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Geralf Cecani
Geralf
Details
Race Human
Birthplace Thraben, Innistrad
Lifetime Mending Era

Geralf III Cecani[1] (Gehr-alf Seh-sahn-nee)[2] is a blue-aligned necromancer from Innistrad. He has a rivalry with his twin sister Gisa Cecani.[3]

Description[ | ]

Young Geralf is an expert "stitcher" or "skaaberen". He considers his skaabs — shambling corpses stitched together from disparate body parts - works of art. The crazed Geralf has no social bounds when showcasing his latest creations to the world. He is known to have grand ambitions while his sister is far less formal and driven by her whims.

History[ | ]

The Cecani twins were scions of a noble family and distant relatives of the former Lunarch Mikaeus.[4][3] They were banished from Thraben in a hushed scandal and then moved to the Moorland, where they waged war against one another by raising armies of undead. Their battles prompted many of the Moorland's inhabitants to move to the Nearheath, leaving the area even more desolate than before. Now, marauding ghouls range freely through the moors, lost playthings in the mad, epic battles of Gisa and Geralf.[5]

Geralf took over Trostad, most likely massacring the inhabitants who didn't flee. In response, Gisa has attacked Trostad simply to best her brother.[5]

NecroWarfare[ | ]

Later on, the two would plan on waging a war against one another. Geralf had tried to set formal rules, named The Five Laws of NecroWarfare:

  1. No spontaneous awakenings.
  2. No luring, killing, or raising of bystanders or livestock.
  3. Combatants face off at a predetermined place and time.[6]
  4. Combatants must have at least three limbs to play.
  5. Headquarters are off-limits.

After Gisa retrieved the magical sword the Bloodletter, Geralf added the rule:

  1. No magical swords.[1][6]

Gisa however would have none of this and considered all was free game, frequently defying Geralf's rules if only to infuriate her brother. The engagement was called off when Geralf decided to invade Thraben and invited Gisa along. Geralf snuck into the city before the attack to kill Mikaeus. Later he met up with Liliana, who shortly thereafter brought Mikaeus back as a zombie. Gisa was left with tending to the siege, having gained control of Geralf's Skaabs along with her conventional undead. The army broke the outer wall of the city before being pushed back by the fire, causing Gisa to abandon the siege. Odric, a champion of the church, captured Gisa and held her imprisoned in Rider's Lock.[7]

Geralf is the creator and master of the zombie Grimgrin, named such in honor of his sister's face.[4]

Aftermath of the Necro war[ | ]

Geralf sent a horde of skaabs to set his sister free, although she stated afterward that she didn't need his help.[8] She wanted to reinstate the war, but Geralf was occupied with creating what he called his masterpiece, under the wing of the alchemist Ludevic. Gisa retreated to the manor of their parents, ruined by a fight between the siblings in their youth. She later revived her parents as zombies, but sent her father back into the ground. She found a new friend in the lithomancer Nahiri and provided the ghouls to build the Drownyard temple.

Shadows over Innistrad[ | ]

When Liliana Vess was going to raise an army of zombies to fight the hordes of Eldrazi that had invaded the plane, Gisa and Geralf briefly managed to put their differences aside to join her and team up against the Eldrazi.[9]

Midnight Hunt[ | ]

Two years after fighting the Eldrazi alongside his sister, Geralf still lived with Ludevic. He hadn't seen his sister in this period until he received a letter from her brought by a zombie programmed by Gisa to cry without stopping. Geralf wrote to his sister that he wanted nothing to do with her and told her she deserved her boring life in Thraben. After Wilhelt's forces besieged the city and Gisa repelled his attack, the ghoulcaller declared her intention to move in with him, to Geralf's horror.[10]

Crimson Vow[ | ]

Although Ludevic has recently been acting erratically, Geralf has paid him no mind. He is fully dedicated to improving his craft (with the occasional detour to torment his sibling).[11]

March of the Machine[ | ]

By the time of New Phyrexia's Invasion of the Multiverse, Geralf lived in Havengul. Gisa briefly joined his laboratory after leaving Thraben, but he soon found the conditions too tight and forced her out. He was paid a visit by Ludevic and Sorin Markov, and they warned him about the impending Phyrexian threat. Shortly afterward, he received a letter from his sister complaining about oily skaabs that couldn't be raised from the dead and knew that she had encountered Phyrexians. The siblings collaborated to rout the invaders but went back to feuding as soon as they were gone.[6]

Thunder Junction heist[ | ]

Geralf and his sister traveled through Omenpaths to Thunder Junction and joined Oko's crew. Geralf became the team's medic.[12]

Planes visited[ | ]

Story appearances[ | ]

Title Author Publishing date Set Setting (plane) Featuring
Games Alison Luhrs 2016-04-27 Shadows over Innistrad Innistrad Geralf Cecani, Grete, Gisa Cecani, Ludevic of Ulm, Odric
The Dance of Undeath Seanan McGuire 2021-09-24 Innistrad: Midnight Hunt Innistrad Gisa Cecani, Geralf Cecani, Wilhelt
Innistrad: Family Game Night Seanan McGuire 2023-03-22 March of the Machine Innistrad Gisa Cecani, Geralf Cecani, Jeleva, Sorin Markov, Ludevic
Outlaws of Thunder Junction Episode 2: The Jailbreak Akemi Dawn Bowman 2024-03-13 Outlaws of Thunder Junction Thunder Junction Annie Flash, Tinybones, Breeches, Malcolm Lee, Oko, Geralf Cecani, Gisa Cecani, Eriette, Vraska, Ashiok, Rakdos, Kaervek, Satoru Umezawa, Ral Zarek, Kellan
Outlaws of Thunder Junction Episode 3: A Train to Prosperity Akemi Dawn Bowman 2024-03-18 Outlaws of Thunder Junction Thunder Junction Akul, Oko, Kaervek, Annie Flash, Vraska, Gisa Cecani, Geralf Cecani, Eriette, Malcolm Lee, Breeches, Satoru Umezawa, Tinybones, Kellan, Ashiok, Nolan

In-game references[ | ]

Represented in:
Associated cards:
Depicted in:
Quoted or referred to:

References[ | ]

  1. a b Ryan Miller, Jenna Helland, Matt Tabak, Bruce Cordell, and Josh Brauer (October 24, 2011). "The Cursed Blade". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  2. Wizards of the Coast (September 21, 2016). "What is the correct pronunciation of Cecani?". The Official Magic: The Gathering Tumblr. Tumblr.
  3. a b Jay Annelli (2022). Magic: The Gathering - The Visual Guide, DK. ISBN-13 978-0744061055.
  4. a b Jenna Helland (January 16, 2012). "Preview Article: Mikaeus, the Unhallowed". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  5. a b Magic Creative Team (September 28, 2011). "A Planeswalker's Guide to Innistrad: Gavony and Humans". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  6. a b c Seanan McGuire (March 22, 2023). "March of the Machine - Innistrad: Family Game Night". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  7. Jenna Helland (June 26, 2012). "Odric, Master Tactician". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  8. Alison Luhrs (April 27, 2016). "Games". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  9. Ethan Fleischer (September 2, 2021). "Gisa, Glorious Resurrector". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  10. Seanan McGuire (September 24, 2021). "The Dance of Undeath". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  11. Doug Beyer, Ari Zirulnik and Grace Fong (November 12, 2021). "The Legends of Innistrad: Crimson Vow". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  12. Akemi Dawn Bowman (March 13, 2024). "Episode 2: The Jailbreak". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  13. Chas Andres (June 29, 2016). "Gisa and Geralf". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  14. Emrakul & Chatterfang!? Koma & Toski!? 62 Unknown Magic Cards! (Video). Good Morning Magic. YouTube (May 10, 2023).
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