Board wipes we can tackle in two ways: first, we can allow ourselves not to over-commit too many creatures onto the battlefield, because our clock is very fast and our commander guarantees that even one creature is a powerful threat. In EDH, however, we need to go pretty deep into the Infect pool, which leaves us scraping by with creatures that are not all that impressive.Īs an aggressive deck, we also suffer from both mass removal and from opponents ganging up on us. In non-singleton formats, we can have multiple copies of good Infect creatures, like Glistener Elf and Blighted Agent. This is one of the biggest challenges for Infect decks. While some players may be able to join forces to collectively attack a mutual opponent and take them down with shared strength, this is not an option for Infect players, whose method of dealing damage does not mesh with traditional combat strategies. Infect is a separate method of eliminating a player that does not interact with other win conditions.

Each iteration has its own strengths and weaknesses, as well as a vast array of support options. They are likely to capitalize on Infect's ability not just to give poison counters to players, but also their ability to put -1/-1 counters on unfriendly creatures, minimizing an enemy player's ability to present a significantly threatening creature on the other side of the table.Īs we can see, Infect is a diverse archetype with plenty of space to adjust for personal preferences, from the deck's overall pacing to the choice of which synergies to pursue. This strategy is much slower and more methodical, and particularly specializes in remaining defensive rather than aggressive. By giving opponents at least one poison counter (for instance, with an Ichor Rats), they can then use abilities like Inexorable Tide and Contagion Engine to inevitably give each other player ten poison counters without risking their cards in combat. By contrast, gradual Infect decks focus less on combat and more on the meaningful interactions between Infect and abilities such as Proliferate.

Bear umbra edhrec