Ichorclaw MyrHow it works & interactions with other cards

Understanding the Corruption

Ichorclaw Myr possesses the infect keyword, which fundamentally changes how it deals damage. Instead of reducing a creature's toughness temporarily or lowering a player's life total, it places permanent -1/-1 counters on creatures and grants poison counters to players. This means any combat encounter with the Myr leaves a lasting mark, even if the defending creature survives the initial clash.

The Defensive Dilemma

The true strength of Ichorclaw Myr lies in its triggered ability: 'Whenever this creature becomes blocked, it gets +2/+2 until end of turn.' This creates a 'lose-lose' scenario for your opponent. If they don't block, they take a poison counter. If they do block, the Myr immediately grows into a 3/3 threat before combat damage is even dealt. Note that this ability triggers only once per combat, regardless of how many creatures are assigned to block it.

Resolution and Timing

The +2/+2 trigger happens during the Declare Blockers step. Once the opponent finishes declaring blockers, the ability goes on the stack and resolves before moving to the Combat Damage step. Because the buff happens so early, the Myr will deal its damage as a 3/3 creature, placing three -1/-1 counters on its blockers or dealing three poison counters if an effect allows it to trample over.

When to Deploy

Ichorclaw Myr is most effective in the early turns of a game where opponents lack blockers or have small creatures that would die to a 3/3. It is also a fantastic target for spells that grant evasion or trample, as the threat of the +2/+2 trigger forces your opponent to decide between letting poison through or facing a significantly larger attacker.

Interaction examples

The First Strike of Poison

Poison Counter

If Ichorclaw Myr attacks and is not blocked, it deals 1 damage to the player. Because of infect, that player receives one Poison Counter. As soon as a player reaches ten or more Poison Counters, they lose the game as a state-based action.

A Blocked Myr

Ornithopter of Paradise

You attack with Ichorclaw Myr, and the opponent blocks with Ornithopter of Paradise. The Myr's ability triggers, making it a 3/3 until end of turn. In the damage step, the Myr deals three -1/-1 counters to the Ornithopter of Paradise. Since the Ornithopter has 2 toughness, the three -1/-1 counters cause its toughness to become less than zero, and it is put into the graveyard.

Accelerated Infection

Foundry Inspector

With a Foundry Inspector on the battlefield, the cost to cast Ichorclaw Myr is reduced by {1}. This allows you to deploy multiple Myr threats much faster. If you attack with the Myr while the Inspector is present, the Myr still functions the same way, becoming a 3/3 threat if blocked by any of the opponent's creatures.