If you are going unblockable with creatures (which is really good with merfolks) then I feel remiss not to ask why not use Herald of the Streams?

Herald of the secret streams*

Harrin_Sniffadi - First off, thanks for the upvote and comment! Secondly, I've taken out Herald of Secret Streams because I rarely use the ability for +1/+1 counters. Honestly, my opponents tend to wipe my board as soon as they see 3 or more merfolk, and less if they're specific merfolk ( Lullmage Mentor , Surgespanner , ect.). Also, I've found four mana for a merfolk is hard to cast with protection, so I've tried to limit it to the most necessary ones with the best abilities.

When I have 3+ merfolk, I tend to hold them back to draw. The exception there may be if I can untap during everyone's untap step, but even then I probably just make Kumena unblockable and attack. I tend to want to wait for enough creatures plus Craterhoof Behemoth .

Hey nice deck :) I'm a bloody huge fan of this commander I'm brewing in every formats for almost a year. I like the differences between our decks. Additional turns versus my stax version ; both are not very popular in the format :D You even made me discover the FNM version of Merrow Reejerey x) !

My only advice for you is Intruder Alarm . Seriously, if you got Kumena and Earthcraft on the board you can play your whole deck for as long as you don't draw 4 lands in a row.

Furthermore I like the infinite mana combo with Forbidden Orchard + Intruder Alarm + Kiora's Follower . A 3 pieces combo is not that powerfull but I reached to draw and play my whole deck one or two times with Thrasios, Triton Hero and it's such a great feeling x)

Feel free to check mine (the multiplayer version) and thank for the several ideas in your deck !

Senomar - Thanks for the advice and the infinite mana combo! I was wondering how I could include it without taking out merfolk for non-tribal creatures and cards. I've been thinking about Intruder Alarm for a long time now and I just wasn't sure that's where I wanted the deck, but with a combo like that I believe I can finally find a place for it.

I'd definitely like to take a look at your list if you can tag it. I love seeing other lists and the differences people have with a similar commander. Thanks for the upvote man and the advice!

Furthermore Nullmage Shepherd seems way better than my Reclamation Sage . I Need to have a try with this one ;)

No matter the combo, if you have Kumena on board and at least 2 others merfolks you can be sure you'll draw 5 cards before your next turn, bump whole boards with Surgespanner or steal a lot of nasty stuff with Empress Galina haha. This card is one of the most powerfull of the deck. use it carrefully and go attack phase before playing creatures otherwise you'll get trap

Have a nice day

Senomar - Just wanted to let you know I tried the Intruder Alarm . Even without the infinite combo, it went insane. I came back so easily and was able to get to my combo faster. Thanks for the advice man!

This looks awesome and I'm thinking of brewing my own version or maybe a Tiny Leader with Kumena at the helm.

I am not sure how the intruder alarm combo/cryptolith rites combo works though without exotic orchard. Can you please explain how you untap your guys without orchard /kiora'a follower unless you're just casting guys, untapping, rinse and repeat? But then I am not sure you're using your commander to draw your deck or maximize capsize since you're tapping merfolk for crypto and not Kumena.

Thoughts appreciated.

sleeper_agent007 - Thanks for the compliment on the deck. It is definitely a blast to play.

As for Intruder Alarm , it does only infinite combo with Forbidden Orchard . However, in a deck that plays a lot of small creatures it can continue going for awhile without going infinite. For example, The other day I was able to tutor out Master of Waves with a devotion to around 15. Each creature then triggers individually, allowing me 15 triggers to draw, add counters, tutor more with Seahunter , ect. With Cryptolith Rite or Earthcraft out it is an easy way to make more mana for bigger spells. At minimum, it can allow for extra draws on an opponent's turn if they play a creature as well. Even without the combo, Intruder Alarm can become a serious problem if not dealt with.

To answer your question, you are correct on simply playing creatures, untapping, and repeating. However, it can depend on the situation. Sometimes you do need to choose between drawing and playing other spells, but I've seen that I can rely on playing spells on my turn. Then, on my opponent's turn, I can draw extra cards (assuming they play a creature which is a fairly safe bet in my playgroup).

Hope that helped. Willing to answer any other questions if needed. Would definitely say the deck is very fun.

The real combo is Earthcraft with Intruder Alarm otherwise if you want to play your whole deck with Intruder Alarm + Cryptolith Rite you'll need something like Concordant Crossroads . In both case, if you draw 3 lands in a row it can breaks the combo :)

I would like to see this combo with Master of Waves x)

Most of te time if you want to go on combo you already have cards in hand and/or have draw tools and/or mana on the table the whole thing with low curve creatures.

I just recheck you list and I notice you haven't Fallowsage (huge tool with half of your deck list) nor Silvergill Adept or Jungleborn Pioneer (more anecdotic but it's strong fuel for Kumena).

Thanks for the help and additional info Senomar. I will definitely look into Fallowsage as that has real synergy.

The other two I've considered, but may not be enough for the deck. At three mana, I am casting Kumena or another spell that drastically alters the board ( Deeproot Waters , Intruder Alarm , Arcane Adaptation , ect.). Silvergill Adept just seems a little underwhelming for EDH. I will definitely take them into consideration based on the level you play, though. Thank you again for your insight.

Thanks for clearing that up. This looks very cool and I will definitely give it a shot. Thumbs up from me!

Thanks for the upvote sleeper_agent007!! Let me know if you have any more questions. I'd be happy to share what I've learned in playtesting and why a card is/is not in the deck.

Where is Curse of Bounty ? I know it can be abused by our opponents but it might be worth considering if you play in a creature light meta. Or you could just tap down would be attackers with Opposition if you're worried about them going off.

sleeper_agent007 - I like the idea of making someone a target to attack. However, because of the potential abuse by my opponents is the reason I don't play it. With the redundancy of the deck I can usually untap consistently without helping my opponents. I have thought about it and maybe I should go back to considering it for more consistency. I'll think about it in the future while I'm playing to see how much I'd need another untap card.

I absolutely love this deck, and my Kumena build is evolving this direction because of you. Nice job, and great build!

Question - Did you ever have the need for Arcane Adaptation in addition to Maskwood Nexus , or has one ability been enough? Which leads to my next question - Does the deck ultimately rely on all creatures being fish, or can it operate fine without the off-type creatures becoming merfolk, too?

Also, I'm considering running Sensei's Divining Top , however I'm looking for the deck to be slightly more simple minded, for my sake. Do you feel it's absolutely necessary? Or, is it extra tech that could be cut?

Last question, and similar to the first - Is one fish tutor enough with the superior Forerunner of the Heralds , or is it also worth including Merrow Harbinger as a second fisherman? I'm leaning towards both.

blueiris - Thanks for the comment and compliment. I'm glad I could help you!

I have recently taken out Arcane Adaptation because, before Maskwood Nexus , I was only playing one effect like this and was doing fine. I'm testing Maskwood Nexus over Arcane Adaptation for the effect of making tokens. As of now, I have not missed having both effects, but it has been a recent change so I'm still testing.

The deck can operate just fine without everything being a merfolk. This is an effect to help with tokens from Master of Waves and so Seahunter can tutor out any creature that I need ( Frilled Mystic and Venser, Shaper Savant come to mind here). This kind of effect allows me to use the effects of Lullmage Mentor , draw ability of Kumena , and Merrow Reejerey to a better, more efficient extent. Not required, but helps greatly.

If you don't like Sensei's Divining Top for whatever reason, you don't need to play it. I'm the kind of player who will tell you to play with cards you like than what other people "expect" or "staple" type cards. I like Top because of the utility. This deck's number one goal is to be able to untap on other player's turn. I can draw a card (more likely with Kumena ), activate top to dig one deeper than before, to do it again on everyone's turn to try and ensure I draw what I need. I will agree that taking it out will definitely simplify the deck haha. Because Kumena is a powerful draw engine you don't need it.

I don't have Merrow Harbinger because I am playing Seahunter . He is FAR superior in my opinion. In saying that, a second tutor does become better if you play both Maskwood Nexus and Arcane Adaptation because it could become a Worldly Tutor with a body on the board. I would say playtest with and without it, and see how you like it.

I have gone through multiple iterations of this deck. I have recently left the infinite combo of Isochron Scepter and Dramatic Reversal because I didn't get it often enough to matter. It became a "win more." I will miss putting a Mana Drain on Isochron Scepter turn two haha. I'm trying to go back to one of my earlier iterations with Opposition and I'm REALLY trying to find a way to put Asceticism , Wrap in Vigor , Svyelun of Sea and Sky , and Illusionist's Bracers into the deck. They just seem like slower cards that I don't need, but want. That rant was just to say let me know if you have any other questions or options because I have probably tried a lot of them. If you have a list I'm down to look at it if you tell me what you're trying to do.

Following up~

I think I'm going to test with both Arcane Adaptation and Maskwood Nexus , then remove one if needed. I like the idea of seeing one of these every match, so we'll see if it's too much or not.

Re: Sensei's Divining Top , I'll leave it out of this build based on your advice. I love some Top , and have other decks that use it, so thanks for the feedback suggesting that it's not entirely crucial.

Agreed with Seahunter , it's in the deck, and so are both Forerunner of the Heralds & Merrow Harbinger . I guess with the redundancy of this and changeling I was hoping for more consistency, but can certainly trim anything that's excessive.

What do you think about these one drop merfolk? I like Reef Shaman , Tideshaper Mystic , and Tidal Warrior for land control in either direction.

I've got the Dramatic Scepter combo in the deck I run Top in, so those cards won't make the cut in this deck. The goal for me overall is to have decks with varying play styles.

I'd be open to any advice! Here's my 99: Kumena, Just Tap It In

Thanks, again for your amazing list!