Afflict in MTG: Rules, History, and Best Cards

Last updated on November 30, 2023

Neheb, the Eternal | Illustration by Chris Rahn

Amonkhet block is home to such cool Egyptian-themed world-building and serves as the backdrop to one of the most important story arcs in Magic: The Bolas Arc. The setting is brought to life by the awesome mechanics in both Amonkhet and Hour of Devastation, including deserts, embalm, and eternalize, cartouches and trials, exert and cycling, and even the first new gods since Theros.

So many awesome mechanics to talk about, but I pulled the short straw at the most recent employee dinner party, so here I am with the scoop on afflict, perhaps the most forgettable part of the entire block. I’m putting on the L1 judge hat to see how afflict works, which cards have this ability, and why it is or isn’t one of the best mechanics ever (it isn’t).

Ready? Let’s get started!

How Does Afflict Work?

Ammit Eternal | Illustration by Mike Bierek

When a creature blocks another creature with afflict, the blocker’s controller loses life equal to the afflict number. That’s all folks! Thanks for tuning in to this episode of “Forgettable Mechanics with Simple Gameplay.” I’ll be back next time with skulk. In all seriousness, afflict is neither that complicated nor compelling, but there are a few rules to be aware of.

Each instance of afflict only triggers once no matter how many creatures block. It also triggers when the afflict creature “becomes blocked,” which includes creatures that enter the battlefield already blocking. Effects like Flash Foliage and Mirror Match trigger afflict even though the tokens they create never actually declare a block.

The History of Afflict in MTG

Lazotep Sliver | Illustration by Maxime Minard

Afflict was introduced in 2017’s Hour of Devastation and was thematically tied to Nicol Bolas’s army of eternalized creatures, and therefore only appears on zombie creatures in the Grixis () color spectrum.

There are 11 cards in total with afflict, 10 of which are creatures and one of which is an equipment that grants the equipped creature afflict. Four of these creatures were included in the Arena-only Amonkhet Remastered, with a fifth one added to Historic Anthology 4. Lazotep Sliver is the only afflict card that’s been printed since the original batch of cards in HOU.

Unfinity features afflict as an ability that can be purchased with tickets from the sticker sheet Ancestral Hot Dog Minotaur. If those words don’t make any sense to you, congratulations, and know you’re not missing out on anything.

What if a Creature Has Multiple Instances of Afflict?

Each instance of afflict triggers separately upon blocks. This is only likely to happen if a creature that already has afflict becomes equipped with Dagger of the Worthy. Both afflict abilities trigger on blocks and resolve separately.

Gallery and List of Afflict Cards

• Ammit Eternal
• Dagger of the Worthy
• Eternal of Harsh Truths
• Frontline Devastator
• Khenra Eternal
• Lazotep Sliver
• Manticore Eternal
• Merciless Eternal
• Neheb, the Eternal
• Spellweaver Eternal
• Wildfire Eternal

Best Afflict Cards

Ammit Eternal

Ammit Eternal is an over-stated aggressive creature that punishes your opponent whether they block or not. Unless your opponent can fire off a flurry of spells, Ammit threatens to either eat blockers and trigger afflict, or go unblocked completely and remain a burly 5/5. This card gets substantially worse in multiplayer games.

Eternal of Harsh Truths

Eternal of Harsh Truths is an Ophidian variant that threatens to draw cards when it goes unblocked, but it still deals damage when your opponent puts a small blocker in front of it. It’s an interesting design, and it has some relevant creature types, so I wouldn’t count it out completely.

Lazotep Sliver

Lazotep Sliver is really cool, but that has nothing to do with afflict. Amass on slivers is just awesome, and it gives you another creature type to add to your armies. It’s also one of the only slivers with a secondary creature type.

Wildfire Eternal

Wildfire Eternal is supposed to present a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” scenario for your opponent, but it’s high enough on the curve that your opponent is just likely to have a way to stop it. You can pull off some powerful plays if it goes unopposed, but that usually requires a support card like Rogue's Passage.

Neheb, the Eternal

Easily the best afflict card, Neheb, the Eternal is a Commander powerhouse that’s capable of generating swathes of red mana. Afflict is actually put to good use here, since the life your opponent loses when they block counts towards the post-combat trigger.

Of course, you can skip through combat entirely, using something like Earthquake in your first main phase to deal a bunch of damage. Neheb also creates an easy infinite combo with Aggravated Assault so long as you have clear attacks.

Wrap Up

Merciless Eternal | Illustration by Mathias Kollros

Afflict isn’t offensive, but it’s certainly not exciting or interesting. It’s a fine Limited mechanic that adds some texture to combat, but even in Hour of Devastation it wasn’t a huge skill-testing ability. I doubt we’ll see it as a full-set mechanic ever again, but I don’t mind a good one-off design where it makes sense. Lazotep Sliver is a great example of how to use this mechanic in the future.

I’ve heard people say that afflict is their absolute least favorite mechanic of all time. Worse than radiance. Worse than rampage. That’s pretty bad folks. Still, I’m sure someone out there is a huge afflict lover, so sound off if that’s you! If you like afflict and want to see it make a return, I’d love to hear why. Let me know in the comments below or over in the Draftsim Discord.

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