The Ur-DragonThe Ur-Dragon | Art by Jaime Jones

If you've played Commander, odds are you've seen a few Dragons hit the battlefield. Maybe you've even put them onto the battlefield yourself! In this edition of Fire and Ice, we'll be taking a look at the most popular Dragon commander ever printed. This flying lizard also just so happens to be the most popular commander on EDHREC, with over 46 thousand decks to its name.

If you haven't guessed it yet, today's article is about The Ur-DragonThe Ur-Dragon!

This is the data-driven series where I go over cards that are becoming more or less popular for different Commander decks, and talk about why they may be gaining or losing popularity. I'm Julia, EDHREC's Duchess of Data, and I'm super excited to jump into today's article!

We've got tons of data here at EDHREC. In this series, we'll draw conclusions from that data about how certain commanders' decks have changed over time, give insight into how the format's players are thinking about new cards, and hopefully provide some tech for your favorite commander's list.

Let's see what's Fiery and what's Icy for The Ur-Dragon!

The Ur-DragonThe Ur-Dragon

What's Hot and What's Not for The Ur-Dragon?

Ur-Dragon decks make use of the cost reduction that their commander provides to get big Dragons onto the battlefield earlier than should be possible. Then, after building up enough mana, pilots can cast their commander to unleash a devastating amount of power and toughness onto the board. Some decks may not even cast their commander, instead preferring to simply make use of the free cost reduction this Dragon Avatar provides from the command zone.

Among the most popular cards with Ur-Dragon pilots are Miirym, Sentinel WyrmMiirym, Sentinel Wyrm (79% of decks), Dragon TempestDragon Tempest (77% of decks), and Crux of FateCrux of Fate (72% of decks).

What's Fiery for Ur-Dragon Decks?

Quandrix, the ProofQuandrix, the Proof, Witherbloom, the BalancerWitherbloom, the Balancer, and Prismari, the InspirationPrismari, the Inspiration - Fire Scores of 9.00, 8.67, and 8.33

All three of these Elder Dragons are fantastic, and Ur-Dragon players are always eager to get their hands on new creatures. These Dragons are all huge, flying beaters that can kill opponents after just a few combat steps. Quandrix even has cascade, which will often net us an extra Dragon!

But all three of these creatures have abilities that place importance on high mana cost instants and sorceries. The average Ur-Dragon deck has just over a dozen instants and sorceries, the majority of which are ramp and removal spells like FarseekFarseek or Path to ExilePath to Exile. That's not enough of a focus on spells to merit the inclusion of these Dragons, which won't provide us with much value if we're not casting splashy instants and sorceries.

Quandrix, Witherbloom, and Prismari are all great cards, but they're better suited for a different sort of deck.

Mutable ExplorerMutable Explorer - Fire Score of 2.63

This three-drop is a fantastic inclusion for Ur-Dragon pilots. It has its cost reduced to just by our commander's eminence ability, it counts as a Dragon for all of our typal synergies, and the land it creates can also become a Dragon if need be. It's hard to imagine a better ramp spell for Ur-Dragon decks, so I'm glad to see players latching on to this card.

Bloom TenderBloom Tender - Fire Score of 1.85

This Elf Druid is also a fantastic card, but it requires a bit more setup to reach maximum effectiveness. If we're able to get a few non- Dragons (or other permanents) onto the field, Bloom Tender will really shine. And, if we've only got this creature on board, it still produces mana for us!

This is one of the best mana dorks out there, and is a great fit for our mana-hungry strategy.

Chronicle of VictoryChronicle of Victory - Fire Score of 1.80

I will admit that I'm a bit confused at this inclusion. Sure, this artifact provides some great value upon resolution. We get a nice anthem for our Dragons, and the promise of some future card advantage too. But, much like Crucible of FireCrucible of Fire, it would likely be better to slot in another Dragon in place of Chronicle of Victory.

Dragons are already large, imposing creatures that strike fear into the hearts of opponents. We don't need a +2/+2 anthem and a few extra keywords to turn a board full of Dragons into victory. There's 124 Dragons out there that have the same mana value as Chronicle of Victory, and I'd rather cast almost all of them instead of this artifact.

Crib SwapCrib Swap and RealmwalkerRealmwalker - Fire Scores of 1.51 and 1.53

These cards have very different purposes, but they're in this deck for the same reason: Both of them are changelings, meaning they have their cost reduced by our commander. That turns Crib Swap into a two-mana removal spell (a good rate for creature removal in Commander) and Realmwalker into a two-mana card advantage engine (solid rate for a mini precognition engine).

Both of these cards likely drew a bit more attention after the recent release of Lorwyn Eclipsed, and are certainly deserving of a spot in more Ur-Dragon decks.

What's Icy for Ur-Dragon Decks?

Herald's HornHerald's Horn - Ice Score of -2.49

I spoke about this artifact a few weeks ago in our article on Éowyn, ShieldmaidenÉowyn, Shieldmaiden, but I believe that this card is being swapped out directly for Gathering StoneGathering Stone in many lists. The card selection provided by Gathering Stone is worth the extra it costs.

While Lorwyn Eclipsed's Gathering Stone didn't quite make it onto the Fiery card list for The Ur-Dragon, I imagine that many players are finding a home for it in their lists. Ur-Dragon decks make more than enough mana to justify that swap.

Dragonlord's ServantDragonlord's Servant and Dragonspeaker ShamanDragonspeaker Shaman - Ice Scores of -2.16 and -1.92

These cards are both cost reducers too, but their decline in popularity is likely happening for a different reason: they're creatures! Out of all the card types, creatures are the most vulnerable to removal. They can be dealt direct damage, forced to block a scary attacking creature, or straight up MurderMurdered. That fragility has likely come back to bite many Ur-Dragon players, hence their declining popularity.

When cards like Mutable ExplorerMutable Explorer provide much harder-to-interact-with ramp, older staples like Dragonspeaker Shaman and Dragonlord's Servant become less appealing.

Korlessa, Scale SingerKorlessa, Scale Singer - Ice Score of -1.88

This creature is quite similar to RealmwalkerRealmwalker. It's likely that Realmwalker is gaining in popularity, while Korlessa fails in popularity, due to recency bias. Korlessa does also have a slightly more restrictive mana cost, requiring an extra pip, which has likely also led to its removal from some 99s.

What's in an Ur-Dragon Deck?

Here's an Ur-Dragon list with all of its hot cards and none of its cold cards.

Conclusion

There's a solid contingent of Ur-Dragon lists that are themed around creatures with changeling, rather than being focused solely on Dragons. This is a more unique take, and a fun way to power down one of Commander's most fearsome cards.

It's always entertaining to see these off-kilter builds come together. Some pilots like the abilities that Commander's strongest leaders provide, but don't want the pressure of building around those abilities optimally. Are there any other super powerful commanders that you've built in an unusual way? Perhaps a Mr. House, President and CEOMr. House, President and CEO deck without any ways to roll d20s? Let me know in the comments below, and I'll see you all next week for a cEDH-focused edition of Fire and Ice!