Insect
| Insect | |
|---|---|
| Creature Type | |
| (Subtype for creature/kindred cards) | |
| Introduced |
Legends (updated) Alliances (printed) |
| Last used | Avatar: The Last Airbender |
| Scryfall Statistics | |
Insect is a catch-all creature type used for crawling or flying little creatures and larger and/or humanoid variants. The first creature to bear the type was Deadly Insect from Alliances. Yavimaya Gnats in Ice Age was typed Insects (pluralized) and Carrion Ants from Legends was later issued errata to become an insect. Insects are printed in all colors, but most prevalent in green and black.
Types of insects
Imago
- Ant (Army Ants, Ant Queen)
- Bee (Killer Bees, Unyaro Bees)
- Beetle (Carrion Beetles, Scavenging Scarab, Monstrous Carabid[1])
- Butterfly (Giant Caterpillar and Megaflora Jungle produce Insect tokens named Butterfly)
- Cave Crawlers or "mantis-spiders."[2] They have long, spindly legs, narrow and segmented insectile bodies, and folded arms tucked against their chests. Extremely fast, they have razor-sharp forearms and mandibles surrounding their jagged maws.
- Cicada (Skittering Cicada)
- Cockroach (Brood of Cockroaches)
- Dragonfly (Bayou Dragonfly)
- Firefly (Firefly)
- Fly (Robber Fly)
- Gnat (Yavimaya Gnats)
- Grasshopper (Acridian)
- Hornet (Hornet Queen)
- Locust (Locust Swarm)
- Mantis (Giant Mantis)
- Mosquito (Swamp Mosquito)
- Moth (Hawkeater Moth)
- Milipede (Moldgraf Millipede; actually a myriapod)
- Solifuge (Giant Solifuge; actually an arachnid)
- Wasp (Caustic Wasps)
- Walking Stick (Twigwalker)
- Weevil (Brain Weevil)
Larva
- Beetle (Deadly Grub, Coiling Woodworm)
- Butterfly (Giant Caterpillar)
- Fly (Flow of Maggots)
Artifact
- Clockwork Beetle
- Clockwork Swarm
- Hornet Cannon (produces Insect artifact creature tokens named Hornet)
- Jhoira's Toolbox
- Rust Tick
- Sludge Strider, monstrous artifact water striders that balance on the surface, feeding on passing refuse.[3]
- Wirefly Hive (produces Insect artifact creature tokens named Wirefly)
- The Hive (produces Insect artifact creature tokens named Wasp)
Plagues
Amonkhet
- The Locust God released a swarm of locusts on an unprepared Amonkhet.[4]
Grixis
Banewasps are omnivorous insects that nest in reeflike hives that tower over Grixis's sea.[3] Banewasps prefer decaying flesh to other food and will swarm in great numbers in search of fresh corpses. However, sometimes the larvae feed on the flesh of zombies or living humans. Banewasps are poor sources of vis but can be used by necromancers to animate fleshdolls.
Mirrodin / New Phyrexia
Pistus flies are mosquito-like flying insects that feed on the fluids of living beasts on Mirrodin. A sufficiently hungry swarm of pistus flies can even take down a dragon. In recent times they've become an unwitting ally of New Phyrexia, as they are capable of slurping up and then spreading the Phyrexian contagion to other creatures.[5][6]
Sapient insects
Dominaria
Emerald dragonflies
Emerald dragonflies are insects native to the White Woods of Corondor. They were used by the Calthyn elves in their battles against the Lieryn elves.
Eumidians
The Eumidians of Dominaria are humanoid wasps with brilliant gold exoskeletons, four transparent wings, and large green compound eyes. Eumidians originally lived in a hive society, somewhere in Jamuraa. However, individuals with particularly powerful minds, such as Xira Arien, were able to break free and live independently.[7][8]
Eumidians of The Edge are a brood of an ancient terrasymbiotic species whose homeworld is in a distant, forgotten system and may not even exist anymore.[9]
Nantuko
The Nantuko is a sapient race of mostly benevolent man-sized insects, who lived a life of strong respect for nature and protected the Krosan Forest.[10][11] The Nantuko are most commonly found in Krosa on Otaria, but have appeared on Urborg as well. During the time of major climate change in Sarpadia following The Brothers' War, the Thelonite Order included humanoid insects who may have been Nantuko.
The current fate of the Nantuko race is unknown, as Krosa has been all but destroyed after the machinations of Karona, the Mirari, and the time rifts. In the Time Spiral novel, there are mentions of Nantukos still living in Urborg, and serving Lord Windgrace.
Nantuko are also present in Kamigawa.[12] They were originally designed to replace the Orochi, but the snake folk ultimately remained and only one was printed, with no in-universe explanation or reference to its species.
Notable Nantuko include:
Innistrad
Although the plane of Innistrad has no known natural species of sentient insect, there have been cases documented of mad scientists delving into the dark arts and becoming nightmarish aberrations.
Kamigawa
Kamigawa has two races of intelligent insects. One is the white aligned giant moths, which form bonds with the samurai but are equals in their arrangement. The other is the species that Spring-Leaf Avenger is, which was intended to be Nantuko (see above), as introduced in Neon Dynasty.
Ravnica
Kraul
The sapient Kraul inhabit the Undercity, far below the main streets of Ravnica. Living on the periphery, some felt a sense of loyalty and kinship toward the Golgari Swarm, while others rejected the guilds. These six-legged insectile beings are hard-headed and literal-minded. Some of them possess a set of functional wings and are capable of flight. These creatures lay their eggs in the body of another species. The giant "mother" is eaten alive when the eggs gestate.[13] Highest in rank are the death priests, followed by the necromancers. The majority occupy various roles of soldiery, from commanders to the lowest infantry. Their current leader is unknown.
After Vraska became guildmaster, the Kraul gained a more important role and became loyal to her personally instead of to the Swarm.[14]
Speedbrood
The Speedbrood is a racing team of alien insects and arthropods from an unknown plane that competed in the Ghirapur Grand Prix across Avishkar, Amonkhet and Muraganda.[15]
Use of insects
Alara
Scarlet wasps are particularly deadly wasps that build huge nests in Naya's trees.[3] One sting can kill a medium-sized animal. Humans have cultivated an immunity to the sting of the scarlet wasp, and often build near their huge nests for protection. In small doses, the wasp toxin can be distilled into an elixir that provides humans with increased strength.
Bloomburrow
On Bloomburrow, there were once giant insects that dug the catacombs now used as Ossuaries by the ratfolk. Many insects are utilized as food, generally in dishes with more than one ingredient, while others are bonded to animalfolk. Each species of animalfolk has a species of insect they often pair with.[16] Ratfolk have the closest connection with bugs, especially snails, psychically linking with them and considering them as pets and friends. Mousefolk are known to keep fireflies as companions, while batfolk prefer moths.[17]
Dominaria
The Windgrace Acolytes of Urborg used trained insects, called gladehunters, to track down artifice and artificers alike.[18][19]
Kamigawa
Some samurai of Eiganjo on Kamigawa ride gigantic trained moths into combat.[20] Nezumi shamans are known to use incantations that summon and control insects, to swarm and distract their enemies.[21]
Ravnica
The Golgari Swarm of Ravnica ride bizarre insects called stiltstriders or longlegs, which are gangly, stilt-legged creatures as tall as a building.[14]
Shadowmoor
The Hobgoblins of Shadowmoor tame and ride giant cicadas into battle. (Hobgoblin Dragoon)
Tarkir
At the isolated Highspire Stronghold on Tarkir, monks of the Jeskai Way are trained to control and ride wild mantises. These mantises make for dangerous mounts, never forming a sense of loyalty toward their riders, who must take care to always be on their guard.
Zendikar
Ventcrawlers are slow-moving arachnids the size of a car that enjoy feeding on the charred bodies of creatures caught in lava flows or deadly steam bursts. They have been domesticated by the Grotag tribe of goblins.[22]
The Grotag are also known to occasionally tame geopedes, a red-aligned giant centipede-like insect.[22]
Creature Type Updates
In (and before) the Grand Creature Type Update the creature types Ant, Bee, Butterfly, Caterpillar, Dragonfly, Hornet, Mantis, Mosquito, Swarm, Wasp and Wirefly were changed to Insect. In Magic, centipedes and other Myriapoda are also considered insects.[23]
Notable Insects
- The Edge
- Unknown
Triva
- Swarmyard is a land that regenerates insects.
- The crossover Tyranid race is considered an insectoid race.
- Maggot tokens (Carrion) were changed into Insect tokens for the digital release of Mirage.
Tokens
| Token name | Color | Type line | P/T | Text box | Source | Printings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insect | 
|
Creature — Insect | 2/1 | Flying | ||
|
Creature — Insect | 0/1 | ||||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | ||||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying | |||
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 |
|
|||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying, deathtouch | |||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 3/3 | ||||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 6/1 | Shroud | |||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | ||||
|
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying | |||
 
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying, haste | |||
|
Artifact Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying | |||
| Butterfly |
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying | ||
| Hornet |
|
Artifact Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying, haste | ||
| Wasp |
|
Artifact Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Flying | ||
| Wirefly |
|
Artifact Creature — Insect | 2/2 | Flying | ||
| Alien Insect |
|
Creature — Alien Insect | 1/1 | Flying | ||
| Phyrexian Insect |
|
Creature — Phyrexian Insect | 1/1 | Infect | ||
| Inchblade Companion |
|
Artifact Creature — Equipment Insect | 1/1 | Equipped creature gets +1/+1. Reconfigure 
|
||
| Giant Adephage |
|
Creature — Insect | 7/7 | Trample Whenever Giant Adephage deals combat damage to a player, put a token onto the battlefield that's a copy of Giant Adephage. |
||
| Scute Swarm |
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 | Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, create a 1/1 green Insect creature token. If you control six or more lands, create a token that's a copy of Scute Swarm instead. |
| Token name | Color | Type line | P/T | Text box | Source | Printings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insect |
|
Creature — Insect | 1/1 |
Manlands
- Nantuko Monastery — 4/4
Insect Monk creature with first strike
Manstones
- Golgari Keyrune — 2/2
Insect artifact creature with deathtouch
References
- ↑ Magic Arcana (June 16, 2009). "Insects of Alara". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Valerie Valdes (October 20, 2023). "The Lost Caverns of Ixalan - Episode 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b c Doug Beyer & Jenna Helland (2008). A Planeswalker's Guide to Alara, Wizards of the Coast. ISBN-13 978-0786951246
- ↑ Michael Yichao (June 21, 2017). "The Hour of Glory". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Doug Beyer (February 02, 2011). "A Linguistic Look at Besieged". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Doug Beyer (March 16, 2011). "Six Secrets Behind the Sets". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Scott McGough (2002) - Assassin's Blade, Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Scott McGough (2003) - Emperor's Fist, Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Miguel Lopez, Jay Annelli, Laurel Pratt, and Amanda LaFranco (June 20, 2025). "Planeswalkers Guide to Edge of Eternities". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Will McDermott (May 27, 2002). "Caught in the Mirari's Wake, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2020-08-15.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (March 18, 2004). "Odyssey style guide: Nantuko". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Worldbuilding (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (February 17, 2022).
- ↑ Nicky Drayden (November 7, 2018). "Death's Precious Moments". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ a b James Wyatt (January 2019). "The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Ravnica". Wizards of the Coast
- ↑ December 10, 2024 (Miguel Lopez). "Planeswalker's Guide to Aetherdrift, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ WeeklyMTG - Bloomburrow Preview Show (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (July 16, 2024).
- ↑ Behind the Scenes with Bloomburrow Worldbuilding - Gen Con Panel (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (August 23, 2024).
- ↑ Scott McGough (2006), "Time Spiral", Wizards of the Coast
- ↑ James Wyatt (2018), The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Dominaria. VIZ Media.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (April 14, 2005). "Kamigawa Style Guide: Moth Mounts". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (July 05, 2005). "A Couple of Misers". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ a b Magic Creative Team (December 16, 2009). "A Planeswalker’s Guide to Zendikar: Goblins". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (December 02, 2002). "Sketches: Symbiotic Beast". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (March 15, 2007). "Planar Chaos Token Art 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on January 23, 2022.
