Magic the Gathering has a huge variety of card designs and ideas. One of my favorite designs is building decks based on a certain creature type or tribe. There are plenty of popular tribes in Magic such as Humans and Zombies, but one of the most powerful, and certainly one of my favorites, is Dragons.
These creatures are some of the most fun creatures in Magic. They are known for their aggressive play style, powerful abilities, and that they make any deck instantly better.
That’s why today I’ll share my take on what are the Top 10 best Dragon cards in Magic the Gathering. I’ll mostly focus on Commander, but majority of the cards will also work great in your casual 60 card deck.
First things first, I just want to make clear that I am including cards that I believe are worth playing in a Dragon themed deck. The cards will not necessarily be Dragons, and the list will include artifacts, enchantments and planeswalkers which I believe fit well with the theme.
Now, with that said let’s start with the Honourable Mentions
Honourable Mentions
There are so many good Dragon cards in MTG, so sticking to just 10 proved to be pretty hard. That’s why here’s a whole section of cards that barely missed the cut.
Non-Dragons
Dragonlord’s Servant & Dragonspeaker Shaman
These two non-Dragon creatures are cheap ways to make any Dragon deck be more efficient at casting Dragons. Both creatures provide early plays, which enable the more expensive pieces of the deck.
Both cards are excellent support cards for any Dragon themed deck
Dragonmaster Outcast
This creature is an excellent Dragon generator. You’ll get a 5/5 Dragon on your every upkeep, if you control six or more lands.
This card not only helps you get more Dragons in play, but it also benefits from having a lot of lands in play. That’s great as you usually want many lands so you’ll be able to cast your expensive Dragons. It’s also a low costed creature with a powerful effect, which makes it an excellent early drop.
Crucible of Fire
This card is a simple but very powerful enchantment. It costs four mana and it gives all Dragons +3/+3. Who doesn’t like to make their big firebreathers even bigger?
Planeswalkers
These four very powerful and extremely fun planeswalkers are great cards to add to a Dragon themed deck, Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker specially.
The other Sarkhan is great in any Superfriends deck, and the two Ugins are incredibly powerful on their own. Most importantly, all of them are great flavor additions to a Dragon deck due to their lore.
Dragons
Utvara Hellkite
Utvara Hellkite is one of the most effective Dragons at producing value in a Dragon themed deck. It creates 6/6 flying Dragons every time a Dragon you control attacks.
This effect has the ability to get out of control and become too overwhelming for your opponents to deal with. The one big downside to this card, and the reason I did not include it in the main list, is it’s absurdly difficult mana cost of 8.
Scourge of Valkas
This card is an incredible payoff for putting Dragons onto the board. It does not care if they are tokens or if you are hard casting them. As long as there are Dragons entering the battlefield under your control, this card deals damage constantly.
Savage Ventmaw
This creature is a great way to ramp up. Sure, it costs six mana, but it gives you that six mana back on attack. It comes in a 4/4 flying body which makes it a great attacker.
The only thing that would push this card even further is haste. Without it, it’ll take a full turn to attack. This makes its mana cost a downside, as your opponents might have a removal spell and Ventmaw is a perfect target for it.
Kokusho, the Evening Star
This is a classic Dragon card. Its effect is a good way to produce a big life point swing quickly, especially in black with its sacrifice outlets. It is also a big evasive threat that will catch the attention of your opponents. The great thing about it is that it benefits you if it stays alive or if it’s removed. Solid card.
Niv-Mizzet, Parun
Niv-Mizzet, Parun is a personal choice of mine. It’s one of my Favorited commanders out there. Not only is it good as the main focus of a deck, but it can also be a support in a spellslinger deck.
I find the character of Niv-Mizzet really cool and interesting in the lore, and its cards reflect this aspect of the character.
In general, its effect is a super powerful one, and if you can get spells rolling consistently its damage output becomes incredible.
Dragonlord Dromoka
Dromoka is, in some aspects, completely different from the classic Dragon cards. This is mainly due to its control play style nature.
It fits perfectly into any control deck, and can also hold its own as a Commander. It has incredible stats and keywords, and its presence in any game is significant.
Now with that out of the way, let’s get into the main list.
#10 Sarkhan’s Triumph
This is one of the most simple, but most useful cards in a Dragon deck. It is a three mana instant that tutors for any Dragon card in your deck.
It might be a little bit costly compared to other tutors out there. However, you don’t get many tutors in red, plus its price is significantly lower than something like Demonic Tutor. You really want it in a Dragon themed deck, as you can quickly find the perfect Dragon to end the game with.
#9 Leyline Tyrant
Leyline Tyrant has one of the most peculiar card designs out there. Its ability to maintain mana as phases end is certainly interesting. On one hand, it can ramp you towards your bigger threats. On the other hand nobody really wants to kill it in a multiplayer game, as you can take revenge with its death trigger.
Finally, its stats are great being a 4/4 flyer for four mana. In general, this is a really solid support creature to have in a Dragon deck.
#8 Crux of Fate
This card is one of the best one-sided board wipes out there. It so happens that it benefits Dragon decks. It is cheap to cast at only 5 mana and its effect is incredibly powerful.
The only downside to this deck is its color – black. Most Dragon decks will be red or a combination with red, and this card only fits in certain color combination Dragon decks, which is unfortunate.
#7 Dragon Tempest
This card is the ultimate support enchantment to have in a Dragon deck. Its mana cost is incredibly cheap compared to its powerful effect. It is only two mana and it gives all creatures with flying haste.
Its second ability is exactly the same as Scourge of Valkas, but way cheaper to cast and a permanent harder to remove. This is what makes this card incredibly good to have in a Dragon deck.
#6 Dragon’s Hoard
This card is one of the most versatile cards you can have in your arsenal when piloting a Dragon deck. It is a solid mana rock in itself. It can give you one mana of any color as soon as it enters the battlefield. This could help you set up an early game to cast those big Dragons later on.
At 3 mana to cast, this card is on par with any other mana rocks such as Commander’s Sphere.
The most exciting aspect about this card, and the reason it is in this list, is the ability to get counters, when Dragons enter the battlefield. Counters can later be used for card draw. Dragon’s Hoard is an excellent way to ramp up and get a much needed card draw engine going.
#5 Lathliss, Dragon Queen
This is one of the most unique and fun Dragon cards out there. This card screams Dragon Deck in every aspect.
This card is a great Commander to build a Dragon deck around, due to its ability. Each non-token Dragon you play, comes with a token buddy. This effect allows you to quickly get a battlefield full of Dragons, which can swing for the win.
Its second ability to buff all Dragons is also incredibly useful to get that extra damage to take someone out.
This card can also work fine in the 99, serving as an extra outlet for Dragon creation. In general, this card is great not only for its power, but for its flavor as well.
#4 Sarkhan Fireblood
This card is one of the coolest and most useful Planeswalkers you can have in a Dragon themed deck. It is not only mechanically flavorful, but it is also extremely efficient at helping you get a solid base to start off the game.
Dragon decks usually have a high top end, and this card is only 3 mana, so it allows you to set up early. Its plus one allows you to discard any card you don’t need at the moment and transform it into card draw.
The second plus one gives you two mana in any combination of colors to spend only on Dragons, which makes this planeswalker basically cost one if you use this ability.
Finally, its ultimate gives you four 5/5 red Dragon creature tokens with flying to increase your dragon count on the board or to serve as a finisher.
In general, this is one of the most unique, fun, and powerful Planeswalkers specifically tailored for a Dragon themed deck.
#3 Terror of the Peaks
Terror of the Peaks is a real threat immediately as it comes into play. It is not hard to cast at only 5 mana and its stats are also noting to scoff at.
What makes this card insanely powerful are its abilities. The first one is self-protection, making any spells your opponents cast cost 3 more life, which makes your opponents consider if it’s worth it. This makes this card somewhat trickier for your opponents to remove.
The second ability is what makes this card super impactful. It deals damage to any target equal to the power of any creature that enters the battlefield under your control. In a Dragon deck filled with creatures that are usually at least 5/5, this effect can be extremely devastating for your opponents.
#2 Hellkite Tyrant
Hellkite Tyrant is one of the most common Dragons in Commander decks due to its incredibly flexible ability. It makes it fit into any deck.
It takes advantage of one of the most common ways of ramping in Commander – mana rocks, and also of any other artifacts your opponents have. Whenever it deals damage to a player you gain control of all of his or her artifacts. This gives you an insane advantage over other opponents and puts that player in a serious disadvantage.
Its second and last ability can be an alternative win condition, and if placed in an artifact deck this card can secure you a win easily. This ability also makes this card a target for the whole table, which might help you pull the attention from other important pieces on your board.
Its stats are also great being a 6/5 for six mana with flying and trample, which make it almost certainly guarantee that it will do damage on attack.
In general this is a great card that can fit in any deck, but it is a must in any Dragon deck.
#1 The Ur-Dragon
This is not the most flexible Dragon out there. It does not fit into any other other deck but its own. However, it is, in my opinion, the most powerful and important Dragon in magic.
When it comes to lore, The Ur-Dragon is the originator of all other Dragons, making it the single most important Dragon in Magic’s lore. It cards certainly reflects that.
The Ur-Dragon deck is the most fun and complex Dragon themed deck you can build. It can be brewed in many different ways, but one thing is certain – there will be Dragons.
It has eminence, which is one of the powerful and useful abilities as it works from the command zone. All other Dragons will cost 1 less to cast. This ability is not game breaking but it is very helpful to cast any other piece of the deck.
Its other ability once works when it’s in the field. You’ll draw a card each time any other Dragon attacks. But that’s not all. It then allows you to put any permanent card onto the battlefield for free. This is an insanely powerful effect.
Its stats are also pretty good being a 10/10 with flying at the high cost but high reward of 9 mana. Most importantly, this is a 5 color card that allows you to play any card and any Dragon in Magic’s history in this deck.
In general, super fun and flavorful Commander to build around.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Commander is a format that allows you to play it any way you want it. The game has a great variety of card designs that allow you to play with different strategies. Tribal decks being one of them and they’re super fun and easy to build.
I hope this article has shown just some of the cards that I have deemed good to play in the Dragon tribe. There are plenty of other Dragon cards that I did not include in the list for one reason or another. As always let me know in the comments if you agree or disagree with any of the additions, and make sure to tell me which cards your would like to add.
If you would like to see me tackle a list with any other tribes in Magic, let me know in the comments.
As always, have fun and get many wins with your Dragon deck.
More articles that might interest you:
- Top 10 Free Spells in Commander
- Best Deck Box for Commander
- How to Build Your First Commander Deck
- Commander Legends Spoilers – Set that combines Draft & Commander
How about kilnmouth Dragon? I also play 4 shivan dragons in my “older” deck which is a red and black dragon deck. I liked your listing of dragons! Thanks you kindly
Phil
I think that this is a pretty good list, but Drakuseth, Maw of Flames is missing.
This article was pretty great, but Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm is also quite popular.