Abyssal Persecutor
Creature — Demon
Flying, trample
You can't win the game and your opponents can't lose the game.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- Commander 2014
- Price
- $2.12
- EDHREC rank
- #6352
Abyssal Persecutor puts a 6/6 flying trample body on the board for four mana — that stat line dominates most combat math in Commander. The cost is literal: you cannot win while you control it, so you need a plan to remove it on your own terms, or you hand the table a lock piece to exploit.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Jon Irenicus, Shattered One
Jon Irenicus, Shattered One gifts Abyssal Persecutor to an opponent, offloading the 'you can't win' clause entirely while keeping the political chaos — and if that opponent dies or sacrifices it, the curse moves on.
Blim, Comedic Genius
Blim, Comedic Genius exists to donate permanents that punish their new controller, and Abyssal Persecutor is one of the cleanest gifts in the format — the recipient can't win the game until they figure out how to get rid of it.
Abigale, Eloquent First-Year
Abigale, Eloquent First-Year cares about high-power creatures to copy or leverage, and Abyssal Persecutor's 6/6 body clears that bar easily while Abigale's sacrifice or bounce effects provide a built-in exit ramp from the drawback.
The Beamtown Bullies
The Beamtown Bullies reanimate creatures onto opponents at instant speed, and dropping Abyssal Persecutor onto someone else's battlefield turns their end step into a crisis — they're stuck with a 6/6 they didn't ask for and a win condition they can no longer access.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Abyssal Persecutor is a build-around rather than a staple — the drawback is a feature in donation and curse strategies, and a liability in everything else. In Legacy and Vintage, it competes in a field of faster threats and more reliable payoffs; the four-mana slot is crowded and the self-imposed restriction rarely fits a streamlined game plan, so it sees minimal play. Modern is similar — the format has moved fast enough that a four-mana creature needs to end the game immediately or protect itself, and Abyssal Persecutor does neither without dedicated support. The card's natural home has always been Commander, where the political dimensions of its drawback can be turned into an engine.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$2.12 cheap tier
At $2.12, Abyssal Persecutor sits in budget territory and is an easy inclusion for donation or curse builds without straining a deckbuilding budget. The price reflects its narrow demand — it's not a staple you slot into any black deck, so don't expect significant movement in either direction.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.