Clockwork Dragon MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Clockwork Dragon can be a true mechanized marvel when it comes to card advantage. Each time it deals combat damage, you get the opportunity to draw cards, potentially overwhelming opponents with a stream of resources.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting your mana pool, this artifact creature can prove pivotal in games by providing consistent board presence. As you tick up its counters and manage to keep it in play, you essentially save mana by not having to redeploy threats each turn.

Instant Speed: Clockwork Dragon doesn’t directly interact at instant speed, but this characteristic comes into play with its synergies. In a deck that can untap it or manipulate counters at instant speed, Clockwork Dragon evolves from a mere creature to a versatile combatant, able to adapt to the fluid dynamics of any match.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Clockwork Dragon demands players to pitch another card from their hand upon entry, potentially depleting valuable hand resources that could be crucial later in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: Its casting cost is locked at five generic and one blue mana, necessitating a solid mana foundation and possibly restricting the card’s inclusion in multicolored or non-blue decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Clockwork Dragon sits at a steep six mana value to cast. In today’s fast-paced games, there are other creatures and constructs that might provide similar or greater impact at a lower cost and with more flexible deployment options.

Reasons to Include Clockwork Dragon in Your Collection

Versatility: Clockwork Dragon’s flexible power level, which scales with the amount of mana you invest into it, allows it to adapt to a variety of game states. It’s a welcome addition in decks that can manage the board while investing in the long game.

Combo Potential: As an artifact creature, Clockwork Dragon synergizes with strategies that capitalize on artifact manipulation. It can be pivotal in combos exploiting abilities to untap artifacts or proliferate counters.

Meta-Relevance: Within a meta that celebrates artifact themes or has prevalent modular and counter-based mechanics, Clockwork Dragon can become a key player, especially when paired with support cards that accentuate its strengths and mitigate its upkeep costs.

How to beat

Clockwork Dragon presents a unique challenge on the battlefield, contributing to the rich diversity in the MTG arsenal. Its ability to grow in power with the accumulation of +1/+1 counters makes it a formidable flying threat as the game progresses. To counter this mechanical beast, there are some effective strategies you can employ.

First and foremost, removal spells are your friend when dealing with Clockwork Dragon. Since the dragon needs to attack or block to gain those counters, spells like Doom Blade or Path to Exile can eliminate it before it becomes too strong. Artifact removal specifically, like Shatter or Disenchant, is also highly efficient due to the dragon’s artifact creature type.

Countermagic is another powerful tool. By holding up mana for a counterspell such as Cancel or Negate, you can prevent the dragon from ever taking flight. Another tactic is to minimize the impact of those counters. Cards that prevent counters from being placed, like Solemnity, or cards that can manipulate counters like Vampire Hexmage, dealing with Clockwork Dragon becomes significantly easier.

Lastly, utilizing board wipes like Wrath of God can reset the playing field, keeping Clockwork Dragon’s growing threat at bay. It’s about timing and choosing the right moment to strike. By anticipating and disrupting your opponent’s strategy, you can ensure that Clockwork Dragon doesn’t wind up the clock to your defeat.