First Strike MTG: How It Works, Deathtouch and a $73 Odric Deck (2026)

First strike is a Magic: The Gathering keyword that lets a creature deal its combat damage before creatures without it. When a creature with first strike is in combat, the game adds an extra combat damage step: first strikers deal their damage in the first one, and everything else deals damage in the second, but only if it is still alive. A 2/2 with first strike that blocks a 2/2 without it kills the attacker and takes no damage at all.

That makes first strike the oldest defensive keyword in the game. It was printed on White Knight, Black Knight and Elvish Archers in Alpha in 1993, and it has been on a new card every year since. Scryfall lists roughly 390 cards with the keyword and another 400 that give it to something else. The angle most guides miss is how much of the creature pool a small first striker beats: we counted 17,920 Commander-legal creatures, and 8,435 of them (47%) have toughness 2 or less. A 2-power first striker kills almost half of all creatures ever printed before they deal a point of damage, and more than half of the first strike creatures in Commander have power 2 or less.

This guide covers the first strike rules (including what happens if you gain or lose it mid-combat), the question everyone searches, does first strike beat deathtouch, how it differs from double strike, the most played first strike cards and commanders, legality in every format and a $73.05 budget Odric, Lunarch Marshal Commander deck that shares first strike and a dozen other keywords with the whole team.

What is first strike in MTG?

First strike is rule 702.7 of the Comprehensive Rules. Rule 702.7a calls it “a static ability that modifies the rules for the combat damage step”, and rule 702.7b (repeated word for word in rule 510.4) says how: if at least one attacking or blocking creature has first strike or double strike as the combat damage step begins, only those creatures assign combat damage in that step. Then the game adds a second combat damage step for “the remaining attackers and blockers that had neither first strike nor double strike as the first combat damage step began”, plus anything that has double strike.

So a combat with a first striker in it has two damage steps instead of one:

• First combat damage step: creatures with first strike or double strike deal damage. State-based actions are checked, so creatures with lethal damage die, and players get priority before the next step.
• Regular combat damage step: every surviving creature that had neither first strike nor double strike when the first step began deals damage. A creature with only first strike does not deal damage again.

The important word is “remaining”. A creature killed in the first step never deals its damage. That is the whole keyword: first strike doesn’t add damage, it removes the other creature’s damage. It matters only when the first striker’s power is enough to kill what it is fighting, which is why it shows up mostly on cheap white and red creatures. Of the cards with the keyword, 145 are mono-white, 109 mono-red and 21 red-white: seven in ten live in those two colors.

If you want the short side-by-side with double strike, deathtouch and trample, our combat damage keywords guide puts all four in one table.

How first strike works

Almost every first strike question is about one of these situations. Each row gives the rule or ruling behind it.

The last row is a small trick worth knowing. Anything that triggers on first-strike damage resolves before regular damage is dealt, so Drana, Liberator of Malakir pumps the rest of your attack team just in time for them to hit.

Does first strike beat deathtouch?

This is the most searched first strike question, and the answer is yes, if the first striker deals enough damage to kill the deathtouch creature. Deathtouch only matters when its creature deals damage (rule 702.2b: a creature dealt damage by a source with deathtouch is destroyed). A first striker deals its damage first. If that damage is lethal, the deathtouch creature is destroyed in the first step and never deals damage at all.

• A 2/2 first striker against a 1/1 deathtouch creature: the first striker deals 2, the 1/1 dies, the first striker lives.
• A 2/2 first striker against a 1/4 deathtouch creature (Master of Cruelties’ body, for example): the first striker deals 2, the 1/4 survives with 2 damage and deals its 1 deathtouch damage in the regular step. The first striker dies.
• A first striker with deathtouch against anything without first strike: any amount of damage is lethal, so it kills any blocker that isn’t indestructible or protected, before that blocker deals damage. This is the strongest combination in combat.
• Both have first strike and deathtouch: both deal damage in the first step and both die.

The combination is rare. Only five cards print first strike and deathtouch together: Glissa Sunslayer, Glissa, the Traitor, Master of Cruelties, Thalia and The Gitrog Monster, and Nirkana Cutthroat once it reaches level 3. Most decks get there by giving deathtouch to a first striker: Basilisk Collar, Gorgon’s Head and Shadowspear-style equipment, or a commander that shares keywords, like the Odric deck below. There are 326 Commander-legal creatures with deathtouch to put the theory to the test.

First strike vs double strike

The two keywords share one rule. A creature with double strike deals damage in the first-strike step and in the regular step. A creature with first strike only deals damage in the first-strike step. Put another way, first strike is about not taking damage; double strike is about dealing it twice.

When a first striker and a double striker fight, both deal damage in the first step, and the double striker hits again in the regular step if it survives. Giving double strike to a creature that already has first strike works too (the first strike becomes redundant). For every double strike card and a budget Kellan deck, read our double strike guide.

What first strike beats: the toughness census

First strike is only as good as its power. To see how often that power is enough, we counted Commander-legal creatures by toughness and first strike creatures by power on Scryfall (31 October 2026).

And the first strike creatures themselves are small. About 55% of the Commander-legal creatures with the keyword have power 2 or less, and only about one in five has power 4 or more. That is the design: first strike on a 2/2 makes it the best blocker on turn two and the worst attacker on turn eight. On a big creature, the keyword usually comes bundled with flying and lifelink (Baneslayer Angel, Lyra Dawnbringer) and matters less.

First strike also gets more common every year. It appeared on 3 to 17 new keyword cards a year in the 1990s, 17 to 23 a year since 2022, and about 30 in 2026 alone, its busiest year so far.

The most played first strike cards in Commander

These are the 25 first strike cards in the most Commander decks on EDHREC (31 October 2026), with each card’s first set and the cheapest paper printing on Scryfall. “Grants it” means the card gives first strike to other creatures rather than having it.

Three things stand out. Knight of the White Orchid, a 2-mana 2/2, is the most played first strike card because it ramps, not because of the keyword. Eleven of the top 25 give first strike rather than have it, from auras (Ethereal Armor) to team-wide effects (Akroma’s Memorial, Karlach, Great Train Heist). And the expensive ones are the ones that bundle first strike with something else: Ocelot Pride ($42.01) for tokens and Akroma’s Memorial ($34.41) for six keywords at once.

First strike legality in every format

Counts are for every card that has or mentions first strike (801 on Scryfall, 31 October 2026).

The best first strike commanders

Commanders with first strike or that give it, ranked by the number of EDHREC decks (31 October 2026).

If you want to see how other players built these, browse the community decks and filter by commander.

Budget Odric first strike deck ($73.05)

This is a mono-white keyword deck with Odric, Lunarch Marshal as commander. Every card is checked against Scryfall for Commander legality and color identity, and the deck costs $73.05 using the cheapest printing of each card (31 October 2026). It runs 37 lands plus two land-backed modal cards (Emeria’s Call and Kabira Takedown), 32 creatures besides the commander, 8 equipment and 9 instants, with an average mana value of about 2.8 for the nonland cards.

The plan. At the beginning of each combat, Odric gives every creature you control first strike if any one of them has it, and does the same for flying, deathtouch, double strike, haste, hexproof, indestructible, lifelink, menace, reach, skulk, trample and vigilance. The deck is built so that one creature always has first strike: 11 creatures print it (Knight of the White Orchid, Danitha Capashen, Thalia, Heretic Cathar, Knight Exemplar, Odric, Master Tactician and more), and Sword of Vengeance and Chariot of Victory give it too. Add 14 flyers, 8 lifelinkers, 6 vigilance creatures and 6 double strikers (Zetalpa, Primal Dawn, Shrike Force, Fencing Ace, Adorned Pouncer, Aven Sunstriker, Skyhunter Skirmisher), and a normal board turns into a team of flying, first strike, double strike, lifelinkers.

Deathtouch is the payoff. Basilisk Collar or Gorgon’s Head on any one creature gives the whole team deathtouch, and deathtouch plus first strike means no creature without first strike can block one of yours and survive. Crystalline Giant adds a random keyword counter every turn: put Odric’s trigger on the stack first so it resolves after the Giant’s and shares the new keyword. Haste from Swiftfoot Boots or Lightning Greaves is shared at the beginning of combat, before attackers are declared, so creatures you cast this turn can attack.

Protection. Odric is a four-mana 3/3, so he dies to everything. Bastion Protector makes him a 5/5 indestructible, Selfless Spirit, Unbreakable Formation and Akroma’s Will protect the team from wraths, and Benevolent Bodyguard and Valorous Stance handle single removal spells. Mentor of the Meek and Inspiring Overseer keep cards coming, because almost every creature here has power 2 or less.

The ten most expensive cards:

Want a version tuned to your collection or a bigger budget? Paste this list into the MTG deck analyzer for a curve and mana check, or price any swap on the card prices page.

How to play against first strike

• Don’t block with something it kills. If the first striker’s power is at least your blocker’s toughness, the block is a free kill for them. Block with a creature that survives the first hit, or don’t block.
• Give your own creature first strike. Two first strikers deal damage at the same time, so a trick that grants first strike turns a losing block into a trade.
• Double block. A first striker kills only what its damage covers. The surviving blocker still deals damage in the regular step.
• Pump after first-strike damage? Too late. A blocker that already died can’t be saved. Cast the pump spell before the combat damage step begins.
• Remove the source. If first strike comes from equipment or an aura, destroying it before damage removes the keyword. Against Odric, killing the only creature with first strike before combat stops the whole team from getting it.

Older keywords played with the same timing: bushido and flanking both shrink or pump creatures before damage, and banding changes who assigns the damage.

Frequently asked questions

What does first strike do in MTG?

A creature with first strike deals its combat damage in a separate step before creatures without first strike. If it kills the creature it is fighting, that creature deals no damage back.

Does first strike beat deathtouch?

Yes, if the first striker deals enough damage to kill the deathtouch creature. The deathtouch creature is destroyed in the first damage step and never deals its damage. If the first striker’s damage isn’t lethal, the deathtouch creature survives and kills it in the regular step.

Does first strike deal damage twice?

No. That is double strike. A creature with first strike deals damage once, in the first-strike damage step, and does not deal damage again in the regular step.

What happens when two creatures with first strike fight?

They deal damage at the same time in the first damage step, as if neither had first strike.

Does first strike work when blocking?

Yes. First strike works on attackers and blockers. A first strike blocker kills an attacker before it deals damage if its power is high enough.

Does first strike work with trample?

Yes. The first striker assigns lethal damage to its blocker and the rest to the player, all in the first step. With deathtouch as well, 1 damage counts as lethal, so almost all of it tramples over.

Can I give a creature first strike during combat?

Yes, as long as it has first strike when the combat damage step begins. Giving it first strike after first-strike damage has been dealt is too late to deal damage early, but the creature still deals regular damage.

If a creature loses first strike after dealing damage, does it deal damage again?

No. A creature that dealt first-strike damage doesn’t deal regular damage, even if it loses first strike in between (rule 702.7c). Only double strike lets a creature deal damage in both steps.

What is the best first strike commander?

By EDHREC deck count, Edgar Markov (52,346 decks) is the most popular commander with first strike. For a deck built around the keyword, Odric, Lunarch Marshal shares it with your whole team and costs 50 cents.

Is first strike in Standard?

Yes. 99 Standard-legal cards have or give first strike on 31 October 2026, including Chronicle of Victory from Lorwyn Eclipsed.