40K: A How-to Guide for Reserved Tyranids
Hi everyone !!
Instead of watching the Superbowl I figured I’d write another tactical article about how to build and play a reserved Tyranid army list. I would also like to address some common challenges I often encounter in regards to this army.
There is no one right way to play the army but there are some great choices that can go a long way towards a good build. I have chosen to bring my army to the ATC this year for several reasons. One big reason is that the ATC is both a fun and competitive event that draws a lot of top players from around the country. Another reason is that I am very familiar with the mission format and used theirs as the basis for mine at BeakyCon – this format features all three objectives from the rulebook (Killpoints, Capture and Control plus Seize Ground) and they are all equivalent – that is you either win or lose, there is no primary, secondary or tertiary. This type of format does not give an advantage to any type of army. I have only heard good things about ATC and look forward to playing there in Tennessee this summer. I have also learned how to do well in regards to each of the three objectives from the rulebook including killpoints.
Killpoints used to be my proverbial Achilles’ Heel but by dropping one mycetic spore and a few other slight tweaks to my original army list it is now an objective I can win whereas before it seemed to be a foregone conclusion I could never win that one. I have also developed some new tactics that are powerful versus mechanized lists. If you think about it most mechanized lists present a plethora of easy killpoints you can score if your army is adapted to take proper advantage. For example just recently I learned that you decide where to place your Ymgarl genestealers in reserve after both armies have been deployed… In a recent tournament my Yrmgal genestealers destroyed three vehicles and immobilized another the turn they arrived from reserve… Melee-centric armies should utilize assault to damage and destroy vehicles. While genestealers excel in melee versus other infantry units they are also able to shred armor due to their high number of attacks coupled with rending versus rear armor and in general this is one of the few weaknesses of vehicles that can easily be exploited… Think of it this way – if you could take a unit that always counted as shooting at the rear facing of a vehicle wouldn’t you field them? I have also started to infiltrate my Genestealer brood sometimes instead of always outflanking them—I will now infiltrate depending upon terrain and how my opponent has deployed. Genestealers can serve the role as a vanguard and sow disruption providing a distraction for your other units arriving from reserve. As such it’s possible at times to assault with these two units during the second turn. They are both a big threat and cannot be ignored by the opponent. In my opinion this is exactly how Genestealers were designed to perform.
My 1850 point List
Here is my most current army list:
-HQ-
Hive Tyrant *: wings, twin linked devourers w. brainleech ammo, bone sword+lash whip, adrenal glands, Hive Commander, Paroxysm & Life LeechTyranid Prime *: bone sword+lash whip, scything talons, adrenal glands, regeneration
-Elites-
10x Ymgarl Genestealers
2x Zoanthrope * – Mycetic spore-Troops-
15x Genestealer incl. Broodlord: all armed w. scything talons & toxin sacs
3x Warrior *: 2x deathspitter & barbed strangler, bone swords & lash whips, toxin sacs – Mycetic spore
15x Termagants: devourers – Mycetic spore
10x Hormagaunt: adrenal glands, toxin sacsAdvertisement-Heavy Support-
Trygon Prime * – adrenal glands* These units have Synaspe and Shadows in the Warp.
Like I said above there is no one right list how to play reserved Tyranids and I have solicited advice from some of those whom I consider to be top Tyranid players such hyv3mynd. This is my core list and what works the best for me. It is here as a reference for you.
Here are some Tyranid units I avoided when I designed my reserved army list:
—Tervigon
—Tyrannofex
—Carnifex
These are all monstrous creatures that are slow and costly plus they have a low initiative. As such they are a liability versus the Space Wolf psychic power Jaws of the World Wolf. You are paying a lot of points for your monstrous creatures and to win you they must perform well on a consistent basis. The last thing you want is for a Space Wolf player to nuke your big nasty at range with a cheap psychic power to which you have no real defense. Tyranid monstrous creatures should be on your front line actively engaged versus the enemy. I only run a Hive Tyrant and a Trygon Prime. My Tyrant is naturally immune to JAWS due to its wings and the Trygon Prime will only fail on a roll of 6 versus JAWS due to being a monstrous creature and I4.
The three I have listed above work better in a horde list plus the Carnifex requires the use of a mycetic spore to integrate with a reserved list which gives up another easy killpoint. The Carnifex and Tryannofex are both overcosted as well. The Carnifex and Tyrannofex do not have Synapse or Shadows in the Warp – as such they could potentially be a liability at the worst possible moment and again they don’t integrate well into a reserved list.
Now that I have provided a sample army list and noted a few units I avoid I’ll breakdown the main strengths of this army.
Null Deployment
The first and most powerful strength of this style of play is the use of Null Deployment. By taking a Tyrant with the Hive Commander option all of your reserves will arrive with +1, as such the bulk of your army should arrive on turn 2 and you often can saturate the battlefield with more units than your opponent can handle. You should opt to go second if possible since this will deny your opponent two turns of shooting at your army. Your Genestealer broods act as a vanguard to neutralize enemy units thus buying another turn for your other units to get stuck in. jy2 has dubbed this strategy the Maximum Threat Overdrive (MTO) and has posted many batreps featuring his Necron armies over on Dakka Dakka that take advantage of this particular tactic.
Shooting
Many of my detractors have claimed that my army is devoid of any real threat when it comes to shooting. Let’s take a closer look at my core army list again and see what I actually have in the way of shooting and how potent it really is.
• Termagants – 45 S4 shots at 18″ range arriving in a spore. This unit will decimate a squad of Long Fangs irregardless of cover. A wise opponent playing a mech list might opt to keep all their infantry embarked in their transports versus this unit but an even wiser opponent might not as this would be a serious detriment to armies such as Razorfang. The unit is relatively cheap for what they provide and can also hold objectives if need be and in the right situation. Also note that because it is a high concentration of shots if you find yourself up against an opponent that has kept all their infantry embarked in their transports you might be able to land behind one holding a key unit you need to assault and damage it with a lot of glancing shots… Death by one thousand small cuts !
• Zoanthropes – This is your primary deterrent versus AV14. Sure it is tough to get a warp lance shot past the Grey Knight psychic defense but in my mind it’s still your best shot. The Mycetic spore means that you should be able to place your Zoies with a clear unobstructed shot that denies cover saves. I’d love to run a brood of three as opposed to two but the points are very tight. Versus Space Wolves I often use my Zoies to pop the enemy transport carrying the Rune Priest early in the game to negate their rune staff which can be huge since I have an army with a high concentration of psychic units. The Zoies can also soak Space Marine units with their S5 AP3 small blast shooting attack and is more reliable since you don’t have to roll to hit, that is you roll to scatter for small blasts.
• Hive Tyrant – 6 BS3 S6 AP- twin linked shots at 18″ range on a flying platform. The Hive Tyrant equipped as such is very versatile. This shooting attack is excellent versus light armor such as Razorbacks, Rhinos and Chimeras—plus it’s easy to get shots on side armor. I regard this as one of my more effective methods of dealing with mech at range. Sure 18″ is not long range but the army is designed to be played at close quarters so it synergizes well.
• Trygon Prime – 12 BS3 S5 AP5 shots at 18″ range. While its not a tank killer it is fairly reliable at glancing light armor. It is one more gun in your arsenal and should not be ignored. You are paying for the upgrade to a Prime and this is one of the main benefits. Note that it’s shooting attack is AP- so its -1 to the armor penetration table for close topped vehicles.
• Warriors – Warriors are really only good at shooting infantry. The barbed strangler provides a S4 large blast with 36″ range which adds some long range versatility.
• Mycetic Spores – 6 shots at 6″ range that are BS2 S6 (also AP-). Sure it’s not reliable but the high strength can glance or penetrate light transports such as rhinos and chimeras. If you can stun a transport that is potentially one more turn you can ignore its contents.
Note that the barbed strangler is a pinning weapon while the devourer causes the enemy to suffer -1 Ld when taking a morale check from wounds suffered in the shooting phase.
Synapse and Shadows in the Warp (SitW)
You will have probably noticed I have a high percentage of units with Synapse and SitW. I selected these units primarily based upon other merits such as melee and shooting but on the other hand generally speaking it is not a disadvantage; e.g., your army benefits from being mostly fearless. I don’t run a large horde list so I don’t have to worry much about suffering lots of wounds in melee due to No Retreat armor saves. This is your major psychic defense versus Grey Knights or any army with psykers and my army spreads it all around quite liberally – it can and does win games. I never have to worry about Weaken Resolve which is another useful benefit. Paroxysm (Tyrant) is a very powerful psychic power along with Aura of Despair and Hypnotic Gaze (Broodlord)… All three of these buff your assault phases which has always been a big strength for Tyranids.
Deployment and Mobility
Reserved armies have an inherent strength when it comes to deployment and this is another huge advantage for this style of play… Basically you can ignore all the penalties imposed upon more conventional armies due to deployment. As I said above the vast majority of your army will arrive during the second turn and you can saturate the battlefield to gain advantage from the MTO strategy. Mycetic spores and Trygons deploy like drop pods so they are much less affected by the random chance of a mishap. Ymgarls can move and assault the turn they arrive from reserve. In my mind there are lots of advantages to this style of play. Gaunts, Genestealers and Trygons can fleet… If need be all of these units can catch up to vehicles that can only move 12″ or less with a good roll for run assuming the vehicle is no more than 18″ away at the start of your turn. Obviously the winged Tyrant is fast as well. By combining this mobility with other aspects of your army you can quickly and effectively cover a lot of ground in a single turn. I have had games where my Genestealer brood were 24″ or more away from an enemy unit at turn four and still able to launch a game winning assault by the last turn… They were not perceived as a threat until it was too late.
Survivability
I played Dark Eldar before I decided to approach Tyranids. One major weakness of Dark Eldar is it’s an army that can die in droves during a single turn if you are careless or just plain unlucky-they are the ultimate glass hammer. I did not know what to expect when I decided to first start playing Tyranids but I have found they are much more resilient and thus much more forgiving. You can lose a couple units due to mistakes or bad luck and still have a good chance to win. This aspect (maybe more than anything else) makes for playing Tyranids more enjoyable for me. I think I have a good ratio of T3-T4-T6 units and a good mix will help to offset any one unit drawing focused fire. Many of the units I use are expendable since I have a relatively large model count versus an army such as Draigowing.
Armies I Fear
I think it’s useful for others to mention which armies I fear the most. I have had many games versus both Grey Knights and Space Wolves—I feel confident versus these two armies. I have played a good number of games versus Space Marines and have a solid record. I am now starting to playtest my list more versus Imperial Guard and am building effective tactics versus the treadheads. I have no experience versus Dark Eldar and Eldar. AV12 skimmer spam might be a challenge but I think my army can handle Raider and Venom spam. It’s the armies I have no real experience against that worry me the most so I will continue playtesting the list.
In Closing…This article was a detailed overview how to play this type of army. I have also addressed some challenges to its effectiveness as a competitive army. I have been asked to write more batreps which I will do in time and I intend to bring my army to plenty of tournaments this year so there should be ample opportunity.
So has anyone else here tried playing a reserved Tyranid army? If so how has it been working out for you?
