Warhammer 40K: A Brief Look At The Three Tyrannic Wars
Warhammer 40,000 is on the cusp of a fourth Tyrannic War. So how did the previous three Tyrannic Wars go? Not great.
The Imperium may have survived the first three Tyrannic Wars but not with great sacrifice and lost lives. Untold billions died as moons, planets and even entire systems were swallowed by the tendrils of the Tyranid Hive fleets. Both the Ultramarines and the Blood Angels have a long history dealing with the Tyranids — but even their experience might not be enough for what’s to come.
Today, we’re going to take a quick tour of the history of the first three Tyrannic Wars in order to prepare us all for the war that has the potential to consume the entire galaxy.
First Contact – Ymgarl 500.M41
“The earliest recorded contact between the Imperium and the Tyranid threat came more than 200 years before the arrival of the first Hive Fleet, on the moons of Ymgarl. There, Imperial merchant vessels encountered an unknown strain of alien with a tentacular facial array. Originally believed to be native to the region, the danger they represented soon became apparent, and they were purged by elements of the Salamanders Chapter.”
The details of this first encounter are sparse. In fact, this encounter wasn’t even know to be from the soon-to-be named Tyranids at the time. What we do have is from the 4th and 5th edition Tyranid Codexes. We also know that this particular strain of Genestealer (as they would later be called) still lurks around the galaxy. But these were just the harbingers of something far worse.
The First Tyrannic War – 745.M41
This was the first encounter with the Tyranids en masse and also were they earned their name. This mysterious xenos race’s bio-ships launched an attack on the planet Tyran. After devouring the planet, this hostile species was dubbed “Tyranids” and the rest is history.
Hive Fleet Behemoth, as it was classified, struck the eastern side of the galaxy and consumed every bit of biomass in its path. There path led them on a collision course with the homeworld of the Ultramarines, Macragge. This was when Chapter Master Marneus Calgar of the Ultramarines declared the xenos would be stopped and preparations were made ready for a threat unlike anything they had encountered before.
During this conflict a key figure would emerge — Inquisitor Kryptman of the Ordo Xenos. It was his intel that helped to warn Macragge and allowed them to successfully mount a defense.
“Behemoth was defeated, albeit at great cost. Macragge remained infested, Calgar was crippled, and the Ultramarines’ entire 1st Company was killed, their veteran Terminators found lying where they fell defending the Polar Fortress to the last man.”
The Second Tyrannic War – 990-993.M41
The Imperium wasn’t the only race who’s had the pleasure of defending the entire galaxy from these alpha-predators. During the second Tyranid War, another Hive Fleet attacked — this fleet was named Kraken. And it had learned a few tricks from previous encounters.
Where Hive Fleet Behemoth attacked en masse as a single, massive tendril Hive Fleet Kraken changed tactics. It spread out into many splinter fleets and infested a much wider area. It wasn’t just the Ultramarines on the defensive now. The T’au of the Damocles Gulf and the Aeldari Craftworld of Iyanden were sucked into the fighting. Iyanden was almost completely destroyed as well.
While some would say that Hive Fleet Kraken was defeated, it’s tendrils are still spreading as the infestation was never full stamped out. This would not be the last time the Tyranids would use the Splinter Fleet strategy either…
The Third Tyrannic War – 997.M41-Present
The Third Tyranid war kicked off not from the eastern fringes this time, but from the west — and it speared the galaxy from the below the galactic plane. Hive Fleet Leviathan led this charge and it is considered the largest Hive Fleet to date. Countless worlds have already been consumed and although the fleet was stalled by a strategic ploy from Inquisitor Kryptman (see the Octarius War) Leviathan is still going strong.
One of the tendrils of Hive Fleet Leviathan was heading towards the homeworld of the Blood Angels. Chapter Master Dante rallied the Blood Angels and most of the Successor Chapters into a fighting force some 30,000 Space Marines strong. They battled the Tyranids and barely managed to survive thanks to the arrival of the Great Rift, some Khornate-Intervention, and the eventual reinforcements from the Indomitus Crusade and Roboute Guilliman himself.
This Tyrannic War is still an ongoing conflict and Leviathan continues to chomp across the galaxy. Which is why this latest conflict is going to be a bit of an issue…
The Fourth Tyrannic War
It’s been revealed that the Forth Tyrannic War is upon the galaxy. A new tendril is attacking the galaxy — this time from the western side in Segmentum Pacificus. And the Tyranids have evolved yet again with even more tricks up their chintous sleeves. What new threats and xenos creatures will emerge? Who will help defend the galaxy from complete and utter annihilation? I guess we’ll find out when Warhammer 40,000 10th edition lands this summer!
I hope everyone’s been brushing up on their “NOM NOM NOM!”
