(Yidris, Maelstrom WielderYidris, Maelstrom Wielder | Karl Kopinski)

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Recross the Paths, the series in which we give commanders a typal twist! For today's installment, I wanted to go back to prehistoric times, building the deck around a commander that has basically always been around in the format: Yidris, Maelstrom WielderYidris, Maelstrom Wielder. But, this former powerhouse needs some revamp to keep up with modern standards.
At the same time, there is one typal strategy that I've never managed to build around properly: Dinosaurs. This extremely popular creature type seems easy to play, as many sets included such creatures and they're overall loved by the community. Nonetheless, it's pretty hard to find synergies between the individual components of the deck; better said, there are only a few Dinos that actually care about other Dinos.
Hence, today's union comes from the desire to make the best out of both worlds; on one hand we're revitalizing a general that got lost in the perennial flow of new cards; while on the other we're trying to give an extremely popular archetype somewhat of a more cohesive game plan.

Stage One: The Deck

Part One: Playing the Waiting Game

I wanted to give this deck a twist, and I did so including Keruga, the MacrosageKeruga, the Macrosage as our companion. This choice is more of a style one: we want to send a message, letting everyone at the table know that we are playing big. Obviously we're missing out on the best card in the format (aka, Sol RingSol Ring), but we aren't looking to optimize the build - quite the opposite. I chose this commander because it'll give us big rewards when we play big creatures, such as Dinosaurs, for instance.
So, to sum it up, we want to hit with our commander and give huge creatures in our hand cascade.

A direct consequence of this style of game is that we aren't doing anything on the first three turns; even more so, ideally we'd actually want as much mana as possible available for us to cascade multiple threats. For these reasons, we want to run as much ramp as possible, both playing additional lands and using mana rocks. CultivateCultivate, Chromatic LanternChromatic Lantern, and Coalition RelicCoalition Relic are some pretty well-known options we can take advantage of even through our restrictions.

We also run Gruul CluestoneGruul Cluestone and Gruul KeyruneGruul Keyrune, because the vast majority of our deck is composed of either green or red cards, but we're also relying on some more modern technology, like Patchwork BannerPatchwork Banner and its soft typal synergy and Sonic ScrewdriverSonic Screwdriver and its various applications.

Part Two: Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!

Even though we're never unhappy to see ramp spells in our hand, considering how mana-intensive this deck is, we also want our threats to hit the table and start swinging. At a lower mana value, we can count on Hunting VelociraptorHunting Velociraptor, Topiary StomperTopiary Stomper, and Wayward SwordtoothWayward Swordtooth to provide us with some kind of ramp, either discounting cards or actually putting lands into play.

From this point on, things start to get serious. Sawhorn NemesisSawhorn Nemesis makes sure the game speeds up by a substantial margin, while Palani's HatcherPalani's Hatcher grants us the possibility to start hitting our opponents as soon as we deploy our creatures. And if we add something like a Earthshaker DreadmawEarthshaker Dreadmaw to the mix, we'll make sure we're never running out of gas to overrun the table.

Topping off our curve are some real heavy hitters. Among them, I especially love the ones that already have cascade, or something along that line, even without triggering our commander. Cards such as Annoyed AltisaurAnnoyed Altisaur or Etali, Primal StormEtali, Primal Storm are excellent examples of this design, and if they can count on an additional instance of cascade, well, the more, the merrier!

On this same note, Etali, Primal ConquerorEtali, Primal Conqueror is the ultimate refined version of these cards, making sure that we actually play four additional cards when it hits the board. And if we pair everything we've just said with a Flaming TyrannosaurusFlaming Tyrannosaurus, I don't think we'll have much trouble closing out the deal.

Part Three: Evolutionary Advantage

The cherries on top of our Dino-cake are some sweet typal synergies. For example, Owen Grady, Raptor TrainerOwen Grady, Raptor Trainer can cause havoc on the board, powering up our creatures, especially (but not only) if paired with Blue, Loyal RaptorBlue, Loyal Raptor. Welcome to . . .Welcome to . . . quickly becomes an extremely powerful land that makes us recur our best creatures over and over again, which is especially sweet if we tutor our best creature with Savage OrderSavage Order first.

Taking into consideration that the average mana value of our deck is 4.57, we can definitely make use of some effects that take it into account. For example, Imoti, Celebrant of BountyImoti, Celebrant of Bounty makes sure most of our cards have the double cascade instance discussed before. The same goes for Monstrous VortexMonstrous Vortex, which makes it even easier for our cards to match the required criteria to discover X. Last but not least, Ugin's BindingUgin's Binding is a sweet piece of interaction that can clear the way for our attackers once we've cast some big haymaker.

Part Four: The Complete Decklist

Before going to the Data Room, I wanted to make a quick note on the mana base for this deck. I've tested some hands with the current one and it seemed to be working for me. I heavily privilege green and red, as they're the primary colors of the deck, and reserved only a minimal space for blue and black. I made sure to include at least two basic lands of each type so that we don't find ourselves in an awkward situation when casting CultivateCultivate or Kodama's ReachKodama's Reach. Also, for the first time, I've actually liked Pathways in an EDH decklist, as they grant us the flexibility that we need to make sure we hit the right colors at the right time.
Nonetheless, I think that it still can be tweaked and improved. So, if you pick up the deck, make sure to keep track of any problem you incur with mana, as it can be a signal of problems to be addressed in future iterations of the list.

Stage Two: The Data Room

The Average YidrisYidris Deck

YidrisYidris is the most popular non-white commander, with 7015 decks built on EDHREC. Sadly, it is only number 189 on the overall list of most popular commanders, which perfectly represents how it hasn't been able to keep up with the modern day MTG power level. In fact, while its effect is extremely powerful, it can be easily eclipsed by more modern cards. As a consequence, the objective of this deck was to propose a possible way forward for YidrisYidris, using Dinosaurs as a payoff for its attacks. In this spirit, let's compare the average mana curve for decks with this commander with ours.

It's possible to recognize the curve of our deck as it starts from three mana, and also because we run four more lands than the average one.
The average one is considerably lower, taking into account they run 25 cards with a mana value of two or less, while our deck runs more three-mana cards, considering they're the first ones we get to play.
We also run quite a lot more of four- and five-mana cards (20 to 11, combined), given that they're basically the beginning of our curve and not in the middle, as per the average deck. On this note, I have to say that lowering the number of four-drops might be a future change in our list, as they compete with our commander as the card we want to cast first with that same mana value.
Looking at the end of the curve, it's interesting to notice how the number of 6+ mana cards is basically the same (15 to 16, combined), highlighting how the focus of the commander has remained unchanged through the years.

All in all, the outline of the deck hasn't changed a lot. Introducing Keruga, the MacrosageKeruga, the Macrosage as a companion has simply compressed the first half of the curve between the three- and the four-mana cards, while the latter part is basically the same, with some numbers fluctuating according to the builders' decisions.
What we can take away from this is that, in order to revitalize YidrisYidris, we need to focus on the sheer quality of cards. In fact, it seems that, when building the deck, we all more or less agree on the distribution of the inclusions; what's left is to try and include the cards that fit this curve as well as possible for us.

The Average Dinosaurs Deck

Gishath, Sun's AvatarGishath, Sun's Avatar is the most popular Dinosaur commander, with 20,531 decks registered on EDHREC. Let's have a look at the average deck with this commander, to see where the differences are.

Focusing on creatures, we can see some pretty substantial changes. The addition of white to the commander's color identity allows this deck to run some pretty heavy-hitting creatures, such as Goring CeratopsGoring Ceratops, Wakening Sun's AvatarWakening Sun's Avatar, and Zacama, Primal CalamityZacama, Primal Calamity.

Moreover, the mana value restriction prevents us from playing some effective mana creatures, like Kinjalli's CallerKinjalli's Caller, Marauding RaptorMarauding Raptor, and Otepec HuntmasterOtepec Huntmaster.

Another interesting point is what we exchanged these cards for in our list. In particular, Gishath, Sun's AvatarGishath, Sun's Avatar players don't include crucially synergistic cards, like Forerunner of the EmpireForerunner of the Empire, that can set up pretty strong turns, especially after their commander attacks, but is included in only around 37% of the decks. Also, there's no inclusion of Hunting VelociraptorHunting Velociraptor, played by only 31% of the Dino-lovers, although it can discount a lot of creatures by a big margin. And while I can understand the exclusion of some lower-impact anthem effects, such as Regal ImperiosaurRegal Imperiosaur or Thundering SpinebackThundering Spineback, I don't understand why less than 27% of the players sleeve Palani's HatcherPalani's Hatcher, which is another piece to set up extremely explosive turns.

In conclusion, it seems that the average deck confirms the leitmotiv going on with Dinosaurs in EDH. This means, rather than aiming at internal synergy, which is oftentimes lacking, players decide to focus solely on card quality. The cards they include don't go all that well together, although sharing a common theme, but their sheer power is trusted to overrun the opponents and claim the victory.

The Takeaways

In general, this deck tried to address two problems, one concerning the chosen commander, the other the typal strategy overall.

Regarding YidrisYidris, it really feels like a card designed for a whole different game. It is strong, but not nearly as flashy as many commanders that get printed nowadays. For this reason, I think going full big-mana can help it become more popular at casual tables. Its design is a tad on the slower end; in other words, it needs four specific-colored mana pips, it needs to attack and deal damage, and it also needs something to cast afterwards before rewarding the pilot. Compared to some more recent cards, many would consider it unplayably slow. As a consequence, we want our cards to be as impactful as possible, so that we're not wasting our hard-earned cascade trigger.

This translates, at least in my casual experience, to a higher mana curve, which increases our chances of both casting big creatures with cascade and of cascading into other big haymakers.

The KerugaKeruga companion is only an added feature which isn't completely core to our game plan. Mostly, it can refill our hand if our cascades go wrong, taking advantage of the big bodies we've accumulated through the turns. Only playtesting will it be possible to decide whether it's worth the restricted card pool, or if we're better off with Sol RingSol Ring in our deck.

On the other hand, Dinosaurs are an extremely popular creature type that, although receiving a lot of love and attention every year, chronically suffer from a lack of synergy. There are a ton of good Dinosaurs, but there are only a few who actively care and empower fellow prehistoric lizards. As a consequence, many decks exclusively run the best-in-a-vacuum creatures, giving up on typal strength to highlight individual prowess. This feels like a loss of identity for these creatures, which can quickly spiral down into swapping out these creatures for better-but-flavorless ones.

What I mean is that the whole point of kindred decks is to find the synergies between creatures that share a type and to make this the focal point of your deck, preferring a weaker-but-thematic creature to a stronger-but-generic one. In this list I've tried to always follow the direction that would lead me to a higher degree of internal cohesion, excluding good cards that don't actually care about other Dinosaurs. An example of such decisions is Quartzwood CrasherQuartzwood Crasher, a good card with incredible upsides but that helps our Dinosaur-centric gameplan only in part.

So, what do you think? Do you like these innovations? Or do you think I should have gone down another route with this commander? Let me know in the comments!
Also, if you have any suggestions regarding another commander and/or creature type, let me know as well!

I hope you enjoyed the article, and see you next time!