CommanderTestLabor DE
Price
€349.75of €400.00
Overall win rate
22%9 wins in 40 scored games
Games
40played in 4 tournaments
Rank
28in the rankings up to €400 · Elo 1510 (start 1500)
Cards
100incl. commander · 35 lands, 17 of them basic
Game Changer
3of at most 3 allowed
Combos
0complete in the deck
Rules check
Passed100 cards, colors, banlist

AI note: the Forge AI can't play 5 cards of this deck (replaced with similar cards in the Forge games) and plays 6 more only partially well. This result is therefore somewhat less meaningful. Affected cards

At most €400 including the commander. If prices rise above that, the shopping list is rebuilt automatically.

grey: role in the deckGame Changer counts for the bracketCombo part of a comboAI can't play replaced in tournamentsAI limited played weakly by the AI

Commander (1)

Creatures (33)

Instants (13)

Sorceries (4)

Artifacts (4)

Enchantments (10)

Lands (35)

Hakbal of the Surging Soul
Card image: © Wizards of the Coast, via Scryfall

Adjusted for the Forge AI

The list above is the best tested version, the way you would play it in real games. The Forge AI can't play a few cards – they were replaced in the tournament (the deck builder also rearranges other slots within the budget). The win rate comes from games with these replacements; the original cards themselves were not tested by the AI.

In the list (original cards)
  • Alchemist's Refuge: AI can't play it
  • Beast Within: AI can't play it
  • Kiora's Follower: AI can't play it
  • Simic Signet: AI can't play it
  • Swan Song: AI can't play it
Played instead in the tournament
  • Burgeoning: replacement
  • Merfolk Cave-Diver: replacement
  • Ruinous Intrusion: replacement
  • Surgespanner: replacement

What the games show

From 40 analysed games in 4 tournaments (tournament lists as played by Forge). Games that hit the time limit don't count, just like in the rankings. Values in brackets: average of all decks in the same price class. “logged”: recorded in the game log. “indication”: recurring pattern, but no proof of cause and effect.

Play style: wins through combat – 100% of the damage to opponents is combat damage

Strengths

  • Applies a lot of pressure: avg 46 damage to opponents per game (all-deck avg: 28) logged (40 games)
  • Clears the table: eliminates 0.88 opponents per game on average (all-deck avg: 0.62) logged (40 games)
  • Rarely out first: eliminated first in only 15% of games (all-deck avg: 25%) logged (6 of 40 games)
  • Wins fast: wins on average already on its 11th own turn (all-deck avg: 12th) logged (9 wins)

Weaknesses

  • Mana problems: fewer than 3 lands after its 3rd own turn in 22% of games (all-deck avg: 10%), then only 22% wins logged (9 of 40 games)

Damage per game all games

Total damage to opponents ÷ all 40 games – what the card contributes over the whole test

  1. Hakbal of the Surging Soul avg 9.2hit in 29 of 40 games
  2. Nicanzil, Current Conductor avg 4.8hit in 5 of 40 games
  3. Merfolk Token avg 4.5hit in 7 of 40 games

Damage when used when it hits

Total damage ÷ games in which the card dealt damage – its strength when used

  1. Nicanzil, Current Conductor avg 38.0hit in 5 of 40 games
  2. Merfolk Token avg 25.9hit in 7 of 40 games
  3. Merfolk Cave-Diver avg 23.5hit in 4 of 40 games

Top finishers eliminates opponents

Cards that most often knocked an opposing commander out of the game

  1. Merfolk Token 9×40 games in deck
  2. Nicanzil, Current Conductor 6×40 games in deck
  3. Merfolk Cave-Diver 5×30 games in deck

Best interaction answers threats

Opposing cards destroyed, exiled, bounced or countered when this card resolved (tokens excluded)

  1. Rhystic Study 12×avg 0.3 per game · 40 games in deck
  2. An Offer You Can't Refuse 7×avg 0.2 per game · 40 games in deck
  3. Rapid Hybridization 6×avg 0.1 per game · 40 games in deck

Biggest walls blocks the most

Opposing cards that blocked this deck's attackers most often – 9% of 529 attackers blocked in total, 16% of those by flyers or reach

Not enough blocks logged yet.

Rarely cast candidates to cut

Cards in this list that were cast least often in their games – often too expensive or too slow (lands excluded)

  1. Reflections of Littjara 5%cast in 2 of 40 games
  2. Aetherize 8%cast in 3 of 40 games
  3. Branching Evolution 8%cast in 3 of 40 games

Wins by turn speed

On which own turn the 9 wins came

  • by turn 70%
  • turns 8–933%
  • turns 10–1133%
  • turns 12–1311%
  • turn 14+22%

Mana curve without lands

Average 2.81

0
7
1
23
2
19
3
8
4
5
5
1
6
1
7+

Roles in the deck

Ramp
7 / 7
Card draw
14 / 14
Removal
8 / 8
Board wipe
2 / 2
Protection
3 / 3
Strategy
30 cards no target

Count / target from the EDHREC average deck (the line), red means clearly below. Strategy: the remaining cards without one of these roles, such as the creatures and effects the deck is built around. 64 non-land cards in total.

Card types

Creatures
33
Instants
13
Sorceries
4
Artifacts
4
Enchantments
10
Lands
35

Most expensive cards

Fierce Guardianship
€51.64
Roaming Throne
€36.19
Rhystic Study
€36.01
Cavern of Souls
€35.61
Misty Rainforest
€24.90
Exploration
€24.29
Cyclonic Rift
€23.47
Swan Song
€10.91

Shopping list for Cardmarket

Copy the list, create a new list under “Wants” on Cardmarket and paste it.

Total €349.75 Cardmarket average as of Oct 29, 2026

Open Cardmarket Wants

Prices without shipping. Individual cards may have become cheaper or more expensive on Cardmarket.

Placement in every tournament

Oldest on the left. Green: top 3, blue: top 10.

43181456

Best place 14 · average place 32.8 · 0× top 3 · 0× top 10 out of 4 tournaments

Played by the Forge AI, four players per game. An average deck wins 25%. How are decks tested?