattern of the departure was authentic, but the endpoint recorded as anomalous. Vraska hasn't been seen since. It's like she planeswalked into a void."
Jace saw the electrostatic pattern in Ral's mind, the recorded planeswalk that faded into a distinct patch of nowhere. He felt how much this troubled Ral. No other finding in his experiment had shown this pattern.
Bolded part for emphasis. These seem to lend plenty of weight to idea of a sort of 'you can't see this' area as opposed to an actual void.
We know that he hates being subservient to Niv, and can reasonably assume he'd find Bolas even worse.
Where are you getting this idea? You've floated it at least twice in this thread and its gone either unchallenged or unnoticed, but my understanding has been that Ral basically worships Niv and more fears disappointing him then hates being subservient. If you could point to what makes you think this it would really help.
2. Yes, all damage dealt to it will remove loyalty counters and be marked on them to check for lethal.
3. Both, damage dealt to a planeswalker results in the removal of loyalty counters, and the damage will still be marked on the creature to check for lethal.
4. Trample is kind of redundant here, all of the damage will be dealt to the planeswalker and will remove loyalty.
Gideon actually stays a planeswalker but prevents all damage. You're thinking of Sarkhan. This ruling from Gids answers your questions
If you activate Gideon Jura’s third ability and then unpreventable damage is dealt to him (due to Unstable Footing, for example), that damage has all applicable results: specifically, the damage is marked on Gideon Jura (since he’s a creature) and that damage causes that many loyalty counters to be removed from him (since he’s a planeswalker). If the total amount of damage marked on Gideon Jura is lethal damage, he’s destroyed as a state-based action. If Gideon Jura has no loyalty counters on him, he’s put into his owner’s graveyard as a state-based action.
announcing announcements! yay! how i've missed those!
or is this more like spoiling spoilers?
either way. this is hands down the one thing that i absolutely cannot stand about the modern era of magic. its exceptionally irritating to click a thing expecting news or a bit of information, or whatever, and then find out that no, its just an announcement that they're going to talk about it later.
This isn't announcing an announcement, though it's not quite an announcement itself. If they said find out next week what we plan, that would be announcing an announcement. This is fairly cut and dry, after Amonkhet episode 8 we get podcasts.
While true, its still essentially broadcasting that theyre going to... what? Use media the way they normally would? Its like a commercial for your local news station, except completely unnecessary.
So, someone asked what the plan for the creative slot after Amonkhet, they respond with 'the plan' and some how that is unnecessary? Trust me, I hate their insane announcing announcements bull that was going on earlier but this isn't anything like that. This is legitimate information that people asked for and were given, not even cryptically. They didn't say "Oh we have plans for C17 then other stuff" they specified that we are getting 5 podcasts then Ixalan story previews. This was unknown information and is much better than the cryptic bull we got last time making us expect commander stories when there wasn't going to be any.
announcing announcements! yay! how i've missed those!
or is this more like spoiling spoilers?
either way. this is hands down the one thing that i absolutely cannot stand about the modern era of magic. its exceptionally irritating to click a thing expecting news or a bit of information, or whatever, and then find out that no, its just an announcement that they're going to talk about it later.
This isn't announcing an announcement, though it's not quite an announcement itself. If they said find out next week what we plan, that would be announcing an announcement. This is fairly cut and dry, after Amonkhet episode 8 we get podcasts.
The closest comparison to Outpost Siege is Midnight Oil. The Siege is rather aggressively costed.
Act on Impulse compared to Divination. Three cards vs two, not quite as strong as the Siege comparison but its still fairly costed.
Rummaging Goblin vs Zephyr Scribe, or Seeker of Insight. Another hard comparison but I wouldn't say that the Goblin is overcosted, maybe underpowered but not overcosted.
Though the question that seems to be being asked(answered?) here is if an effect causes you to drop to 0 then gain you life, if you would lose when you hit 0. The answer is no, if in the same effect you drop to 0 then gain life to above 0 then you won't lose the game. A simple way to do this is Fiery Justice. If you have Justice deal 5 damage to an opponent, they will gain 5 life before the game sees that they are at 0.
Sucram is weird. How many creatures am I supposed to play to ensure his ability is active? How many is too many? How many is too little? This is a nice little deck building game that could become far too frustrating when actually playing. The bonus is in a weird place too. The buff is reasonable but the impulse draw is vexing, if you hit a creature do you play it and lose the bonus, do you try and stack your deck with instants to take advantage of this? Overall probably too strong for standard but possibly fine for eternal and commander.
So any quotes that specifically call this out would be much appreciated, because until Oathboundone mentioned it I had never considered Ral to be upset serving dragons. And obviously they are not the only one who views Ral's relationship this way; with you jumping in here.
Bolded part for emphasis. These seem to lend plenty of weight to idea of a sort of 'you can't see this' area as opposed to an actual void.
2. Yes, all damage dealt to it will remove loyalty counters and be marked on them to check for lethal.
3. Both, damage dealt to a planeswalker results in the removal of loyalty counters, and the damage will still be marked on the creature to check for lethal.
4. Trample is kind of redundant here, all of the damage will be dealt to the planeswalker and will remove loyalty.
Gideon actually stays a planeswalker but prevents all damage. You're thinking of Sarkhan. This ruling from Gids answers your questions