One beloved archetype style that players can’t get enough of is typal. From Elves to Merfolk, there are strong creature types worth building around from across the color spectrum.
Today, we wanted to highlight a pretty exciting development in Edge of Eternities Standard. Gruul Dinosaurs of all typal decks managed to put up a decent result in yesterday’s Magic Online Standard Challenge! This shell is chock full of beefy threats and exciting top end that can give your opponent the fits.
Dinosaurs Galore
As is expected for most typal decks, there are some payoffs present in this shell that reward you for sticking to the Dinosaur theme. In the two-drop slot, Belligerent Yearling is one of your biggest incentives for having powerful Dinosaur follow-ups. Being able to grow Belligerent Yearling can enable some big attacks, and as we will see later, can also make it easier to fully Station your important Spacecraft.
Itzquinth, Firstborn of Gishath as well as Ixalli’s Lorekeeper also make an appearance, both of which benefit from having other big Dinosaurs in your deck. Itzquinth is aggressively costed but is sometimes at its best being cast later in the game when you already have a big threat in play. That way you can remove a burly creature on the other side of the board.
Unlike most typal decks, though, Dinosaurs are naturally intimidating on their own. As such, “Lord” effects that buff your squad are less important (hence why there’s only one copy of Regal Imperiosaur.) Huge monsters like Pugnacious Hammerskull more than pull their weight by themselves. Curving Belligerent Yearling into Hammerskull puts a ton of pressure on the opponent right out of the gates.
Then, Cycling Agonasaur Rex to grow Hammerskull and let it Trample over any chump blockers helps push damage. Of course, hard-casting Rex is totally fine, too.
All it takes is sticking a couple big creatures, and you’ll be able to slam Ghalta, Primal Hunger in no time. Ghalta is no joke, especially if you get a massive Belligerent Yearling attack for your efforts the turn Ghalta comes down.
An Alternate Gameplan
While most of your creatures are easy to cast and add a lot of pressure to the board when they stick, there are some top-end creatures that have rather hefty mana costs. Both Trumpeting Carnosaur and Vaultborn Tyrant are value-generating machines once you get them onto the battlefield. Trumpeting Carnosaur can be Cycled when necessary, but it’s at its best when you can get it into play.
Llanowar Elves gives you a shot to cast them late in the game, it’s just not always easy. Luckily, this deck has a few tricks up its sleeve.
Sledge-Class Seedship shows up as a four-of in this decklist. As a Spacecraft with no enters-the-battlefield trigger that requires a Station cost of 7 to turn into a creature, most decks wouldn’t even think of utilizing this card. However, all it takes is tapping Pugnacious Hammerskull once and you’re almost all the way there.
Plus, the reward for getting a single attack in is huge. A 4/5 flier isn’t the easiest to destroy at instant speed, and if you cheat in Vaultborn Tyrant via the attack trigger, you’ll be super far ahead.
In addition to Sledge-Class Seedship, you’ll find a couple copies of Kona, Rescue Beastie and a couple Planet lands with Station costs as an alternative method of cheating Vaultborn Tyrant into play. Simply tap Kona to Station one of your Planets or Spacecraft, and on your second main phase, put a fatty onto the battlefield.
Ghalta even fully Stations these lands by itself. This is a bit overkill, since your opponent still has to deal with your huge board. However, powering up Kavaron, Memorial World makes it easier to beat a board wipe.
An Interesting Position
Overall, Gruul Dinosaurs definitely feels more on the casual side, and has some areas of concern in the current Standard metagame. First, sticking Pugnacious Hammerskull or getting an attack in with Sledge-Class Seedship against Dimir midrange is tough. That strategy comes equipped with instant speed removal like Shoot the Sheriff to break up your synergies.
Against Izzet Cauldron, your big creatures do line up well versus damage-based removal. That being said, you don’t have much in the way of removal yourself, and the combination of Vivi Ornitier and Agatha’s Soul Cauldron may bury you before you get your engine rolling. Into the Flood Maw threatens to be a massive tempo swing if you try to spend time Stationing Sledge-Class Seedship, too.
Even a matchup like Landfall is far from easy. Sure, you have big blockers. The issue is Tifa Lockhart and Mossborn Hydra will Trample right over your creatures in short order.
The biggest advantage Gruul Dinosaurs has is that things can snowball really fast. A single attack with Sledge-Class Seedship or a fast start involving multiple copies of Pugnacious Hammerskull and Ghalta may leave your opponent unable to come back. Your creatures also serve as roadblocks for decks like mono-red aggro.
Gruul Dinosaurs isn’t quite on par with the top decks. Still, it’s a fun deck with some interesting angles of attack. Who doesn’t love Dinos?
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