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What should I equip my Carnifex and warriors? Should I use guns, or claws? And which of which?

It all depends on how your army works. If it is close combat arm your 'fex with crushing claws and/or scything talons. or your warriors with scything talons. If it's shooty make your 'fex's weapon platforms by putting venom cannons on the carnifex's and give warriors devourer's. Or mix and match if your a hybrid take 6 'fexs 3 with crushing claws/scything talons and 3 with venom cannons, same with Warriors, also warriors ,as I under stand it, are troops now, so you could give them devourers and a venom cannon and place them on an objective. their number of wounds and cover will keep them alive for a good deal of the game. Also, spore pods are in, I believe, now, so drop a few 'fex's on/near the other guy's tanks and get rid of them 2/3 turn.

Cambak wrote:It all depends on how your army works. If it is close combat arm your 'fex with crushing claws and/or scything talons. or your warriors with scything talons. If it's shooty make your 'fex's weapon platforms by putting venom cannons on the carnifex's and give warriors devourer's. Or mix and match if your a hybrid take 6 'fexs 3 with crushing claws/scything talons and 3 with venom cannons, same with Warriors, also warriors ,as I under stand it, are troops now, so you could give them devourers and a venom cannon and place them on an objective. their number of wounds and cover will keep them alive for a good deal of the game. Also, spore pods are in, I believe, now, so drop a few 'fex's on/near the other guy's tanks and get rid of them 2/3 turn.

But do you know if this is a good idea? Do you have the codex?

Klawz wrote:

Cambak wrote:It all depends on how your army works. If it is close combat arm your 'fex with crushing claws and/or scything talons. or your warriors with scything talons. If it's shooty make your 'fex's weapon platforms by putting venom cannons on the carnifex's and give warriors devourer's. Or mix and match if your a hybrid take 6 'fexs 3 with crushing claws/scything talons and 3 with venom cannons, same with Warriors, also warriors ,as I under stand it, are troops now, so you could give them devourers and a venom cannon and place them on an objective. their number of wounds and cover will keep them alive for a good deal of the game. Also, spore pods are in, I believe, now, so drop a few 'fex's on/near the other guy's tanks and get rid of them 2/3 turn.

But do you know if this is a good idea? Do you have the codex?

I don't have the codex but i know a guy who does. But with most mech armies and MEQ my suggestions are pretty good and seeing as most people play MEQ's.... *sighs*

But you don't HAVE to take my word for it, because I play guard. But this is how my friend stacks up his list and it works really well. also, YMMV so it all depends on your playing style.

Also, by 2/3 turn I meant turn 2 or 3.

Cambak wrote:

Klawz wrote:

Cambak wrote:It all depends on how your army works. If it is close combat arm your 'fex with crushing claws and/or scything talons. or your warriors with scything talons. If it's shooty make your 'fex's weapon platforms by putting venom cannons on the carnifex's and give warriors devourer's. Or mix and match if your a hybrid take 6 'fexs 3 with crushing claws/scything talons and 3 with venom cannons, same with Warriors, also warriors ,as I under stand it, are troops now, so you could give them devourers and a venom cannon and place them on an objective. their number of wounds and cover will keep them alive for a good deal of the game. Also, spore pods are in, I believe, now, so drop a few 'fex's on/near the other guy's tanks and get rid of them 2/3 turn.

But do you know if this is a good idea? Do you have the codex?

I don't have the codex but i know a guy who does. But with most mech armies and MEQ my suggestions are pretty good and seeing as most people play MEQ's.... *sighs*

But you don't HAVE to take my word for it, because I play guard. But this is how my friend stacks up his list and it works really well. also, YMMV so it all depends on your playing style.

Also, by 2/3 turn I meant turn 2 or 3.

Hmm.....maybe.....
I would like to wait for other people, though

lol Well fexes are better shooters now cause in cc trygon etc are waaay better.

WarmasterScott wrote:lol Well fexes are better shooters now cause in cc trygon etc are waaay better.

Really? The Carnifex has 3-4 more S than the Trygon, and the Trygon has 2 more attacks than the Carnifex. But, I can get upgrades for my Carnifex like Crushing Claws.

If you can get across the board. Also the Carnifex thats better in a sense costs at least 50 more points. The trygon is cheaper, moves faster, helps troops cross faster, etc. Not too mention the Trygon also has a higher I.


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Oh and I can make the trygon have synapse and thats a bonus considering 80 percent of the tyranids need synapse.

A Carnifex can take a pod so it can DS just as well as the Trygon but you do add an easy KP. It depends on what you want your carnifex or trygon to do. The Trygon is better against troops the carnifex is better at killing land raiders. To me the Trygon's biggest advantage is the two extra wounds. Synapse on the Trygon can also be an important addition depending on the rest your force. I don't think you can clearly say that one is better than the other.

As to the OP, so far I like a Carnifex with bio plasma and a spore pod. The change to scything talons helps the carnifex a lot. The heavy venom canon isn't good enough to have them walk across the board shooting and there are better, cheaper anti-infantry options than the stranglethorn canon.

I haven't played with warriors yet to comment there. I think I'd take the shrikes with talons, rending, and adrenal glands and toxin sacs.

Yeah, a 'plain' Carnifex (2 sets of ScyTals) with bio plasma and a spore pod seems a popular option - jump out of the pod and plasma something, then run around crushing tanks etc.

A unit of three walking fexes is tempting, but horribly expensive unless in a high-points army.

The Venom Cannon is actually great for making vehicles useless roadblocks, however. It's almost a shoe-in for a Stunned/Shaken or Immobilized result.

That's all the 'Nids really need. Gum up the opposition's plans for mobility until your claws can get there.

The new book is all about synergy between the units; not stand-alone awesomesauce.

Thanks everybody for your responses! I am thinking about having my Carnifex in the 200-250 points range, So basically Scything Talons, crushing claws, and maybe a spore pod if it's less than 60 points.

Does anyone have any specific weapon/upgrades for warriors?

Deathspitter are real nice for their ranged option, and after that I'd take Scytals to be cheap, or Boneswords to be deadly.

Aduro wrote:Deathspitter are real nice for their ranged option, and after that I'd take Scytals to be cheap, or Boneswords to be deadly.

How cheap is deathspitter w/ scytal?

5 ponts per model for the deathspitters, comes with Scything Talons

doubled wrote:5 ponts per model for the deathspitters, comes with Scything Talons

Would that mean 4.2 OSG total? (Old Spine Gaunts)

You can't twin-link ranged weapons on warriors anymore, so there is no reason to try to specialize in shooting with them. Deathspitters are good, multi-purpose ranged weapons to have, even though I'm disappointed that they pointlessly changed what has always been a blast weapon to a 3 shot weapon. As for close combat, boneswords. They are powerweapons, so where the rest of your army has to rely on rending attacks or weight of numbers to take down crap like Plague Marines, you can just throw warriors at them and watch them go away. Don't forget that they can borrow WS and BS(I'm pretty sure) from an Alpha Warrior, and poison (more useful) and furious charge(generally less useful but helpful if you can manage to reliably get the charge) are both nice upgrades.

As for Carnifexes, they really got shafted this go 'round. If you want a shooting platform, then the Tyrannofex is better, and for close combat the Trygon is better getting there, causing more damage, and helping other models across where the Carnifex must either walk up the table or provide your opponent with another kill point. It also has been nonsensically stuck at I1 for some silly reason and can only become I3 (HA!) if it charges, which isn't very likely unless it is on your opponents terms. Either way, the Carnifex saw a HUGE spike in points just to get an extra couple of attacks and access to pods while remaining I1 and WS3. I'd try out other options first, but if you must use one, for whatever reason, you're probably going to have to pod it, and have Lictors or Commander Tyrants to make sure it gets on the board in a timely manner.

Railguns wrote:You can't twin-link ranged weapons on warriors anymore, so there is no reason to try to specialize in shooting with them. Deathspitters are good, multi-purpose ranged weapons to have, even though I'm disappointed that they pointlessly changed what has always been a blast weapon to a 3 shot weapon. As for close combat, boneswords. They are powerweapons, so where the rest of your army has to rely on rending attacks or weight of numbers to take down crap like Plague Marines, you can just throw warriors at them and watch them go away. Don't forget that they can borrow WS and BS(I'm pretty sure) from an Alpha Warrior, and poison (more useful) and furious charge(generally less useful but helpful if you can manage to reliably get the charge) are both nice upgrades.

As for Carnifexes, they really got shafted this go 'round. If you want a shooting platform, then the Tyrannofex is better, and for close combat the Trygon is better getting there, causing more damage, and helping other models across where the Carnifex must either walk up the table or provide your opponent with another kill point. It also has been nonsensically stuck at I1 for some silly reason and can only become I3 (HA!) if it charges, which isn't very likely unless it is on your opponents terms. Either way, the Carnifex saw a HUGE spike in points just to get an extra couple of attacks and access to pods while remaining I1 and WS3. I'd try out other options first, but if you must use one, for whatever reason, you're probably going to have to pod it, and have Lictors or Commander Tyrants to make sure it gets on the board in a timely manner.

Thanks for your response! I personally don't mind the fex shaft, but yeah, I'm absolutely take a Spod. I still think the warriors can hold an objective ('cause that's what I need them to do) even without TL weapons.

I'm really liking the idea of warriors with twin boneswords & deathspitters, lead by a Tyranid Prime with bonesword, lashwhip, and deathspitter -- pricey, but they're going to eat up just about anything that's not a vehicle.

Ian Sturrock wrote:I'm really liking the idea of warriors with twin boneswords & deathspitters, lead by a Tyranid Prime with bonesword, lashwhip, and deathspitter -- pricey, but they're going to eat up just about anything that's not a vehicle.

True, but a swarm army seems like the most fun, if not the most effective, goodness of 2010. I want the warriors to sit on their butts for the game, shooting up anything within 12-24".

Swarms take practice playing quickly, otherwise the game gets bogged down. Walking up the field is practically a shame given how many options we now have for circumventing the distance issue. Podding, outflanking and trygon holes are all options I wish I had with the last edition'
s codex, and are even more important now that our monstrous creatures are all going to cost somewhere around 200 points or more, and the larger ones costing as much(or more) than Land Raiders.

Klawz wrote:What should I equip my Carnifex and warriors? Should I use guns, or claws? And which of which?

Why wouldn't you use both? Warriors seem like a great second rank unit. Hide them behind a rank of Gaunts for a cover save and they provide Synapse and some shooting over the Gaunts. Move forward and once you're in range, assault something with the little guys as backup.

Carnifex could work the same way but as the third rank, shooting over the Warriors (maybe getting a cover save?) and backup assault.

Klawz wrote:Does anyone have any specific weapon/upgrades for warriors?

45 Point Warriors - Toxic Sacs, Rending Claws & Deathspitters
Poison-Claws is a nice combo as it allows you to get more Rends and can wound anything. Boneswords will actually kill more basic Infantry for the same cost but Rending gives a chance against Walkers and higher strength opponents.

35 Points - Syth Talons & Deathspitters
I expect this will be the basic Warrior for most people. Put half a dozen of them with an Alpha in a Spore. They have a decent gun and can defend themselves in Melee.

Carnifex depending on how many points you have to spend...
210 Points - Carnifex w/ Bioplasma & Brainleech Devourer, Syth Talon, Frag Spines, Adrenal Glands
195 Points - Carnifex w/ Bioplasma & Brainleech Devourer, Syth Talon
180 Points - Carnifex w/ Bioplasma & Syth Talons x2

Lyracian wrote:
35 Points - Syth Talons & Deathspitters
I expect this will be the basic Warrior for most people. Put half a dozen of them with an Alpha in a Spore. They have a decent gun and can defend themselves in Melee.

I think we'll see this unit most frequently if they run an Alpha. It just makes sense. 30 BS4 shots when you land will be tough plus you can glance things like Rhinos. If the Alpha has 2x Boneswords (for ICs/MCs) the rest of the Warriors just need to handle the little things and WS6 and rerolling 1's will do that.

For Carnfiex, what about hybrids like this?

Carnifex, Stranglethorn Cannon, Talons = 180
S6 is enough to hurt light vehicles and transports and its a blast weapon so BS3 isn't that bad. HVC could work as well, even though its only really good for stunlocking shooting units.

For my Warriors I've got the following builds;

"Cheap HtH" 35 pts
Scything Talons, Rending Claws, Toxin Sacs

"Cheap Shooting" 35 pts
Scything Talons, Deathspitters

"Elite Alpha Guard" 45 pts
Boneswords, Deathspitters

The carnifex shines against vehicles, give it a heavy venom cannon and fire it as you get closer to assault range. The venom cannon will pen most transports easily, preventing the vehicle from shooting as you approach. Once in charge range the carnifex auto-pens most vehicles with each hit as str 9 + 2d6= a minimum of 11. With 5 attacks on the charge you should atleast get one hit.

Carnifex Heavy Venom Cannon, Bio-plasma

This carnifex is able to do a little of everything, it will be a problem and will become a bigger threat as it gets closer. Even if the heavy cannon is not able to destroy the vehicle, it can atleast stop it from shooting which will save the lives of other units and prevent wounds, combine with the hive guard our shooting is a constant compare to vehicles which stops firing after a glance.

If you're going to take a gun, you might look into swapping the second set of Scytals for the Crushing Claws. Scytals are really good in two pairs, but merely OK with just one.

The Crushing Claws are better in this edition of Codex: Tyranids. In the previous they replaced the Carnifex's A2, requiring a roll of 3+ to even start paying for themselves. In this edition they're on top of the A4 that the Carnifex starts with, so between 5-7A, 6-8 on the charge.

Something else I noticed was the utility of Bio-Plasma: Belch that at a transport your Carnifex is about a charge and you may have the opportunity to charge the squishy goo inside.

I'm working on sort of combined arms approach.

All my Monstrous Creatures that can have them carry Stranglethorn Cannons, my Gaunts tote Devourers (first game with them today, and I think they kick arse! Bit pricey sure, but sooo much dakka! Can I call it Dakka? If not what, what do we call it? Raveners and Warriors sport Deathspitters.

Reasoning here is that I will be running my army as distinct swarms. 16 Gaunts, 3 Warriors, Venomthrope and a Pyrovore are one lot. This is for clearing out and holding an objective out of my own area. Hiveguard contest one on my half, providing a pain for my opponents tanks thanks to not needing LoS. Carnifex and Tyrant then rampage about, looking for Tanks to squish in HTH, and units of troops in the open ripe for a good seeding from the Stranglethorns. Meanwhile, the Trygon Prime and Mawloc provide a second part of muscle, to go threaten enemy held objectives on his half of the board, with the Gargoyles being primarily there to get in the way and block nasty charges (Dreadnought can play with them all it wants. They are cheap for a reason!).

Not convinced by Crushing Claws. The additional attacks are of course lovely when it comes to stomping flat a Landraider, and will be priceless in Apocalypse for opening up Superheavies, but always striking at I1 worries me a bit more than the additional attacks reassure me. Though as said above, they are still worth considering!