Ureni of the Unwritten made its debut in the **Magic: The Gathering** Tarkir: Dragonstorm set, featured in the Temur Roar Commander preconstructed deck. While the preconstructed deck holds its own, Ureni shines best as a standalone Temur (green/blue/red) commander. This guide focuses solely on building a deck centered around Ureni.
Ureni of the Unwritten is designed to bring Dragons into play without the usual mana costs. Its ability bears a striking resemblance to the well-known Dragon commander, The Ur-Dragon, but Ureni offers a more budget-friendly option. If you’re a fan of Dragons, this commander could be an excellent choice for you.
Decklist
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Commander: Ureni of the Unwritten |
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Astral Dragon |
Atarka, World Render |
Birds of Paradise |
Bloomvine Regent |
Broodcaller Scourge |
Deceptive Frostkite |
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Dragonlord Atarka |
Dragonlord’s Servant |
Dragonmaster Outcast |
Dragonspeaker Shaman |
Drakuseth, Maw of Flames |
Earthquake Dragon |
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Elvish Mystic |
Ganax, Astral Hunter |
Goldspan Dragon |
Hammerhead Tyrant |
Hellkite Charger |
Hellkite Tyrant |
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Keiga, the Tide Star |
Klauth, Unrivaled Ancient |
Lathliss, Dragon Queen |
Llanowar Elves |
Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm |
Nogi, Draco-Zealot |
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Parapet Thrasher |
Sarkhan, Soul Aflame |
Savage Ventmaw |
Scourge of the Throne |
Scourge of Valkas |
Temur Battlecrier |
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Terror of the Peaks |
Thrakkus the Butcher |
Thunderbreak Regent |
Thundermane Dragon |
Twinflame Tyrant |
Ureni, the Song Unending |
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Utvara Hellkite |
Whirlwing Stormbrood |
Wrathful Red Dragon |
Blasphemous Act |
Farseek |
Nature’s Lore |
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Rampant Growth |
Three Visits |
Beast Within |
Chaos Warp |
Sarkhan’s Triumph |
Arcane Signet |
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Cursed Mirror |
Dragon’s Hoard |
Fellwar Stone |
Monster Manual |
Mox Jasper |
Orb of Dragonkind |
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Sol Ring |
Talisman of Creativity |
Talisman of Impulse |
Urza’s Incubator |
Aggravated Assault |
Dragonback Assault |
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Dragon Tempest |
Elemental Bond |
Frontier Siege |
Temur Ascendancy |
Warstorm Surge |
Cascade Bluffs |
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Cinder Glade |
Command Tower |
Dreamroot Cascade |
Exotic Orchard |
Fiery Islet |
Flooded Grove |
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x4 Forest |
Frontier Bivouac |
Haven of the Spirit Dragon |
Hinterland Harbor |
x3 Island |
Karplusan Forest |
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Maelstrom of the Spirit Dragon |
Mosswood Bridge |
x5 Mountain |
Rockfall Vale |
Rootbound Crag |
Secluded Courtyard |
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Sivan Reef |
Stormcarved Coast |
Sulfur Falls |
Unclaimed Territory |
Waterlogged Grove |
Yavimaya Coast |
This deck includes **39 creatures, five sorceries, three instants, 11 artifacts, seven enchantments**, and **34 lands**. The focus is heavily on Dragons, with almost every permanent being either a Dragon or a card that supports them.
Key Cards
Ureni Of The Unwritten
Ureni of the Unwritten is a crucial card for getting Dragon cards onto the battlefield. With a high number of Dragons in the deck, the chances of failing to trigger Ureni’s ability are minimal. As a result, you can consistently bring Dragons into play without spending any mana.
Ureni only needs to attack to activate its ability; it doesn’t have to deal combat damage. This means the Dragon will enter the battlefield before any blockers are declared.
Ureni effectively provides two Dragons for the mana investment of one, as its ability triggers when it enters the battlefield. As long as it remains in play and is able to attack, you can continue to bring out additional Dragons. Be strategic about selecting the most impactful or costly Dragons to maximize your mana usage for other spells.
Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm
Having Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm in play is essential. This card doubles the number of Dragon creatures that enter the battlefield, even eliminating the legendary restriction for legendary creatures. This synergy with Ureni is especially advantageous, as it allows you to deploy Dragons without spending mana.
It’s important to note that Miirym’s ability triggers when Dragons enter the battlefield, not when they are cast. This means if the spell is countered, you won’t get any benefit; however, it works perfectly with Ureni’s ability to bypass mana costs.
Astral Dragon
Astral Dragon is on the pricier side when it comes to mana costs, but with Ureni, you can bring it into play without the hefty expense. It generates two copies of any noncreature permanent, transforming them into 3/3 Dragons. This allows you to establish a stronger board presence by creating token versions of your best noncreature permanents, or even lands if you require additional resources.
The **best target for copying with Astral Dragon is Cursed Mirror**, which can create a game-winning loop the turn it resolves (assuming Astral Dragon entered play through a combat trigger). Here’s how this combo operates:
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Prerequisites: Cursed Mirror on the battlefield. Any means to bring Astral Dragon into play. |
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Step 1: Bring Astral Dragon into play (either by casting or through another method). |
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Step 2: Astral Dragon triggers, targeting Cursed Mirror to be copied. This results in two copies of Cursed Mirror entering as Astral Dragon. |
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Step 3: The first Cursed Mirror (now an Astral Dragon) can copy any two noncreature permanents on the field, turning them into 3/3 Dragons with flying. |
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Step 4: The second Cursed Mirror copies the original Cursed Mirror twice. |
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Step 5: One of those new Cursed Mirror copies enters as another Astral Dragon, while the other becomes whatever creature you wish. |
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Step 6: Repeat steps 2-5. |
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Results: You create infinite copies of noncreature permanents, infinite Astral Dragons with haste, infinite enter-the-battlefield triggers, infinite mana (if copying lands), and an endless number of any creature. |
Savage Ventmaw
Savage Ventmaw may seem straightforward, but it provides a significant boost in mana, helping you cast more Dragons from your hand. Although the deck is in the Temur colors and Savage does not generate blue mana, most of the Dragons are either red or green, making the lack of blue less noticeable.
If Aggravated Assault is on the battlefield, you can create infinite combats by using the mana produced by Savage Ventmaw to pay for its effect. You would also gain infinite mana in this manner, although it may not be necessary at that point.
Many Dragons come with high mana costs, making Savage Ventmaw’s mana generation vital. It can also help with generic mana costs, facilitating the casting of your big spells.
How To Play The Deck
A Ureni of the Unwritten deck centers around getting a lot of Dragons into play—one way or another. This can happen through regular casting or by cheating them in with Ureni or Monster Manual. Given the **deck’s high mana curve**, cheating in Dragons is likely the quickest path to success.
Due to many spells’ high costs, mana dorks like Birds of Paradise, Llanowar Elves, and Elvish Mystic are crucial, allowing you to ramp up to dragons and other powerful spells more rapidly.
You’ll want to stay aggressive, as most of your creatures can fly, making them tougher to block. The goal is to deal damage as quickly as possible before opponents can set up board wipes or remove your Dragons.
The **deck’s primary win condition** revolves around combat. Building an army of Dragons can take some time, but once you do, it can lead to a steamrolling victory. While combos with Astral Dragon and Savage Ventmaw facilitate this, victory can still be achieved through straightforward combat prowess. Cards like Warstorm Surge and Dragon Tempest can also serve to chip away at life totals through direct damage.
The biggest challenge for this deck is its mana curve. Although you can cheat on mana costs with Ureni and Monster Manual, you’ll find that many of your important spells are still expensive. This might mean a slow start, leaving your board somewhat vulnerable until you set down mana dorks and ramping resources. Early on, you may attract attention simply because Dragons are notorious for their capacity to overpower the game once they get enough mana.
