Hydra

[Sparkle Ninja]

I see your point, but a true Hydra deck would have a hydra commander...

Or maybe the closest relative, The Hellion!
{Thromok the Insatiable}!

[Sparkle Ninja]

I see your point, but a true Hydra deck would have a hydra commander...

Also {Ulasht The Hate seed}

[PrEZchoICE1]

I see your point, but a true Hydra deck would have a hydra commander...

Also {Ulasht The Hate seed}

Nice suggestions but either of them are as good as Xenagos.

[Sparkle Ninja]

The main difference comes when you realise ulasht is a hydra

[Xaol]

I see your point, but a true Hydra deck would have a hydra commander...

Also {Ulasht The Hate seed}

Nice suggestions but either of them are as good as Xenagos.

I'm not sure why you want {Xenagos} as your commander that badly. A {Kruphix God of Horizons} while not a flavourful card, allows you to make MASSIVE hydras. In the same vein there's {Omnath, Locus of Mana} but that restricts your colours a bit. Now, I like Sparkles' suggestion of {Ulasht}. Flavour-wise he fits: he's a hydra. He's also two colours and has a great ability which is VERSATILE: He can be a big body, remove threats, or make blockers. I would definitely stick {Xenagos} in the deck, he's just really not as strong a commander as you think he will be. It might seem that way, but I've actually played {Xenagos} decks before: he's never a creature when you need it, and his ability is very underwhelming when EDH is so full of removal. My vote is for {Kruphix}.

[PrEZchoICE1]

I see your point, but a true Hydra deck would have a hydra commander...

Also {Ulasht The Hate seed}

Nice suggestions but either of them are as good as Xenagos.

I'm not sure why you want {Xenagos} as your commander that badly. A {Kruphix God of Horizons} while not a flavourful card, allows you to make MASSIVE hydras. In the same vein there's {Omnath, Locus of Mana} but that restricts your colours a bit. Now, I like Sparkles' suggestion of {Ulasht}. Flavour-wise he fits: he's a hydra. He's also two colours and has a great ability which is VERSATILE: He can be a big body, remove threats, or make blockers. I would definitely stick {Xenagos} in the deck, he's just really not as strong a commander as you think he will be. It might seem that way, but I've actually played {Xenagos} decks before: he's never a creature when you need it, and his ability is very underwhelming when EDH is so full of removal. My vote is for {Kruphix}.

So the main reason ur stuck on Kruphix is because you can make HUGE hydras with sickness in a format u admit is full of removal. The reason Im stuck on Xenagos is because you can make Huge hydras with haste. Ulasht is a great example of a card that should b included maindeck. You dont want such a mana intensive commander in a format with so many answers. Theres less answers for xenagos once hes on the field thats not to say there isnt any but less of them. I think he'll allow the deck to get busier faster considering most of the hydras that are being used heavily right now. In a format stuffed full of broken combos that mostly come online midgame I think Xenagos can help to do a lot of damage or at least delay that midgame lock. I can only think of a very small handful of viable hydras that arent red or green.

[FustyDavorite]

There are answers in every format, bud. A hydra with Xenagod as the commander is just as susceptible to removal as it is with Kruphix. Anything can be removed, it's just how necessary it is to be removed.

[Xaol]

There are answers in every format, bud. A hydra with Xenagod as the commander is just as susceptible to removal as it is with Kruphix. Anything can be removed, it's just how necessary it is to be removed.

Exactly this. {Kruphix} allows anything to be a massive threat; {Xenagos} is just going to
make one a threat and not for more than a turn.

[PrEZchoICE1]

There are answers in every format, bud. A hydra with Xenagod as the commander is just as susceptible to removal as it is with Kruphix. Anything can be removed, it's just how necessary it is to be removed.

I believe I said exactly this. The big krux here is that most of the really good 'hydras' are red or green or both. Having kruphix as the commander completely locks u out of red and pushes you into a color that is best used in control. When I think hydras control isnt the first thing that comes to my mind. Control is its own entity u can build any creature into a control shell. OP said he wants a hydra deck not a control deck, thats all Im going off.

[PrEZchoICE1]

For tempo xena is going to force them to use removal before they may want to. With kruphix they get a turn to make a decision. Sometimes a turn can be an eternity.

[AdamS]

There are answers in every format, bud. A hydra with Xenagod as the commander is just as susceptible to removal as it is with Kruphix. Anything can be removed, it's just how necessary it is to be removed.

Exactly this. {Kruphix} allows anything to be a massive threat; {Xenagos} is just going to
make one a threat and not for more than a turn.

in other words if you were to play {mistcutter hydra} in a xenagos deck and you pay 10 for x its a 10/10and can attack for 20 however with kruphix you can play it for 10or alot more because of kruphix's ability to save mana and have a 10/10 and you can add other stuff like {vorel the hull clade} and get a 20/20  and then use it again get a 30/30 and you can repeat it endlessly until it is removed apposed to xenagos's hydra only ever attaking for 20 where kruphix's hydra can attack for way more example of 50 in 3-4 turns run the blue and green archtype to give all creatures hexproof and flying and theres not much your opponent can do because blue has counter spells that can get rid of their boardwipes.
so just for the sake of color kruphix is better and the only "good" red hydras in my opinion are {savageborn hydra} and {apocalypse hydra} and they are easily replaced when you have 50/50 hydras with flying

[Ptsgpbk]

There are answers in every format, bud. A hydra with Xenagod as the commander is just as susceptible to removal as it is with Kruphix. Anything can be removed, it's just how necessary it is to be removed.

I believe I said exactly this. The big krux here is that most of the really good 'hydras' are red or green or both. Having kruphix as the commander completely locks u out of red and pushes you into a color that is best used in control. When I think hydras control isnt the first thing that comes to my mind. Control is its own entity u can build any creature into a control shell. OP said he wants a hydra deck not a control deck, thats all Im going off.

thanks, you seem to be the only person agreeing on this

[FustyDavorite]

First off, you'll be missing about 5 hydras without red; there aren't that many hydras to begin with. Among those, the only ones worth their salt are  {Apocalypse Hydra} and  {Ulasht, the Hate Seed}.

But how does making huge hydras with Kruphix = control? Just because he would be running blue doesn't automatically mean control. Just as running green and red doesn't immediately = Aggro. You can play a color without the associated playstyle.

But here's what I'm trying to say. {G}{U} with Kruphix as the commander has greater potential as a deck than {G}{R} does. And really, that may be a matter of opinion. Running {G}{R}{U} is a very viable option also,  {Animar, Soul of Elements},  {Maelstrom Wanderer}, and  {Riku of Two Reflections} all are very strong commanders. But let the dude pick based on his playstyle and what his hydras want.

[PrEZchoICE1]

First off, you'll be missing about 5 hydras without red; there aren't that many hydras to begin with. Among those, the only ones worth their salt are  {Apocalypse Hydra} and  {Ulasht, the Hate Seed}.

But how does making huge hydras with Kruphix = control? Just because he would be running blue doesn't automatically mean control. Just as running green and red doesn't immediately = Aggro. You can play a color without the associated playstyle.

But here's what I'm trying to say. {G}{U} with Kruphix as the commander has greater potential as a deck than {G}{R} does. And really, that may be a matter of opinion. Running {G}{R}{U} is a very viable option also,  {Animar, Soul of Elements},  {Maelstrom Wanderer}, and  {Riku of Two Reflections} all are very strong commanders. But let the dude pick based on his playstyle and what his hydras want.

When I associated blue with control I was assuming most would also believe that blue's best attribute would be control. I wasnt trying to insinuate that control is the only thing one could do with blue, just that if ur running blue and u want to be competetive control is prolly ur best option. I understand the idea behind Kruphix and while I think he'll be good in spots I think Xenagos is a better option purely for the obvious aggro route he could take a 'hydra' deck in. For the record I think animar is the second best option because he also can enable a more aggressive playstyle.

[AdamS]

all this descusion has led me to the desision to make a hydra deck with kruphix