Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Basically the title. I'm thinking of starting Tyranids next year as my next army, and was wondering where a good launching point would be to do keep it as "cheap" (for warhammer ) as possible. Currently, I'm torn between the swarmy feel and nidzilla (leaning toward doing a mix). I was hoping for a few tips and tricks for the best way to throw an army together, and of course greatly appreciate any you guys can give me

It really depends on what you want to do.
Nidzilla Lists have much less models (duh haha) but they are just expensive as massed troops.
I would take a look at Ebay and the Trade/Swap here on Dakka. Be patient and find an army that you get at a good deal. Then base your army off of that.
What seems to be popular currently is running Flying Tyrants for HQ, minimum amounts of Terms, which let you take Tervigons, and Trygons or Tyrannofexs for Heavy.
Personally, I like the idea of running massed Terms backed by Tervigons boosting them. After that, you just need to decide what you want to use for anti-tank, anti-aircraft, etc. Hive guard seems to be pretty effective against fliers. And Zoanthropes are always a good go-to for tanks. But really its just up to you. Find something you'd like to play, that's fun to paint, and that's not gonna eat your wallet!

I'm actually looking to sell my Nids right now, though I know that you want to wait till next year. So if you're still interested then and I still have them, PM me and we can work something out. If not, good luck in your search!

 Freytag93 wrote:
Hive guard seems to be pretty effective against fliers.

Hive Guard are terrible against fliers. Only 2 shots and hitting on 6's isn't effective.

The only bonus is that they ignore Jink saves.

'Nids aren't going to be a cheap list to play any way you look at it. The biggest piece of advice I can offer is to avoid the really big monsters; 6e's nerf to FNP means you can't just have Tervigons following your Trygon/Carnifex/whatever buffing it every turn. Hive Tyrants are still somewhat useful because of the new Flying Monstrous Creature rules, but I'd advise focusing your efforts on Warriors and Gaunts more than anything else.

Also, the 'Nids lack of anti-aicraft is a big problem (especially when you consider the fact that Vultures and their four Large Blast templates per turn are technically legal in regular game now), but there's an anti-aircraft pyrovore variant floating around in the Proposed Rules section of this forum that you may want to look into if you can get your opponents to let you use it.

A player in our group recently picked up Tyranids as a second army.

He runs Termagant spam with Tervigons pooping out more, gargoyles, Hive Guard, and a Flying Tyrant, I believe. The player tends to find which units are best and put together a list using those and only buys those models. He knows what he wants to run and doesn't really like to experiment.

He's only played a handful of games with the Tyranids, so he's still learning the ropes, but so far, the list he plays looks great on paper. In the 1500 point game I watched between him and our resident BA player, he won a well played game, so it looks like it works in practice as well.

The poster above mentioned the lack of anti-air. That's a very good point. A unit in a proposed rules section of a forum isn't going to help you if you plan to play them in a tournament. Hopefully, with the CSM release, all codices will receive some kind of Skyfire update to a unit(s).

 AnomanderRake wrote:
'Nids aren't going to be a cheap list to play any way you look at it. The biggest piece of advice I can offer is to avoid the really big monsters; 6e's nerf to FNP means you can't just have Tervigons following your Trygon/Carnifex/whatever buffing it every turn. Hive Tyrants are still somewhat useful because of the new Flying Monstrous Creature rules, but I'd advise focusing your efforts on Warriors and Gaunts more than anything else.

I disagree with this. The FnP change weakened it against small arms and close-combat hordes, but made it useful against anti-tank weapons and powerfists, which is usually what kills them. Add in the easier cover saves for MCs (not to mention the Smash rules for Tervigons) and its a pretty good time to be big and brutal.
Gaunts are always a good investment. I'd shy away from buying too many Warriors and Raveners until you have a good grasp on how your army functions and how they can fit in, otherwise they'll disappoint you (and rob your wallet).

Flyrants.

I would say grab 30 to 40 termagants, two tervigons, and a Tyrant to start. That's the route I generally go, of course I run elites and heavies too but as a 'core' that is my go-to. Swap the powers out for Biomancy (take 3 on each tervigon).

Add fun units for flavour. I like Warriors. Raveners have not worked well for me, but I do not know why.

So thanks to your guy's suggestions, the plan is to eventually pick up 2 Tervigons, a bunch of Termagaunts, some gargoyles, Hive Guard, and a Hive Tyrant. Is there anything I should avoid in particular? What about Warriors and Dakka Carnifexs? I love their model, although I'm getting mixed feelings in terms of using them-and I mean in regards to both units. Some people love and others hate them. How good are Zoanthropes? I don't see a lot of lists with these things and am curious as to how they fit....

Also in regards to the Tyrant I have every intention of using it as a Swarmlord (model kicks so much....stuff )-although there is a good chances I'll magnetize it. Are Tyrant Guard necessities?

Biovores are very effective now in squads of three, the new barrage rules, (if they are new?) really are devastating to come up against. I was playing Eldar, what do you expect, they are pretty bad in 6th... Anyway, as a Nid player, flyrants are all the rage, biovores from what I've seen; and Tervigons so many Tervigons! Avoid lictors and warriors too, they can be insta-killed pretty well these days.
If you are going to run The Swarmlord, get tyrant guard, they are your best friends. Hope this helps a bit, sort of emphasising everyone else's points in this topic.

KelCJ wrote:
What about Warriors and Dakka Carnifexs? I love their model, although I'm getting mixed feelings in terms of using them-and I mean in regards to both units. Some people love and others hate them.

I get good use out of my Carnifexes, both melee and dakka. Trygons are superior without a doubt, but I don't find Carnifexes as bad as The Internet likes to make them out to be. Just watch out for krak missiles. Warriors I've never had too much success with - I use them, because like the Carnifex, the model is fething badass. Same caveat about krak missiles though - a single krak missile will vapourize a Warrior.

KelCJ wrote:
How good are Zoanthropes? I don't see a lot of lists with these things and am curious as to how they fit....

They're fantastic now in 6th edition. Forget their stock powers - trade them in for two rolls on the biomancy chart. Hemmorage, Enfeeble and Endurance are all great, and if you roll Warp Speed or Iron Arm, you can always trade them for Smite, which is still a decent ranged power. The only army that will give you fits with them is Eldar with a Farseer, but that goes for anyone trying to use psychic powers.

KelCJ wrote:
Also in regards to the Tyrant I have every intention of using it as a Swarmlord (model kicks so much....stuff )-although there is a good chances I'll magnetize it. Are Tyrant Guard necessities?

For an armoured shell Hive tyrant, no. They're nice to have, but the 2+ save will be good enough most of the time. For the Swarmlord, who is stupidly stuck without armoured shell, yes, at least one. Remember though that now with good placement opponents can completely bypass the Tyrant Guard and hit the Tyrant directly, so place them well.

Here is my advice. Get a tack hammer and bash yourself in the junk about a dozen times, or so. This is the feeling you will have whenever you face Space Wolves with JotWW, GKs with Purifiers, or Necrons with flyers. Probably Guard, too. If you can accept that, then do a search for anything Janthkyn (sp?) has posted. He has the most measured and reasonable advice of any Nid player I have met. He has also racked up the most extensive tourney experience of any Dakka regular.

Great, I was hoping you were going to say they were terrible, now I have to eventually pick up some Carnifexes now and Zoanthropes! More money out of my pocket! , Kidding of course, I'm glad to be justified in picking up a Carnifex.

Well, the bright side is I only need to hit myself once with the tack hammer since I am (possibly) only playing against one of those suggested armies (SW), since I own the other one (Necrons ). Currently, I'm only playing with my friends so the meta is kinda just between us, so unless someone there shakes things up drastically it should probably stay that way (doubt I'll be competitive, since it'll be a while to get this army up to speed). Honestly, the only army that worries me the most among my friends is the DE. Those poison attacks...

Thank you for the tips to check out Janthkyn. I've seen a couple of battle reports of his, and he seems to know his Tyranids well, but I didn't pay attention to everything else he posts on here. Seems like a lot of useful gems.