Alien Empires · The Galaxy Bites Back
Tyranids
The Great Devourer — an extragalactic hunger with a hundred million mouths.
About Tyranids — Lore & How They Play
The Lore
The Tyranids are not an army but an appetite: a single vast Hive Mind steering fleets of bio-ships between galaxies, consuming every world in their path and reprocessing the biomass into new horrors. Every gun is grown, every soldier is born for its role, and nothing — nothing — is wasted.
The terrifying part isn't the swarm. It's that the swarm learns: every battle fought against the Tyranids teaches the Hive Mind how to win the next one.
On the Tabletop
Pressure and position: Tyranids smother the board with fast, expendable swarms while monsters like the Norn Emissary and old favourites like the Hive Tyrant deliver the killing blows. Self-spawning gaunts and Synapse discipline keep the wave rolling.
You'll rarely out-shoot anyone — you out-place them, trading bodies for board control until there's nowhere left to stand. Swarm, monster-mash or a balance of both, the Hive Mind has a build for every player.
Tyranids — the all-consuming alien swarm driven by the Hive Mind to devour every living world. Shop Termagants, Carnifexes, Hive Tyrants, and the full Tyranid range at Loaded Dice, Barry, South Wales. The Great Devourer awaits.
Prefer them ready-painted? JoyToy make fully painted, articulated 1/18 scale Tyranid figures — find them in our Warhammer action figures range.
First Contact
Starting a xenos army?
Start with a boxed set — miniatures, rules and dice in one go. Free UK delivery over £65, same-day dispatch by 3pm on weekdays.
Shop 40K Starter SetsFrequently Asked Questions
The Tyranids are an extragalactic alien swarm driven by a collective intelligence called the Hive Mind. They exist solely to consume all organic matter in the galaxy, sending endless waves of bio-engineered creatures to strip worlds bare.
Tyranids can be played as a horde with masses of small creatures, a monster mash with large bio-creatures, or a combination of both — making them one of the most versatile factions in terms of army building.
Yes — Tyranids received a major refresh in 10th Edition with the Leviathan release and are a powerful faction with strong synapse mechanics, excellent monster units, and competitive Detachment rules.
The Combat Patrol: Tyranids or the Leviathan box set are both excellent starting points. The Leviathan set includes a massive selection of new Tyranid and Space Marine models.
Tyranid colour schemes are very flexible since they're organic creatures. Classic schemes use purple carapace with bone flesh, or turquoise and red. We stock the full Citadel range and can advise on any scheme.
Yes — we stock the full Tyranids range including Leviathan models in our Barry, South Wales shop and online at loadeddice.uk with fast UK dispatch.