The return of the Poison Counters in Phyrexia: All Will Be One has been contentious, especially in the Commander format. If any player gets 10 Poison Counters they lose the game. This increases the pace of gameplay dramatically, although you do risk making yourself the archenemy of your table by using the strategy. While Poison certainly has some detractors, the mechanic is also quite popular, as evidenced by the recent price rise of this Poison Counter generating card.
Phyresis Outbreak
Phyresis Outbreak
Phyresis Outbreak
Each opponent gets a poison counter. Then each creature your opponents control gets -1/-1 until end of turn for each poison counter its controller has.
is a card from Corrupting Influence, one of the new Phyrexia: All Will Be One Pre-Constructed Commander decks. The card was worth only $0.81 when it was initially released on the 10th of February 2023. Since then, the card’s price has risen dramatically, and it now has a market value of around $8.70, although the card can be found more cheaply if you’re willing to do some digging.
For two and a Black,
Phyresis Outbreak
Phyresis Outbreak
Each opponent gets a poison counter. Then each creature your opponents control gets -1/-1 until end of turn for each poison counter its controller has.
gives every opponent a Poison Counter and then gives every creature your opponents control -1/-1 for each Poison Counter they have. This card does exactly what Poison decks want to do, in that it spread the poison around to every player, rather than merely one. The -1/-1 effect ranges from being a minor nuisance that takes out a few mana dorks, to a full on board wipe depending on which stage of the game
Phyresis Outbreak
Phyresis Outbreak
Each opponent gets a poison counter. Then each creature your opponents control gets -1/-1 until end of turn for each poison counter its controller has.
is played in.
Poison decks can sometimes run into difficulty, as they can rush one player down, and then get taken out by the rest of the table. This often does not lead to a very fun social experience, as the player who gets rushed can feel resentful towards the Poison player, and the Poison player can then feel ganged up on by the rest of the table. Spreading the Poison to multiple opponents also works great with both of the Commanders from the Corrupting Influence Precon
Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa
Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa
Flying, vigilance, toxic 2
Corrupted — At the beginning of your end step, each opponent who has three or more poison counters exiles the top card of their library face down. You may look at and play those cards for as long as they remain exiled, and you may spend mana as though it were mana of any color to cast those spells.
and
Vishgraz, the Doomhive
Vishgraz, the Doomhive
Menace, toxic 1 (Players dealt combat damage by this creature also get a poison counter.)
When Vishgraz enters, create three 1/1 colorless Phyrexian Mite artifact creature tokens with toxic 1 and "This token can't block."
Vishgraz gets +1/+1 for each poison counter your opponents have.
, both of whom benefit from having many Poison Counters in play, with Ixhel specifically wanting each opponent to have three or more.
Phyresis Outbreak
Phyresis Outbreak
Each opponent gets a poison counter. Then each creature your opponents control gets -1/-1 until end of turn for each poison counter its controller has.
exclusively sees play in Commander. Given that its ability is multiplayer focussed, it is extremely unlikely to get slotted into any Vintage or Legacy decks, the only other formats where it is legal.
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