Hierophant

The Hierophant is an immense, hideous creature, towering over the battlefields and bristling with spines, tendrils and symbiote weapons. They are amongst the largest bio-creatures yet encountered amongst the swarms of the hive fleets, comparable in size and power to an Imperial Titan. A brood of Hierophants are likely to be at the forefront of a major Tyranid attack - striding forwards, drawing enemy heavy weapons fire away from the lesser creatures, absorbing huge amounts of damage before smashing into the enemy line with devastating force. The Hierophants is the Tyranids' largest shock troop, armed with massive bio-cannons, multiple claws and chitin blades, and armoured with a thick chitinous hide that exudes poisonous spores from rends in the plates.

As well as its many razor sharp claws and spines which cover its body, head and tail, the Hierophant is also armed with two long bio-cannons. These symbiote weapons are triggered by a massive electro-chemical shock from the host creature, the bio-cannon creature then spews fortha a hail of highly corrosive maggot-like organisms. These venomous and highly acidic organisms then impact upon the target, splattering gobbets of bio-acid and poison, that melt through plasteel, ferrocrete, flesh and bone in seconds, reducing the unfortunate victim to a steaming pile of bubbling goo.

Besides its main weapons, the creature's vulnerable belly is protected by many spiny tendrils that lash out in all directions to entangle enemies which get too close. These lash whips are also symbiote creatures, living ropes of muscle and sinew which can entangle, bind and strangle as if with a will of their own. The Hierophant also has one last line of defence. From rends in its armour plates and body the Hierophant constantly exudes a cloud of highly toxic poisonous spores. These are lethal to all non-Tyranid creatures, forming a drifting vapour about the Hierophant that chokes and burns anybody without proper protection that is brave enough to get close to the creature.

Like all Tyranid creatures, the Bio-Titan seems to be able to mutate rapidly, evolving new weapons and defences. Other variants of the Hierophant biotitan have been identified with huge crushing claws or long scythe-like blades, cluster spines and other bio-weapons. The development of such large bio constucts remains mystery to the Imperium's Biologis. Whilst it seems a Hive Tyrant or Carnifex could easily be a further evolution of a Tyranid Warrior, there is no other connection from any other creatures to the Hierophant. Combating Hierophants is simply a matter of applying the heaviest firepower available; large ordnance weapons and heavy artillery have so far proved the only effective weapons in destroying biotitans.