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So im planning to get back into the hobby after several years of absence, and Id like to collect something more interesting than Space Marines like I did originally (no offense to any SM players, just looking for a change of pace).
I really like the design of the Tyranids, and love the fluff too.
What Im hearing (or rather reading) though, is that they arent too easy a race to start on, and they take a while to really get to grips with. And that an in depth knowledge of the intricates of the rulebook in needed to get the most out of them (though im sure this is true for most armies anyway).
What are peoples opinions, are they too hard for a born again rookie, or if I actually put the effort in to learning the rules will I be okay?
Cheers.

You'll be fine. They just aren't as good as they used to be.

they're a great army but don't expect a lot right away. It may take a bit to understand the best way to use them. If its been awhile for you then make sure you get a feel for the game as its changed alot since you last played (3rd,4th?) but winning is a very satisfying feeling, especially with an army many think are weak. I've had much success with them after coming back from a year absence.

Regardless of your opinion of their relative power, Nids are not a beginner army. They are not really an expert army, either. They are kind of middle of the road, in terms of difficulty. Eldar and Inquisition armies tend to be the ones with hard learning curves. Nids are forgiving in the morale department, but poor positioning can get you shot to hell in a hurry, as they lack the staying power of the various MEQ armies.

A lot depends on the type of army you run, as well. Tervigon/Gaunt spam armies are pretty straightforward to play, while Stealer Shock/Warrior Heavy lists tend to require more finesse, at least in the movement phase. Its also hard to get a handle on the army because its capabilities change radically as you go up in point levels, unlike a lot of the other armies. If you are comming from a Marine mentality, the Tervispam list is a good starting point, since it has a certain stability to it that you may already be accostumed to.

shaunzo wrote:they're a great army but don't expect a lot right away. It may take a bit to understand the best way to use them. If its been awhile for you then make sure you get a feel for the game as its changed alot since you last played (3rd,4th?) but winning is a very satisfying feeling, especially with an army many think are weak. I've had much success with them after coming back from a year absence.

I believe I was third edition. Must be around 6 or 7 years ago. Pretty sure that was third.

But yes sound advice from people so far. As long as I spend some time researching and making a list that works, and am at least somewhat tactical in the field and play to my army's strengths, I shouldnt do too badly (hopefully!).

Pick a theme you want, choose units you think will work good for your theme, and use what works for you. of all armies Tyranid units are what you make of them. you can go for elite unit spam, heavy support spam, HQ death star. deep strike, fleeting, or monster spam.each unit will mold to your battle plan as you mold into how the unit works for you. The army will grow on you.

Just be prepared to have your heart broken as you lose two dozen gaunts in one round of shooting. I still can't get over that happening to my Guardsmen. They aren't a terribly hard army to play with, but they've got some cool tricks if you want to utilize them.

I think im gonna go for mainly elites (Warriors) and Stealers (I think theyre troops, and ymgarls are elites, yes?) with gaunts as a screen. Backed up by a Tyrant or Prime (maybe both) and a fex or two.
I am only aiming for 1000-1500 pts total.

If they're too hard flick their balls (40 Year Old Virgin?)

You shouldn't really let the learning curve rules wise put you off an army. You want to play this army for a long time so an army that improves as you improve should be much more fun and will amuse you for longer than an army that is fairly point and click.

If you loike the look of nids play some nids, but don't expect to win until you've got a good few games under your belt. But that applies to every army really.

There are a couple of factors that make nids not ideal for beginners but they're more on the modelling side such as

- key units not having a model and requiring conversions
- the difficulty of conversions when all your weapons are organic and everything has smooth curved lines
- difficutly of painting monsters and big units well
- the vast numbers you need to buy and get painted up to get a swarm running

About the only rules issue is that there are a lot of special rules to remember when playing nids but if you played 3rd ed I don't imagine you'll have a problem with that.