Help a fellow tyranid choose

[Overread]

Sooo Forgeworld is reopening tomorrow and I'm keen on grabbinga few Tyranid things; however I can't afford them all and can't make my mind up thus I come to you fellow Hive members.

Note I'm aware that choosing is darn hard right now on the eve of a new edition and new Forgeworld rules - so its all a bit crazy, but still one must push on!




Right now I've got one Malanthrope. I'm currently thinking on getting:

1) Scythed Hierodule

2) A second Malanthrope


However I've also got my eyes on the Mieotic Spores and could swap the Malanthrope for a few packs of spores instead. I could also be convinced to swap the scythed for the barbed Hierodule, though I can't justify/afford both Hierodule versions at once. Meanwhile the Dimachaeron doesn't grab my eye - its pose and style looks too "front heavy"

[hivefleetkerrigan]

Are you going mostly for the collection factor or primarily on in game effects? For the collection factor, I'd say the spores or a hierodrule. For game, I'd say the malanthrope. If you're worried about 9e changing things, I'd wait a month or so for the new edition to drop.

[infornography]

I've seen some good kitbashes for the Malanthrope for cheaper and I hate all the long spindly resin, always feels too fragile.

I'd say Scythed Hierodule. That beast has always looked really cool and has had good rules more often than the barbed. Though to be fair, I've seen some kitbashes for it from a T-Fex kit as well, but they don't look much like a Hierodule, just like a T-Fex with no gun arms and a Hive Crone head.

The Mieotic Spores I could see being squatted now that we have the spore in the Tyrannocyte kit. I'd probably steer clear of getting it unless you just want it because it looks cool.

[Overread]

This is more collection than meta-play since the whole meta is going to change not just from 9th edition but also the new Foregeworld books and stats. Which is why I'm curious about grabbing some sports instead of a second malanthrope. At the same time I do like the malanthrope I've got and a second would give it a nice friend on the field - though with GW reigning back army size I don't want to end up with impractical forces that I can never field.

[infornography]

Another great model to consider is the old Stonecrusher fex, but of the ones you listed, I would definitely go with Scythed Hierodule.

[garg]

I'd go for the dule or the spores, with less is more being the new detachment motto i feel the times you will want to field a second malanthrope will be few.

[swarm492]

I would grab the hierodule. Mine barely ever sees the table, but its a great mini and it was a blast to paint up. One of my favorite minis overall.

[randomspectator]

Jun 17, 2020 12:08:31 GMT swarm492 said:

I would grab the hierodule. Mine barely ever sees the table, but its a great mini and it was a blast to paint up. One of my favorite minis overall.

Yes, Heirodules look awesome. That said, it's always a laugh seeing them described as "minis"

[tomb]

The scythed dule was very nice to paint.

But as alternatives, your realy not that far off saving up for a Hyrophant. It's an immense kit to put together and game wise has the best bang for its buck (points) guns in titanic 40k. 

Or probably my favourite and undeniably most useful and probably most game winning units are the Rippers.


Though I have been running double Mal for as long as I can remember, I have one FW and a kitbash with pics in my PLOG if your interested.

Consider the rippers!

[Overread]

Rippers are nice, skyslashers look better, but I could never justify purchasing either one at the prices FW charges At least for the numbers that you typically want to take rippers/slashers in.

The titans for Tyranids are iffy to me. I think the Harridane shows its age in its style and is very rigid in pose for an organic creature; whilst the Hyrdrophant is just impractical a design for resin (looking at it I do wonder if it was originally going to be a plastic resin hybrid model like the Warpfire dragon). The chunk of core body is too heavy for its legs so it requires far more work. And the pose just looks "wrong" to me. I think in part because its got this huge body rearing up into the sky; but its guns and head are all held really low so I'm left going "Why is it sticking its core body in the air for no gain ;P"

[niiai]

The number you wanted to take rippers in was 3, the minimum points for popping up and grabbing an objective. Perhaps 9th changes that, we will se.

[infornography]

Jun 19, 2020 12:15:47 GMT niiai said:

The number you wanted to take rippers in was 3, the minimum points for popping up and grabbing an objective. Perhaps 9th changes that, we will se.

per unit... 3 per unit. You probably want at least a few units of them. I've seen some lists with 6 units. And I can see not wanting to mix plastic with Forgeworld because the Forgeworld ones looks SO MUCH BETTER!

[hivefleetkerrigan]

Jun 22, 2020 15:30:28 GMT infornography said:

Jun 19, 2020 12:15:47 GMT niiai said:

The number you wanted to take rippers in was 3, the minimum points for popping up and grabbing an objective. Perhaps 9th changes that, we will se.

per unit... 3 per unit. You probably want at least a few units of them. I've seen some lists with 6 units. And I can see not wanting to mix plastic with Forgeworld because the Forgeworld ones looks SO MUCH BETTER!

I get that. I tend to use my forgeworld rippers as one unit and my non forgeworld rippers as other units. They're so easy to distinguish apart that way. My other method I'm going to use is the number of ripper models per base: over currently got 3x bases of 3 per base and 5 per base painted and based. I'm hoping that this will be easy for an opponent to spot across the battlefield.

[iniquity]

None, they are all so old and over costed (irl and in game) the heirodule scale is off now and the aesthetic doesn’t fit in with the reset of the nid range.

[Overread]

Older they might be, but its resin not plastic - it holds fantastic detailing. Also if GW ever redoes their Tyranids en-mass I hope they take some lines from the FW models - muscles stretched thin and laced to the curious bone like carapace; riddled with connectivity of tissue under mobile armour plates on the back - just freaking awesome!

Bit of water is from the wash its just had. Heck its pocked marked body almost makes it effortless to assemble as you could even leave bubbles without fixing if you wanted as they are just more gun-shot marks on its ancient hide - representing a breast of great age and many battles.