The 15 Best Infect Commanders in Magic Ranked

Last updated on March 20, 2024

Vishgraz, the Doomhive | Illustration by Andrew Mar

Infect is a very powerful archetype to play in Commander. Instead of having to deal 40 damage or mill 99 cards to take out an opponent, you only need to give them 10 poison counters. This makes infect one of the quickest and nastiest ways to win a game of Commander. You might not win many friends, but an infect deck is certainly a good way to win a game.

When it comes to choosing the right infect commander, color identity is important. Infect isn’t represented equally across the five colors of Magic, so you’ll want to make sure you’re including at least green or black in your commander’s color identity. Blue can also be helpful because it has plenty of good proliferate cards, and white got some good toxic creatures in Phyrexia: All Will Be One that could be helpful. Red isn’t as helpful in an infect deck, but its combat tricks can be a good way to distribute some extra poison counters.

I’ve put together what I think are the best commanders to use for an infect deck. Not all of these have infect themselves: in fact many don’t. However, their color identities and abilities synergize very well with infect, making them your best options. If you think of a great infect commander that I left off the list, I’d love to hear your ideas in the comments!

What Are Infect Commanders in MTG?

Karumonix, the Rat King | Illustration by Helge C. Balzer

Infect commanders, for our purposes, are legendary creatures that work well with Magic’s infect mechanic. Infect is a keyword ability found on creatures that changes how they deal damage. If a creature with infect attacks a player, instead of doing damage, they put a number of poison counters on that player equal to their power. A player with 10 poison counters loses the game. If an infect creature would deal damage to a creature, they instead place -1/-1 counters on that creature in a number equal to their power.

Infect commanders typically interact with poison counters through proliferation, or they grant other creatures the ability to distribute poison counters. Some commanders that buff your creatures can also make good infect commanders, since they allow a small infect creature to become a much larger threat.

#15. Karumonix, the Rat King

Thanks to Karumonix, the Rat King’s static ability, you only need to hit a given player with ten rats to take them out of the game. Rat decks are already great at establishing a wide board state, and Karumonix makes it even easier with its ETB effect. There are also rats with infect, which toxic stacks with, allowing those creatures to dole out more than one poison counter each turn.

#14. Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos

There are a good number of Phyrexian creatures that can be effective tools for a Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos infect deck. Brimaz makes these creatures even more valuable, since you also get an incubator token whenever you cast them. This makes it easy to trigger Brimaz’s proliferate ability each turn, especially if you build in ways to sacrifice your Phyrexians.

#13. Vishgraz, the Doomhive

Vishgraz, the Doomhive makes a good number of other toxic creatures, and it can become quite the threat once you’ve distributed some poison counters. White also offers some options like Ephemerate which allow you to get more value out of Vishgraz’s ETB effect.

#12. Mr. Orfeo, the Boulder

Mr. Orfeo, the Boulder can make any of your infect creatures a much bigger threat thanks to its attack trigger. Green and red also have good ways to buff creatures, so you can play something like a Giant Growth on your creature before combat then double its power again. This means you can quickly get at least one player to 10 poison counters.

#11. Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider

Running Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider is basically like having the relevant half of Doubling Season for an infect deck sitting in your command zone. This commander speeds up your ability to eliminate your competition while also nerfing powerful abilities and planeswalkers that they may be using.

#10. Ezuri, Stalker of Spheres

Simic is a great color combination for infect thanks to blue’s proliferate abilities. Ezuri, Stalker of Spheres adds value to each proliferate card you play, and it can also help you proliferate when it enters the battlefield. It can work especially well with Thassa, Deep-Dwelling, giving you a chance to proliferate multiple times each end step.

#9. Saskia the Unyielding

Saskia the Unyielding allows you to give a certain player poison counters each time your infect creatures damage another player. This means you can target your biggest threat at the table but take them out by swinging at the player with the worst board state. You’ll also be able to potentially take out multiple players in a single turn.

#8. Fynn, the Fangbearer

Fynn, the Fangbearer makes up for being a mono-green commander by allowing your deathtouch creatures to also act like infect creatures. There are plenty of low to the ground deathtouch creatures that can help you start dealing out poison counters before players can establish a strong board state. Your opponents are then forced to choose between taking more poison counters or losing their creatures.

#7. Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa

Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa isn’t only a reliable way to give players poison counters, it also has a very powerful ability once those counters start to stack up on your opponents. Abzan has access to plenty of ways to keep Ixhel safe or bring it back from the dead, making it much more likely you can get its ability off.

#6. Volrath, the Shapestealer

Because infect creatures deal damage in -1/-1 counters, Volrath, the Shapestealer has lots of options to choose from when it comes to copying creatures. Sultai decks also have access to lots of the best infect cards.

#5. Yawgmoth, Thran Physician

Yawgmoth, Thran Physician’s proliferate ability is easy to activate multiple times in a turn, meaning you can quickly get your opponents to 10 poison counters. Yawgmoth is also a flavorful infect commander since he created Phyrexia, where most infect creatures come from.

#4. Ezuri, Claw of Progress

Lot of infect creatures have lower power to balance out the danger posed by poison counters. This means they synergize well with Ezuri, Claw of Progress’s ability to gain experience counters. This allows you to play lots of cheap infect creatures and give them a significant buff.

#3. Brokkos, Apex of Forever

Brokkos, Apex of Forever can be a difficult commander to keep off the field, thanks to its ability to mutate from the graveyard. Mutating Brokkos onto an infect creature can make it a huge threat, especially if that creature has other strong keywords like Plague Stinger.

#2. Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon

Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon is the only commander on this list that actually has infect. It can also protect itself or give itself haste, making it an effective way to deal large amounts of poison damage.

#1. Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice

It’s hard to beat Atraxa, Praetors' Voice when it comes to infect decks. This commander gives you free proliferation each turn and has access to all the best infect cards in the game. You can throw most of these other commanders into the 99 of an Atraxa deck; even if you’re having trouble choosing which to use, this card has a solution for you.

Best Infect Commander Payoffs

The best payoffs for infect decks are the cards that allow your attackers to get through and deal direct damage.

This can be through giving them big buffs and trample with cards like Craterhoof Behemoth or Finale of Devastation, or you can use something like Cyclonic Rift to leave your board intact while opening up your opponents to your infect creatures.

Proliferation is another great payoff for infect, since it increases the number of poison counters on any opponent that already has them. Many of the best infect commanders have some form of proliferation built in, and you can also use cards like Thrummingbird or Inexorable Tide for more options. Proliferate also allows you to increase the number of -1/-1 counters that have been dealt by your infect creatures in combat.

Commanding Conclusion

Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon | Illustration by Chippy

Infect decks can be very powerful, but some players might argue a little too powerful in Commander. The commanders listed here are some of the most popular options for infect decks, and it’s easy to see why. They all synergize well with the mechanic and are in the right color identities to give you good options for your 99.

Did I miss your favorite infect commander? What other styles of decks work with the commanders listed here? Do you enjoy playing or playing against infect in commander? Let me know in the comments or on Draftsim’s Twitter.

Thank you for reading and I’ll see you next time!