As with the Doom, Mysetic Spores have been removed from the codex stripping deepstrike from the arsenal of the hive. Access to disciplines have also been limited to the Tyranid powers with are not all that interesting. The warlord traits can be interesting but I’ll leave that to you to read.
How does one kill the bug? If we were talking about Imperial Guard I'd suggest watching Starship Troopers or Aliens. Since this is about how Space Wolves do it the answer is simple, shoot it until it stops moving and shoot it again to make sure.
Killing the big bugs:
The biggest goal when facing a Tyranid list is to kill the monstrous creatures. If they are alive they are a threat. As a synapse creature they can keep gants from breaking and prevent you letting off the pressure on your army. As a monster they can tear a unit apart in a few swings of their arms.
If you think you can out perform most of these beasts in combat, rethink your tactics. The majority have toughness 6 and all have 4+ wounds and all of them strike at AP 2. While a power fist wielding wolf guard can take a wound or two off one of these beasts, it’s not a strong tactic. The weakest of the terrors you’re likely to face is the Tervigon. Even at that it’s problematic to charge one of those at the best of times. If they are not very likely to die from your assault then don’t. Your unit will be bogged down in termagants and could be torn asunder by the sheer weight of numbers. While the idea that switching to krak grenades may seem like a good idea, the truth is that grey hunters hit just as hard on the charge. I’d save the grenades until you’re bogged down for a second round. For those toughness 5 monsters keep to the close combat weapons if you get stuck there.
Thunderwolves are going to die hard against anything but the weakest monsters. If the wolves don’t kill the monster you will drop a wolf for ever wound inflicted as with toughness 5 they can be instant killed by a smash attack. If you try to take on a combat orientated beast like a tyrant or the Swarmlord your unit will be maimed before it can even swing. Taking a Thunderwolf Lord with saga of the bear and some lightning claws and an invulnerable save might make his points back but his combat ability will be severely reduced. For thunderwolves to shine they need stormshields, this automatically puts them to the expensive end of the scale before you take any weapon to beef up one model's profile.
Thunderwolves are going to die hard against anything but the weakest monsters. If the wolves don’t kill the monster you will drop a wolf for ever wound inflicted as with toughness 5 they can be instant killed by a smash attack. If you try to take on a combat orientated beast like a tyrant or the Swarmlord your unit will be maimed before it can even swing. Taking a Thunderwolf Lord with saga of the bear and some lightning claws and an invulnerable save might make his points back but his combat ability will be severely reduced. For thunderwolves to shine they need stormshields, this automatically puts them to the expensive end of the scale before you take any weapon to beef up one model's profile.
Terminators with power fists and stormshields have some survival chances against monstrous creatures. They are still expensive and lack the mobility of the thunderwolves and the versatility to deal with hordes as well as other units. Even riding in a drop pod these models would need to weather a turn of shooting if not a charge from a fearless unit. With the weight of numbers that a gant or genestealer squad can throw down you may see 5 terminators die without a response.
Rune priests with jaws of the world wolf is a risky line to go down. To make maximum use of this option you would have to drop a priest into the fray with a squad of grey hunters or wolf guard. The drawback as I see it is that the margins are quite tight. Assuming the power isn't denied, the chances of killing the big guns is at best only 50% with the +1 for monstrous creatures. The priest may also have to make that psychic test on a -3 to their leadership.
Similarly if you charge the monster with a rune priest you might try to use the force weapon to remove it in a single go. This is a complete Hail Mary play as the priest requires a 6 to wound and with a max of 4 attacks on the charge it’d be risky. Even with a full squad of grey hunters to back him up a Rune Priest with Prescience cast on the squad would have an average of 0.5 wounds. Trying to pass a psychic test to remove the monster reduces the chances even further.
Similarly if you charge the monster with a rune priest you might try to use the force weapon to remove it in a single go. This is a complete Hail Mary play as the priest requires a 6 to wound and with a max of 4 attacks on the charge it’d be risky. Even with a full squad of grey hunters to back him up a Rune Priest with Prescience cast on the squad would have an average of 0.5 wounds. Trying to pass a psychic test to remove the monster reduces the chances even further.
A lucky roll of an Iron Arm on your priest with a master of the runes upgrade I might risk it however as your chances of wounding the monster go up sharply. If you can have a second priest nearby to cast Prescience on the unit you have the best shot available to wipe out a monstrous creature. All in all you’re either paying above the odds for a level 2 psyker or you’re just taking a crazy punt on a tactic that has a low chance of success. If you really want some anti-monster power the Iron Hands relic that gives librarians a force powerfist would be very good at the monster hunting if you use them right.
Saga of the Beastslayer is problematic for two reasons. It removes the ability to take a more beneficial saga and if you have rune priests casting Presciense on your character you gain the same effect without the points cost. I’d just avoid it altogether.
What is my recommendation for dealing with these demons you cry? Missiles. The long fangs shine with their squads of six missile launchers. These veterans give you the power to burst through the majority of the monstrous creature armour and the spread to deal with the rest of the list. Krak missiles with a rune priest casting divination on the squad should reap 4 - 5 wounds a turn. I know that I’ll probably be called out for relying on the generic wolf list but aside from forgeworld what else do the wolves have that can pump out sufficient firepower? The tanks don’t give enough bang for their buck. Even the monstrous demolisher cannon only strips a single wound off most of the monsters. Combat against monstrous creatures requires a large investment of points and even then some of the monsters are too powerful to try and out smash.
When it comes to the flying monsters I suggest forcing grounding checks, pump the plasma and bolter rounds into one of those brutes. Throw a krak grenade if you can. Any hit risks grounding and the loss of any protection from your big guns. Once you remove hard to hit the threat disappears.
If you are running a rune priest to buff your long fangs it might be advantageous to invest in an Aegis defence line. With a chooser you are looking at a 2+ with re-rolls to hit with your quad gun. The flying tyrants can suffer those hits but the harpy and crone will be shredded. Keeping that IC on his own you can use those shots in your own turn at a separate target or by having him attached to a long fang squad and using him as an interceptor you can bring the pain to some larger creatures and augment the long fang’s power.
Instinctive behaviour and killing the small bugs:
This rule has remained fairly constant since 3rd edition. Any models within 12” of a synapse creature is fearless and those that fall back into this bubble automatically regroup. This power dictates a need to remove the big guys in Tyranid lists. However a single gant can remain a viable threat when it comes to contesting objectives. Even after killing the synapse creatures those models that have the feed rule have a good chance of retaining the ability to assault. Termagants will run for cover and shoot out of ruins and area terrain. I would suggest placing objectives outside of area terrain to ensure they can be cleared of gants. The majority of these units can be torn apart with bolter rounds but they need to be kept from overrunning the lines and tying important units in combat. While your heavy guns tear into the bigger bugs grey hunters should do as the Tau do; form rank and give fire. Once you’ve done enough damage to the big bugs, switch to frag missiles and gut the troops. If you are playing a game where heavy support and fast attack are not scoring units it might be worth put long fang to killing the gants the second you have sterilised the Tervigons.
Shadow in the warp:
The synapse creatures cause psykers within range to take a minus 3 to their leadership check. This reduces your chances of passing a test to about 60% before any deny the witches. It’s not a major game changer but it can be the difference between a good round of shooting and a mediocre round.
This ability really depends on where you’re looking to position your Rune Priests. If they are in support at the back then they should have little trouble from this power, if they are at the front supporting those troops then it becomes far more of an issue.
The choice of codex psychic powers or disciplines really controls where the unit will be. The codex powers allow you greater range to inflict harm on your enemies while the choice of disciplines limits your range to buff your own troops and I feel this is better spent on your heavy support choices.
Miscellaneous points:
Watch out for Tyrants and tyrant guards. The tyrant once joined to these bullet shields can use look out sir! to pass wounds off to them. While expensive at 50 points, they do manage to soak wounds and keep the real threat healthy. I’d be very worried about a Swarmlord sat in a unit with two guards.
The big list pushed at present is a Space Wolf drop pod list and I think this might be very good at pinning down monstrous creatures in but not in the way you think. If you have 5 drop pods in your list and you’re going to play defensively you can pen in a monstrous creature turn one. It will take a turn or two for the beast to break it’s way through but there is always the chance of trapping it in place by wrecking the pods. I'm not sure that 3 squads of grey hunters can put enough of a dent in most units to warrant putting them in the meat-grinder turn 1 but that’s down to deployment and what’s in your enemy’s force.
The big list pushed at present is a Space Wolf drop pod list and I think this might be very good at pinning down monstrous creatures in but not in the way you think. If you have 5 drop pods in your list and you’re going to play defensively you can pen in a monstrous creature turn one. It will take a turn or two for the beast to break it’s way through but there is always the chance of trapping it in place by wrecking the pods. I'm not sure that 3 squads of grey hunters can put enough of a dent in most units to warrant putting them in the meat-grinder turn 1 but that’s down to deployment and what’s in your enemy’s force.
There are a few allies that can help with Tyranids. Guard artillery can drop enough large blasts to kill swarms of Tyranids every turn and would require a minimal spend on troop and HQ units. Blessings from prescience can be extremely beneficial on artillery allowing you a high chance of a hit. The guard troops can also sit on objectives while the space wolves do the killing.
Tau would also be a good choice for allies only as they can pump out a high number of shots with decent strength and armour penetration. If you want to use a monstrous creature of your own, a Riptide can be outfitted with a nice array of weapons to either go monster hunting or horde killing.
Eldar can also prove useful as Wraithguard can be devastating with their AP 3 flamers. You’ll need to take a Spiritseer to make use of that option. The Eldar’s monstrous creature is tougher than a Riptide and has monster killing guns with the capacity to cause instant death. Alternatively you could arm it for combat and go nuts, though I’d still avoid Tyrants and the Swarmlord until the later game if possible.
Space marines can be a solid choice depending on what you are looking for. Scouts can slowly chip away a monstrous creature’s wounds and there are several HQ choices that can be used in interesting ways to kill monstrous creatures. Iron Hands Librarians and Marneus Calgar spring to mind as ways to eliminate monsters. Worst case, take a chapter master. Dust off and nuke them from orbit. It's the only way to be sure....
Eldar can also prove useful as Wraithguard can be devastating with their AP 3 flamers. You’ll need to take a Spiritseer to make use of that option. The Eldar’s monstrous creature is tougher than a Riptide and has monster killing guns with the capacity to cause instant death. Alternatively you could arm it for combat and go nuts, though I’d still avoid Tyrants and the Swarmlord until the later game if possible.
Space marines can be a solid choice depending on what you are looking for. Scouts can slowly chip away a monstrous creature’s wounds and there are several HQ choices that can be used in interesting ways to kill monstrous creatures. Iron Hands Librarians and Marneus Calgar spring to mind as ways to eliminate monsters. Worst case, take a chapter master. Dust off and nuke them from orbit. It's the only way to be sure....
Conclusion:
My conclusion is that Tyranids are beatable. Their codex is balanced. Their troops are dross with the exception of genestealers but their monsters will deal heavy damage before they go down. Plasma weapons are good for the monsters and flamers for the dross. If you face flying monsters shoot them with anti-air or shoot them with bolters until they hit the ground. Krak missiles are your friend and will eliminate most threats. Unless you can wipe units out or can break them in one turn don’t charge them. Watch out for fearless troops as they can linger in places out of sight until it comes time to capture or deny an objective.
Have fun and let us know how you’re getting on with the Hive fleet. Until next time, I’m off to paint noise marines.