The problem with Dragons Decks...
I've spent the time since DTK arrived testing and fine-tuning my variety of midrange dragons, I've gone through many different itterations, from Jeff Hooglands dragon control style decks and each time I've come across the same issue. I want to use draconic roar, and I want to use it to burn peoples faces.
Now doing that is fine, but when you're a control deck, that bit of chip damage doesn't normally mean a lot. If you however include thunderbreaks, crackling doom, and draconic roar, those bits of chip damage add up quickly. Throw mantis rider into the mix and you're flying (ha) towards the kill.
Jace, so hot right now...
I've had turn fours where I swing in with a mantis rider, draconic roar a creature revealing a thunderbreak, flipped jace, flashed back a draconic roar, also revealing thunderbreak and taken them from 16ish life down to 7. Not bad for a midrange deck, this, and even if it was this alone is the reason to add in Jace.
What do I sideboard?
This is the part of the deck that has changed most dramatically since I started playing. On one hand you want to shore up your atarka red matches, but on the other you want to be able to have some game against esper control and other grindier matchups. I started by playing a transformational sideboard with silumgars scorn and the big dog silumgar himself.
This verion was amazing against midrange decks, but I felt like I already had a strong midrange matchup against anything not running a top end like ugin or ulamog, so I shifted things around and ended up with this.
Duress x 3 - Comes in against control and I like to put at least two in against jeskai black as it dodges dispels and tends to clear the way of crackling dooms/ojutais commands for our bigger threats.
Radiant Flames x 3 - Aggro killer. The combo with soulfire alone has taken me completely out of range of aggro players, buffering our life total enough to start getting to out lategame plan.
Surge of Righteousnous x 2 - Hits mantis Riders, Siege Rhinos, atarka red creatures and in some rare cases Eldrazi r/b aggro players.
Dispel x 1 - I've been trying to find a way to mainboard a second dispel, I'm sure I'll get it in eventually but for now it's sitting out in the sideboard, coming in to protect our bigger threats or get ultimate value from countering dig through times for one blue mana.
Negate x 2 - One of our "catch all" type of spells. Hitting planeswalkers, enchantments and all the instant/sorcery spells you need countering.
Disdainful Stroke x 2 - I'm playing blue, I'm playing disdainful stroke.
Exert Influence x 1 - Honestly, I was suprised at how powerful this card was. I caught people off guard by sorcery speed stealing their biggest threat (most of the time... damn wingmate roc and his 5cmc) at sorcery speed, meaning their dispels sit in their hands doing nothing at all.
Utter End x 1 - Another good catch all. We don't have a lot of interaction with enchantments and after getting blown out by quarantine field I decided I needed at last one good way of taking care of those pesky enchantments/planeswalkers.
So far, I've gone 4/0 at fnm and taken me to the finals and the semifinals of two game days with the losses being to my own poor play and not the deck. Each time I lost I actually had a winning line of play available to me.
So there we have it, go forth and burn some peoples faces. :D
