What changed for Tyranids in 11th edition

11th edition handed the Tyranids a mixed pass rather than a clean win. Several of the flying monsters got cheaper, a small handful of characters and monsters crept up, and no new units joined the swarm. If you played the Great Devourer in 10th, your collection does everything it did before, but the shape of a competitive list has shifted with the prices.

Summary

• 33 units repriced, 0 new, 17 unchanged
• Biggest drop: Harpy (-30)
• Biggest rise: Winged Hive Tyrant (+15)
• Detachment Points: 2 / 3 / 3 at Incursion / Strike Force / Onslaught

Detachments

Two detachments arrive for the Tyranids, Ambush Predators and Talons of the Norn Queen, alongside the returning 10th-edition detachments, with none removed. The other change is structural: a detachment is now paid for. Detachment Points come out of the army total, 3 at Strike Force, with 2 at Incursion and 4 at Onslaught, and the two newcomers cost the same to run as the old hands. Take the fee off first, then spend what is left on broods.

New in 11th: Ambush Predators, Talons of the Norn Queen. None removed.

Points changes

Eighteen units were repriced, six up and eleven down, with no new datasheets. The story is at the top of the sky: the flying monsters took the deepest cuts, with the Harpy and Hive Crone both down 30, the Norn Assimilator down 25 and the Tyrannofex down 20. The Toxicrene also came down 15. Against that, a few pieces crept up: the Maleceptor, Neurotyrant and Tyranid Prime with Lash Whip each rose 10, and Hormagaunts and Pyrovores nudged up 5. Some units are priced per squad size, so find your squad size in the table.

Biggest increases

Are Neurotyrant still worth it?

Up 10 points, to 115. That bump lands harder on a support character than the raw number suggests, because its value has always been in what it enables around it rather than what it does alone. In a synapse-focused list it still earns its keep. As a loose one-off, it is an easier cut now.

Are Winged Hive Tyrant still worth it?

Up 15 points in 11th: 185 now, 170 in 10th.

Are Maleceptor still worth it?

Up 10 points, to 180. It remains one of the army's premier psychic monsters, a tough centrepiece you buy because you want it doing its job rather than because the maths forced your hand. If it anchored your 10th-edition lists, the extra 10 will not move it off the table. If it was a marginal inclusion, this is the nudge to reconsider.

Frequently asked questions

Did the Tyranids get better in 11th edition?

Sideways to positive, and it depends on what flies in your list. A Harpy, a Hive Crone and a Tyrannofex save 80 points; the Maleceptor, Neurotyrant and Prime add 30 back, and two squads each of Hormagaunts and Pyrovores another 20. A monster-led list is therefore about 30 cheaper carrying every one of the named rises, and a gaunt-swarm list without the flyers pays a little more than it did.

What got cheaper for Tyranids in 11th edition?

The monsters, mostly. The Harpy and Hive Crone each dropped 30, the Norn Assimilator came down 25, the Tyrannofex fell 20 and the Toxicrene lost 15. Six more units came down by smaller amounts. If your collection leans on big beasts, an 11th-edition list is cheaper to assemble than it was before.

Did the flying monsters really get cheaper in 11th edition?

Yes, and they are the standout winners. The Harpy and Hive Crone both came down 30 points, the two biggest cuts in the faction, which makes a fast, hard-hitting flyer wing far more affordable than it was in 10th. Take both and you have saved 60, twice the combined rise on the three characters and monsters that went up 10. The bulkier Tyrannofex also dropped 20.

Is now a good time to start a Tyranids army?

A fair one. The range is stable, the monsters that headline most collections are cheaper, and the swarm's mix of chaff and centrepieces is forgiving to learn on. Hormagaunts are 5 dearer, which is the only rise a first purchase is likely to meet. The Starting a Tyranids Army guide has a buying order.