Raph & Leo, Sibling Rivals enters Standard as a highly aggressive build-around that rewards proactive combat sequencing and board development. In formats where curving out and applying early pressure are key, a card that naturally pushes combat damage can immediately slot into Magic: the Gathering Boros or Mardu shells & deck build looking to close games quickly.

Its biggest strength lies in enabling an additional combat phase, which dramatically increases the ceiling of any board-centric strategy. Extra combat steps not only double attack triggers but also amplify the effectiveness of go-wide pressure, forcing opponents into difficult blocks and stretching removal thin. Even modest boards can suddenly represent lethal damage when they swing twice.

The added combat phase becomes especially dangerous when combined with anthem effects and temporary pump spells. Cards that grant +1/+1 to the team or provide instant-speed power boosts scale exponentially when applied across two combat steps, effectively turning incremental buffs into game-ending bursts. Sequencing an anthem before the first attack can create overwhelming damage output that few midrange decks can stabilize against.

Ultimately, this card thrives in an environment where creature density is high, and removal is either sorcery-speed or inefficient. If Standard supports strong anthem effects and token production, this card could anchor a top-tier aggressive archetype built around maximizing combat math and punishing slow starts.

Stay tuned for a possible Standard deck tech blog post related to this card. Thanks for reading.