Elder Dragon
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Excellent (9/10)
High Investment Required
Epic Relics
Paid Relics
Elder Dragon is widely considered one of the strongest and most satisfying champions in the game, offering an 'unstoppable' power fantasy. While he requires significant investment (Epic/Paid relics and Constellations) to bypass his slow early game, his ceiling is nearly infinite, capable of trivializing the hardest content.
Unstoppable OTK
Essential for the +1 Starting Mana (if equipping to a Titanic champion). This allows you to play 6-cost units on Turn 1 (with C5) and Elder Dragon much earlier.
Upon playing Elder Dragon, this generates a free attack. This contributes damage towards his level-up condition immediately and often secures a win the moment he hits the board.
Grants Scout. When combined with Cease and Desist, you can attack multiple times in one turn. Uniquely, a Level 2 Elder Dragon's 'I CANNOT BE STOPPED' text prevents him from being shuffled back into the deck by Galeforce.
Strategy
This build aims to end the game the moment Elder Dragon is summoned. With Starforged Gauntlets and C5, you ramp quickly. Dropping Elder Dragon triggers a free attack (Cease & Desist) and a Scout attack (Galeforce). If he levels up during this sequence, he becomes immune to Galeforce's downside, leaving you with a massive, permanent board presence.
Titanic Ramp & Spam
- Core for mana ramp to accelerate the deployment of high-cost units.
Upon summoning Elder Dragon, this generates two random high-cost units from regions with 6+ cost units, discounting them significantly. This floods the board with threats instantly.
Deals 3 damage to all allies to reduce Elder Dragon's cost. Since you want to play him as early as possible, sacrificing your early chump blockers or C4 summons to cheat him out is a powerful tempo play.
Strategy
Focuses on cheating Elder Dragon out as early as Turn 2 or 3. Disciple of Shadows uses your wide board of smaller units (or C4/C5 summons) to reduce his cost, while Portal Pals ensures that once he drops, you have a hand full of discounted monsters to finish the fight.
Emotional Support Bear (Fun/Synergy)
Creates a Tibbers in hand if you don't have one. Tibbers is a base 6-cost unit, meaning he triggers all of Elder Dragon's 'play a 6+ cost unit' boons, but costs only 2 mana.- Mana ramp to facilitate playing the rest of your deck.
Grants Overwhelm to the board (if not C6) and +1/+1 to subtype allies.
Strategy
A specific synergy build using Annie's relic. Because Tibbers is a 6-cost unit discounted to 2, he is an incredibly efficient way to trigger Dragon Boons/Souls and Elder Dragon's origin ability for very little mana.
F2P / Rare Only
Copies all spells when you have 6+ mana gems. Elder Dragon naturally reaches high mana quickly, allowing you to double cast his champion spell or other high-value spells.
Creates 'Redoubled Valor' in hand. When doubled by Chemtech Duplicator, this creates a unit with astronomical stats.
Refills spell mana on summon, allowing you to cast the spells generated by the other relics immediately.
Strategy
Without the mana ramp from Starforged Gauntlets, this build plays slower. The goal is to survive until you can drop Elder Dragon, then use the mana refill to cast Redoubled Valor (doubled via Chemtech) to create a single strike that wipes the enemy Nexus.
Other Relic Options
- Excellent for granting Overwhelm to your board to prevent chump-blocking. Becomes less critical at C6 if you roll the Infernal Dragon Soul (which grants Overwhelm).
Elder Dragon's signature relic. Generally considered a trap or 'worthless' by experts compared to other options, as the damage output (2 to enemies) is negligible in high-tier content.
Useful for protecting Elder Dragon from removal before he levels up. Once leveled, he is 'Unstoppable' and immune to most removal anyway.
Useful for fishing for specific powers like 'Titanic Wake' or 'Trifarian Might'.
Constellation
Elder Dragon is extremely 'Epic Relic Hungry'. Without Starforged Gauntlets (and the C5 mana gem), he can feel slow and clunky. With them, he is a monster. His constellation is widely regarded as one of the best in the game, transforming him from a slow control deck into a fast, unstoppable combo engine.
Dragonsire
Allies with base cost 6+ cost 1 less.
Aspect of the Dragon
+1 Starting Mana. When you play a base 6+ cost ally, play a random Dragon Boon on it.
Dragonsire II
Allies with base cost 6+ cost 2 less.
Early Bird
Game Start: Summon your weakest follower from deck.Review
Summons a unit at Game Start (often Blue Sentinel). This is useful for chump blocking or, if you cut low-cost cards from your deck, consistently summoning a unit that provides mana ramp.
Manaflow
Game Start: Get a mana gem.Review
Manaflow. This is the most critical upgrade for his consistency. Combined with Starforged Gauntlets, starting at 4 Mana allows you to play 6-cost units (which are discounted to 4 by his origin) on Turn 1.
Souls of Dragons
Your Dragon Boons are replaced with Dragon Souls.Review
Upgrades Dragon Boons into Dragon Souls. This is a massive power spike. It provides Nexus healing (sustain), Revives (instead of Deathless), and massive stats/keywords. It makes him nearly impossible to kill and stabilizes runs against aggressive mutators.
Gameplay Tips
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The Turn 1 6-Drop: With Starforged Gauntlets and 5 Stars (Manaflow), you start with 4 Mana. Elder Dragon's Origin reduces the cost of 6-cost base units by 1 for each Dragon Boon you've picked (up to a limit), but importantly, many 6-cost units in his deck or draft pool can be played immediately if you have cost-reduction powers or simply by reaching 4 mana naturally on turn 1. More accurately: You play a 6-cost unit on Turn 1 (if you have the mana), which triggers a Boon. This discounts Elder Dragon.
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I CANNOT BE STOPPED: Once Elder Dragon reaches Level 2, he is immune to everything. He cannot be Stunned, Recalled, Killed, Obliterated, or Stopped. This includes your own negative effects—he will not be recalled by Galeforce or killed by Ephemeral, allowing you to abuse these keywords freely.
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Deck Management: At 4 Stars, the game summons your lowest cost unit. You should aggressively cut 2-cost units from your deck at Healers to ensure the game summons Ottrani or Blue Sentinel to ramp your mana faster.
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Drafting Strategy: Always prioritize 6+ cost units. Low-cost units dilute your deck and do not trigger your Origin or Boons. In the shop, look for powers like Trifarian Might (Strike on summon) or Titanic Wake.
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The Boon Trap: Be careful with Cease and Desist or attack-based relics. Elder Dragon applies Boons/Souls on play. If you attack immediately and level him up mid-attack, he might miss out on applying further boons if the sequence resolves strangely, though generally, the raw power is worth it.