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Thread: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

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  1. #1
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    [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)



    Lands: (34)

    Scrubland
    Badlands
    Savannah
    Taiga
    Tundra
    Volcanic Island
    Bayou
    Tropical Island
    Underground Sea

    Overgrown Tomb
    Watery Grave
    Breeding Pool

    Arid Mesa
    Windswept Heath
    Wooded Foothills
    Verdant Catacombs
    Misty Rainforest
    Bloodstained Mire
    Polluted Delta
    Marsh Flats
    Flooded Strand
    Scalding Tarn

    Sunken Ruins
    Twilight Mire
    Flooded Grove

    Forbidden Orchard
    Gemstone Mine
    Tarnished Citadel
    City of Brass
    Reflecting Pool
    Command Tower
    Exotic Orchard

    Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
    Cavern of Souls

    Acceleration: (5)

    Mana Crypt
    Sol Ring
    Birds of Paradise
    Carpet of Flowers
    Lotus Petal

    Tutors: (18)

    Imperial Seal
    Grim Tutor
    Demonic Tutor
    Vampiric Tutor
    Mystical Tutor
    Personal Tutor
    Muddle the Mixture
    Intuition
    Survival of the Fittest
    Dimir Infiltrator
    Worldly Tutor
    Sylvan Tutor
    Green Sun's Zenith
    Lim-Dûl's Vault
    Shred Memory
    Eladamri's Call
    Gamble
    Imperial Recruiter

    Protection: (11)

    Force of Will
    Mana Drain
    Misdirection
    Sylvan Safekeeper
    Pact of Negation
    Mizzium Skin
    Vines of Vastwood
    Ranger’s Guile
    Mental Misstep
    Mother of Runes
    Spellskite

    Recursion: (12)

    Reanimate
    Regrowth
    Yawgmoth's Will
    Dread Return
    Memory’s Journey
    Postmortem Lunge
    Shallow Grave
    Corpse Dance
    Pull from Eternity
    Unearth
    Nostalgic Dreams
    Snapcaster Mage

    The Combo: (7)

    Hermit Druid
    Narcomoeba
    Fatestitcher
    Angel of Glory's Rise
    Azami, Lady of Scrolls
    Laboratory Maniac
    Dregscape Zombie

    Removal, etc: (12)

    Gilded Drake
    Abrupt Decay
    Beast Within
    Brainstorm
    Nature's Claim
    Ancient Grudge
    Swords to Plowshares
    Pongify
    Deep Analysis
    Cyclonic Rift
    Frantic Search
    Gitaxian Probe

    Most people don't think of broken one card combos when you tell them you have a Scion of the Ur-Dragon EDH deck. It's not like Scion of the Ur-Dragon screams combo when you read his abilities. He seems like the perfect general for a dragon theme deck and he is, but he's also the best five-color general hands down. This makes Scion of the Ur-Dragon the best general for supporting the most broken one-card combo in EDH.



    Hermit Druid is so powerful as to be worth devoting an entire deck to finding, protecting, and activating him. The deck doesn't need much in the way of a backup plan, because what's going to win through a turn three Hermit Druid activation with two to three pieces of removal, protection, or countermagic? With this deck, you're letting your opponents know what you're up to almost immediately and daring them to stop you. They won't be able to most of the time.

    How the combo works:

    Activate Hermit Druid. This will put your entire library into your graveyard because you run no basic lands. Narcomoeba will trigger and be put onto the battlefield. Pay U to unearth Fatestitcher, tap Fatestitcher to untap a land that can produce black mana. Use this land to unearth Dregscape Zombie. You now have at least three creatures which you can sacrifice to Dread Return Angel of Glory's Rise. Angel of Glory's Rise's, trigger will return Azami, Lady of Scrolls, Laboratory Maniac, Sylvan Safekeeper, Imperial Recruiter, and Hermit Druid to the battlefield. Use Azami, Lady of Scrolls to tap Laboratory Maniac, Sylvan Safekeeper, or herself to draw a card and win the game (via Laboratory Maniac's ability). If someone tries to deal with Laboratory Maniac in response to drawing a card, give it shroud with Sylvan Safekeeper or tap another Wizard to win the game in response. About the only cards that can stop this once Dread Return resolves are Stifle on Angel of Glory's Rise's trigger and split second cards.

    Now wait a minute...

    "Isn't this combo easy to disrupt?" you might ask. Creature removal, countermagic, graveyard hate, and Pithing Needle all disrupt the combo. What happens if Hermit Druid gets exiled? Even a well timed bounce spell on a creature can prevent Dread Return from being cast.

    It's a lot harder to disrupt Hermit Druid than you think.

    Let's look at the worst case scenario --- after activating Hermit Druid your Dread Return is counterspelled, one of your three creatures to cast it is killed/bounced, or someone Faerie Macabres your Angel of Glory's Rise in response to your Dread Return. Your entire library is in your graveyard and you can't use your combo. It looks hopeless, right?

    Not at all.

    Pull from Eternity and Memory's Journey can save you from almost any situation. By using Pull from Eternity to bring back an exiled Memory's Journey, you can slowly draw any card in your 99 as many times as you need to post-Hermit Druid activation. It's not an ideal situation to be in, but you're never truly hopeless as long as you can cycle Pull from Eternity and Memory's Journey.

    What if Hermit Druid is exiled? If Hermit Druid is exiled, you can tutor for Pull from Eternity to put him into your graveyard and then use Shallow Grave or Postmortem Lunge to combo without hardly missing a beat.

    Let's look at some common cards that stop our combo and how many cards we run that get around them:

    Tormod's Crypt: 8 cards (Abrupt Decay, Ancient Grudge, Nature's Claim, Beast Within, Force of Will, Mana Drain, Pact of Negation, Cyclonic Rift)

    Relic of Progenitus: 9 cards (Abrupt Decay, Ancient Grudge, Nature's Claim, Beast Within, Force of Will, Mana Drain, Pact of Negation, Mental Misstep, Cyclonic Rift)

    Nihil Spellbomb: 9 cards ([cards]Abrupt Decay, Ancient Grudge, Nature's Claim, Beast Within, Force of Will, Mana Drain, Pact of Negation, Mental Misstep, Cyclonic Rift)

    Leyline of the Void: 3 - 6 cards (Nature's Claim, Beast Within, Cyclonic Rift, possibly Force of Will, Mana Drain, Pact of Negation)

    Swords to Plowshares/Path to Exile: 11 cards (Force of Will, Mana Drain, Pact of Negation, Spellskite, Muddle the Mixture, Mental Misstep, Mizzium Skin, Vines of Vastwood, Ranger's Guile, Mother of Runes, Sylvan Safekeeper)

    You get the idea. These counts don't even include cards that can tutor for answers. It's not uncommon for this deck to be able to play through 2-3 pieces of hate without breaking a sweat.

    Give Hermit Dru--- err, Scion of the Ur-Dragon a whirl. You'll be surprised at how powerful, consistent, and resilient it is.

    Questions:

    What can be done to make the deck more optimal/consistent?

    Are any card choices sub-par?
    Last edited by Kuma; 03-02-2013 at 03:08 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Skeggi View Post
    How would Nitewolf have said this?... P_R went over the line. But it was about naming cats. Also, Anus Mittens is a good name for a cat.
    Quote Originally Posted by MMogg View Post
    "Casual sex, NO Touching/Licking/Sucking/Groping/Fondling/Riding/Tickling/Binding/Quitters/Italians. Play Fast, Be Polite, Have Fun."

    Sure as hell sounds like fun.

  2. #2

    Re: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    Would Spell Pierce be better than one of the Green Hexproof spells?
    "We are goblinkind, heirs to the mountain empires of chieftains past. Rest is death to us, and arson is our call to war."

  3. #3
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    Re: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    Quote Originally Posted by Amon Amarth View Post
    Would Spell Pierce be better than one of the Green Hexproof spells?
    I used to run Spell Pierce back when I ran three-color Hermit Druid, and I didn't like it. The hexproof cards protect Hermit Druid from things like Gilded Drake as well as any noncreature spell that targets. The advantage of Spell Pierce is that it can hit things like Pithing Needle, Tormod's Crypt, and Mana Drain, but it is unreliable. It might be worth another look.

    I'd probably cut Dispel for it if anything, but I'm not a fan of either card.
    Quote Originally Posted by Skeggi View Post
    How would Nitewolf have said this?... P_R went over the line. But it was about naming cats. Also, Anus Mittens is a good name for a cat.
    Quote Originally Posted by MMogg View Post
    "Casual sex, NO Touching/Licking/Sucking/Groping/Fondling/Riding/Tickling/Binding/Quitters/Italians. Play Fast, Be Polite, Have Fun."

    Sure as hell sounds like fun.

  4. #4
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    Re: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    There's still no reason not to run the single Moltensteel Dragon in ANY Scion of the Ur-Dragon list. If a player has a ton of disruption for your combo, sometimes it's more efficient just to destroy them rather than dig for fixes for the problem.

    Quote Originally Posted by majikal View Post
    Damn it, Taco, that exactly sums up my opinion on the matter. I need to buy you a beer for that post.

  5. #5
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    Re: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    Quote Originally Posted by Tacosnape View Post
    There's still no reason not to run the single Moltensteel Dragon in ANY Scion of the Ur-Dragon list. If a player has a ton of disruption for your combo, sometimes it's more efficient just to destroy them rather than dig for fixes for the problem.
    Hmmm...

    It would be nice to one-shot people with the general, but 34 life is a ton to have to pay. Maybe if I also ran Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon so I'd only need to pay 12 life. This deck only runs 40 cards that make mana which makes me wonder how often I'll be casting Scion of the Ur-Dragon.

    I wonder if a Scion of the Ur-Dragon toolbox would be worth running. It would probably have Balefire Dragon to kill opposing creatures/stave off damage, Steel Hellkite for removing low-mana problem permanents, Dragon Mage and/or Nicol Bolas to get problem cards out of people's hands/refil my hand/discard combo pieces if I draw them, and Moltensteel Dragon and Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon for killing people.

    I don't think it's possible, but maybe Worldgorger Dragon combo could be in here as well.

    I don't have a whole ton of experience with this deck yet. I've played Hermit Druid decks before, but not this one. It'll be hard to evaluate suggestions right now, but keep them coming!
    Quote Originally Posted by Skeggi View Post
    How would Nitewolf have said this?... P_R went over the line. But it was about naming cats. Also, Anus Mittens is a good name for a cat.
    Quote Originally Posted by MMogg View Post
    "Casual sex, NO Touching/Licking/Sucking/Groping/Fondling/Riding/Tickling/Binding/Quitters/Italians. Play Fast, Be Polite, Have Fun."

    Sure as hell sounds like fun.

  6. #6
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    Re: [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    What about Stifle and/or Trickbind as additional outs to graveyard hate? All of your current answers are proactive - they cast Crypt, you blow it up. Stifle and Trickbind are reactive, they activate the Crypt, you counter the trigger.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by owerbart View Post
    Thanks for the input. Also, some of my friends play the Arcum Dagsson deck. How can I win with this deck if they fetch a Tormod's Crypt in response to my druid activation?
    If they activate Crypt in response to your Hermit Druid activation, it won't mess you up at all. If they do it in response to your Dread Return, use Memory's Journey to shuffle Laboratory Maniac, Pull from Eternity and maybe an answer to Arcum into your library. Try to win by casting Laboratory Maniac and drawing a card.

    If you're playing against Arcum a lot, I recommend adding Pithing Needle and Phyrexian Revoker to the deck. Any cheap artifact creature removal like Crumble or Snuff Out is good for blanking their Arcum activation the turn you want to win.

    Grafdigger's Cage is much more problematic.
    Quote Originally Posted by Skeggi View Post
    How would Nitewolf have said this?... P_R went over the line. But it was about naming cats. Also, Anus Mittens is a good name for a cat.
    Quote Originally Posted by MMogg View Post
    "Casual sex, NO Touching/Licking/Sucking/Groping/Fondling/Riding/Tickling/Binding/Quitters/Italians. Play Fast, Be Polite, Have Fun."

    Sure as hell sounds like fun.

  8. #8

    [EDH] Scion of the Ur-Dragon (Hermit Druid Combo)

    Current List has about 8 flex spots. This list has been very resilient while winning within turns 2-5. After turn 5, hermit Druid hate or graveyard hate I turn to back up combos. Cephalid Breakfast is usually plan B, Survival of the Fittest into Reveillark, Body double, mirror entity combo is Plan C, Food Chain is Plan D or after graveyard hate like Rest In Peace. Many cards have flashback and most of the combo pieces are creature based to make tutoring easy.

    After a year of playing the deck here is my list:

    http://deck.tk/76Bm6guQ

    1 Volcanic Island
    1 Underground Sea
    1 Badlands
    1 Tropical Island
    1 Tundra
    1 Plateau
    1 Savannah
    1 Bayou
    1 Scrubland
    1 Taiga
    1 Polluted Delta
    1 Flooded Strand
    1 Bloodstained Mire
    1 Scalding Tarn
    1 Misty Rainforest
    1 Marsh Flats
    1 Windswept Heath
    1 Arid Mesa
    1 Verdant Catacombs
    1 Wooded Foothills
    1 Watery Grave
    1 Hallowed Fountain
    1 Overgrown Tomb
    1 Steam Vents
    1 Blood Crypt
    1 Stomping Ground
    1 Temple Garden
    1 Sacred Foundry
    1 Breeding Pool
    1 Godless Shrine
    1 Mana Confluence
    1 Command Tower
    1 City of Brass
    1 Volrath's Stronghold
    1 Coalition Relic
    1 Chromatic Lantern
    1 Simic Signet
    1 Selesnya Signet
    1 Darksteel Ingot
    1 Bazaar of Baghdad
    1 Grim Tutor
    1 Hermit Druid
    1 Narcomoeba
    1 Food Chain
    1 Azami, Lady of Scrolls
    1 Angel of Glory's Rise
    1 Laboratory Maniac
    1 Pact of Negation
    1 Force of Will
    1 Misdirection
    1 Swan Song
    1 Brainstorm
    1 Mind Twist
    1 Sylvan Safekeeper
    1 Snapcaster Mage
    1 Mirror Entity
    1 Reveillark
    1 Body Double
    1 Halimar Excavator
    1 Kalastria Healer
    1 Survival of the Fittest
    1 Cephalid Illusionist
    1 Nomads en-Kor
    1 Worldly Tutor
    1 Vampiric Tutor
    1 Demonic Tutor
    1 Sylvan Tutor
    1 Green Sun's Zenith
    1 Lim-Dûl's Vault
    1 Eladamri's Call
    1 Sol Ring
    1 Mana Crypt
    1 Wasteland
    1 Pull from Eternity
    1 Animate Dead
    1 Postmortem Lunge
    1 Intuition
    1 Reanimate
    1 Shallow Grave
    1 Corpse Dance
    1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
    1 Hull Breach
    1 Dread Return
    1 Fatestitcher
    1 Dregscape Zombie
    1 Lightning Greaves
    1 Eternal Scourge
    1 Misthollow Griffin
    1 Birds of Paradise
    1 Recruiter of the Guard
    1 Mystical Tutor
    1 Enlightened Tutor
    1 Yawgmoth's Will
    1 Memory's Journey
    1 Unearth
    1 Ancient Grudge
    1 Echoing Truth
    1 Necromancy
    1 Sensei's Divining Top

    //Sideboard
    SB: 1 General Tazri #!Commander




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