Abattoir Ghoul

Creature — Zombie

First strike
Whenever a creature dealt damage by this creature this turn dies, you gain life equal to that creature's toughness.

CMC
4
Mana cost
{3}{B}
Color identity
B
Rarity
uncommon
Set
Duel Decks: Blessed vs. Cursed
Price
$0.13
EDHREC rank
#19769
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Abattoir Ghoul card art
Abattoir Ghoul trades combat into life gain — anything it kills pads your life total, and first strike means it usually survives the trade. Four mana for a 3/2 is an inefficient rate, and that's the ceiling on how seriously to take it.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander
legacy
modern
pioneer
standard
vintage
pauper
oathbreaker

In Commander, Abattoir Ghoul occupies the low end of playable — the life gain triggers in multiplayer combat, but four mana for a 3/2 first striker is a body that gets outclassed fast, and most life-gain commanders can find denser payoffs. In Legacy and Vintage, the card never sees play; the format's power ceiling makes a 3/2 with conditional life gain invisible. Modern has better options at every point on the curve. Abattoir Ghoul is legal in Oathbreaker, where the same Commander logic applies: fine in a dedicated drain shell, skippable everywhere else.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$0.13 bulk tier

At $0.13, Abattoir Ghoul is deep bulk — pick it out of a commons box, not a singles listing. The price is stable because demand is low and supply is permanent; don't expect movement in either direction.

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Mentioned

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    Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.