Dragon Synergy decks are suddenly top tier - here's why

Dragons have been everywhere on the ladder, and we certainly saw our fair share of new synergy cards after our adventures up the tower of Karazhan, but most of them aren’t the reason for their recent spike in popularity.

Some of the new cards included Book Wyrm, Menagerie Magician, Zoobot, and Netherspite Historian. To start, Book Wyrm isn’t bad at all, the only problem with it is that it’s pretty greedy to be running, because odds are your deck is about as late game as it gets. It’s also a 6 mana 3/6, which is a rough loss in Tempo gained for Mana spent in the raw value, although if you can snag something nice with it like a Bloodhoof Brave, Twilight Guardian or even just another Book Wyrm, it seems pretty worth it. Keep in mind that, unlike a Stampeeding Kodo, it destroys enemies with 3 or less attack, not 2, which greatly broadens the horizon of value you can get from this.

Menagerie Magician and Zoobot basically interact the same, and they are rarely, if ever, run in strictly dragon synergy decks. The problem with them is in the fact that they push for board control and Tempo for Midrange/Zoo style decks in the early-mid game, which is likely to be not what most Dragon decks are going for in a win condition. Noxious ran a Midrange Druid deck that included beasts and Murloc synergies to get the most possible value – but again, no dragons.

Netherspite Historian, though, is the big one I want to discuss. In terms of Tempo, a 2 mana 1/3 is really not bad, and is basically a better, although slightly more situational, version of Museum Curator. The Discover a Dragon mechanic is also incredibly important in the sense that, if you are able to get the Dragon proc early on with it means you now have at least 2 Dragons in your hand to work with and manage accordingly. Off topic, but hand management based on synergies like Dragons is one of my favorite mechanics in the game, as it requires both a sense of board control and value, but also an insight into the late stages of the game and if holding on to that last Dragon in your hand or just playing it is more worth it. The potential for both late game sustain or early game pressure that this card possesses is truly terrifying, and it is likely for that reason that more Dragon cards are seen floating – or should I say flying – around the ladder.