Tyranid Unit: HQ - Hive Tyrant

Here's the completed Hive Tyrant from my Tyranid swarm.

Although I now field him with a wider variety of options, the original build had it down with a twin-linked Devourer throwing out Assault 6 with re-rolls on missed shots, at S6 with -1 to LD tests caused on the target unit for shooting casualties suffered. A Dessicator Larvae Thorax Swarm which is a Wounds on 2+ template weapon for mopping up an survivors of the Devourer.

Psychic Scream was on there to allow it to attempt to lower the target unit's LD before combat - but this was at the expense of using one of the above shooting weapons. As a Monstrous Creature, it could also choose to use the Paroxysm psychic shooting power to lower a target's WS and BS to 1. If it then charged into combat against this unit with it's own WS of 8, it was guaranteed to hit on a 3+. I have since dropped this option as it's only really useful against targets with a WS of 8 or more, unless used to soften up a target for another unit, which if done prevents the Tyrant from charging anything other that the target of the psychic shooting attack.

Indescribable Horror means that anyone wishing to charge into close combat must pass a LD test first, or be left unable to charge and will then be a sitting duck to be charged by the Tyrant instead. With 4 Attacks, 5 when Charging all at S6 (7 during first round due to Furious Charge from Adrenal Glands) with re-rolls on to hit rolls of a 1 due to a pair of Scything Talons and that ignore Armour Saves; that's not a great prospect.

Any close combat attacks that Wounds on a natural 6 causes Instant Death regardless of target Toughness due to the Implant Attack. Combined with the number of Attacks and re-rolls from Scything Talons this is a killer - literally - to many multi-wound models that lack an Invulnerable Save.

On top of that due to it's Acid Blood, each Wound taken by the Tyrant in Close Combat results in an Initiative test for the enemy unit which if failed results in an automatic Wound to that unit with no Armour Saves or Cover Saves allowed as they are sprayed in virulent acid! Even when they hurt it the enemy gets hurt back. To add insult to injury the Tyrant may then Regenerate any Wounds taken on the roll of a 6, rolled for each wound suffered so far at the start of it's turn.

This rolls in at about 295 points, so I've normally reserved this build for larger point games. Granted it still needs a bit of tweaking, but it performs fine most of the time.