Make small creatures that gain life on attack, then deploy infusion cards after combat and rebuild when creatures trade.
Make small creatures that gain life on attack, then deploy infusion cards after combat and rebuild when creatures trade.
Commit when useful cards in both colors keep arriving and the support for this plan is present.
Four checks while you draft
Can this deck affect the board before its payoff arrives?
Keep early creatures and interaction while assembling the specific support below.
Do I have enough cards that make this interaction happen?
Attack with the Pest on a later turn to gain life, then play Apprentice in the second main phase for its removal trigger.
Can I break a board stall without drawing one particular rare?
Make small creatures that gain life on attack, then deploy infusion cards after combat and rebuild when creatures trade.
Choose the missing job before another reward that needs it.
You have the payoff but too few ways to activate it.
Look for Poisoner's Apprentice.
Attack with the Pest on a later turn to gain life, then play Apprentice in the second main phase for its removal trigger.
Your synergy is already working but you keep falling behind.
Take an early play or answer before another expensive reward.
These Pest tokens gain life when attacking, unlike the original Strixhaven tokens. Having a Pest does not itself enable infusion.
The support is missing
Favor castable creatures and interaction if narrow support does not arrive.
Repeated useful cards are clues, not proof that the colors are open.
These Pest tokens gain life when attacking, unlike the original Strixhaven tokens. Having a Pest does not itself enable infusion.
Essenceknit Scholar60.8% GIH · 10,418 instances
Environmental Scientist60.3% GIH · 4,154 instances
Pestbrood Sloth59.8% GIH · 7,199 instances
Transcendent Archaic58.7% GIH · 363 instances
Thornfist Striker58.2% GIH · 8,668 instances
End of the Hunt58.1% GIH · 5,691 instances17Lands ↗ · Apr 21–Jun 2, 2026 · at least 100 card-in-hand instances in this pair’s no-splash decks. Choose the job your deck needs first.
17Lands Premier Draft ↗ · Apr 21–Jun 2, 2026 · 100-instance minimum
Send in the PestMakes a Pest whose future attacks gain life, while taking a card from each opponent’s hand.
Pestbrood SlothDefends against flyers and leaves two attack-to-gain-life Pests when it dies.
Old-Growth EducatorReach and vigilance stabilize the board; earlier life gain adds two counters when it enters.
Lecturing ScornmageExamples apply the printed rules; judge the board, costs and timing.
| One-pick | Sealed |
|---|---|
| Three Play Boosters per player; one card per pick. Premier statistics are recorded Arena games, not a prediction for your table. | Start from the cards you opened. Favor a complete curve, interaction and castable threats over forcing the draft theme. |
Poisoner's Apprentice
