Almost every Magic: The Gathering player has their pet Creature Type. The heaviest hitters are the Types that have been around since the game's inception. Goblins, Elves, Merfolk, Zombies, Slivers: these are the Creatures that were valued in 2006 and are still supported 20 years later.

If you're looking to build Merfolk, you're not alone. Merfolk has a long legacy and a passionate fanbase. Because of this, it's no surprise that Merfolk features more than 300 card options, many of which are quite strong in tournament Magic.

Merfolk are part aggro, part control, and I find that overlap very appealing. If I were to build mono-Blue Merfolk, I'd go for Namor the Sub-Mariner, but the lure of Green is hard to resist.

There's comfort in having a full grip of cards and more Lands out than anyone else at the table, and Hakbal of the Surging Soul is the easiest way to hit those targets while exploiting Merfolk.

Building a Merfolk Deck

Here's what I decided to go with for this Merfolk deck:

Winning With the Fishes | Commander | Robert Bockman

• Commander (1)
• 1 Hakbal of the Surging Soul

• Creatures (40)
• 1 Attuma, Atlantean Warlord
• 1 Cold-Eyed Selkie
• 1 Coralhelm Commander
• 1 Deepfathom Echo
• 1 Deeproot Elite
• 1 Emperor Mihail II
• 1 Forerunner of the Heralds
• 1 Herald of Secret Streams
• 1 Jadelight Ranger
• 1 Jadelight Spelunker
• 1 Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
• 1 Master of the Pearl Trident
• 1 Merfolk Mistbinder
• 1 Merfolk Sovereign
• 1 Merrow Harbinger
• 1 Merrow Reejerey
• 1 Mindspring Merfolk
• 1 Mist Dancer
• 1 Namor, Scourge of the Seas
• 1 Namor the Sub-Mariner
• 1 Nicanzil, Current Conductor
• 1 Oracle of Mul Daya
• 1 Realmwalker
• 1 Riverwise Augur
• 1 Roaming Throne
• 1 Sentinel of the Nameless City
• 1 Singer of Swift Rivers
• 1 Summon: Leviathan
• 1 Svyelun of Sea and Sky
• 1 Tatyova, Benthic Druid
• 1 Thassa, God of the Sea
• 1 Thieving Skydiver
• 1 Tishana's Tidebinder
• 1 Topography Tracker
• 1 Tributary Instructor
• 1 True-Name Nemesis
• 1 Wake Thrasher
• 1 Wildgrowth Walker
• 1 Vodalian Hexcatcher
• 1 Zegana, Utopian Speaker

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Oko, Lorwyn Liege

• Instants (2)
• 1 Brainstorm
• 1 For the Ancestors

• Sorceries (1)
• 1 Raise the Palisade

• Enchantments (9)
• 1 Case of the Locked Hothouse
• 1 Deeproot Waters
• 1 Hardened Scales
• 1 Kindred Discovery
• 1 Path of Discovery
• 1 Soothsaying
• 1 Steely Resolve
• 1 Sylvan Library
• 1 Twists and Turns

• Artifacts (8)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Chronicle of Victory
• 1 Door of Destinies
• 1 Gathering Stone
• 1 Herald's Horn
• 1 Patchwork Banner
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Vanquisher's Banner

• Lands (38)
• 9 Forest
• 10 Island
• 1 Breeding Pool
• 1 Cavern of Souls
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Dreamroot Cascade
• 1 Eclipsed Realms
• 1 Hedge Maze
• 1 Hinterland Harbor
• 1 Misty Rainforest
• 1 Mutavault
• 1 Mystic Sanctuary
• 1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 1 Prismatic Vista
• 1 Rivendell
• 1 Rejuvenating Springs
• 1 Secluded Courtyard
• 1 Three Tree City
• 1 Unclaimed Territory
• 1 Yavimaya Coast

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Card Interactions

This deck's strategy is simple: play out Merfolk, then make them huge by Exploring with Hakbal or by boosting them with Merfolk lords.

We're running a couple of non-Game-Changer tutors like Forerunner of the Heralds that help ensure we draw the Merfolk we need to boost our school, even if we're not running Seahunter.

The Merfolk lords, including Merfolk Sovereign, Attuma, Atlantean Warlord, and Coralhelm Commander, give you both power and evasion, making sure that your large Merfolk hit your opponents hard.

Prioritize boosting Cold-Eyed Selkie or True-Name Nemesis, as they're going to be unblockable against someone at the table.

Sylvan Library lets you sculpt the top of your deck or refill your hand in a pinch, and it's excellent with Hakbal out. I've cut it from a few of my Green-based decks, but it's too perfect for Hakbal, as is Soothsaying.

There's contention brewing in the Commander community about Roaming Throne.

I get it, automatic cards can be boring. Feel free to replace it with Coat of Arms if you don't want to run Throne and would rather have 55/55 Merfolk tokens instead of an absurd number of Explore triggers.

The other classics of the Typal genre -- Chronicle of Victory, Herald's Horn, Door of Destinies, Kindred Discovery, etc. -- shouldn't require much explanation, and the top-of-library manipulation spells make sure you get exactly what you need at any given time.

This deck is relatively simple to play, but Exploring multiple times per turn can lead to some challenging decisions, which I find satisfying. If you want to play an aggressive deck that requires some thought to sequence, Hakbal is a great pick.

What Didn't Make the Cut

Much as I loved Seafloor Oracle in Ixalan Limited, it's too win-more in Commander; if you're able to afford a four-mana 2/3 and are hitting an opponent with your Merfolk, you should already be able to win the game.

Building a Typal deck is more complex than typing "card type: Merfolk" into your card engine of choice and slipping the resulting hits into sleeves. Something like Stonybrook Banneret looks appealing, but in most Merfolk decks, it's a fragile mana rock.

You'll rarely cast multiple Merfolk in a turn, and I'd rather have an Arcane Signet, Coldsteel Heart, or Sapphire Medallion out than a 1/1.

Similarly, Kopala, Warden of Waves tend to find their way into Merfolk decks to protect your school, but I've always found it to be a low-impact card. Steely Resolve is a less fragile way of achieving the same effect.

Lastly, I left out a classic Merfolk combo of Wake Thrasher plus Basalt Monolith or Kiora's Follower. This is a weak combo, but a combo nonetheless, and I like my Typal decks to stick to Bracket 2.

If you have different preferences, you may wish to include it. I did keep Wake Thrasher in without the other combo cards, as it's a generically good Merfolk option.

Conclusion

It's doubtful that The Hobbit will give us any Merfolk, although I have extremely high (or deep, as the case may be) hopes for Merfolk that Nauctis: The Sunken Realm may bring. That said, Orcrist, Goblin-cleaver is exceptional in any Typal deck, so that should be a top priority.

The beauty of a Merfolk deck is that -- aside from an awkward period from 2001 to 2006 -- WotC won't stop printing Merfolk, and so you'll consistently get new cards. This year has been especially kind to those with an affinity for fish, and next year already looks promising, so now's an excellent time to cast your nets and cast some spells.