Nihiloor wants a deck that gains life over and over and gets rewarded for it. It also suits a deck that steals its opponents' creatures and spells.
Mana cost
White, Blue, Black ()
Power / toughness3 / 5
RarityMythic
When Nihiloor enters, for each opponent, tap up to one untapped creature you control. When you do, gain control of target creature that player controls with power less than or equal to the tapped creature's power for as long as you control Nihiloor.
Whenever you attack with a creature an opponent owns, you gain 2 life and that player loses 2 life.
Picked for what they do in Nihiloor's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Nihiloor's color identity.Mana ValueThe total amount of mana a card costs, all added up. A card costing two generic and one green has a mana value of three. Wizards renamed this from "converted mana cost" in 2021, so older cards and articles may still use the old name.Open the full glossary
explain how Nihiloor works in tricky situations. They come from Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic.RulingThe official answer to how a card works in a tricky situation. Most rulings are written by Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic, and a few are notes from Scryfall, the card database Magic players use. A ruling explains a card. It does not change what the card says.Open the full glossary
Wizards of the Coast23 Jul 2021
As Nihiloor's first triggered ability resolves, you choose up to one creature for each opponent, and tap them all at the same time. Then, a separate triggered ability is put on the stack for each creature you tapped this way. Those abilities are placed on the stack in the order you choose. If tapping those creature caused any other abilities you control to trigger, those are also placed on the stack at this time.
Wizards of the Coast23 Jul 2021
Both the tapped creature's power and the target creature's power are checked both as you put the ability on the stack and as the ability resolves in order to make sure the target is legal.
Wizards of the Coast23 Jul 2021
If a creature you tapped for Nihiloor's ability is somehow no longer tapped as the reflexive triggered ability resolves, that ability will still resolve and you will still gain control of the target as long as it has less power than the creature you tapped.
Wizards of the Coast23 Jul 2021
If Nihiloor leaves the battlefield before its enters-the-battlefield ability resolves or before its reflexive triggered abilities resolve, then you won't gain control of any creatures.
Wizards of the Coast23 Jul 2021
If the tapped creature is no longer on the battlefield as the trigger resolves, use its last existence on the battlefield to determine whether the target is still legal as the ability resolves.
Color identityEvery color of mana symbol on a card, in its cost and in its rules text. Your commander's color identity sets the limit for your whole deck: every other card has to fit inside it. A deck led by a green and white commander cannot play a card with any blue in its color identity.Open the full glossaryWUBPlayers write colors as letters: W for white, U for blue, B for black. Blue is U because B was already taken by black.LifegainLifegain decks gain life over and over and use cards that reward each gain with extra cards, creatures or damage to opponents. Everyone starts at 40 life in Commander, so the extra life also keeps you safe while you set up.Open the Lifegain pageLife DrainAn opponent loses life and you gain that life from the same effect. Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat. It lets Aristocrats decks win without ever attacking. Every drain card is also tagged Life Gain; this tag is the part where the life comes out of somebody.Open the Life Drain pageLifegain EngineGains you life again and again, on a trigger that keeps happening, rather than once. You start at 40 life in Commander, so life is something to spend as well as a cushion, and a card like this sets off every card that rewards you for gaining it. Soul Warden, Trostani, Selesnya's VoiceOpen the Lifegain Engine pageTheftTakes something that belongs to an opponent: a creature, another permanent, or even a spell cast straight off the top of their deck. Act of Treason, Hellkite TyrantOpen the Theft pageTheftTheft decks take control of opponents' creatures and other cards, or cast spells from their decks, and use them against them. Some steals last one turn so you can attack with the borrowed creature; others are permanent.Open the Theft pageMass TheftTakes many permanents at once rather than one. It often takes the whole table's creatures for a turn, which frequently ends the game on the spot. Insurrection, Hellkite TyrantOpen the Mass Theft pageETB ValueDoes something useful the moment it arrives: an enter the battlefield ability, which players shorten to ETB. You keep that effect even if the card is removed straight afterwards, which is why these pair so well with flicker cards that make them enter again. Solemn Simulacrum, The One RingOpen the ETB Value pageAristocratsAristocrats decks sacrifice their own creatures on purpose and profit every time one dies, often by draining life from each opponent. A sacrifice outlet, a card that lets you sacrifice whenever you like, decides when that happens.Open the Aristocrats pageLife GainGains you life, once or over and over. Soul Warden, The Great Henge. In Commander life is something to spend, not just a cushion, and many of these cards also set off others that reward gaining life.Open the Life Gain page
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