# Hive Tyrant Help!



## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

I'm new to warhammer and have a decent start at an army. I am planning on having two Hive Tyrants, 1 a land CC Tyrant and one a winged Tyrant. What weapons/biomorphs are recommended for these types? (My CC Tyrant doesn't have to be completely CC)


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## XxDreMisterxX (Dec 23, 2009)

Give the one with wings, boneswords, toxin sacs or just make him a swarmlord!


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Speaking of the Swarmlord, how do you make a bonesword on the left arm?


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## Tim/Steve (Jan 25, 2009)

personally I cut the lash whip off above the fingers and glued another bonesword on top... looks really cool but because of the very small glue area (and the ease with which you knock the sword) it is very fragile.


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## oblivion8 (Jun 17, 2009)

I was thinking of just making (at least two of them) from scything talons fused together with greenstuff.... sounds messy and stupid but I think it will work fine (first got to get myself another hive tyrant....)


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks. So my winged hive tyrant would have the swords but my land tyrant i am still confused about. I only have two tyrant kits so the land can't have swords for his melee so Scything talons for melee. Since I plan to have him charge behind Hormagaunts, Genestealers, and Tyrant Gaurd and get up close what would be the best gun option? Or should I give him two Scything Talons?


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

oblivion8 said:


> I was thinking of just making (at least two of them) from scything talons fused together with greenstuff.... sounds messy and stupid but I think it will work fine (first got to get myself another hive tyrant....)


Alright, I have heard green stuff mentioned before and seen a figure that had some green stuff used on it but where do you get/what is green stuff?


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## shaantitus (Aug 3, 2009)

From gw if you have plenty of money. Google it and many hobby suppliers carry it.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks I found it on the GW website now.


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## XxDreMisterxX (Dec 23, 2009)

Isnt taking two hive tyrants a little much for just starting up? i know HQ's are kick ass and kill things but you should be focusing on stuff like Carno's or Trigons or tervigons or get genestealers squad or more hormaguants and termagaunts or even Zoanthroapes and Tyranid warriors. 2 hqs just seem a little overkill unless you plan on hitting like 2500 pt games or something. Sorry if i am being too blunt. i think we can help you better if you can tell us what you plan on doing with your 2 tyrants and wat point matches you plan to play. Info would be really appreciated!


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Yeah, I suppose you're right about the overkill thing. Let's see, I think that most of the games i'll be playing will be between 1000 and 1500 points. So far, I have 2 Hive Tyrant kits, I Hive Gaurd, 1 Lictor, 1 Venomthrope, 2 Warrior Broods each with 3 Warriors, A genestealer brood with 8 genestealers and a Broodlord, a termagaunt brood with 16 guys, a hormagaunt brood with 16 guys, a 4 base ripper swarm, a carnifex with Scything Talons and Venom Cannon, a Biovore, and a Mawloc. Now, I won't be fielding all of these at once (at least for a while). Since the Warriors are the only other Synapse I have I figured that the Second Tyrant would be able to help out with controlling some nids. Plus, the Winged Tyrant could deep strike with my Mawloc so that the Mawloc doesn't go out of control in the later games. :scare: Oh man, that is a lot of text. Someone else talk now, _please_.


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## flankman (Jan 26, 2009)

i personally love double tyrant because of the + 1 to reserves and the ability to make troops outflank

16 10 point gaunts are a fun way to wreck power armored people and outflanking warriors seems promising (havent tried it yet but id love to see bone sword squads coming on the side)


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## XxDreMisterxX (Dec 23, 2009)

aahhh. ok i see were your getting at! 

Now that you put it that way, Tyranids do depend on there big baddies alot when it comes to support and that really annoying Synapse rule. Maybe if you put your Winged Tyranid with some tyranid warriors with boneswords and wings (and when i mean with, i mean travel and support each other) Also have you considered Alpha Warriors? or getting gargoyles? Mawloc is kinda of a joke compared to a Trygon, but if you field Mawloc its ok thou i advise fielding Trygon more (there models are similiar so saying one is the other should be fine) Your current guys are a great basic build, venomthrope help with the survivability of your hordes, and Lictor can be great with the added reserve bonus from Tyrants. Genestealers are always good to have around! 

Also, you might want to think about these kinds of questions?
How do you intend to field your army? Reserve force and Flank attacks? Swarm assaults(lots of really cheap but expendable units)? or regular with big baddies plus some swarm?
Are you also getting a balanced army list? competitive or just for fun? do you have a balanced types like some Anti-Armour units, anti-horde, or Anti-MEQ?

I hope this is helps. Just some thoughts for consideration. just my opinion, so sorry if i offend anyone.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Thanks. Alright I see where you're going with all that. Two more questions about hive tyrants. What are the best wings to use on a hive tyrant? My land Tyrant is going to be charging forward behind the hormagaunts, rippers, and genestealers, so should I get a gun or a second pair of scything talons? (I'm giving both the boneswords to the flying one)


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## XxDreMisterxX (Dec 23, 2009)

you should give your land Tyrant a gun or make him a swarm lord. make the gun either a devourer or strangler depending on what roll he will play against whom. I say get swarmlord because he just does a better job then a regular o'l tyrant with boneswords or scything claws.


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## oblivion8 (Jun 17, 2009)

could give the landtyrant a hvy venom cannon and devourers. Ive played it in a few games and its worked fairly well.


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## Katie Drake (Nov 28, 2007)

A pair of devourers and some scything talons works really well too. Some will prefer the bone sword and lash whips to the talons, but the important part is that you take a weapon option that will make your close combat attacks better, so the Tyrant can perform well in all areas.


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## bakoren (Nov 16, 2009)

Katie Drake said:


> A pair of devourers and some scything talons works really well too.


I do dev. and BS/LW on my tyrant. It works alright, but you got to make sure he gets the charge in, and doesn't get ambushed.


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## OddJob (Nov 1, 2007)

Katie Drake said:


> A pair of devourers and some scything talons works really well too. Some will prefer the bone sword and lash whips to the talons, but the important part is that you take a weapon option that will make your close combat attacks better, so the Tyrant can perform well in all areas.


I agree with your sentament, if not your conclusion. At 200+ points the Tyrant had better be useful in all games.

For me this means 2xMC devourers and the preferred enemy ability. An effective 24" range makes him difficult to ignore at range, and preferred enemy in close makes him (and his buddies) pretty lethal in close too.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Well, the most popular weapon said appears to be the devourer so I think for my land tyrant I will give it Scything Talons and Devourers (Yes OddJob I took Preffered Enemy too.) As I said earlier though, what wings work best on a tyrant?


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## OddJob (Nov 1, 2007)

Not a huge amount of point in taking scything talons and preferred enemy together. Another gun would be much more useful.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Oh, right. Or taking one of the other options that is in the same section as preferred enemy right? Sorry about being so vague but I don't quite know what I can and can't say from the codex.


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## Katie Drake (Nov 28, 2007)

ScorpionBrood said:


> Oh, right. Or taking one of the other options that is in the same section as preferred enemy right? Sorry about being so vague but I don't quite know what I can and can't say from the codex.


You can say just about whatever as long as you don't

A) Quote extremely long passages.
B) Mention the points costs of individual models and pieces of wargear/upgrades.


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## flankman (Jan 26, 2009)

OddJob said:


> Not a huge amount of point in taking scything talons and preferred enemy together. Another gun would be much more useful.


you seem to forget that if you shoot 2 guns you cant cast a psychic powers


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## Katie Drake (Nov 28, 2007)

flankman said:


> you seem to forget that if you shoot 2 guns you cant cast a psychic powers


You can, as long as they're not psychic shooting attacks. That being said, I'm pretty sure most if not all of the Tyrant powers are psychic shooting attacks...


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## Tim/Steve (Jan 25, 2009)

Pyroxism isnt a psy shooting attack.. its also my favorite of the powers- who wouldnt want to make enemies BS1/WS1 for a turn.


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

Paroxysm _is_ a Psychic Shooting Attack.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

Katie Drake said:


> You can say just about whatever as long as you don't
> 
> A) Quote extremely long passages.
> B) Mention the points costs of individual models and pieces of wargear/upgrades.


Thanks. Well, what I was talking about was Hive Commander, Indescribable Horror, and Old Adversary. What would be recommended for a balanced Tyrant with devourer and talons? Or, should I ignore those abilities?


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## arachnid (Nov 17, 2008)

hive commander: depends on the list.

Old adversary: sure, if you've dumped the scytals for a shooty thingy.
(zero point in having both scytal and adversary)

Indescribable Horror: might wanna skip it since the free "the horror" kinda has the same function, but weaker. if the enemy spams fearless, don't bother.



as i see it, the following looks to be the most useful loadout to me:
whip/sword + stranglethorn
old aversary + hive commander.

2+ save if needed
add in guards to taste.


I might use the thorax swarms now and then..
desiccator's looks nice against tarpit units.
i don't want my 400 point unit stuck fighting a 60 point unit for four turns , swarms should help.


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

arachnid said:


> i don't want my 400 point unit stuck fighting a 60 point unit for four turns , swarms should help.


The problem is, you have a 400point unit.

Hive Tyrants are expensive for what they do to be honest. I think keeping them cheap is the best thing.

Now I see many people spending 25points on getting preffered enemy on a shooting Tyrant. Why? A Hive Tyrant is dangerous enough in combat as is, and when you consider you want your expensive Bio-weapons shooting as much as possible, why do you want your Tyrant in Close Combat? If I'm paying 15 points for Devourers, I'm sure as hell going to want to use them as much as possible.

Wings are a great thing for a Hive Tyrant in my opinion,as they allow him to get stuck in faster. A walking Tyrant is good with a big gun and maybe devourers if you want to spend the points on them.

Here's how I'd build a Tyrant:

Tyrant with Wings, Dual Sycthing Talons and Adrenal Glands (240 points)

or if I really wanted to have a shooty Tyrant:

Tyrant with Heavy Venom Cannon/Stranglethorn Cannon and a Tyrant Guard (250/255 points)

I really prefer the first option, as it is more manourveable and cheaper.

You can always add Hive Commander if your army needs it. Psychic Powers would always be Paroxysm and either Life Leech or maybe Psychic Scream.


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## Zeromus316 (Mar 27, 2009)

Wolf Lord is pretty spot on with the tyrant builds suggested. IMO opinion, winged tyrants are better in the long run for the following reasons:

1. Maneuverability: We all know that sometimes we gotta hide our big guys from all those big guns pointing right at us and of course the farther you can move to reach different areas of cover, the better. Plus an 18" total assault range is better than 12" which means you are more likely to get the charge if you properly time your charges of course.

2. Points: Although wings cost a fortune, you will inevitably save points by not having to add tyrant guard. It is cheaper to build a walking tyrant as oppose to a winged one however, walking tyrants NEED tyrant guard. you simply can't not have tyrant guard accompanying your tyrant simply because that lack of mobility is gunna make you a sitting duck. So sure go ahead and waste ~60-180 points on the guard or save yourself the trouble and just give the tyrant wings for points purposes as well as maneuverability. 

3. Aesthetics: This last point isn't really a point lol. it's more a personal preference lol. IMO wings just wake a tyrant look a feel more terrifying and powerful.

Of course, if your heart is still set on a walking tyrant, you should most definatly heed the suggestions posted by those before me as their advice is most definatly valid and helpfull. 

good luck with the list building my friend.


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## ScorpionBrood (Jan 22, 2010)

:biggrin: okay. So, keep them cheap, flying tyrant; Scything Talons like on 217 of main rulebook. That makes since now that I think about it to keep it cheaper. For a winged tyrant I have 2 questions:

1: What model has the best wings for a tyrant?

2: Pinning: Do you pin the wings? (because they don't look very stable.)

I look forward to answers.


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## Zeromus316 (Mar 27, 2009)

well i used the baelrog wings on my tyrant and yes you need to pin them. dont glue them on and expect that to hold. you need to use a pin to ensure stability and then green stuff where the wings and carapace meet so that it doesn't look like your hive tyrant glued wings on his back.


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## hendaron (Jan 29, 2010)

if you want a big gun for tyrants use stranglethorn cannon
then you will always hit something...


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## Brwrr (Jul 7, 2009)

You think Adrenal Glands would be worth it on a Tyrant with wings and scything talons?


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## MaidenManiac (Oct 2, 2008)

Brwrr said:


> You think Adrenal Glands would be worth it on a Tyrant with wings and scything talons?


Probably worth it. Striking on I6 means you strike before most models in the game, and S7 will make sure you wound T5-dudes on 2+, most MCs in the game on 3+ and it seriously increases your chances of wrecking Vehicles in CC


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

Agreed, Adrenal Glands on CC MC is a great thing.


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## ChaosRedCorsairLord (Apr 17, 2009)

Personally I go with; Stranglethorn cannon, Twin Devourers, Paroxysm and Life Leech. The shear weight of S6 shots rapes most infantry. Paroxysm is used to support any units looking to get off the charge, and life leech is a just-in-case power.


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

ChaosRedCorsairLord said:


> Personally I go with; Stranglethorn cannon, Twin Devourers, Paroxysm and Life Leech. The shear weight of S6 shots rapes most infantry. Paroxysm is used to support any units looking to get off the charge, and life leech is a just-in-case power.


Paroxysm is a Psychic Shooting attack though, so you can't use it and both guns in the same turn.


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## Katie Drake (Nov 28, 2007)

Wolf_Lord_Skoll said:


> Paroxysm is a Psychic Shooting attack though, so you can't use it and both guns in the same turn.


True, but it gives the Tyrant a large choice of shooting attacks to use in any given turn.


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## ChaosRedCorsairLord (Apr 17, 2009)

Katie Drake said:


> True, but it gives the Tyrant a large choice of shooting attacks to use in any given turn.


My point exactly.


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

I never said it was a bad idea  

Paroxysm is only a must (ie, you want to be casting it whenever possible when not being interfered with Runes of Warding ect.) on a combat Tyrant anyway


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## bugsftw (Nov 18, 2009)

i field my tyrant with wings, 2 pairs of of talons, adrenal glands and use paroxysm and leech essence. that way when you get shot you can get wounds back. and using paroxysm i took out an eldar avatar one on one. he also has hive commander so i can outflank with warriors for synapse with my stealers.


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## Katie Drake (Nov 28, 2007)

bugsftw said:


> i field my tyrant with wings, 2 pairs of of talons, adrenal glands and use paroxysm and leech essence. that way when you get shot you can get wounds back. and using paroxysm i took out an eldar avatar one on one. he also has hive commander so i can outflank with warriors for synapse with my stealers.


Exactly. It's an awesome combat Flyrant configuration.


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## Wolf_Lord_Skoll (Jun 9, 2008)

My favourite pick as well


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