Arctic Merfolk
Creature — Merfolk
Kicker—Return a creature you control to its owner's hand. (You may return a creature you control to its owner's hand in addition to any other costs as you cast this spell.)
If this creature was kicked, it enters with a +1/+1 counter on it.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Planeshift
- Price
- $0.13
- EDHREC rank
- #24823
Arctic Merfolk bounces a creature you control back to hand when it enters — a 2/2 for two mana that pays for itself only if you need that effect. Outside of dedicated blink or bounce-matters strategies, it's a below-rate body doing a job cheaper cards handle better.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Arctic Merfolk is legal in Commander, Legacy, Vintage, Pauper, and Oathbreaker, but only Pauper and Commander give it any real context. In Commander, it slots narrowly into Merfolk tribal lists or decks that want repeated enter-the-battlefield triggers — think Roon of the Hidden Realm or Inalla, Archmage Ritualist — where bouncing your own creatures is a feature, not a cost. In Pauper, the bar for a 2/2 at two mana with a conditional upside is high, and Arctic Merfolk doesn't clear it. Legacy and Vintage have it legal on paper; it will never see a sleeve in either.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.13 bulk tier
At $0.13, Arctic Merfolk is deep bulk — you're paying for cardboard, not power. That price is stable because demand is essentially zero outside of niche tribal completionism.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.