Overview

Explorers of the Deep is a Merfolk deck that turns explore into a growth engine. Hakbal of the Surging Soul has a trigger at the beginning of combat on your turn: each Merfolk creature you control explores, which means it reveals the top card of your library and either puts a land into your hand or gets a +1/+1 counter. Whenever Hakbal attacks, you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield, and if you don't, you draw a card.

The 99 cards are 37 creatures, 5 artifacts, 6 enchantments, 9 instants, 6 sorceries and 36 lands. 32 of the creatures are Merfolk, supported by lords such as Master of the Pearl Trident, Merfolk Mistbinder and Merrow Reejerey, and by counters cards such as Branching Evolution, Hardened Scales and Vorel of the Hull Clade.

Key Cards

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Emperor Mihail II
Card Advantage · Token Maker
A 3/3 for {1}{U}{U}. You may look at the top card of your library any time and cast Merfolk spells from the top of your library. Whenever you cast a Merfolk spell, you may pay {1} to create a 1/1 blue Merfolk creature token.
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Nicanzil, Current Conductor
Explore Payoff · Ramp
A 2/3 for {G}{U}. Whenever a creature you control explores a land card, you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield tapped. Whenever a creature you control explores a nonland card, put a +1/+1 counter on Nicanzil. With Hakbal exploring every Merfolk each turn, it triggers many times.
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Master of the Pearl Trident
Lord · Evasion
A 2/2 for {U}{U}. Other Merfolk creatures you control get +1/+1 and have islandwalk, so they cannot be blocked as long as the defending player controls an Island. It makes your whole Merfolk team bigger and harder to block.
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Svyelun of Sea and Sky
Card Draw · Protection
A 3/4 for {1}{U}{U}. It has indestructible as long as you control at least two other Merfolk, draws you a card whenever it attacks, and gives your other Merfolk ward {1}.

Playing the Deck

The early game is about cheap Merfolk and ramp. Kiora's Follower, Merfolk Mistbinder, Merfolk Skydiver and Deeproot Elite are cheap Merfolk, Growth Spiral, Explore, Kodama's Reach, Simic Signet, Sol Ring and Arcane Signet help the mana, and Topography Tracker makes a Map token that lets a creature explore. Hakbal wants to be on the battlefield early so that every Merfolk starts exploring at the beginning of combat.

The middle of the game is about growing the team. Merfolk Sovereign, Merrow Reejerey and Master of the Pearl Trident give other Merfolk +1/+1, Deeproot Waters creates a hexproof 1/1 Merfolk token whenever you cast a Merfolk spell, and Kindred Discovery draws you a card whenever a creature of the chosen type enters or attacks. Reflections of Littjara copies the spells of the chosen type, Tatyova, Benthic Druid gains you 1 life and draws a card whenever a land enters under your control, and Seafloor Oracle draws a card whenever a Merfolk deals combat damage to a player.

The deck wins by overwhelming the board and finishing in the air or through blockers. Mist Dancer gives your other Merfolk +1/+0 and flying, Prime Speaker Zegana and Tishana, Voice of Thunder refill your hand, and Aetherize stops an alpha strike by returning all attacking creatures to their owners' hands. Wave Goodbye returns each creature without a +1/+1 counter to its owner's hand, which mostly hits your opponents once your own team has grown, and Curse of the Swine exiles X creatures and leaves 2/2 Boars behind.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths: Hakbal's trigger gives the whole team a counter or a land every turn, so the deck grows steadily without any big spells. It also has lots of card draw and several ways to protect the board, such as Kopala, Warden of Waves, Svyelun of Sea and Sky, Singer of Swift Rivers and Inspiring Call.

Weaknesses: Many Merfolk are small, so a board wipe or a few well-timed blockers can slow the deck down. Explore only helps if cards are revealed, so lots of land cards on top of the library can mean fewer counters, and the deck relies on Hakbal and the lords for much of its power, so removal on those cards hurts.

Want to improve it? See the Explorers of the Deep upgrade guide: seven swaps with the data behind each one.

Verdict
Explorers of the Deep is a friendly, straightforward tribal deck with a reliable engine in Hakbal and a deep pool of Merfolk to support him. It is a good choice for players who like growing a board of small creatures and drawing plenty of cards along the way.

Want to see what a fully optimised Hakbal of the Surging Soul build looks like? Try the Oracle.

✦ Build with The Oracle

Frequently Asked Questions

What cards are in the Explorers of the Deep decklist?
The Explorers of the Deep precon is a 100-card Commander deck led by Hakbal of the Surging Soul. The full Explorers of the Deep decklist, with every card, current prices and a button to copy the list into your deck builder, is on this page.

When was Explorers of the Deep released?
Explorers of the Deep was released on November 17, 2023 as part of Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander.

Who is the commander of Explorers of the Deep?
Explorers of the Deep is led by Hakbal of the Surging Soul, a Simic (U/G) legendary creature.

How many creatures are in Explorers of the Deep?
The 99 cards besides Hakbal of the Surging Soul include 37 creatures.

How many lands does Explorers of the Deep have?
Explorers of the Deep has 36 lands in the 99 cards besides Hakbal of the Surging Soul, including basic lands.

Full Decklist

All 100 cards from the out-of-the-box Explorers of the Deep precon, with current prices. Click any card to expand it.

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