Many of the more self-important factions in Warhammer 40,000 have complex and inscrutable motivations, but not the Tyranids – for these galaxy-spanning nightmares from the dark beyond, there is only one directive: consume.
And Throne above, they are good at it. The Space Marines have their work cut out for them in the upcoming Leviathan boxed set, and it’s time to find out why in our next faction spotlight.
Overview
The Tyranids are ravening monsters who devour worlds in a chitinous tide – and as you might imagine, they test the mettle of even hardened veterans. Accordingly, they have several ways to apply Battle-shock tests to cowering foes and take advantage of the results – including their powerful Shadow in the Warp ability.
They also benefit more than ever from working together as a single, all-consuming mass, guided by the Synapse network that emanates from the Hive Mind’s node beasts.
Faction Rules
We’ve already seen what the Hyper-adaptations from the Invasion Fleet Detachment can do, but that’s only one facet of the swarm. All Tyranids, no matter which Detachment you pick, benefit from the two unique army rules we just mentioned – Synapse and Shadow in the Warp.
The former will be familiar to veteran Tyranid players – smaller bioforms who stay close to their betters get to roll an extra dice when making Battle-shock tests. This ability compensates for the low Leadership characteristics common to lesser Tyranids – beyond Synapse Range, they’re a mindless rabble driven by predatory instincts. Within Synapse Range, they’re a swarm of singular and unrelenting purpose…
SYNAPSE creatures now also act as nodes to call the Shadow in the Warp down onto the battlefield, forcing an immediate Battle-shock test on every unit in the opponent’s army. You can trigger this ability once per game, in either player’s Command phase, and it can utterly annihilate your foe’s battle plan as key units lose control of objectives and access to Stratagems.
Taken together, these abilities allow you to control the morale game and ensure your units snag objectives. A failed Battle-shock test imparts some pretty serious penalties, and it’ll only take a few opposing units bottling it to swing the game in your favour.
Unit Spotlight
Genestealers have helped shape the galaxy of Warhammer 40,000 from the early days of Space Hulk, lurking in the nightmares of Terminators ever since. They’re now twice as hard to put down, with one extra Wound each, while the Scouts 8" core ability gives them a free move of 8" after deployment. They’re perfect for scuttling over to a key objective, where their rending claws get full Wound re-rolls thanks to the Vanguard Predator ability.
Tyranid swarms are capable of shockingly cunning strategic manoeuvres, and none exemplify this better than the Swarmlord. This apex bioform is a military genius on par with the galaxy’s best generals, spawned only when the Hive Mind needs to overwhelm particularly tough targets.
The Swarmlord cements your mastery over the Command phase with two key abilities. Hive Commander effectively doubles the Command points you generate in your own turn, allowing you to employ more juicy Stratagems. Malign Presence, on the other hand, is a nasty way to shut out your opponent’s most reliable Stratagems, allowing you to increase the CP cost of one specific Stratagem for the rest of the battle.
Weapon Spotlight
Though they have a reputation as close combat monsters, Tyranids pack some serious ranged firepower. The rupture cannon is a massive two-stage bioweapon mounted on the lumbering Tyrannofex that launches acid-filled ticks and chemically unstable seeds the size of cars – because of course it does.
The rupture cannon’s revolting payload gets even stronger in the new edition, to keep up with the tougher vehicles it’ll encounter, and it can put out some seriously eye-watering damage numbers. Better yet, the new Heavy weapon ability makes it more accurate, provided your Tyrannofex can stay put and plant its feet. Er, claws.
Stratagem Spotlight
A swarm of Tyranids at full tilt is an endless tide of chittering creatures, replacing fallen bodies almost as soon as they hit the ground. These units are marked by the ENDLESS MULTITUDE keyword, which ties into the new-look Endless Swarm Stratagem.
Termagants, Hormagaunts, Gargoyles, and the new Neurogaunts featured in the Leviathan boxed set all have this keyword. For just a single Command point, you can bring back up to six fallen critters – or take advantage of your Synapse network to target two units at once, and resurrect up to 12 models in each of your turns! That’s a lot of wasted firepower for your opponent.
The Word from the Studio
“We were keen to bring the unnatural, alien horror of the Tyranids to the fore in this edition, emphasising that they are utterly terrifying foes to fight,” explains Robin from the Warhammer Studio.
“This leads to the Shadow in the Warp causing battlefield-wide panic and disruption, while creatures in Synapse Range remain single-minded and utterly lethal, especially in the confines of close combat. Meanwhile, the famed bio-adaptability of the Tyranids is captured in their Detachment rules, allowing them to adapt at the start of battle to be best suited to overcome their prey.”
Black Library
If the Tyranids have any weakness, it’s that the Hive Mind isn’t one for sharing stories, so tales of their righteous crusade of consumption are generally told from less sympathetic perspectives. Nevertheless, if you want to see some of the canned biomass we call Space Marines getting seriously mangled, the upcoming Leviathan novel by Darius Hinks is a great place to start.
You can get a preview of the dire times awaiting the galaxy in Devastation of Baal by Guy Haley, which focuses on the last time Hive Fleet Leviathan rampaged through Imperial space. If you’re wondering why Roboute Guilliman is so morose about Leviathan’s re-emergence on the other side of the galaxy in the cinematic trailer, this is why.
Check in with Warhammer Community as we keep up our #New40k previews for every faction in the game, continuing with a decidedly less civil brand of Space Marine later this week Or check out more Faction Focus articles at the links below.