[Name: Viper]
[Length: 80–250 meters (variable)]
[Role: Area Control]
[Armament: Blinding Cloud, Abduct]
[Description: The Viper possesses specialized biological organs that allow it to counter large numbers of infantry or vehicles from a distance, helping the Swarm establish wide-range area control.]
Blinding Cloud: The Viper can spray a viscous mixture that neutralizes the enemy's ranged weapons and all energy-based skills. This debuff forces combat into a melee brawl, giving Zerglings and Hydralisks a distinct advantage.
Abduct: The Viper has an evolved proboscis capable of snatching and dragging units—even heavy ones—to a more vulnerable position. This includes high-value targets like the Terran Thor or the Protoss Colossus.
†I never even considered that the Viper would have a day to shine like this.†
In a typical Zerg Swarm, Vipers aren't produced often. They are too cumbersome, their size is massive, and they have no direct means of attack. You might argue, how can something that big have no attack? Don't base everything strictly on game stats.
True, it can attack by ramming or using its pair of fierce-looking claws, but its frail limbs are ill-suited for slashing. Its primary capabilities lie in its Blinding Cloud and its "Abduct" ability. Don't laugh—that's literally what the skill is called. And the effect is exactly that: snaring an enemy unit and dragging it right in front of the Viper's face.
The engines of that Thunderhawk Gunship were still screaming at full output, yet it could not escape the Viper's pull.
†I can't pull an Escort Frigate, but you think I can't pull a tiny Thunderhawk? According to the lore, my Viper can drag Colossi and Thors.†
The massive Viper certainly had the strength to pull a Thunderhawk; it simply refrained from fully retracting its specially evolved tubular organ to avoid getting hit by the gunship's forward fire at close range.
"We're snared, Chapter Master!" "Is it that tube-like thing? Open the hatches! I'll sever it myself!"
The Thunderhawk tried to open its hatches, but they were bound so tightly they wouldn't budge.
†Have another taste of Blinding Cloud!!!†
A sky-blotting green mist erupted from the Viper's maw. This cloud didn't just obscure vision; it interfered with energy wavelengths. The Thunderhawk had no way of knowing where the Viper was, flying like a headless fly, unable to break free because of the Abduct.
Eventually, Mutalisks and Scourges surrounded the craft. Now, even the Emperor himself appearing wouldn't help.
The Chapter Master of the Hands of Judgment knew he was dead. He wouldn't let these bugs have their way. "Notify the fleet! Initiate Exterminatus immediately!" "Milord, our communications are severed." "What?!"
The Blinding Cloud could interfere with conventional transmissions. The Chapter Master never expected that the Zerg, who hadn't shown any signal-jamming capabilities before, would suddenly possess such a trick. He was out of options, forced to watch as the Mutalisks' Glaive Wurms slowly tore through the Thunderhawk's armor. He and his guard launched one final, desperate assault.
The Honor Guard's power swords hacked at the Wurms, and the Chapter Master's Power Fist punched through a Wurm and the cabin wall simultaneously, but humans, in the end, cannot fly. As the hull was shredded open, a Scourge slammed inside, triggering a violent explosion.
†Unless the Emperor performs a miracle, he's done for.†
With the Chapter Master dead, all that remained was to clean up the surviving Marines in the base and the fleet. The Overmind didn't need to handle this personally; he just needed to watch.
"Kans, continue using the Nydus Worms for the siege. Eliminate every living thing in the base. Zagara, you handle the fleet. The Leviathan will reach this planet's orbit in two hours."
Long-distance warping took time, though it was already remarkably fast.
"By your will, Overmind."
The Overmind began to spectate. He didn't need to lift a finger now; he just had to ensure the fleet didn't drop an Exterminatus.
The fleet had received a signal from the Chapter Master earlier, but he never returned. Instead, they began taking hits from various biological projectiles launched from the surface. The Bile Spitters had finished recharging and resumed their fire.
Bile Spitters alone weren't enough to sink a capital ship, but combined with Mutalisks, Scourges, Guardians, and Brood Lords, the pressure on the Void Shields was immense.
It's worth noting that a Void Shield is different from a Protoss shield. A Protoss shield, if broken, needs a period of no damage to regenerate automatically. A Void Shield, once depleted, causes the engines to overload and requires a full recharge; during this time, taking hits doesn't stop the recharge process.
Once complete, the shield pops back up at full strength. Furthermore, Void Shields use warp technology to displace the damage of ranged attacks into the Immaterium. When a Scourge hits a Void Shield, it explodes upon impact like a shell.
The battle was effectively over.
As long as an Exterminatus didn't fall, this planet was in the Zerg's pocket. Even if a few hundred Hands of Judgment Marines were still alive, they couldn't escape the base. The best-case scenario for them was 'the remnants of the Chapter hold the base for a hundred years.' The worst-case was 'the Chapter is wiped out, leaving only a dozen members on other planets alive.'
†It's just a Chapter. In this grim and dark 41st Millennium, is a Chapter being wiped out really that rare? I know of several off the top of my head.†
One Chapter didn't matter, but this provided the Overmind with experience fighting Space Marines. Clustered together, they were as solid and powerful as an iron fist, but once dispersed, even Dreadnoughts could be dealt with quickly.
†Next time I encounter a Chapter, I can't let them cluster. I must create conflicts at multiple target points or use a commander unit as bait to lure out and annihilate their elites.†
The Overmind thought of this and looked at his Cerebrates and Queens. †No, these two are still too weak in combat.†
A Cerebrate's power might be slightly stronger than a Tyranid's Neurothrope, but they still couldn't reach the level of using psychic power to influence an entire Hive City or a planet. A Queen's physical strength was greater than a Genestealer Patriarch's, but the Patriarch was a "glass cannon" with high attack and low defense. It was hard to say if a Queen could beat a more balanced Tyranid Swarmlord.
†I need a... a Queen of Blades.†
The Overmind needed a proxy to reduce the attention drawn from the Great Devourer, the Emperor, the Four Gods, and the Demi-gods of the Warp. This proxy would need to have power on par with someone like the Daemon Primarch Magnus the Red.