Common Q&As: 2HG and Infect

Since the release of Scars, I think there is one question I have seen more than others.

Q: How does infect work in two-headed giant?

A: I understand why this seems confusing. Life increases in two-headed giant with more players (specifically, 15*n, where n is the number of players on a team), so an increased number of poison counters seems like a logical step. However, there is one aspect of two-headed giant that is often overlooked.

810.7f As the combat damage step begins, the active team announces how each attacking creature will assign its combat damage. If an attacking creature would assign combat damage to the defending team, the active team chooses only one of the defending players for that creature to assign its combat damage to. Then the defending team announces how each blocking creature will assign its combat damage.

The common misconception is that since two-headed giant teams share life, then you attack the team, when in fact you are attacking individual players on a team. Recall the following rule:

810.8a Players win and lose the game only as a team, not as individuals. If either player on a team loses the game, the team loses the game. If either player on a team wins the game, the entire team wins the game. If an effect would prevent a player from winning the game, that player’s team can’t win the game. If an effect would prevent a player from losing the game, that player’s team can’t lose the game.

Thus, if one player on a two-headed giant team receives 10 poison counters, then the entire team loses! Long story short, the number remains at 10.

Sidenote: I believe infect is overpowered in two-headed giant. If you can get two complementary infect decks together, you could easily win in 2 or 3 turns. Additionally, if you play with more players and the life totals become 45 or 60, it still only takes 10 poison counters.