(Kudo, King Among Bears | Art by Ekaterina Burmak)

Bear Supremacy

Welcome to Too-Specific Top 10, where if there isn’t a category to rank our pet card at the top of, we’ll just make one up! (Did you know that Kalonian Hydra is the only Hydra that could conceivably give all your creatures +1/+1 counters?)

When I first read Kudo, King Among Bears, I got bored.

Luckily, others read a bit better than I do, so eventually there was enough people talking about how Kudo worked that I reread him. That's right, he says all other creatures are 2/2's, not just your stuff. There is an obvious way to go with this, right?

Well, yes and no. Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite is indeed going to be brutal for a table, but it also represents a class of card that just does not exist in Selesnya. Which is not to say that there aren't exceptions. Crovax, Ascendant Hero will get you half an Elesh Norn for one less mana while pumping half your team, for instance. Quicksand will kill any attacking creature that doesn't have a buff, but even that pales in comparison to the Brigid, Hero of Kinsbaile possibilities.

That, however, is pretty much the list. Elesh Norn at home does get me thinking, however: If your creatures are just better than everyone else's creatures, do you actually need to kill your opponent's creatures? The question we should be asking is, what's the best way to make our creatures better?

Top 10 Anthems Versus Top 10 Hydras

If Elesh Norn was everyone's first thought when it came to Kudo, I think the very next thought out of everyone's noggin was tokens.

With Kudo in play, 0/1 Plant tokens are suddenly a force to be reckoned with. Soldiers, Saprolings, Insects, and all manner of other 1/1's suddenly double their power. Germs from Living Weapon equipments come in bigger and meaner, and no longer die when they're unequipped. It's a Selesnya mage's oyster out there, I tell ya!

What if instead of just flooding the field wide, though, you could make them just a little bit taller, as well?

Enter the namesake for an entire genre of white permanent: The anthem. Glorious Anthem might not have been the first card to give all your creatures +1/+1, but it was the first to do it in a matter of fact way that said just that. Combined with Kudo, it will make your Bears insurmountable 3/3's that have to be double blocked to be killed, no matter their humble Plant beginnings. In short? With a steady stream of cheap tokens, an anthem, and Kudo, aggro is back on the menu.

So, what are our options?

Top 10 Anthems

1. Vanquisher's Banner
2. Mirari's Wake
3. Felidar Retreat
4. Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
5. Cathars' Crusade
6. [REDACTED] (On actual list)
7. Caged Sun
8. Gavony Township
9. Elspeth, Sun's Champion
10. Defiler of Vigor

Wow, there is some spicy stuff here! Maybe too spicy? Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of Vanquisher's Banner calling out Bears specifically, but only making mine bigger. With my "Bears" not being Bears on the stack, however, I won't actually get to draw any cards off of Banner, which seems like I might be overpaying for the effect at five mana. Similarly, there's no question that Felidar Retreat can provide tokens and make them bigger. It really only does so if I'm abusing lands, though, which I doubt I'm going to have room for in a deck trying to go wide with tokens and then make them tall with anthems. What does seem like it would fit in with that whole scheme well is Cathars' Crusade, but honestly this whole list just has me thinking that there's nothing on here that I'd rather have over their namesake, Glorious Anthem. If we're trying to get a bunch of creatures down and make them bigger than the table, then why wait until I have five mana?

Maybe I'm even overthinking it with Glorious Anthem, though. Why wait for another card to make my creatures bigger, when I could just have them start out that way?

Hydras are a pretty well-known creature type at this point, typically characterized mechanically as having an X in their cost that correlates to +1/+1 counters in some fashion. So, what does this have to do with Kudo? Well, most Hydra's are technically 0/0's, meaning that if you don't put any mana into their X costs, they immediately die to state-based actions. Not so with Kudo! Your Protean Hydra is now a 2/2 for one mana that is practically unkillable! Got some mana laying around, and want to pay into the X cost anyhow? Good enough, your Stonecoil Serpent is now two bigger for the low, low cost of having your commander in play! My favorite, though? Several Hydras reference their power or toughness rather than their +1/+1 counters, meaning that Goldvein Hydra will get you two extra Treasures when it shuffles off this mortal coil.

Similar to our Landfall problems with Felidar Retreat, however, I can't help but think that a deck trying to do tokens, anthems, and Hydras all would be pretty bad at doing any of them. So I figure, why don't we look at what our options are, and use that to guide which deck would be best?

Criteria: Cards within the Selesnya color identity that either are Hydras with a mana cost including X or are a permanent costing three or less that unconditionally gives all creatures you control a power and toughness boost for longer than a turn. As is tradition, all results are ordered by EDHREC score.

10. Song of Freyalise or Vastwood Hydra

(Song of Freyalise: 22,439 Inclusions; Vastwood Hydra: 18,148)

On the anthem side, I'm torn. Song of Freyalise doesn't do the anthem part quick enough, which means that drawing it in the late game will be a real bummer. Early, however, tapping tokens to put down more tokens will get out of control quickly, meaning that by the time you do throw out some +1/+1 counters you might well be looking to remove a player or two at the table.

I don't have any back and forth about Vastwood Hydra, however. With it referencing +1/+1 counters instead of power, and costing a Bear's amount of mana to be a Bear, there are just going to be better Hydras to make room for.

Anthems 1, Hydras 0

9. Nissa, Voice of Zendikar or Mistcutter Hydra

(Nissa, Voice of Zendikar: 25,166; Mistcutter Hydra: 20,098)

Mistcutter Hydra's stats show exactly why we're thinking of this aggro approach: For one mana, you can get a 3/3 with haste that isn't going to be bounced anytime soon. If you need to make it bigger in the late game, that flexibility is there, as well. So when I say that we're instead scoring a point for the anthem side of the tally again, you've gotta know it's because Nissa, Voice of Zendikar is everything that Kudo wants to be doing. I would go so far as to say that it's so good, that you'll want it in either version of the deck. A +1 that makes 0/1 Plant tokens that will become Bears, alongside a -2 that pumps your entire team bigger than the rest of the table is just too much good stuff all in one package.

Anthems 2, Hydras 0

8. Skyhunter Strike Force or Lifeblood Hydra

(Skyhunter Strike Force: 25,618; Lifeblood Hydra: 21,064)

If you thought the Hydras were going to stay entirely out of the win column here, then I'm sorry to disappoint you. Under normal circumstances, I am not a fan of Lifeblood Hydra. Four mana to later draw one card is a terrible rate, and it doesn't really get better at five for two or six for three. Above that, you start seeing some returns, but even then, you have to wait until it dies to cash in! Starting the math at a delayed Divination helps things out immensely, and will make this one of the best cards in the Hydra deck.

With that said, Skyhunter Strike Force isn't exactly a pushover, either. With the token deck going wide, its Melee ability will routinely be good for +3/+3, even if its the only creature that has it. When you do have your commander and a huge stack of creatures out, however, this is very possibly going to be the best anthem in the deck. Don't get me wrong, we're still giving Lifeblood Hydra the edge here, given how situational Skyhunter Strike Force's pump criteria is, but there's no question: This Cat Knight "Bear" will absolutely remove players.

Anthems 2, Hydras 1

7. King Darien XLVIII or Benevolent Hydra

(King Darien: 25,981; Benevolent Hydra: 22,691)

If you are looking for a more straightforward anthem that will just make your creatures bigger, however, then you could do worse than King Darien XLVIII. His floor is a Glorious Anthem that protects your tokens, and if you're flush with mana in the late game, he can add to the army as well. With that said, I've got to give the nod to the Hydra side of the house here once more.

Benevolent Hydra acts as a Hardened Scales in a deck that's probably going to want as many versions of that effect as it can get, and then also taps to move counters around and take advantage of that very effect. Coming up with the up-front mana cost to use that tap effect may be a bit daunting in the early game, but fear not! With Kudo in play, you can simply make this guy a Bear for two mana, and have a Hardened Scales on a stick. Not bad!

Anthems 2, Hydras 2

6. Icon of Ancestry or Hungering Hydra

(Icon of Ancestry: 44,418; Hungering Hydra: 26,894)

While not quite as blatant as Vanquisher's Banner, Icon of Ancestry boils down to another overcosted Bear anthem, as once again Kudo's ability doesn't affect cards not on the battlefield. In other words, you can look at the top three, but unless you strangely decided to go Bear-crazy in your deck helmed by a guy that makes everything into Bears, you're probably not going to be putting any of them into your hand.

On the other side of the house, then, we have a Hydra that will almost certainly be bigger than every blocker your opponent has, and says that it can't be double-blocked. If that weren't enough, when it's done with that particular interaction with whatever "Bear" your opponent throws in front of it, it will then get bigger. Put simply, Hungering Hydra is the bully that's going to define combat at the table.

Anthems 2, Hydras 3

5. Adaptive Automaton or Primordial Hydra

(Adaptive Automaton: 45,291; Primordial Hydra: 27,952)

If we're going to pay for an over-priced typal anthem that will get turned off when our commander gets removed, then at least let's put it on a stick, shall we? To be clear, Adaptive Automaton pales in comparison to other anthems we've already gone over like King Darien XLVIII and Skyhunter Strike Force, but is also exactly what the tokens deck wants: Another creature to go wide with that will also make the team taller.

With that said, I think I'd rather be spending three mana on a 3/3 Primordial Hydra that will be a 4/4 by the time we get around to swinging with it. Of course, to really feel like we got our money's worth, you're going to want it to stick around and keep getting bigger, but when that does happen, just imagine how many Bears your opponent will have to chump block with to make that trample a nonfactor!

Anthems 2, Hydras 4

4. Mirror Box or Hooded Hydra

(Mirror Box: 47,268; Hooded Hydra: 28,696)

Mirror Box doesn't really belong here; it's looking for another deck entirely. In other words, Hydras just got the "free" space on the Bingo card. Only, they didn't really need it, with Hooded Hydra, which it turns out isn't even the best version of the several different "make tokens when this assumedly big thing dies" genre.

We haven't dealt with the non-Hydra X creatures much as of yet, but the fact that there's a strict upgrade to Hooded Hydra in Termagant Swarm seemed worth mentioning. With its dies trigger being based off of power rather than +1/+1 counters, it can be thrown down as a one-mana 2/2 that will get you two Tyranid tokens when it dies at it's most basic level, and then be absolutely devastating in addition to drawing a card if you've got some serious mana to spend on it. Even more expensive is Hangarback Walker, except you can actually play it for zero if you'd like, and then slowly add counters to it each turn if you've got nothing else going on. In other words, there's a lot to like here, maybe even enough that you don't end up playing Hooded Hydra at all.

Anthems 2, Hydras 5

3. Mikaeus, the Lunarch or Voracious Hydra

(Mikaeus, the Lunarch: 51,594; Voracious Hydra: 29,738)

Look, Voracious Hydra becoming a removal spell at two mana, a removal spell that sticks around as a 3/4 for three mana, and still a huge creature if you've got a lot of mana is all very, very cool. It just in no way compares to how much any version of this deck wants Mikaeus, the Lunarch. While you won't be playing him much as a one mana 2/2, it is still an option. More likely, however, you'll be playing him down for Glorious Anthem mana, and then using him as exactly that for a couple turns. The interesting wrinkle here is that, in our ongoing tally, Mikaeus, the Lunarch might actually be even better in the Hydra deck than he is in the Anthems deck. With the Hydra version sure to be playing a few cards that will put extra +1/+1 counters on him, along with a bunch of Hydras and X creatures that will benefit from him putting +1/+1 counters on them, it's almost like Mikaeus is playing for the wrong team here. Almost.

Anthems 3, Hydras 5

2. Flowering of the White Tree or Steelbane Hydra

(Flowering of the White Tree: 62,738; Steelbane Hydra: 32,215)

Those in the know already were aware that Glorious Anthem had been usurped, so Flowering of the White Tree being on top here is not a surprise. While on first read it seems like it's a legendary matters card (and it is), what's really happening is that for two mana you're getting a no-questions-asked pump for the team, that just happens to also be an even better boon for your commander and other legendary creatures. Another thing we haven't talked about is just how often it's likely that the table is going to be looking to remove Kudo, which Flowering of the White Tree also puts a hurdle in front of with its ward 1.

All of that makes this an uphill climb for Steelbane Hydra, and I'm not sure that it ever quite gets there. With that said, there is still every reason to love a repeatable removal spell, so if we do end up doing the Hydra deck, it's going to be a staple.

Anthems 4, Hydras 5

1. Beastmaster Ascension or Genesis Hydra

(Beastmaster Ascension: 109,844; Genesis Hydra: 36,700)

If I'm honest, I don't like either of our options for either of our decks here at the top of the pile. Beastmaster Ascension has always felt like a win-more card to me, except it doesn't actually win the game in a lot of cases, either because you can't turn it on or because it doesn't give trample. Genesis Hydra, on the other hand, is usually a great pseudo-tutor that doubles as a huge beater, but in the case of Hydra decks, it's likely to find you a creature that comes down and dies immediately (at least without Kudo). Between the two, I suppose I have to give the edge to Beastmaster Ascension, but let's just say that I'm looking forward to some honorable mentions after this top slot.

Anthems 5, Hydras 5

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Honorable Mentions

Well, well, well, we've tied in our battle! I suppose that can only mean one thing: I've gotta get to work on two different decks. Before I do, however, how about we take a look at what our other options are for each?

In addition to the non-Hydra "Hydras" we already mentioned in Termagant Swarm and Mikaeus, the Lunarch, there are a few more non-Hydra X-Creatures that are going to be absolute beasts in the Hydra deck. Stonecoil Serpent is just efficient, no matter how you look at it, and it doesn't get less so by becoming a 2/2 for zero. Aberrant is a two mana Bear that destroys an artifact or enchantment every time it attacks, for instance, that also has trample and draws a card for when you make it big. Finally, Omarthis, Ghostfire Initiate isn't quite as all-encompassing as Hardened Scales or Benevolent Hydra, but it will still put a fair amount of +1/+1 counters both on itself, followed by Manifesting a ton of cards when it dies.

I like the Hydra deck because it feels like the more unique idea out of the two Kudo brews. Not only that, but it feels like the more resilient brew, with the right player at its helm. While the more typical "White Weenie" Kudo Anthems deck will play out its entire hand in a heartbeat, and then do nothing for the rest of the game after a board wipe, the Hydra deck can sit back and just play a huge creature every turn while holding four more in their hand.

But what about the Anthem deck? Does it have any more goodies we haven't covered? Well, yes, as it turns out: Lots.

First off, what would have been our true top ten this week if there had been more of it: Typal Anthems. With our commander making all the creatures on the board Bears, we do have to be careful not to include those things that pump the opposing team in addition to ours. That means that some classic staples like Coat of Arms and Konda's Banner aren't going to be exactly what we're looking for, but there are still some great options. For a discount on Glorious Anthem that will only pump your Bears, look no further than Rally the Ranks. You'd rather have it on a stick? Well, outside of the aforementioned Adaptive Automaton, there's also the cheaper Metallic Mimic, and it will even get a toughness boost with Kudo out! Finally, if you're looking for a big swing with all those tokens the Anthem deck is sure to be playing, why not tap all the ones with summoning sickness to throw down an Obelisk of Urd before going for the alpha strike?

The other thing that the anthem deck really wants besides anthems is, well, creatures that will be able to utilize said anthems. So, the Goldilocks spot, then, is obviously creatures that are anthems. We've gone over a few today, but there are loads more to consider.

Benalish Marshal is as close to Glorious Anthem on a stick as we're going to get, even if it's technically worse than King Darien XLVIII. With that said, I think the ones that we're going to be more happy to see more consistently are the higher ceiling anthems that also have a lower floor. Canyon Jerboa, for instance, with a few ramp spells and fetch lands in a deck, could easily be giving the team a game-ending +2/+2 or +3/+3 for the turn. That pales in comparison to Goldnight Commander's impression of Cathars' Crusade, however, which in a token deck could be giving ridiculous pumps to the team that make Beastmaster Ascension look silly by comparison.

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Nuts and Bolts

There always seems to be a bit of interest in how these lists are made (this seems like a good time to stress once again that they are based on EDHREC score, NOT my personal opinion…), and people are often surprised that I’m not using any special data or .json from EDHREC, but rather just muddling my way through with some Scryfall knowledge! For your enjoyment/research, here is this week’s Scryfall search.

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What Do You Think?

And finally, what do you think of Kudo? Did you realize that it affected all creatures, not just your own? If you're brewing it, how are you doing so? Tokens? Hydras? Straight aggro?

Let us know in the comments, and we'll see you at the wooden tables with carved bear legs at that one themed restaurant out west.

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