Editing Warhammer 40,000/7th Edition Tactics/Tyranids (section)

===Elites===
The first thing one notices about Tyranid Elites is that you actually have options and possible upgrades for a number of the choices. Tyranids have a lot of Elite options, but many players generally opt for Hive Guard or Zoanthropes as their one stop purchase for reliable ranged anti-vehicle firepower, something not as easily found in the rest of the codex. Mech lists took a hit in that glancing hits on vehicles would have off 1 of maybe 2-3 hull points. As a result Tyranids gained a lot of ability to tear mech lists apart with other units and thus Elites are more free form.

*'''[[Hive Guard]]:''' Hive Guard are the premier Tyranid armour hunters. For five points more than a Land Speeder, you're getting model with two wounds, T6, and a 4+ save armed with the bastard offspring of a Krak Missile and a Storm Bolter. Firing two BS 3, Strength 8 shots a turn, a unit of three, or even two, of these guys will bust open transports, light skimmers, or even heavier armor should they be able to flank-it (or just glance often enough). Like everything else in the Tyranid codex, it maintains full fire-efficiency on the move. The only drawback is 24" is a relatively short range for popping light transports. For some unfathomable reason its gun only has AP4, making it useless against single-wound MEQs (which may have been to stop it from being an MEQ killer, remember GW luvs Space Marines). However, the Hive Guard does not need line of sight to hit a target, and it does not give a fuck about any intervening cover. Also the gun's special rule allows it to ignore cover saves from night fighting as well as anything attempting to benefit from the new jink rule and anything that popped smoke the turn before. Even with a slight nerf they are still an auto-take. And now they come in a box where you can make 3 of them from they have become even more attractive.
**Hive Guards now have a new gun called the shockcannon. Check out the Ranged Weapon section for more details.
*'''[[Lictor]]s:''' Oh boy, where do we start from here? Lictors are now cheaper, and they still keep their stats and weapons. However, they got a lot of Special Rules to help them  and the army out. They don't scatter from Deep Strike, and what's interesting is any units that comes into play via Deep Strike doesn't scatter within 6" of the Lictors. Just think of it, Mawlocs that don't scatter now have a better chance in gobbling up a unit camping on an objective! Fear is meh, but Hit and Run and Stealth is always handy. They can't assault from Deep Strike or Infiltrate, but have some tricks to compensate if you can protect them. Three attack base plus another for having two pairs of CCWs, plus rending and S6 make them mildly effective against standard Troops in low numbers and some HQ's... but for that matter, why aren't you taking deathleaper? Overall Lictors are better than previous editions. They are, incidentally, one of the three Tyranid models with Assault Grenades (in the form of Flesh Hooks). Best used as a very good distraction/homing beacon for Tyrannocyte spam lists, where he can give them a perfect LZ to deploy your suicide units.
** One Lictor on the charge throws out 5 S6 attacks, for less than half of the cost of a Wave Serpent. While '''one''' unit is easy enough to avoid or focus-fire, running multiple solo Lictors ''(either through running CAD+Leviathan, or using Deathleaper's Assassin Brood)'' means you spread out a large-scale net, and can force target overload in a single go. With Leadership 10, they can also run independent of your synapse for the most part; that said, don't be afraid to Go-To-Ground with them; remember that a Tyranid unit that went to Ground doesn't have to test for Instinctive Behavior, and Fearless units cannot go-to-ground. Depending on how you plan out your Flyrants' attack vector, you can even plan on several Lictors Going to Ground, only to immediately become Fearless and available to move again once you send your Synapse over. 
*'''[[Pyrovore]]s:''' Back in fifth edition, Pyrovores were almost-universally viewed as the most pointless, fucktarded, and confusingly detrimental unit in the entire Tyranids Codex. How about now? Well, it's gotten better, but then it's would've been hard to go anywhere but up with this model. It received a 5 point price reduction and a buffs to a few stats (an extra Wound here, a little more Initiative there), which is... better? But then it still doesn't seem to serve a purpose in the army, especially given you can still take Hive Guard, and Venomthropes are a lot better now. 
**There's also some [[RAW]] wording-loophole shenanigans about its Volatile rule; basically, it says that <u>every unit</u> ''(on the board)'' takes S3 AP- hits equal to all non-Pyrovore models within [[D6]] inches of a Pyrovore hit by Instant Death, but most players would be smart enough that you wouldn't get away with it, even if you dropped them in a Tyrannocyte and they didn't shoot it down. 
**Also, the biomorphs it has (Acid Blood and Acid Maw) were pretty much nerfed but not too badly, the latter being reduced to a single AP2 attack instead of all of the critter's attacks ignoring armor. The only good thing is that it seems that it benefits from the Promethium pipeline in Stronghold Assault, so... there's that? Honestly, it's still one of (if not ''the'') worst units in the game. But hey, now you can take packs of them!!! :D. Worst comes to worst, they make acceptable [[Counts As|Biovore]] models.
***With the addition of the Tyrannocyte these guys aren't as bad anymore. Shove 'em in it, drop em down and burn baby burn at point blank range. Then prepare to die one turn later. But hey you managed to distract the enemy for a whole turn or two between the walking failures and the floating drop pods with Venom Cannons all over.
*'''[[Venomthrope]]s:''' Venomthropes are a solid choice in 7th edition. All models within 6" of them get Shrouded. They're fantastic support units for protecting against gunlines, and they also confer a save to monstrous creatures in a Nidzilla style army, like the Trygon or Tyrannofex or even a Heirophant.  Units with stealth, such as Lictors, can take a 4+ cover save from being near Venomthropes increasing the screening potential of Rippers if they need to advance across open ground. If night fighting is in play, anything near a Venomthrope is nearly unkillable with the cover saves they will receive. Venomthropes also have a 2+ poison and the toxic miasma biomorph (once per game an enemy unit suffers a number of hits equal to the number of models from their unit in base to base with the Venomthrope.  The hits have the poison as well and ignores cover USR)  but they don't really belong in close combat... but they aren't pushovers any more either. I6 from lash whips and 2+ poison are pretty good. Don't have them charge alone: use them as finishers instead. Since Venomthropes give Shrouded they can be used to boost the cover save provided by units, meaning that a big blob of gaunts can provide a 3+ cover save to a unit of Venomthropes and whatever else you can stick behind the gaunts and in the Shrouded bubble. A possible way of getting footslogging tyrants, warriors and MCs across the board without getting utterly obliterated. Doesn't work when the enemy has Ignores Cover of course. Like all of those flamers out there that absolutely facerape gaunts to begin with. If you're facing a Marines player, and they dump a unit of Legion of the Damned on the board, you might as well kiss this guy goodbye. EVERYTHING the Damned Legionnaires shoot has Ignores Cover. Bolters? Plasma Cannons? Lascannons? Heavy Bolters? Missiles? ALL Ignores Cover. Riparoonie, everything hoping to wander up the board safe and Shrouded.
**'''An Alternate Take:''' Something to consider in addition to Venomthropes in your army is the Aegis Defense Line. If you line one up straight across middle of the board, you can give everything behind it a better cover save of 4+, besides Trygons, and barring the oddly angled shot on an MC. It is also cheaper, can't die, doesn't take up a valuable Elites slot, and can sometimes block LoS completely. It works both ways, but that usually isn't a problem since most of our AP values are too low to hurt MEQs anyway. It's a toss-up between the utility of the Venomthropes' defensive grenades versus the cost and reliability of the ADL's cover save. Pro Tip: Take both! Venomthropes giving shrouded to Exocrines, Tyrannofexes, Hive Guard, and the like for a 2+ save! Crones when they glide or fly on near a Venomthope will get 5+ cover out in the open as well, 3+ if they choose to dive (not a bad idea due to their main damage being their vector strike). The Venomthrope is going to be the lynchpin in a lot of lists.
*'''[[Zoanthrope]]s:''' Psychic breachers, more or less. With ML 2, guaranteed access to Warp Blast/Lance (as well as gaining extra shots for each Zoanthrope in he unit), and a 3++, they're meant to get in close, blast your foe, then reposition some. Zoanthropes are a pretty "go big or go home" unit though, and like most other Psykers you get diminishing returns on them due to restrictions on Warp Charge. That said, they make a good unit to take advantage of any spare Warp Charge your Flyrants might not actually be able to reliably take advantage of. Strongly consider a Mucoloid Spore to get them on the field; while you could use a Trygon tunnel, those are best used for follow-up objective grabbers.
**'''[[Neurothrope]]:''' If you're going to take a unit of 3 Zoanthropes, you might as well pay the extra 5 meltabombs to field this guy. As a character, the Neurothrope gives some minor wound allocation via Look Out Sir, but that's not the real reason to take one. Rather, the Neurothrope's signature ability is granting the unit '''Spirit Leech'''. Spirit Leech is basically Psychic Shriek, except better: For each unsaved wound you cause, you gain a free Warp Charge that can only be used for Warp Blast. Ideally you should reach out, flush one small unit from cover (see: Pathfinders or Guardian Jetbikes), finish off with blasting another target, then Running to reposition into a better location.
*'''[[Haruspex]]:''' This [[/d/|hentai monster]] wannabe is a designated infantry-killer, with a rape-tongue of S6 AP2 (Assault 1, Precision Shots on a To Hit of 6, 12" range), A3, and 5 wounds. While unimpressive on paper, each  unsaved wound it causes gives it an extra attack in that combat (extra attacks do not generate extra attacks) and it can restore one wound a turn if it successfully lands an unsaved wound on an enemy (only on the turn it charges but if it's in combat you probably charged anyway, just remember it's '''only''' for the turn). Combined with Regen, it manages to out-[[DISTRACTION CARNIFEX]] the Carnifex. [[Games Workshop|Coincidence? I think not]]. The tyranids now have a new drop pod in the form of the Tyrannocyte so deep striking is not a problem.  But weighing in at $80 a pop for 3A at WS3, then considering missed wounds, you're not doing much better than other options, and some may not really be able to justify the absurd price tag for an altogether mediocre unit. The 'Gulp!' tongue just smacks of uninspired. The GW website promises he'll gobble up units, but that's not really likely. As an alternate strategy you can deep-strike him into enemy lines to act as a suicide monster to mess up infantry formations and threaten characters, and don't forget that he comes stock with crushing claws so don't be afraid to run him at some tank formations. While overall the Haruspex is not the most skilled combat monster his ability to generate additional attacks and regenerate wounds is very useful when you don't have to run him across the board.
**It's good to remember that with the addition of the Haruspex, Nids now have Monstrous Creatures available in every single force organization slot. 
**They can actually be deadly in close combat if you managed to use Paroxysm on a unit before it charges, thereby potentially hitting on 3's, the Swarmlord can also be helpful to provide preferred enemy, making the Haruspex more reliable. Throw in some toxin sacs in there as well.
**While crushing claws may you think that you can substitute it for a Carnifex '''NEVER''' think this Carnifexs are far better vehicle wreckers even without the claws and have much better long-range options. This beast is better designed to rush infantry squads and kill enough of them to make them run of the board, then when all is done regenerate its wounds and keep on going. The crushing claws are so it is not completely boned when a walker or tank gets to close since it will have to be in enemy lines. Remember what their truly meant for and play to its strengths and you should be fine.
*'''[[Maleceptor]]''': The Toxicrene's utterly retarded twin who's far past overcosted for what he does.  It only has a 4+/5++ Invul and ML2 to separate it from any other monstrous creature. The Maleceptor has three powers: you start with its base power "Psychic Overload", gain Dominion for free due to Primaris then roll your '''remaining''' powers ''(i.e <u>one</u>)'' from the Tyranid table as per normal ''(this is what the brb states and is confirmed by the August 2016 FAQ)'' As for Psychic Overload, it's a 24" WC 2 Focused Witchfire that forces units to test Ld on 3d6; those that fail take d3 unsavable wounds/an unsavable glance.  It can be used three time per psychic phase on three different units, but you're likely never going to go past one or two, since this thing just sucks up warp charges. Also it's focussed witchfire, so it can be use to auto-snipe a model of your choice if you get 3 success or more, otherwise you need to rely on BS3 to hit half the time...  While its range is better than the Neurothrope's and has the ability to actually target vehicles, the cost for it is still far more than it's worth.  Really, it could have been saved by better saves or maybe a less strenuous power, but alas, GW decided more oversized, overcosted shit is what Tyranids needed instead of something better against heavy vehicles.  
** Alternate Opinion: Yes, they suck, really and truly. But they have one outstanding quality: Everyone knows they suck. Everyone knows they could only do damage if you were stupid enough to spill all your Warp Charges into it. But, they are still Monstrous Creatures with Synapse. Even better, they are very non-threatening Monstrous Creatures with Synapse, so the enemy might flat-out ignore it for softer targets. They can sit in the middle of your swarm holding the little bugs together, generate Warp Charges for more effective users of them and if push comes to shove, they can still Smash! a Walker or transport. In fact, in close combat, they are actually better than a Tervigon thanks to a faster-than-Necron Initiative and if they roll, for example, Catalyst as their one rollable power, they can even give decent support. Still, they cost too many points, their saves are too bad and their unique Psychic Power should really only cost 1 Warp Charge.
*'''[[Malanthrope]] Brood (Forgeworld):''' With the new rules of IA4 2E, the malanthrope went from an Apocalypse to HQ choice, now to Elites and are a sort of halfway between Zoanthropes & Venomthropes. With a price reduction to 85 pts, they can be taken in broods of 1-3. S5 T5 with 4W and 3+, poisoned attacks, toxic miasma, shrouded, fleet, move through cover, synapse, shadow in the warp, and regeneration all included. It also has a unique rule that whenever it kills a unit, all nids in synapse range of the Malanthrope Brood get preferred enemy for the opponent's whole codex ''(not just the unit type as before)''. They can also issue challenges even though they are not characters (and therefore do not need to accept challenges issued to them) though in a challenge they can reduce the attacks of their opponents by half and to initiative 1. A solid choice, though it now competes in the Elites slot for space. Use it in a hormagaunt/gargoyle heavy army to kill something quickly and start turning the swarm of generally killing creatures into a unholy wave of destruction.
**They also do the Venomthrope thing and grant shrouded to nearby units within 6", so these guys can essentially replace Venomthropes in your army in their entirety. They are 40 points more expensive, but you get get double the amount of wounds, regeneration, +1 S/T/A. 3+ armour save as well as all the Synapse goodies. Being able to fill multi-roles in a single slot allows you to do more things with units elsewhere.
** The best thing about them, however, is the simple fact, that Missile Launchers and Lascannons cannot Instant Kill them, which is more than you can say for Zoanthropes, Venomthropes, Warriors and Raveners.