Diseased Vermin MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Creature — Rat |
| Released | 1996-06-10 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Alliances |
| Set code | ALL |
| Power | 1 |
| Toughness | 1 |
| Number | 46 |
| Frame | 1993 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Scott Kirschner |
Key Takeaways
- Accumulates illness counters for potential rising damage, offering long-term card advantage in drawn-out games.
- Demands careful resource management from opponents, potentially creating indirect advantages for its controller.
- Requires strategic play and board presence to overcome its high mana cost and specific color requirements.
Text of card
During your upkeep, Diseased Vermin deals 1 damage to a single target opponent it has previously damaged for each infection counter on Diseased Vermin. If Diseased Vermin damages a player in combat, put an infection counter on it.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Diseased Vermin provides a unique and gradual form of card advantage. With its ability to accumulate illness counters whenever it deals combat damage to a player, the vermin ensures a potential increase in damage over time. This is particularly useful in long-drawn encounters where sustaining card advantage could turn the tides in your favor.
Resource Acceleration: While Diseased Vermin in itself does not directly offer resource acceleration, its menacing presence can force your opponent to expend more resources to handle this growing threat. Efficiently managing this card can indirectly lead to a resource advantage, as opponents might need to use key spells or abilities prematurely to address the potential for an outbreak.
Instant Speed: Although Diseased Vermin is not an instant, its characteristic ability predicates around the combat phase, which aligns with MTG’s dynamics of timing and surprise. The fact that its impact grows over time can pressure an opponent similar to the strategical opportunities provided by instant speed interactions, keeping them wary of letting the vermin through their defenses.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Diseased Vermin requires a successful attack on a player to trigger its ability, which can be easily disrupted in formats with multiple opponents or heavy creature control, limiting its usefulness in guaranteeing counters.
Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost for Diseased Vermin is specific to black mana, necessitating a mono-color deck or a dedicated mana base which can restrict deck-building options.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three black mana, Diseased Vermin is considered mana-intensive for its initial stats and potential impact on the game, possibly making it a less optimal choice in decks looking for immediate board presence or value.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Diseased Vermin offers a unique approach to deck-building, capable of integrating well into strategies that focus on the gradual weakening of an opponent. Its ability to consistently deal damage over time makes it a solid addition to decks emphasizing attrition.
Combo Potential: The card’s incremental poison ability synergizes with decks that aim to accumulate poison counters quickly, potentially closing games by focusing on an alternative win condition that bypasses traditional life total depletion.
Meta-Relevance: In environments where longer gameplay is commonplace and opponents are prepared for more common threats, Diseased Vermin’s poison effect can provide an under-the-radar tactic to secure unexpected victories.
How to beat
Diseased Vermin is a notorious card renowned for its capacity to afflict an opponent with an ever-growing number of poison counters in MTG. Being a creature card that can consistently deal damage and increase its potency under certain conditions, it poses a unique challenge on the battlefield. To effectively counteract Diseased Vermin, players need to adopt strategies that prevent this devious creature from connecting with their life total.
Removal spells are your prime allies against Diseased Vermin. Cards like Swords to Plowshares or Fatal Push can dispatch it before your opponent gets a chance to reap the toxic benefits. Alternatively, control-based decks with ample counterspells like Counterspell or Mana Leak can prevent Diseased Vermin from entering the fray in the first place. Creature-based tactics can also stave off the vermin’s advances; utilizing defenders with high toughness or abilities that deter attackers ensure that Diseased Vermin never gets the opportunity to bite.
In essence, tackling Diseased Vermin successfully in MTG requires a proactive defense or a swift removal response. Implementing these strategies not only neutralizes Diseased Vermin’s threat but also upholds the integrity of your life total against the peril of poison counters.
Cards like Diseased Vermin
In the realm of Magic: The Gathering, Diseased Vermin presents an intriguing dynamic as it brings a persistent threat to opponents when it deals combat damage. It draws parallels to cards such as Plague Stinger, which also poisons the opponent via infect counters. However, Diseased Vermin forgoes the swiftness of infect for a more gradual affliction through accumulating plague counters at the end of a turn.
Another card worth mentioning is Phyrexian Crusader, which shares the aspect of causing incremental damage through infection, showcasing both first strike and protection from white and red. This makes it slightly more resilient than Diseased Vermin. However, it lacks the stacking plague counter effect that can inexorably tip the scales in a prolonged game. Lastly, Vector Asp offers infect at a lower cost with the flexibility of activation, but it lacks the inherent power and automatic plague counter application featured by Diseased Vermin.
When evaluating the impact on gameplay, Diseased Vermin aligns with a strategy of endurance and attrition, steadily weakening the opposition over time. Its unique mechanic ensures that once it breaches defenses, it becomes a ticking clock for the adversary.
Cards similar to Diseased Vermin by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Diseased Vermin MTG card by a specific set like Alliances, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.
For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.
Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.
Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Diseased Vermin and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Diseased Vermin has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Restricted |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |