1850 Tyranid List

[harrytown]

Hey I am new to tyranids and was wondering if the following army list looked semi-competitive. I have only played two games one against space marine with blood angel allies and the other against necrons.

HQ:
Hive Tyrant wings Two Twin linked brain-leech devourers
Hive Tyrant wings Two Twin linked brain-leech devourers

Elites:
3x Venomthropes
2x Zonethropes

Troops:
30x Termaguants (10x devourers)
Tervigon

Fast Attack:
25x Gargoyles
Hive Crone

Heavy Support
Tyrannofex acid spray
Exocrine
Maloc

The one thing that I think the list is week on is troops but other than that it has worked pretty well. Thanks in advance any advice is appreciated.

[Martyn Powell]

Interesting I run something similar.

Just a few things on how you play some of the models.

The Hive Tyrants... Are you using them primarily as FlyingMonCreatures (FMC) or as Mon-Jump-infantry (MJI). Also are they being supported by the crone?

Elites I would split the venoms into two units of 1 each. that way you can spread the coverage of their AOE shrouded about and not worry about one unit taking all the hits. (Look for dark reapers firing krak missiles which ignore cover...)

Zoanthropes are fine, I usually run with 2, just to fire blast/lance at something and have a decent chance of hitting.

Troops, I hate having the tervigon tax of 30 termagants however that being said tervigons are a solid troops choice if in cover with a venomthrope. Not only that but they create more troops... yay! I would however be inclined to drop the devourers.

Gargoyles... how are these being used? Personally I don't use them, but they can be used as an effective screening force. But without upgrades they will get minced in assault and having only a 12" S4 AP5 Assault 1... I won't be that scared of them. I would drop these and give yourself 150pts back.

Crone... I love crones, for these reasons... They have 3 weapons... Drool Cannon (not torrent unless it's been FAQ'd and I've not yet seen, so measures from the base which can be beneficial), Tentaclids (S5 AP5, so not going to scare infantry... however it has Haywire, which is enough to scare a land raider as it's a high chance of a glance but also it has the seeking rule which allows re-rolls to failed to hit rolls against zooming flyers and swooping FMC's), It also has a S8 AP3 Vector Strike... which are the bane of space marines and light vehicles (considering you are hitting the side armour on vehicles and not the front). Keep it in the air and only bring a crone down when you have an isolated vehicle you want to assault, DO NOT ASSAULT SPACE MARINE SQUADS WITH ONE... Grenades like a Krak grenade love big things called Monsterous creatures... especially when you have a 4+ sv which a krak grenade ignores.

Tyrannofex... awesome... scary, needs a rupture cannon though to really make it scary, put it in cover, with a venomthrope behind it, 2/3+ cover while it pumps out 2 S10 shots.
Exocrine... again I love these, 6 S7 AP2 shots or 1 Large Blast... keep this thing for an anti-terminator/marine role.
Mawloc... New rule is hit and miss. Go for single wound targets, ideally massed infantry, or alternatively a gun emplacement (5+ to wound it but you pretty much guarantee to take out the chaff that are around it. Bring this on first before you flyers if you do this.

So if you drop a venom, the devourers from the termagants and the gargoyles you would have 235pts spare... get another crone... leaving 80pts.... rupture cannon leaving 50pts. Which can either be used to buff up the zoan, give regen to the tervigon and 5 devourers on the termagants or as a unit of hormagants. All have their uses.

The list would look something like this.
HQ:
Hive Tyrant wings Two Twin linked brain-leech devourers
Hive Tyrant wings Two Twin linked brain-leech devourers

Elites:
1x Venomthropes
1x Venomthropes
2x Zonethropes

Troops:
30x Termaguants
Tervigon

Fast Attack:
Hive Crone
Hive Crone

Heavy Support
Tyrannofex Rupture Cannon
Exocrine
Mawloc

And then 50pts spare.

Remember cover is you friend, FMC's like crones and the tyrants can start on the board but in doing so must be gliding (MJI) they can however in your turn 1 change into swooping. And while typing this I realized that you can put hive commander on a tyrant, and put regen on the tervigon... then you can outflank the tervigon, that could be interesting.

Any way hope this wall of text helps.

[harrytown]

Thanks for the advice I will probably spilt the venomthropes up into two units. The devours on the guants are fantastic do not diss them till you try them. My opponent in the game against necrons used a unit of 6 wraiths in hopes of killing my left flank. The devour gaunts shot their thirty shots and between the whole unit and then overwatch got the wraith down to man who lost combat. So devour gaunts are actually really good. The T-Fex with a rapture cannon just does not do enough. Against most things he does not even pen. The torrent flammer is really good and makes him a troop terror. The gargoyles are also great as they are a cheap board control screening unit who I can stretch across the whole board and they are able to aid in assault. Thanks for the advice will take all the ideas into consideration!

[xsquidz]

I agree-T Fex is better with acid spray instead of rupture cannon and its free! I would also split the venomthropes, either 2X2 or 2X1. If you want to go really shooty and be better vs. flyers, take a dakkafex over the mawloc and another over the exocrine. That many TL'd shots is pretty awesome and can do ok vs. flyers as well. Plus if the fexes live, their assault is pretty nasty-even just 1 model.

[harrytown]

Thanks for the advice I agree that Dakkafex are better than a mawloc I have loved the shooting on the hive tyrant so more devours must be better.