
Cecil, Dark Knight
Legendary Creature — Human Knight
Deathtouch
Darkness — Whenever Cecil deals damage, you lose that much life. Then if your life total is less than or equal to half your starting life total, untap Cecil and transform it.
"I suppose this is my fate as a dark knight. Soon, I won't even feel remorse for my actions."
2 / 3
Commander bracket
Derived from card traits, not a ruling — bracket rules turn on how a deck intends to use a card. Bracket rules
EDHREC
Combos
Not part of any combo on Commander Spellbook.
Commander recommendations
Top synergy 50
Played far more in this commander's decks than elsewhere.
- Dark Confidant
- Kain, Traitorous Dragoon
- Pact Weapon
- K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth
- Rosa, Resolute White Mage
- Feed the Swarm
- Dion, Bahamut's Dominant
- Children of Korlis
- Aerith Gainsborough
- The Wind Crystal
- Darkstar Augur
- Squall, SeeD Mercenary
- General's Enforcer
- Bastion Protector
- Dark Knight's Greatsword
- Unspeakable Symbol
- Night's Whisper
- Knight Exemplar
- Toxic Deluge
- Phyrexian Arena
- Black Market Connections
- Excalibur II
- Vona, Butcher of Magan
- Restoration Magic
- Tymna the Weaver
- Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
- Repay in Kind
- The Darkness Crystal
- Infernal Grasp
- Wall of Blood
- Tainted Sigil
- Bolas's Citadel
- Greed
- Odric, Lunarch Marshal
- Sign in Blood
- Rogue's Passage
- Enduring Tenacity
- Mister Negative
- Withering Torment
- Dismember
- Swiftfoot Boots
- Blood Celebrant
- Reanimate
- Vilis, Broker of Blood
- Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff
- Exsanguinate
- Sword of the Animist
- Summon: Primal Odin
- Castle Locthwain
- Bloodthirsty Conqueror
Most included 50
Highest share of decks running them, distinctive or not.
- Swamp
- Plains
- Command Tower
- Sol Ring
- Arcane Signet
- Caves of Koilos
- Isolated Chapel
- Swords to Plowshares
- Dark Confidant
- Talisman of Hierarchy
- Godless Shrine
- Phyrexian Arena
- Anguished Unmaking
- Kain, Traitorous Dragoon
- Path to Exile
- Black Market Connections
- Pact Weapon
- Night's Whisper
- Feed the Swarm
- K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth
- Toxic Deluge
- Rosa, Resolute White Mage
- Swiftfoot Boots
- Children of Korlis
- The Wind Crystal
- Damn
- Shattered Sanctum
- Aerith Gainsborough
- Rogue's Passage
- Dark Ritual
- Dion, Bahamut's Dominant
- Sign in Blood
- Fetid Heath
- Darkstar Augur
- Orzhov Signet
- Bojuka Bog
- Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff
- Squall, SeeD Mercenary
- Bolas's Citadel
- Vault of Champions
- Tainted Field
- Vault of the Archangel
- Reanimate
- General's Enforcer
- Bastion Protector
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose
- Shineshadow Snarl
- Enduring Tenacity
- Marsh Flats
- Unspeakable Symbol
Format legality
Rulings
- 2025-06-06
A nonmodal double-faced card enters with its front face up by default, unless a spell or ability instructs you to put it onto the battlefield transformed or allows you to cast it transformed, in which case it enters with its back face up.
- 2025-06-06
A token that is created as a copy of a double-faced permanent or a double-faced card in another zone is a double-faced token. It will have both the front face and back face of whatever object it's copying. If it's copying a double-faced permanent whose back face is up, the token will enter with its back face up. It can transform if instructed to do so.
- 2025-06-06
Each face of a nonmodal double-faced card has its own set of characteristics: name, types, subtypes, abilities, and so on. While a nonmodal double-faced permanent is on the battlefield, consider only the characteristics of the face that's currently up. The other set of characteristics is ignored.
- 2025-06-06
Each nonmodal double-faced card in this release is cast face up. In every zone other than the battlefield, consider only the characteristics of its front face. If it is on the battlefield, consider only the characteristics of the face that's up; the other face's characteristics are ignored.
- 2025-06-06
If Cecil, Dark Knight is dealt lethal damage at the same time it deals damage (probably because it blocked or became blocked), its last ability will still trigger. You'll still lose life, but you won't untap or transform Cecil, Dark Knight because it won't be on the battlefield anymore.
- 2025-06-06
If you are instructed to put a card that isn't a double-faced card onto the battlefield transformed, it will not enter at all. In that case, it stays in the zone it was previously in. For example, if a single-faced card is a copy of Crystal Fragments, it will be exiled during the resolution of its second ability and remain in exile.
- 2025-06-06
In the Commander variant, a double-faced card's color identity is determined by the mana costs and mana symbols in the rules text of both faces combined. If either face has a color indicator or basic land type, those are also considered. For example, Cecil, Dark Knight's color identity is black and white, since its front face is black and its back face has a white color indicator.
- 2025-06-06
The back face of a nonmodal double-faced card usually has a color indicator that defines its color.
- 2025-06-06
The mana value of a nonmodal double-faced card is the mana value of its front face, no matter which face is up.