Explorers of the Deep MTG Precon Upgrade Guide: Hakbal Merfolk Explore, Upgraded

Hakbal’s “everyone explores” trigger is one of those Commander designs that feels fair for about twelve seconds. Then you untap, go to combat, and suddenly your Merfolk are doing cardio, your library is getting filtered, and your opponents are asking what “explore” means for the third time this game.

Let’s tune Explorers of the Deep into a deck that still feels like Merfolk, just with fewer “why is this here?” cards and more “oh, that’s nasty” turns.

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TLDR

• Lean harder into Explore: doubling triggers and stacking explores is your whole deal, so maximize it (Roaming Throne is the headline, but not the only way).
• Turn tapping into tokens: Deeproot Waters plus Deeproot Pilgrimage makes your board snowball without trying.
• Cut the “fine” Merfolk and the side-quest proliferate package: you already grow your team constantly.
• Upgrade interaction: add cheap counters and at least one “reset button” that doesn’t bounce your own fish.
• Close games on purpose: unblockable counters (Herald of Secret Streams) is already great, but add one clean finisher if your pods stall.

If you want more general upgrade philosophy before we get fishy: check out MTGEDH.com’s How to Build a Commander Deck (MTG) and our explainer on Modal Spells in MTG (because Quandrix Command is doing a lot of work here).

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What This Precon Is Actually Trying to Do

Explorers of the Deep is a Simic Merfolk deck where your commander, Hakbal of the Surging Soul, turns your combat step into a value factory.

The plan

1. Play cheap Merfolk and a couple of lords.
2. Go to combat. Hakbal makes each Merfolk explore.
3. Lands go to hand, nonlands become +1/+1 counters (and you choose whether to keep or bin the card).
4. Attack with a now-enormous school of fish, then use Hakbal’s attack trigger to drop extra lands or draw.
5. Eventually, your team is either huge, unblockable, or both.

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Quick Rules Note: Explore Sequencing Matters a Lot

When multiple creatures are instructed to explore “at the same time” (hello, Hakbal), the explores get handled one at a time, and you choose the order for your creatures. Practically, this means you can:

• explore with a smaller Merfolk first to see what’s on top,
• decide to keep a nonland on top so multiple Merfolk reveal it and all get counters,
• or bin it to dig for lands/spells.

This is why Hakbal feels “cracked” when you get reps with it. You are not just revealing cards. You are sculpting your next turn while your board gets swole.

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What the Precon Does Well

(Do Not “Upgrade” These Out by Accident)

This deck is already unusually coherent for a precon. A few highlights worth protecting:

• Counter multipliers: Hardened Scales and Branching Evolution are real upgrades already in the box.
• Typal draw/duplication: Kindred Discovery and Reflections of Littjara are premium Merfolk engines.
• Merfolk density: you have enough bodies that Hakbal’s explore trigger routinely hits 4+ times per combat.
• Natural finishers: Herald of Secret Streams turns “pile of counters” into “player removal.”

So our upgrades should not reinvent the wheel. We’re polishing the wheel, adding better tires, and maybe a very small turbo.

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What’s Holding It Back

(Fix These First)

1) Too many low-impact Merfolk

Some creatures are fine in a normal Merfolk deck, but in Hakbal they are competing with “cards that multiply explores” and “cards that produce more Merfolk for free.” “Fine” is how you end up with a board full of 2/2s while your hand is full of lands you cannot deploy fast enough.

2) Proliferate is a side quest you don’t need

Explore already gives counters. A dedicated proliferate package often just adds cards that are only great when you’re already winning.

3) Interaction is lighter than your opponents’ nonsense

Precons always do this. You get a couple of reactive spells, but not enough cheap, clean answers to stop the table’s actual win attempts.

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Upgrade Package 1: Make Explore Disgusting (In the Best Way)

Roaming Throne (the “oh no” button)

If you add Roaming Throne and name Merfolk, Hakbal’s beginning-of-combat trigger happens an additional time. That means your whole board explores twice every combat, which gets out of hand quickly.

Why it rules here: you are multiplying the commander’s text, not just adding another “good Merfolk.”

Deeproot Pilgrimage + Deeproot Waters (token engines that feel illegal)

Deeproot Waters (already in the precon) gives you a 1/1 hexproof Merfolk token whenever you cast a Merfolk spell.

Deeproot Pilgrimage gives you a 1/1 hexproof Merfolk token whenever one or more nontoken Merfolk you control become tapped.

So attacking, using tap abilities, or even just operating your board turns into more bodies, which turn into more explores, which turn into more counters. It’s the circle of life, but wet.

Merrow Commerce (lets you tap without losing blockers)

Merrow Commerce untaps all Merfolk you control at your end step. That makes:

• tapping for value far safer,
• attacking far less committal,
• and Deeproot Pilgrimage even better because you can tap, untap, then still block.

Other strong “typal glue” adds

• Herald’s Horn: cost reduction plus a steady drip of extra Merfolk.
• Vanquisher’s Banner: anthem plus card draw on cast.
• Titan of Littjara: chooses Merfolk and can loot-draw big when it enters or attacks.
• Forerunner of the Heralds: tutors a Merfolk to the top (which is secretly great when you’re exploring a bunch).
• Deepfathom Echo: explores at combat, then copies your best creature until end of turn. It plays way better than it looks.

If you’re staying more casual or budget: you can skip Roaming Throne and Vanquisher’s Banner and still get a big power jump from Deeproot Pilgrimage, Merrow Commerce, and a few better interaction spells.

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Upgrade Package 2: Turn “Lands in Hand” Into Actual Mana

Hakbal will put a lot of lands into your hand. That’s only helpful if you can deploy them.

Extra land-drop effects

• Burgeoning is absurd when you’re drawing lands off explore.
• Growing Rites of Itlimoc flips easily in this deck and becomes a “Gaea’s Cradle at home” situation.

If your pod hates those effects (fair), lean on cheaper, slower options like additional 2-mana ramp spells instead.

Mana base quick hits (optional, but noticeable)

Even without going full “fetches and shocks,” two easy improvements usually help:

• Cut Temple of the False God (it fails early too often).
• Upgrade a couple of slow lands into faster duals in your budget range.

You don’t need to overthink this. Hakbal wants to come down on time, then you want to keep mana up for interaction while still adding Merfolk.

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Upgrade Package 3: Interaction and Protection That Keeps You in the Game

Cheap counters (you want at least a few)

• Counterspell: boring, perfect.
• Swan Song: trades up on mana constantly.

One-sided “oops, all tempo” reset

Raise the Palisade is secretly one of the cleanest ways to end creature boards in typal decks. Name Merfolk, bounce almost everything else, then swing.

Protect your board without doing math

You already have tools like Inspiring Call in the precon. Add one or two more protection effects if your pods are wipe-happy, but don’t flood on them. Hakbal rebuilds well because your engine lives in the command zone.

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Wincons and Finishers

(How You Actually Close)

You have a few natural paths:

Unblockable counters

Herald of Secret Streams is the cleanest “I guess we’re done here” card in the deck.

Overwhelm with a wide board

Token engines plus lords plus counters ends games fast, especially after a one-sided bounce like Raise the Palisade.

One clean pump finisher (optional)

If your games stall, add one card whose job is “end the game this turn.” You don’t need five. You need one.

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Final Upgrade Table (17 swaps)

Here’s a tight, cohesive 17-swap upgrade that keeps the deck Merfolk-typal and Explore-forward.

Cut	Add	Why
Simic Ascendancy	Roaming Throne	Throne multiplies Hakbal’s best text; Ascendancy is slow and win-more here
Ripples of Potential	Swan Song	You want cheaper, cleaner interaction than situational phase-out lines
Bygone Marvels	Counterspell	More relevant in more games than slow recursion
Evolution Sage	Raise the Palisade	Proliferate is optional; a one-sided bounce “wipe” is game-swinging
Merfolk Skydiver	Deeproot Pilgrimage	Token engine that scales with your normal gameplay
Thassa, God of the Sea	Merrow Commerce	Keep it typal and enable tap/attack patterns safely
Sage of Fables	Herald’s Horn	Horn supports the whole deck and smooths draws
Metallic Mimic	Vanquisher’s Banner	Banner provides anthem plus real card advantage
Coralhelm Commander	Titan of Littjara	Titan can draw big and stays relevant late
Benthic Biomancer	Forerunner of the Heralds	Forerunner finds your best Merfolk and stacks your topdeck for explores
Surgespanner	Deepfathom Echo	Echo is cheaper value that plays perfectly with combat explores
Tributary Instructor	Jadelight Ranger	Ranger explores twice on ETB and fits your core mechanic cleanly
Merfolk Sovereign	Thada Adel, Acquisitor	Steals key artifacts out of libraries and pressures combo players
Kiora’s Follower	Court of Garenbrig	Court adds counters and can double your whole team’s counters if you keep monarch
(one slower land of choice)	Growing Rites of Itlimoc	You go wide easily, so this becomes serious mana
(one slower land of choice)	Burgeoning	Turns “lands in hand” into actual acceleration
(flex cut: your least-loved Merfolk)	(flex add: your favorite cheap interaction spell)	Tune for your pod, not mine

A quick Rule 0 script if you’re upgrading power:
“Hey, this is an upgraded Hakbal precon. Still wins through combat, but it has stronger engines and a few cheap counters. No infinites unless we talk about it first.”

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FAQs

Do I have to attack with Hakbal to get the explore triggers?

No. The explore trigger happens at the beginning of combat on your turn. Attacking matters for Hakbal’s second ability (land drop or draw).

If I keep a nonland card on top, can multiple Merfolk explore it and all get counters?

Yes. Each explore is processed separately. If you leave the card on top, the next explore will reveal the same card.

Is Roaming Throne “too strong” for casual tables?

Sometimes, yes. It’s a multiplier for your commander, which can turn the deck from “strong precon” into “this escalated quickly.” If your pod likes precon-level games, skip it and focus on smoother interaction and token engines instead.

Should I keep the proliferate cards if my group plays lots of board wipes?

If wipes are common, prioritize protection and rebuild tools first. Proliferate is nice, but it’s not what keeps you alive. Cheap interaction and a fast rebuild do more work.

Can Hakbal be cEDH?

Hakbal is very strong for high-power casual and “optimized battlecruiser,” but it’s generally slower than the fastest cEDH plans because it wants board presence and a combat step. You can build it mean, but it’s not the typical top-table speed profile.

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Wrap Up

Explorers of the Deep already has a real identity: go wide, explore a ton, grow your team, and bury the table under value. The best upgrades don’t change that. They just make it happen faster and more consistently, with enough interaction to stop the table from goldfishing you.

If you remember one thing: upgrade the multipliers (Explore and tokens) and the cheap interaction, then cut anything that is merely “fine.” Hakbal will handle the rest.