Deeproot Waters
Enchantment
Whenever you cast a Merfolk spell, create a 1/1 blue Merfolk creature token with hexproof. (A creature with hexproof can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.)
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander
- Price
- $0.22
- EDHREC rank
- #4347
Deeproot Waters turns every Merfolk spell you cast into a free 1/1 hexproof body, and that snowballs fast in a tribal deck that wants bodies on board. At three mana with no ongoing cost, it's one of the cleanest payoffs Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca can slot in — more creatures means more tap activations, which means more cards and more counters.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca runs Deeproot Waters in nearly 90% of lists because every free token is another body to tap for card draw, another creature to grow your board with +1/+1 counters, and another piece of the five-Merfolk tap to steal control — the card does triple duty in the engine Kumena is already trying to build.
Hakbal of the Surging Soul
Hakbal of the Surging Soul wants a wide board of Merfolk to maximize its explore triggers, and Deeproot Waters delivers a free hexproof creature every time you cast one — the tokens explore too, meaning each spell you cast can generate two land or counter effects instead of one.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Deeproot Waters is a Commander card through and through — the payoff compounds over a long game with repeated Merfolk casts, and tribal synergy is far more available in a 100-card singleton format than anywhere else. In competitive Merfolk builds for Modern or Legacy, it's too slow at three mana with no immediate board impact when the deck is trying to win on turn three or four. Pioneer Merfolk exists and is a reasonable home, but even there the card sits awkwardly in a tempo shell that would rather spend three mana on interaction or a lord. Stick to Commander, specifically Merfolk tribal — that's the only context where Deeproot Waters does what it promises.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.22 bulk tier
At $0.22, Deeproot Waters is bulk in every sense — pick it up without thinking. Copies are plentiful, demand is narrow enough to keep the price pinned low even at nearly 90% inclusion in the most popular Merfolk commanders, so don't expect it to climb.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.