Tyranid vanguard drones (BfG)

Here are my scratchbuilt vanguard drones for Battlefleet Gothic, again pieced-together from W40K Tyranid sprues.  These bio-ships more closely follow the role of the fast frigates & destroyers in more conventional fleets, so I wanted them to look sleeker & speedier than my diminuitive escort drones.  First are the vanguard drones with feeder tentacles (species: Geneseeder), constructed from Tyranid Warrior head shields, flesh-hooks, & Hormagaunt scythes.  I envisage these as scouting ahead, seeding worlds (& the occasional space hulk) with Genestealers, Lictors, Lurkers & other 'Nid infiltration organisms, many years before the  arrival of the main Hive Fleet.  The barbed tendrils flick out at high speed to penetrate the hulls of prey vessels, injecting broods of terrifying killer xenos.  Within a Hive Fleet Geneseeders act as swift & deadly assault vessels.  Their feeder tentacles combined with the effects of their spore clouds & close-range boarding make them surprisingly dangerous (if they survive long enough to reach the enemy).

Next are my vanguard drones with pyro-acid glands.  I made them from Hormagaunt bodies, with the front & rear limbs carved away (I left the central pair of claws to lend a 'drifting' look to the models), & biomorphs added to the 'prow' to represent pyro-acid-spewing glands.  I have used these same biomorphs as broadside pyro-acid batteries on my Tyranid cruisers.  These are quite lightly armed compared to the frigates of other races, so I tend to use them in large swarms.  In vanguard activities, these Scaldcasters support the Geneseeders with their ranged weaponry capability.  As part of a Hive Fleet they can react fast to the changing nature of a space engagement, moving to support other more dangerous bio-ships as required.