Hakbal of the Surging Soul MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityMythic
TypeLegendary Creature — Merfolk Scout
Abilities Explore
Power 3
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. Hakbal offers adaptability in gameplay, advantage in cards, and instant interactions for strategic players.
  2. Its higher mana cost and specific mana requirements pose a deck-building challenge for some players.
  3. The card’s flexibility and combo potential make it a valuable addition to a variety of MTG decks.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hakbal of the Surging Soul MTG card by a specific set like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander and The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Hakbal of the Surging Soul and other MTG cards:

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Text of card

At the beginning of combat on your turn, each Merfolk creature you control explores. Whenever Hakbal of the Surging Soul attacks, you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield. If you don't, draw a card.


Card Pros

Flexibility in Gameplay: Hakbal of the Surging Soul offers dynamic gameplay options, allowing players to adapt to the evolving game state effectively.

Card Advantage: By providing access to additional cards, Hakbal ensures that you’re never falling behind in the race for resources on the battlefield.

Resource Acceleration: The mana boost that Hakbal grants can be critical for outpacing your opponent, setting you up for powerful plays ahead of schedule.

Instant Speed Interactions: With abilities that can be activated at instant speed, Hakbal gives you the opportunity to surprise your opponent and disrupt their strategy while keeping your defenses up.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Hakbal of the Surging Soul necessitates a card to be discarded whenever it’s conjuring its power. While aimed to unleash potential, this can backfire significantly when your hand is already dwindling, forcing you to lose potentially vital assets.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a mix of mana that isn’t always readily available in a player’s mana pool. Requiring both generic and colored mana, it poses a challenge to seamlessly incorporate into decks that aren’t closely aligned with its color identity.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its mana value on the higher end of the spectrum, Hakbal of the Surging Soul competes against other cards that can provide potentially faster impact on the battlefield. This could make the inclusion of Hakbal in your deck a strategic gamble.


Reasons to Include Hakbal of the Surging Soul in Your Collection

Versatility: This spirit warrior blends seamlessly into a range of deck themes, from those capitalizing on spirit synergies to decks that maximize value from creatures entering the battlefield.

Combo Potential: As a card that thrives on soul counters, Hakbal can work wonders in conjunction with mechanics that manipulate or benefit from counters, opening up possibilities for powerful combinations.

Meta-Relevance: With its solid stat-to-mana cost ratio and ability to grow stronger over time, it finds relevance in an environment that favors creatures with scaling potential, especially in decks that aim to outpace the competition with incremental advantages.


How to beat

Hakbal of the Surging Soul is a card that can bring dynamic energy to any MTG game, rewarding players for casting spells with a powerful cascade ability. To counter this threat effectively, it’s essential to disrupt the player’s tempo or remove Hakbal before the cascade trigger can be utilized. Spot removal spells are a reliable solution, especially those that can act instantly to ensure Hakbal doesn’t stick around to activate its potentially game-altering ability.

Strategic use of counterspells is another strong line of defense. Countering Hakbal upon its initial casting not only thwarts the cascade potential but also keeps the board clear of an escalating threat. It’s also worth considering strategies that limit spell casting or increase the cost of spells for your opponent, essentially neutralizing Hakbal’s impact by curbing the spells that feed into its strength.

In the end, overcoming Hakbal of the Surging Soul centers around anticipation and prompt intervention. Efficiently handling this card means carefully navigating the timing of your removals and counters to ensure your opponent does not gain momentum from this formidable force.


Printings

The Hakbal of the Surging Soul Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2023-11-17 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 192015NormalBlackAnditya Dita
22023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 32015NormalBlackTyler Walpole
32023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 1232015NormalBlackTyler Walpole
42023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 292015NormalBlackTyler Walpole

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Hakbal of the Surging Soul has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Hakbal of the Surging Soul card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2023-11-10 Each of your Merfolk creatures will explore during the resolution of Hakbal of the Surging Soul's first ability. Players won't be able to respond between the explores.
2023-11-10 If a resolving spell or ability instructs a specific creature to explore but that creature has left the battlefield, the creature still explores. If you reveal a nonland card this way, you won't put a +1/+1 counter on anything, but you may put the revealed card into your graveyard. Effects that trigger "whenever a creature explores" trigger as appropriate.
2023-11-10 If an ability instructs a creature to explore, its controller reveals the top card of their library. If it's a land card, they'll put it into their hand. Otherwise, they'll put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then choose to either leave that card on top of their library or put it into their graveyard.
2023-11-10 If no card is revealed, most likely because that player's library is empty, the exploring creature receives a +1/+1 counter.
2023-11-10 If you control multiple Merfolk, you choose the order in which they explore. Make sure it's clear which Merfolk is exploring before you reveal any cards.
2023-11-10 In some unusual cases, noncreature permanents may explore. For example, if the creature card returned by Defossilize is somehow not a creature once it's on the battlefield, it can still explore. You'll take all the same actions, and you may end up putting a +1/+1 counter on the permanent. (Note that some effects target a creature, and those effects would still require a legal target to have it explore.)
2023-11-10 Once an ability that causes a creature to explore begins to resolve, no player may take any other actions until it's done. Notably, opponents can't try to remove the exploring creature after you reveal a nonland card but before it receives a counter.
2023-11-10 Some spells or abilities might cause a creature to explore multiple times in a row. If you reveal a nonland card when a creature explores and leave it on top of your library, then the creature explores again immediately afterwards, you'll reveal the same card again.