Trygon

The largest Tyranid creatures can become hard to accurately categorise as they increasingly appear as strange aggregations of symbiotes and parasites on a colossal scale. This is not the case with the Tyranid Trygon however, a distinct genus of vast serpentine creatures that tower above even the mighty Carnifex. Adepts have postulated a link between the Trygon and the smaller but equally ophidian Ravener, but it remains unclear whether Trygons are massively mutated Raveners or Raveners are underdeveloped, perhaps even immature, Trygons. Certainly adult Trygons can reach truly monstrous proportions, with examples of up to thirty metres in length on record, although twelve to fifteen metres is more common. Trygons are extremely heavily armoured by a coat of overlapping scales that covers them from jaws to tail. In addition to offering excellent protection, these specialised scales form an essential part of the Trygon’s natural weaponry. The thick armour plates include high concentrations of silicates and as the Trygon moves they become agitated, generating a powerful biostatic charge that is captured by subdermal platelet stacks. The Trygon directs this energy by exhaling an ionised spray from its gills, to prompt a deadly, high-voltage discharge. Trygons have two sets of diamond-hard scything talons folded beneath their hood-like carapace that they use with lethal effect in close combat. Driven by a Trygon’s size and strength, these wicked blades can easily impale an armoured vehicle or cut an armoured man in two. However, the primary purpose of the Trygon’s claws is to allow it to burrow though practically any material at a terrifying rate. These creatures have shown themselves capable of detecting an enemy from below and seem to have a singular fondness for bursting out of the ground beneath them with shocking suddenness. Tanks and troops surprised in this way seldom have a chance to reply to the barrage of sweeping claw strikes and biostatic lightning unleashed upon them. Seismic detectors have been used with some success to provide early warning of a Trygon’s approach. Unfortunately, on many worlds, natural seismic activity can mask a Trygon’s motion and in some instances Tyranid swarm activity seems to have been deliberately coordinated to cover the approach of burrowing Trygons. Trygons have forced tunnels through just about every material known to man, although they are considerably slowed by adamantium plating. It appears that Trygons use their bio-static charge to assist with tunnelling, as their tunnels have been found coated with a fused, glass-like silicate layer on the inside. This effect stabilises the tunnel walls and prevents them from collapsing behind a burrowing Trygon. Other Tyranid organisms will take advantage of these tunnels to move around unseen and follow up on Trygon attacks. The emergence of a burrowing Trygon is often just the harbinger of a tidal wave of nightmarish horrors. Commanders have found static defences become virtually useless once Trygons are operating in the area, unless tunnel torpedoes or mole mortars can be brought to bear to keep them at bay. Over an extended period, Tyrgons are capable of excavating a network of underground tunnels covering a huge area, which makes it difficult to wipe out Tyranid forces even with saturation bombardment. Clearing out Trygon sub-surface tunnel networks is dangerous work even for a Deathwatch Killteam and is a duty given only to the most experienced and wellequipped Battle-Brothers. Trygons have also been known to dig deadfall traps by leaving a thin crust over a deep conical hole. Sufficient weight in troops and armour will collapse the roof of the sinkhole and deposit the victims into the Trygon’s waiting claws. A Trygon’s greatest weakness is probably that it can be baited or misdirected while burrowing by the first tasty morsel to cross its path. Under the direction of the Hive Mind, a Trygon becomes even more dangerous, as it will tunnel deep into the heart of the defences before bursting forth. Unfortunately, a mutation now dubbed the Trygon Prime has been confirmed, that appears to have the relevant synapse development to make it a conduit for the influence of the Hive Mind. A Trygon Prime can be easily spotted by their elongated jaws and the containment spines running the length of their bodies. These are extended platelet stacks that enable the Trygon Prime to store up even greater charges of bio-electricity. A Trygon Prime is swathed in sheets of lightning whenever it moves, and when it opens its jaws, searing arcs of energy leap forth that leave only charred corpses in their wake. The strong synaptic link a Trygon Prime shares with the Hive Mind allows it to dominate lesser Tyranid creatures, including other Trygons, and it will rarely be found without an attendant horde of Termagants and Hormagaunts.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Tyranides