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Gollum the Abandoned

HOB · uncommon · Released 2026-08-14

Power

brawl
tier-1Strong staple15/19
commander
tier-1Strong staple15/19

Tier shown as baseline → best-case (in its ideal shell). The score (-8 to 19) is a rank signal derived from tier + kind + atoms; browse by it on the cards page.

Derived from the 7 atoms below.

over

above rate

standalone

meaningful alone

synergy

wants support

scales

scales up

flexible

multiple modes

broad

broadly useful

recurring

comes back

Commander Bracket

1Precon2Core3Upgraded4Optimized5cEDH

Archetypes

positive:
aristocratssacrificegraveyard-mattersanti-graveyard
negative:

No active conflicts.

Roles

anti-graveyarddrainrecursion-creaturesacrifice-outletevasion-grant

Risks

requires-artifact-densityrequires-creature-densitysorcery-speed-only

Mechanics

Typal

synergy:
halflinghorror
anti:

Structural

triggered-abilityactivated-abilitystatic-ability

Rationale

2cmc 2/2 that drains each opponent for 2 on ETB while exiling a graveyard card, then recurs itself by sacrificing an artifact or creature — a compact, self-sustaining aristocrats/graveyard-hate package. Signature in sacrifice/aristocrats shells where recurring it is cheap and the drain accumulates over multiple loops; also valuable in anti-graveyard builds as repeatable hate. Can't block is a minor downside but doesn't conflict with its core role as a sacrifice-engine engine piece.

Learnings (3)

  • Gollum's recursion cost requires sacrificing an artifact OR creature — in artifact-heavy aristocrats lists this is trivially paid, but in creature-only sacrifice shells you must also sacrifice creatures, which can conflict with your own board.

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

  • The ETB drain hits EACH opponent, making Gollum significantly stronger in multiplayer Commander (3 opponents = 6 life drained per bounce loop) than in 1v1 Brawl (only 2 life per recurrence).

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

  • Because the recursion returns Gollum to hand (not battlefield), you avoid the commander tax by recasting from hand, but it also means you can loop him through the graveyard in non-commander formats freely.

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

Popularity

  • EDHREC rank: #29,623