[[Image:HiveTyrant.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Hive Tyrant{{Fn|7}}]]'''Hive Tyrants''' are monstrous [[Tyranid]] creatures created to be commanders of the Tyranid swarm. They embody the [[Hive Mind]] completely and act as the primary [[Synapse]] conduit through which it enforces its will over lesser Tyranid creatures. Hive Tyrants are extremely powerful, large and strong monsters three times the height of a man that can tear through [[plasteel]] or [[ferrocrete]] as if they were glass. They excel in both close combat and ranged fighting, and in fact every part of their body is perfectly designed to maim and kill. They are highly mutable, with individual Hive Tyrants display displaying a wide range of physical characteristics, [[biomorph]]s, and [[bioweaponbio-weapon]]s.⁴ [[Image:T5EHiveTyrant.jpg|right{{Fn|200px|thumb|A '''Hive Tyrant''' battling [[Orks]]⁴]]1a}}

[[Image:Hive TyrantNornEmissaryArt.jpg|thumb|right|A '''200px|Hive Tyrant''' engaging [[Blood Ravens]] [[Space Marines]]⁵{{Fn|15}}]]Unlike most other Tyranid creatures, Hive Tyrants are completely self-aware, incredibly intelligent, and can learn from their mistakes. Some posses possess an instinctive cunning that borders on tactical genius. Though in the end they are still ultimately slaved to the Hive Mind but , their relationship with it is closer than that of any other Tyranid creature. This makes them terrifyingly psychic and able to manifest deadly psychic powers in battle, including being able to invigorate the Tyranid swarm, destroy the foe's morale, or shred the enemy's minds.^{4: pHive Tyrants are equipped with a range of [[Biomorph]]s, but most common are the [[Bonesword]], [[Lash Whip]], [[Heavy Venom Cannon]], and [[Stranglethorn Cannon]].{{Fn|1a}} They tower over even a [[Space Marine Dreadnought]]s and are protected by chitinious plating that makes them immune to all but the heaviest fire.34}{{Fn|14}}

Hive Tyrants are essentially immortal, as their experiences, character and knowledge are stored within the collective consciousness of the Hive Mind. So should one be slain in battle, a replacement body can be grown and imbued with the same experiences etc as its predecessor.^{4: p.34}  Hive Tyrants appear to be either a more complex and highly evolved form of [[Tyranid Warrior]] , or else they evolved from a completely different and higher genus. Some [[Imperial]] techno-magi believe that Hive Tyrants are the consort-minds of the [[Norn-Queen]] that forms the repository of the [[Hive Fleet]]'s own collective consciousness, which would mean they completely embody the Hive Mind, but their destruction would not diminish it in any way.²{{Fn|5}}

|style=background:#4F4F4F colspan=4 align=center|'''Ordo Xenos Departmento Analyticus Record''' ¹{{Fn|6b}}

|''Tyranicus praefacto'',{{Fn|2a}} ''Tyranicus praefactor''{{Fn|6b}}

|62.1m9 m{{Fn|Conflicting sources}}

|6 tonnes/Winged Strains 4.9 1 tonnes

|[[Tyran]]

*'''Acid Tyrants''' have highly acidic blood and employ a large variety of toxic bio-morphs^{6: p.35} *The [[Swarmlord]] is a unique Hive Tyrant created to out-think the enemy when standard Tyranid strategies fail.{{Fn|2a}} *'''Swarm Tyrants''' are capable of giving birth to clutches of [[Ripper]]s in a similar manner to [[Tervigon]]s and wield large [[Fleshborer]]s.^{7: p{{Fn|3b}}*'''Winged Hive Tyrants''' have wings{{Fn|6a}}*The [[Swarmlord]] is a unique Hive Tyrant created to out-think the enemy when standard Tyranid strategies fail.40}{{Fn|1b}}

==Older BackgroundNotable Hive Tyrants==In *The [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue TraderDagon Overlord]], the term "*The [[Hive-tyrant" applied to the ruler and primogenitor Lord (Dawn of the whole War II)|Hive Fleet - they were described as immensely psychic, huge, bloated with eggs and virtually immobile. Lord]]*The [[King in Green]]*The [[Nephilim King]]*The destruction of this Hive-tyrant would disperse the fleet. This description fits the Norn-Queen of more recent publications. It was during the [[Warhammer 40,000 2nd Edition Rulebook|second editionSwarmlord]] of the game that the position of the Tyranid Hive Tyrant in the Tyranid hierarchy changed to its current position; not the highest embodiment of the hive-mind, but the largest version commonly encountered in battle.³

<center><gallerymode=packed heights=200>Image:Tyranid HiveTyrantIA.jpg|Winged '''Hive Tyrant 4th Edition 1'''{{Fn|6a}}HiveTyrantGibbons.jpg|4th Edition '''Hive Tyrant from Hive Fleet Leviathan ''' by [[Mark Gibbons]]{{Fn|8}}Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant 4th Edition 2HiveTyrantArt.JPGjpg|4th Edition Hive Tyrant from Hive Fleet Behemoth {{Fn|9}}Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant 4th Edition 340k-148-winged-hive-tyrant.JPGjpg|Winged 4th Edition Hive Tyrant{{Fn|11}}</gallery></center> ===Miniatures===<center><gallery mode=packed heights=180>Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant 3rd EditionHiveTyrant2012.jpg|3rd Edition '''Hive Tyrant from Hive Fleet Kraken''' miniature (5th Edition)Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant 2nd 4th Edition 1.jpg|2nd Edition Hive Tyrant with Barbed Stranglerminiature (4th Edition){{Fn|2b}}Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant 2nd 3rd Edition 2.jpg|2nd Hive Tyrant miniature (3rd Edition ){{Fn|3a}}HiveTyrant2nd.jpg|Hive Tyrant with Venom Cannonminiature (2nd Edition){{Fn|10}}Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant Forgeworld 12.jpg|Winged Resin Hive Tyrant from by [[Forge World (Company)|Forge World]]{{Fn|12}}Image:Tyranid Hive Tyrant Forgeworld 21.jpg|Resin Winged Hive Tyrant with Scything Talons from by Forge World{{Fn|13}}</gallery></center> ==Trivia=={{Trivia}}*In [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader]], the term "Hive-tyrant" applied to the ruler and primogenitor of the whole Hive Fleet - they were described as immensely psychic, huge, bloated with eggs and virtually immobile. The destruction of this Hive-tyrant would disperse the fleet.{{Fn|4}} This description fits the Norn-Queen of more recent publications. It was during the [[Warhammer 40,000 2nd Edition Rulebook|second edition]] of the game that the position of the Tyranid Hive Tyrant in the Tyranid hierarchy changed to its current position; not the highest embodiment of the hive-mind, but the largest version commonly encountered in battle.{{Fn|10}} ===Conflicting sources===*{{Endn|Conflicting sources}}: This exact height for a Hive Tyrant is not consistent, and art depicting a Hive Tyrant standing next to an [[Imperial Guard|Guardsman]] on the same page the 2.9 Meter height is given shows the creature standing at least triple the guardsman's height,{{Fn|6b}} and given other similar scaling images in the same book show a relatively consistent roughly 1.5 meter tall Guardsman, 2.9 meters is possibly a typo, putting the height of the Hive Tyrant a mere 0.5 meters above the height of a [[Shrike]].{{Fn|6c}} Later sources reconcile this by emphasizing that the Hive Tyrant's appearance and biology is variable depending on the situation.{{Fn|14}}

*¹: [[Imperial Armour Volume Four - The Anphelion ProjectCodex: Tyranids (5th Edition)]]:**{{Endn|1a}}: {{Cite Marker End}}*^{*{{Endn|1b}}: pg. 56*{{Endn|2}}}: [[Codex Imperialis: Tyranids (4th Edition)]]*^{*{{Endn|2a}}: pg. 35**{{Endn|2b}}: pg. 50*{{Endn|3}}}: [[Codex: Tyranids (3rd Edition)]]**{{Endn|3a}}: pg. 18**{{Endn|3b}}: pg. 40*{{Endn|4}}: [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader]], ppg.200*<sup>4<{{Endn|5}}: [[Codex Imperialis (Background Book)]], {{Cite Marker End}}*6: [[Imperial Armour Volume Four - The Anphelion Project]]:**{{Endn|6a}}: pg. 41**{{Endn|6b}}: pg. 77**{{Endn|6c}}: pg. 79*{{Endn|7}}: [https://web.archive.org/web/20220307213156/https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/03/07/the-new-tyranid-codex-is-coming-so-get-your-first-look-at-its-awesome-cover-art/ Warhammer Community (07/03/sup>2022)] (saved archive)*{{Endn|8}}: [[White Dwarf 210 (UK)]], pg. 75*{{Endn|9}}: [[Codex: Tyranids (5th 6th Edition)]](E-Book) - ''Forces of the Hive Mind''*⁵{{Endn|10}}: [[Dawn of War IICodex: Tyranids (2nd Edition)]], pg. 34*<sup>6<{{Endn|11}}:[[Magic: The Gathering's Universes Beyond Warhammer 40,000]] - ''Winged Hive Tyrant'' - for details see [[Hive Tyrant/sup>Sources]]*{{Endn|12}}: [http://web.archive.org/web/20100312043106/http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/hivetyrant.htm] ''(saved archived page, last accessed 24 June 2015)''*{{Endn|13}}: [Codexhttps://web.archive.org/web/20110925061148/http: //www.forgeworld.co.uk/Warhammer-40000/Tyranids /WINGED-HIVE-TYRANT.html Forge World webstore : WINGED HIVE TYRANT (4th Editionproduct code : IA-TYR-T-003)]]''(saved archive)''*⁷{{Endn|14}}: [[Codex: Tyranids (3rd 8th Edition)]], pg. 62*{{Endn|15}}: [[Leviathan (Box)]] Rulebook, pg. 231 {{Tyranid5E}}