Guide:How to make a fanon Tyranid Hive Fleet

The extra-galactic threat, known to the races of the Milky Way galaxy by many names, can be an interesting race to expand upon in the form of one of their Hive Fleets. The Great Devourer provides a unique challenge to a writer as they can invent their own genetic variations for existing Tyranid creatures and possibly their own specific xenos monsters. Hopefully this article will help with laying the foundations of a Tyranid Hive Fleet article.

History
The Tyranids originate from a distant galaxy, far from our own. They take their name from the first planet on which they were encountered, Tyran, although they have had several other titles bestowed upon them: the Great Devourer; The Shadow in the Warp; Shai'naid (Endlessly Winding Serpent) etc. which reflect upon their attributes as a race.

Of course, the first Tyranids to be encountered belonged to Hive Fleet Behemoth, which simply carved a straight and brutal path towards Macragge, devastating all of the planets which lay in it's way. It was eventually crushed at a great cost, with only a few tiny splinter fleets remaining. The next fleet to be encountered by the races of the galaxy was Hive Fleet Naga, which was eventually pushed back by the Tau.

The arrival of Hive Fleet Kraken was in fact also preceded by Hive Fleet Gorgon, which mainly focused on devouring Eldar worlds and other non-human planets. Kraken proved to be an even greater threat than Behemoth, arriving more than 250 years after the First Tyrannic War. It was defeated at different points by Eldar forces on Lyanden and Imperial forces on Ichar IV.

Hive Fleet Jormungandr followed two years later, before being defeated (although large amounts of it went into hibernation. As of 999.M41, the greatest Tyranid threat to have been faced by the Imperium to date, is ravaging the Galaxy: Hive Fleet Leviathan.

The most canon friendly way of creating a Tyranid Hive Fleet is to either make it a tendril of Hive Fleet Leviathan (c.999.M41 of course) or to have it as a new hive fleet which has arrived at the same time as Hive Fleet Leviathan (as many already have, Hive Fleet Medusa for example).

It is bending the canon somewhat to have them originate at an earlier date than 999.M41 but it is plausible (ie. as a tendril of one of the five other Hive Fleets which are mentioned in this article). However, if you do this please do so with caution and common sense, and (for example) don't make an unrealistically large splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Behemoth.

It is a very canonical grey area to have a Tyranid Hive Fleet enter the galaxy before 745.M41, as there is only one canon instance of this happening (a Hive Fleet which may have strayed too close to the Eye of Terror and were subsequently mistaken for Daemons). I strongly advise that you avoid doing this as it make the article unrealistic and potentially Non-Canon Friendly.

What a Tyranid Hive Fleet should have...
-Tyranids: Preferably lots of them. All kinds that exist within the canon can be included and you could create your own varieties.

The Name
Something related to Greek or Roman mythology works well (as that is what Games Workshop does). In fact, most mythological creatures could be used as the basis for a name.

Colourings and Markings
What is the distinctive flesh colour of your Tyranid Hive Fleet which marks them as being different from the others. Splinter Hive Fleets usually incorporate some of the colours of the Hive Fleet they were separated from, while new Hive Fleets could have all manner of bizarre colour combinations.

Notable Characters
Unique characters amongst the Tyranid race differ greatly from those of the races native to our galaxy. While a notable character of the Imperium is a mortal being which will eventually die; a Tyranid special character may be a specific set of characteristics which any Hive Fleet can duplicate. For example; the Swarmlord - the most badass Hive Tyrant ever - is not a fixed creature which is born and then dies. The Swarmlord is in fact somekind of defensive mechanism of the Hive Mind which is produced when a more tactical mind is needed. Such a beast has been sighted on two different worlds, which were invaded by two different Hive Fleets (suggesting that it is a set of characteristics which can be copied and re-used).