Commander Kryptonite: How to Beat Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm in Commander

Posted on March 4, 2025

Hello everyone! I'm Levi from The Thought Vessel Show, and this week, we continue our Commander Kryptonite series with Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm, as we dive back into the world of slaying dragons. In this series, we explore some of the trickiest commanders in the format, examining their origins, deck strategies, strengths, weaknesses, and finally, a game plan to take them down. Without further delay, let's jump right in.

The Commander: Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm

Hailing from the latest Dungeons & Dragons set, Miirym stands as one of the most fearsome dragon commanders. What sets Miirym apart is its Temur identity, lacking the Black and White colors typical of dragon commanders like Tiamat and The Ur-Dragon. Miirym boasts a brutal ability: whenever another nontoken dragon enters the battlefield under its controller's control, a copy of that dragon is created. The catch? The copy is not legendary, allowing legendary dragons to be duplicated without restrictions. Personally, I would have preferred if the tokens were also legendary to add a bit more deck-building challenge, but alas, the legend rule's annihilation is here to stay. Additionally, since the copied dragon is a token, it synergizes well with populate and token-doubling effects.

The Deck

Players typically adopt one of two strategies with Miirym: either filling the deck with powerful dragons or focusing on clone effects. In my opinion, the clone strategy is the more devastating option, albeit less common. When Miirym is cloned for the first time, the initial clone dies to the legend rule, but the subsequent copy remains and is non-legendary. The second time Miirym is cloned, you retain your original while generating two Miirym triggers, resulting in three dragons. This pattern escalates with each additional clone, leading to an overwhelming airborne force. Here is an example of the average Miirym deck that you might come across.

Average Miirym | Commander | EDHRec Average List

Commander (1)
1 Miirym, Sentinel Wyrm

Planeswalkers (1)
1 Sarkhan Unbroken

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Strengths

Miirym's primary strength lies in its enter-the-battlefield (ETB) effect, rapidly generating a wide board of dragons that are difficult to manage with spot removal thanks to Miirym coming with Ward 2. These dragons, being high-power flyers, require only a few attacks to eliminate opponents. Temur colors also provide access to powerful protection spells like Heroic Intervention and counterspells, helping Miirym players defend their board from removal. Blue and Green also can allow plenty of ramp and card advantage to keep the dragons flowing once enough mana has been obtained.

Weaknesses

However, the deck is not without its weaknesses. Its speed is a concern, as Miirym's ETB effect depends on resolving expensive creatures. Unlike The Ur-Dragon, Miirym doesn't reduce the cost of casting dragons, meaning early turns are often spent ramping. This delay leaves Miirym players vulnerable. Additionally, anything that disrupts ETB effects or flying creatures significantly diminishes the deck's power.

Key Cards to Watch Out For In Miirym

Spark Double - Any clone effect is problematic here. The ETB ability copying dragons is already strong, but adding multiple Miiryms exponentially escalates the threat.

Ganax, Astral Hunter - A deceptively strong uncommon. When copied by Miirym, it provides a four-treasure refund on every dragon spell cast. With enough card draw and cost reducers, the deck can empty its library in no time.

Dragon Tempest - As we mentioned in our Ur-Dragon article, giving large flying creatures haste is dangerous. Additionally, its non-combat damage can end games outright by eliminating blockers or directly targeting opponents.

How to Slay the Dragon

Like The Ur-Dragon, Miirym is an obvious threat at the table, so rallying allies should be easy. Early aggression is key to punishing Miirym players for spending their early turns ramping. Depending on your deck, targeting their ramp spells or destroying mana rocks is a valid strategy. The longer Miirym stays off the battlefield, the better your chances. Applying pressure forces them to prioritize blockers, especially since Temur lacks efficient life gain. If possible, remove their card advantage engines. The ideal scenario is one where Miirym has all the ramp and mana production in the world but no threats to deploy. Consistently applying pressure will eventually create a window to take them down.