I can’t give a ton of advice but I have done well in avoiding things like viruses through a combination of making sure that I always try and get torrents from more well-known and trusted sources and also by running Linux. I’m sure I have been previously saved simply due to running Linux.
It’s been a while since I have used Windows as a main OS so forgive me if it doesn’t work like this but I do remember Windows Defender having the ability to quarantine folders. Is it possible to quarantine your torrent downloads folder and scan it before you run anything that’s been downloaded? Even if that works it’s obviously not foolproof and will only prevent you from being infected by things that are caught in the scan, but it’s at least better than nothing.
That actually does sound like what I remember. Maybe I was thinking about something else.
I did hear about something called “Controlled Access” a while back. It looks like it might be an option that could work in certain situations.