Warhammer Race List Part 1

Number 1: Necron




Necrons are an ancient race, even outdating the eldar themselves. they are the reason why the eldar number shortened(Slannesh the chaos god did this too). many billion years ago, even before man stood upright the race called the necrontyr lived. There lives were simple but they really longed one thing….extended lifespans. the necrontyr people had ridiculously short life span because of their neiborhing star. Many years past but, and they pushed the limits of science, but no avail, there work was in vain. Then one day the race was visisted by the Old ones, the oldest of all the races. The two races got along but the necrontyr grew jealous of the old one’s lifespan and declared war. The necrontyr were easliy dispatched and the old ones were victorius. Then one day the necrontyr was visited by the C’tan other wise known as ths Star Gods. There were four star gods, there name were, Void Dragon, Nightbringer, Outsider, and the Deceiver. They offered eternal life to the necrontyr only if they give the gods star force to feed on, the necrontyr agreed and then, their souls were trapped into metal bodies, numbing their mind, thus becoming the feared living metal necrons!







the necrons have the most outstaning tecnology even found in the universe, their weapons rip skin, penetrate tank armor, stop time and space, solar energy, and mostly regenerate. the necrons have the special ability to revive themselves. the necrons also have a special titan like the tyranids, but the necron one is like a planet sized tomb spyder. also the pariah are not necrons, they are but, they are human, only in a monsterous metal form, the pariah are humans fused with the power of the living metal and carry warsythes that can decapitate even the most powerful of daemons. there are necron all over the certain planets, waiting to be awakened…







where are the c’tans?




the nightbringer is with his necrons




the deciver is constantly roaming the galaxies




the outsider is currnelty trapped in a trap made by the laughing god




the void dragon is resting on mars….




The Necrontyr




summary of the entire history.. thanks wikipedia!




In the universe of Warhammer 40,000, little is known about the origins of the ancient race known as the Necrontyr, or Necron for short. They were one of the earliest sentient races in the galaxy, older than even the ancient Eldar, appearing only a few million years after the birth of the stars. Their world was scourged by the radiation of the massive, violent star it closely orbited, cursing them to experience drastically short lifespans. The Necrontyr spent eons expanding their technology in an attempt to extend their lives. Their technology developed Necrodermis, a “living metal”, for constructing their ships with which they were able to leave their planet. These slow “tomb ships” full of cryonically frozen Necrontyr were sent to populate the stars over 60 million years ago. It was during their first difficult steps out into the wider galaxy that the Necrontyr first encountered the Old Ones. The differences between the two races were vast; where the Necrontyr had short painful lives, the Old Ones were blessed with incredible longevity, and where the Necrontyr were impatient, the Old Ones were infinitely understanding and patient beyond measure.




The Necrontyr grew bitter and jealous towards the Old Ones, and it was not long before this jealousy lead the Necrontyr into a futile war against the Old Ones’ civilization. The Old Ones were powerful psykers and had an unmatched strategic advantage in the form of the webway portals which allowed them to outmaneuver the Necrontyr at every opportunity. These significant advantages won out over the Necrontyr’s superior technology. Then, scientists studying the Necrontyr home star discovered a being of incredible power feeding off its massive energy output. The full weight of Necrontyr science was put behind detailing this discovery and it was not long before the Necrontyr realized the potential such an incredible power might have on the war against the Old Ones.







 C’tan




Being a huge mass of energy, without form, the Necrontyr forged necrodermis bodies for the C’tan to inhabit and as a result they were able to coax the C’tan into the material universe using ‘The Star Bridge’. As the awesome power of the C’tan became material, the Necrontyr began to see these new beings not as guests, but as gods. The Necrontyr began to worship the C’tan as such, wanting them to destroy their hated enemies, the Old Ones. The first C’tan to pass into such a body was the Nightbringer, an incredibly powerful being who found the sweet lifeforce of the Necrontyr far more to its liking than the tasteless energy of the star and massacred many to satiate its appetite. It was only after considerable persuasion and pledges of servitude that the Necrontyr were able to stop the Nightbringer long enough to bring to its attention the Old Ones and the other races in the galaxy.




Soon after, the Necrontyr made contact with several more Star Gods, including the Deceiver. The Deceiver, a weaker and far more insidious being than its companions, was much more popular with the Necrontyr to the point where it had to send many worshippers to pay homage to the other C’tan lest they grow jealous of him. He offered the Necrontyr a way to win the war: they would assume bodies of necrodermis, built for war, and live forever, unbound by their deformities.




The Necrontyr agreed to the process and their consciousness were transferred into bodies made of necrodermis. However, the transformation dulled their minds and senses. As such they became the Necrons, warrior-slaves of the C’tan, harvesting life across the galaxy. With the assistance of the C’tan the Necrons won victory after victory against the Old Ones and had pushed the Old Ones to the brink of extinction. At this time the C’tan started to feed off each other. Before long there were only four of the C’tan remaining (The Nightbringer, The Deceiver, The Void Dragon and The Outsider), the others having been devoured by their fellow gods.




The Old Ones, desperate to survive, cultured life forms with ever closer links to the warp. The Eldar were their proudest and most powerful creations during this period, and the first to create beings of power to fight the C’tan. This period came to be known as the “War in Heaven”. During the war the Eldar war god Kaela Mensha Khaine, first and most powerful of the beings created by the Eldar, fought the Nightbringer and won a Pyhrric victory. As the Nightbringer’s necrodermis shattered , the Nightbringer exploded into shards of its deathly essence, which then shot into Khaine, permanently tainting him, while the Nightbringer simply transferred its consciousness into another waiting body. C’tan, being solely of the material realm, were extremely vulnerable to psychic based weaponry and feared psychic weapons so much that they banded together to split the warp from real space. It was never completed due to the growing cataclysm in the warp.







 The Enslavers




Then the Enslavers appeared. The increased psychic link that the Old Ones had nurtured mirrored the destructive impulses of the warring races in the warp. Rage, deceit and despair (and later, lust) took their first steps to sentience, feeding on the raw emotion and mass influx of spirits resulting from the War in Heaven. These entities eventually became the Chaos Gods Khorne, Tzeentch, Nurgle and Slaanesh.




Meanwhile, the Enslavers began to dominate the psychic races for their own agendas. They pushed their way into the real world, killing millions and entering the minds of any living creatures, which they drove to fight and die for them. The Old Ones’ places of power fell to the horrors of their own creations. The Old Ones tried to save themselves by creating new races to defend their strongholds, but it was too late.







 Awakening




Now, many millions of years after the Enslaver Plague, the Necrons and their masters have finally awoken to reclaim the galaxy, and begin, once again, to herd the living as their cattle. Finally, after so long, the galaxy is ready for the return of the Star Gods of the Necrons. The deadly power of the invincible Eldar Empire is long gone and their race is scattered, the unstoppable might and momentum of the Emperor’s Great Crusade has had 10,000 years to grind to a bloody and brutal stalemate against the inimical forces of the galaxy, and the Orkoid races have long since lost whatever cohesion they may ever have had. Even the Tyranids have shown an aversion to the Necrons, (with their hive fleets steering away from dead worlds where the necrons lie dormant) as well they might; since Necron metal could not be absorbed and digested, Tyranids could neither replenish their losses against the Necrons or engineer organisms designed to fight them. All who might have opposed the C’tan are either gone or humbled, the galaxy is a swirling maelstrom of regional and factional conflict and the lives of its trillions upon trillions of inhabitants are ripe for the picking. The deathly silent ranks of the Necrons stalk forth across their tomb worlds once again, to reassert their masters’ rule and inspire fear in the living.




 The Necrons in the 41st Millennium




At present, the Necrons are more of a shadowy presence than a full-fledged force. They strike from nowhere and without warning, slaughtering their enemies and departing before reinforcements can arrive. The origins of these attacks and their motives are unknown, though it is clear that the Necron forces in the galaxy are but the first glimpses of the full might of the Necron war machine. Of the four remaining C’Tan, only two are active: The Deceiver and the Nightbringer. The Deceiver has been active for much longer than the Nightbringer, infiltrating various cultures and manipulating events. The Nightbringer was later intentionally awakened from its tomb on Pavonis by Dark Eldar pirates and a human by the name of Kasimir deValtos. The other two are the Void Dragon and the Outsider; the former is rumored to be dormant, in stasis inside Mars and the later is trapped inside the “Vaul Sphere.”




Necron scout ships recently bypassed the fleets and defenses protecting the Solar System, reaching the very surface of Mars (homeworld of the Adeptus Mechanicus) itself before being destroyed. Some reason the landing is linked to the resting place of the fourth C’tan, the Void Dragon, entombed deep beneath the Martian surface. Understandably this casts doubt on the supposedly impregnable status of Holy Terra, and the incident remains a heavily-guarded secret within the Imperium.




Necron forces originate from uncharted tomb-worlds. Their phase technology allows them to swiftly deploy anywhere in the galaxy. In defeat they “phase-out” and return to the tomb-world for repairs. Any Necrons that have fallen in battle can either be repaired there and it will continue to fight or it will phase out and return to its tomb world to be rebuilt by the Tomb Spyders there. Very rarely does anything remain of the Necrons after an attack regardless of whether it was successful or not.




Other than direct battle, the Necrons have infiltrated the Imperium to an unknown extent. Their elite anti-psyker troops, the Pariahs, are a cross-breed with human genes and it is as yet unknown if the Necrons developed the Pariah project by themselves or with the help of Imperial traitors (or possibly even Adeptus Mechanicus). It is known, however, that the C’tan had the Pariah gene placed in the human genepool several million years ago. This has since manifested itself in the agents of the Culexus temple, specialist anti-psyker assassins and Untouchables such as Alizebeth Bequin, one of Inquisitor Eisenhorn’s entourage.




Necron Energy




Necrons generate energy by using a form of gauss contained antimatter annihilation reactor. The details of this energy source are not well understood by the other races in the 40k universe. This energy source is extremely efficient, and offers a great deal of energy over time with only minimal fuel storage required due to antimatter’s extreme energy density. It is also supposed that Necron bodies contain a variety of batteries and or capacitors which are used to keep the necron powered during special circumstances, as well as allowing the Necron to easily hibernate by giving it the ability to self-restart its reactor, and store the fuel during hibernation. The green energy seen to emit from the heavily armoured rib-like vents in the Necrons chest is actually dissipating gauss energy from the antimatter reactor.




This reactor feeds the gauss energies that contain the reaction, allowing for simplicity and safety in the design. The stronger the antimatter reaction, the stronger the gauss field that contains it. This excess generated gauss energy is used to power the Necron’s systems, as well as the gauss weaponry used by the Necrons. This energy is responsible for the green glow emitted by necron electronics, as well as the bright green glow during regeneration of living metal. The gauss energy, while not required for nanites to repair Necron materials, is known to be able to speed up the process.




While most Necron reactors are contained in heavily armoured chambers, the reactors in Necron bodies are not as well armoured due to limitations in size. It is known that heavy concentrations of fire to a Necron’s torso can eventually damage the reactor, and take it out of the battle, since the reactor is the most difficult part of a necron body to repair. These Necrons are never gone for long, however, since Tomb Spyders can sometimes do in-field repairs, and the necron tombs have adequate technology to repair the damage.







 Necron Forces & Weaponry








 



Most Necrons are tall, skeletal figures made of a living metal, or in some rare cases they are a polymer-type material, which provides excellent protection in battle and also has the special self-repair effect, which means even heavily damaged Necrons can quickly return to the battle. Psychologically the Necrons are a shadow of their former selves, it is unknown how much independent thought they are capable of. It is mentioned in Xenology that some Necrons may have retained memories. In any case, the Necron Lords are the only Necron that are known as being sentient.




Another phenomenon is the almost magical withdrawal of Necron forces. If the Necron are greatly losing a battle, their entire force will vanish in a mist. This even includes “dead” Necrons (those who have not yet repaired themselves) and those already engaged in close combat. Because of this, enemy forces like the Imperium have had great difficulty in obtaining Necron artifacts or “corpses” to analyze.




In the Warhammer 40k story, the names and terms that describe the Necron forces and their weapons, all come from the other 40k races and not the Necrons themselves. Aside from the C’tan, the Necrons rarely communicate to non-Necrons; only the C’tan known as the Deceiver has been observed infrequently communicating with non-Necrons. One exception to this is the “Thing in cell 1″ from Xenology. This is revealed to be a Necron, and it also speaks to Shasam, revealing itself as a Necron who still retains memory. It mentions at the time that itself and other Necrons like it have infiltrated the Inquisition and have had a great deal of control within it. A Necron also spoke to a Pariah during the attack on Lorn V when the Pariah made contact with the invading forces. There is only one other similar incident, during the online article The First Pariah. In this article an unknown Necron entity gives instructions to an ex-Culexus Temple Assassin. The Pariah formerly known as Thomas Macabee, during the Dark Crusade, worked as the spokesman for the Necron Force, often exchanging banter with the enemy commander, except when the player (playing as the Necrons) would attack the Choas Stronghold, the Necron Lord himself would speak, albeit in an unintelligable language.







 Necron Units




In the game, Necrons are powerful due to their devastating Gauss weapons and other powerful Wargear, such as Warscythes, The Staff of Light etc and their ability to self-repair. Their biggest weaknesses is their low number of unit types and high points cost. If three-quarters of a Necron force is defeated, the Necrons will disappear from the battlefield in a mist and lose the battle.







 Necron Destroyers






  • Destroyers are Necron Warriors (specifically Immortals) fused to fast and agile hovercraft platforms. Equipped with Gauss Cannons and sophisticated targeting systems which enable them to fire while moving, Destroyers are ideal for hit-and-run attacks or disrupting enemy flanks. They also come in a Heavy Destroyer variant, which is armed with the more powerful Heavy Gauss Cannon which is useful for destroying foes with the heaviest armor.






 Necron Flayed Ones






  • Flayed Ones are Necrons who retain some of their original consciousness and have been driven mad by their ageless imprisonment. They are quite capable melee fighters, with claws and blades that can flay a man alive in seconds. They usually adorn themselves with still wet pieces of skin and hide from their latest victims. In such a state, they are a terrifying sight to behold. Enemy fighters lose their nerve by just looking at the Flayed Ones. Flayed Ones also frequently serve as scouts. They can sneak ahead of the main Necron force or even bury themselves in the ground, and can use either method to gain the element of surprise during a battle.






 Necron Immortals






  • Those favored Necrontyr who were among the first to give up their flesh and embrace the metal were rewarded by being Immortals. They are more durable, heavy variants of the Warrior and they wield Gauss Blasters, calibrated for maximum effectiveness against infantry. Immortals are fully capable of taking down vehicles with their Gauss weapons as well.


  • In Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, they are described as dealing excellent damage to vehicles and normal damage to other unit types; for game mechanics reasons, units in Dark Crusade tend to be specialized against particular unit types.






 Necron Lord






  • Necron Lords are the commanders of Necron forces, chosen due to being one of the few Necrons to retain sentience. They are formidable foes on the battlefield, being quite adept with both ranged and close combat weaponry. Due to their special position as “leaders” in the Necron forces, they are often equipped with special gear. This gear often increases the effectiveness of other Necrons around the Lord, such as augmenting their healing factor, or allowing them to teleport to crucial points in a battle; other gear carried can increase the Lord’s survivability or his prowess in battle. Necron Lords are also some of the few Necrons who keep pieces of memory remaining from their previous lives. Necron Lords are ranked in staged levels of importance, ranging from strike force level bronze lords, to Platinum level overlords.





  • The Necron Destroyer Lord is another version of the Necron Lord, a lesser Lord’s torso attached to the body of a Necron Destroyer.






 






  • Necron Warriors are the backbone of the Necron army. They are numerous and provide strong fire support with their Gauss Flayers. Their “living metal” bodies allow them to sustain massive damage and continue functioning.






 Necron Wraiths






  • Wraiths are one of the more sophisticated Necron units. They lack legs or a lower body (except for the spinal cord) and hover over the battlefield, moving at supernatural speeds. They are fearsome close combat warriors, and they can phase in and out during their flight, becoming ghostly figures (thus the name wraith). This phase shift ability allows them to move through solid objects or even to avoid damage. It has been suggested that Wraiths were murderers or psychopaths before their steel imprisonment.



 




 






  • Monoliths are essentialy big weapons platforms. Shaped like pyramids, these have the power to rip an Imperial Guard Baneblade tank to shreds, with one big gauss crystal-powered gun on the top and countless other smaller guns,






 Pariahs






  • Pariahs represent the true horror of a Necron-ruled galaxy. They are created by fusing Necron technology with human victims who bear the “Pariah gene” (a rare and unusual genetic defect which gives the bearer a negative warp presence). Each Pariah is a formidable warrior, and wields a deadly warscythe with a Gauss Blaster built in. They radiate an unnatural aura that severely unnerves their enemies, especially psykers. Interestingly, since Pariahs are partly human, they are unable to self-repair, unlike other Necrons.


  • Within the Imperium, Humans bearing the Pariah gene are also known as “Pariahs”. Some become Culexus Assassins, who are used by the Imperium to combat enemy psykers. It is unknown whether the C’tan somehow control this temple or intend to do so in the future, for all its members are a product of their plans. It is possible that it was the C’tan who originally put the “Pariah Gene” in humanity gene pool and have merely been waiting for the proper time to make use of it and make Pariahs.






 Scarab Swarms






  • Countless small, beetle-like robots called Scarabs often appear on the battlefield; these clouds of Scarabs are termed Scarab Swarms by their opponents. These swarms rely on sheer numbers to make themselves difficult to destroy, and are useful for disrupting enemies who are caught unaware. They can be upgraded with “disruption fields” which warp reality around their numerous claws. Large numbers of Scarab Swarms upgraded with “disruption fields” can tear apart even the most heavily armored of vehicles and have even been known to completely destroy Baneblades. Tomb Spyders are the ones that produce these scarabs but with the expense of the Tomb Spyders’ health.






 Tomb Spyders






  • Tomb Spyders are large, spider-like robots which are normally tasked with maintaining the Necron tomb complexes. They sometimes appear on the battlefield, where they make resilient fighters who have limited ability to augment the healing factor of the “living metal” on nearby Necrons. They also can use their internal systems to manufacture Scarabs in the midst of a battle. 



 




 Necron Weapons




In the game, Necrons are powerful due to their devastating Gauss weapons and other powerful Wargear, such as Warscythes, The Staff of Light, and other weapons as well as their ability to self-repair. All Necron weapons listed as Gauss Weapons also have the ability to damage opponents even if normally impossible. In the tabletop, a roll of 6 on a dice scores a glancing hit automatically on a vehicle, and an instant wound on non-vehicle units. Their biggest weaknesses are their low number of unit types and high points cost, not to mention the fact that they vanish if three quarters of their force are defeated (phase out).







 Gauss Flayer






  • Gauss Flayers are the most basic Necron weaponry. They feature a single Gauss tube that is charged and releases a burst of electromagnetic energy. This electromagnetic blast is calibrated towards disrupting the molecular bonds of a target. As each ‘layer’ is exposed, it is broken apart and stripped away, accounting for the ‘flayer’ name of this weapon. Other Gauss weapons use exactly the same method of destruction, however due to their higher strengths the process is much more rapid. 






 Gauss Cannons






  • Gauss Cannons are one of the most powerful weapons wielded by the Necron armies. Its high strength and armour-piercing characteristics allow this weapon to cut down swathes of light infantry, as well as damage even the heaviest tanks due to the “Gauss Weapons” rule. Its high rate of fire allows it to pummel tanks until a critically damaging hit is scored.


  • Heavy Gauss Cannons are an anti-tank variant wielded by Heavy Destroyers. Sacrificing firing rate for a single high-strength shot, the Heavy Gauss cannon is almost guaranteed to destroy lighter armoured vehicles with a single shot, and hardly need rely on the “Gauss Weapons” rule to damage heavier fighting vehicles.






 Gauss Flux Arc






  • Gauss Flux Arcs are mounted on vehicles, and are primarily defensive weapons in battle. Being slightly better than a flayer, they have limited killing potential. Whilst the flux arc can cut down smaller troops, it will be ineffective against vehicles and heavy infantry.






 Particle Whip






  • Particle Whips are the primary weapon systems on the monoliths, and Necron tomb ships. They are powered by a large Gauss crystal, and are capable of taking down entire units of troops in single shots. The weapon relies on firing an ionised particle beam at a target, along which flows an immensely powerful bolt of Gauss energy. Upon contact with solid matter, the reaction is profoundly destructive, often obliterating the point of impact and severely damaging the surrounding area. Depending on the size and power source of the Particle Whip, its application can vary. The ground based version carried by the Monolith is primarily anti-infantry, while larger variants wielded by Necron spacecrafts require immense amounts of energy to fire, but are capable of crippling capital-size ships. Tomb Spyders can wield a lighter version of this weapon, although its range and power are extremely limited compared to their larger counterparts.






 Staff of Light






  • The Staff of Light is a weapon that is only carried by the Necron Lord. It has great melee potential, and is even capable of a limited burst of ranged attacks. While not terribly powerful, it offers a solid weapon for defense and gives the Necrons their first real melee weapon.






 Warscythes






  • Warscythes are the strongest melee weapon that the Necrons have at their disposal. Made from the same material as the Necrons themselves, it has the capacity to carve holes in tanks and cut straight through the thickest of bunker walls. Carried only by Pariahs and Lords, it is a weapon that is seldom employed in standard combat, but they can’t be underestimated as they can cut through most energy fields, rendering all kinds of saves useless against them. Pariah-carried versions have a built-in Gauss Blaster as well.






 Necron Pylon






  • Pylons are enormous ground based defense platforms that are capable of taking down spacecraft and ground units alike. The pylons have been seen erected on only the most desolate of worlds, suggesting that they are installed in the last stages of a planet’s harvesting. The Necrons also seem to teleport them into position along with very large attack forces, to act as super-heavy siege weapons, often being employed against Titans and fortresses. They could also be markers of some sort, and are commonly recorded as sending out signals and energy into the deepest regions of the galaxy.





  • A hit from a Pylon’s energy weapon is sufficient to breach almost any manner of physical shields and energy fields, instantly slaying infantry and inflicting catastrophic damage on all but the most durable of vehicles.






 Various Weapons






  • There is a whole slew of weapon variants such as Gauss grenades, and Nightmare projectors, but the Imperium has very limited information on these, such as their use thus far has been severely limited. Again, this points to the Necrons being a harvesting force, rather than a pure invasion force.






 Necron Fleets




While Necron forces are usually land-based, Necron space vessels are not unheard of and are quite possibly much more common than people realize. They are probably simply not seen and so the Necrons seem to have the terrifying ability to appear out of nowhere. There are more than two dozen records of Necron space contacts in the Imperial archives, and there are accounts of other races battling Necron fleets.




Necron mastery of physical technology is beyond anything the galaxy has ever seen and surpasses even that of the highly advanced Eldar. Their ships are stunningly fast and agile, equipped with propulsion systems which are capable of travelling interstellar distances without entering the Warp. This is achieved, as far as is known, by making their ships unbound by inertia, allowing them to accelerate almost instantly and infinitely, which explains why Necron ships are often seen to be visibly decelerating upon reaching the site of battle. This also protects them from many of the practical problems and dangers of warp travel. All Necron ships are well-armored, equipped with self-repair systems and use an advanced stealth technology which makes them invisible to enemy targeting systems, granting Necron vessels surprising staying power overall. Indeed, these vessels are so dangerous that they once reached deep into the heart of the Imperium near Mars before being gunned down by planetary defense system. Necron naval weaponry is frighteningly devastating; one necron ship is more than a match for a small imperial fleet while larger necron ships have been known to cripple entire fleets with a single shot and are known to by-pass many conventional defense systems, such as void shields and even Eldar holofields, and strike with an unearthly accuracy.




In every battle so far engaging Necrons on even terms proved to be suicide. Fortunately, all of the Necron fleets encountered so far were small task forces that usually disengaged and phased out like their land-based counterparts rather than putting up a full fight. However, their frequency seems to be increasing and the possibility of a massive Necron attack is dreaded by the Imperium as well as other sentient races. Even as a raiding force, they are a serious threat since they are fully capable of outmaneuvering most other fleets (probably with the exception of Eldar and their dark kin). This often leads to catastrophic losses for enemy fleets and forces them to stall for reinforcements to arrive, at which point the Necrons simply phase out again.







 Living Metal




Living Metal is the basis of Necrontyr technology. It is extremely durable and can dynamically restructure itself to change shape or to adapt to an outside effect, as well as having the capability to mend itself when damaged. The physical shells that contain the C’tan are made from it, so called Necrodermis as are the Necron metal bodies (including starships and vehicles) and some of their weapons. The C’tan Phase Sword and C’tan Phase Knife also use similar technology. Literally, the name means “corpse skin” (from Greek νεκρος (as discussed earlier), and δερμις dermis).




The C’tan are encased in Necrodermis upon their creation, resulting in a trapping of a horrific amount of energy. On the battlefield, if this Necrodermis is somehow ruptured or broken, either by means of weaponry or accident, the C’tan encapsulated inside the Necrodermis will escape, resulting in a massive release of this energy. This creates a damaging explosion with a large radius, damaging Necron and enemy alike. The Necrodermis has the capacity to absorb energy and use that energy to repair itself, allowing it to house the energies of C’tan. when a C’tan is destroyed in this manner the sheer energy of the C’tan will return to a necron tomb and reform into its god-like form again




Pylon




Immobile gun emplacements rather than actual vehicles, Pylons are huge crescent-shaped constructs with a glowing green crystal in the middle. They can be deployed anywhere on the battlefield to support Necron assaults by teleportation (similar to a Monolith) or will rise out of the ground to defend tombworlds. Once deployed, the Pylon firmly settles on the ground and keeps its position until the battle is won or the Pylon is destroyed. As with the Monolith they are very well protected but are even sturdier and can absorb incredible amounts of enemy fire. Pylons are equipped with close-range Gauss Flux Arc Projectors and extremely long-range Particle Accelerator cannon. As of the current Warhammer 40,000 storyline, these are known to have been encountered only seven times by Imperial forces, resulting in significant casualties each time.




Destroyers




destroyers are the fast heavy support machine that quickly dispatches flesh and armor alike. they are the necron skimmer and the fast agile machine has 3 vaiants.




Destroyers: Kill infantry




Heavy Destroyers: Kill tanks




Lord destroyers: kill anything they want. 







 Tomb Stalker




The Tomb Stalker first appeared in the 2006 Medusa V campaign and it appears to be the Necron equivalent of a titan. The Tomb Stalker was either built by the Necron forces on Medusa V or brought with them. It is described in this quote from week 2 of the campaign “The Cadian 12th, along with a detachment of Imperial Fists Astartes, a Baneblade and two mighty Warlord titans from the Legio Skarlos have encountered a vast Necron force on the ash wastes of Battle Zone Hydra. The Necrons had already been gathering in numbers by the time the warriors and epic war machines of the beloved Emperor drew the Xenos into battle. Their forces included many Obelisks, waves of Destroyers and a large – and never before seen – mechanical spider-like creature with a massive glowing thorax. The fighting was fierce, with the Imperial Fists acquitting themselves well by destroying at least five of the Obelisks. Unfortunately the Baneblade was lost due to the destructive might of the spider-shaped abomination.” In the 2006 UK games day, the 40k mega battle featured a Necron force including many converted Tomb Stalkers. It is unknown whether a model will be made or not, but if it is it will probably be made by Forge World.







 Eternal Engines of Destruction




In the Apocalypse book, it is mentioned that the Necrons have access to weapons of immense destructive power, and a wide variety of destructive war machines, only they have not yet began to use them, and if they are used, none survive to tell of it. It is speculated that the Tomb Stalker was one of these, and only utilized when it was necessary. Also, the book briefly mentions Necron Flyers. It is supposed that these may be expanded upon, and given rules and models.







 Spacecraft




No Necron ships use the warp for travel. Instead they rely on their ‘inertia-less drive’, giving them faster than light travel. This appears to allow the Necron ships to travel at limitless speeds.







 Cairn class Tombship




The largest Necron ship encountered so far, the Tombship is a terrifyingly well-armed craft easily capable of defeating any Imperial battleship. Equipped with various heavy weapon batteries for both long and short range attack, Tombships can wreak havoc while absorbing a disheartening amount of return fire. They are also known to sometimes carry special vaults called Sepulchres. These mysterious devices wear down the minds of enemy crews, causing unrest throughout the ship and disrupting the chain of command. Also, Sepulchre-equipped Tombships are able to shoot down incoming ordnance much more easily than their normal counterparts.




Fortunately for all races, Tombships have so far only been met on seven occasions, always serving as flagships. While thought to be the largest vessel serving the Necrons, some Orks talk about another class of Necron battleship larger yet, dwarfing one of their mighty space hulks. Knowing Orkish behaviour, however, it would not be surprising if this was simply the ramblings of fleeing greenskins attempting to salvage some shred of ‘dignity’. However the potency of Necron military might demonstrated in the past combined with the short time during which they have made their presence known means that these reports should not be dismissed.







 Scythe class Harvest Ship




Designated as cruisers of Necron fleets, Harvest Ships are a common sight in any Necron force. Their sleek lines make them appear lightly built, but this is highly deceptive as many pilots found out the hard way. Harvest Ships are incredibly resilient for their size and have an impressive amount of firepower, carrying weapon systems similar to that of a Cairn Tombship. With speed, resilience and firepower, the Harvest Ship is a match for any but the largest Imperial craft.







 Shroud class Light Cruiser




More of an infiltration ship with sensor systems. Shrouds can pass through minefields undetected while scanning enemy formations and relaying information to the rest of the Necron fleet, giving the Necron commanders an important advantage. The five Necron vessels that infiltrated the Adeptus Mechanicus homeworld in the “Mars Gambit” incident were all Shroud light cruisers.







 Jackal class Raider




Necron Raiders are designated to be the equivalents of Imperial escort ships and are a common sight in any Necron fleet like their Imperial counterparts. Small and very agile vessels, Raiders are usually utilized as fighter support for larger Necron ships. Jackal is the slightly larger variant of the two known Raider classes.







 Dirge class Raider




The Dirge class is the smaller variant of Necron Raiders. While lacking the firepower of Jackals, they are one of the fastest vessels in the battlefield, capable of outstripping almost any other ship in existence in a straight line.




 




Number 2: Eldar




The Eldar were created by the Old Ones to battle with their arch enemy the necrons. Stronger and faster than most humans and known of their intellect.




The Fall




Before The Fall the Eldar were a technologically advanced race, generally considered one of the most powerful race in the entire Galaxy. Their technology had advanced so far that little or no work was required by individual Eldar, and as a result, at some point around the 24th or 25th millennia, groups of Eldar began forming cults dedicated to the pursuit of experiencing everything that life had to offer.




The Eldar mind is capable of a far deeper level of emotion and imagination than that of a human; therefore although they are capable of experiencing the greatest joys and creating the most beautiful pieces of art and music they are also capable of experiencing the deepest hate and ugliest depravities. These pursuits became more extreme and depraved as time went on. Torture and murder came to be seen as artforms every bit as worthy as music and drama. The Eldar were extremely long-lived, never suffered from senility or disease, and their superior intellect allowed them to perfect their skills to a degree far beyond that of even the most talented humans. The Eldar were able to devise cunning new ways of torturing and killing their fellows at rates never imagined.




Despite the prediction of the reclusive Eldar Seers that warned of impending doom if the Eldar did not change their ways, government within the Eldar Empire soon collapsed and the moral degeneration of their homeworlds and colonies continued unimpeded. As the pursuit of ever more extreme experiences reached its height, death reigned in the streets of Eldar cities, hunter and hunted each being part of a twisted ritual of destruction which consumed thousands. Some Eldar were able to see that their now-corrupt society was destroying itself, and fled in disgust; these refugees would settle in the distant colonies of their Empire, and would later be known as the Exodites.




Upon dying, the soul of the deceased traverse the bounds of the physical realm and go to rest within the warp. As more and more Eldar died, the souls began to somehow coalesce into a larger entity, a living representation of the corruption that had taken their lives. This collection of souls gained sentience sometime in the early 30th millennium, creating the being known as the Chaos god Slaanesh. When Slaanesh came to be, an ethereal explosion occurred, with the epicentre being the Eldar homeworld. All Eldar caught in the immense blast were instantly killed, their souls consumed by Slaanesh. Most of the remaining Eldar gods were destroyed by Slaanesh. Kaela Mensha Khaine attempted to combat the new being, but Khaine’s form was shattered and exiled to the mortal realm in the form of great statues called “Avatars”, which rest in the hearts of the various Craftworlds. The other Eldar gods to survive the Fall were the trickster god Cegorach (also called the Laughing God), who hid himself within the Webway, and Isha, whom was ripped from the jaws of Slaanesh by Nurgle, who now keeps her as a slave.




The Fall destroyed the Eldar Empire, leaving scattered bands of Eldar fighting for survival. Before the Fall, vast space-borne vessels called Craftworlds were constructed, enabling those wishing to escape the degeneration to flee. When the Fall occurred, the various Craftworlds rode out the ethereal shockwave, some being destroyed in the process. The Exodite worlds, far from the epicentre of the catastrophe, were largely untouched. In order to prevent the events of The Fall from ever recurring, the Eldar devised the Path system.




The Eldar Paths




The Eldar are forever wary of falling into the same traps which led them to the Fall. In order to avoid slipping into such debauchery and wanton disregard for life and law, most Craftworld Eldar take an extremely focused view on life. Rather than dabbling in various skills and occupations, they will choose a single skill and dedicate themselves to mastering it. Upon doing so, they are then free to choose a new occupation. Their long lives mean that a single Eldar will often master several skills or Paths in the course of their life, pursuing each until they feel they have reached their potential and then choosing a new one.




This view of life is not without its pitfalls, however. Occasionally, an Eldar will suffer what is considered a great curse— the inability to leave their current Path. While these Eldar are respected as the foremost practitioners of their Path, they are also viewed with a great deal of pity, as they exhibit the same failings that brought about the Fall.




 




 The Path of the Warrior












A squad of Biel-Tan Eldar Guardian-Defenders




Eldar are known to pursue any task they set out to do with an intensity that makes human efforts pale in comparison. When an Eldar feels called to the path of the Warrior, he or she will join an Aspect Shrine, a cult of warriors who train themselves to embody some aspect of the Eldar War God Khaine or ancient Eldar myths and legends. All Craftworlds have some Aspect Shrines, although some, notably Biel-tan, have more than others and place a greater emphasis on the Path of the Warrior.




Each Aspect Shrine is led by an Exarch(s), an Eldar fallen to the curse of inability to leave the Path of the Warrior. These Exarchs are powerful warriors, doomed to die on the battlefield. Exarchs are the high priests and armourers of Khaine, living in and tending to the Aspect shrine. The first or founder of an Aspect Shrine is called a Phoenix Lord, since they are the original Exarchs of each respective discipline, and never truly “die”, being reborn many times. When an Aspect warrior becomes an Exarch, they will don one of the ancient suits of Exarch armour that belong to that shrine, when they do the spiritstones of all the Exarch’s before them (already in the armor) will merge with the spirit of the current user of the armor (in the same manner as with the Phoenix lords), giving them prowess and skill beyond their brethren. Each Exarch is an ancient hero, whose legend can continue in this manner.




Eldar joining the Path of the Warrior are terrified of losing themselves to their bloodlust, as such they create new personae that take over when they go to war, which separate their warrior and civilian lives so that they can freely live as a warrior without fear of losing themselves to madness. The only exception is the Exarch, who are warriors until death, their only impulse being to wage war. This has serious consequences, since all other feelings and desires are subordinated to that one desire.




Once an Eldar warrior finishes his time as an Aspect Warrior, they move on to other occupations, as per the convention of the Eldar Path. Since the population of the Eldar race is low, all Eldar are expected to serve if called to fight. Thus, if the Craftworld subsequently goes to war, these former Aspects will frequently be called upon to serve as Guardians, a type of militia serving to defend the Craftworld. Every civilian in an Eldar populace can bear arms, whatever their discipline, to boost the less numerous Aspect Warriors.




Here are some of the most common Aspects. The list is by no means exhaustive, but these are the most common ones, which are seen in more than one or two Craftworlds. The Phoenix Lords are not known for every Aspect; however, since each Aspect Shrine is founded by one, it is not unreasonable to believe that there is (or was) a Phoenix Lord for every Aspect.




 




 Dire Avengers




The Dire Avengers are the oldest and most numerous of the Aspects Warriors, and embody a more traditional view of war. They embody Khaine as the noble warrior. They take to the battlefield as well-rounded infantry, armed with the traditional weapons of the Eldar, the shuriken catapult, although they are improved, with a greater range than conventional models. The Dire Avenger Exarch is able to equip a Diresword and Shuriken Pistol in exchange for his standard wargear, Dual Catapults for extra fire power, or a Shimmershield and power weapon for additional close combat defence. The Phoenix Lord of the Dire Avengers is Asurmen, the Hand of Asur. He was the first of the Phoenix Lords; it was he who instructed all the other founding Phoenix Lords in the skills of combat. Dire Avengers are mostly used as the core unit of troops of an Eldar army. With shuriken weapons and the Blade Storm ability, Dire Avengers excel at taking down large hordes of lightly armored infantry, although the sheer number of shots they can fire make them effective against any kind of infantry, they are also an effective counter assault unit with the defend ability and a shimmershield. It is rare to see an Eldar warhost without a core of these noble warriors at its heart.




 




 Dark Reapers




The Dark Reapers represent Khaine in his aspect as a destroyer, callously striking down foes from afar. They specialize in long range fire-power. In battle they appear as menacing, black armoured troops wielding rapid-firing miniature missile launchers called “reaper launchers”, which they use to destroy great numbers of enemy infantry. Dark reapers excel at taking down large numbers of heavily armoured infantry. The Dark Reaper Exarch can also be equipped with a Missile Launcher or a Tempest Launcher, as well. The Phoenix Lord of the Dark Reapers is Maugan Ra, the Harvester of Souls, who comes from the Altansar Craftworld, which he helped to escape from inside the Eye of Terror during Abaddon’s 13th Black Crusade. Maugan Ra teaches that the mightiest weapon can be wielded with the precision of a scalpel.




 




 Fire Dragons




The Fire Dragons, named after their mystic serpents of lore, embody the fiery wrath of Khaine, and as such, generally wear red or orange armor, and wield short-ranged, heat-based weaponry known as ‘fusion guns’ (similar to the Imperium’s Melta Guns, although more refined and stable). Their weapons and training allow them to focus on destroying enemy tanks and heavily-armored infantry. Fire Dragons are aggressive and destructive, seeking nothing less than the total annihilation of their foes. The Exarch can be armed with a powerful Dragon’s Breath flamer, which lets them deal with hordes of lighter infantry as well. The Exarch can also be equipped with a Fire Pike, a longer-ranged fusion (melta) weapon. It is said that when the battle lust is upon them, Exarchs generate their own corona of flame around themselves. The Phoenix Lord of the Fire Dragons is Fuegan, The Burning Lance.




 




 Howling Banshees




The Howling Banshees are a corps of generally female Eldar warriors who embody spirits from Eldar legend, and are meant to bring swift death to their foes. It is said that the Crone Goddess, Morai-Heg, sent her daughters to haunt Khaine, until he performed a deed for her. Upon completion of said deed, Morai-Heg granted Khaine the Aspect of the Banshee. They are famous for wearing warmasks which emit piercing psychically-charged shrieks as the warriors attack; these shrieks disorient the Banshees’ victims, making them easier to slay. Banshees specialize in mobility (at the expense of durability), and use power weapons, which can easily carve through heavy armor, even Terminator armor. The Banshee Exarch is even more deadly with Mirrorblades or the powerful Executioner. The Phoenix Lord of the Howling Banshees is Jain Zar, the Storm of Silence. Jain Zar is the most devoted to her Shrines out of the Phoenix Lords, and the Banshees maintain an eternal vigil for their deadly mistress.




 




 Shining Spears




The relatively rare Shining Spears embody the Spear of Khaine, an invincible weapon wielded by the god of war, said to be able to kill any foe with a single blow. They are unique in that they are the only major Aspect to ride sleek jetbikes— essentially incredibly fast motorcycle-like vehicles which hover just above the ground by using technology similar to the Grav tanks. They also wield specially designed lances, known as Laser Lances, which are able to shoot powerful short-ranged lasers. In this way, they are meant to operate in a manner similar to heavy medieval cavalry, like knights, in a manner similar to the duelling Dragon Knights of the Exodite worlds. At this time, there is no known Phoenix Lord for the Shining Spears.




 




 Striking Scorpions




The Striking Scorpions are another close combat Aspect, representing a more hard-hitting, durable side of hand to hand combat. They are slower than Howling Banshees, but are stronger and wear heavier armor, similar to that of a space marine. Also, rather than wearing the disorienting masks like the Banshees, the Scorpions wear head-mounted guns called ‘mandi-blasters’; having them head-mounted frees up the warrior’s hands for other close combat weapons, most notably a chainsword, although the Exarch often uses a Scorpion’s Claw, a Biting Blade or dual chainsabres. Tactically, they specialize in ambush and overwhelming more numerous enemy light infantry rather than quickly slicing through heavily-armored infantry as Banshees do. This focus on surprise attacks has emphasized stealth as well as great prowess at close quarters; their training ensures a superhuman ability to creep around obstacles and through difficult terrain, blending to the shadows before falling on an unsuspecting foe like the wrath of Khaine.




The Phoenix Lord of the Striking Scorpions is Karandras, the Shadow Hunter. However, it should be noted that Karandras is not the original Phoenix Lord. The original was named Ahra, Father of Scorpions, and is the only Phoenix Lord to leave the Eldar and his Shrine completely. Many theories link him with the mysterious “Dark Father” of the Incubi, a Dark Eldar warrior cult who bear many similarities to the Striking Scorpions. Arhra was said to have ‘turned to the Shadows away from the light’, also “the fallen phoenix, who burns with the dark light of chaos”, and is known to have fled into the Webway (where the Dark Eldar dwell) after going berserk and destroying his first Aspect shrine. It’s also heavily implied in Codex: Dark Eldar that the Incubi are “fallen” Striking Scorpions, drawn from Exarch Koradhil’s comments when he encounters a squad of those warriors. Karandras has tempered the murderous nature of his predecessor with that of the patient hunter, being supernaturally stealthy, even more so than his disciples. His signature weapon is The Scorpions Bite, a set of mandiblasters many times more powerful than the standard set.




 




 Swooping Hawks




The Swooping Hawks are a highly mobile aspect, representing the hawks from Eldar legend, who would hover above murderers as a sign of guilt. They wear complex sets of wings made from many hundreds of vibrating plates which allow them to enter the battlefield at critical points and lend firepower support. Like the Banshees, the Hawks sacrifice durability for greater mobility. Their lasblasters make them excellent harassment units against light infantry (such as Imperial Guard or Orks). Also of note, they wield cleverly designed grenade launchers on their legs, which allow them to bomb enemy units as they fly into the battle. The swooping hawks are also equipped with haywire grenades which are very effective at disabling any vehicle making swooping hawks a great anti-armour choice as well. The Phoenix Lord of the Swooping Hawks is known as Baharroth, The Cry of the Wind. Baharroth is the most youthful of the Phoenix Lords, and is a brother to Maugan Ra, as the sun is to the moon.




 




 Warp Spiders




The Warp Spiders are modeled after the tiny spiders which guard the Infinity Circuit. These spiders have the ability to teleport anywhere inside the wraithbone structure, and use this ability to hunt down and repel any daemonic entities which attempt to infiltrate the Circuit, much like an immune system. The Warp Spiders operate similarly, epitomizing the doctrine of aggressive defense; they wear suits of heavy armor which incorporate a warp jump generator that allows them to teleport across the battlefield, appearing without warning to strike and then teleport away before the enemy can respond. Using their warp-jump technology is risky as Eldar using them can be claimed by the warp itself. As a precaution for this, their armor also have warp-resistant spells cast on them. Because they risk not only their lives, but their souls, Warp spiders are considered to be the bravest of aspect warriors. In battle, they wield short-ranged weapons called “Deathspinners”, which are able to easily slay enemy infantry, especially those who wear little or no armor because the Deathspinners fire clouds of monofilament wires, which decompress, and shred flesh but are easily withstood by armor. Warp Spider Exarchs have some anti-armour ability, being able to take powerblades that slice through flesh and armour with ease, and also the mighty spinneret rifle, a gun that shoots a rigid strand of monofilament that punches through armour and uncoils in the target. Alternatively, they can take two deathspinners, mounted on their backpack, freeing their hands. At this time, there is no known Phoenix Lord for the Warp Spiders. It is rumored that the Lhykosidae is the Phoenix Lord of the Warp Spiders, but there is no proof of this.




 




Autarch




The Autarch (the path of command) is a very demanding path. To become an Autarch, an Eldar needs to travel multiple Paths of the Warrior, and still be able to retain themselves from getting lost on the path and becoming an Exarch. The Autarchs of a craftworld are the commanders of their armies, the military foils to the Farseers’ wisdom. They are able to use a wide variety of wargear, reflective of his or her experience with all aspects of warfare. They can use almost any piece of weaponry that the other aspects can, although not artifacts exclusive to the Exarchs.




The Autarch originally appeared in the Specialist Game Epic Armageddon with a slightly different background. The Epic description of the Autarch states that the Autarch followed the Path of the Warrior and was lost on it, becoming an Exarch. However, unlike most Exarchs who stay within their given shrine or aspect (Dire Avenger, Shining Spear, etc…), the Autarch traveled from aspect to aspect, becoming an Exarch in many different shrines. This background was ret-conned with the release of the 4th Edition Codex: Eldar in 2006.




Autarchs are second only to Phoenix Lords in terms of skill and reflexes; from directing the Eldar warhost to duelling with enemy commanders, Autarchs have the skill and wargear to cover multiple requirements. While not as strong as some other enemy commanders in hand to hand, their melee might should not be overlooked.




Autarchs co-ordinate the Eldar warhost with the skill and precision of a conductor conducting a symphony. The Autarchs are obsessed with the Path of Command, having a wide area of expertise and greater understanding of the entirety of the theater of war, that an Exarch, focused upon one facet of war, could ever hope to achieve.




 




 The Path of the Seer




Aspects are responsible for the defense of the Eldar, in the same way the Seers are responsible for leading them. Seers that are lost to the path forever become Farseers, similar to the way an Exarch attains his status by following the path of the warrior. Also, like the Exarch, they are very powerful, some of the most powerful psykers in the universe. A council of the most powerful Seers generally govern a Craftworld. Seers come in a wide variety with divination being the most common skill. Warlocks and Spirit Seers are two other types of Seers represented in Warhammer 40,000. Warlocks are Seers who follow the path of the Seer but have not been lost to it, and have previously traveled the path of the warrior. They use their powers to assist other Eldar in battle, shielding them from harm and attacking their enemies. Spirit Seers are Seers who specialize in communication with the dead; unsurprisingly, they are most prevalent within Iyanden and sometimes lead squads of Wraithguard in combat.




The role of the Seers is to look into the future and discern the best path for the Eldar to take. This is done through the casting of runestones, fragments of Wraithbone, and other psychosensitive materials that react to the convoluted, probabilistic skeins of space-time. By reading the throw of these stones, the Seers can often determine what will be the most beneficial course of action, although it is rare that they can discern true results very far into the future. On occasion a powerful Seer will receive a portent of some calamitous event and be able to steer the Eldar away from disaster and doom. With so few Eldar remaining, the Seers attempt to preserve every Eldar life they can.




However, this ability to see the future and react upon what is seen has caused the Eldar to be distrusted by other races. Occasionally, a Seer will see that by attacking a certain world, fleet, or base, Eldar lives will be somehow saved from a future event; Eldar forces will then suddenly attack unannounced, and quickly withdraw as soon as their goal has been accomplished. This, along with the Eldar tendency to view all other races as inferior, has led other races to deem them as fickle, aloof, and untrustworthy. Also, the most powerful Farseers have even shown the ability to steer future events so that other races fight each other rather than the Eldar— one of the greatest examples being when the famed Farseer Eldrad Ulthran of Ulthwé (a Craftworld which places greater emphasis on the Path of the Seer) secretly facilitated the rise of an obscure Ork warlord named Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka, who would eventually become a significant enemy of the Imperium of Man.




The Farseers lead in times of war as well as peace. On the battlefield their powers of precognition allow them to foresee the enemy’s attacks and movements and warn their comrades against imminent changes on the field of battle. While less capable of foreseeing events in such harried conditions, the Warlocks, especially those who have already tread the Path of an Aspect Warrior, will often serve as officers in battle, leading units of other Eldar, and helping to coordinate the overall battle, as well as to lend support by utilizing their considerable psychic powers.




As many Farseers age however, their bodies slowly turn to a form of psychically active crystal, a transformation caused by their constant exposure to the chaotic energies of the Warp. When the time has come, they will go to the Dome of the Crystal Seers and join the crystalline bodies of the Farseers that came before them.




In times of peace, rare as they may be for the Eldar, Farseers serve as political leaders, using their predictive abilities to guide the day-to-day activities of their Craftworlds in order to safeguard their racial survival.




 Harlequins




The Harlequins are the keepers of the Black Library and serve the Laughing God. They see themselves as a unifying force for the Eldar, dedicated to preserving their race, and often acting as mediators and coordinators between the various Eldar factions. The other Eldar view the Harlequins with a mixture of awe, fear and respect. Harlequins are rare but respected warriors and, if seen at all, will usually be heading an assault on tougher units such as Terminators, Tyranid Warriors, Ork Nobs, or Tau battle suits. After passing rigorous ordeals, the souls of Harlequins are immune to Slaanesh, and as such they do not wear waystones.




 




 Exodites




During the Fall, the degeneration of the Eldar did not occur wholly without resistance. Some Eldar, the more far-sighted, began to openly criticise the laxity of their fellow citizens, and to warn against the birth of the hedonistic and savage pleasure cults. These individuals were mostly ignored or else treated as narrow-minded fools and puritanical fanatics. Eventually the general collapse of Eldar society just before the birth of Slaanesh convinced even the most resolute amongst them that there would be no end to the reign of death and depravity. Some decided to leave the Eldar worlds, and settle new planets free of the creeping corruption. They were the ones still untainted by the depravity that had claimed their fellow citizens, and by the time just before the Fall they were very few. These Eldar are known today as the Exodites because they made an Exodus from the now lost homeworlds of the Eldar Empire before it was too late.




The Exodite worlds are generally considered backward and rustic compared to the rest of the space-roaming Eldar, although they still possess a good deal of the Eldar’s advanced technology. One piece of technology the Exodites have maintained is the Infinity Circuit. On Exodite planets, Infinity Circuits are known as “World Spirits” and exist as grids of stone menhirs, obelisks, and stone circles all crafted from psychoactive Eldritch crystal. This World Spirit performs the same function that the Infinity Circuit does on Eldar Craftworlds. Some Outcasts will find refuge among these generally more accepting Eldar.




Exodites often find themselves coming into conflict with other races like humans or Orks, who try to settle their planet. Some Craftworlds, especially Biel-Tan, are notorious for fiercely aiding their Exodite brethren. Many a time the Imperium has tried to settle an Exodite-owned planet only to find themselves up against the harsh wrath of the sword-wind of Biel-Tan.




Although no Exodite models exist (the group appearing only in the 40k background information), a number of players have converted their own Exodite armies.




Eldrad Ulthran












Eldrad Ulthran




Eldrad Ulthran was the mightiest and most ancient of the Farseers of the Eldar Craftworld of Ulthwé. Among Eldrad’s accomplishments are supposedly igniting the Second War for Armageddon so as to spare the lives of ten thousand Eldar, the Sanapan Scouring, the Mortis Annihilation and the Third Coming of Orian, as well as warning Fulgrim, Primarch of the Emperor’s Children of Horus’s treachery (though he failed, realising only too late that Fulgrim had already been corrupted by Slaanesh) and warning Iyanden of the coming of the Tyranids. The veracity of these accomplishments are often debated, as they are usually derived from work by Inquisitor Czevak (which he himself admits strays into the realm of paranoia) and the rantings of a tortured Eldar Ranger. It should also be noted that, of these battles, only the Second War for Armageddon is ever described in detail. It is also noted, that he is one of the few individuals, perhaps the only, to fight in hand-to-hand combat with Abaddon the Despoiler himself and live to tell the tale. He also enacted the Coven of Isha, which required the Imperium to help the Eldar in some way in return for information on the Chaos legions.




Eldrad perished during the Eye of Terror campaign, when he was caught upon a Blackstone Fortress, or Talisman of Vaul, that he was trying to stop from destroying the Imperial world of Cadia. As he attempted to commune with the spirit of the Fortress, the Farseer learned it had been corrupted, and not by any random power. The machine had been corrupted by Slaanesh. Eldrad desperately tried to disengage, but his efforts came too late: his soul was dragged screaming into the Talisman’s corrupted core for all eternity. The Talisman’s current whereabouts are unknown but is likely to be somewhere in the warp.




 




 Eldrad’s Fate



Prior to the 13th Black Crusade, Eldrad had fragmented his consciousness into hundreds of waystones, for the use of battlefield leaders. In the closing stage of the war, he led an assault on the surviving Talisman of Vaul in a desperate attempt to rescue its soul, saving the planet of Cadia in the process. He spirit-linked with the Talisman’s core, only to realise that all Eldar traces within the fortress had been devoured, replaced by the vile power of Slaanesh.




The new Codex: Eldar (November 2006) features Eldrad as a historical special character. His background material, however, ends with a flicker of hope. It states that after Eldrad’s soul was lost most but not all of the waystones, into which he had divided his consciousness before handing to his commanders, became lifeless and dull. So long as one stone retains its spark, Eldrad’s soul endures.




The Eldar possess a number of vehicles that easily skim across lands and walk across the battlefield.




Wraithlords.







Wraithlords are immensly tall humanoid machines that stride gloriously into battle. Using their shoulder guns and hand to hand combat moves it can easily kill infantry squads stupid enough to wander alone. they are also equipped with flamers in the back of their palms to help them decrease enemy cover. Powered by the soul of a dead eldar the wraithlord carries only fist and/or sword into battle.




Many other vehicles include Vypers, Falcons, and Fire prisms




 




Number 3: Dark Eldar







Origins




The origins of the Dark Eldar can be found in the Fall, the great cataclysm that nearly destroyed the entire Eldar race. It was an event so terrible that not only did it kill trillions of Eldar, but it breached the gap between real space and the warp, and gave birth to a Chaos God.




To understand the reasons for the Fall, you must know something of the Eldar mind and soul.




An Eldar’s mind is incredibly complex. Their senses are extremely sharp, able to perceive incredible levels of detail. Their emotions can be so strong that a human’s are merely pale shadows by comparison. They are extremely intelligent; their thought processes are much faster than a human’s. All of this means that an Eldar experiences the universe and all its sensations to a greatly heightened degree.




Similarly, an Eldar’s soul is much brighter in the Warp than those of ‘lesser’ sentients. Eldar are able to affect the nether-realm much more than most other races. They are all latent psychics and have the ability to become very powerful psykers with training. It is the strength of their souls that was one of the causes of their downfall.




Before the Fall, the Eldar had an immense galaxy-spanning empire comprising millions of worlds, larger and more powerful than even the Imperium of Man at the height of its power. The Eldar lived in relative peace–barbarian races such as the Orks were kept at easily manageable numbers and never had the strength to threaten the might of the Eldar empire. The humans were not yet virulently xenophobic and did not have a large domain, and the Tyranid Hive Fleets were unknown. The C’tan and Necrons, ancient foes of the Eldar, were long ago defeated and still remained dormant.




Life on the Eldar worlds was idyllic, with fantastically sophisticated machines to take care of all labour and manufacturing required, leaving the Eldar free to indulge in other, more aesthetic pursuits. With all menial work taken care of for them, the Eldar became indolent and decadent. They began to explore more and more the arts of pleasure, delving ever deeper into hedonism. The descent into decadence spanned millennia. Tradition and order disintegrated as they limited the pursuit of pleasure. Sects called Pleasure Cults were formed, dedicated to achieving the highest levels of hedonistic sensation, and their ceremonies and practices became ever more wild, eventually devolving into violence and sacrifice of their own kind. Some Eldar hated what their race had become and left the Homeworlds for the virgin Maiden Worlds, or left on the newly-constructed Craftworlds, leaving the Pleasure Cults to their madness.




Meanwhile, something terrible was stirring in the Warp. The millennia of Eldar hedonism had made a massive impact in the psychic realm of Chaos. Within the warp the decadent Eldar civilization was giving shape to a Power of Chaos, which grew and grew over thousands of years, getting stronger and more defined until suddenly it sparked into an intelligence – a shatteringly huge and malign intelligence, with an immense and bottomless thirst for Eldar souls. This was the birth of Slaanesh.




The process lasted for thousands of years, corresponding to mankind’s Age of Strife, although when Slaanesh finally came into being, the results with the universe were apocalyptic and sudden. An almighty psychic shockwave scythed across the galaxy. The souls of almost every Eldar were stripped from them in an instant and devoured by the new-born Chaos god. There were few survivors. Most were driven mad, their minds trapped half in the real world and half in the swirling insanity of the Warp. A great warp rift was created, encompassing the entire Eldar empire and creating the Eye of Terror.




Of the few survivors of the Pleasure Cults, some remained sane and able. They found to their horror that Slaanesh had not yet finished with the Eldar – S/he was slowly draining their souls while they still lived. To escape this these survivors fled in small groups to the Webway, the system of sealed tunnels that run through the Warp and enabled the Eldar to traverse the galaxy safe from attack by Daemons and other Warp creatures. Deep in the Webway, these small groups came together and laid the foundations of Commorragh. More and more survivors began to arrive, and added their own parts to the new city, making it even larger and more heavily populated.




Some Kabals can trace their history back to the creation of the Dark City, including Asdrubael Vect’s Kabal of the Black Heart




Commorragh is the planet belonging to the Dark Eldar race. It is said to be impossible for outsiders to find, and anarchy and terrorism are a well-established way of life for its debased inhabitants. It is widely believed to be hidden deep within an inter-dimensional labyrinth known as the Webway, described by the Eldar as a “dark stain” growing within their holy pathways. It is a city known to have “wandering shadows that tear apart the unwary” and is bathed in a crimson half-light.




During the final weeks of the Eye of Terror campaign, which followed the 13th Black Crusade of Warmaster Abaddon the Despoiler, the Eldar collapsed several Webway portals leading to Commorragh, isolating it from much of the Webway. Given the mutable nature of the Webway however, the Dark Eldar can still use artificial Webway portals to create temporary tunnels, and thus are largely unaffected.




In the short story by Gav Thorpe, The Torturer’s Tale, Asdrubael Vect, Lord of the Kabal of the Black Heart, relates to the torture slave, Gideon, how the Dark Eldar arose and how Commorragh came to exist. In this story, Vect makes it clear that Commorragh exists within the Webway:






“It seemed there was but one way of escaping Her and that was to flee their homes and leave the physical world behind forever. We came here, into the realm between worlds that we created to traverse the galaxy safe from harm. Here, the Great Enemy’s grip is weakened, yet to our Lord’s horror it was not wholly broken. He had bought his people time, a little instant of time but nothing more. Others followed him, each choosing a place for themselves, building new shrines and around them great palaces. Here, where you sit now, is one of the chambers of the original Temple of the Black Heart. You are very privileged, you know. Not many survive to get this far. Most of them break before they even reach the second level.”



Asdrubael Vect is the leader of the Kabal of the Black Heart, the most powerful Dark Eldar Kabal in existence, thus he is therefore de-facto ruler of the city of Commorragh and the rest of the Dark Eldar race as a whole.





Vect claims to have witnessed the Fall of the Eldar personally, if this is true he is quite possibly one of the oldest living (mortal) beings in the Galaxy at well over 10,000 years of age. As a consequence of this, surviving for that length of time as the ruler of Commorragh would also make him one of the deadliest individuals in the galaxy too.



According to his own account, he survived the psychic explosion of the Fall due to his young age during the event. His youthful ignorance of the hedonistic lifesyles of the Eldar protecting him from the birth-pains of Slaanesh. In the turbulent times that followed, he rallied the surviving Eldar hedonists and fled into the Webway where Slaanesh could not reach, becoming founder of the city of Commorragh himself; and also discovering the technique by which the Dark Eldar extract the essence of other species to sustain themselves.



When Vect deigns to enter battle personally, he usually does so upon his Dais of Destruction; a modified Ravager equipped with a unique force field that protects its riders from harm.






 




Number 4:  Tyranids







Zerg!?! fuck that its Tyranids! over one billion scouts ordered




For the first time ever in the best graphics i have ever seen in my life the tyranids will be featured in Dawn of War II(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)




History




Tyranids are generally introduced as invading the Milky Way galaxy from intergalactic space. This occurred at least three major times; but there were also four smaller, supposed scouting fleets, which were apparently wiped out by the Imperium. The Tyranid Hive Fleets invaded in three ways. Their name, Tyranids, comes from Tyran, the first reported Imperial planet invaded.












A small swarm of Tyranids, including a Warrior and several Termagants and Genestealers.




The hive fleets so far introduced by Games Workshop include Hive Fleet Behemoth, Hive Fleet Kraken, and Hive Fleet Leviathan. It is noted that these names are those ascribed to the Tyranid incursions by the scholars of the Imperium, rather than the Tyranid civilization themselves. Indeed, there is no evidence shown in the fiction that Tyranids even have language or civilization as understood by the protagonist civilizations native to the Milky Way, but the Tyranids appear only able to be communicated to by the Hive Fleet leader and become ineffective and uncoordinated if it is destroyed. Hive fleet Behemoth invaded in a giant swarm of over a thousand ships, and reached as far into Imperial Space as Macragge, the homeworld of the Ultramarines, before it was destroyed. Hive fleet Kraken was a large number of sub-fleets, which were eventually halted at the Battle of Iyanden and the Battle of Ichar IV. Surviving vessels spread out throughout the galaxy, forming the Splinter Fleets. Hive fleet Leviathan was made of a C shape approaching from below the galactic plane, spreading the phenomenon known as the Shadow in the Warp.




In addition, there are a great many references to covert actions by agents of the Tyranid species known as Genestealers. (The term species is used loosely, as the Tyranid’s biology as described does not appear to conform to conventional Taxonomy). Genestealers are the principal antagonist in the setting of the game Space Hulk, and short pieces of fiction frequently describe human encounters with Genestealers from the point of view of individuals such as Inquisitors.




It has also been hinted, in the latest edition of the codex, that the Milky Way has been visited by Tyranids before. The Catachan devil is suggested to be a version of the Ravener. Others, such as the Brainleaf, might also have similar connections. It is possible that they have been left behind by a hive fleet that passed through the galaxy millennia ago or are stranded tendrils of an attack group cut off forever from the Hive Mind.




 




 Hive Fleet Behemoth




As described in the rule book and the novel Warriors of Ultramar, the Imperium first encountered Tyranids in the Eastern Fringe of the Galaxy, near the planet Tyran. Adeptus Mechanicus scientists noticed several worlds that had mysteriously lost their biomass and atmosphere; then the scientists themselves disappeared. Later, after seeing reports of these worlds, and expecting to be visiting a functional base, an Imperial Inquisitor named Kryptmann visited Tyran and found a data file with information on the Tyranids, left behind by the former occupants before their deaths. This is when the Tyranids were first named.




Several planets, namely Tyran, the Thandros system, and, later Prandium, were devoured by the Tyranids; Kryptmann could not call for help due to the Shadow in the Warp, a smothering psychic force which blots out astrotelepathy, mankind’s principal form of interstellar communication. The Tyranids, now named “Hive Fleet Behemoth” by the Imperium, progressed further into human held areas of space, eventually reaching the Ultramar sector, the realm of the Ultramarines Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes.




Marneus Calgar, Chapter Master of the Ultramarines, recalled all his forces to the Ultramarines’ homeworld, Macragge. There, he assembled a fleet and readied the Ultramarines to face the Tyranid vanguard. The Tyranids encircled and overwhelmed the lush garden world of Prandium – stripping its surface bare of life.




The Tyranids then moved to attack Macragge itself. After a titanic struggle and great losses, including the heroic last stand of the Ultramarines veteran First Company, the Ultramarines prevailed. The Tyranids threatening Macragge were slain and moved to flee out-system. As the Ultramarines pursued, Imperial reinforcements arrived just before the appearance of the Hive Fleet’s second wave. The Imperials parted company: The Ultramarines raced to relieve Macragge, and the Imperial reinforcements faced the fresh fleet around the orbit of the gas giant planet of Circe. At the height of the battle, the Imperial flagship, Dominus Astra, charged into the heart of the Hive Fleet after receiving mortal damage and triggered its warp drives, destroying both the ship and the entire Tyrannic Fleet.




 




 Hive Fleet Kraken




The second wave of Tyranids to fight against the Imperium was known as “Hive Fleet Kraken”. Its arrival was heralded by a score of genestealer rebellions and insurrections on the Eastern Fringe. Instead of throwing one mass of troops against the human armies, this swarm split into countless smaller fleets, each one enveloping a few planets, resulting in the loss of whole systems before reinforcements could arrive. Although this made each individual assault weaker and made some warp travel and communication possible, Kraken was attacking across a far vaster front than Behemoth. Two Space Marine Chapters based on the Eastern Fringe – the Lamenters and the Scythes of the Emperor – were all but destroyed, with only several fighting companies of each remaining. A vast portion of Kraken’s strength attacked the Eldar Craftworld of Iyanden. Although eventually defeated, the Invasion killed four-fifths of the Craftworld’s population; a terrible blow to the dwindling Eldar race.




As the fleet faced heavy resistance, smaller sub-fleets combined, narrowing the range of the Tyranid advance as it pushed further into the Imperium. After the Battle of Iyanden, and the Ultramarines’ successful crushing of the Ichar IV rebellion, the Imperium was able to predict where the remainder of Kraken’s strength was moving. Troops were rushed to Ichar IV ahead of the Tyranids, where Marneus Calgar, Chapter Master of the Ultramarines and victor of the first Tyrannic War, was immediately elected Supreme Commander. Once again, Calgar led the Imperium to victory. Yet this was not the end of Kraken. After the battle, the surviving vessels divided into a series of ’splinter fleets’. Although tiny by comparison, these continue to threaten isolated and poorly defended worlds, and increase their numbers with every consumed world.




 




 Hive Fleet Leviathan












A Tyranid Hiveship




Five years after the defeat of Hive Fleet Kraken, Lord Inquisitor Kryptman began to notice the tell-tale signs of a Tyranid invasion.  Hive Fleet Leviathan appeared at the edge of Segmentum Tempestus with anomalous movement near the Dyson Sphere (a place rumored to be the resting place of the C’tan god, Outsider) and move toward the heart of the Imperium. Implementing the infamous Kryptman census, the Inquisitor burnt out dozens of Astropaths in the process of contacting every civilized planet on the fringes of the Imperium. Slowly the responses – and lack of them – formed a pattern, and the Inquisitor was able to chart the path of the Tyranid’s latest Hive Fleet. Codenamed ‘Leviathan’, the fleet attacked from below the galactic plane, appearing as a pair of closing jaws, cutting off vast stretches of space from warp travel and astrotelepathy. A combined force of PDF troops, Imperial Guard and Space Marines fought the Tyranids in the Tarsis system. The Imperium had not been idle; a member of Kryptman’s staff was able to engineer a deadly virus for use against the Tyranids. Captain Uriel Ventris of the Ultramarines took command of Deathwatch Kill-Team to the Tyranid Norn Queen, releasing the plague. Soon all synapse control was stripped from the Tyranids, and the Imperial counter-attack crushed the Xenos.




Leviathan continued to carve through the Imperium. Kryptman immediately ordered a galactic cordon to be established: each world within its confines was to be evacuated and subjected to Exterminatus – a decision that condemned billions of Imperial citizens to extermination. Kryptman was denounced as a radical, a traitor, and a fool, and was expelled from the Inquisition. Disgraced, Kryptman and his remaining allies within the Deathwatch refused to abandon their battle. Using a brood of captured Genestealers, Kryptman sent them into the Ork-dominated Octavius system. The Genestealers impregnated so many Orks that the entirety of Hive Fleet Leviathan altered course for the system. Kryptman allowed himself a glimmer of hope: his manipulation seemed to have paid off.




The Octavian Orks and Tyranids of Leviathan are now involved with destroying each other.[4] But those closest to Kryptman believe their master’s victory is only temporary. Orks and Tyranids thrive on war; if the Tyranids emerge victorious, having devoured huge quantities of the specially-engineered DNA that makes Orks such good survivors, then the Imperium will face a far greater threat than imagined possible. Similarly, Orks become stronger simply from vanquishing enemies, so an Ork victory would lead to an invasion of Orks vastly superior to normal Orks.




A secret council within the Imperium named ‘the Strategic Collective’ has been analysing details of the Tyranid’s invasions, and recently convened to state their stark conclusion. The Hive Fleets the Imperium has faced to date are parts of a far greater whole, a whole that will arrive at the Imperium’s borders in less than a century. They estimate mobilization levels will need to increase a minimum of 500% (effectively drafting every able-bodied citizen on every world in Segmentums Solar, Obscurus and Tempestus) to have even a hope of stalling the Tyranid advance.




 




 Other Hive Fleets




Although Codex: Space Marines background fiction states that Hive fleet Behemoth was the first time the Imperium encountered Tyranids, other background fiction, dated earlier (within the fictional universe’s dating system) tells of encounters with creatures having some similarities to the Tyranids (Horus Rising, for example, though this is widely disputed due to the Megarachnids physical traits that differ greatly from any known Tyranid life form).






  • Hive fleet Locust White Dwarf issue 98 gives detailed information of the leaders of the Ultramarines chapter, and makes mention of a hive fleet called ‘Locust’, which the Ultramarines appear to have fought before Behemoth.





  • Hive fleet Tiamet Tiamet was named after a double binary system discovered on the Eastern Fringe in the 35th Millennium that contained an unusual seven planets, all later found to be death worlds. It was determined by Xenologists working for the Adeptus Mechanicus that all life in the system had a common genetic source. The Explorators decided to quarantine themselves on the planet after realizing their ships may have become contaminated by the time they spent in the system. The planet was later lost after the arrival of Hive Fleet Kraken.





  • Hive fleet Ouroboros Cardinal Miriamulus the Elder, of the planet Thracian Primaris, recorded a Chaos-like invasion. Upon further examination of the enemy strategy, equipment used during the battle and trophies collected, it was determined that it was, indeed, a Tyranid invasion.





  • Hive fleet Colossus In the 38th Millennium, a group of Zoats came into contact with the Imperium. Although they claimed to be escaping from slavery, their murderous actions caused them to be deemed Xenos Horribilis and for them to be exterminated.





  • Hive fleet Wraith Named so after their unique ability to bend the light around them making them extremely hard to see. There have also been many recordings of unique creatures belonging to Hive Fleet Wraith, such as the Land Shark, Tyritaur, Psycho Drones and what are commonly known as Tyranid Trains. First contact was made in the 40th Millennium, on The Ashworld of Tirith 5 in the Tirith System.





  • Hive fleet Moloch Included in a map in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook background section





  • Hive fleet Jormungandr Included in a map in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook background section





  • Hive fleet Hydra Included in a map in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook background section





  • Hive fleet Scarabus In the Imperial guard codex there is an art work showing the carnage at fortress Carcasson showing the 9th Cadian battling.





  • Hive fleet Harbinger In the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook on the Tyranid page, there is also a colour scheme for a Harbinger, which bears generally dark red carapace and chitin, and blue turquoise flesh.





  • Hive fleet Apophis A less known Hive Fleet which has black carapace, red flesh, yellow lines on the carapace, green blood, eyes and tongues. Included online are many other possibilities for players.





  • Hive fleet Acacia Another less known hive fleet which has a green carapace, a black exoskeleton and purple eyes and went to war with the Angels of fire when they crash landed on the forests of the planet fedrid. Only 3 people came back out of a total of 200 they spoke of powerful tyranid creatures that were unlike any others seen.



 




 The Invasion Process




To start the invasion, hive fleets launch mycetic spores, that burst open on impact and release waves of gaunts and similar organism to wear down defenders . Vanguard tyranids such as broodlords and genestealers are then released, and spore chimneys grow that alter the vegetation until it is grossly mutated and grown, under the control of the hive mind. Then the main tyranid army descends and lays siege. Capillary towers begin to rise up. After the eradication of any hostile life on the planet, the planet is stripped of resources and the genetic material transported to the hive ship via digestion pools and capillary towers to be turned into more tyranid organisms. The atmosphere is then devoured by the hive ships. Then the fleet moves on, leaving a barren planet incapable of supporting life behind them.




 




 The Hive Mind




Particularly learned protagonist characters in the background (generally Imperial human, but occasionally Eldar or Tau) are seen to refer to a controlling mechanism intrinsic to the Tyranid race, called the Hive Mind. The Hive Mind is the gestalt metaphysical entity thought to emanate from and exert cohesive control over all Tyranid individuals through psychic manipulation. In terms of the terrestrial Tyranids’ encounters with other species, generally in conflict, the Hive Mind is explained as filling the roles of social hierarchy, linguistic communication and military command and control as used by other races.




As a powerful psychic presence, anyone with psychic ability can feel it. Almost every attempt by a psyker to make contact with a Hive Mind, even by some of the most powerful, results in insanity or death, either because it would require an incredibly powerful psyker to withstand the Hive Mind’s awesome psychic presence or because the nature of the Hive Mind is completely beyond the comprehension of human beings. This however can be argued, as Chief Librarian Tigurius of the Ultramarines seems to have some form of relationship with the Hive Mind, as he is able to make remarkable predictions about the Tyranids and their movements. Though this could be due to his uncanny gift of making predictions in general, but the accuracy and frequentness of his predictions about the great devourer seem to show he has indeed tapped into the Hive Mind, a feat thought possible only by a psyker of the Emperors degree.




The Hive Mind, formed from untold billions of individual consciousnesses, is a single coordinating will that directs the entire hive fleet. Mankind still searches vainly for the higher beings they suppose control the hive fleets, and though such mighty creatures exist they no more control the hive mind than single brain cells control a man’s body. It is the sum of the hive mind which motivates it, not its constituent parts.




Some Technomagi of the Adeptus Mechanicus think that the Hive Mind might just be the psychic network that links the Tyranid race and permits them to access the collective knowledge of the location and disposition of all other Tyranid creatures. Others think that it is in fact an incredibly powerful psychic monster using the Tyranids as puppets, while others think that it might be one of the Old Ones.




The Hive Mind is delivered through “Synapse” creatures such as the Tyranid Warrior, and makes all tyranids in range all but immune to psychological assaults, resistant to even the deadliest blows, and under control. Tyranids out of Synapse range will revert to their natural instincts and/or move to within range of a synapse creature. The Hive Mind is represented in the tabletop games by various rules specific to players fielding Tyranids, and have a dramatic influence on the playing style of a Tyranid army. The presence of the Hive Mind is what separates Tyranids as an invading force able to devour worlds from stray Tyranids that act like animals and inhabit Death Worlds, such as the “Catachan Devil”.




As a thematic device, the Hive Mind is also shown as being responsible for widespread (light-year scale) disruption of Imperial communications and superluminal travel via a mechanism known as the Shadow in the Warp. This introduces complications to the affairs of Imperial protagonists in fiction featuring Tyranids, as the human characters find themselves isolated from outside aid via warp travel and doomed to face the Tyranid menace alone.




To date, only the Ultramarines’ Chief Librarian Tigurius has ever made contact with the Tyranid Hive Mind and lived.




Lets list what the horrors that await us in the untis section! but first here are some biomorphs and some other stuff







Thats a spore chimney







This is a Digestion Pool




 







And finally Capillary Towers




 




Because tyranids recycle DNA and are subject to rapid evolution, several genetic permutations can be found on every tyranid being. These “biomorphs” are treated as add-on abilities by the Warhammer 40k Rules.




Tyranids can be equipped with:






  • Acid Maw: A prehensile tongue dripping with corrosive venom makes the Tyranid’s attacks more dangerous.


  • Adrenal glands: A polyp-like parasite that pumps adrenal fluids into its host.


  • Bio-Plasma: The ability to organically generate and heat plasma to spit on the opponent.


  • Bonded exoskeleton: By having a more covering partial exoskeleton, large Tyranids make themselves more resistant to damage.


  • Enhanced senses: By enhancing their sensory apparatus, some Tyranids are able to become more accurate at shooting bio-weapons. This usually takes form as additional sets of eyes or antennae.


  • Extended carapace: Most Tyranid species are able to grow a more covering carapace for better protection.


  • Feeder tendrils: Some Tyranid vanguard organisms grow super-sensory tendrils that are used to identify their opponents.


  • Flesh Hooks: The tyranid has evolved hooks to quickly get up on vertical surfaces. These can also be launched in a suppressive fire to prevent enemies in cover from attacking first in an assault.


  • Implant attack: A poisonous spine or sting at the end of the tyranid’s tail or tongue that makes wounds inflicted by the creature much more deadly.


  • Leaping: Additional muscle and sinew allows the tyranid to jump in order to quickly close with enemies.


  • Mace Tail: A large, heavy pointed club at the Carnifex’s tail to smash down any opponents that get too close.


  • Regeneration: To survive hostilities, the tyranid has the ability to rebuild lost organs.


  • Reinforced Chitin: The Tyranid has thick, extra armour plating over its chitin layer, making it more resistant to damage.


  • Scuttlers: Some Tyranids are intelligent and stealthy, and able to creep nearer to enemies unharmed before the main assault.


  • Scythe Tail: In contrast to the Mace Tail, the Scythe Tail attacks much faster and more rapidly, however it is not as powerful as the Mace Tail.


  • Spore Cysts: Spore Cysts produce a Toxic Spore Mine from the chitinous plates on the host’s back.


  • Spine Banks: The creature is able to launch a shower of diamond-hard spines while using other weaponry, or like flesh hooks in a suppressive fire to keep the enemies’ heads down in an assault.


  • Symbiotic Rippers: Larger Tyranids such as Warriors and Tyrants are more difficult to outnumber in assault as they are always surrounded by Rippers.


  • Thornback: Many hard spikes and thorns on the creatures back makes it large and terrifying, and hard to approach.


  • Toxic Miasma: A larger tyranid may have vents on its back, from which it emits poisonous vapour that slows the enemy.


  • Toxin Sacs: A little parasite feeds on the tyranid and excretes a lethal poison over its bio-weapons, making its attacks much more dangerous.


  • Tusked: Adamantine-laced tusks sprout from the tyranid’s head, allowing it to execute a devastating charge.


  • Winged: Lighter exoskeleton and wings to move at a higher speed.



 




 Bio-Weapons




 




 Melee Weapons






  • Bone Sword: Shaped like a massive sword and with a hilt made from the hard skeleton of the organism.  It radiates a psychic energy on the command of the user, which sends the wielder and all nearby Tyranids into a blood frenzy, in game terms allowing them to strike in close combat normally, even if they have already been incapacitated by faster opponents. Also when it hits something it delivers a psychic shock that can stun the nervous system for a short amount of time.





  • Crushing Claws: Massive claws used by large Tyranids to squeeze and smash their enemies. They can be used against many enemies at a time.





  • Lash Whip: A sentient whip-like symbiote with the Tyranid which allows it to lash and ensnare enemies in close combat.





  • Rending Claws: Diamond hard claws that allow the user to rend through armour and metal.





  • Scything Talons: Long, sickle-like claws that make the tyranid much more dangerous when fighting up close. The Hormagaunt species of tyranid makes extensive use of scything talons.



 




 Ranged Weapons






  • Barbed Strangler, or Hamus Gulalaqueo: Is very similar to the venom cannon, but is different in the type of projectile used. The weapon is host to a plant that produces the ammunition for the weapon. The large seeds are heavy and impact causes germination, which results in an explosion of tendrils that tear and pierce anything it can.


  • Deathspitter, or Excessus Conspuo: Is a complex bio-weapon that uses a young creature as its weapon. The creature is inside of a solid tube of bone and muscle, and a crustacean like creature is responsible for launching the other. The first creature is shot out of the device and explodes when it comes in contact with air, forming an acid-like substance that is able to eat through armour.


  • Devourer, or Peredo Uoro: Is a hive of smaller organisms that are similar to Rippers. A tube on the device works as a means to fire out those organisms which attempt to devour and dig into anything it is launched at. They are highly corrosive and try to eat anything that gets in their path.


  • Flame Spurter: Is a creature that turns its bile into a chemical that ignites when it contacts air. It is used primarily by Gargoyles.


  • Fleshborer, or Pulpa Terebro: Is similar to the devourer and a common weapon used by Tyranids. It houses beetles that are grown within the weapon and are eventually shot from the weapon and use their bile and teeth to eat anything it can come in contact with. They eventually die after they use up their energy trying to eat anything in their path.


  • Spikerifle: A termagaunt weapon that is a tube of muscle which fires a spike. The spike is thrown at the opponent by the muscles of the tube.


  • Spinefist, or Spinosus Manus: Is a device that attaches to the respiratory system of its host and uses air to fire its weapons. Like other weapons, it has a crustacean creature that forms the weapon part, sending its spikes out of the weapon when air is pushed through. They are able to fire multiple spines over a short period of time.


  • Strangleweb: The organism is spider-like and releases a web substance.  The web tightens around whatever it captures. They were used to capture live prey to be used for genetic engineering and mutating of future species.


  • Venom Cannon, or Sanies Effundo: Is a large, muscular tube like weapon. The weapon uses acids and other toxic chemicals as its ammunition, firing these after squeezing them out at high velocity. These chemicals lack the penetrating powers of some of the other weapons, but is able to eat through flesh and certain armours.



 




 Speculative Connections




According to the Tyranid Codex for Fourth Edition of Warhammer (40,000), there are many speculative connections between existing Tyranid strands of DNA. These connections are only between how Tyranids relate to each other. For speculations of how Tyranid DNA may have related to other species, see Genetic Origins below.






  • Von Ryan’s Leaper: or Gauntii Ryanis, is speculated to be from the Hormagaunt species.


  • Tyrant Guard: or Tyranicus Scutatus, is speculated to be a genetic combination between Space Marines and the Tyranid Warrior .


  • Harridan: is speculated to be a combination of the Gargoyle Species and the Winged Warrior variant of the Tyranid Warriors.


  • Ymgarl Stealer: is speculated to be a stranded strain of Genestealer


  • Catachan Devil: is speculated to be a stranded strain of the Ravener.


  • Trygon: is speculated to be from the Ravener strain.


  • Haruspex: is speculated to be from the Ravener strain.


  • Malefactor: is speculated to be from the Ravener strain.


  • Exocrine: is speculated to be from the Ravener strain.


  • Hierodule: is speculated to be a combination of the Dominatrix strain and the Carnifex strain.


  • Hierophant: is speculated to be a combination of the Dominatrix strain and the Carnifex strain.






thats a Hierophant a biotitan




 







This is a trygon a monster a size of a baneblade (i will explain that later :D )







heres a harridan hes carries dude in the air and drops them. hes a like a bio drop pod!




O ITS RAININ NIDS O ITS RAININ NIDS




Norn Queen




Norn Queens, as described in the novel Warriors of Ultramar, fill the role of the “queen” of the hive, similar to that of a queen ant. They have no models or rules in the game, and as far as it is known, they are bound to the hive ship and cannot leave it. They control the making of new Tyranids and psychically communicate with the other Tyranids. A Norn queen is always in the most protected part of the ship, so humans have little data on them. However, it is noted in Codex: Tyranids that the death of a Norn Queen will destroy the synaptic abilities of the Tyranids to communicate, rendering them barely-sentient beasts: the death of the Norn Queen at Tarsis Ultra caused the entire Tyranid swarm to turn on each other.




Norn Queens also, to some degree, control the evolutionary course of the Tyranid swarm. Upon arrival at a new world, the Tyranids disgorge the “Alpha” wave of creatures, which contain genetic material of the Queen itself. These creatures then relay information to the Queen on field conditions and battlefield requirements, which spawn the second and subsequent generations, sometimes with tens of thousands of casualties in the collection of the data. Capture of an Alpha wave Tyranid can lead to the creation of a toxin which can directly affect the Queen, as described in Warriors of Ultramar.




Codex Tyranids states that when a Norn Queen is killed, the psychic signal of its death causes hive ships to calve, creating more Norn Queens. This is known as the Hydra effect.







The dominatrix is a specialised Bio-Titan, commanding the forces on the battlefield and providing the highest level of psychic control. They are the Tyranids’ biggest known bio-titans, and it is rumoured that they sometimes carry the Norn Queens themselves into battle on their backs. They are armed with a warp blast weapon, bio-plasma, and their massive claws. They are also a synapse creature.




Now here are the units in my order




Rippers







Basically their just like scarabs they rip throuhg almost anything and are the most annoying too. and theey work enmasses.




 




Spore Mines







From left to right. Bio-acid mine, frag mine, and poison mine.




Unlike real mines they hover on ground and are filled to the brim of posion and other toxic material. They got natural heat sensors so they can target their enemy. They are launched by biovores (will explain soon very very soon) :D






  • Poison – Full of poisons and toxins, the mine can overcome any physiology. The poisons include highly reactive inorganic poisons, haemotoxins, aflotoxins, neurotoxins and phage cells.


  • Frag – It has an iron hard shell which shatters when the mine explodes and sends shards of the shell in all directions, which can scythe down light infantry but can also cause lethal infections and sepsis.


  • Bio-Acid – The acids are thick and viscous, allowing them to cling to their victim to maximise the effectiveness of the acids. They have been known to dissolve everything up to, and including, ceramite plate.



Genestealers







as their name suggests they steal genese from others. Even though their small they pack a punch!. with razor claws and maximum agility they can easily tear apart almost any infantry.




Their purpose is to scout out ahead of the hive swarm, often by infesting Space Hulks, and pinpoint potential planets for the Tyranids to invade, with the ultimate goal of assimilating new and useful genetic material for the benefit of the hive. During a Tyranid invasion, they are often among the first Tyranids to make planetfall, dropped in Mycetic Spores; biological drop-pods.




Note space hulks are hunks of ships massed together




Genestealers are some of the most mutable Tyranid specimens, and often exhibit a wide and varying range of different traits. It has been hypothesised that these traits manifest dependent on the particular host species the infection discovers; but this theory has been disregarded by some experts, citing that the traits are more likely different genestealer subspecies altogether, which are separate from the host altogether.




Genestealers combine extraordinary intelligence and subtlety of mind with remarkable strength and quickness of body. Their torsos and extremities are protected by a deep blue carapace. Their sinewy muscles are purple-red. They are bipedal, standing in a perpetual crouch atop hooved feet, and they have two sets of arms, one equipped with Human-like hands, one with powerful ripping claws. The Genestealers’ hairless heads are bulbous in shape, coloured the same deep purple-red as their muscles, with the creatures’ fang-filled mouths and hypnotic eyes at the front.




Genestealers are stronger and hardier than Men, able to withstand even the most hostile environments – including hard vacuum – unprotected. They live for centuries.




Broodlords are the Genestealer leader organism. The Broodlord is always the first Genestealer to make planetfall when the Tyranids first infest a world.2 The relationship, if any, between the Broodlord and Genestealer Patriarch is undetermined.




All Genestealers are psychic, using telepathy to communicate with the brood and hypnotising victims before implanting their seed.




brood lords will be explained in this chapter of explanation.




Gargoyle







this is a gaunt with wings.




Gargoyles are essentially winged variants of the Gaunt genus. They follow many similar traits, including a smaller size and physical prowess than most Tyranid organisms. Gargoyles retain most physical traits of Gaunts, however their lower legs have atrophied to little more than stumps. Like their cousin, the Gaunt, they are capable of being armed with a large host of symbiotic weaponry. It is believed that Gargoyles cannot fly far on their leathery bat-like wings and that they rely on hitching themselves to the flanks and belly of a Harridan to be transported over massive distances.




Termagaunts




Termagants (species name: gauntii virago), originally reffered to as Hunter Slayers, are a Tyranid species of the Gaunt genus and form broods of ranged troops. While not very strong individually, these organisms will overwhelm much more elite foes with superior numbers and support from larger Tyranid breeds. There are records of termagants expended for the sole purpose of using up the ammunition of defenders.




Spinegaunts




simialr to termagaunts only equipped with spinefists.




Hormagaunts




Gaunts with sything talons that can easily flay enemy units. they easily leap into battle.




Meiotic Spore




Tyranid Meiotic spores are large sacks full of bio-acid and toxins and contain smaller spore mines within them. Trailing long, groping tendrils, they detonate when they sense an enemy nearby, showering their foe with razor-sharp chitin and bone fragments, toxic gases and corrosive juices




Biovores







Biovores are sluggish Tyranid creatures whose only task is to grow and launch Spore Mines towards the enemy. The Spore Mines grow inside the Biovore’s body, and are then hurled across the battlefield through a muscle spasm. Biovores supposedly contain genes assimlated from Orks. They are the equivalent of an artillery tank of other species.




Biovores can fire three type of spores: fragmentation, bio-acid and poison. Biovores contain DNA of orks as said directly above line.




Zoanthropes







Zoanthropes are a species of Tyranid, in effect a type of psychic artillery, used in Tyranid planetary invasions. Their highly evolved brains swell out of proportion with their bodies, giving the rest of their bodies the appearance of atrophy and frailty. Through their use of psychic powers they can perform a number of roles on the battlefield.




Originally believed to be a mutant strain of Tyranid Warrior due to the close physical resemblance, more recent encounters with the Zoanthrope strain have reported a different physical structure apparently engineered by the harvesting of lifeforms present in the path of the Hive Fleets. Various evidence points to these later incarnations of Zoanthropes being improved by Eldar DNA. Zoanthropes have atrophied bodies and limbs but, energised by psychic forces, they appear to levitate, drifting over the battlefield. They also seem to be synapse creatures, relaying the commands of the Hive Mind to lesser creatures.




Despite their seeming frailty, Zoanthropes are lethal opponents. Batteries of psychic power, they can use their abilities to both defend themselves and launch assaults that are powerful enough to destroy enemy battle tanks.




Tyranid Warrior







Tyranid Warriors are synaptic foot troops of the Hive Fleets. Warriors are among the most important Tyranids in battle, as not only are they powerful and deadly creatures, they are synapse creatures, directing lesser creatures and forming the focal points of the Hive Mind.




They are large creatures but smaller than the massive Hive Tyrants. They are fast and powerful, with the capability to be strong at ranged combat or in close quarters in a similar fashion to the Hive Tyrant.




The Tyranid Warrior (gladius) is a species of the Warrior (tyranicus tyranicii) genus. The gladius species itself is highly adaptable to any battle role, with over 212 known variants – combining flying, walking, leaping biomorphs, with biological ranged weapons or assault symbiotes like scything talons or rending claws or both. Even though they are small, they are powerful and threat levels are high.




Tyrant Guard







The Tyrant Guard (species name: tyranicus scutatus) are a special species of Tyranid spawned in small broods for the sole purpose of defending the Hive Tyrant from such focused fire.




Over the centuries, the enemies of the Tyranids have learned to target the synapse creatures of their swarms, denying them the critical influence of the hive mind in battle.




The Tyrant Guard are large, tough, difficult to harm, and it is nearly impossible to surpass their defences when they are active in their purpose as bodyguards. They are completely blind, utterly controlled by the synapse creatures they protect.  On occasion, a Carnifex may also benefit from the Tyrant Guard’s protection.  Tyrant Guard are scientifically rumoured to contain the DNA of defeated Space Marine chapters (their bodies appear to include a fused ribcage and a Black Carapace), but the Imperium considers this blasphemy and denies its possibility. The tyrant guard possess the DNA of a space marine.




Brood Lord







Broodlords are part of the Tyranids and another leader organism, regarded as the epitome of the Genestealer breed. It is always the first Genestealer to make planetfall when the Tyranids first infest a world. They are even more powerful than the standard Genestealer, and are specifically adept at infiltration to get closer to the enemy. They are very adaptable and highly intelligent as well as being a synapse creature. Their powerful talons can cut through most materials with ease.  The broodlord is highly dangerous they accel in the art of close combat. Skilled with fists and foot. Lord of all Genestealers.




The relationship, if any, between the Broodlord and the Genestealer Patriarch, which is seen considerably less often recently, is unknown.




Lictor







Lictors are some of the most insidious predators in the Tyranid fleets. They stand far taller than even a Space Marine and have chameleonic skin that they use to infiltrate the enemy ranks before suddenly striking into the heart of their forces, creating mass panic. They are also known to be the only Tyranid species that will stalk its prey before killing.




They are known for devouring their prey’s brains to assimilate its genetic material. Their typical armament is two pairs of enormous scythe-like talons and rending claws.




Lictors rove ahead of Tyranid ground swarms seeking out pockets of enemy resistance and native lifeforms to be absorbed. They are intelligent and possess highly developed sensory organs so they can see, smell, hear and taste their prey long before it becomes aware of their presence. Lictors appear to be a specialist mutation of the Tyranid Warriors and are highly adapted to survive in hostile environments and a stalker/predator role. Stalking Lictors exude a pheromone trail which draws other Tyranid creatures in their wake. A larger concentration of prey stimulates a stronger pheromone response and brings a larger group of trailing Tyranids.




The Death Leaper is a unique one-off mutation of the Lictor genus with evolved camouflage abilities.




Ravener







Raveners appear to be related to both Rippers and Tyranid Warriors. These large, snake-like beasts are designed for fast assaults against light enemies and dig through the ground to perform surprise raids. They can dig with great speed, clawing their way through almost any substance with their spade-like talons. Sensing vibrations on the surface, they tunnel up to explode into enemy positions. Armed with symbiote weapons in their thorax, Raveners attack without warning




Carnifex







Carnifexes (Screamer-Killers) are Tyranid creatures which are huge, hulking living battering rams. Their role often involves battering a way through fortified positions and tank formations or boarding actions against spacecraft. The Carnifex genus comprises many species displaying a wide variety of symbiotic weaponry.




Now here are the MOST monsterous creatures to be ever seen by the Imperium




Magma Corers




Magma Corers have special bio drills that drill to the very core of the planet and make them explode in a short amout of time.




Malanthrope







The Malanthrope is a large serpent like creature that seems to be a cross between a Ravener and a Lictor. It has feeding tendrils and is about twice the size of a Zoanthrope. Rarely seen, the Malanthrope follows behind a Tyranid attack. It selectively collects and processes genetic material from fallen enemies before itself being reabsorbed into the biomass. The creature grasps dead, injured and still living foes with its long groping tendrils, stuns them with its sting, then consumes them, feeding them into its maw with its small but dexterous arms. A Malanthrope is a highly intelligent, psychic creature with a strong link to the Hive Mind. It can only move by psychically levitating to skim over the ground.




Death Leaper







First appearing in the Third Edition of Warhammer 40,000, Death Leaper is a particularly vicious Lictor introduced during the Canadian Rise of the Swarm campaign. It was originally encountered by a Space Marine named Brother Erasmus. The two fought and both were wounded, Brother Erasmus losing an eye and an arm. As a result of the damage sustained in this battle, Death Leaper’s chitinous exoskeleton provides it with less protection than most Lictors, but Death Leaper’s stealth is unsurpassed, and it is able to conceal itself in places where normal Lictors would be unable to hide.




Notably, whereas Old One Eye and The Red Terror were considered “Tyranid Monstrous Creatures” and could be fielded without the opponent’s permission, Death Leaper is unique in that its online stats specifically refer to it as a “special character,” and state that an opponent’s permission must be sought in order to use it (as is the case with special characters of other races). However, this rule is now invalid, as you do not need permission to use special characters anymore.




A fourth edition “Death Leaper” was also heavily involved in the summer 2006 campaign, Medusa V, introduced as an entirely new species of the Lictor genus, and its reclamation was the central objective for the Tyranid forces involved in the campaign. However, the “aftermath” information states that only one of them survived the planet’s fall, escaping in a captured human vessel. This Death Leaper, however; is identical to the Rise of the Swarm Death Leaper in name only, and acts simply as a “special edition” version of the lictor model if the supplemental rules for it are not used.




Red Terror










The Red Terror was a larger, unique variant of Ravener once encountered by the Imperium. It was particularly feared for its ability to swallow people whole. It first appeared in the mines of the planet Devlan. It tore its way through to the command centre. The brave Lieutenant Borales and Captain Lowe made a courageous defence, but the Red Terror could not be stopped. Without warning, the Red Terror shoved the two gallant heroes into its great maw, devouring them whole. It then turned its sights on the civilians of Devlan. The people of Devlan eventually drove it away, but at great cost. More than twenty men were killed during the assault, including the late lieutenant and captain. Though this was the first and last time the Red Terror was ever recorded to have been seen, it is entirely possible that all other encounters with the creature simply yielded no survivors.




The Red Terror was given a special model and rules in the Third Edition Codex.




The Red Terror was a particularly large and deadly Tyranid Ravener, armed with sets of great scythe blades. It is only recorded as being encountered once by the Imperium, where it gained the name of “Red Terror”. During the Tyranid invasion of Devlan, an Imperial mining world on the Eastern Fringe, it tore into a starport compound to get to its defenders, killing twenty four men before being driven away. Each time it returned it slaughtered more humans before retreating back into the tunnel, devouring the rendered human remains. Eventually a search and destroy team was sent into the tunnels, only to meet their doom at the scythes of the Red Terror.




Old One Eye










Old One-Eye was a monstrous Carnifex mutation with gigantic pincers and a missing eye. The creature was found on Macragge centuries after Hive Fleet Behemoth was destroyed. Originally presumed dead, Old One Eye tore apart the ship transporting its body. Later the Tyranids persistently raided the system where it was left, suggesting it “called” the forces to it. Notoriously hard to kill, it had the ability to rapidly regenerate even apparently fatal wounds, which led some to speculate that it was a genetic experiment of the Hive Mind. Something of interest to note is that it failed to regenerate the aforementioned lost eye, the scar burned down to the bone. This could suggest some vulnerability to the thermally energetic, electrically charged combination natures of plasma weapons, the same weapons that caused the scar.




Some of its features now appear on the carnifex, suggesting its traits were later deemed useful, notably the giant crab-claws and regenerative abilities, although the “prototype” versions work differently than those of its “parent.”




Old One-Eye was given a special model and rules in the Third Edition Codex.




Old One Eye is an individual Tyranid of the Carnifex genus recovered from the ice-packs of Calth in the empire of Ultramar. Its release from the ice heralded a series of Tyranid raids on that world and legends persist that the creature had somehow summoned the Hive Mind back to plague Ultramar once again. The eventual fate of Old One Eye is unknown, but there have been several other reports of lone, injured Carnifexes on other worlds which proved to be just as deadly. On several occasions Old One Eye manifested the disturbing ability to heal damage inflicted on it during combat. This has given rise to theories of it being an unstable mutation abandoned by the Hive Mind, (an experiment in rapid cell regrowth) but with the arrival of the Hive Fleet Leviathan this mutation has become nearly a standard on every Carnifex.




Old One Eye is armed with a pair of huge, crab-like claws capable of ripping even the hardest foe to pieces.




 




Hive Tyrants























Hive Tyrants are monstrous Tyranid creatures, who act as the main Synapse links to the Hive Mind within medium-sized Tyranid ground forces, thus coming to be the closest thing to a leader unit that can be commonly found.




They are extremely powerful, large and strong and may make use of massive close combat strength or specially augmented ranged bio-weaponry, although they excel in both.




They appear to be either a more complex and highly evolved form of Tyranid Warrior or evolved from a completely different and higher genus2. They are highly mutable, including the development of unfeasibly large scythes or extra thick body carapace. They are also highly psychic and their relationship to the Hive Mind is even closer than that of the Tyranid Warriors2, allowing them to act as control nodes for the lesser beings around them. Some forms are born with wings giving them a major advantage over other Tyrants, however they are more vulnerable to heavy weapons and anti-tank weapons, in fact they lack the stronger Tyranids’ carapace armour.




Some Imperial techno-magi believe that Hive Tyrants are the consort-minds of the Norn-Queen that forms the repository of the Hive Fleet’s own collective consciousness, which would mean they completely embody the Hive Mind, but their destruction would not diminish it in any way.


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