Dragon Broodmother
Creature — Dragon
Flying
At the beginning of each upkeep, create a 1/1 red and green Dragon creature token with flying and devour 2. (As the token enters, you may sacrifice any number of creatures. It enters with twice that many +1/+1 counters on it.)
- CMC
- 6
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- GR
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- The List
- Price
- $5.17
- EDHREC rank
- #6859
Dragon Broodmother puts a 1/1 flying Dragon token into play at the start of every upkeep — including your opponents' — and each token devours to grow, meaning a single turn cycle around the table produces a small army before anyone untaps for their second main phase. Six mana is real, but the payoff scales with player count in a way most threats don't, and commanders like Thromok the Insatiable and Esix, Fractal Bloom turn that token flood into a win condition the same turn she hits the board.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Thromok the Insatiable
Dragon Broodmother's token-per-upkeep engine is exactly the fodder Thromok the Insatiable needs to reach a lethal size — more tokens in play when Thromok resolves means more counters, and Broodmother can generate several before Thromok ever swings.
Ganax, Astral Hunter // Acolyte of Bahamut
Every Dragon token Dragon Broodmother produces triggers Ganax, Astral Hunter // Acolyte of Bahamut's Treasure generation, converting a steady token stream into a mana engine that accelerates the rest of the Dragon package.
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher wants a high token count for food-chain lines and sacrifice payoffs, and Dragon Broodmother supplies tokens continuously rather than in a single burst — that consistency is what separates her from one-shot token producers in this shell.
Kresh the Bloodbraided
Dragon Broodmother feeds Kresh the Bloodbraided on two axes: the devour triggers eat existing tokens to grow the new one, and any token that dies in combat or to removal stacks Kresh's counters, making every sacrifice a net gain.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Dragon Broodmother earns her slot — the multiplayer upkeep trigger fires three or four times before it loops back to you, and that compounding token production is far more punishing in a four-player game than a duel. In Legacy and Vintage she's technically legal but six mana is unplayable in those formats without a reanimation shell doing the heavy lifting; even then she's a fringe choice at best. Modern is the same story: the format has efficient enough threats at every mana value that a six-drop requiring attack steps to close games doesn't compete. Dragon Broodmother's design is intrinsically multiplayer, and her numbers prove it — the card's entire reputation is Commander-built.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Esix, Fractal BloomTimestream NavigatorDragon Broodmother
Infinite turns; Lock
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
If six mana or the price is the sticking point, Utvara Hellkite fills a similar role in Dragon-heavy builds by generating tokens off attacks rather than upkeeps — it asks more of your board but scales just as hard. Dragon Broodmother's unique edge is that she generates value the turn she lands and doesn't require combat to do it, so any replacement trades that immediate impact for a lower entry cost.
Price Context
Current price
$5.17 mid tier
At $5.17, Dragon Broodmother sits in mid-tier pricing — affordable enough to slot into a focused build without budget strain, and stable enough that this price has held because the effect is genuinely powerful rather than hype-driven. It's a fair price for what she does.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Esix, Fractal Bloom
- Thromok the Insatiable
- Ganax, Astral Hunter // Acolyte of Bahamut
- Prossh, Skyraider of Kher
- Kresh the Bloodbraided
- Timestream Navigator
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.