An Ode to Grand Abolisher
Magic 2012 is a set that introduced a handful of new cards that eventually went on to become mainstays in the Commander format. My favorite card from this set—and one of my favorite Magic cards in general—is Grand Abolisher. This card has become a staple in Commander decks that include white because of its ability to protect from interaction during its controller’s turn, especially in higher power or cEDH tables.
“Your superstitions and mumblings are useless chaff before my righteousness.”
This sentence might seem a little melodramatic, but it definitely gets the point across. While there are a few ways around this creature’s ability, the vast majority of your opponents’ game actions are nullified during your turn if you have a Grand Abolisher. This card does a fantastic job of showcasing white’s uncompromising attitude when it comes to rule-setting, fair play, and protection.
Grand Abolisher is not the most played card that debuted in Magic 2012. The only card that can credibly make that claim is Swiftboot Boots. That said, I believe that Grand Abolisher is the strongest card from Magic 2012. The only other serious contender is Phantasmal Image, which may very well wind up becoming a copy of Grand Abolisher anyway. It’s definitely up for debate.
During Your Turn…
When you have multiple opponents, stopping them from stopping you becomes much more important. This is exactly why Grand Abolisher can be so powerful.
The only thing that I like more than a Grand Abolisher on the battlefield is a Grand Abolisher that my opponents can’t see until its too late to respond. Green has a multitude of cards that can do this, including Eldritch Evolution. I play Pyre of Heroes in my favorite cEDH deck because of the ease with which I can do this by sacrificing cheap creatures in order to protect my win. People rarely see it coming.
Have you ever been staring down lethal and just needed one more uninterrupted more turn to swing the game in your favor? Grand Abolisher is here to help. You can even add in Teferi’s Protection to greatly increase your odds of survival while you set up for a massive turn where you’re protected from most forms of interaction. This is one of my favorite plays to make in casual Commander.
Remember that no one card can stop everything. Aside from lands, you might also run into abilities such as channel on cards such as Touch the Spirit Realm or even a planeswalker such as Teferi, Master of Time that can disrupt your plans. You won’t see these cards in every game, but you shouldn’t be too surprised if someone can occasionally stop you even if you have a Grand Abolisher.
If you like the idea of people not being able to cast spells during your turn, there are a whole bunch of other cards that are reminiscent of Grand Abolisher. They each come with their own advantages and disadvantages. I’m always excited to see new cards like this because I enjoy taking my turns in piece without someone interrupting me to cast spells or stop me from doing what I want to do.
The Art of Grand Abolisher
The original artwork for Grand Abolisher was created by Eric Deschamps for Magic 2012. While his look didn’t change much from concept to completion, I definitely think that he benefits from having a more open helmet design. I’ve seen a lot of discussion over the years about the real-world practicality of his double-sided flail and armor, but I think that this artwork is very evocative and iconic of its era in Magic’s history.
Grand Abolisher finally received new artwork in 2023 as part of a Secret Lair Drop showcasing the work of Randy Vargas. This version of the card was heavily inspired by The Stormlight Archive, a series of books by author and huge Magic fan Brandon Sanderson. This isn’t an official crossover, but the flavor text on the card does reference a famous quote from the series: “Journey before destination.”
We saw new artwork for Grand Abolisher again only a short time later in 2023’s Commander Masters. This artwork was created by Richard Kane Ferguson, and it clearly uses the original Deschamps depiction as a reference. From a purely artistic standpoint, this is my favorite depiction of Grand Abolisher to date. It’s always nice to get a borderless version of a beloved card, especially when it comes with entirely new flavor text.
The Big Score—the recent add-on to Outlaws at Thunder Junction—gave us two new versions of the card by Aurore Folny and David Astruga that depict the same character. This new Grand Abolisher fits perfectly into Thunder Junction’s theme. I fell in love with this character immediately due to his incredibly unique design that manages to incorporate various classic Western elements into one cohesive look.
I’m sure that we’ll keep seeing new interpretations of Grand Abolisher in the future. If you’re anything like me, you also look forward to having more choices for your favorite cards that allow you to customize your decks with the perfect artwork and flavor text. I happen to own every single printing of Grand Abolisher to date, and I doubt that I’ll stop collecting them any time soon.
Conclusion
I’m a guy who knows what he wants, which is being able to take my turn knowing that my opponents typically won’t be able to stop me from doing powerful things. Is that really too much to ask? Save your counterspells for the real threat. I promise that I’m not doing anything that you need to worry about…yet. Thanks for sticking with me while I discuss one of my favorite cards to play in Commander.
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