[Hivemind Demeter]

Okay, quite frankly, I'm sick of my friend walking all over me.
Tyranids haven't really been performing too well.

It's probably just my lack of some of the models I need.
Regardless, I need some tips on how to beat Marines.

Mostly Dark Angels.
And then Chaos too.
(And maybe IG and Eldar. xD I've been failing a lot lately.)
: D

 

[Ordo Xeno Commander]

get some genestealers and give them a brood lord. infil, stick em behind some cover as close as possible to the enemy. move 6, fleet X and assault 6. kick ass first turn carnage, or second turn if your not quite close enough

 

[Hivemind Demeter]

You can't fleet with the Broodlord in the group.

On top of that, I always take him because I know he can deal out damage.
I just never manage to get close enough, and in putting him in perfect place for second turn assault he just gets raped by fire.
If I leave him to hide then he moves to shoot the Lord.
Almost no matter what, he gets screwed.

 

[The Son of Horus]

A tide of gaunts does wonders. The most obnoxious Tyranid armies I've fought have been ones with absolutely no monstrous creatures. As many hormagaunts as you can stuff in, backed up by enough warriors to keep them in synapse. If you beef up hormagaunts with what little they can be given, they'll shred Space Marines. And if you can shred Space Marines, you can handle pretty much anything else.

 

[wolf.]

genestealers, genestealers, genestealers.
they are fantastic and annoying to the death

 

[Fat Cat Hay]

u need to get lots of those nids with claws and guns get lots of them and a awsome close combat big heavy carnerfex ok i can not spell but thats u need and genestealers dont forget the broodlord k:

 

[Jezlad]

To be able to advice you we need to know what you're up against.

What Chaos build does your friend use?

It's be pretty easy to form an army to beat another. Building a good take all comers list is a harder task.

 

[The Wraithlord]

A tide of gaunts does wonders. The most obnoxious Tyranid armies I've fought have been ones with absolutely no monstrous creatures. As many hormagaunts as you can stuff in, backed up by enough warriors to keep them in synapse. If you beef up hormagaunts with what little they can be given, they'll shred Space Marines. And if you can shred Space Marines, you can handle pretty much anything else.

Agreed. The more gribblies you have the harder it will be for the SM player to wipe you out as he just won't have the sheer number of shots needed, especially when hormaguants can move a total of 24" in a turn. The 2000pt list a friend of mine runs looks something like this:

Tryant
2x8 genestealers w/carapace
2x16 hormaguants w/+1 strength and Init, leaping
2 h2h fexes
2 gun fexes
zoanthrope
a few raveners as well

Just off the top of my head anyway. But this list gives an enemy a choice to either shoot the supremely fast smaller things coming his way or go after the big things in back. If he goes for the gribblies, the MC's reach his lines and begin to kill everything in sight while going for the MC's first guarantees that the stealers and gaunts are going to slam into the enemy and pull them down with rending attacks and sheer weight of numbers.

 

[Hespithe]

I always had more luck with Tyrants over Broodlords. As you mentioned, while the Broodlord is a monster in combat, he just can't get there without getting shot to pieces first. Take as many fast units as you can. A tyrant with wings is a good choice, and a few, just a few, longer ranged weapons are a good idea too. For the most part, though, you need to get your troops into combat asap, while in synapse coverage.

Four or five Synapse creatures (Tyrant, Warriors, 3 Zoats) out to do it. Genestealers with Scuttlers, and as many Gants and Gaunts as you can fit it will tear up anything short of a Mech Eldar list.

 

[Hivemind Demeter]

And the problem being is that all of these ideas I've employed.

I suppose my opponent is just damn good with his Marines.

He keeps his unit totals high by taking only what he needs to fill out a troops choice, that way he can split his fire equally.
In the end I'm really getting screwed by the FoC.

 

[The Wildonion]

What point value do you play most often and what is your list composed of at that level? What are some of the things that your opponent takes?

 

[Hivemind Demeter]

We typically play anywhere from 1000-1500.
Sometimes it's 2000 for me and 1000 for him and 1000 for another of our friends.
My list most typically comprises of the following:

1500 pts:
Tyrant (Venom Cannon, Barbed Strangler, Enhanced Senses, Extended Carapace)
Broodlord (Extended Carapace, Flesh Hooks, Implant Attack, 11 Genestealer w/ Extended Carapace.)

3 Lictors
3 Warriors w/ Scyth and Rending

10 Hormagaunts
10 Hormagaunts
10 Termagaunts
10 Termagaunts

Raveners Scyth/Rend
Raveners Scyth/Rend

3 Zoanthropes w/ Warpblast and Synapse
Carnifex w/ Barbed, Venom, Enhanced


3 Warriors
3 Warriors
2000 pts:
Flyrant w/ 2 TL dev, Toxin Sacs, Winged, Warp Fields, Enhanced Senses.
Broodlord w/ Extended Carapace, Toxin Sacs, Flesh Hooks (11 Genestealer Retinue w/ Feeder Tendrils and Extended Carapace)

3 Lictors
3 Warriors w/ Extended Carapace, Adren (I), Scyth and Rending.

10 Hormagaunts
10 Hormagaunts
10 Hormagaunts
10 Termagaunts
10 Termagaunts

Ravener Scyth/Rend
Ravener Scyth/Rend
Ravener Scyth/Rend

3 Zoanthropes w/ Synapse and Warpblast.
Carnifex w/ Enhanced Senses, Barbed Strangler, Venom Cannon
Carnifex w/ Crushing Claws, Scything Talons, Tusked, Regen, Extended Carapace, Reinforced Chitin, Bioplasma, Flesh Hooks, Adren WS.

That's roughly how my army tends to look.
My opponent typically runs some sort of special character, Azrael or Ezekiel or something.
He has heavy weapons like Rocket Launchers and crap perched somewhere out of the way, and then a bunch of Marines that break up into their little squads and shoot or melee everything.

He usually gets his scouts infiltrated right into my area. My Carnifex usually dies to this.

Lately he's getting more into fielding vehicles, which is fine by me.
(I get really lucky on rending tanks with Raveners. ;D)

 

[The Son of Horus]

Your problem is that your gaunt squads are TINY. I'd combine them into one squad of 30 hormagaunts and one squad of 20 termagants, or maybe 2 of 15 if you can find the points to do that. Tyranids are about weight of numbers with the little 'uns. More importantly, when the little 'uns charge, bigger squads are safer. Once they're engaged, they're not going to get shot up.

 

[The Wildonion]

Two large squads of Twenty Horm. Gaunts should serve you well; they will be harder to kill that way. I would also look into getting leaping on those warriors. Another squad of twenty Horm. Gaunts (not sure what you would drop, maybe a couple Lictors?) would be excellent.

 

[Hivemind Demeter]

It's funny, because I thought I had tried mass armies.
But looking at the list I started with, I was using mass units, yes, but not correctly.
Too many spinegaunts, and only a few Hormies.
I guess it was really in front of me the whole time.

Now the hard part, Gaunts come 16 to a box (8 horms, 8 gaunts).
I need to get a whole lot of them.

I should just get an Endless Swarm.

 

[Accommodator]

You want good Tyranid tactics, try www.warpshadow.com

Okay, that plug out of the way, your walking Tyrant needs Guard, preferably two. Drop the strangler and replace with twin-linked devourers - loads of twin-linked rerolling shots and some anti-tank in one package. He should have psychic scream.

Warriors - ug, with their T4, sooo very fragile. Drop 'em. Enjoy the splosh sound they make. Use your Zoans aggressively. I often swap out warp blast on one or two for scream as well.

Larger broods of gaunts are key - 15 minimum for hormaguants, 25 for spine gaunts to bring enough attacks to bear. Of course, going the genestealer route is also very good as well. Keep them cheap, to keep the numbers up.

Um, where are the ubiquitous Devfex? You know, those elite 2xtwinlinked devourer armed Carnifex? 8 str 6 re-roll to hit re-roll to wound shots generally generate 2 MEQ kills a turn...

Apocalypse tactical advice is quite different - take as many Hive Tyrants as you can - 5 or 6 is good, preferably Flyrants...^_^

 

[dander]

i have the same problem and more stealers didnt help. they all got slaughtered.

 

[Coffeemug]

is your marine friend building army's to beat you specifically? because i used to play tyranids and rarely lost to marines.
I used the same tactics Wraithlord is talking about.
Are you charging right up without using cover?

my list was this. i think i was playing 1550

flying tyrant dual t/l devourers +1st warpfield +1I
x2 Fex dual t/l devourers
Fex devourer sything talons, strangler 2+sv 5w t7 tusked misma +1ws
Fex tallons crushing claws, tusked,2+sv T7 5w misma thornback +1ws regeneration

16 hormagaunts no upgrades
10 rippers +1 st leaping

2 zoanthrops warp blast synaps

16 won spine gaunts +1st

i won 90% of the games i played with this list, and most of them were against some type of marines.

 

[purepolarpanzer]

dakka tyrants are great. Dakka fex? not so much. Yes, higher strength (not much) but less shots and less BS. I kill 3-4 MEQ a round with dakka flyrant, and they are kinda cheap if done right. Fexes are better as sniper fexes. 36" outranges alot, and a str 8 barbed strangler and a str 10 venom cannon kills tanks easily. Especially three of them. That is all the anti-tank you need, especially since most tanks (damn skimmers) can only be taken down with glances. And if you can't his a skimmer, it's amusing to watch all the eldar die to large blast barbed stranglers.

Mass gaunts. Of all types. I typically rape 2-3 armor ten vehicles a game just by tossing gaunts at the rear armor.

Also- warriors are sweet. Multi wound models that never get insta killed. Deathspitter squads will kills many MANY MEQ a turn, and they can move into bolter range and survive through cover and multi wounds. Rockit launchers? Pah. Can't insta die. And they provide much needed synapse for not much. The enemy can shoot them and not kill them or shoot gaunts and get nuked by warriors.

Tyranids should beat marines most of the time. Also, try acid mines in fast attack to kill pesky non-skimmer vehicles. Cheap points and if you miss with two SQUADS and hit with one you make the points back for them all most of the time. Also, no amror save for marines=yay.

 

[Zeldrin]

As a rule of thumb, maxed out (numbers wise) groups of spinegaunts are your friend. A lot of troops will die before you hit the line so embrace it and makes your troops a pittance. Spinegaunts are actually really effective on the board too. They are not great at shooting but in numbers they can pack a blow and they may just surpirse you in cc. Having these in large enough number will overwhelm even the most shooty space marine force.

If mid range weapons are lacking go with rippers too.