Tyranids in BFG

[gargant]

So what we know about 'Nid ships:

only 4 classes

Capable of ship-to-ship Close combat (without ramming)

Awesome (in my opinion ;D)

So let's get this thread going!

Tactics, Ideas, Questions?

[Grythic]

accuatly, 5 classes; Hive ship, crusier, Kraken, vanguard drone and escort drone. There isnt a model for the kraken.
Personally, i want to see more of bfg. I wanna get a tyranid fleet, i have writen a list and i understand the rules relativly well.
I like how the weapon loadouts on the tyranid ship arnt preset like most others (i say most others, because even though i think every other race is preset, im not sure)

Best tactic i found (we played with bases representing the ships as we dont have any yet) is pyro acid batteries and massive claws, enough said.

[bayne]

Awesome old Space Fleet era and Doom of the Eldar (box cover, not the counters) concept art, so-so new art (except the shadowy figures hanging over the tau world in the new dex) and poor miniatures (though the Kraken and Spore Mines were good, I still have my Deathburner Kraken and was always dissapointed I never found some Ramsmiter Kraken as they looked far better than most of the range) then dreadful miniatures and now poor miniatures.

Hopefully one day we'll get some good minis, till then i intend to convert some.

I enjoyed Tyranids in Space Fleet and was totally hyped when BFG was coming out.. till i had to wait an age for tyranid rules and for terrible miniatures which is absurd when the amount of space battles with hive fleets is immense and cool designs had existed for years.

I haven't tried the BFG Tyranid rules yet because of all that and a lack of local players. I'd be interested to see what people think of them.

[gargant]

Feb 21, 2010 15:00:29 GMT Grythic said:

accuatly, 5 classes; Hive ship, crusier, Kraken, vanguard drone and escort drone. There isnt a model for the kraken.

Speaking of which, does anyone have any Ideas about what the kraken should look like, I know about the whole multi-tenticled, space-terror schtick, but maybe someone could make a giant space serpent thing out of foam and GS and call it a kraken? Opinions?

[Grythic]

I have a vauge thought that there may have been a model at one point, i've deffinatly seen a good few kraken ships that look the same, but i cant say whether they where GW, custom made or from a hobby site. I know they'll be small, fast looking ships, and they are incapable of doing anydamage to anything on a planet so that will affect the look, if anyone wants do draw something up that'll be cool.
I really like BFG and its a shame its not more widely played, its a really good game, we really need to put some effort in to get it off the ground (no jokes about it being in space allready) if we want to see it more used.
I personally think it can add to 40k campaigns, play BFG between games to add a more epic scale, its not nessacary to describe in depth, im sure you guys can see what im getting at, me an a friend of mine are allready planning it for a campain.

[Aztok]

I know very little about BFG but I know the models evolve from one fight to the next if the survive, which is pretty cool. Play your cards right at the start and you have a nearly invincible army near the end.

[skyzo0]

I only played bfg on time in a very large campain. The game began with a bfg fight which dicided the rules of the game that followed. It s was very fun to make a space fight, rules are well think and change of usual board games. I just hop that this game will have a second childhood ..

[bayne]

Feb 21, 2010 21:07:15 GMT gargant said:

Feb 21, 2010 15:00:29 GMT Grythic said:

accuatly, 5 classes; Hive ship, crusier, Kraken, vanguard drone and escort drone. There isnt a model for the kraken.

Speaking of which, does anyone have any Ideas about what the kraken should look like, I know about the whole multi-tenticled, space-terror schtick, but maybe someone could make a giant space serpent thing out of foam and GS and call it a kraken? Opinions?

Here's the old miniatures for anyone who hasn't seen them. www.solegends.com/citsfleet/tyranids.htm
I don't know of any sources for the old artworks though which had some awesome nautiloid designs

[skyzo0]

Unofficial but somebody try tp make scratch with references to some drawing. The result is pretty nice.
www.warmaniaforum.com/index.php?showtopic=19783

[bayne]

Feb 22, 2010 15:01:43 GMT skyzo0 said:

Unofficial but somebody try tp make scratch with references to some drawing. The result is pretty nice.
www.warmaniaforum.com/index.php?showtopic=19783

Indeed they look far better than most attempts i've seen.

[Dangeresque]

I thought a kraken was loosely depicted in the BFG artwork re-used in the 5th-ed codex. I'm talking about that round blob thing with the tentacles. It matches no other Niddy craft.

[ragnarok]

I played BFG with a nid fleet for a while, before my regular opponent moved away.

Tactics I learnt were:

Always have a vessel with torps in a squadron. It stops too many IB actions

Two sets of claws on a cruiser with speed upgrades rocks. I won in turn 2 (possible 3) in one game thanks to this guy.*

Swarms of escort drones are the bane of elder. They are an escort fleet. All our drones need to do is get into base contact.

We have a top down fleet. Which means we can get a battleship (hive ship) in very small games.

In a regular sized battle try to get at least 2 hive ships to ensure synapse.

The armada book has it wrong and we should have 6-12 escort drones per hive ship.

A weapon battery hive ship with the upgrades to shooting is amazing.

Tentacles on an escort drone are cheap and useful.

Our ordinance is (please do not swear), but we don’t run out and we don’t have a cap. Swarm the enemy, some will get through.

The enemy hit and runs are dangerous. 2D6 pick the lowest means they have a good chance to shut down our spores, and then you can say goodbye to shields and turrets.

If you do not have ordinance in a squadron, watch out for where any planets are

In a campaign, you can buy upgrades before it starts, upto the maximum, in the campaign the cap is removed (just like other fleets have no cap for their upgrades).


*Mr snippy rushed forwards into my enemies fleet, which was in line abreast formation. Whilst my prowler drones lit up ordinance for my other ships to shoot down, to help him get through.

He then latched onto the central enemy ship in the formation. Just as I was about to board the ship activated its warp drive and blew itself into very small pieces. The explosion heavily damaged or crippled most of the imperial fleet, and failed to damage my cruiser. My opponent then surrendered.

[gargant]

Feb 23, 2010 8:01:02 GMT Dangeresque said:

I thought a kraken was loosely depicted in the BFG artwork re-used in the 5th-ed codex. I'm talking about that round blob thing with the tentacles. It matches no other Niddy craft.

I actually thought that, too when I got my 5th Ed. You're talking about the thing on page 15, right? Under the Battle for Macragge? I thought that maybe it was some kind of 'Niddy boarding ship because the hive ship in the background totally dwarfs it. That thing is HUGE !

[bayne]

Was looking for the website of an awesome tau army from an old white dwarf and found the same guy hade a Scythes Chapter army site and on this page www.the-scythes.com/ARTWORK/artwork_gallery.html has some of the old artworks i mentioned, though not the carrier hiveship pic.

Now if specialist games range or forgeworld had minis of Tyranid ships like that i'd have a huge fleet by now.

[rainthezangoose]

i think its cool the hole, convereted tyranid guns (like gaunt devours and venomcannons) in to ships, its a realy cheap method compaired to the expensive propa minis