Mono-Green Landfall wants to resolve its enchantments (Earthbender Ascension, Sapling Nursery) and Esper Origins uninterrupted, so Duress strips those threats before they land while also grabbing a removal spell like Meltstrider's Resolve before it matters. Duress can't take creatures like Mightform Harmonizer, so it is a tool against their noncreature engine pieces rather than their threats. Elegy Acolyte is a strong lifelink blocker against their go-wide landfall tokens and attacking creatures like Mossborn Hydra, helping stabilize the race. Gollum is weak here since the opponent's curve is full of green sorceries and creatures that won't reliably hit a chosen parity, and Shoot the Sheriff is live against all of their creatures since none are outlaws, but it's still a fine removal spell to trim for more proactive disruption; Dissection Practice's -1/-1 doesn't profitably trade with their bigger bodies like Icetill Explorer or Mightform Harmonizer. Keep the aggressive core and black removal suite intact to keep racing before their landfall engine snowballs.

Dimir Midrange wants to grind with card advantage from Enduring Curiosity and sculpt their hand with removal like Requiting Hex and Bitter Triumph, so Duress stripping their interaction before it resolves is excellent. Terminal Criticism cleanly answers their blue creatures (Floodpits Drowner, Spyglass Siren, Enduring Curiosity) and can also destroy Kaito, Bane of Nightmares, which is blue and black, but only as a planeswalker on our own turn, since Kaito has hexproof while it is a creature on their turn. It also gains life to offset their drain effects. Forsaken Miner is a weak attacker against a deck full of 2/1s and 1/3s with relevant blockers, and Dissection Practice is too marginal when we need harder answers to their card advantage engines. Keep the full manabase and curve intact to continue applying early pressure before they stabilize.

BRG is a midrange deck full of removal like Requiting Hex and Stir Up Trouble plus value creatures like The Sackville-Bagginses and Greedy Freebooter, so Duress strips their interaction before it can stop our aggression. Elegy Acolyte's 4/4 lifelink body is hard for their early creatures to profitably block and helps us race their bigger late-game threats like Smaug the Magnificent. Forsaken Miner's inability to block and fragile 2/2 stats are a liability against their removal-dense deck, and Dissection Practice's marginal value is better spent on proactive disruption and a sturdier body. The rest of our curve and full manabase stay intact to keep pressuring them before Smaug or Wolverine, Fierce Fighter take over.