T-564's workbench: residual analysis on the Hive Tyrant, the Swarmlord, the Neurotyrant and the Winged Hive Tyrant. The baseline has every switch on except bestSize (34 of 44 within one). What-ifs ran in tools/tierbench.js and a scratch copy of it with a second yardstick and five more switches (section 7, not committed). Datasheets were read on Wahapedia's 11th-edition pages, errata included, and are given here in our own words. This is a report; it changes no published score.
In short. Laid over Auspex's own letter counts (13 S, 7 A, 13 B, 4 C, 7 D in our order), the baseline is 38 of 44 within one, which is the 85% line, and 26 the same. On that cut the Swarmlord (S) and the Neurotyrant (A) match Auspex. The Hive Tyrant (A for S) and the Winged Hive Tyrant (B for A) are one letter off. Their two-letter misses on the within-army view come from that view's 10% S quota; the Neurotyrant's came from bestSize. What remains has one thread. Three of the four lend command points (CP), and a CP is worth 30 pts, Jordan's "for now". At 45 pts all four land on Auspex's letter (shape cut 40 within one, 28 same; ρ 0.765 → 0.790). The Neurotyrant lends no CP and is the one already right. That fit is to the panel, so T-558 should price a CP from stratagems; for these four to land, it has to come out at 40 to 45 pts or more. Two measured fixes stand on their own reasons and move no letter: the Hive Tyrant's gun aura scored on the squads it actually lifts (rank 18 → 15), and the Neurotyrant's Neuroloids (19 → 17). The Swarmlord's place rests partly on a 77-pt stand-in for its Synapse reach.
1. Yardsticks
The shape cut ranks our tie key over the 44 graded units and deals out Auspex's own letter counts in that order. It tests order only, since Jordan is flexible about where a reviewer draws S against A. The other columns are bench 1's.
| Run | Within one | Same, our ruler | Raw same | Shape: within one | Shape: same | ρ (SE) | Tyr list share ρ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 10 (switches off) | 31 | 19 | 14 | 33 | 23 | 0.51 (±0.12) | 0.46 |
| Baseline | 34 | 22 | 13 | 38 | 26 | 0.76 (±0.07) | 0.61 |
| Unit | Pts | Auspex | Within army | Shape cut (rank) | Composite | Lists of 23 (rank of 44) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Swarmlord | 210 | S | B | S (11) | 94.5 | 13 (5th) |
| Hive Tyrant | 195 | S | B | A (18) | 88.4 | 6 (16th) |
| Neurotyrant | 130 | A | B | A (19) | 87.9 | 17 (2nd) |
| Winged Hive Tyrant | 185 | A | C | B (27) | 82.8 | 1 (35th) |
To reach Auspex's letter, the Hive Tyrant needs about +4 composite (past Ripper Swarms, 92.5), and the Winged Tyrant also needs about +4 (past the ranged Warriors, 86.6).
2. The engine and data check
The profiles match units.json, and the abilities match our paraphrases in unitfx.json and tierfx.json. Worths are points lent by our engine in the baseline. A leader's part is banner.js's lend-only multiplier against bodies.
| Unit · rule (our words) | Status | Worth |
|---|---|---|
| Hive Tyrant: T10, 2+, 4++, W10, M8"; leads Tyrant Guard | Banner raw 1.10 | |
| · Gun aura, 6": Lethal Hits and Assault on Tyranid guns | Lethal Hits on its two most co-listed squads; Assault not modelled | 9.1 pts (best two squads it reaches: 40) |
| · One stratagem a round costs 1 CP less (army-wide) | 4 uses × 30 | 120 pts (56%) |
| · Leading Tyrant Guard | its wounds behind them, ×0.41 | 80 pts (joined in 2 of 6 lists) |
| Swarmlord: same statline; leads Tyrant Guard | Banner raw 1.63 | |
| · +1 CP each Command phase; as Warlord, enemy stratagems nearby cost 1 more | 4 + 2 CP × 30 | 180 pts (52%) |
| · Synapse reach 9" | V2c's aura stand-in | 76.7 pts (measured like Synapse: about 8) |
| · Leading Tyrant Guard | ×0.38 | 80 pts (joined in 1 of 13) |
| Neurotyrant: T8, 4+, 4++, W9, M6", Fly; leads Neurogaunts, Tyrant Guard, Zoanthropes | Banner raw 1.04 | |
| · +1 to hit for its squad | modelled | Zoanthropes +40% damage; ×0.85 with its wounds, 110 pts |
| · +1 to wound vs Battle-shocked | manual, off | 0 |
| · The army's once-a-battle Battle-shock test 1 harder | debuff lend | 18.0 pts |
| · Two units count as in Synapse until its next Command phase (Neuroloids) | not modelled | about 9 pts |
| Winged Hive Tyrant: T9, 2+, 4++, W10, M12", Fly, Deep Strike; no Leader | Banner raw 0.82 | |
| · One enemy within 12" loses 1 attack per weapon in a fight (5 in 6; a 1 hurts itself) | debuff lend; the self-hurt is not priced | 26.7 pts |
| · The same CP discount as the Hive Tyrant | 4 × 30 | 120 pts (79%) |
Synapse itself (+1 Strength in melee, shared over 5.7 Synapse units) is worth 5 to 6 pts each.
3. The raw rows
H/A/R/B are pool percentiles. Hammer raw is enemy points destroyed, on the unit's own row and then from inside a squad. Damage is per 100 pts into MEQ. T is turns alive.
| Unit | Bench's context | H/A/R/B | Hammer own / inside | Dmg | T | Banner raw | Banner's squad | Lists join it to |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hive Tyrant | Crusher Stampede, inside Tyrant Guard | 57/63/12/88 | 129 / 169 | 90 | 4.1 | 1.10 | Tyrant Guard | Tyrant Guard 2, alone 4 |
| Swarmlord | the same | 65/58/12/94 | 171 / 212 | 152 | 4.1 | 1.63 | Tyrant Guard | Tyrant Guard 1, alone 12 |
| Neurotyrant | the same | 44/66/19/88 | 61 / 96 | 73 | 2.8 | 1.04 | Zoanthropes | Zoanthropes 10 of 17 |
| Winged Hive Tyrant | Crusher Stampede, deep | 52/65/16/83 | 139 / – | 92 | 4.0 | 0.82 | – | – |
| Lash Whip Prime | Subterranean, inside Hormagaunts | 61/16/64/65 | 23 / 192 | 26 | 0.55 | 0.58 | Hormagaunts | Hormagaunts 4, Warriors 2, Termagants 1 |
| Broodlord | Subterranean, Genestealer pair | 63/77/36/2 | 35 / 214 | 32 | 0.85 | 0.60 | Genestealers | Genestealers 8 of 9 |
Neither the Tyrants' Hammer nor their Anvil comes near their Banner, so the squad they are scored inside doesn't matter. The Neurotyrant forced inside Zoanthropes stays at 87.9. Where they differ from the Primes is what Banner counts. The Primes lend to a squad. The big Tyrants' Banner is mostly CP, plus the Swarmlord's stand-in.
4. The four, one by one
Every what-if is measured against the baseline. The cuts are within one / same / raw same on our ruler, then within one / same on the shape cut.
The Swarmlord (Auspex S; ours B, S on the shape cut)
| What-if | Mechanism · quantity | Swarmlord | Ruler | Shape | ρ | Other movers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 CP 45 | consensus right: the CP engine is under-priced · weight | S/S, #1 | 35/23/13 | 40/28 | 0.790 | Biovores S→A, Norn Emissary A→B, Zoanthropes B→C; Lictor +3.0 |
S2 dominationMeasured | our stand-in is generous · measure | B/A, #14 | 34/22/13 | 38/26 | 0.762 | Maleceptor (A→S on the shape cut), Ripper Swarms, Von Ryan's Leapers up a rank |
| S2 + CP 45 | both | A/S, #9 | 35/23/13 | 40/28 | 0.784 | Norn Emissary A→B, Zoanthropes B→C |
S3 leaderAsLists | consensus wrong: it leads nothing in lists · measure | B/A, #14 | 35/23/13 | 37/25 | 0.726 | Hive Tyrant to #33 |
Verdict: our order is right; the B comes from the ruler. Thirteen of 23 lists back the S. The reason is partly wrong, though: 77 of its 343 lent points are a stand-in. Change: none on its own. Make S2 in the same commit as T-558's CP price; at 45 pts it keeps S (#9).
Hive Tyrant (Auspex S; ours B, A on the shape cut, #18)
| What-if | Mechanism · quantity | Hive Tyrant | Ruler | Shape | ρ | Other movers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1 onslaughtBest2 | consensus right: the aura is measured on the wrong squads · missing | B/A, #15 | 34/22/13 | 38/26 | 0.772 | Carnifexes, Tervigon, Tyrannofex down a rank; no composite moves |
| H1 at half (banner.js's in-range rule) | the same | B/A, #17 | 34/22/13 | 38/26 | 0.769 | Carnifexes down a rank |
| H2 CP 45 | consensus right: the discount is under-priced · weight | B/S, #13 | 35/23/13 | 40/28 | 0.790 | as S1 |
H3 leaderAsLists | consensus wrong: its Banner leans on a pairing two lists in six play | C/B, #33 | 35/23/13 | 37/25 | 0.726 | Pyrovores C→B |
Verdict: the consensus is partly right. The aura is under-measured. With six lists, its "most co-listed" squads are Biovores and Zoanthropes, while the squads it lifts most are the Exocrine (+15%) and Termagants (+33%). The rest of the gap is the CP's worth, and its list count (16th) sides with our A. Change: H1. Its rank goes 18 → 15 and it stays A. Within one stays at 34, the shape cut at 38/26, and ρ goes 0.765 → 0.772. In tiertest.js this changes auraPts for every bearer, so it needs a full run.
Neurotyrant (Auspex A; ours B, A on the shape cut, #19)
| What-if | Mechanism · quantity | Neurotyrant | Ruler | Shape | ρ | Other movers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
N1 synapseExt, Neuroloids at 9 pts | consensus right: an unmodelled lend · missing | B/A, #17 | 34/22/13 | 38/26 | 0.766 | Carnifexes down a rank |
| N2 scored as the Zoanthropes pair (the lists' squad) | context | B/B, #21 | 34/22/13 | 38/24 | 0.761 | none |
| N3 by its lists (2nd of 44) | consensus too low: the lists say S | – | – | – | – | – |
Verdict: it is placed right, A on the shape cut. Its bench-1 gap belonged to bestSize. Its lend is honestly measured: +1 to hit on Zoanthropes is worth 0.85 of the same points in bodies. Change: N1, Neuroloids as a lend. Rank 19 → 17, no letter moves, ρ 0.765 → 0.766.
Winged Hive Tyrant (Auspex A; ours C, B on the shape cut, #27)
| What-if | Mechanism · quantity | Winged Tyrant | Ruler | Shape | ρ | Other movers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W1 CP 40 | consensus right: the discount is under-priced · weight | B/A, #19 | 35/23/13 | 39/27 | 0.779 | Swarmlord B→A, Norn Emissary A→B, Zoanthropes B→C |
| W2 its attack debuff at twice the worth (+26.7 pts) | consensus right: the debuff · weight | B/B, #21 | 35/23/13 | 38/26 | 0.769 | Zoanthropes B→C |
| W3 Runner's gate reaching zero at 400 pts (its 12" flight) | consensus right: mobility · weight | C/B, #26 | 35/24/12 | 38/26 | 0.772 | Parasite of Mortrex −3.2, B→C |
| W4 no CP (a list with both Tyrants gets one discount) | consensus wrong: 1 list in 23 · measure | D/C, #36 | 34/22/13 | 37/27 | 0.75 | Hive Guard D→C |
Verdict: this looks like reputation. One list in 23 takes it, and nothing about it is unmeasured. Its Banner is 79% the Hive Tyrant's CP discount, and its flight doesn't pay because Runner's points gate closes at 260 pts. Change: none to the measurement. It reaches A only if a CP is worth 40 pts or more. Below that, B on the shape cut is the defensible letter.
5. The common thread
CP makes up 52% (Swarmlord), 56% (Hive Tyrant) and 79% (Winged Tyrant) of their Banner. The Neurotyrant lends no CP and is the one already placed right. Only five Tyranids carry CP: these three, Hyperadapted Raveners and the Lictor. No other army has any, since tierfx.json is Tyranid-only, so raising CP also lifts Tyranids in the all-army final score.
| A CP's worth | Ruler within one / same | Shape within one / same | ρ | Ranks: Tyrant · Swarmlord · Neuro · Winged |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | 35 / 23 | 36 / 26 | 0.725 | 27 · 15 · 18 · 36 |
| 30 (baseline) | 34 / 22 | 38 / 26 | 0.765 | 18 · 11 · 19 · 27 |
| 40 | 35 / 23 | 39 / 27 | 0.779 | 15 · 7 · 20 · 19 |
| 45 | 35 / 23 | 40 / 28 | 0.790 | 13 · 1 · 20 · 18 |
| 55 | 35 / – | 40 / 28 | 0.789 | 12 · 1 · 20 · 15 |
At 45 all four match Auspex on the shape cut. The within-army cost is Biovores S→A, Norn Emissary A→B and Zoanthropes B→C (all S to Auspex). Nothing is fitted on Auspex (decisions.md), so 45 is the number T-558 must justify, not one to set. The second thread is the ruler: a 10% S quota can't express Auspex's 30% S. Three candidate threads were rejected:
- A generalist bonus (
steps.strong60): the four keep their ranks, 10 letters move, shape cut 39/25. - Mobility (W3): it moves nothing for the Winged Tyrant.
- Leading a squad (S3, H3): it points the wrong way.
6. Bugs found
- tiertest.js in this worktree:
--explainstops with "fixL10 is not defined". The workbench commit (7588d09) uses round 10'sfixL10andV10C, but its parent doesn't have round 10's commit (da377f8).--rawdumpgoes through the same path. tierbench.js reads the stored table and is unaffected. - tiertest.js
auraN: the pattern/\(Aura\)/misses abilities tagged "(Aura, Psychic)" (10 datasheets, among them the Hive Tyrant and the Maleceptor). It also counts the Swarmlord's superseded rule. The upshot is uneven pricing of Synapse reach: 76.7 pts for the Swarmlord, nothing for the Neuroloids, against 6 pts for Synapse itself. - banner.js
onSquad: the leader links say "Bio-weapons" but the unit keys say "Bio-Weapons", so the Lash Whip Prime's two Warrior squads come back null. Melee Warriors would give 0.61, where Hormagaunts give 0.53. - tierbench.js
banOf: the Banner switches subtract today's multiplier (banAlt.cur) from a raw that holds the tracked one (banLead). Three units differ: the Broodlord (1.35 against 1.62), the Ministorum Priest and the Archon. SubtractingbanLeadinstead moves the Broodlord 77.0 → 83.4 and ρ 0.765 → 0.768; no letter changes. - Data: the Hive Tyrant and the Winged Tyrant each price the army-wide once-a-round discount as if they were alone. The Neurotyrant's wound bonus against Battle-shocked targets is a
manualeffect and stays off.
7. Method
- Baseline:
node tools/tierbench.js --fix bannerLendOnly,bannerModelCount,turnsHarmonic,reArriveAfterKill,bestLeader,reArriverGateExempt,auraToNeighbours,spawnShare75,offTableSurvival. - Scratch bench: the shape-cut yardstick, plus these switches, which touch only the Tyranid context rows:
synapseExt: 2 squads × 18.3 pts × 25%.dominationMeasured: 1.25 × the Swarmlord's Synapse share in place of the 76.7-pt stand-in.onslaughtBest2: +30.9 pts, from ev.js's Lethal Hits lift on every Tyranid gun squad.leaderAsLists.extra.banAdd(Banner per point, by unit) andextra.only(limits a unit's contexts).
The bench's existing knobs were used as they stand: price.cp, steps.strong, runner.gateZero.
- Lists: reports/tiers/2026-10-02-tyranids-colist.json (counts from grimstat-corpus, CC BY 4.0).