Update I made top 8 with this list. It was a $30 entry, only 17 players tho. I beat Yawgmoth, matchup felt good having Counterspell, Trickster, Dismember and Subtlety to interact against Yawg. Beat Grixis Control, was very happy to have Kira back in the list for that. Beat Hammertime, I really sweat that matchup out but the fact of the matter is we have all the tools we need to win that matchup. Top 8 I beat Coffers, again a time for Counterspell to really shine. I then lost to a hybrid Omnath/Rhinos. I misread it as 4C Control and pretty much misplayed my way out of 1st or 2nd. Big recommend for this list, I made several errors even in my wins so I think means this list is quite solid.
I would consider playing with the count of Trickster/Hexcatcher/Counterspell only to bring Kira or Dismember into the maindeck, if those are cards you just want to see more often. I boarded out Hexcatcher/Counterspell most often, doesn't mean they're wrong, just means sometimes you need different interaction. end update
I typically like to keep the deck simple with clear sideboard plans, and sometimes will just be dead to a few rogue decks like Dredge. Not looking for overkill on matchups that are already easy enough to win.
For example, Chalice is great versus Rhinos and Living End, and sometimes the plan to put it on 1 makes a lot of sense too. Well, those matchups are already decent for Merfolk so I'd rather focus on turning tough and close matchups into blowouts, or at least make them much closer.
Hurkyl's Recall for Hammertime, Scales and Affinity
Harbinger of the Tides is a versatile card, fantastic versus Murktide and Scam.
Subtlety versus other Elementals and Amulet. Sometimes you just wanna maximize the creature count as well.
Stone of Erech helps versus Dredge, Yawgmoth and maybe Scam.
Kira because Solitude has me so tilted tbh, but I think the amount of 2 for 1 removal is a solid reason to put our trust in Kira. I've also dropped the amount of Cavern of Souls to support double U for Counterspell, makes Kira more consistent to cast on time.
Not sure how critical Caverns is in this meta, but there's no Chalice of ours to potentially need to Caverns a 1 drop thru so that's one less reason to need all 4. Haven't loved the performance of Vodalian Hexcatcher for me lately, it is def a card that could or should be 4 of, and cut from the pool of Force or Counterspell or Spreading Seas. The main reason I miss 4 is because the overall creature count, 12 Lords help keep the lines predictable. Reason I think about 0 is, players are finally playing around it, and trading a creature for a 1 mana tax is not powerful when it's no longer sneaky.
Stern Scolding is out because I have Counterspell in this build already, otherwise I would want 2 to 3 in the Sideboard. The only thing I'm aware that sets this list apart is Counterspell, I've just been feeling nostalgic. But i think it pairs well with Trickster and Tidebinder, having options during the opponent's turns versus guessing about jamming Svyelun or holding up Tishana's. I think the flexibility to choosing lines will make Tishana's Tidebinder shine all the brighter, it is THE card for our opponent's to play around and having Counterspell while applying pressure makes Merfolk a real threat in this meta.
