Explorers of the Deep Upgrade Guide: A Comprehensive Plan
This guide meticulously details enhancing the Explorers of the Deep precon, covering budget to high-end options, upgrade paths, and Reddit discussions.
We’ll explore strategies, build improvements, and potential combos, referencing recent upgrade articles from November 2023 and October/February 2024-2025.
The Explorers of the Deep precon, released within the Lost Caverns of Ixalan set, centers around Quintorius Kand, a legendary creature focused on treasure generation and exploration. This deck aims to overwhelm opponents with a constant stream of treasures, converting them into powerful spells and abilities.
Out of the box, the precon provides a solid foundation for a blue-green treasure-centric strategy. However, it exhibits certain weaknesses that limit its competitive potential. Many players, as evidenced by recent Reddit discussions (October 11, 2025), are actively seeking upgrade paths to bolster its performance. This guide will dissect the precon’s strengths and weaknesses, offering tailored upgrade suggestions for various budgets.
We’ll delve into how to refine this deck, transforming it from a fun, casual experience into a formidable force capable of challenging more optimized builds.
Understanding the Precon’s Strategy
The core strategy of the Explorers of the Deep precon revolves around generating a substantial amount of treasure tokens. Commander Quintorius Kand directly supports this, creating treasures upon casting instant and sorcery spells. These treasures aren’t merely mana acceleration; they’re integral to activating several key abilities within the deck, fueling powerful card draw and creature enhancements.
The precon leans heavily into a tempo-based approach, utilizing treasures to cast spells ahead of curve and maintain board control. Efficient creatures and removal spells, though somewhat lacking in the base build, are intended to capitalize on this tempo advantage. Players discussing the deck on Reddit (February 9, 2024) highlight the need for consistent treasure production to truly unlock the deck’s potential.
Successfully piloting this deck requires careful resource management and strategic spell sequencing.
Core Synergies and Key Cards
Quintorius Kand is undeniably the central synergistic element, rewarding spellcasting with treasure generation. Cards like Deep-Sea Explorer and other creatures benefiting from treasure counters amplify this effect, growing in power as the game progresses. Shipwreck Marsh provides valuable land recursion, crucial for maintaining tempo and consistently hitting land drops.
The precon’s instant and sorcery suite, while functional, benefits from refinement. Synergies emerge when spells are cast in quick succession, maximizing treasure output. Discussions around the deck (November 18, 2023) emphasize the importance of cards that draw multiple spells or reduce their costs.
Sunken Hollow and similar lands further support the treasure theme, creating a cohesive and powerful engine.
Evaluating the Precon’s Weaknesses
The Explorers of the Deep precon, while fun, suffers from consistency issues. Its reliance on treasure generation can be disrupted by targeted removal or board wipes, stalling the engine. The creature base, while thematic, lacks impactful late-game threats, making it vulnerable to more optimized decks. Card draw is also somewhat limited, leading to situations where key spells remain buried in the library.
Furthermore, the mana base is basic, hindering consistent access to both blue and green mana. Discussions (October 11, 2025) highlight a need for better ramp and fixing. The precon’s removal suite is adequate but lacks the efficiency to deal with multiple threats simultaneously.
Upgrade Priorities: Power Level Assessment
Initially, focus on bolstering consistency and ramp. Addressing the mana base is paramount – prioritizing dual lands significantly improves color fixing. Next, enhance card draw and filtering to ensure access to key spells. Increasing the number of impactful creatures capable of closing out games is crucial, moving beyond the precon’s primarily utility-focused roster.
A moderate power level upgrade (around $50-$150) should aim for a consistent, resilient engine; Higher-end upgrades ($150+) can incorporate staple blue and green cards, elevating the deck to a competitive level. Remember, February 9, 2024, discussions emphasize targeted upgrades over wholesale replacements.
Budget Upgrades (Under $50)
Replacing Underperforming Creatures: Swap weaker bodies for efficient value engines. Consider cards offering repeatable effects or those synergizing strongly with treasure generation. Focus on creatures that provide both utility and a reasonable power/toughness ratio for their mana cost. Prioritize options that don’t dilute the core strategy.
Adding Efficient Removal Spells: The precon lacks robust removal. Include versatile options like Negate or Dive Down for countering threats. Rapid Hybridization offers flexible creature removal; Prioritize spells that are cost-effective and address a wide range of potential problems. These small changes significantly improve resilience;
Replacing Underperforming Creatures
Identifying Weak Links: Several precon creatures lack impactful abilities or struggle to consistently contribute. Focus replacements on bolstering treasure synergy and providing consistent value. Creatures with low power/toughness for their cost should be prioritized for upgrades.
Budget-Friendly Options: Consider Deepwater Evoker for card draw, or Merfolk Branchwalker for early game exploration. Coralhelm Guide boosts power, enhancing combat. Look for creatures with abilities that trigger upon entering the battlefield or from treasure interactions. These additions improve overall board presence and strategic options without breaking the bank.
Adding Efficient Removal Spells
Precon Deficiencies: The Explorers of the Deep precon lacks sufficient, versatile removal. Supplementing with targeted and board wipes is crucial for handling problematic permanents. Prioritize spells that don’t significantly hinder your own treasure-focused strategy.
Budget Choices: Negate counters key threats, while Rapid Hybridization offers flexible creature removal. For board wipes, Blasphemous Act is cost-effective. Consider Pongify for temporary removal and tempo gain. These additions provide answers to a wider range of threats, improving resilience against diverse opponents and enhancing control over the game state.
Mid-Range Upgrades ($50 ― $150)
Boosting Treasure Synergy: This tier focuses on amplifying the precon’s core strength – treasure generation. Cards like Dockside Extortionist dramatically increase treasure output, fueling powerful spells and abilities. Goldspan Dragon provides both treasure and card advantage; Smothering Tithe creates a significant economic advantage, hindering opponents while bolstering your resources.
Card Advantage & Filtering: Improve consistency with cards like Rhystic Study and Mystical Tutor. These enhance card draw and allow targeted searching for crucial pieces. Prioritize spells that synergize with treasure, ensuring a smooth and efficient game plan. This range offers substantial improvements without breaking the bank.
Enhancing the Treasure Generation
Prioritizing Treasure Engines: To truly elevate the Explorers of the Deep precon, focus on cards that consistently generate treasure. Dockside Extortionist is a prime target, creating a substantial treasure windfall based on opponent artifacts and enchantments. Goldspan Dragon offers both treasure creation and scaling power, becoming a formidable threat.
Synergistic Inclusion: Consider cards like Brass Constable, which rewards treasure creation with card draw. Xorn provides both treasure and creature removal. These additions amplify the precon’s existing strategy, turning treasure into a powerful engine for card advantage and board control, maximizing the deck’s potential.
Improving Card Draw and Filtering
Addressing a Key Weakness: The Explorers of the Deep precon can sometimes struggle with consistency. Enhancing card draw and filtering is crucial for reliably accessing key synergies. Rhystic Study is a powerful inclusion, punishing opponents for not interacting while providing consistent card flow.
Efficient Options: Mystical Tutor swiftly locates vital combo pieces or answers. Ponder and Preordain offer efficient filtering, smoothing out draws. Consider Fact or Fiction for impactful card advantage. These additions ensure you consistently hit your land drops and access the cards needed to overwhelm opponents with treasure and powerful creatures.
High-End Upgrades (Over $150)
Investing in Power: For a significantly boosted power level, focus on staple blue and green cards. Dockside Extortionist generates massive treasure, accelerating your game plan. Cyclonic Rift provides devastating board control, resetting unfavorable situations. Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider doubles your treasure production and hinders opponents.
Commander Considerations: While Lathliss is solid, explore alternative commanders like Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy for ramp and creature synergy. Upgrading the mana base with fetch lands (Wooded Foothills) and dual lands (Breeding Pool) ensures consistent color fixing; These investments transform the precon into a formidable, competitive force.
Staple Blue and Green Cards
Essential Additions: Elevate your deck with proven powerhouses. Mystical Tutor instantly finds crucial spells, while Demonic Tutor locates any card. Force of Will offers unparalleled protection against threats. Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile provide efficient, cost-effective removal.
Synergistic Choices: Rhystic Study and Mystic Remora generate card advantage, fueling your engine. Sylvan Library offers powerful filtering. Counterspell and Negate are classic blue staples. These cards aren’t specific to the precon, but dramatically increase its consistency and resilience, forming a strong foundation for success.
Commander Upgrades & Alternatives
Enhancing Lorthos: While Lorthos, the Tidemaker is solid, consider upgrades like Swiftfoot Boots or Lightning Greaves for protection. Arcane Signet and Sol Ring accelerate mana production, crucial for Lorthos’s abilities. Command Tower ensures consistent color fixing.
Alternative Commanders: Explore options like Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner for ramp and creature control, or Rashmi, Eternities Crafter for a more spell-slinging approach. These alternatives shift the deck’s focus, offering different playstyles. Evaluate if a commander change better suits your preferred strategy and available card pool, maximizing synergy and power.
Specific Card Recommendations
Key Additions: Mystic Remora provides card advantage, while Rhystic Study taxes opponents. Pirate’s Pillage offers versatile removal. Deepglow Skate synergizes with treasure generation, creating value. Hullbreaker Horror is a powerful threat, demanding answers.
Budget Options: Curse of the Tempest disrupts opponents, and Counterspell offers essential protection. Rapid Hybridization provides efficient removal. Treasure Cruise refills your hand. These cards enhance the precon’s core strategy without breaking the bank, improving consistency and resilience. Prioritize cards that directly support treasure synergy or offer impactful control elements.
Synergistic Combos to Explore
Treasure & Value: Combine Dockside Extortionist with treasure generation (like Xplorapedia) for explosive mana. Follow up with a large X spell or activate multiple abilities. Untapping Potential: Utilize cards like Thousand-Year Elixir on creatures generating treasures, creating recurring value.
Control & Tempo: Pair Hullbreaker Horror with counterspells to protect it, establishing board control. Card Advantage Loops: Mystic Remora alongside efficient treasure producers fuels card draw, maintaining momentum. Explore interactions between treasure tokens and cards that reward artifact creation for a powerful engine.
Potential Mana Base Improvements
Dual Lands: Prioritize fetchable dual lands like Breeding Pool and Hinterland Harbor for consistent color fixing. These significantly improve mana reliability, especially in a two-color deck. Utility Lands: Consider Command Tower and Exotic Orchard for broader mana support in multiplayer games.
Budget Options: Simic Guildgate and Temple of the False God offer affordable upgrades. Artifact Mana: Sol Ring and Arcane Signet are staples for faster mana ramp. Land Cycling: Include cards like Farseek to quickly access lands, accelerating your game plan. Optimize for consistent access to both blue and green mana.
Sideboard Considerations for Competitive Play
Graveyard Hate: Include cards like Scavenging Ooze or Relic of Progenitus to counter reanimation strategies, a common competitive threat. Countermagic: Negate and Swan Song provide essential protection against key spells. Artifact/Enchantment Removal: Naturalize or Disenchant address problematic permanents.
Creature Removal: Pongify and Rapid Hybridization offer versatile answers to troublesome creatures. Flex Slots: Reserve space for situational cards based on the expected meta. Card Advantage: Fact or Fiction can help dig for answers. A well-constructed sideboard adapts to diverse opponents, enhancing your win rate.
Alternative Win Conditions
Beyond overwhelming opponents with treasure-fueled creatures, explore alternate paths to victory. Thassa’s Oracle, combined with sufficient mana and empty library manipulation, offers a swift win. Dramatic Reversal and Isochron Scepter create infinite mana, enabling a game-ending Brain Freeze or a massive Blue Sun’s Zenith.
Consider Approach of the Second Sun as a resilient win condition, requiring two castings. Walking Ballista, charged with treasure tokens, provides a flexible and scalable threat. Diversifying win conditions makes the deck less predictable and more resilient to disruption, increasing your chances of success in competitive environments.
Budget Breakdown and Cost Analysis
A minimal upgrade, focusing on the “Replacing Underperforming Creatures” and “Adding Efficient Removal Spells” sections, can be achieved for under $50. Expect to spend roughly $15-$20 on key creatures and $10-$15 on removal. The mid-range upgrade ($50-$150) adds treasure generation and card draw, increasing the cost by $40-$100 depending on card choices.
High-end upgrades, incorporating staples and commander alternatives, easily exceed $150, potentially reaching $300+ with expensive cards. Prioritizing upgrades based on your budget and playstyle is crucial. Regularly check Reddit and online marketplaces for deals to maximize value and minimize expenses.
Resources and Further Reading
Online deckbuilding platforms like Moxfield and Archidekt are invaluable for visualizing and refining your Explorers of the Deep upgrade. These tools facilitate list creation, price tracking, and sharing with the community. For deeper dives into strategy and card discussions, explore relevant Reddit threads – specifically r/MagicTheGathering and related Commander subreddits.
Numerous articles and videos detail precon upgrades; searching for “Explorers of the Deep upgrade guide” will yield helpful content. Remember to cross-reference information and consider diverse perspectives when making upgrade decisions. Stay updated with the latest card prices and availability.
Online Deckbuilding Platforms
Moxfield and Archidekt stand out as premier choices for constructing and refining your Explorers of the Deep deck. These platforms offer intuitive interfaces for list management, allowing easy addition, removal, and organization of cards. Crucially, they integrate price data, enabling accurate cost analysis during your upgrade process.
Both platforms facilitate sharing your decklist with others, fostering collaboration and feedback. Archidekt excels in visual representation, while Moxfield provides robust search functionality. Utilizing these tools streamlines the upgrade journey, ensuring a well-optimized and budget-conscious build.
Relevant Reddit Discussions
Reddit’s r/magicTCG offers a wealth of insights regarding the Explorers of the Deep precon. Threads from October and November 2023, and continuing into 2024 and 2025, detail user experiences with upgrades and card substitutions. Users frequently discuss budget-friendly options and synergistic combos, providing valuable perspectives.
Specifically, search for discussions concerning efficient removal and treasure generation enhancements. Many threads address specific card recommendations and potential mana base improvements. Engaging with these communities allows you to learn from others’ builds and refine your own upgrade strategy, ensuring a competitive and enjoyable deck.