Genestealer Patriarch

Genestealer Patriarch card image

Genestealer Patriarch: Creature - Tyranid, Warhammer 40,000 Commander. MTG card printings, market prices, rulings, and format legality on Mana Grove.

Mana cost
{4}{U}
Mana value
5
Type
Creature - Tyranid
Colour identity
Blue (U)
Power / toughness
4/4
Rarity
Rare
Set
Warhammer 40,000 Commander (40K)
Released
2022-10-07
Collector number
22
Artist
Games Workshop
Commander rank
15,814 (by how often it appears in Commander decks)
Keywords
Children of the Cult, Genestealer's Kiss

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About Genestealer Patriarch

Genestealer Patriarch is a Magic: The Gathering card, a rare blue creature from Warhammer 40,000 Commander (40K), a Commander product released in October 2022. It is collector number 22 in that set, with art by Games Workshop. It costs {4}{U} (four generic and one blue mana) to cast, for a mana value of 5. It is a 4/4 creature. Its colour identity is blue. It is legal in Legacy, Vintage, Commander, Duel Commander and Oathbreaker. Warhammer 40,000 Commander is its only printing so far. The latest aggregated market price for this printing is $0.37 (normal finish, as of 2026-11-12).

Card text

Genestealer's Kiss - Whenever this creature attacks, put an infection counter on target creature defending player controls.

Children of the Cult - Whenever a creature with an infection counter on it dies, you create a token that's a copy of that creature, except it's a Tyranid in addition to its other types.

Market price

Latest aggregated market price for the normal finish of this printing: $0.37 (as of 2026-11-12).

The figure covers this printing only; other printings carry their own price on their own page.

Format legality

Legality of Genestealer Patriarch by format. Formats in which it is not legal are not listed.

LegacyLegal
VintageLegal
CommanderLegal
Duel CommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal

Other printings of Genestealer Patriarch

The other printings are listed newest first, with the rarity and release year of each.

PrintingRarityYear
Warhammer 40,000 Commander (40K) #22★Rare2022

Official rulings

Six official rulings apply to Genestealer Patriarch, newest first.

  • Any enters-the-battlefield abilities of the copied creature will trigger when the token enters the battlefield. Any "as [this creature] enters the battlefield" or "[this creature] enters the battlefield with" abilities of the creature will also work.
  • If the copied creature had {X} in its mana cost, X is 0.
  • If the copied creature was copying something else, then the token enters the battlefield as whatever that creature copied.
  • If you control more than one Genestealer Patriarch as a creature with an infection counter on it dies, each one's ability will trigger, and you will make two tokens that are copies of it.
  • The token copies exactly what was printed on the original creature and nothing else (unless that creature is copying something else; see below). It doesn't copy whether that creature was tapped or untapped, whether it had any counters on it or Auras or Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that had changed its power, toughness, types, color, or so on.
  • The token copies the creature as it last existed on the battlefield before it died, not as it exists in the graveyard.

Similar cards

Other creature cards with a blue colour identity, ranked by how often they appear in Commander decks.

In these precons

Genestealer Patriarch is in the decklist of these preconstructed Commander decks.

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