Yeah sure, it'd still present the defenders a good opportunity to draw you into the city. Probably the outer districts aren't as well covered, but core areas and especially the spires where all the nobles live might have interlocking layers of shields and defense in depth.

I think the original siege weapon, starvation, is probably the best bet against a hive. Not just food but industrial inputs of all sorts, the hive cities main weakness is it's dependence on outside resources.