The MTG Warhammer 40k Tyranids deck looks strong, and hungry

Wizards of the Coast has revealed the full deck list for the Tyranid Swarm deck, with 42 brand new cards, and it looks pretty powerful

MTG warhammer 40k - Tyranid character The Swarmlord

The ravenous Tyranid hordes have arrived in Magic: The Gathering, with the first full deck reveal from the game’s Warhammer 40k crossover. The Commander deck Tyranid Swarm was shown off in full yesterday, and it just might be one of the most powerful EDH precons ever released. If the other MTG Warhammer 40k decks match this power level, this Universes Beyond release will be mighty indeed.

Tyranid Swarm is a Temur (red, blue, and green) Commander deck that features 42 brand new cards. The remaining reprints are all rethemed to reflect the flavour of the Tyranids and Tyranid-worshipping Genestealer Cults. It’s a tribal deck that’s invented a new tribe (Tyranids) whole cloth.

As well as featuring lots of +1/+1 counters, the Tyranids deck introduces a new mechanic, Ravenous, which lets you pay more mana when casting creatures to make them stronger, also letting you draw a card if you invest enough. In essence this gives the MTG Tyranids powerful flexibility – your creatures can be big or small, so your playstyle can be wide or tall. In a Commander game you’ll likely feel like you’re amassing an ever-growing horde, before finishing your foes off with something utterly monstrous.

While the reprints are a bit humdrum, the new cards in the Tyranid Swarm deck look very strong indeed. It has a little bit of everything, token making in Termagant and Gargoyle Flock, and recursive creatures like Old One Eye and Hormagaunt Horde. Damage dealers like Screamer-Killer, and ridiculously big creatures like the gargantuan Hierophant Bio-Titan. There’s also plenty of ramp, pretty vital for feeding all those Ravenous creatures.

Reprints in the deck include ramp cards like Cultivate and Rampant Growth, Tribal cards like Icon of Ancestry, and counters-focused stuff like Hardened Scales and Bred for the Hunt.

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The video above, by YouTuber MTG Muddstah, shows the full decklist. You can also find it on the official MTG website, however, until the cards are added to Gatherer upon the deck’s release, it’s pretty much just a list of card names.

With the Tyranid deck revealed, we’re now awaiting the Ruinous Powers deck, and then the Necrons and the Forces of the Imperium. Be sure to check out our MTG Warhammer 40k guide for all the latest information and previews.