Dimir Midrange wants to grind with Enduring Curiosity, Kaito, and card advantage, so Duress strips their key removal (Requiting Hex, Bitter Triumph, Shoot the Sheriff), their counterspells, or Kaito before it matters. Duress can't take creatures, so Enduring Curiosity and their small fliers are out of its reach. Erode can hit Kaito or a creature, but it hands them a basic land, and it is poor value against Dream Beavers and Enduring Curiosity, which returns as an enchantment after dying. That makes it the weaker slot in a grindy matchup. Essence Channeler is a fragile 2/1 that only flies once you've lost life this turn, and it dies easily to their cheap removal, so it is low-impact here. Keep the lifegain engine intact since Amalia and Moseo out-grind their card advantage.