Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons

Hapatra is all about turning poison counters into a swarm of deathtouch snakes. Your core gameplan is dealing combat damage to trigger her ability, slapping -1/-1 counters on enemy creatures, and generating tokens that let you attack again while degrading the board. The more you can stack -1/-1 counters (through combat, payoff spells, and repeatable effects), the faster your snake army grows. You're playing a tempo-midrange strategy where each counter is essentially card advantage—you're thinning enemy threats while building your own threat.

To maximize this, you want creatures and effects that naturally place -1/-1 counters: Quillspike, Devoted Druid, and cards like Nest of Scarabs all turn your counter placement into explosive token generation. Combining Hapatra with sacrifice outlets (like Viscera Seer or Evolutionary Leap) lets you convert your snakes into resources while pruning the board further. You'll win through a combination of evasive deathtouch tokens, commander damage if Hapatra gets through, and attrition—your opponents' creatures simply disappear to -1/-1 counters while you're left standing.

Strategy generated by Tapped Decks AI. Not affiliated with Wizards of the Coast.