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I'm really interested in starting a Tyranid army, but I really don't want to run Flyrant spam. Are there any other viable builds? Ideally, I'd include some Carnifexes, Lictors, and Mawlocs due to liking the models

If you find any, let me know.

So far, the only units that have worked decently for me have been Zoanthropes, Toxicrenes, and Tervigon Primes. Haven't had the chance to see what a Mawloc/Trygon can do.

Makes me sad, as I'd really like to run an effective army with endless waves of termigants, hormigaunts and gargoyles, but they're at best extra wound counters for the bigger guys. And sadly, carnifexes perform underwhelmingly.

 jreilly89 wrote:
I'm really interested in starting a Tyranid army, but I really don't want to run Flyrant spam. Are there any other viable builds? Ideally, I'd include some Carnifexes, Lictors, and Mawlocs due to liking the models

I usually play with 2 Mawlocs. If you bring one, you almost have to bring another because it's a risky maneuver to burrow them in. You often mishap. They are fun, though if they get caught they're pretty crap in CC. If I have the points I give them Acid Blood if I'm playing a low initiative army or something because they invariably take alot of wounds once they're caught. I run them often with 2 Exocrines, so I can have lots of AP2 threats on the board. I play alot of Space Marine stat armies so it's useful to have plenty of AP2.

Likewise Carnifexes are better in bunches. I play them in groups of 3 in a Wrecker Node formation or else in a Brood. If you run only 1 it will most likely fall to volume of fire as they only have 4 wounds. I arm mine for CC and rush them in, I think others like to take them with the 2 TL Devourer option for the dakka.

I do admit I always play with 2 Flyrants. I guess that's spam, but I'm usually playing in 2000-3000 point games.

Dakkafexes are basically discount, walking versions of the popular Flyrant loadout. Fairly cheap too compared to a flyrant. Alternatively, cheap Screamer Killers (without the Bio Plasma) can be thrown en-masse at the opponent as anything from distractions to linebreakers (despite T6 and 4 wounds, it is only just over a hundred points while retaining S9 and a decent amount of attacks. If you bring enough of them then they can function as good target saturation while still being able to be a creditable threat to anything short of a superheavy or gargantuan creature). Unfortunately most other loadouts for the fex are either not cost-efficient for what they do or are just crap at what they do.

Gargoyles are also pretty fun. They are tied for the cheapest jump infantry in the game with Furies (who literally disappear if they have to do a LD test). and can be rather effective in Skyblight Swarm formations.

I am a fan of the Hypertoxic Node and Endless Swarm

I generally like to run full horde Nid lists..

So a couple of Tervigons, Endless Swarm and a couple of Trygon Primes.. and then just send wave after wave of my own men at the enemy

Works well for Objective victories, as you generally cover most of the table with your duders and keep your opponent boxed in.. (Jetbikes cant move if they have no where to place their guys or locked in h2h)


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Skyrant Swarm can also be fun.. (does use a flyrant)
Have an old converted CC flyrant from back in the days where it was just jump infantry, this formation just gives you a nice bubble wrapped CC HT across the table with ease to beat things up

I don't like flyrant spam, I at most only take one.

Tyranids are not competitive. If you fight an updated army, don't expect to win. Play for fun or narrative and you'll still have a warp blast being Tyranids.

Swarms. Gaunt swarms are crap for the most part, but are still fun. To add some spice and a tad more survivability, use a spore pod and give them all the dakka.

For toothy gaunts, keep them in squads of 10-15 and just have them line up in front of each other near a Venonthrope, hurray, now all your crappy toothygits have a 3-4+ cover save!

Spore pods and their ilk. These things ain't cheap, point wise or dollars. But they look cool, and are fun. Pods allow you to space marine your way into the enemy or cause panic as your opponents tries to deal with distractfex. Or just infiltrating Venom cannons or barb stranglers near your opponent is a good way of drawing fire off your bigger bugs.

Warriors are point heavy, but surprisingly good. With 3 wounds now a squad with boneswords (lashwhips if you think you'll fight something fast) will probably beat most infantry head on.

Mawlac are hilarious, fun and actually good. Take a few.

Lictors. I cannot sing these donkey-caves enough praise. They actually aren't great but they scare the crap out of your opponents and they second to none when it comes to harassment unit. Two of these guys are ideal but three is sexy. Have them surprise pop out behind an enemy heavy weapon team, or artillary, flesh hook and probably goto ground*.

Next turn, if you have something to give them synapse, give it to them, Now their goto ground is effectively ignored and you can assault. If you don't, don't goto ground and hope you have a decent cover save without the extra +1. Then wreck up some light infantry or even tanks.

Genestealer cults allies. feth Tyranid genestealers, they are crap by comparison. Just take four or five squads of these pricks and watch the fear in your opponents eyes as 3 edition melee monsters start appearing all over the table.

I want to try out a minimum GSC list allied with a Subterranean Swarm in a 1000pts

I have always wanted to see a CAD (though maybe another formation would be better) of 6x30 hormaguants, daisy chained back to a venomthrope in a fortification. The squads would be interlocked so all but the first few in each squad would get the 5+ cover save for intervening models, which shrouding would turn into a 3+ cover in the open. Synapse would be provided by flyrants and possibly another synapse creature in the fort with the venomthrope. You could use termaguants instead, but I think you'll do more damage in CC and multi-assaulting your opponents entire army will mean most of them can't shoot the mucloids that will deepstrike on objectives.

 greyknight12 wrote:
I have always wanted to see a CAD (though maybe another formation would be better) of 6x30 hormaguants, daisy chained back to a venomthrope in a fortification. The squads would be interlocked so all but the first few in each squad would get the 5+ cover save for intervening models, which shrouding would turn into a 3+ cover in the open. Synapse would be provided by flyrants and possibly another synapse creature in the fort with the venomthrope. You could use termaguants instead, but I think you'll do more damage in CC and multi-assaulting your opponents entire army will mean most of them can't shoot the mucloids that will deepstrike on objectives.

I did similar to that once... 60 Hormagaunts.. With Tyranid Prime in amongst them for synapse and a couple of Venoms in there as well for dem sweet sweet cover saves, works well when your opponent doesn't have a lot of flamers, or large blast

 Rolsheen wrote:
I want to try out a minimum GSC list allied with a Subterranean Swarm in a 1000pts

Good luck, Subterranean Swarm is about 800+pts to start with.

I'm thinking of trying the Endless Swarm

3 Warriors
2 x 10 Termagants
3 x 15 Hormagants with Toxic Sacs
(500 Points)

Then throwing in a Flyrant and Trygon Prime, or 4 Zoanthropes for Synapse. Think it could work for 1k?

 Norn Queen Yurei wrote:
I'm thinking of trying the Endless Swarm

3 Warriors
2 x 10 Termagants
3 x 15 Hormagants with Toxic Sacs
(500 Points)

unfortunately it is 3 termagant squads now..

They updated it on the iPad version to 3.. but if you got the eBook (like I did) it doesn't get updated

But basically how I run the endless swarm, dem tox sac are well worth the points.

I would say swap a couple of Zoans for venomphropes for that sweet sweet cover save, you already have 3 other Synapes units there

 Imateria wrote:

 Rolsheen wrote:
I want to try out a minimum GSC list allied with a Subterranean Swarm in a 1000pts

Good luck, Subterranean Swarm is about 800+pts to start with.

Yeah Sub Swarm is 830pts, you can't do a CAD with Nids HQ's are to expensive but you can do it with GSC

Wait, Tyranids actually have models beyond Flyrants?

Jokes aside, I've seen gaunt-heavy lists with a sprinkling of Trygons, Tervigons and Carnifexes do really well against Marines.

 jreilly89 wrote:
I'm really interested in starting a Tyranid army, but I really don't want to run Flyrant spam. Are there any other viable builds? Ideally, I'd include some Carnifexes, Lictors, and Mawlocs due to liking the models

If you want to play against competitive lists there aren't any other viable lists. Otherwise everything is ok, mawlocs and carnifexes in a friendly environment are nice units.