Tau vs. Tyranids Capture and Control - Turn 1

The Tau deployed a phalanx of Fire Warrior units (Teams 1, 2, and 3) around their objective on their left flank.  In the center were two units of Crisis Suits, the Hammerhead to their right, and on the far right, a Devilfish Troop Carrier, undoubtedly carrying another unit of Fire Warriors (Team 4).  The Tyranids emerged with two broods of Termagants lurking in the trees near the Tyranid objective, with the Hive Tyrant and its guard nearby.  To the left of the Tyrant were some Deathspitter armed Warriors with attendant termagants, with Biovores behind some trees, and a pair of Carnifexes on the reverse slope of a hill.  To the far left was another brood of Warriors with attendant Hormagaunts. 

The Tau Devilfish shot up the right flank—clearly the opening move in a bid for the Tyranid Objective.  The Hammerhead shifted to the left, preparing a submunition to thin out the advancing Tyranid Horde. 

The Devilfish fired its Smart Missile System on the Termagants lurking on the Tyranid Objective, killing one.  The Hammerhead fired a submunition on the Hormagaunts, killing four.  The Shas’el and a pair of Crisis Suits fired on the Termagants, who went to ground, still suffering a casualty.  The Fire Warriors, mostly out of range, shifted their firing positions in order to get better lines of fire on the approaching Tyranids. 

On the Tyranid right flank, the broods surged forward, while the center mainly held its ground.  Realizing that if the Devilfish and its Fire Warrior passengers were neutralized early, it would leave free up the entire Tyranid Swarm to focus on the Tau objective, the Tyranids focused some attention on them.  The Hive Tyrant fired its Venom Cannon on the Devilfish, but failed to damage it.  Then, both Biovores launched bio-acid spore mines against the Devilfish, one shaking up the crew, the other destroying the Smart Missile System. 

On the Tyranid right flank, the Warrior with the Venom Cannon missed (this would be a common occurrence), and the two Carnifexes fired their Barbed Stranglers at Fire Warrior Teams 2 and 3.  One missed by a mile, while the other smacked onto Fire Warrior Team 2, killing three and pinning the unit, as they spent their time trying to extricate themselves from the killer Tyranid biomorphs.