Fluff Question: Hooves

[shirriandemon]

So this might be a stupid question to most of you but it has been bothering me since I first layed eyes on the tyranids. Ahh you never forget your first, for me it was a carnifex, she was beautiful and as my eyes traced her from top to bottom I couldn't help but notice she actually seemed semi logical as a hunter (as far as walking tanks the size of school busses can be) until I layed my eyes on last part of the model and though "WHY THE (please do not swear) DO THEY HAVE HOOVES?" As far as I have found there is no predator in the wild that has hooves and for good reason. Hooves are not efficient killers. Sure they'll give you a good solid whack but they are more defensive. So I ask you, does someone know something I don't? Why would the hive mind in its infinite wisdom give hooves to its children?

[mishkaxxx]

style > logic

[LordPathos]

You may be thinking, why would space bugs have hooves. Well Tyranids are not space bugs, they are space dinosaurs. And space dinosaurs with hooves is much more believable.

[bansh]

Have you not heard a herd of spampeding gaunts before?..... and why dont stealers have hooves?

[jesses]

Hooves are more stable over a much wider array of terrain, and Tyranids have more than enough in the way of weapons. They don't need foot weapons.

[LordPathos]

Dec 19, 2017 1:39:49 GMT bansh said:

Have you not heard a herd of spampeding gaunts before?..... and why dont stealers have hooves?

Well that's easy. Yes we have heard of stampeding gaunts before. It's called the Endless Swarm. That is the point. More bodies than bullets. So many bearing down on you it is like a tide of chitin.

Next, hooves are better for weight distribution, and some nids are big, and hooves are good for travel.

Finally, while I would agree that the true hunter predator nids (Lictors) should have them (like you said, Genestealers do), at the same time how sneaky can you be hiding in pipes and (please do not swear) in an underhive while going clippity clop?

[bansh]

Id like to make 1 hormagaunt with 2 halves of coconut instead of sything talons....just saying

[mishkaxxx]

Dec 19, 2017 2:09:38 GMT bansh said:

Id like to make 1 hormagaunt with 2 halves of coconut instead of sything talons....just saying

And a holy hand grenade on its belt?

[calbanite]

Some nids have claws poking off the side of their hooves. Lictors and Tyrants come to mind.

[arapaima]

For our nids to do this!

m.youtube.com/watch?v=f0jMzdbEui0

[tomb]

Dec 19, 2017 5:15:30 GMT arapaima said:

For our nids to do this!

m.youtube.com/watch?v=f0jMzdbEui0

There is a definite link between gaunts and goats. Goats will also try to eat any kind of biomass...

Space goats.

[Vallasch]

Far as I'm aware it's just a design carryover from 2E 90's nids who had big bony stompers. As for the fluff question on why genestealers don't have them, that's probably because they're made from humans which is also why they have ribs, fused fingers on their hands and a defined spinal column. I think their eyes are a tiny bit more forward-facing as well.

[nikh]

A E S T H E T I C. But if I were forced to come up with a fluffy reason, I'd say they use them to rack up speed on the charge. Same goes for the gribblies, its easy to forget a Guant is bigger than a full grown man.

[nikh]

Genestealers don't have hooves because they climb walls and sneak around. Imagine trying to sneak through a space hulk while going clipclop.

[nurglitch]

It's a bit of a Lovecraft call-out. The great star-spawn...