Hive Fleet Nidhoggr

The Hive Fleet Nidhoggr is a splinter of the tyranid threat shrouded in mystery and fear. First encountered on the now-consumed world of Yggdrasill, its perpetual flame has enveloped numerous worlds in the Segmentum Obscurus with no signs of stopping. Ever-evolving to new heights of brutality and resilience, the shadow cast by these creatures shrouds the dying worlds in an ashen mist that bloats the sky and chokes the resistance as their planet burns to the ground.

Fluff

Physical Description

Identical to other Tyranid sub-species in biology, except about two to ~~ten~~ three times as large, with the addition of various pores that secrete an obsidian-like substance over their bodies. The substance has been known to withstand melta bombs and flamer damage. Venom glands that are either normally dormant or inactive in some of the larger sub-species have been adapted to release a dual-chemical reaction, known to react with hydrogen and oxygen in the air with pyroclastic effects.

Many bioforms emit an orange heat glow off of their claws and within their jaws. The very few specimens that have been captured and dissected have had immense internal heat that does not die with the creature. They also seem to have a predilection towards eating rocks, armor and other inorganic substances.

Tactics

Mycetic Spores are disused for Deepstriking. Instead, they invade the planet via meteor storms in order to remain inconspicuous, allowing the Tyranids to infest the crust of the planet with Monstrous Creatures who remain in a hibernation state until activated by the Hive Mind. The deeply seeded planet is activated, causing tectonic damage on a local, and depending on planetary faultlines, global scale. The awakened Tyranids are often likened to "Volcanoes and mountains born upon the backs of massive creatures", who proceed with incinerating the planet before consuming it completely. As other Tyranid fleets have been known to scour planets of life, the Nidhoggr Hive Tendril has been known to eradicate whole systems from existence, hence earning their title based on the ancient devourer of the World Tree.

Biomorphs peculiar to the Nidhoggr

Many strange creatures are found only in this peculiar hive fleet.

Balor-class Hive Tyrant

A Hive Tyrant of the Hive Fleet Nidhoggr. It was the first true commander-organism of its fleet and led the fall of Yggdrasil and the first crusades through the dark cosmo. Far larger than any other organism of its type, the Tyrant incorporated many strange adaptations in its iterations, from massive magma cannons to piercing chitin spears; the one common denominator and the artificers of its dark fame were a peculiar type of monstrous bonesword and lash whip called "The Devil's Implements" that burned away the flesh of the victims and bombarded their pain receptors to the point of bursting. Little by little, this creature's appearances grew rarer, until it became something of a myth, a shadow of a demon lingering in the scorched earths of countless systems, out-shadowed only by an even darker form.

Surtur-class Swarmlord

The gradual disappearance of the Balor-class Tyrant wasn't an act of mercy, for with every new battle, the Nidhoggr Norn Queen, the Molten Empress, tested the limits of organisms it created and gradually crafted the most fearsome of them all, a magnum opus of fire and death with which to burn the sky and shatter the ground. And so, on a remote and fortified planet of the Space Wolves, the Surtur-class Swarmlord was unleashed. In a matter of three days, each and every fortress on the planet fell, the newly born leader of the Swallowing Flame led charge after charge, commanding its legions of fire and ash with brutal precision. On the last day, Anthra, captain of the last surviving haven of the planet, fought the beast in direct combat; despite his agility, he was no match for the fiery mountain that opposed him, and for an hour he barely managed to hold his own, until a blow from its massive sabers cut his right arm, disarming him. But before he could be finished off, he took the Swarmlord by surprise and blasted one of its own appendages off with a shot from a melta pistol. At last, the beast had lowered its guard, but it was still learning, that wasn't but a test to understand its capabilities. It mauled the captain alive, under the watch of his brothers and under the last screams of the fallen hero, so too fell the last bastion of Charan.

Centuries later, the Surtur-class Swarmlord has only gotten more intelligent and brutal. In a macabre display of intelligence from a seemingly soulless abomination, before consuming the prey it always slices their limbs off, apparently enjoying their struggles before engulfing them in its flames.

Linnorm

A massive Trygon wreathed in flame, this particular bioform is a unique individual that consumes inorganic matter and uses it as fuel to power its rampages. First spotted at the vanguard of a Nidhoggr assault on an imperial world, the Linnorm burnt through and under groups of vehicles, melting their undersides and immobilizing them before erupting in a shower of lava.

Despite its appearances not being very different from other normal Trygons and Mawlocs, the inner working of this beast are indeed quite peculiar; while lacking its cousins' ability to harness electrostatic energy and fire it at will, the Linnorm is capable of utilizing its biostatic rattle to sense vulnerable points in the crust and even cause localized earthquakes through the pulses release by it underground. The dragon cannon situated in its mouth, in addition, can melt through armored bunkers and functions based on the creature's innate thermal reserve deep in its body, which reaches temperatures abnormal even for the standards of the fleet.

While other creatures of the Nidhoggr are masters of destruction and bloodshed, the Linnorm's role is much more subtle; its targets are the backfield supports, supply units, or even those unfortunate souls that might try to escape the flames. Where there's ground, one is always in potential danger.

Suam'O

Called "Commander of Flame" in the Tau language, this tyranid first appeared on a heavily defended T'au world. The Tau had taken many painstaking weeks to purge the Nidhoggr forces from their planet, utilising the heavy Riptide battle suits to clear the monstrous creatures from afar. Once every tyranid bioform had been driven back and destroyed, a single carnifex fell from the sky and ran directly at the weakest point in the enemy defence. The creature used a grappling hook-like tentacle to grab the closest Riptide and render its range advantage moot, then, it crushed its hull with the giant claws and burned the insides with its flames. The confusion and chaos it caused were enough for the hive fleet to reorganize and drive another wave of armored biomorphs, all concentrated in the spot sieged by Suam'O. After more fighting, the planet was finally consumed; though at heavy losses, a new creature had been tested by the hive mind, one that proved its effectiveness well enough to deserve further use.

Suam'O shows remarkable intelligence for a carnifex, being fit for the highly autonomous hive tendril. It is believed that the individual was built by the Hive Mind to destroy the advantage the T'au have in range and quickly assess the enemy's weaknesses without giving them time to react.

Garmriex

X

Ignis-class Pyrovores

While most Hive Fleets are content with merely leaving the Pyrovore to consume at its own leisure, its fire cannon being too inefficient for combat. However, Hive Fleet Nidhoggr would begin adapting Pyrovores to become more effective after a nearly-disastrous battle against the hordes of Hive Fleet Leviathan on the volcanic wastes of Musfell. The result was the Ignis Class Pyrovore, a breed of Pyrovore that harnessed the igneous power of magma to become capable of dissolving near-anything with its magmaspurt cannon. Although the brood is still relatively new, prospects from what few combats saw these beasts used has proven to be favorable.

Wyrms

Rippers are a crucial part of a hive fleet and contribute the most to the consumption of a planet's biomass. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the hive fleet, such small and feeble creatures would quickly die of auto-combustion and so the Molten Empress designed the Wyrms to fill in their ecological roles. These long worm creatures tunnel through the earth in search of pockets of magma and various other mineral materials the tendril needs and swallow them as if they were water or meat. This process of moving through the soil slowly destabilizes the ground, allowing for the terraforming of the planet to better suit the need of the Nidhoggr; hills crack open, lava flows in rivers, and geysers of underground gasses poison the wildlife. But their work doesn't end there, other than swallowing various land-dwelling creatures, their physique built for mantle travel makes them suited to explore the deep oceans and began their conversion into boiling wastes.

Magma Corer

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Written Stuff

Hive Fleet Nidhoggr: Ignition- First contact with Nidhoggr and birth of the Balor Hive Tyrant
Risen From the Ashes- The birth of a new Hive Strain from the Hive Mind's POV
The Flame King- The first appearance of a unique tyranid bioform, Suam'O
Heresy of the Angry Marines (Pt 1)- Hive Nidhoggr takes the tough task of fighting the Angry Marines