Overview

The Ruinous Powers is a Demon deck that leans on cascade. Abaddon the Despoiler has trample, and during your turn spells you cast from your hand with mana value X or less have cascade, where X is the total amount of life your opponents have lost this turn. The more damage and life loss you deal first, the more free spells you cast afterwards.

The 99 cards are 29 creatures, 10 artifacts, 5 enchantments, 10 instants, 7 sorceries and 38 lands. 17 of the creatures are Demons, and two of them have cascade themselves, Heralds of Tzeentch and Noise Marine, and spells such as Deny Reality and Bituminous Blast do too. The deck also has cards that reward casting spells from elsewhere, such as Keeper of Secrets, The Lost and the Damned and Poxwalkers, and plenty of burn and drain to turn Abaddon's trigger on.

Key Cards

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Be'lakor, the Dark Master
Card Draw · Damage
A 6/5 for {3}{U}{B}{R}. It has flying. When it enters you draw X cards and lose X life, where X is the number of Demons you control, and whenever another Demon you control enters, it deals damage equal to its power to any target.
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Great Unclean One
Drain · Token Maker
A 4/5 for {4}{B}. At the beginning of your end step, each opponent loses 2 life. Then for each opponent who has less life than you, create a 1/3 black Demon creature token named Plaguebearer of Nurgle.
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Bloodthirster
Extra Combat · Flying
A 6/6 for {5}{R}. It has flying and trample, and whenever it deals combat damage to a player, untap it, and after this phase there is an additional combat phase. It cannot attack a player it has already attacked this turn.
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The Ruinous Powers
Card Advantage · Life Loss
An enchantment for {2}{B}{R}. At the beginning of your upkeep, choose an opponent at random and exile the top card of that player's library. Until end of turn you may play that card, spending mana as though it were any color, and when you cast a spell this way its owner loses life equal to its mana value.

Playing the Deck

The early game is about mana and cheap Demons. Sol Ring, Chromatic Lantern, Talisman of Creativity, Talisman of Dominance, Talisman of Indulgence, Worn Powerstone and Commander's Sphere ramp you, and Dark Ritual gives a burst of black mana. Herald of Slaanesh makes Demon spells cost {2} less and gives other Demons haste, and Seeker of Slaanesh and Bloodcrusher of Khorne are four-mana Demons.

The middle of the game is about casting free spells. Heralds of Tzeentch, Noise Marine, Bituminous Blast and Let the Galaxy Burn have cascade, Dark Apostle and Sloppity Bilepiper give a spell cascade, and The Lost and the Damned makes a Spawn whenever you cast a spell from anywhere other than your hand. Magnus the Red makes your instants and sorceries cheaper for each creature token you control, and Pink Horror deals 2 damage whenever you cast an instant or sorcery.

The late game is about huge threats and a big drain. Mortarion, Daemon Primarch turns life loss into tokens, Lord of Change draws three cards, and Blood for the Blood God! discards your hand, draws eight cards and deals 8 damage to each opponent. The Horus Heresy steals nonlegendary creatures, Decree of Pain, Blasphemous Act and Mandate of Abaddon clear the board, and Past in Flames gives your graveyard instants and sorceries flashback.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths: The deck has a high density of powerful Demons and plenty of card advantage, so it can often cast several spells in one turn. It also has good interaction, including Chaos Warp, Kill! Maim! Burn!, Bile Blight, Chaos Mutation and Nurgle's Conscription, and several effects that punish opponents for gaining life, such as Plague Drone.

Weaknesses: Abaddon's trigger depends on opponents losing life first, so the deck has to find damage before the cascade starts, and a lot of its power is random, so its games vary. The deck has three colours with many double-coloured costs, and some of its cards, such as Be'lakor, cost you life as well.

Want to improve it? See the The Ruinous Powers upgrade guide: thirteen swaps with the data behind each one.

Verdict
The Ruinous Powers is a high-variance, high-power deck that delivers on its chaotic theme. It rewards players who enjoy cascade and big swingy turns, and with a few upgrades to its mana and removal it can be very strong.

Want to see what a fully optimised Abaddon the Despoiler build looks like? Try the Oracle.

✦ Build with The Oracle

Frequently Asked Questions

What cards are in the The Ruinous Powers decklist?
The The Ruinous Powers precon is a 100-card Commander deck led by Abaddon the Despoiler. The full The Ruinous Powers decklist, with every card, current prices and a button to copy the list into your deck builder, is on this page.

When was The Ruinous Powers released?
The Ruinous Powers was released on October 7, 2022 as part of Warhammer 40,000 Commander.

Who is the commander of The Ruinous Powers?
The Ruinous Powers is led by Abaddon the Despoiler, a Grixis (U/B/R) legendary creature.

How many creatures are in The Ruinous Powers?
The 99 cards besides Abaddon the Despoiler include 29 creatures.

How many lands does The Ruinous Powers have?
The Ruinous Powers has 38 lands in the 99 cards besides Abaddon the Despoiler, including basic lands.

Full Decklist

All 100 cards from the out-of-the-box The Ruinous Powers precon, with current prices. Click any card to expand it.

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