In Commander, Counters remains one of the most popular archetypes out there. This isn’t surprising, considering there’s something super enjoyable about continuously buffing your creatures and watching them overwhelm the opposition. Plus, there always seems to be more and more +1/+1 counter support printed every year.
Even still, many exciting Counters build-arounds, like Vorel of the Hull Clade, remain quite underrated. With so many powerful synergies and infinite combos available, this Merfolk legend is more than capable of leading the charge.
MTG Vorel of the Hull Clade
Unsurprisingly, the simplest way to take advantage of Vorel’s counter-doubling ability is with other creatures that can accrue lots of +1/+1 counters. Big Trampling monsters like Managorger Hydra and Kalonian Hydra, for example, threaten to attack for lethal in short order alongside Vorel. Alternatively, doubling the number of +1/+1 counters on payoffs like Fathom Mage and Kami of Whispered Hopes should also put you in a great position. While already strong, this can be sped up significantly using untap effects like Kiora’s Follower.
Notably, while these synergies are quite powerful, what truly makes Vorel special is its ability to double any kind of counter. This includes time counters on Dreamtide Whale and Flesh Duplicate as well as -1/-1 counters on opposing creatures.
Vorel also has the upside of doubling counters on your artifacts and lands. Whether you’re increasing the number of counters on Eternity Vessel or Evendo, Waking Haven, Vorel is pulling its weight. If your opponents aren’t careful, they even risk losing to Darksteel Reactor in swift fashion.
Numerous Combos
Beyond Vorel’s potential to enable alternate win conditions, it can also enable a fair few infinite combos. Alongside Magistrate’s Scepter, for instance, you can easily get infinite turns, so long as you get three charge counters on it first. Since you can double the Charge Counters to six, you’ll be able to take a new turn every turn, to make winning trivial.
In addition to the infinite turns combo, Vorel can help generate infinite mana alongside Crystalline Crawler and Freed from the Real. Each time you double the number of counters on Crystalline Crawler, you can then remove four of them to untap Vorel via Freed from the Real and reactivate it. This loop will eventually net you infinite mana. With Gemstone Array and Pemmin’s Aura also able to generate infinite mana, this combo has a compelling amount of redundancy.
As if all that wasn’t enough, you can even generate infinite tokens using Intruder Alarm, Sporesower Thallid, and some mana dorks. By doubling the number of spore counters on Sporesower Thallid from three to six, you can then remove three counters to make a 1/1 token. This will trigger Intruder Alarm, untapping your mana dorks and Vorel to let you execute the same steps again and again.
Cheap and Effective
As powerful and efficient as Vorel is, however, the legendary Merfolk remains an underrated Commander option. Accounting for less than 1,800 decks according to EDHREC, Vorel is significantly more impactful than it’s given credit for.
If its elite build-around potential wasn’t enough of a reason to pick up a copy, Vorel’s budget-friendly price tag only heightens its appeal. Following its most recent reprint in the Explorers of the Deep Commander precon, Vorel is available to purchase for under $0.30. If Counters-style EDH decks are your thing and you want a fun Commander to hold the reins, Vorel could be right up your alley.
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