The Merfolk creature type in Magic: The Gathering for Eternal formats had eight new cards drop through Lost Caverns of Ixalan Explorers of the Deep Commander Precon, along with a face and secondary commander.
Merfolk have always been a popular GU (Green and Blue) typal archetype within the Commander format, and other MTG formats as well. The Explorers of the Deep Commander deck from Lost Caverns of Ixalan (LCI), explores design space within the creature type.
This is seen through the face commander of the Precon, Hakbal of the Surging Soul, along with the secondary commander Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood—using the Explorer mechanic and counters to overrun opponents. And through the eight new Rare MTG cards featured in the LCI preconstructed deck.
In addition to the Merfolk typal Commander deck, WotC dropped three other Precon builds focused on other creature types seen on the plane of Ixalan: Pirates, Vampires, and Dinosaurs.Â
Hakbal of the Surging Soul
The face commander of the Explorers of the Deep LCI Commander Precon brings together the Explorer mechanic and the Merfolk creature type. Each Merfolk Explores at the start of combat, with Hakbal of the Surging Soul dropping lands from hand every time the scout attacks. If you don’t have a land, you get to draw a card.
For a 3/3 four-drop, Hakbal of the Surging Soul is a solid commander, especially since the scout Explores too, making it a viable threat with multiple Merfolk on the battlefield.
Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood
The secondary commander is Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood, a six drop that produces Flood tokens and synergizes with counter-centric decks. Counters are what Exploring Merfolk are all about, which is why Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood slots into a Merfolk Commander deck as either a commander or supporting Legendary. The salamander serpent can also work in a wide variety of GU decks, as it works with any counter.
Deeproot Historian
Deeproot Historian is potentially a powerful four-drop creature in either Merfolk or Druid typal decks. The appropriately titled, Merfolk Druid, gives all cards in your graveyard Retrace, which is an MTG mechanic that lets players cast cards from their graveyard at an additional cost of discarding a land. In a Merfolk deck built around the Explore mechanic, having a land to discard isn’t difficult.
It also works in Druid builds, making Deeproot Historian a card Commander players will want from the Explorers of the Deep LCI Commander Precon.
Mist Dancer
MIst Dance is a unique five-drop Rare in the LCI Commander deck. The wizard costs five mana and is only a 3/3. But Mist Dancer has Flying, and gives all other Merfolk you control Flying, along with +1/+0 stats. When Mist Dancer hits, it will hit hard and end matches. The wizard is also a dead card in hand most of the time.
Within a Merfolk Explorer deck, though, Mist Dancer is the ideal creature to toss into the graveyard for a +1/+1 counter on a target creature. When it’s needed, players can reanimate Mist Dancer back to hand. Or players can opt to pay for its Encore cost of 5UU.
Singer of Swift Rivers
Supporting creatures with attacking abilities, like Hakbal of the Surging Soul, is Singer of the Swift Rivers. As an added bonus, the Merfolk shaman has Flash, putting a shield counter on a target creature upon entering the battlefield. It has decent protection at the cost of three mana, especially when it comes with a 3/2 body and the ability for other Merfolk spells to have Flash.
Topography Tracker
Synergizing with the Explorer mechanic is Topography Tracker. The three-drop Rare Merfolk scout creates a Map token upon entering the battlefield. It also prompts Explore a second time when a creature Explores. The downside to Topography Tracker is the scout’s 2/2 baseline stats.
Tributary Instructor
Adding +1/+1 counters through the MTG Mentor mechanic is Tributary Instructor. The four-drop Merfolk shaman is a solid midgame creature that scales in power and toughness as other Merfolk creatures Explore. Tributary Instructor also has a decent death trigger ability that draws a card each time a creature with a counter on it dies.
Bygone Marvels
The Explorer mechanic puts creatures into the graveyard, which synergizes nicely with the new MTG mechanic Descend. With a Descend cost of eight, players can copy the Sorcery spell twice, bringing three creatures from the graveyard back to hand. Bygone Marvels can also bring back only one creature if the Descend cost isn’t met, but at only GG mana, I feel the Sorcery spell is quite strong within an Explore Commander deck.
Wave Goodbye
In a counter-specific Commander deck, Wave Goodbye is a powerful Sorcery spell and one of the best new Rare spells in the Explorers of the Deep LCI Commander deck. The spell only costs four mana to cast and can bounce more than half of each player’s creatures back to hand, leaving the battlefield wide open for your Merfolk to attack.
Ripples of Potential
Ripples of Potential is a solid addition to a counter deck of any kind and is a valuable addition to the Explorers of the Deep deck. The Blue Instant two-drop spell Proliferates and then Phases out all creatures with a counter on them through the Proliferate until their controller’s next turn. Ripples of Potential is great against board wipes and can protect your board state when needed. And it only costs two mana to cast at Instant speed.
