Unit of the Week: Chaos Spawn

[Xenith]

++Thousand Sons Unit of the Week++

++Chaos Spawn++

New codex, new discussions about units! As we already have in other faction sections, this is the Thousand Sons Unit of the Week series, where each week we select and dissect a datasheet found in the book, and discuss how we use the unit in-game, favoured loadouts and combos, essentially how to use these units best. What have you found that works, and what doesnt? Please try to stick to the idea of making the unit in question work, as opposed to pointing out other units that might do a better job - we'll get to those in time!

This week, we will be discussing the Chaos Spawn - failed mortal champions of the Gods of Chaos, these gribbly monsters have been in Chaos armies since time immemorial.

What are you thoughts, and how best would you use the unit?

• To compliment a list, or to build a list around?
  
• Will you be running multiples?
  
• What <GREAT CULT>, loadouts, spell relic and Stratagem support do you prefer and how much does it depend on the above choices?
  
• Are you buffing this unit, and if so, how?
  
• Are you building as a damage dealer or buff-provider?
  
• Uses in Matched, Narrative and Open Play
  
• How have they fared for you in-game?
  

Over to you.

++Thousand Sons Unit of the Week Index Link++

[Xenith]

Being honest, I barely looked at spawn until someone used them in a game against me. I recall the 3rd - 7th edition profiles which were...lacking to say the least. Usually T5W4 with no offensive ability and D6 attacks. I was pleasantly surprised to see them at S5 with AP-2 (and an insane D2), and the change to 2D3 attacks making them more reliable. 

 

As cheap as a single Rubric, these can be decent for hanging back and guarding an objective, though they cannot perform actions, they're still your cheapest option to do so. Fated mutation cranks these guys to the next level for 1CP, basically always netting you an extra attack, but then doubling your AP, rerolling wounds, or getting even more attacks. 

[Balthamal]

I can confirm, never gave spawn the time of day until they were used against me and they were utterly horrific. Absolute steal at that price too

[Xenith]

Yea, I woke up to them when I faced a unit of 3 in crusade and they handily ate through a big unit of gaunts. Thousand Sons can be lacking some fast(er) moving stuff, but also CC ability, and these combine both. Against MEQ, each spawn is basically the equivalent of 2 marines armed with force axes, which is pretty rad. Problem is the 5+ save and no invun - however this makes them a prime target for Weaver of Fates, which in my opinion is much more valuable on a unit that doesn;t already have an invuln. 

 

For the cost of a little over 1 MSU rubric squad, you get 5 spawn, 20 T5 wounds kicking out a lot of attacks. 

[Prot]

Oh Spawn, how I love thee. 
 

always used these dudes and the squad size I use us typically bigger now. I will say that I always considered the spawn as my squad of “failed sorcs”. I found it amusing that in this codex they actually refer to a pit of spawn that are indeed failed sorcs. 
 

it’s hard to define their role. They’re actually capable of quite a bit. They don’t really have to be amazing at their points which is why I love them.  You can be crafty with them, you can hide them on objectives, or be pretty aggressive with them. I love how they got a defacto improvement in the aggressive category with a flat 4+ invulnerable from the psychic power. 
 

they still qualify for double movement as well with surge so there’s a lot of utility there. 

[Mushkilla]

Spawn are great. I feel like our unholy trinity is rubrics, occults and spawn. Things we really shouldn't leave our silver towers without.

As others have mentioned they are fantastic shock troops. In conjunction with scarabs they let us leverage the fight phase. They also have the GREAT CULT keyword so benefit from those powers. Cult of Prophesy in particular can work well with them making their charge much more reliable. Cult of Knowledge can make them extra dangerous. Finally, although Sorcerous Facade doesn't work on them they do benefit from duplicitie's redeploy.

 

All that being said I have mostly been running 3 packs of one. They give me free drops so I can see more of my opponents deployment. They give me cheap reserve screens. They can be used to screen characters by setting them up in forward positions where they can't be targeted but are the closest model (I always have a unit of scarabs or rubrics behind my sorcerers to trigger look out sir). But most importantly they let me score Strangle Hold on turn 1 when I go first without throwing away a unit of Rubrics and giving up 2 Abhor the Witch victory points.

Edited September 21, 2021 by Mushkilla

[Xenith]

Great ideas! I see a lot of utility in dropping ~160pts on 1x5 and 2x1 spawn units, one for a melee bully/tarpit and the other as cheap scoring/screening. 

[WarriorFish]

I've been looking at Spawn since the Legion book days... I keep stumbling over the kit. Would be nice if there was an update to it, or I could find alternatives I like :P I think they're a pretty good unit that mostly benefit from being a different niche. This is more so for Sons I think, where a modest unit can cause some mischief and buy your other forces space and time to work?

[Balthamal]

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

[dice4thedicegod]

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

I use (non GW) zombiecide abominations:

 

[GreenPlasma]

I vote for this guy!

 

 

[Rune Priest Jbickb]

I vote for this guy!

 

What is tgat guy? I dig that one pretty hard...

[GreenPlasma]

What is tgat guy? I dig that one pretty hard...

You can do a google search and then check them image tab for “Chaos Spawn” combined with “Blinky”.

 

I think the eyeball was sourced elsewhere and the rest is from GW kits.

[Kythnos]

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

For my Iron Warriors I use the Gellerpox brutes, but they might look too Nurgle-y in a TS force, I guess.

[Xenith]

 

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

For my Iron Warriors I use the Gellerpox brutes, but they might look too Nurgle-y in a TS force, I guess.

 

 

I'm all in favour of using the defeated champions of rival gods to use up the ammunition of my current enemies. 

Edited September 27, 2021 by Xenith

[Kythnos]

 

 

 

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

For my Iron Warriors I use the Gellerpox brutes, but they might look too Nurgle-y in a TS force, I guess.

I'm all in favour of using the defeated champions of rival gods to use up the ammunition of my current enemies.

A very good point! No wonder my IW warband's main sorcerer is of TS origin. He would certainly agree :D

[sitnam]

To piggy back off that, what's the best alternative kits people have seen to represent spawn? Since the box isn't the best in terms of quality

all personal opinion, but you are crazy. I hope they never retire that kit, I'm still stealing bits from it for conversions

[Uprising]

One of my favorite TS spawns are the AOS spirt host coming out of dead rubic marines.  In addition my spawn are a mix of AOS crypt horrors with horrors heads, greenstuff and other mutation bitz.  Variety is key and makes a great story of your failure/reward servant.  

[Dr_Ruminahui]

I know they are a slanesh model, but the slangors (https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Hedonites-Of-Slaanesh-Slaangor-Fiendbloods-2020) could form the basis of tzeentch chaos spawn, particularly it kitbashed with something else and in a list with a bunch of gors.  There would need to be some trimming and filing (or filling in) of the various slanesh symbols, but I think an appropriate paint job would make them look like they follow the Tzeench.

 

Here's an example of my kitbashing them with the greater possessed models - they are for my Emperor's Children, so haven't had the slanesh symbols removed, but may give you an idea of how they could look in your army: http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/topic/346143-the-judgment-on-kadeth-dr-ruminahuis-emperors-children/?p=5738488

Edited September 28, 2021 by Dr_Ruminahui

[The Yncarne]

For alternative models, I’ve been looking at the soul snatchers from One Page Rules. Haven’t got them yet. Since I’m taking a break from playing, it isn’t a priority. 

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Those are really nice models - how big are they compared to a 40K spawn?

[The Yncarne]

I can’t say. I’ve asked a friend to print me some samples, but it’s a waiting game. 

[Montoya]

Hey.  I've not been having too much luck with these guys the couple of times i've tried them.

 

My issues are two-fold: 

 

1.  They're not fast enough for my taste to get to somewhere useful.

2.  They're too squishy and susceptible to enemy fire with no invul and only a 5+ armour save.

 

Now that said, I've been playing against Tyranids a lot lately.   So the indirect fire from hive guard i think is what has been my problem. 

 

How do you guys get them where you want them?

 

I keep thinking Tzangor enlightened will be the better option for similar cost.

[Xenith]

Temporal surge and weaver of fates would solve points 1 and 2 respectively, I think, however as a Nid player as well, if their hive guard is shooting your spawn, then you're the real winner in this!

[Montoya]

Temporal surge and weaver of fates would solve points 1 and 2 respectively, I think, however as a Nid player as well, if their hive guard is shooting your spawn, then you're the real winner in this!

 

You're probably right there.    It meant that he wasn't targeting rubrics, SOT etc...

 

I guess I had scared him enough about them in melee that he viewed them as the bigger threat than they actually are.