Turn 4 cast 3 lighting bolts to pump a kiln to 10/1, then swing and add Infected strike ftw.
JaxsonBateman
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
This wins limited games. Absolutely no question about it, and expect it to be a veeery high draft pick. The fact that the card is similar to Lava Axe in that in 90% of cases it does nothing except push you directly closer to victory yet is still valued so highly shows how much potential it has.
At the prerelease I won at least 3 or 4 games from a Carnifex demon swinging unblocked then putting 7 poison counters on the opponent.
Gavrilo
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I luv this one. It looks so puny at first glance, but can do so much for 1cc. It even can buff Storm Crow! That's 5/5 in my book.
I know it's not in standard and it takes your entire opening hand, but just think of the look on your opponent's face!
WhiteyMcFly
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
It can even be used defensively. For example, an opponent will attack you for lethal damage with a single creature. You can't block it, so you can just use this on the attacking creature so it doesn't kill you assuming that it wont have a power of 10 or greater.
Oh yeah, and I used it at a draft recently. I almost won with a 1/1 goblin. Ok, I as.sault strobe my 1/1 goblin. My opponent laughs at me. I swing. If he hadn't blocked, here's how it would have played out: I use Trigon of Rage on it. BTW, now it has infect. You just got 1-shot by a 1/1 goblin token. Congratulations.
GeneticDrift
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
This also applies to non combat damage...Spikeshot Elder im looking at you.
HuntingDrake
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(20 votes)
This completes the Strike mega-cycle. (, Instant, target creature gets +1/+0 until end of turn)
Don't like it. In my infect deck, I want more than +1/+0. In my none infect, I don't want my creatures to deal one time poison counters.
Ninjaman157
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
VERY VERy fun card in limited
roguepariah
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
Swing with Carnifex Demon, then use tainted strike on your opponents chump blocker giving your demon more counters to play with.
Dangerous, but fun and unexpected.
RareCardHunter
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Use this on Eldrazi with Power 9 or higher, especially Pathrazer of Ulamog, since he cannot be blocked except with 3 or more creatures. If your opponent has 3 or more, use cards like Terror and Lightning Bolt to reduce the amount.
"You has three life and no guise. Platinum Emperion attack!" "Tainted strike bro" "FUUUUUU!!"
true story 4.5/5 for various uses in limited, including actual offensive ones.
ThaNecromancer
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Tainted Strike+Myr Battlesphere. Or any creature that deals non-combat damage. Like Flameblast Dragon...
Keiya
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Surprisingly, no one I saw at the draft was playing these and I literally got handed a play set and nearly dominated the entire scene. Don't underestimate the power of this card-- it's meant to be put on evasive creatures that can bulk up and swing for loads of damage. While not as good in Constructed, it'll still find a home for people who use spells like Distortion Strike and Assault Strobe.
I don't like that card here is why. For the same 1 black mana I could cast Virulent swipe instead (+2/+2 deathtouch + rebound) Here why.
deathtouch simply kill the creature it's touches, so Virulent swipe could easy kill 2 creatures. While infect put -1/-1 counter of the creature. Yes it will cripple the creature and maybe kill him, but a I preffer killing my opponent creature rather then just crippling them (except if my opponent play with demons that have huge drawback. Infect is better then deathtouch only if you face an indestructible monster.
When you hit the player directly deathtouch do nothing, and your creature deal regular damage like all the other creature you control giving a total of +4 damage (since it got rebound) While infect will put 1 extra poison counter on your opponent, but if you have no other infect creature in your deck, or no proliferated ability that poison counter is useless. If you have other infect creature, you are probably playing infect and probably using only infect creature, making tainted strike useless.
So unless you manage to create a creature that will hit for 10 damage in a single hit, and that this creature is not blocked, nor destroyed, and that the damage isn't prevented or unless your facing indestructible monsters, you would be better using the virulent swipe, since if the creature is blocked you are sure to kill the opponent creature (deathtouch) and you can retry next turn since it got rebound. If your creature die you can retry next turn since of rebound, if the damage are prevented, you can retry next turn (rebound)
As long as you go for the instant kill, this card is like the black version of Berserk.
DacenOctavio
★☆☆☆☆ (1.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Ok, so funny story. I was playing my burn deck against my friend's poison deck, and I was attacking with a power 7 Chandra's Spitfire due to some pinging shenanigans courtesy of Cunning Sparkmage. Not wanting to take lethal, he cast this on Spitfire. I had a burn spell in hand and an untapped mountain. The combat phase ended with him taking 11 poison counters from Chandra's Spitfire after I threw an unkicked Burst Lightning at his dome.
Necrokeryx
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Sarkhan the mad's final ability made me fall in love with this card.
PEVE_O
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
@HuntingDrake Verdescent Wisps is part off a 1 mana wisp cycle. I don't think that it completes the strike mega cycle.
Kitty_the_Kat
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Great card, but I think I'll stick with Virulent Swipe for the rebound.
Enchantment_Removal
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
"Draw a card."
...even though the game will probably be over before the new card matters.
iSlapTrees
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Where is the infect sliver!?
land_comment
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
This is pretty perfect. Right on, sheoldred!!!
It's pretty funny when someone has a lot of life and decides not to block... and then I cast this for the win.
@islaptrees:
Probably Virulent Sliver is the closest we'll ever get.
Kryptnyt
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Don't you know the saying... the more you perfect STRIKE MR. ANDO STRIKE!
Gameplan: Reveal all 3 chancellors, get a 1/1 haste goblin and 2 {G} your first turn.
Drop Swamp, and than play both groundswells with your mana from Chancellor of the tangle (making goblin a 9/9) swing with goblin, tap swamp and cast Tainted strike, you now have a 10/9 infect haste.
probably not gonna get this as your opening hand and it can be stopped but the fact its possible is still scary. stuff like this is why they made gut shot and mental misstep .
If someone is about to swing 9 at an opponent (which happens rather often, and most people simply take it since they start with 40 life), just cast this and BAM, one opponent down.
I've also had a few times where I've cast this on one of my opponent's creatures just to survive. If I've got less than 8 life and you're swinging for 8, I'm willing to take 9 poison counters instead of flat out dying.
Kragash
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Hasn't been mentioned by anyone here (because nobody's generally bright enough to think about these things) but this can also be played defensively to prevent dying.
Cast it on an opponent's creature so to receive poison counters instead of losing the game.
mattblack04
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Call me crazy but I don't think giving any creature Infect, alone, for {B}, or any color(less) for that matter, at instant speed is balanced. It's fantastically cheap with a horrifically powerful ability. What's next? 1 drop instant cards that give a creature Annihilate? Infect cards had to be built around to be effective. This card disregards that crucial part and lets any deck that splashes black infect. As if Vampires wasn't deadly enough, just a few counters from Blade of the Bloodchief and this is GG.
TherealphatMatt
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I always imagine this card as inducing vomiting in your own creature.
Totema
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
And so I learned to never leave a creature unblocked if my opponent has even one free Swamp... Sigh...
0pp0
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
5/5 For EDH
It's cute that everyone has their own 1st turn win "combos" with this card, but they really do this thing no justice. A lot of black decks in EDH love to use this card as their 99th. As some random trick that nullifies anyone who is running Serra Ascendant and friends, it just makes surprise kills way too easy. Howl From Beyond Hatred ... etc. Played in my Toshiro Umezawa deck. (because let's face it, a real ninja poisons people)
Charles_Prefect
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Using this on cards like Immolating Souleater that you pay your life to pump it to 9 power if they dont block then hit for the win!
Infernaldarkness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I love this so much with trample, although it isn't too good of a card by itself. 4/5
Other than the unconventional change damage to poison counter option, this card gives any doublestrike deck some sweet suprise wins.
If you let a Rakdos Pit Dragon buffed to 4/3 go through when they only have one card in my hand and it happens to be tainted strike you'll probably flip the table.
A more typical combo I pull off with my knight deck is using it on Arrogant Bloodlord after Soulbinding it with a Silverblade Paladin. Just having momentary infect and a small boost is fantastic in a first strike deck. 4/5
Comments (42)
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Burst Lightning
4 Flame Slash
4 Kiln Fiend
4 Tainted Strike
4 Chandra's Spitfire
Turn 4 cast 3 lighting bolts to pump a kiln to 10/1, then swing and add Infected strike ftw.
At the prerelease I won at least 3 or 4 games from a Carnifex demon swinging unblocked then putting 7 poison counters on the opponent.
I know it's not in standard and it takes your entire opening hand, but just think of the look on your opponent's face!
Oh yeah, and I used it at a draft recently. I almost won with a 1/1 goblin.
Ok, I as.sault strobe my 1/1 goblin. My opponent laughs at me. I swing.
If he hadn't blocked, here's how it would have played out:
I use Trigon of Rage on it.
BTW, now it has infect. You just got 1-shot by a 1/1 goblin token. Congratulations.
(
Dangerous, but fun and unexpected.
"Tainted strike bro"
"FUUUUUU!!"
true story
4.5/5 for various uses in limited, including actual offensive ones.
deathtouch simply kill the creature it's touches, so Virulent swipe could easy kill 2 creatures. While infect put -1/-1 counter of the creature. Yes it will cripple the creature and maybe kill him, but a I preffer killing my opponent creature rather then just crippling them (except if my opponent play with demons that have huge drawback. Infect is better then deathtouch only if you face an indestructible monster.
When you hit the player directly deathtouch do nothing, and your creature deal regular damage like all the other creature you control giving a total of +4 damage (since it got rebound) While infect will put 1 extra poison counter on your opponent, but if you have no other infect creature in your deck, or no proliferated ability that poison counter is useless. If you have other infect creature, you are probably playing infect and probably using only infect creature, making tainted strike useless.
So unless you manage to create a creature that will hit for 10 damage in a single hit, and that this creature is not blocked, nor destroyed, and that the damage isn't prevented or unless your facing indestructible monsters, you would be better using the virulent swipe, since if the creature is blocked you are sure to kill the opponent creature (deathtouch) and you can retry next turn since it got rebound. If your creature die you can retry next turn since of rebound, if the damage are prevented, you can retry next turn (rebound)
As long as you go for the instant kill, this card is like the black version of Berserk.
...even though the game will probably be over before the new card matters.
It's pretty funny when someone has a lot of life and decides not to block... and then I cast this for the win.
@islaptrees:
Probably Virulent Sliver is the closest we'll ever get.
opening hand: 2 Chancellor of the Tangle , 1 Chancellor of the Forge , 1 Tainted Strike , 1 Swamp and 2 Groundswell.
Gameplan: Reveal all 3 chancellors, get a 1/1 haste goblin and 2 {G} your first turn.
Drop Swamp, and than play both groundswells with your mana from Chancellor of the tangle (making goblin a 9/9) swing with goblin, tap swamp and cast Tainted strike, you now have a 10/9 infect haste.
probably not gonna get this as your opening hand and it can be stopped but the fact its possible is still scary. stuff like this is why they made gut shot and mental misstep .
If someone is about to swing 9 at an opponent (which happens rather often, and most people simply take it since they start with 40 life), just cast this and BAM, one opponent down.
I've also had a few times where I've cast this on one of my opponent's creatures just to survive. If I've got less than 8 life and you're swinging for 8, I'm willing to take 9 poison counters instead of flat out dying.
Cast it on an opponent's creature so to receive poison counters instead of losing the game.
It's cute that everyone has their own 1st turn win "combos" with this card, but they really do this thing no justice. A lot of black decks in EDH love to use this card as their 99th. As some random trick that nullifies anyone who is running Serra Ascendant and friends, it just makes surprise kills way too easy.
Howl From Beyond
Hatred
... etc.
Played in my Toshiro Umezawa deck. (because let's face it, a real ninja poisons people)
4/5
I dont think Viridescent Wisps counts as a Strike card, since:
{G} Viridescent Wisps
{W} Niveous Wisps
{R} Crimson Wisps
{U} Cerulean Wisps
{B} Aphotic Wisps
Swamp, Black Lotus
Crack the Lotus for a Seething Song. (5 mana)
Play Thundermaw Hellkite. (5/5 flying)
Pay 4 life for a pair of Mutagenic Growths. (+4/+4, 9/9)
Drop Tainted Strike. (10/9 infect)
Swing.
If you let a Rakdos Pit Dragon buffed to 4/3 go through when they only have one card in my hand and it happens to be tainted strike you'll probably flip the table.
A more typical combo I pull off with my knight deck is using it on Arrogant Bloodlord after Soulbinding it with a Silverblade Paladin. Just having momentary infect and a small boost is fantastic in a first strike deck. 4/5