What happens if you give a toxic creature infect?

What Happens If You Give a Toxic Creature Infect?

Infect and Toxic are two popular mechanics in Magic: The Gathering that can be used by creatures to deal damage to players. While they are similar, they have different effects and interactions. When a creature has both Infect and Toxic, it becomes even more complex. So, what happens if you give a toxic creature Infect?

Direct Answer:

Yes, giving a toxic creature Infect does cause that player to gain poison counters. Both Infect and Toxic creatures deal combat damage to a player and apply a specified number of poison counters. The combined effect of both mechanics allows the creature to deal even more damage and apply multiple poison counters.

Interactions Between Infect and Toxic:

When a Toxic creature deals combat damage, it applies a specified number of poison counters to a player. If that player is also affected by Infect, they will gain the specified number of poison counters. For example, if a 5/5 Toxic creature attacks a player and deals 5 damage, the player will gain 5 poison counters. If that creature also has Infect, it will apply the 5 poison counters, and if the player already has an equal number of poison counters, they will lose the game.

Key Point: Infect always applies poison counters equal to the damage dealt, regardless of whether the creature is Toxic or not. When a Toxic creature deals combat damage, it applies additional poison counters according to its Toxic ability. This means that the overall effect of both mechanics combined is more poison counters.

Table 1: Comparison of Infect and Toxic

Examples:

• A 5/5 Infect creature attacks a player and deals 5 damage. The player gains 5 poison counters. If the same creature had Toxic 2, the player would gain 2 additional poison counters, bringing the total to 7.
• A 4/4 Toxic creature with Infect 2 attacks a player and deals 2 damage. The player gains 2 poison counters due to Infect. If the creature had an additional +1/+1 counter from another ability, it would deal 5 damage (4 + 1 = 5) and gain 5 poison counters. The player would gain a total of 7 poison counters (2 + 5).

Conclusion:

Giving a toxic creature Infect can have significant implications for the game state and player life totals. Infect always applies poison counters equal to the damage dealt, while Toxic applies additional poison counters according to its ability. When combined, both mechanics can lead to significant life loss and game ending. Understanding the interactions between Infect and Toxic is essential for building effective decks and strategies in Magic: The Gathering.