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

===Heavy Support===
This organization chart is easily the best in the codex. Pretty much everything is either decent (Mawlocs and Trygons) or solid overall (Exocrine and Biovores), so feel free to drop a lot of spare points here as this slot is the most competitive out of the others. That being said, you have a bunch of choices that wants to be in your army, so this really depends on what you brought from the other charts. Running broods of Termagants with a Tervigon? Carnifexes help bridge the gap of close combat. Using a bunch of Hormagaunts and Gargoyles? A Trygon Prime gives them the Synapse support, while Biovores and a Tyrannofex lay down the anti-infantry shots. Tyranid's Heavy Support is an all around versatile chart, so no matter what list you play, you should always consider investing here.

*'''[[Biovore]]s:''' A unit to be respected by any footslogger with an armor save of 4+ or worse, Biovores are "mobile" artillery beasts that deliver spore mines directly to the enemy. The mines, when they hit, each create a S4, AP 4, large blast, and when they don't hit D3 Spore Mines will actually land on the field and remain present until they are shot or wandered into. It's not exactly what one would think of as "heavy" support, but it is probably among the best ranged anti-infantry support in the codex. Plus with the slight buff (Mostly unnecessary, except the extra wound) and point decrease, Biovores just went from being a good choice, to a solid choice. The buff to Spore Mines sweetens the deal, and they don't count as kill points if they don't hit and get shot at the next turn. The only problem is, one has to ask if more anti-infantry is really what one seeks when such is the strength of almost every other unit in the codex. In Apocalypse games, where long ranged ability becomes crucial due to the much larger average board size, they become far more viable as a way to deal with infantry blobs from a distance, they can be fielded in much larger numbers to swamp the battlefield in pieplates and spore mines.

*'''[[Carnifex]]:''' Carnifexes start off at 120 points but can get very expensive once you start buying upgrades for them. They have three attacks base at Str9 and start with 2 pairs of CC weapons (two pairs of talons), but their WS is pretty average. They can hold their own against basic squads by themselves, but one hidden power fist will ruin their day in a heartbeat (or lack thereof). Even against a five man Space Marine Tac Squad, a lone Carnifex lacks the attacks and accuracy to clean up its enemies before it gets walloped, and a Krak missile or two to soften the beast up will guarantee its death. However, there is one important thing to consider: nothing dismantles tanks in close combat as well as a Carnifex. There are other options the new vehicle cracking power of many of the other Tyranid units but the Carnifex still holds the prize. Also hilariously the second unit in the codex with access to frag grenade equivalents. Toxin Sacs on the Carnifex gives you a rerolls to Wound for pennies. With 2 Twin-Linked Devourers, they become surprisingly powerful at destroying flyers (rerolling to hit), MEQs and TEQs (forcing saves), GEQ ICs (instant death), and even light to medium vehicles (volume of fire) at range. For only 150 points, with the option to be taken in larger broods, this setup rarely disappoints. Speaking of large broods, Carnifex large broods are a major point sink but are massively powerful, especially when they take the 4+ regeneration. All in all, Carnifexes have certainly seen some buffs in 6th edition, with the new Monstrous Creature cover rules, the changes to vehicles, and Hammer of Wrath and its points drop. Still sucks statwise when compared to a Daemon Prince. But they cost 120 points, so they're getting a fair trade off. Carnifex specific Hammer of Wrath gets d3 hits instead of just one; at strength 9, this is HUGE. Base Screamer-Killers (dual scything talons) will be able to lay out loads of pain. Crushing Claws are now really good for them for only 15 points and the 4+ regeneration is AMAZING. To sum up, a really good vehicle dismantler while being decently hard to kill, the options of being in large broods and other options for fire support.
**Now that Smash was changed in 7th edition, the Carnifex is now the king of smashing vehicles when equipped with Crushing Claws. Two of them in a brood with just the claws will cost you 270 pts. Be sure to give them Regeneration or some gaunts, because once players find out they're still dangerous, they will [[DISTRACTION CARNIFEX |shoot everything at them.]]
**Dakkafexes: These guys deserve an extra mention almost as a unit in their own right. Carnifexes get access to the Twin Linked Devourers With Brain Leech Worms (TLDWBLW) gun. Two of them together gives 12 shots, at 18" range, S6, Twin linked. All on a Carnifex platform and for 150 pts. That is terrifying. Shooting at marines, a Dakkafex will manage 9 hits and 8 wounds (statistically). That's 2.6666 dead marines. A tactical squad with meltagun and lascannon kills 2.54 marines a turn. And that is assuming the lascannon didn't move and that there is no cover at all. The Dakkafex manages this while being cheaper (150 vs 165pts) and considerably more durable. You need an average of 60 bolter hits to kill a marine squad outright. You need an average of 72 bolter hits to kill a Carnifex outright. Heavy weapons might be better but with so much available cover in 7th (Venomthropes, gaunt walls, shrubs) they aren't too reliable. Also, a Carnifex wrecks shit in close combat like no tactical squad ever did. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, a Dakkafex doesn't lose any of this firepower until it dies completely. The aforementioned tactical squad loses effectiveness as it loses marines. Taken in squads, this makes the Dakkafex absolutely terrifying, arguably the second best choice in the Tyranid Codex behind the Flyrant. They can mulch any unit possible, either through weight of shots (All types of infantry and light to medium vehicles) or through powerful close combat (MEQ's, TEQ's and all vehicles). Through weight of TL S6 shots they can even scare fliers. These guys are ''the'' shit.
**'''Stone Crusher Carnifex (Forge World):''' your basic fex with -1A, +1S, no talons, a Carapace that reduces all shots by -1S which is quite impressive. For weapon options it starts with AP1 claws that have Wrecker and re-rolls on all pen, but these can be changed for an ID flail that will will attack as many times as there are models in base contact meaning that they can kill every single model in base contact with themselves. One of the best things about the unit though is that they take Hammer of Wrath attacks at S10 AP2 with Armourbane against buildings and vehicles, or Monster Hunter against other Monstrous Creatures, but also that you consider that Carnifexes make D3 Hammer of Wrath attacks as standard, the Stone Crushers can be real powerful battering rams. It's basically the ideal [[DISTRACTION CARNIFEX]]. It's absurdly cheap in point cost (but not in real money - this is Forge World after all). Basically an ideal tool for a Tyrannocyte to come in, and then wreck everything if they don't focus on the floating drop pod with five autonomous guns.
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*Exerpt from Frozocone on DakkaDakka Tactics:
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*Background
**When one thinks of a Tyranid army, one of the first models to come to mind is the Carnifex. One of the most iconic Tyranid models to be in existance, especially in 4th edition where Carnifexes could also be taken in Elites. As fifth edition came out, they became redundant with the arrival of the new Trygon and lack of option to be taken as an Elite and slowly started to gather dust. Following the arrival of 6th edition, Carnifexes were hailed as one of the shining stars of the Codex, getting a notable points decrease as well as being able to take multiples in a brood, opening up Heavy Support options. As 7th edition rolled out they came to be the only Monstrous Creature in the Tyranid Codex that wasn't nerfed by the changes to Smash, making use of it's standard base 9 Strength to deal with anything that comes across its path.
*Competitive Setting
**A Carnifex Brood uses one of the Heavy Support slots in a Tyranid army. It follows a standard TMC statline, with WS3, BS3, T6 with a 3+ Armour Save. As it does not have the Synapse Creature special rule, it will revert to Instinctive Behaviour outside of Synapse, of which the Carnifex rolls on the Feed table. Where the Carnifex starts to differ is that it only has 4 Wounds, making it not as durable as other TMCs and is Initiative 2, meaning that it strikes at the same speed as the lowly Ork and is out sped by anything that isn't a Power Fist or equivalent. However, where it lacks in speed, it makes up for in sheer brutality, sporting 3 attacks at base S9. Combined with it's Living Battering Ram special rule that grants it D3 Hammer of Wrath attacks instead of one, this makes it one of the premier options that Tyranids have for opening AV13/14.

*Melee Weapons
**Scything Talons - Carnifexes come equipped with two pairs of Scything Talons. Although being nerfed, they do allow for customization of a Carnifex by exchanging a pair for Wargear upgrades.
***For those that want to keep Carnifexes cheap, this is a good option.
**Crushing Claws - Crushing Claws grants a Carnifex S10 in Close Combat (note, not for Hammer of Wrath), allowing it to Instant Kill T5 as well as giving it the Armourbane USR, making it more likely to Penetrate AV13-14.
***For Carnifexes designed for vehicle hunting, this is a good option.

*Monstrous Bio-Cannons
**Twin-Linked Deathspitter - A Carnifex may replace one pair of Scything Talons with a TL Deathspitter, granting it three 18" TL shots at S5 AP5. This is not very good, especially when taken in context, it is outclassed by another Monstrous Biocannon.
***This is a bad option.
**Twin-Linked Devourer with Brainleech worms - A Carnifex may replace one pair of Scything Talons with a TL Devourer with Brainleech Worms, granting it six 18" TL shots at S6 AP-. This allows a Carnifex to be multi-purpose, wounding Infantry through number of shots, as well as Light Armour and in emergencies, ground based AA.
***This is a good option.
**Stranglethorn Cannon - A Carnifex may replace one pair of Scything Talons with a Stranglethorn Cannon, granting it one 36" shot at S6 AP5 Large Blast, Pinning Shot. The Stranglethorn Cannon may only be taken once per model and may not be taken with the Heavy Venom Cannon. This allows a Carnifex to act as a Infantry killer and support smaller Tyranids by potentially making it harder to shoot at them. However, with a Carnifexes bad Ballistic Skill, it might scatter off the target and is in general, outclassed by Biovores, who give three Large Blast Templates at a large ranger for the price of a standard Carnifex.
***This is a bad option.
**Heavy Venom Cannon - A Carnifex may replace one pair of Scything Talons with a Heavy Venom Cannon, granting it one 36" shot at S9 AP4 Blast. Only one Heavy Venom Cannon may be taken per model and may not be taken with the Stranglethorn Cannon. This allows a Carnifex to fire a single S9 shot before it charges a vehicle, making it easier to wreck vehicles, as well as Instant Killing T4. For Carnifexes designed for Vehicles-hunting, this could be the last glancing hit you need to wreck that vehicle.
***This is a decent option.

*Biomorphs
**Toxin Sacs A Carnifex with Toxin Sacs has the Poisoned USR. This, combined with the natural S9 of the Carnifex, will normally allow it to re-roll failed to Wound rolls. However, the Carnifex only has 3 attacks base and WS3, meaning you might not get to make use of the re-roll to wounds.
***This is a decent option.
**Acid Blood A Carnifex with Acid Blood the ability to inflict a S5 AP2 hit per unsaved wound in Close Combat. This looks quite good, until you realise the Carnifex only has four Wounds, as well as the opponent having to take an Initiative before the hit can apply.
***This is a bad option.
**Adrenal Glands. A Carnifex with Adrenal Glands has the Fleet and Furious Charge USR. This allows a Carnifex to have S10 on the charge (note, not for Hammer of Wrath), as well as re-roll Run and Charge distances. This makes getting into combat much easier and combined with the Onslaught Psychic Power, allows Carnifexes to get into position quickly to start firing any Ranged Weapons they have.
***This is a good option.
**Regeneration. A Carnifex with Regeneration has the ability to regain lost wounds at the end of the game turn on a 4+. This looks promising, until one realizes it is the least durable Monstrous Creature that Tyranids have, on virtue of it having the fewest amount of Wounds (aside the Hive Tyrant, which can mitigate this with the Catalyst Psychic Power and Wings for a FMC profile) and only has a 3+ armour save coupled with it's Toughness characteristic of 6, meaning it can be focused fired down before it can make use of Regeneration.
***This is a bad option.

*Tail Biomorphs
**Thresher Scythe - A Carnifex with a Thresher Scythe may make an additional S4 AP4 attack with the Rending special rule in close combat. Considering that the Carnifex that is in combat is usually geared for vehicle killing, this is not likely to help.
***This is a bad option.
**Bone Mace - A Carnifex with a Bone Mace may make an additional S8 AP - attack in close combat. They cost the same as Crushing Claws which will more reliably open vehicles, but if you feel that you are not destroying vehicles enough, it grants additional attack that may cause that final glancing hit.
***This is a decent option.

*Options
**Additional Carnifexes - a Carnifex Brood may take up to two more Carnifexes. This allows a Tyranid player to shift Carnifexes around for Wound allocation purposes making the brood more durable, as well as have more Carnifexes without using up the Heavy Support slots. Any Carnifex brood consisting of two or three Carnifexes can not make use of the Tyrannocyte, making this option a speed vs durability argument.It is important to note however, that any Carnifex Brood with two or three models, are vulnerable to the harshest Instinctive Behaviour: Feed table.
***For lists that do not use Tyrannocytes, or do not want Carnifexes using a Tyrannocyte, this is a good option.
***For lists that do make use of Tyrannocytes, this is decent option.
**Spine Banks - A Carnifex with Spine Banks may fire one 8" shot at S3 AP- Blast and is treated as having Assault Grenades. This is generally not worth it as the damage output is so low and Carnifexes have a low Initiative to begin with.
***This is a bad option.
**Bio-Plasma - A Carnifex with Bio=Plasma may fire one 12" shot at S7 AP2 Blast. This is better than Spine Banks as you can wound a lot more stuff. It is still a bit pricey however and for thirty points more, one can purchase an Exocrine, which has a larger blast or six shots at double the range and when stationary, a better BS.
***This is a decent option.
**Transport
***Tyrannocyte: As soon as the Tyrannocyte was announced, there was much rejoicing amongst Tyranid players. Tyrannocytes give much needed speed to Tyranids, which allows Carnifexes to move up even faster than before. Note that only one MC model can embark the Tyrannocyte upon deployment. Tyrannocytes work best when a model can immedietly do something upon deployment, such as shoot or provide Synapse so is not the best option for all Carnifexes.
****For single Carnifexes with Ranged Weapons, this is a good option.
****For single Carnifexes with Melee only weapons, this is a decent option.
****For Carnifexes with long range weapons (HVC or SC) or broods of two or more models, this is a bad option.
**Standard Competitive Builds
***Carnifex w/ 2x TL Devourers with Brainleech Worms - can be taken alone to fit in a Tyrannocyte or in multiples for more firepower, this type of Carnifex, known as the 'Dakkafex' spits out a large number of shots which shave wounds off units. Adrenal Glands are an optional extra to allow it to more reliable deal with vehicles or move into position.
***Carnifex w/ Scything Talons, Crushing Claws - This type of Carnifex commonly has two more standard Carnifexes for ablative wounds, as they move up the battlefield looking for the highest AV vehicles and destroying them with ease. Adrenal Glands are not a necessity as the Crushing Claws variant can reliably deal with high AV vehicles and you normally have ablative wounds for your Crushing Claws Carnifex.
***Carnifex w/ 2x Scything Talons, Adrenal Glands - The 'Screamer-Killer' is a basic Carnifex. It can either be taken in multiples for more Wounds to chew through, or as a single unit

*Stone Crusher Carnifexes
**From Forge World, Stone Crusher Carnifexes are even stronger than regular Carnifexes, boasting S10 on their base statline. This becomes even better when you consider the fact they also have Living Battery Ram, as well as their own special rules, Wrecker, Sunder and Carapace Chitin-rams. This gives all Hammer of Wrath attacks Armourbane and Monster Hunter, meaning they can put wounds on MC and vehicles alike. Wrecker and Sunder is what really sets them apart from Carnifexes, they are allowed to re-roll all failed Armour Penetration rolls, as well as add one to the result if against immobile structures and fortifications (on top of the +2 granted by the Wrecker Claws AP1 value) when using their Wrecker Claws. Although the Stone Wrecker Carnifex has less attacks than the Carnifex (two compared to three) any attack that goes through is more than likely going to cause an Explodes! result. As a trade off for their close combat power, they have no access to Monstrous Biocannons.
**While they have an identical profile to the Carnifex (trading an attack for Strength 10 aside), they are more durable than Carnifexes, due to their Reinforced Caraspace special rule, which makes any shooting attacks resolved against a Stone Crusher Carnifex reduce their Strength by one. Essentially, this means the Stone Crusher Carnifex is T7 against shooting attacks (note this does not apply to close combat attacks).
*Stone Crusher Carnifexes upgrades
**Additional Stone Crusher Carnifexes - like regular Carnifexes, additional Carnifexes may be taken for Wound allocation purposes. Considering that they are Toughness 7 against shooting attacks, this will prolong the life of Stone Crusher Carnifexes considerably. As mentioned in the Tyrannocyte entry for Carnifexes, models that can do something upon Deep Strike arrival are good. Stone Crusher Carnifexes have the durability to run up the field and bear the brunt of most weapons, especially with Shrouded support. Note that broads of two or more Stone Crusher Carnifexes are vulnerable to the worst result on the Instinctive Behaviour: Feed table.
***For lists that do make use of Tyrannocytes, this is decent option.
**For lists that do not use Tyrannocytes, or do not want Stone Wrecker Carnifexes using a Tyrannocyte, this is a good option.
***Spine Banks - Like regular Carnifexes, this does not help them destroy vehicles.
**This is a bad option.
***Bio-Plasma -Generally not worth it since a Stone Wrecker Carnifex does not want to be targetting Infantry.
**This is a bad option.
***Thresher Scythe - Like regular Carnifexes, this does not help them destroy vehicles.
**This is a bad option.
***Bone Mace - Unlike regular Carnifexes, Stone Wrecker Carnifexes do not require help destroying vehicles.
**This is a bad option.
***Wrecker Claw and Bio-Flail - A Stone Wrecker Carnifex with a Wrecker Claw and Bio-Flail replaces their ability to re-roll amour penetration on their regular attacks with the ability to cause Instant Death and gain a new rule, Sweep Attack. Sweep Attack allows a model to replace all their attacks with a number of attacks equal to the number of enemy models in base contact with them. This allows a Stone Crusher Carnifex with a Wrecker Claw and Bio-Flail to generate more attacks and stops it being tarpitted as easily, while the trade off is that they may find it harder to destroy vehicles.
**For Stone Crusher Carnifex broods consisting of two or three models, this is a good option.
***For Stone Crusher Carnifex broods consisting of one model, this is a decent option.
**Transport
***Much like a regular Carnifex, a single Stone Crusher Carnifex can embark on a Tyrannocyte. However, a Stone Wrecker Carnifex has more durability than a regular Carnifex and can forgo a Transport in favour of running up. Note however, that a Stone Wrecker Carnifex can not usse Adrenal Glands at all, so it is still quite slow in that regard, meaning the Tyrannocyte can provide the speed that a Stone Wrecker Carnifex needs in order to do damage.
****For single Stone Wrecker Carnifexes, this is a good option.
****For Stone Wrecker Carnifex broods of two or more models, this is a bad option.
**Standard Competitive Builds
***Stone Wrecker Carnifex w/ Wrecker Claws - A standard Stone Wrecker Carnifex does a fine job of destroying vehicles without any upgrades.
***Stone Wrecker Carnifex w/ Wrecker Claw and Bio-flail - A Stone Wrecker Carnifex with Wrecker Claw and Bio-flail should only be taken in groups of two or more, as it prevents a heavily points invested unit being tarpitted easily.

*Conclusion and Overall Rating
**Carnifex Overall rating = A-
***The Carnifex can provide a lot for a Tyranid army that is not covered well within the rest of the army, such as high volumes of fire or dealing with AV13-14 and as such, are recommended in most builds of Tyranids. The Carnifex can be kitted out for different roles, making it a multi-purpose unit, which is useful in the case that you may not always be playing against vehicles. The Carnifex just falls short of being an all-star by a reliance on Synapse to function well, as well as requiring support from other Tyranids to provide it with a cover save, or to simply draw fire away from it as it is fragile in comparison to other TMCs.
**Stone Crusher Carnifex Overall Rating = B
***While the Stone Crusher Carnifex is the best answer Tyranids have to heavy vehicle duties, it's role is very linear and does not allow much adaptability. It also suffers from requiring Synapse to be effective and even with pseudo Toughness 7, is still quite vulnerable to volume of fire with only four wounds.
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**'''The Beast of Phodia (Deathstorm):''' A Fex with Bio-Plasma and Stranglethorn. Add 15 Points, and you gain IWND, which is...a nice feature. At least he can take care of any TEQ handily.

*'''[[Trygon]]:''' The Trygon is a former Apocalypse heavyweight which has been scaled down for standard 40k games and is the smallest of the bio-titans and the only bio-titan to lack biocannons. An expensive model to be sure, it is still considered one of the highlights of the Tyranid codex. Like most other Tyranid Monstrous Creatures, the 6 Toughness 6 wounds (Formerly Toughness 7 5 wounds back in it's days of being a forge world exclusive, the toughness was probably decreased so that it wouldn't be COMPLETELY immune to S3 weapons like lasguns anymore while it was given another wound to compensate) allow it to take hits like a champ, its raw statline and Fleet, makes him a melee powerhouse. As Scything Talons got nerfed hard, they no longer are quite the bringers of death they were before. However, as toxin sacs can be bought for less than a gaunt, they can rather easily regain their rerolling death, even if it is for wounds rather than hits. It also has a respectably powerful shooting attack. As a final note, the Trygon itself does not have the option for a Mycetic Spore(but that's gone now), but Deep Strikes with the same Scatter-reduction rules built into its cost; you should always use this rule as it gets the Trygon into combat very quick. Can also leave a hole for 1 <b>infantry</b> unit per turn to arrive from after it emerges (Pro Tip, combine this with Zoanthropes, Raveners or a big blob of devourer armed Termagants).
**'''Trygon Prime''': We've come across one of the units that didn't change much from the update (Other than being 10 pts cheaper and have access to the Bio-Artefacts), but remains a viable choice nonetheless. The fact that it can Deep Strike and provide Synapse makes him suited for a fast moving list and being a back up Synapse creature in case something bad happened to your other Synapse creatures. You really have to take advantage of the Deep Strike rule to get your points worth, otherwise it will be a waste and be outclassed by a walking Hive Tyrant with Tyrant Guards. The fact you can equip Artefacts like the Reaper of Obliterax is enticing, although again, just taking it to use the weapon and nothing more will not only be a point sink, but will attract guns to shoot at it. However if you play to the Prime's strength and use his rules, then he's worth taking. Upgrades are't needed, although Toxin Sacs and Regeneration are great, albeit the latter is expensive, which you need to keep it cheap unless you're playing a game where you have plenty of points to spend. Toss in a Toxinspike tail if you know you'll be facing high toughness monsters, otherwise keep him bare as he can still tear units apart and haves enough wounds to see him through the mid game and beyond. Given that he costs 40 pts extra than a regular Trygon, while still keeping most of the same stats that makes him good and provide Synapse, you won't be disappointed in the Prime if you use his rules to your advantage.
*'''[[Mawloc]]:''' A Trygon that costs 50pts less, with -2WS, -2A, no access to ranged weapons, and the ability to cause damage to enemy squads as it enters play. A polarizing unit, one that can either do a ton of pie plate damage, or die horribly with just a bad die roll or two. The good: If a Mawloc deep strikes onto an enemy unit, instead of Mishaping, Terror From the Deep lets you place a large blast over the spot the Mawloc is deep striking. Any models under the template take a S6AP2 hit with Ignores Cover. If there is still no room to place the model after this then you get a second S6AP2 Pie Plate (the codex says the Mawloc ''HAS'' to be placed within one inch of the enemy unit if it has the space). Combo TFtD with the Mawloc's Burrow ability, allowing it to enter Ongoing Reserves for another Deep Strike, and Hit and Run, to use Burrow to its fullest extent. The bad: the survivors are ''NOT'' pushed out of the way like they were in 5th ed. Thus if those two pie plates aren't enough, the Mawloc immediately Mishaps, with all the bad news that entails (1/6 chance of instantly dead Mawloc; 1/3 chance of your opponent putting it next to something that can kill it easily). Vehicles are only hit on side armor; Hive Mind help you if you scatter onto anything with SA13+ and/or more than two HP, or any model with a decent invul save. Also, bear in mind that TFtD does not distinguish between friendly and enemy models, so if you scatter into your own unit you WILL have to Pie Plate it.
** Not too many armies can boast an Ignores-Cover large blast which burns through Terminator armor, and (possibly) hits twice. Forget Metal boxes; your targets are Broadsides, Jetbike squadrons, Gravcannon Centurions, etc. TFtD is also not a shooting attack, Meaning its one of the only few large blast weapons that flat-out ignores Invisibility (alongside, incidentally, Spore weapons). If nothing else, it keeps Deathstars honest.
*'''[[Exocrine]]''': Another new model with a big gun that's Assault 6, Str 7, AP2 shots. Or it can drop a big blast that's also S7 AP2. Park its butt for a round, and it's +1 BS (As an extra thought, give this adrenaline glands and have someone cast onslaught on it, it can stay stationary in the movement phase, then run a re-rollable D6'' then shoot at BS 4''). Its stats are slightly weaker than base monster stats but it can still hold its own in a fight. Too bad the range isn't all that good, so make sure it has a few meat-shields (or Venomthropes) protecting it.
*'''[[Tyrannofex]]:''' A primarily ranged Bio-titan; This unit is of hotly debated usefulness. Scorned by some, and cherished as an unassailable bastion of destruction by others, they are ultimately models that lack a unified purpose. Costing five more points than a Keeper of Secrets, T-Fexes have six wounds, a toughness of six, and a 2+ save, meaning they are essentially invulnerable to regular infantry. Their standard build is bristling with anti-infantry weaponry, sporting two flamer templates and a short range large blast, but most people don't feel they particularly need more anti-infantry support from such an expensive unit. What the Tyranids do need is anti-armor, and that is something the Tyrannofex provides, but at considerable cost and with remedial reliability. Fans of the T-Fex insist it is a perfect tool because it draws fire away from your more important units without flinching, while opponents detract that the T-Fex's weakness is being ignored. The model is so costly that one must sacrifice whole broods of other units to field one, so it doesn't always hurt the enemy to just not shoot at the T-Fex. The reason why their use is debated at all is because T-Fexes are the Tyranid codex's only long range anti-armor units, providing a S10, Assault 2 firearm that can reach across the board, letting you crack open Land Raiders from a long distance. Ultimately they are slow, fill a niche by desperation rather than proficiency, and should '''not''' be used in games with point limits below 1,500. If titans, superheavy tanks, gargantuan creatures, and stompas are appearing on the board (such as in a game of apocalypse) T-fexes find themselves overshadowed due to the sheer number of biocannon (all of them being S10 AP3 Heavy 3-9 weapons) equipped units that will become available to the tyranids. But they do provide a nice backup to the gargantuan bio-titans. A good use for them in apocalypse is to clear away super-heavy units that would otherwise tie down your Bio-titans or threaten your army while leaving your Apocalypse Bio-titans free to focus on other things. Additionally, they make for excellent Titan finishers. Essentially, treat them as more expendable shadow sword equivalents. For some incomprehensible reason, both the Acid Spray and Rupture cannon are only AP4, making them useless against MEQs, seriously, it's chances of penetrating a land raider's armour is *identical* to it's chances of getting by a marine's armour save, what the fuck? Alternatively, a Tyrannofex can be used as a linebreaker unit, since most power weapons are ap3 now.
**Alternate use - As said previously, the secondary weapons are created primarily for anti-infantry. Therefore, make the tyrannofex a complete infantry hunter (Your elite slots should be your anti-vehicle. They do a much better job). In the new edition thorax swarms now count as weapons in their own right, meaning they count towards your total number of shots per turn, so gone are the days of the triple-template Tyrannofex. However, thorax swarms no longer have to be taken, and electroshock grub now have the haywire rule, giving the Tyrannofex some close range anti armour power and a surprisingly good overwatch weapon against charging Dreadnoughts. With a 2+ armor save, T6 and W6, deploy as a line-breaker (which will also qualify this beast to be your DISTRACTION CARNIFEX) and force your opponent to choose between unloading ALL his firepower to kill it, or retreating his units out of cover, which could work well for your other units. And don't forget that it's STILL an MC, so don't be afraid to smash any vehicles unfortunate enough to get within charge range. Give this creature regeneration and it'll survive the whole game. Add the thorax Fleshbane template to the acid spray for extra OMFGRUN cover-clearing naughtiness.
*'''[[Toxicrene]]''': A new monster released with rules separate from the codex, this is essentially a jumbo-venomthrope made for offenses. It has Shrouded and 2+ Poisoned Lash Whips and has both the Toxic Miasma and a special Choking Cloud. This cloud is a 12" S3 AP- 2+ Poisoned Large Blast that ignores cover and gains Armourbane against open-topped vehicles or those that already lost a HP. The bigger bonus, though, is that all these poisoned attacks grant it Instant Death on a 6 to-wound, meaning that it has a slightly better chance of wiping out anything close to it. It thoroughly disassembles Riptides and other MCs in close combat - wounding on a 2 with AP2 is no joke, despite the mediocre WS - but walkers or MCs with a strong invulnerable save can slow it down. Shrouded means it essentially brings its own Venomthrope/Malanthrope anywhere it goes, so it needs less escorting than most other melee beasts and is harder to shoot off the board than a Trygon or Hive Tyrant.
**Despite its Initiative score of six (with Lash Whips) and its high number of attacks, it is hampered by its low WS, so you'll get a few wounds/kills per turn, but those wounds are almost guaranteed due to 2+ poison and AP2 so focus on high value / low model count units unless you're fighting against 3++ save opponents. A pair of Carnifexes in one squad or a Trygon can both put out about the same amount of hurt (not counting biomorphs or toxic miasma) , but the Toxicrene is cheaper than those and still has that advantage of speed. The Toxicrene fails against vehicles due to its lower strength (barring the Smash hail-Mary) and its shooting attack is really just a gimmick against since S3 Armourbane can only ''reliably'' harm AV10 anyway (though can dent a Land Raider if you are '''very''' lucky). As mentioned at the start of this section, choosing the Toxicrene should really depend on what else you have taken in your army and if you have heavy infantry/MC slaying in the bag already then consider something else.
**'''Alternate Opinion''': It's best to ignore the shooting attack, though using it on [[Land Speeder]] squadrons could be hilarious. Just think of the shooting attack as a better version of Cluster Spines. The Toxicrene is a multi-purpose beast, able to damage most elite melee units and monstrous creatures before they can strike, able to utterly devastate tarpits with a pie-plate and Toxic Miasma and, outside of combat, pretty damn hard to kill because it has Shrouded by itself and doesn't need to hug a Venomthrope for it.
**The Toxicrene rules are easy to find as they've been officially released on the internet so it's not hard to check.
*'''[[Mycetic Spore|Tyrannocyte]]:''' And like a vision from heaven, GW's corrupt mental systems finally gained a spark of helpfulness and gave the Nid Players what they wanted: A drop pod (though it lacks the Marines' Turn 1 Assaults, but them's the breaks). A Monstrous Creature transport that can't assault or sweep but can fight in CC ''(meaning your opponent should weigh up whether it's a good idea to assault or not, unlike a completely passive Drop Pod)''. It also carries 5 (check it, FIVE) Deathspitters that must fire at the same time, though they can be at five separate targets due to the fancy Instinctive Fire special rule, with options for either Barbed Stranglers or Venom Cannons to help defend it, which are both much better options anyway since they don't rely on BS2 as much to hit anything. Can hold either 20 models or 1 Monstrous Creature (Meaning Fex Broods and Tyrants with Guards still have to leg it). That's right; deep striking genestealers, Carnifexes or Hive Tyrants. We back in business! The major downside to this is ultimately price; 75 Points is a rather high price for a transport ''(but still low for a 6W T5 Monstrous Creature with Five guns)'' bringing other weapons ups it to 100, making it a strange mix between Land Raider and Drop Pod in use. Suicide units will probably be best served, as they'll have the ability to distract an enemy where they least expect it and if they're monsters, they'll have little to fear from IB.
**It does '''NOT''' actually take up a Heavy Support slot in the army, however even then it is '''NOT''' required to be attached to a unit like a Dedicated transport usually is (even if you don't transport said unit), meaning you can essentially spam these things and cause your enemy some serious area denial with cheap multi-shot monstrous creatures.
**It's worth noting that since it's a Monstrous Creature it has a 360 degree arc of fire (and can pivot to fire at a target), thus for 200 points you can have two Tyrannocytes that can drop a total of 10 pie plates a turn...in addition to whatever it's carrying inside....
**Instinctive Fire is worth describing, as you cannot choose its targets unless there are multiple units ''exactly'' equidistant away:
***Each weapon on this model automatically fires at the nearest enemy unit within range and line of sight. The shots are resolved at the end of the Shooting phase before Morale checks are taken. Each weapon can fire at a different target unit, but they cannot be fired in any other way or at any other time. 
*'''Sporocyst''': This shouldn't really be considered as a unit, though it technically is; it's more of a 75-point living fortification that can infiltrate and then open fire on whatever it sees. See, it's immobile, but in exchange, it gains 5 Deathspitters (which can be replaced with Barbed Stranglers/Venom Cannons) it can fire at anything near LOS with it due to the same Instinctive Fire rule as the Tyrannocyte. It can also spit out three Spore Mines each turn too (or spit out a Mucolid Spore once per game) within 6" of it, making it really helpful in threatening space. As a third boon, this thing also adds 6" to the Synapse Range of any Synapse Creature within 6" of it, making babysitting less of a major chore (Though you'll still need Synapse to start with, so Tervigons aren't totally bunked). Sure it's WS/BS2 T5 with only a 4+, but it has 6. FUCKING. WOUNDS. And if you cover it with a Venomthrope or two, you're practically set to make anyone think twice about charging your gunline.
**Whether 3 Spore Mines or 1 Mucolid Spores, the Sporocyst churns out 15 points worth of models every turn. Keep it alive for 5 and it already brought its points back in, not counting all the harm its five guns could wreak. Also keep in mind that, as the Sporocyst is a Monstrous Creature, it can Smash. If the enemy assaults it with a Dreadnought, he deserves whatever happens to it.