Top 3 Mono-Green Hydras and Budget Replacements

Hydras have often been positioned to be one of Green's great late-game bombs.

While there are definitely some crazy powerful hydras that don't fall into mono-green (Looking at you Hydroid Krasis) three of the most powerful and consistent hydras all fall neatly into their iconic color.

That being said, I've found that any hydra, if built around, can become a nearly unstoppable force in the right decks. But...there are those hydra's that require...less support.

The first of those Hydras being:

1. Primordial Hydra

• Primordial Hydra is the definition of a late-game bomb but has the flexibility to play it early if you need a target for your opponent's removal. Even if you do play the creature early, in just a few turns it becomes a late-game threat all by itself.
• Now in the modern format where deck prices can reach the thousands, Primordial Hydra might not seem like a huge investment. But at a Market price of over$10.00, a playset of this card is sure to get you started at hitting those Modern price marks

2. Kalonian Hydra

• Choosing between Primordial Hydra and Kalonian for the #1 spot was a tough choice. But seeing as how Kalonian Hydra enters the battlefield with 4 +1/+1 counters at a converted mana cost of 5 mana...that's not the best. 

But Davis! It only takes a turn for both the Kalonian Hydra, and the Primordial Hydra to double their power and toughness!

• True! Good point Valued Reader! However, the reason that Kalonian Hydra was placed at #2 instead of #1 was its lack of flexibility. You have to be able to produce 5 mana to cast Kalonian Hydra, whereas Primordial can enter the game for as little as 3 mana (sure it's not ideal, but that flexibility could be the difference between a win and a loss.
• That being said. Primordial Hydra would be my choice for The Bomb. Kalnonian Hydra is a better choice if you're strategy revolves around creating a Team of Bombs, due to Kalonian Hydra's ability to double the amount of +1/+1 counters on other creatures you control. 

• This Hydra will put you back 12.00, or 48.00 for a playset.

3. Khalni Hydra

Wait! Davis! Didn't you just cover this one?

No Valued Reader. Similar names, I know. But just look at the picture.

• Now and 8/8 for 8 is okay. 
• Trample makes it good
• The ability to potentially play it for free makes it GREAT!  
• There's not much to say about this one, other than that it's pretty easy to see how this becomes broken...*cough* *devotion deck?!* *end cough*
• This card will also run you about 12.00 a card, or 48.00 for a playset

Now, what if you love hydras, but you don't have/won't spend that kind of money?

Well, you've come to the right place. Remember how I said all hydras seem to have the ability to take over the game if put in the right deck...you don't remember? Well, I said something like that earlier...start paying attention.

So here are three hydras I know can compete in terms of power and flexibility to the ones listed above. 

The best thing about these is that all of them are below 10.00, and two of them are below $1.00.

Let's start with the most expensive one.

                              1.Ulvenwald Hydra 

• This Hydra is a beast. With its power being equal to the number of lands you control concentrated ramp decks are a great home for this. 
• While he doesn't come with an inherent trample ability, the reach keyword ability comes in handy a surprising amount of the time. 
• While it would depend on the turn and situation, seeing this monster on the opposite side of the battlefield could be just as opposing as any of the top 3. In a dedicated ramp deck, the Uvenwald Hydra could come out considerably faster than any of the top 3. Or if played on the curve will outmatch the Khalni Hydra instantly due to the Uvenwald's Hydra ETB ability. 
• This Hydra's market price is 7.00 a card, or 28.00 a playset. 

2. Oran Rief Hydra

• I was surprised that this card never got a lot of attention. If played early or on curve, the ceiling on this card is extremely high. 
• Now yes, 6 mana for a 5/5 is bad. But it has trample which makes it okay. It also gets bigger every time you play a land (potentially every turn). 
• It gets bigger faster if you play a forest. 
• I ran this card along the Ulvenwald Hydra when they were both in Standard. I ran them in a mono-green ramp deck in which all of my lands were just basic forests. I also ran spells that put lands on the battlefield and into my hand ensuring that both hydras grew at an incredibly fast rate (sometimes instantly). 
• This hydra costs $.30 a card and $1.20 a playset (a crazy amount of power for very little investment!)

3. Bristling Hydra

*I know what you're thinking,*

There's no way Bristling Hydra, former Standard All-Star is below a dollar?!

Well oh, how the mighty have fallen...in price!

• Bristling Hydra was never that expensive really, but right now it's market price is as low as $.20 a card and $.80 for a playset. 
• For a card that once dominated standard that's a heck of a deal. 
• Again I used this card in conjunction with Oran Rief and Ulvenwald Hydra for the brief time they were all in standard together. In that deck, I used two cards to generate the necessary energy to make Bristling Hydra a real threat. 
• Attune with aether and Woodweaver's Puzzleknot. The former filtered my deck and ensured land drops, while the latter buffed my life total for incoming attacks. 
• There are plenty of other cheap hydras to put in this spot (many of which I will talk about in my next post) but for such an obviously powerful card, it'd be a shame not to put it on this list. 
• Trust me, the added challenge of adding energy cards to your deck is definitely worth it, even if Bristling Hydra is the only outlet you have for said energy. 

So there you have it! Let me know in the comments what your favorite hydras are!