Explorers of the Deep budget replacements

Hakbal of the Surging Soul · 100 cards including the commander · 36 lands · colors G, U

Merfolk, explore, and growing a board. Compare expensive slots with lower-cost options that preserve the important function. A slower or conditional replacement can be a poor bargain even when its price is lower.

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What to preserve

Hakbal's beginning-of-combat trigger explores with each Merfolk. Replacing Merfolk with generic creatures can reduce both card selection and board growth even if role totals look better.

A useful first review

Find an expensive supported slot, compare the rules text and restrictions, then export the whole cheaper deck. No safe saving is an honest result.

Load the list and check the commander and 100-card count.
Set your purchase budget and intended table. Add owned options and protect the engines you intend to keep.
Review the actual card text before accepting a change. Save the baseline and edited list as separate project versions.
Export the full deck, play it, and attach an observation and next-review date to the tested version.

What to record after playing

Record the number of Merfolk exploring each combat, missed land drops, and whether the board recovered after removal.

The stock list

Read the complete 100-card list

1 Hakbal of the Surging Soul
1 Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood
1 Mist Dancer
1 Ripples of Potential
1 Wave Goodbye
1 Bygone Marvels
1 Deeproot Historian
1 Topography Tracker
1 Tributary Instructor
1 Singer of Swift Rivers
1 Benthic Biomancer
1 Commit // Memory
1 Coralhelm Commander
1 Curse of the Swine
1 Emperor Mihail II
1 Herald of Secret Streams
1 Kindred Discovery
1 Kopala, Warden of Waves
1 Master of the Pearl Trident
1 Merfolk Sovereign
1 Reflections of Littjara
1 Seafloor Oracle
1 Surgespanner
1 Svyelun of Sea and Sky
1 Thassa, God of the Sea
1 Thieving Skydiver
1 Branching Evolution
1 Deeproot Elite
1 Hardened Scales
1 Realmwalker
1 Ruinous Intrusion
1 Cold-Eyed Selkie
1 Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
1 Prime Speaker Zegana
1 Quandrix Command
1 Simic Ascendancy
1 Tishana, Voice of Thunder
1 Vorel of the Hull Clade
1 Zegana, Utopian Speaker
1 Metallic Mimic
1 Alchemist's Refuge
1 Hinterland Harbor
1 Karn's Bastion
1 Mosswort Bridge
1 Temple of Mystery
1 Vineglimmer Snarl
1 Merfolk Cave-Diver
1 Aetherize
1 Deeproot Waters
1 Merrow Reejerey
1 Rapid Hybridization
1 Ravenform
1 Sage of Fables
1 Stonybrook Banneret
1 Beast Within
1 Nicanzil, Current Conductor
1 Evolution Sage
1 Explore
1 Inspiring Call
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Growth Spiral
1 Kiora's Follower
1 Merfolk Mistbinder
1 Merfolk Skydiver
1 Tatyova, Benthic Druid
1 Arcane Signet
1 Commander's Sphere
1 Simic Signet
1 Sol Ring
1 Swiftfoot Boots
1 Command Tower
1 Llanowar Reborn
1 Myriad Landscape
1 Path of Ancestry
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Rogue's Passage
1 Secluded Courtyard
1 Simic Growth Chamber
1 Temple of the False God
1 Unclaimed Territory
7 Forest
13 Island

Stock list released 2023-11-17; reference data checked October 7, 2026. Prices, legality, and available candidates can change. A stock list is a starting point, not a bracket certification or a promise of better game results.

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