Dragons — proud, majestic beasts that can be both wise and ferocious as the situation demands. Some are contemplative and serene, acting only when needed, while others are aggressive and forceful, exerting their will onto others. These creatures have a long history in the card game Magic: The Gathering, and there have been many, many cards created for them.
However, some cards are more valuable than others when building an ideal Dragon deck. Not every Dragon works well with others, and some don't even share the same color types. Let's examine some of the best cards when building a Dragon deck and how you can use them to devastate your opponents.
Updated by Chris Stomberg on January 4th, 2023: Dragons are a creature type that have inspired stories in human cultures since the beginning of time. This makes them the perfect candidates for being one of Magic: The Gathering's all-time favorite creatures. Judging by the price of certain Dragon cards and the abundance of Dragon Commander decks you can find in the wild, it might be safe to say that Dragons are the most popular creature type in all of Magic.
Every year, dozens of powerful new Dragon cards are added to the Magic: The Gathering card pool and 2022 was no different. In fact, crossover Dungeons & Dragons products like Adventures In The Forgotten Realms and Commander Legends: Battle For Baldur's Gate led to more Dragons being printed last year than perhaps any year before. Let's take a look at some banger new inclusions you can make to bring your Dragon deck to the next level.
18 Dragonlord's Servant
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Surprisingly enough, the first card on our list is not a Dragon but a Goblin. The Dragonlord's Servant is a two-mana red Goblin with one power and three toughness that isn't all that impressive on its own. However, its ability decreases the mana needed to cast Dragon spells by one.
This means that nearly every other card on this list becomes just a little bit easier to play with the Dragonlord's Servant on the battlefield. While not the flashiest of plays, it's a good early creature that sets up some powerful cards down the line.
17 Orb Of Dragonkind
Unfortunately, the problem with Dragonlord's Servant is that removal spells deprive us of the mana discount it offers. Thankfully, the Orb of Dragonkind has no such downfalls due to its status as an artifact. The Orb supplies whatever two colors of mana you need in the moment.
Additionally, this Orb can be used later in the game when you're running out of gas to place an additional powerful Dragon card in your hand. Not just any Dragon, but one of the top seven such cards on the top of your library. As a result, the Orb of Dragonkind has a chance to provide you with the exact creature you need right then. All things considered, this is a way better version of the previously mentioned Goblin servant.
16 Ojutai, Soul Of Winter
The first proper Dragon on our list is Ojutai, Soul of Winter. This blue and white dragon costs a total of seven mana to play and comes in with five power and six toughness. As far as creatures go, it's alright; but as with most creature cards, Ojutai really shines due to its special ability.
Whenever one of your Dragons attacks, Ojutai lets you tap an opponent's nonland permanent and prevents that permanent from untapping during their next turn. This means that playing Ojutai can lead to a complete shutdown of your opponent's combat steps if you have a couple of Dragons on the battlefield.
15 Dromoka, The Eternal
Dromoka, the Eternal is a green and white Dragon that costs five total mana and has five power and five toughness. Its effect is similar to Ojutai's in that it activates whenever a Dragon attacks, but Dromoka is more geared toward strengthening your board.
When one of your Dragons attacks, you Bolster 2 - meaning that you put two +1/+1 counters on the weakest creature you control. With multiple dragons on the battlefield, this can easily turn Dromoka into a counter vending machine that makes your Dragons outscale any threat that might attempt to stand against them.
14 Lathliss, Dragon Queen
Lathliss, Dragon Queen is the first mono-color Dragon on our list. This red creature costs six mana, has six power and six toughness, and is a great way to add additional Dragons to your side of the battlefield.
Whenever another Dragon enters the battlefield under your control, Lathliss creates a five power, five toughness Dragon token for you. Additionally, she lets you pay two mana to give all of your Dragons another one power. Consequently, opponents who fail to remove Lathliss quickly will soon see their life points depleted by a small army of flying Dragon tokens.
13 Shadow In The Warp
Shadow in the Warp is another surefire method of discounting your hefty Dragon mana costs so that you can put them onto the battlefield more quickly. On top of providing you with an all-important mana discount, this enchantment also punishes all of your opponents for playing anything but wimpy creature types that your Dragons will happily gobble up.
While two damage might not seem like a lot at first glance, this enchantment can amount to a significant source of damage over the course of an entire game, especially one filled with more than two players. Don't forget that Shadow's damage can trigger on every opponent each turn, further punishing players who favor instant speed spells.
12 Crucible Of The Spirit Dragon
This land provides you with a way to save excess mana for future turns. Crucible can tap for a colorless mana but also lets you pay one mana and tap it to put a storage counter on it. Due to the various and high costs of your Dragon spells, chances are you will have excess mana on a handful of turns. Why waste mana when you can save it for later?
You can then tap the Crucible and remove storage counters to gain that much mana in any combination of colors - solely for casting Dragon spells or activating Dragon abilities. This lets you ramp up to powerful Dragons and helps fix your mana pool for coming turns if you need specific colors.
11 Dragonlord Silumgar
Dragonlord Silumgar is a powerful force that can immediately turn the tide in your favor if played correctly. On his own, he is a blue and black Dragon that costs six mana and enters with three power and five toughness in addition to the Deathtouch ability, which lets him kill any creature he damages.
He also lets you take control of another creature on the battlefield when he enters, which you control for as long as you control Silumgar. This can lead to you grabbing your opponent's most powerful creature for your own - just like a greedy Dragon. Just make certain to try and bait opponent removal with other Dragons before finally slamming Silumgar down.
10 Atarka, World Render
Another Dragon that synergizes with attacking Dragons, Atarka, World Render is a bit more aggressive than its counterparts. Atarka is a red and green creature, costing seven mana for six power and four toughness — which isn't great as far as stats are concerned. However, her ability certainly makes her stand out.
Whenever your Dragons attack, Atarka gives them Double Strike. This keyword means they deal their damage twice, doubling the potential damage output. As a result, Atarka on its own can then deal 12 damage. If you have one or two other Dragons on the battlefield, it's probably lights out for your opponent.
9 Silumgar, The Drifting Death
This card is another version of Dragonlord Silumgar, though its effect is more similar to those of Ojutai and Dromoka from earlier in that it triggers when you go to attacks.
Whenever your Dragons attack, Silumgar has all defending creatures receive -1/-1 until end of turn for each attacking Dragon. If you attack with enough Dragons, this means that you could potentially clear your opponent's field with ease just by going to combat.
8 Dragon’s Hoard
While not the flashiest card, Dragon’s Hoard is a great three-mana artifact that can flexibly supply a great deal of value for Dragon decks. Dragon’s Hoard can be tapped to produce one mana of any color. Additionally, whenever a Dragon enters the battlefield under its owner’s control, a gold counter is put on the Hoard.
While mana production is useful in its own right, the long-term value comes from removing gold counters from the hoard to draw cards. Dragons aren't typically known for their ability to supply an endless font of cards, so this is an important inclusion to keep your deck going for the long game.
7 Sarkhan's Triumph
Tutors can be some of the most useful cards in Magic, allowing you to search their library for specific cards that you may need at a given point in a game. While most tutors tend to be in Black, Sarkhan’s Triumph is a red tutor for three mana that allows you to search your library for any Dragon and put it into their hand.
As Dragons can provide a wide range of utility, Sarkhan’s Triumph can search for anything from Dragon-based removal to a win condition.
6 Tiamat
One of the most iconic gods of Dungeons & Dragons, Tiamat’s Magic card is a five-color Dragon god that allows its controller to search their library for up to five Dragon cards with different names, putting those cards in their hand.
This might be a significant mana investment, but Tiamat can provide the value of five Sarkhan’s Triumphs while also adding meaningfully to your board. No wonder she's the queen of Dragons.
5 Urza’s Incubator
While Dragons tend to be powerful creatures, one commonality between them tends to be their somewhat sizable mana values. Urza’s Incubator is a stellar artifact for decks featuring the same creature type. For three mana, this artifact allows you to choose a creature type, causing creatures of that type to have their mana costs reduced by two.
While this card can be used in a variety of singular creature type decks, few creature types get as much value as Dragons. This Incubator can lead to several incredible dragons being cast within a single turn, leading to ridiculous board states.
4 Rivaz Of The Claw
While Rivaz isn't a true Dragon, he's about as close as you can get. This creature is yet another candidate for providing much-needed mana to cast our more powerful Dragon creatures. On top of supplying colored mana in the early game, Rivaz also provides additional value by allowing us to cast a single Dragon creature card from our graveyard each turn.
While these abilities are the real reason for including Rivaz, it's important not to forget that he's also a 3/3 menace creature in his own right that can supply influential damage or protection as needed. As his art so beautifully depicts, Rivaz lives to serve our Dragon masters.
3 Crux Of Fate
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Our final non-Dragon card is Crux of Fate, a sorcery spell that can be used to great effect in a Dragon deck. This five-cost black spell is, quite simply, a board wipe - meaning that it destroys all creatures on the battlefield.
Crux of Fate lets you make a choice, however — you can either destroy all Dragon creatures or all non-Dragon creatures. For a deck that generally has more Dragons than not, this turns the card into a one-sided board wipe, clearing your opponents' boards while leaving yours mostly intact. This is a huge tempo gain that can take you from a losing position to the top of the pack.
2 The Ur-Dragon
One of the definitive options for a Dragon tribal commander, the Ur-Dragon is an incredible Dragon that can provide value for dragon decks without even needing to be cast. Due to having an Eminence ability, The Ur-Dragon reduces the mana cost of all dragons under its owner’s control by one, as long as it’s either on the battlefield or in the command zone, offering a similar effect to an Urza’s incubator for free.
Outside of its eminence ability, The Ur-Dragon is a 10/10 five-color Dragon Avatar with flying that can be cast for nine mana. Whenever it attacks, it allows its controller to draw a card for each attacking dragon, putting any permanent from their hand directly onto the battlefield for free. While nine mana is a steep price to pay, the value supplied by the Ur-Dragon is hard to beat.
1 Scion Of The Ur-Dragon
Finally, the last card on our list is Scion of the Ur-Dragon. This powerful creature costs five mana - one of each color - and has four power and four toughness. At first, it doesn't seem very impressive, but its special ability may be the best on this list.
For just two mana, you can pull a Dragon permanent from your library and put it into the graveyard. Then, Scion becomes a copy of that Dragon until end of turn. This means you can effectively play almost every Dragon in your deck at instant speed for the measly price of two mana. Consequently, Scion of the Ur-Dragon is a common pick for the ultimate Dragon card. However, it's hard to say whether this Scion or The Ur-Dragon herself is truly the best Dragon Commander. The good news is that you can try both and go with whatever Dragon you prefer.