Merfolk is an incredibly beloved creature type within the MTG community. Even if the archetype isn’t a super strong choice in Constructed, we can always count on devoted players like Nikachu to sleeve up Merfolk in any format they can find.
Unfortunately, though, Merfolk hasn’t been putting up the best results lately. In Modern, the Merfolk deck can struggle against the blazing fast starts of Boros Energy. In Pioneer, the lack of Aether Vial or a bountiful selection of “Lord” effects definitely weakens the strategy.
However, this didn’t stop Pioneer aficionado Claudioh from splitting the finals of a Magic Online Pioneer Challenge with a unique take on Merfolk. Beyond the traditional Merfolk synergies available in Pioneer, this deck abuses a cool combo, allowing you to flood the board with infinite Merfolk tokens! If that doesn’t sound awesome, I don’t know what does.
Typical Merfolk Package
- Mana Value: 1U
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 1/1
- Card Type: Creature- Merfolk Wizard
- MTG Sets: Dominaria United
- Card Text: Flash. Other Merfolk you control get +1/+1. Sacrifice a Merfolk. Counter target noncreature spell unless its controller pays 1.
Before we get to the intriguing combo available in this deck, we should first discuss the usual Merfolk package. This deck is not reliant on executing the combo in order to win all of its games. Many games will be won by simply beating down and disrupting the opponent.
In the one-drop slot, Cenote Scout and Kumena’s Speaker serve as efficient threats. These creatures aren’t outrageously powerful, but they drastically improve your win rate if you can play one on turn one. First of all, you get to start attacking early. If you can play Vodalian Hexcatcher on turn two, your opponent will end up on the backfoot in no time.
Secondly, these one-drops make a lot of your follow-ups much stronger. In the case of Vodalian Hexcatcher, they serve as sacrifice fodder to counter a non-creature spell when necessary. Assuming you have a reasonable attack, playing Deeproot Pilgrimage on turn two can help you start building out a board of Merfolk tokens right away.
Add Smuggler’s Copter into the mix, and you’ll quickly generate a lot of pressure. Every turn, you can use your creatures to Crew Smuggler’s Copter one by one, netting you a token from Deeproot Pilgrimage for each instance.
The same principal applies with Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca. You can tap your creatures one at a time via Kumena’s first ability and build out an army of Merfolk. Kumena gets stronger the bigger your board is, eventually letting you run away with the game by drawing cards and buffing your team at will.
An Infinite Combo Addition
- Mana Value: GU
- Rarity: Uncommon
- Stats: 2/2
- Card Type: Creature- Merfolk
- MTG Sets: Born of the Gods, The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander
- Card Text: Tap: Untap another target permanent.
Deeproot Pilgrimage is clearly an integral piece of the puzzle. In many games, just generating a few tokens will be enough to help you cross the finish line. If you’re lucky, though, you may be able to produce infinite tokens thanks to the powerful enchantment.
One combo line is rather simple. You just need two copies of Kiora’s Follower. With two of them in play, what you can do is tap one to untap the other, creating a token from Deeproot Pilgrimage. From there, you use the untapped copy to target the tapped copy and repeat this chain over and over.
This combo has existed for a while now, but it has suffered from a couple issues. You need both copies of Kiora’s Follower to live long enough to not have Summoning Sickness, which is a big ask. Kiora’s Follower isn’t a particularly strong card on its own, which doesn’t exactly help the cause, either.
All that being said, two noteworthy inclusions in this decklist completely change the game, making it much more likely you’ll be able to combo. First and foremost, we have Agatha’s Soul Cauldron. If you can get a copy of Kiora’s Follower into your graveyard and exile it with Agatha’s Soul Cauldron, creating infinite tokens becomes a much easier feat.
From there, you need to put a +1/+1 counter on any two nontoken creatures you control. These creatures now gain Kiora’s Follower’s ability, enabling you to follow the same steps listed above. This line of play is much cleaner, since you only need to find one copy of Kiora’s Follower. Simultaneously, all of your creatures become quite scary with Agatha’s Soul Cauldron looming.
This brings us to the second card that makes it easier to execute the combo: Kiora, the Rising Tide. Kiora’s recent printing makes the Agatha’s Soul Cauldron plan much more reliable.
In conjunction with Smuggler’s Copter, you now have two four-ofs that can each put Kiora’s Follower into the graveyard with no hassle. Having access to a strong, low-cost Merfolk discard outlet makes this deck significantly more consistent.
An Intriguing Position
- Mana Value: 2U
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 3/2
- Card Type: Legendary Creature- Merfolk Noble
- MTG Sets: MTG Foundations
- Card Text: When Kiora enters, draw two cards, then discard two cards. Threshold– Whenever Kiora attacks, if there are seven or more cards in your graveyard, you may create Scion of the Deep, a legendary 8/8 blue Octopus creature token.
This deck’s dominant showing in a recent Pioneer Challenge is quite intriguing. Merfolk hasn’t been in the best position in Pioneer metagame in recent months, but it’s possible the new innovations to the deck have helped solve some of its problems.
One major issue Pioneer Merfolk has comes from its lack of removal. A fast start from red Prowess involving Monstrous Rage can be a bit tough to overcome, as can a quick draw from mono-green Devotion (which the pilot notably lost to in the Swiss rounds).
While the introduction of the Kiora+Cauldron portion of the deck isn’t super helpful there, what these cards do improve is your attrition matchups. Cauldron makes all of puny creatures into major threats. Kiora lets you rummage away excess lands and dig for your most impactful cards, like Deeproot Pilgrimage.
The pilot managed to beat Rakdos Demons in both the quarterfinals and semifinals of the Challenge, something that old Merfolk lists may have struggled more with. It’ll be interesting to see if more players start to pick up Merfolk after this impressive performance. The deck definitely has some appeal, and being able to create infinite Merfolk tokens is an absolute blast.
