The Standard format is a pretty crazy place at the moment. Players are taking extra turns left and right. Werewolves and trolls are coming together to kick their opponents teeth in. And worst of all, no one knows how to really best deal with the best decks without just playing the best deck available. The meta seems stale, but there are still some sneaky options out there that can steal games away from the top dogs.
But really, why not play the best deck in the format? It is time to see why Izzet Dragons is one of the top choices in the format.
[Yesterday’s Deck Tech – Historic RW Burn]
In a new series from TGH, the Daily Deck Tech column takes a look at individual lists across multiple metas. To beat the best decks in the format, it’s important to know the in’s and out’s of each top tier list. First and foremost, it’s necessary to look at UR dragons and figure out why it is one of the premier decks in Standard.
What Makes this Deck Work?
UR Dragons is a format staple because it plays well against almost every other deck. Red and Blue have incredibly powerful cards in the format currently, and the deck has the ability to slot in cards to adapt to the shifting meta. The deck has removal, bounce spells, counter spells, threats and of course extra turn spells.
The deck is a bit slower than the other options in the meta, but it makes up for it in massive positive tempo plays. Cards like Fading Hope and Divide By Zero are very strong right now. Bouncing threats for a turn can give UR Dragons the one-turn buffer it needs to set up its big turns. Other options like Prismari Command and Expressive Iteration help find the spells this deck needs to survive those early game creatures.
What are the Deck’s Good Matchups?
UR Dragons is debatably the best deck in format because it plays well into almost any deck in Standard. This deck has far more options and potential than other control decks. Thanks to it’s versatility, the deck is strong against many rogue decks and brews that aren’t prepared to face this spell-heavy list. At the same time, this version of the deck some game against the creature-less version that is going around. Overall, UR Dragons is simply solid against the entire field.
What are the Deck’s Bad Matchups?
There really aren’t many tough matchups for the deck, with the exception being the two other top-tier decks — Mono Green Aggro and Mono White Aggro. The two aggro decks are explosive and resilient to many of the cards UR Dragons brings in the main board. Playing against an aggro deck forces the Dragons deck to use cards earlier than they would hope to. For example a common play for UR Dragons will be to cast Galvanic Iteration to double up a Fading Hope to bounce two creatures. It is very powerful, but it still requires two cards to pull off, and it also prevents that copy of Galvanic Iteration from targeting a Alrund’s Epiphany.
What are the sideboard Options?
When choosing a sideboard for UR Dragons, it is important to focus on which meta deck might be the flavor of the day. For aggro decks, Burn Down the House is an all-star. A board wipe that can serve as a situational win-condition is an excellent choice out of the sideboard. Other cards like Cathartic Pyre are great as well, thanks to their ability to draw cards later in the game.
Against other control decks, Malevolent Hermit is a good option for counter wars. However the big haymaker is Lier, Disciple of the Drowned. Granting every instant and sorcery flashback is insane. It transforms a graveyard into a secondary hand, and it allows a player to always have access to an answer that as previously used. Any blue control deck should pack one of these in the sideboard.
Is This Deck Worth Playing?
This deck is a must-play at the moment in Standard. The deck is too good not to have in the list of decks on Magic: Arena. Not only is it a strong deck at the moment, Crimson Vow spoilers are rolling in and there are a few cards that already look like instant additions into the list. The deck can get even better with some more tools, so start saving up those wildcards and craft this list up today.
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