The Swarmlord costs {3}{G}{U}{R} and is a 5/5. It enters with two +1/+1 counters for each time you have cast your commander from the command zone this game, and whenever a creature you control with a counter on it dies, you draw a card. A deck full of creatures with counters turns every death into a card.
The precon already has the Tyranids, including Winged Hive Tyrant, Tyranid Prime, Tervigon, Termagant Swarm and Trygon Prime. Each swap below pairs a cut with an add, and every card is scored with the same numbers the Oracle uses to build decks: synergy and inclusion from the Swarmlord decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Swarmlord decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Tyranid Swarm precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Not enough counter multipliers
Branching Evolution and Master Biomancer double or add counters on every creature you play. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Few cards that reward big creatures
Garruk's Uprising draws a card whenever a creature with power 4 or greater enters, and Rhythm of the Wild gives every nontoken creature riot for a counter.
Weak creatures and ramp
Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph and Goliath Truck are each played in about one Swarmlord deck in nine, and Abundance and New Horizons are slow enchantments.
The 4 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph is a 3/2 Tyranid Human for {1}{U}{R} that doubles one-point damage. It is played in about one Swarmlord deck in nine.
Garruk's Uprising costs {2}{G}. When it enters you draw a card if you control a creature with power 4 or greater, your creatures have trample, and whenever a creature with power 4 or greater enters you draw a card. A card for every big Tyranid.
Goliath Truck is a four-mana Vehicle that puts two counters on another attacking creature. It is played in about one Swarmlord deck in nine.
Master Biomancer is a 2/4 Elf Wizard for {2}{G}{U}. Each other creature you control enters with a number of additional +1/+1 counters equal to Master Biomancer's power, and as a Mutant. Every creature that enters has extra counters, which switches on The Swarmlord's death trigger.
Abundance is a four-mana enchantment that replaces draws with land or nonland picks. It is played in about one Swarmlord deck in three.
Rhythm of the Wild costs {1}{R}{G}. Creature spells you control cannot be countered, and nontoken creatures you control have riot, so each enters with a +1/+1 counter or haste. A counter on every creature that enters.
New Horizons is a three-mana Aura that puts a counter on a creature and makes a land tap for two mana. It is played in about one Swarmlord deck in four.
Branching Evolution costs {2}{G}. If one or more +1/+1 counters would be put on a creature you control, twice that many are put on it instead. Every counter the deck makes is doubled.
The full swap list
Cut
- Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph
- Goliath Truck
- Abundance
- New Horizons
Add
- Garruk's Uprising
- Master Biomancer
- Rhythm of the Wild
- Branching Evolution
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Winged Hive Tyrant$2.06
Played in 88% of Swarmlord decks. Gives other creatures with counters flying and haste. - Tyranid Prime$0.58
Gives your other creatures evolve, so every bigger creature gets a counter. - Tervigon$3.92
Makes 1/1 Tyranids when it deals combat damage to a player, and has ravenous. - Termagant Swarm$2.46
Makes 1/1 Tyranids equal to its power when it dies. - Trygon Prime$0.40
Puts counters on itself and an attacker, and makes the attacker unblockable.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Ozolith, the Shattered Spire$6.65
Adds an extra counter and puts a counter on a creature for {1}{G}. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Herald of Secret Streams$5.92
Creatures you control with +1/+1 counters cannot be blocked. - Mutational Advantage$5.77
Gives permanents with counters hexproof and indestructible and proliferates.
Tyranid Swarm is a counters deck that most Swarmlord lists barely change, so four swaps are enough. They add counter multipliers and a draw engine for big creatures in place of two weak creatures and two slow enchantments. These four swaps cost about $13 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around The Swarmlord from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Tyranid Swarm precon?
Using data from 3,137 The Swarmlord decks, the highest-scoring additions are Branching Evolution (for New Horizons), Rhythm of the Wild (for Abundance) and Garruk's Uprising (for Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph). The full list has 4 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Tyranid Swarm?
All 4 swaps cost about $13.39 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-27). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Ozolith, the Shattered Spire ($6.65), Herald of Secret Streams ($5.92) and Mutational Advantage ($5.77).
What should I cut from Tyranid Swarm?
The weakest cards for this commander are Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph, Goliath Truck and Abundance. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Tyranid Swarm?
Keep Winged Hive Tyrant, Tyranid Prime, Tervigon, Termagant Swarm and Trygon Prime. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does The Swarmlord do?
The Swarmlord costs {3}{G}{U}{R} and is a 5/5. It enters with two +1/+1 counters for each time you have cast your commander from the command zone this game, and whenever a creature you control with a counter on it dies, you draw a card. A deck full of creatures with counters turns every death into a card.
More Warhammer 40,000 Commander upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of The Swarmlord decks (3,137 of them when this was written, 2026-10-27) that play the card. Synergy is how much more often they play it than other decks in the same colours. Oracle score is synergy × 0.6 plus inclusion × 0.4, the same blend The Oracle uses to rank cards for a deck. Lift compares how often the card appears in these decks with how often it could, capped at 8× here; it is shown for context and does not change the score.
Two cautions. Players who run the precon unmodified count as The Swarmlord decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is moderate for most of these cards because they are played in many counters decks, so use lift to compare cards, not to judge one in isolation. Prices are the cheapest non-foil paper printing on TCGplayer (via Scryfall), in USD, and move daily.