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Explorers of the Deep
Merfolk
{U} {G}
The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander Precon

Explorers of the Deep Decklist

Commander: Hakbal of the Surging Soul

Explorers of the Deep is the blue-green Commander precon from Magic: The Gathering's The Lost Caverns of Ixalan set, a 100-card deck led by Hakbal of the Surging Soul. The full Explorers of the Deep decklist is below, grouped by card type. It was released November 17, 2023.

Merfolk explore and lands. Chain explore triggers to grow the board and dig for lands, with Hakbal exploring your whole Merfolk team each combat.

Every card below links to how it actually performs in Commander games, and you can playtest the full deck free in your browser, no account needed.

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Commanders
Hakbal of the Surging Soul

Explorers of the Deep decklist by card type

100 cards Updated July 19, 2026

Creatures 38

Lands 36

Instants 9

Sorceries 6

Enchantments 6

Artifacts 5

Game Changers

This precon runs no Game Changers, which keeps a stock build at Bracket 2. See the MTG Game Changers list .

Community upgrades

What players actually cut and add

Based on 100 tracked community upgrades of Explorers of the Deep, updated July 19, 2026. These are the cards upgraders swap out and in most often, ranked by how frequently each one appears.

Cut and add frequencies are drawn from tracked community decklists built on this precon. They show what players commonly change, not how those changes affect win rate.

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Playing Explorers of the Deep in paper?

Playgroup is a free life counter for in-person Commander. Track life, commander damage and turns at the table, then see this deck's win rate, average game length and Elo build up over time.

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How does this precon rank?

See where Explorers of the Deep sits in the Commander precon tier list, ranked by real win rate across tracked games played with the stock decklist.

View precon tier list

Sources: Official decklist (Wizards of the Coast) · Scryfall · Archidekt

Explorers of the Deep FAQ

What's in the Explorers of the Deep precon decklist?
Explorers of the Deep is a Commander precon from The Lost Caverns of Ixalan led by Hakbal of the Surging Soul. Merfolk explore and lands. Chain explore triggers to grow the board and dig for lands, with Hakbal exploring your whole Merfolk team each combat. The full decklist is on this page, with every card linking to its stats.
Who are the commanders of Explorers of the Deep?
Explorers of the Deep is led by Hakbal of the Surging Soul.
Can I playtest Explorers of the Deep for free?
Yes. Use the Playtest button to import the decklist and start a free solo game on Playgroup, or load it straight into a live multiplayer game.
When did The Lost Caverns of Ixalan release?
The Lost Caverns of Ixalan was released on November 17, 2023.
What do players usually cut from Explorers of the Deep?
The cards community upgrades most often cut from Explorers of the Deep are Commit // Memory (83%), Coralhelm Commander (67%), Commander's Sphere (66%), Xolatoyac, the Smiling Flood (58%), and Sage of Fables (55%). These are how frequently upgraded decklists drop each card, not a measure of win rate.
What do players add to Explorers of the Deep?
The cards most often added to Explorers of the Deep are Deeproot Pilgrimage (58%), Vodalian Hexcatcher (44%), Lord of Atlantis (41%), Counterspell (39%), and Tishana's Tidebinder (31%). The percentages show how often upgraders include each card, not how it affects win rate.