Termagant

"As I looked into its dead black eyes, I saw the terrible sentience it had in place of a soul. And looking back from the deepest recesses of the alien’s mind, I perceived what I can describe only as an immortal hunger."

— Ultramarines Chief Librarian Tigurius

A Termagant horde swarming the outer walls of an Imperial fortification

A Termagant serves as the standard infantry unit of any Tyranid swarm. Speed, agility and survival are the main characteristics of the Termagant bioform (Gauntii virago).  These small xenos warriors most commonly carry the dreaded Fleshborer Biomorph, but have been known to carry other more potent weapon Biomorphs into battle. While not very effective in combat as a small group, they are most powerful when swarming in large broods across a target planet once the Great Devourer's invasion reaches its high tide. The desperate need to survive makes them a menace even if their synaptic control with the Tyranid Hive Mind is broken, as they run to cover and will lurk waiting to kill whatever threatens their hiding spot.

Termagant Biomorphs

Another Termagant of Hive Fleet Kraken

• Fleshborer - The Fleshborer is a compact brood nest for sharp-fanged Borer Beetles. When fired the tick-shaped Borer Beetles are flung at the enemy in which they spend the rest of their frenzied existence burrowing through armour, flesh and bone.
• Spike Rifle - This weapon is a bony muscle-lined tube that hurls sharp bony harpoons at the enemy. The harpoons from the Spike Rifle can be launched a considerable range while allowing for enough impact to cause damage. Even if an enemy is not killed outright from a spike it will usually cause them to bleed to death as the sharp barbed head is removed.
• Devourer - The Devourer is a clump of rotting flesh covered in worm-like parasites that are activated by a bio-electric jolt that hurls a shower of them at the enemy. Upon contact with the foe, the worms immediately start to burrow into the victim's flesh, causing unbearable pain as they rapidly destroy the host's central nervous system, resulting in a painful but rapid death.
• Strangleweb - This composite symbiote creature fires a sticky mesh of webbing that ensnares a victim. The web then quickly hardens to stop the target from breathing and cuts into the flesh as they struggle to free themselves. Those not crushed to death are usually left immobile for a time and are completely at the mercy of other Tyranid organisms.

Ordo Xenos Departmento Analyticus Technical Information

Designation	Termagant
Common Title	Critters, Hunter-Slayers
Species Name	Gauntii virago
Average Height	1.3 metres
Average Weight	0.2 tonnes
First Encountered	Tyran
Role	Infantry
Threat Evaluation	Medium

Sources

• Codex: Tyranids (4th Edition)
• Codex: Tyranids (5th Edition), pg. 39
• Deathwatch: Core Rulebook (RPG), pg. 371
• Deathwatch: Mark of the Xenos (RPG), pg. 371
• Imperial Armour Volume Four - The Anphelion Project

Gallery

A Termagant of Hive Fleet Leviathan

A Termagant firing its Fleshborer at the enemy