I really like this cards potential in the standard format. It can drop early and get progressively better over the course of the game, give it trample and they better have an answer for it.
Sel3l3e
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(3 votes)
hydra + mythic=true?
Flyheight
★★★☆☆ (3.2/5.0)(3 votes)
That delicious delicious Raymond Swanland art. All those pointy pieces.
Oh yeah, it's a FABULOUS card too! Although personally I don't think it would have been too broken to allow it to add counters at instant speed, but eh, I suppose it doesn't need it.
Kaixe-Rho
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(7 votes)
If you have enough mana to make this guy suitably big enough, then maybe you have enough mana to make him just a little bit bigger with a bit of help from a certain Skarrg Goliath. It's a little bit over the top, but hey, this is Gruul, so, you know, KILL BIGGER! CRUSH FASTER! WE EAT!
.Blaze.
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I'm not a fan of this Hydra. He is certainly a powerful card but he doesn't seem as cool as the other past mythic Hydras we've gotten.
ChttrBox88
★★★☆☆ (3.4/5.0)(4 votes)
Weaker then his primordial cousin in strait up power. The real power lies when you get some sort of Rancor on him and double the damage all potential Ghor-Clan Rampagers can do.
Lotosblume
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I wish Savageborn Hydra had a 1/1 base on it, so Burning-Tree Emissary could cast him without him dying on the spot ... even if they had to downgrade double strike. Furthermore, they should have made him a Phytohydra for flavor.
pandawolf56
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Savageborn Hydra is a great card for standard! An average deck would play him at earliest most likely at turn 4, so 2/2 with double strike. Turn 5 is great, but turn 6 is amazing for 4/4 double strike. Then he can boost himself. No protection though, he is a all out swinger; plus the art is one of the best in dragon's maze. 4/5.
steev
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@Rusty172002: In that same situation, this guy swings as a 6/4 double strike trample (for 12 damage) on the same turn. Gold star for effort?
I like seeing this guy come down turn 2 - 1: Land, mana dork 2: Land, Burning-Tree Emissary, this guy for 1 3: Land, Madcap Skills, pump your guy, swing with a 2/2 and a 5/2 double strike.
Hell, you don't even need the Emissary to still be swinging for 10 on turn 3, AND that's not even with the best cards available - it's all just icing on top of how much beatdown this brings. I'd like to see it in a Fires deck.
flavioal28
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
A nice casual upgrade to Apocalypse Hydra in my opinion, and no, i don't care if it's worse than Primordial Hydra. If every card had to be better than the last we would have 1 mana 10/10s with double strike and haste
Snakerunners
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Rusty172002, no it doesn't
1. Forest, Arbor Elf 2. Mountain, Elvish Archdruid 3. Land, Savageborn Hydra for 4 4. Land, Activate Ability on Hydra 3 times, Rancor - Swing for 18 Damage -- If opponent played a shockland they could very well be dead, or next turn play any burn or swing with everything.
BigPimpin
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
It's hard not to be scared by double strike.
But seeing this across the table in certain decks would make me wet myself.
So he's basically awesome and a perfect choice for the Gruul Mythic Rare in Dragon's Maze.
DarthParallax
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(5 votes)
It's a better Apocalypse Hydra, but not better in the 'strictly' sense- better in the 'you might have more fun with this than Apocalypse, and you don't really feel bad about playing them both in Commander' (compared to the bad-feels Serra gets standing next to Baneslayer)
RAV0004
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Not sure what's going on with the head, also why wasn't it a hellion?
HallowedFury
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
G/R/U for the win. Play Primordial, wait, play Savageborn, Rancor, Pump Savage, BIOSHIFT Primordial to Savageborn Hydra for the WIN!
Hell Yeah!
TheWrathofShane
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Seems close enough to the curve starting at 4 mana. 2/2 doublestrike for 4 with a growing ability, and it gets better with more mana.
majinara
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I guess it's ok. Not good enough for tournaments, but great for casual. What it really needs is trample.
Heegu
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This guy was an amazing powerhouse in the pre-release and I could definitely see playing more of him in standard. 5/5
Coralus
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Part of me wants to run all of this goodness together, and break all of the things. 4 Primordial Hydra 4 Savageborn Hydra 2 Vorel of the Hull Clade 4 of our new R/G Manadork 4 Arbor Elf 4 Avacyn's Pilgrim 2 Gyre Sage 2 of the Simic Guildmage 3 Ulvenwald Tracker 3 Domri Rade 2 Master Biomancer
Turn 1: Forest, Arbor Elf Turn 2: Mountain, Zhur-Taa Druid, Arbor Elf Turn 3: Land, tap everything for 6, play this 4/4 double striker (1 damage from Druid) Turn 4: Land, Rancor it if you must, tap for 6 again (1 damage from Druid), swing with a 9/9 double strike trampler gg
Mprime818
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Does its second ability pair with Hypersonic Dragon because you have instant speed with sorcery? I.e. pump anytime
SAUS3
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
This card is cool, and its huge potential is definitely good for a mythic rare, but I feel it could have been a liitle more interesting. Oh well. That's gruul for you :P SMASH!!
Continue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Just about on the curve at any point past 4 mana — a 3/3 double striker for 5 seems pretty fair — and being able to make it bigger if you need to is awesome.
Guest1225018570
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
How about Red Green black using Fervor, and Corpsejack menace. By turn five you have at least a 6/6 double strike attacking turn it comes into play.
Sinicity
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
turn 4 for a 2/2 double strike? Thats fine. Turn 4 for a 5/5 double strike w/ trample, attaking? thats more like it says Ghor-clan rampager
demonknight18
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Double strike is scary, isn't it? 5/5
steele06
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I wonder if this card will see play in standard after Innistrad rotates. He works pretty well with ghor-clan rampager and xenagos' +1 ability can potentially help him grow every turn into a bigger threat. outside of standard this is still a pretty cool card for commander. 4/5
JimmyNoobPlayer
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Pretty good three-drop. One time I missed a win by casting a Kalonian Hydra when I should have pumped Savageborn all-out. He gets big surprisingly fast.
@Mprime8191: That's a good question. But the rulings for Hypersonic Dragon disappointingly say it won't work.
Bob111634
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
turn 1 experiment one turn 2 burning tree firefist striker turn 3 hellraiser goblin turn 4 savageborn hydra
jfre81
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If my ramp is still on the board by then, this can come out as a 3/3 or a 4/4 on turn four. I might have played Garruk's Wildspeaker on the previous turn, which may have helped me make the Hydra bigger. Turn five and Garruk can give me a free Overrun so I can charge with this and some roided-up elves, and I have enough mana free to play another Overrun spell.
Blackworm_Bloodworm
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
As cool as I think this card is, and as much as I want to use it, I really wish they'd had made it at least a 1/1 by default so it's less of a liability. A mythic 1/1 Double Striker for RG? That's perfectly fair. But as it is, it gets insta-gibbed rather than severely weakened by things like Hex Parasite and Vampire Hexmage, and cascading into it is next to pointless. A missed opportunity of the most unfortunate kind.
Comments (33)
Oh yeah, it's a FABULOUS card too! Although personally I don't think it would have been too broken to allow it to add counters at instant speed, but eh, I suppose it doesn't need it.
I like seeing this guy come down turn 2 -
1: Land, mana dork
2: Land, Burning-Tree Emissary, this guy for 1
3: Land, Madcap Skills, pump your guy, swing with a 2/2 and a 5/2 double strike.
Hell, you don't even need the Emissary to still be swinging for 10 on turn 3, AND that's not even with the best cards available - it's all just icing on top of how much beatdown this brings. I'd like to see it in a Fires deck.
1. Forest, Arbor Elf
2. Mountain, Elvish Archdruid
3. Land, Savageborn Hydra for 4
4. Land, Activate Ability on Hydra 3 times, Rancor - Swing for 18 Damage -- If opponent played a shockland they could very well be dead, or next turn play any burn or swing with everything.
But seeing this across the table in certain decks would make me wet myself.
So he's basically awesome and a perfect choice for the Gruul Mythic Rare in Dragon's Maze.
Play Primordial, wait, play Savageborn, Rancor, Pump Savage, BIOSHIFT Primordial to Savageborn Hydra for the WIN!
Hell Yeah!
2/2 doublestrike for 4 with a growing ability, and it gets better with more mana.
4 Primordial Hydra
4 Savageborn Hydra
2 Vorel of the Hull Clade
4 of our new R/G Manadork
4 Arbor Elf
4 Avacyn's Pilgrim
2 Gyre Sage
2 of the Simic Guildmage
3 Ulvenwald Tracker
3 Domri Rade
2 Master Biomancer
Turn 2: Mountain, Zhur-Taa Druid, Arbor Elf
Turn 3: Land, tap everything for 6, play this 4/4 double striker (1 damage from Druid)
Turn 4: Land, Rancor it if you must, tap for 6 again (1 damage from Druid), swing with a 9/9 double strike trampler gg
5/5
@Mprime8191: That's a good question. But the rulings for Hypersonic Dragon disappointingly say it won't work.
turn 2 burning tree firefist striker
turn 3 hellraiser goblin
turn 4 savageborn hydra
A mythic 1/1 Double Striker for RG? That's perfectly fair.
But as it is, it gets insta-gibbed rather than severely weakened by things like Hex Parasite and Vampire Hexmage, and cascading into it is next to pointless.
A missed opportunity of the most unfortunate kind.