Hakbal by Snfeset

Format: Commander

Commander: Hakbal of the Surging Soul

Bracket: 3

Deck overview

This is a Simic Merfolk tribal deck helmed by Hakbal of the Surging Soul, built around the explore mechanic as its primary engine. Every Merfolk explores at the start of combat, generating card advantage, land drops, and +1/+1 counters simultaneously, while Hakbal's attack trigger accelerates lands or draws. The deck layers three win paths: unblockable combat damage via Herald of Secret Streams and islandwalk lords, the Simic Ascendancy counter win, and a Wanderwine Prophets infinite-turns loop. Counter synergies (Hardened Scales, Branching Evolution, Ozolith, the Shattered Spire, Vorel of the Hull Clade) supercharge the explore payoff, while token generation (Deeproot Waters, Deeproot Pilgrimage, Emperor Mihail II) widens the board. It plays as a midrange value engine that out-cards opponents before closing through evasion.

Decklist (100 cards)

  • 1 Aetherize
  • 1 Alchemist's Refuge
  • 1 Arcane Signet
  • 1 Avengers Monitoring Station
  • 1 Benthic Biomancer
  • 1 Bident of Thassa
  • 1 Botanical Sanctum
  • 1 Branching Evolution
  • 1 Bred for the Hunt
  • 1 Cold-Eyed Selkie
  • 1 Command Tower
  • 1 Counterspell
  • 1 Deepfathom Echo
  • 1 Deeproot Elite
  • 1 Deeproot Pilgrimage
  • 1 Deeproot Waters
  • 1 Dreamroot Cascade
  • 1 Emperor Mihail II
  • 1 Exotic Orchard
  • 1 Explore
  • 1 Flooded Grove
  • 1 Forensic Researcher
  • 10 Forest
  • 1 Growth Spiral
  • 1 Hakbal of the Surging Soul
  • 1 Hardened Scales
  • 1 Herald of Secret Streams
  • 1 Hinterland Harbor
  • 1 Inspiring Call
  • 1 Intruder Alarm
  • 10 Island
  • 1 Karn's Bastion
  • 1 Kindred Discovery
  • 1 Kiora's Follower
  • 1 Kodama's Reach
  • 1 Kopala, Warden of Waves
  • 1 Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
  • 1 Lightning Greaves
  • 1 Lord of Atlantis
  • 1 Lullmage Mentor
  • 1 Master of the Pearl Trident
  • 1 Maze of Ith
  • 1 Merfolk Mistbinder
  • 1 Merrow Reejerey
  • 1 Metallic Mimic
  • 1 Mosswort Bridge
  • 1 Mutational Advantage
  • 1 Nature's Claim
  • 1 Negate
  • 1 Nicanzil, Current Conductor
  • 1 Over the Edge
  • 1 Ozolith, the Shattered Spire
  • 1 Path of Ancestry
  • 1 Quandrix Command
  • 1 Rampant Growth
  • 1 Rapid Hybridization
  • 1 Realmwalker
  • 1 Reliquary Tower
  • 1 Repulsive Mutation
  • 1 Ripples of Potential
  • 1 Rogue's Passage
  • 1 Scavenger Grounds
  • 1 Seahunter
  • 1 Secluded Courtyard
  • 1 Simic Ascendancy
  • 1 Simic Signet
  • 1 Singer of Swift Rivers
  • 1 Sol Ring
  • 1 Stonybrook Banneret
  • 1 Swiftfoot Boots
  • 1 Talisman of Curiosity
  • 1 Thieving Skydiver
  • 1 Thought Vessel
  • 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
  • 1 Unclaimed Territory
  • 1 Vineglimmer Snarl
  • 1 Vodalian Hexcatcher
  • 1 Vorel of the Hull Clade
  • 1 Wanderwine Prophets
  • 1 Wave Goodbye
  • 1 Willowrush Verge
  • 1 Zegana, Utopian Speaker