Multiple Small Units - Can Tyranids do it?

So recapping from last week, I've been thinking more and more about how to do a Tyranid MSU style list. Previously I hadn't considered this a viable tactic outside of a mechanized force; the very efficiency of the concept is based around loading up small squads with special weapons (usually meltaguns) and shoving them into armed transports, often las/plas Razorbacks and Chimeras. 

Tyranids obviously can't replicate this, but we do have one analog; Mycetic Spores. A good portion of our codex can buy them as transports, and while they have terrible Ballistic Skill and worse range, they can put out an impressive number of shots even unupgraded. Their lack or range can be mitigated by two factors; upgraded weaponry and their protection from deepstrike mishaps. Upgraded weaponry (I'd recommend the TL deathspitter) provides enough shots that the low BS ceases to become an issue as well as increasing the threat range. Mishap protection allows them to appear more or less at will - you can choose the armor facing you want to land closest to, and almost every vehicle in the game has at least one AV of 10. 

There are two other points also worth considering. Spores aren't going to be cracking open Land Raiders, but they do expand the number of Force Org. slots that can harass light vehicles. They also allow a single unit to hit multiple targets. Both of these are real advantages and can free up our Heavy Support and Elite slots.

I've relied on all of the above advantages before, but not in a list built around them. Hopefully I'll be able to get in a few more tests over the coming weeks.

List Number Two - Flexibility

So, I've been trying to adapt a few new concepts into my swarm, namely Multiple Small Units and the flexibility to deploy a least partially on the table. By  MSU, I mean small, cheap units that can engage armor, still fight in assault, and that won't be missed if they're killed in a barrage of bolter and flamer shots. In this case, the  Genestealers, Termagants, and, Lictors. The flexibility is provided by the walking Tyrant and Tervigon - they can either be reserved to snap up midfield and deployment zone objectives, or deployed normally in cover/behind LOS blocking terrain if available.

HQ:

Tyrant w/ Leech Essence, Paroxysm, Armored Shell, Hive Commander, TL BL devourers, heavy venom cannon

Elites:

2 Lictors

2 Lictors

2 Zoanthropes in Mycetic Spore w/ TL deathspitters

Troops:

5 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs in Mycetic spore

5 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs in Mycetic spore

10 Termagants w/ devourers in Mycetic spore 

Tervigon w/ Dominion, Stinger Salvo, Catalyst

Heavy Support:

Trygon Prime

Carnifex w/ TL BL devourers x2 in Mycetic spore w/ TL deathspitters 

Should come to 1750 even. I switched up the points because that seems to be the minimum I'm playing lately, and should be relatively easy to add or subtract from. On to the actual use.  First off there are multiple units that can appear more or less at will. I've taken the Lictors because, in addition to their ability to get in close, breach armor, and fight,  if I'm reading the rules for Warp Quake correctly, they're one of the few things that can get close to Grey Knights, and can help prevent other units from scattering into the 12" mishap zone..

The same concern applies to the larger units. The four MCs are designed to function as a hammer/anvil combo. The Tyrant and Tervigon serve as midfield objective holders and ranged threat, while the Carnifex and Trygon can get into my opponent's face quickly and lay down midstrength shots, hopefully supporting the smaller assault units.  Overall this preserves my ability to project units deep into my opponent's backfield while providing an anchor that can snap up objectives, offer supporting fire, and hopefully fight off whatever manages to punch through my more forward units.

Any thoughts or improvements, either concept-wise or unit composition? It's tempting to swap out a unit of Lictors for Hive Guard, but I'm not sold on their utility; they'd probably do alright when I deployed normally, but if I reserved them along with everything else their range would never get beyond midfield.

Why Null Deployment

So why reserve everything? Why subject yourself to the risk of coming in piecemeal, having your rolls disrupted (I'm looking at you, Officer of the Fleet), your assaults delayed until turn 3 at best, and the chance of mishaps? The risk isn't a small one; last weekend Tyranids failed to reach the top table at Adepticon  because two large outflanking Genestealer broods took a turn too long to arrive.

The short answer is because the alternative is worse. Tyranids are neither a resilient nor a shooty force. There are too many builds out there that we simply cannot suppress while advancing up the field. The renewed popularity of Devastators and Longfangs is a particular problem, as they can shred swarms and monstrous creatures easily and can't be dealt with reliably at range.  Against many armies Tyranids will never make it into assault with the numbers they need to win - whatever survives the first few turns stands a good chance of being out of place or too injured to prevail.

An all reserves list negates these problems.  Your opponent loses an entire turn of shooting - two if you choose to go second. So do you, but the odds of coming off the winner in a firefight were pretty low to begin with. You get to choose your ground and get in the first shot. Delaying your army's arrival increases the number of bad alternatives your opponent has to choose from. It's much harder to coordinate fire against multiple units that will assault you next turn than against those same units 24" away - especially if parts of your own line of battle is in the way.


Finally, Tyranids are set up like no other army to ignore the perils of deepstriking. With Hive Commander it's possible to get more reserves in faster, even in the face of disruption. We also possess more units that just don't care about mishaps than anyone else. Mycetic Spores will stop short of other models or impassable terrain, and can be taken by half the codex, while units like the Trygon and Mawloc have the same ability built into their rules.

This is hardly an exhaustive discussion, and I don't mean to say that this is the only viable Tyranid build - it isn't. But it is a strong one, and does give Tyranid players an answer to some of the problems we've been facing.