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Commander Nexus
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  3. The Balrog, Durin's Bane

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The Balrog, Durin's Bane

The Balrog, Durin's Bane

Legendary Creature — Avatar Demon

The Balrog, Durin's Bane wants a deck that sacrifices its own creatures to drain opponents' life. It also works in a deck built around Avatars, Demons or Legends Matter.

  • Mana cost5 genericblackred
  • Black, Red ()
  • Power / toughness7 / 5
  • RarityRare

This spell costs 1 generic less to cast for each permanent sacrificed this turn.

Haste

The Balrog can't be blocked except by legendary creatures.

When The Balrog dies, destroy target artifact or creature an opponent controls.

Build a deck with The Balrog Find it in the app

Archetypes

Cards That Fit The Balrog, Durin's Bane

Picked for what they do in The Balrog's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit The Balrog'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.Sol RingOpen the full glossary

plan6

The 6 Cards

plan6

The 6 Cards

Rulings for The Balrog, Durin's Bane

explain how The Balrog 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 Coast 16 Jun 2023

The Balrog, Durin's Bane's first ability can't reduce its cost to less than {B}{R}.

Wizards of the Coast 16 Jun 2023

The Balrog, Durin's Bane's first ability counts every permanent that was sacrificed this turn, by any player.

2 rulings, all written by Wizards of the Coast. Read the originals on Gatherer ↗

Similar Commanders

Commanders that share the most with The Balrog, and what they share.

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 glossaryBRPlayers write colors as letters: B for black, R for red.AristocratsAristocrats 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 pageDeath TriggerTriggers when a creature dies, whether it is this creature, one of yours or an opponent's. These are the cards that pay you in an Aristocrats deck: something else makes creatures die, and these decide what you get each time. Blood Artist, Solemn SimulacrumOpen the Death Trigger pageLegends MatterCards that care about legendary cards: rewards for casting them, discounts, or bonuses for each one you control.Open the Legends Matter page