I use the following ten parameters to determine the strength of the deck. For each, I allocate a score of 5 (very good), 4 (good), 3 (mediocre), 2 (bad) or 1 (very bad); when totalized this score represents the power rating of the deck (maximum score is 50 points).
- Mana: indicates the availability of mana sources within the deck.
- Ramp: indicates the speed at which mana sources within the deck can be made available.
- Card Advantage: indicates availability of filter- and draw resources represented within the deck.
- Overall speed: indicates the deck’s potential for pace, based on resource availability and mana curve.
- Combo: indicates the measure of combo-orientation of the deck.
- Army: indicates the deck’s creature-army strength.
- Commander: indicates how much the deck is commander-oriented/dependent (less dependency is better).
- Interaction: indicates how much this deck can mess with opponents’ board states and turn-phases.
- Resilience: indicates whether the deck can prevent and take punches.
- Spellpower: indicates the availability and strength of high-impact spells.
Mana: 4
Summoning dragons fast, keeping them after I do and repeating this process as often as I can is the way I want to operate. This is an expensive process, so I need lots of energy and cheap ways to come by it quickly. Direct, raw power-generation abilities of this deck are therefore extensive for a mono-red deck. Nine rocks, a cheapener, a mana-duplicator and an enchantment mana-battery represent its generation capacity.
Ramp: 1
This deck features one ramping option.
Card Advantage: 2
My pet-lizard, Zirilan, is a wonderful tutoring-machine. But he could use some help in obtaining more conventional draw. I have added some opportunities for that; five repeatable ones and two spells.
Overall speed: 3
Overall, this deck doesn’t have a specifically low mana-curve. It does have a good number of energy and draw resources to bank on, as well as win-conditions that can be tutored for with fair consistency at reasonable costs. Combine all these factors together and I have a deck that on average has a moderate speed (high speed when one of the more powerful mana-sources becomes available).
Combo: 4
The great advantage of having a commander with tutoring, is that even a deck with just a few combos in it can be oriented towards executing them. Ah, screw it. Let’s go nuts!! This deck bolsters a few very interesting combos; most of them involving dragons in some way. None of them are really infinite though, which is what most play-groups I’ve experienced prefer anyways. In terms of themes, most involve damage or destruction. In other words; right up red’s alley.
Army: 4
Ow dragons. Dragons, dragons, dragons. This deck features quite a few powerful ones. Some are so powerful they need not even attack before they have already dealt a ton of damage. Or they can create even more dragons themselves. I chose quality over quantity in this deck; there aren’t a bazillion dragons in here, but every single one of them will be a serious issue for the opposition.
Commander: 2
Zirilan is instrumental in getting me cheap- and the right dragons. In most respects, he brings an element of stability and reliability. However, I am not fully dependent on him to win. There’s multi-functionality, synergy and simple impact the cards within this deck can have on the board-state, to pull out wins in multiple ways.
Interaction: 2
The dragons brought into play by Zirilan ought to cause as much impact to opposing boards and mine as possible. Amongst their number, six are able to deal a massive amount of damage upon entering the battlefield and/or attacking. Another two can wipe out permanents while a third and fourth one actually capture opposing permanents.
Resilience: 2
At first glance, this deck does not seem overly capable in dealing with opposing threats. In some ways, it really isn’t. Most noticeably, its capacity to deal with opposing spells and enchantments is a genuine Achilles heel. And yet, any deck dependent on either artifacts or creatures for their strategies is going to face some tough challenges from this deck.
Spellpower: 1
A few wipe options are represented, but that’s about it.
Total power score: 25
This decks’ creatures combined with some of its artifacts can cause some major headaches for its opposition. The deck can be reasonably fast because of its many mana resources but lacks spell-casting kick and defensive options (more of which are included in the sideboard in case I cannot do without them). All this combined lets me grant an average power score to this deck.