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I've heard a lot of fluff of nids 'inside' the 40k universe. But noone seems to know where they come from so i thought i'd see what everyones personal views are ?

Personally i think that tyranids were created by the outsider c'tan which explains the eternal hunger (the outsider ate his brothers and went insane) the one race they can't destroy are necrons (they're not edible) and the origins outside the galaxy (the home of the banished c'tan)

but i want to know what other peoples views are ?

Actually Necrons could very well be edible. Consider how many trace metals most animals need. Iron being a large chuck of it.

My view: The Nids are from another Galaxy. They have nothing to do with any of the factions in our current system other than the Milky Way was next in line. To have the C'tan create them, or to have the Old One's create them does nothing more than cheapen them to the level of comedy.

They are NOT some dead-mans trigger so that when an army loses the Nids come out and eat the winner as revenge.

They have came from a far-flung galaxy, having eaten all the edible bits. Now they are coming here.

Pretty much, that's it...

I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

My personal theory is that they were a highly-advanced bio weapon created by a race in another galaxy to fight for them in a scorched-earth sense against a foe....(This idea is actually explored in the Alien series/movies, but it is only hinted at, and generally a terrible failure)
They were successful, creating an ultimate, unstoppable war machine, however their creations gained sentience as the Hive Mind came to being, they then turned on their old masters, and eradicated the entirety of that galaxy, now they are ready for the second course.

It actually isn't. The 6th Ed rulebook stated that the fleets encountered thus far are tiny splinters of a far more massive fleet that is still stretched out through the intergalactic void.

@iGuy91: Considering they've eaten about a dozen other galaxies, that'd make this their 13th or 14th course.

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

Very possible but it is also plausible that they merely go from galaxy to galaxy consuming all resources, ala the aliens in independence day

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

Iracundus wrote:

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

People are confusing the subject.

The Zoats were once part of the Tyranid army.

Retconned to be the first extra-galactic race (bar genestealers, who weren't tyranids in the time of the Zoats) to run to the Milky Way from the Tyranids.

Sisters of Battle didn't heed the warnings and killed them all.

See? People confuse the retconned Zoats for a new Tyranid storyline.

Iracundus wrote:

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

Well if it has to be like that, how about this:

Tyranid Codex, page 6,"The Intergalactic Predator"-The Tyranids are not native to our galaxy. They have travelled through the bleak intergalactic space between galaxies for countless milennia. Whether the Tyranids made this perilous journey because they had already consumed everything of worth in their home galaxy or in flight of another, even more fearsome race, is unknown. It is possible that the Tyranids have been preying on galaxies since time immemorial and ours is but the latest to feel it's predations. Whatever the truth, for the Tyranids to have endured such an epic voyage must have required both the greatest single-mindedness and unimaginable amounts of energy.

Think that backs up my statement pretty perfectly. Not Zoats, Genestealers, or my own wishlisting.
I personally believe the Tyranids are simply devouring all the galaxies like everyone else, but it isn't fact just because it is more likely.

Hunchkrot wrote:

Iracundus wrote:

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

Well if it has to be like that, how about this:

Tyranid Codex, page 6,"The Intergalactic Predator"-The Tyranids are not native to our galaxy. They have travelled through the bleak intergalactic space between galaxies for countless milennia. Whether the Tyranids made this perilous journey because they had already consumed everything of worth in their home galaxy or in flight of another, even more fearsome race, is unknown. It is possible that the Tyranids have been preying on galaxies since time immemorial and ours is but the latest to feel it's predations. Whatever the truth, for the Tyranids to have endured such an epic voyage must have required both the greatest single-mindedness and unimaginable amounts of energy.

Think that backs up my statement pretty perfectly. Not Zoats, Genestealers, or my own wishlisting.
I personally believe the Tyranids are simply devouring all the galaxies like everyone else, but it isn't fact just because it is more likely.

It doesn't back up your statement at all. It just states the motive of why the Tyranids made this journey is unknown. It doesn't actually imply or suggest flight as the real or likely reason any more than it suggests that they are on the universe's longest pub craw or that they are on the run from Homer Simpson.

Again the original statement stands. There is no canonical evidence supporting any such flight from some greater race, just a canonical statement that their motive for making the journey is unknown. Flight could be a speculative possibility but so is any of a range of other speculative/ridiculous possibilities. Stating something is unknown is not a statement in support of such possibilities.

Flight being a possibility, and their true motive largely unknown is all I ever stated.

I actually thought of the same thing as NGC. Not that they were created per-say but that the outsider is the hive mind. My reasoning for this resides in 4th ed rule book which explained the reason the Necrons went into hibernation was because of a psychic plague (Enslavers) that was killing everything.

My explanation is that a) it was implied that the soulless gene was put into humans by the C'tan b) C'tan eat life not souls and c) nids are not represented in the warp.

But then the new book of necrons came out and threw my theory out the window.

Iracundus wrote:

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

It has been subtlety suggested by GW. There's a line in the 5th ed Nid codex that states that they may be in flight of an even worse race.

Harriticus wrote:

Iracundus wrote:

Hunchkrot wrote:I don't remember where it was, but I remember it was suggested the Nids could be on the run from a larger enemy not yet known to man. Either way, it's a total mystery.

This has never been suggested.

This has only been repeated fan speculation over the years, with no real evidence other than "Wouldn't it be cool if there were an even bigger even greater threat than the Tyranids, chasing them?". Other than this desire to one-up the Tyranids, there is no canonical evidence for this. This baseless speculation has just been repeated so many times over the years that some people start taking this for some kind of GW background when it never was. There has never been a real citation of a source only the usual vague "I thought I heard this somewhere (from someone)...", which is how so much misinformation and speculation gets passed off as real.

It has been subtlety suggested by GW. There's a line in the 5th ed Nid codex that states that they may be in flight of an even worse race.

GW have subtly suggested about half a dozen origins over the editions. It doesn't make this one any more relevant than the last. It's merely there to add more mystery to their origins - basically, we don't know, and GW probably don't either, because it's not something they want to explore, and personally, it's not something they should. I don't particularly want GW ruining the Tyranids the way Ridley Scott ruined xenomorphs and space jockeys.

NGC wrote:I've heard a lot of fluff of nids 'inside' the 40k universe. But noone seems to know where they come from so i thought i'd see what everyones personal views are ?

Personally i think that tyranids were created by the outsider c'tan which explains the eternal hunger (the outsider ate his brothers and went insane) the one race they can't destroy are necrons (they're not edible) and the origins outside the galaxy (the home of the banished c'tan)

but i want to know what other peoples views are ?

That just shows how limited the writer's knowledge is.

Metal can be broken down with enzyme and bio acid.
Same way humans can with metal and minerals.

My personal view on the Tyranids is that like Transformers there is more than meet the eye. They are a highly advanced race that have no technology but have mastered Biology.

A lot of these theories I've already smashing. "The Hive Mind is a living being" and "Tyranids are slaves to the C'Tan".

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/466303.page

I also heard a theory where the Tyranids were transcended Old Ones.

Or if the Tyranids were created by the old ones to fight Necrons like Eldar and Orks, that would be pretty cool. I don't really like the idea of Tyranids being someone else's creation though.

Hunchkrot wrote:
Or if the Tyranids were created by the old ones to fight Necrons like Eldar and Orks, that would be pretty cool. I don't really like the idea of Tyranids being someone else's creation though.

I'm leaning more towards the hive mind created the old ones in order to seed the galaxy with food...

Hunchkrot wrote:
Or if the Tyranids were created by the old ones to fight Necrons like Eldar and Orks, that would be pretty cool. I don't really like the idea of Tyranids being someone else's creation though.

Unlikely, since they have actively avoided necron space before.

Also Necrons give up very little in the way of biomass.

Having them as an extragalactic locust swarm was always my preferred take on it.

Crons really arn't edible. Iron is not needed in such quantities to make it worth it. Assuming Necrodermis is even made with Iron.

Its like a human buying a 5 gallon drum of Vitamin B suppliment. its more then you'll need for the next 20 years. Sure, you need Vitamin B, but you don't need a 5 gallon bucket of it. trace minerals are just that, trace.




I like the Alien Bioweapon gone rogue theory about the Nids.

Its possable that the Alien race in question was having an Ork problem(orks are the only other known species to exists in multiple galaxies)

They then develop a series of artificial self-replicating life forms to eradicate the Orks. Nids do strip a planet down to the crust.

Unfortunantly, the Bioweapon was/became indiscriminate and began eating everything in its path. Not to mention becoming sentient.




The alternative theory is that the Nids just evolved naturally.

An Insectoid race is the dominant lifeform on a particular planet. They may not be sentient individually, but over time their Hive Conciousness coelesces into one singular entity. Likely because the race is latently psychic.

Like Insects on earth, there are multiple distinct body patterns within the species. A Worker Cast, Warrior Caste, Breeder Cast, etc... These form the foundation for the different Biomorphs, as in how it works on a genetic level having multiple possable body forms for only one type of DNA.


These insects eventually overcrowd their planet. The growing Hive Mind detects lifeforms on other planets with its psychic abilities, it sees food.

So the Hive Mind puts its energy into trying to reach these other food sources. Eventually, a space capable lifeform is developed and the Tyranids are ready to begin traveling the Galaxy.

The rest is History. Millions of years of traveling their home Galaxy searching for food. Evolving under the direction of the Hive Mind.

The Tyranids are essentially insects from another galaxy that are smarter than most of their kind and somehow evolved bioforms that could travel through space. That's my theory.

What constitutes "trace nutrients" for a fleet consisting of thousands to millions of space-borne creatures, some reaching lengths of kilometers, can easily reach many tons. Also, previous Tyranid Codices (such as 3rd edition one) have documented a pattern whereby a feeding hive fleet ends up reproducing and giving birth to more vessels. So even more nutrients would be needed.

The constant dredging up of theories making the Tyranids some sort of planned or even out of control weapon I think stems from a psychological need on the part of readers to give meaning to the Tyranids, even if by meaning it means making 40K humanity the victim of a bio-weapon gone out of control. However I think the greater horror of the Tyranids is the utter lack of caring and relevance they have to the struggles of the galaxy. They don't care about the Emperor, Horus, the Long War, Slaanesh, Ynnead, or any of the other ideals and motivations of other races. Humans are as significant to the Hive Mind as the microbes on your hamburger are significant to you. All that people care about, love, or hate is irrelevant to the Tyranids, and all destined (if the Tyranids have their way) to be swept aside by an avalanche of fangs and claws. In a sense, the Hive Mind is Lovecraftian in the way it treats humanity, and I think a lot of people don't like that feeling of being treated as insignificant and irrelevant, hence the attempts fans keep making of trying to fit the Tyranids into a "bigger picture" with the C'tan or Old Ones or whatever involved. Not everything in the universe has to be connected or part of some grand plan or narrative. The Tyranids are a wild card to this galaxy and threaten to make the struggles of the galaxy's races look as significant as ants fighting over an anthill.

Yes, many tons. But there are still way too many Necrons for them to be a viable source. Planets are just as good, and don't shoot back.

I had an idea about a tyrannid origin story. Completely unsupported by canon or fluff. What if back in the early Dark Ages of Tech there was a colony of humans that began a eugenics program to create a superior race. Psychic mutation was rampant. The overlord alpha class psyker was overthrown by it's own creations. It's last act was to breach realspace, dragging the planet and the souls of it's inhabitants into the warp. The planet emerged from the warp in another universe, stripped of it's caretakers. The gene manufactorums begin to run of their own accord, producing organisms that are engineered to improve and evolve until reaching a superlative level. The machines are eventually absorbed into the mass of bioflesh, broken down to base elements and reconstituted into higher functioning organisms. The first hive is gestalt being filling the plundered planet until it can sustain nothing else. The biomass separates and spreads in new directions, consuming all it finds in an attempt to continue the original purpose : superior evolution.

walpurgisnacht wrote:
I had an idea about a tyrannid origin story. Completely unsupported by canon or fluff. What if back in the early Dark Ages of Tech there was a colony of humans that began a eugenics program to create a superior race. Psychic mutation was rampant. The overlord alpha class psyker was overthrown by it's own creations. It's last act was to breach realspace, dragging the planet and the souls of it's inhabitants into the warp. The planet emerged from the warp in another universe, stripped of it's caretakers. The gene manufactorums begin to run of their own accord, producing organisms that are engineered to improve and evolve until reaching a superlative level. The machines are eventually absorbed into the mass of bioflesh, broken down to base elements and reconstituted into higher functioning organisms. The first hive is gestalt being filling the plundered planet until it can sustain nothing else. The biomass separates and spreads in new directions, consuming all it finds in an attempt to continue the original purpose : superior evolution.

The 'nids would have quite possibly already been on their way to the Milky Way at that point.

And that the fluff states they've eaten a dozen or so galaxies means the fluff not only doesn't support this theory, it pretty much disproves it.