Scion of the Ur-Dragon

Legendary Creature — Dragon Avatar

Flying

: Search your library for a Dragon permanent card and put it into your graveyard. If you do, Scion of the Ur-Dragon becomes a copy of that card until end of turn. Then shuffle your library.

Discussion (51)

NeonEndymion on The Ur-Dragon

1 week ago

If you're looking at Harmonize , you might as well have a second look at Syphon Mind . It's the same CMC, less color restrictive, and has opponent discard stapled on. 99% of the time it is also a draw three spell.

I'm a bit down on Bring to Light as it has a fairly high floor and a relatively low ceiling, in that it's higher CMC/restrictive based on mana-color generation. But it might be worth a look/testing.

As to the reanimation plan, given how you can get hosed by graveyard hate w/ that strategy, I'd rather treat the yard as a backup wincon vs one of the primary gameplans. It's too tempting to go off-theme for just the best/biggest creatures and combos once you take those lines, and I think you'd have to re-work too much of the core deck for my tastes at least to support that package. Like, why not just dump and reanimate a Praetor or Eldrazi at that point? And it would push you closer to Faithless Looting builds, so rather than playing an 80% Scion of the Ur-Dragon deck, you're now playing an 80% reanimator deck under The Ur-Dragon ? If you're getting the casting cost reduction from the latter, I prefer building around that, and focusing on card draw is a bit more resilient to hate/interaction, generally speaking.

But that's just my take and I'd be interested to see someone build a list/alternate lists for this commander, for sure.

Vlasiax on The Ur-Dragon

1 week ago

You might be right about switching to Scion of the Ur-Dragon for a more competitive build, however, I can't do that since I want The Ur-Dragon as a commander so I want to include as many on-theme powerful spells and interactions as possible. Sure it won't be as powerful but might be enough at 80-90%.

As for card draw I'd love to see more cards like Harmonize but with 2-3 CMC because I could just add Hunter's Insight or Rishkar's Expertise but they're reliant on you having a boardstate (or at least that 1 creature with power 4+) and this particular strategy needs mostly early card advantage to start.

And as our discussion went more towards the playstyle and core of the deck... Maybe we should become more graveyard-reliant to get huge amounts of Dragons into play? Like with Kokusho, the Evening Star + Sneak Attack or something like that? That still means we ramp and cast them "the fair way" but we are more prepared to shift gears into more powerful plays depending on the playgroup power level :)

NeonEndymion on The Ur-Dragon

1 week ago

I actually like Syphon Mind over Painful Truths . But if you're really looking to keep your overall CMC down, the latter is probably better. For my list I just want one big/bomby draw spell and don't mind sorcery speed or exactly one higher CMC draw spell.

I'm still OK with Teneb, the Harvester , as the ability to target a creature in any graveyard is relevant both to help put you ahead and for yard hate—or you can reanimate one of your own key pieces. If I were to go more all-in on a reanimation plan, I'd probably cut him for Animate Dead , though. The 6/6 body isn't irrelevant, as is the case with the overcosted Bladewing the Risen , which I feel you need to be able to reanimate and blink to make work (and even then . . . meh).

As my playgroups have powered down things a bit, I cut Vandalblast , mainly b/c I haven't been coming across as much fast rock ramp or hard Stax, and cut it in favor of another creature board wipe. Been seeing more dork/creature value engine packages lately. Another meta call.

I think the overall tension is that if you really want to keep optimizing slots w/ cEDH staples, you'd probably want to play a tutor/counter/removal/draw heavy Scion of the Ur-Dragon deck with cleaner win-con lines and, like, Worldgorger Dragon and Animate Dead combo lines. Otherwise I feel like it's easy to get caught in a trap of trying to lean into doing too many things and not doing any of them consistently well?

My gameplan is often to try to win via "fair magic" (going somewhat wide and swingin' with Dragons, 1994 Timmy style, while Jund'ing opponents out with value stapled on to them in the meantime/beforehand), with the combat combos or mass reanimation combos as backup wincons vs the primary line.

NeonEndymion on The Ur-Dragon

1 week ago

I'd actually look at Windfall as a direct swap for Wheel of Fortune , but again, that's only in my list in the first place b/c of 1. need to mull to fast mana hands that result in net negative card advantage and 2. it can play into reanimation plan.

I'm still pretty high on Greater Good , but if someone has graveyard hate/answers, it can cut off a splashy win and kneecap you pretty badly. It's not so great as a value/draw engine on its own due to the relatively high CMC and the discard 3 effect (vs a few relatively lower power main deck drag'o's). It's more a cute/splashy play/not sure I'd prioritize it unless you enjoy the card/game plan.

Speaking of which: In terms of replacements for Rishkar's Expertise , and/or in general, I'd rather look at Recurring Insight —that can be a superbomb splashy spell depending on the table. Not sure I care about Overrun-style effects at any CMC.

And I could see Living Death being a swap for Toxic Deluge , but given the tutors/recursion maybe one mass reanimation spell that's more one-sided is OK. I don't love also how Living Death resolves in re the stack (your reanimated creatures' ETBs resolve last); it can sometimes end up hosing you vs helping. Animate Dead might be a better add for added/cheap re-animation? Esp if it can fish a combo from a Scion of the Ur-Dragon dump-off?

NeonEndymion on The Ur-Dragon

1 week ago

Oh! And as to "how to use Worldly Tutor ": Depends on when you draw it/what you need at that moment: Early game it's often Set-up (ramp or token generator). Mid-game it's often Toolbox Dragon (card draw or removal). Late game it's often Payoff Dragon (double strike, Scourge of Valkas , Utvara Hellkite ). Or mid or late game you can snag Scion of the Ur-Dragon and use it as the start of a dragon-tutor chain, perhaps into the reanimation plan, or go for a combo piece like Birds of Paradise , Selvala, Heart of the Wilds , or Savage Ventmaw if you've drawn or can tutor into Aggravated Assault . It's always good/always flexible and helps, like the other tutors, smooth out a rather greedy game plan for the deck.

Early game, you're most likely getting Selvala, Heart of the Wilds , as she's the biggest potential payoff ramp creature, has incremental card draw attached, and can combo (so long as another rainbow dork is in play) with Aggravated Assault .

SliverKing420X on Friend in need

1 month ago

Sliver Legion , Scion of the Ur-Dragon , Varina, Lich Queen and Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow all make great tribal commanders

BMHKain on I thought about it. I'll ...

1 month ago

(CAUTION: A Huge List of CMDRS dead ahead. If you can't comply, remember that I apologized for the huge wall.)

Well, I was just told how to do a Folder, but to choose what for decks is another thing entirely. Especially if such decks are either:

A: What Everyone Plays B: Are good, but have since been outdated by a year C: Are Tribal Leaders in a Specific Sense (No Morophon, the Boundless please.) D: Not Underdog CMDRs. E: Other.

Let's Just assume we use that cEDH Deck Tier List One-by-One; but w/ a new rule for Playtesting such decks so none of the cEDH Decks win out of overall ratios ~100% of the time; CHANNELFIREBALL-style. That said, From using the Tier List, I require the following CMDR Decks to not have cEDH Level Power, but are these:

Tier 0:

Thrasios, Triton Hero & Tymna the Weaver Partners

Tier 1:

Kess, Dissident Mage

Kraum, Ludevic's Opus

Najeela, the Blade-Blossom

The First Sliver (Not as a Sliver Tribe Leader)

The Gitrog Monster

Urza, Lord High Artificer

Vial Smasher the Fierce

Yisan, the Wanderer Bard

Zur the Enchanter

(NOTE: Unknown if Kraum, Ludevic's Opus & Vial Smasher the Fierce need to be Parters to be of this level.)

Tier 2:

Animar, Soul of Elements (Morph Decks not allowed.)

Baral, Chief of Compliance (Get your Counterspells Ready!)

Brago, King Eternal

Breya, Etherium Shaper

Circu, Dimir Lobotomist

Derevi, Empyrial Tactician

Edric, Spymaster of Trest

General Tazri (Mandatory Ally Tribe Leader)

Ghave, Guru of Spores

God-Eternal Kefnet

Godo, Bandit Warlord

Golos, Tireless Pilgrim

Grand Arbiter Augustin IV

Jace, Vryn's Prodigy  ^Flip

Jeleva, Nephalia's Scourge

Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain

Kykar, Wind's Fury

Meren of Clan Nel Toth

Mizzix of the Izmagnus

Momir Vig, Simic Visionary

Narset, Enlightened Master

Niv-Mizzet, Parun

Niv-Mizzet Reborn

Oona, Queen of the Fae

Prime Speaker Vannifar

Prossh, Skyraider of Kher

Ramos, Dragon Engine

Rashmi, Eternities Crafter

Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Possible Dragon Tribe Leader)

Selvala, Heart of the Wilds

Sidisi, Brood Tyrant

Sidisi, Undead Vizier

Sisay, Weatherlight Captain

Taigam, Ojutai Master

Tana, the Bloodsower

Tasigur, the Golden Fang

Teferi, Temporal Archmage

The Mimeoplasm

Varolz, the Scar-Striped

Xantcha, Sleeper Agent

Yarok, the Desecrated

Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder

Tier 3: WIP

But, yeah, you get the picture, right? Since I can't find such decks on my own to put in such a folder for decks worth testing against your own. Rules are as follows though:

1. It needs to be up to date, prior to the Iona, Shield of Emeria & Paradox Engine bans & Painter's Servant unbanning/CMDR 2019's release; or just not include any of those at all.

2. Each deck must not be of cEDH-level power; just imagine how much hell I'd have to playthrough against something just to beat a Thrasios/Tymna Partners deck just to have my claim on this notion nullified.

3. Decks must include CMDRs that are Popular, were Popular as well as Tribal Decks w/ Good Tribe Leaders (For example: The First Sliver & Sliver Queen do not fit this category where Sliver Overlord does fit the Sliver Tribe Leadership. Scion of the Ur-Dragon & The Ur-Dragon can both count as Dragon Tribe CMDRs. Atraxa, Praetors' Voice is actually a bad CMDR to use in Superfriends, but Shines in all Counter Life. Make good use of that instead of making a 4< Color Walkers Deck. The rulings go on...)

I know this is too much for now, but I'm making a folder for Playtesting w/ decks as everyone kept telling me to do so; now I want to hold my end of the Bargain. But I seriously need help from you to do this. If you can find any decks here to add to such a Folder, put it on the comments below.

(& no, It's not like it's a personal thing! Anyone is allowed to use it when it's finished!)

ihazpie on The Most Backwards Deck You'll Ever See

2 months ago

I read through your description and how your deck wants to play more passively. I think mine wants to be more aggressive because one of my friends has a Scion of the Ur-Dragon deck and I can't afford to be passive. Hope it still gives you some ideas though!