Underdog Day Afternoon: Thousand Sons vs Deathwing

Title Fight: get ready for the Hohenlinden In Swindon!

Thousand Sons vs Dark Angels!

I, Stylus, am back in the Deployment Zone nerve centre of Winters SEO studios. It's always a pleasure, although I'd have to sing for my supper this time - I'm facing the Deathwing army that recently triumphed at the No Retreat Legends tournament, defeating some of the best 40k players to bring home the trophy.

You can skip all my preamble and jump straight to the fight:

Thousand Sons - The Court of Miracles

I was asked to bring a list that could challenge the Deathwing, although there was only a little tailoring required from the Thousand Sons list I'd normally take.

A central core of Rubrics and Scarab Occult Terminators, backed up by two Exalted Sorcerer (one of which was Ahriman, for that extra reliability) and Infernal Master (a secondary supporting character, but the best choice of that lot).

Thanks to a last-minute painting rush, I had even more Rubrics to play with, so could field six units. This gave me lots of access to Smite (particularly useful here), but a 5-man squad is pretty robust these days, so it seems decent option. I also went with my two trusty Rhinos for mobility, protection and screening.

A couple of Spawn to race around the board and score me Engage on All Fronts points, and the only change was to swap out my usual Helbrutes for a Mutalith Vortex Beast. I wouldn't usually rate the big beast, but I reckoned I needed mortal wound output over anti-armour weapons.

The idea is to maximise my Secondary Objectives, get 40/45 Primary points and hope to deny a couple to the enemy. I think I have enough mobility and tricks to Retrieve Octarius Data and Engage On All Fronts, and my third pick of To The Last basically depends on the Scarab Occult Terminators surviving (they are a horrible unit to shift), because they protect the other two sorcerers.

Battalion Detachment - Cult of Time

• Ahriman (HQ)
  Black Staff of Ahriman, Inferno Bolt Pistol, Disc of Tzeentch
  Psychic powers: Doombolt, Presage, Temporal Surge
• Arac Rapathwin - Exalted Sorcerer (HQ) (Warlord)
  Force stave, Inferno bolt pistol, Frag & Krak Grenades, Disc of Tzeentch
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Twist of Fate, Presage
  Command: Dilettante - Hourglass of Manat
  Warlord: Immaterial Echo
  Relic: Athenaean Scrolls
• Phyroc Optera - Infernal Master HQ
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, Frag & Krak Grenades
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Weaver of Fates
  Relic: Umbralefic Crystal
  Infernal Pacts: Fires of the Abyss, Glimpse of Eternity
• 6 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 5 x Inferno Boltgun, Icon of Flame
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Glamour of Tzeentch
• 5 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 4 x Inferno Boltgun, Icon of Flame
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Cacodaemonic Curse
• 5 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 3 x Inferno Boltgun, 1 x Soulreaper Cannon
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Doombolt
• 5 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 3 x Inferno Boltgun, 1 x Soulreaper Cannon
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Psychic Stalk
• 5 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 4 x Warpflamer
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Dark Blessing
• 5 x Rubric Marines (Troop)
  Force Stave, Inferno bolt pistol, 4 x Warpflamer
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Temporal Surge
• 10 x Scarab Occult Terminators (Elite)
  Force Stave, 8 x Inferno Combi-Bolter, 9 x Prosperine Khopesh, 2 x Soulreaper Cannon, 2 x Hellfyre Missile Rack,
  Psychic powers: Time Flux, Empyric Guidance
  Legion: Rites of Coalescence
• 1 x Chaos Spawn (Fast)
  Hideous mutations
• 1 x Chaos Spawn (Fast)
  Hideous mutations
• Mutalith Vortex Beast (Heavy)
  Betentacled maw, Mutalith claws
• Rhino (Transport)
  Combi-bolter, combi-melta
• Rhino (Transport)
  Combi-bolter, combi-metla

Points: 2000 | Level: 103 | Battle-forged + Battalion - Sorcerous Arcana: 11 CPs

Dark Angels - Deathwing - Sons of The Lion

A very simple, and very tough list, filled with 4+ invulnerable saves, permanent transhuman physiology, an Apothecary that pick up fallen models, a smash Chaplain and a fair degree of ranged and melee punch.

To cap it off, none of that is necessary for this army to score points: with the usual choice of secondaries, this army just had to sit there to score points (and see above for how hard it is to shift them). Meaning any opponent is already up against it just to stop them running away with the points.

What I like about it is the minimal units allows for freed-up headspace for tactics, rather than trying to recall all the different rules. Plus it's being commanded by a very gifted and experience general. There's a lot of tactical nous under that flat cap.

Vanguard Detachment - Deathwing

• Interrogator-Chaplain (HQ)
  Astartes Chainsword, Crozius arcanum, Frag & Krak grenades, Jump Pack
  Hero of the Chapter: Wise Orator
  Relic: Teeth of Terra
  Chapter Command: Master of Sanctity
  Litanies: Exhortation of Rage, Mantra of Strength, Litany of Hate
• Deathwing Apothecary (Elite) (Warlord)
  Storm bolter
  Warlord: Selfless Healer
  Paragon of the Chapter: Watched
  Chapter Command: Chief Apothecary
• 5 x Bladeguard Veteran Squad (Elite)
  Master-crafted power swords, Storm Shields, Heavy Bolt Pistol, Frag & Krak grenades
• 6 x Bladeguard Veteran Squad (Elite)
  Master-crafted power swords, Storm Shields, Heavy Bolt Pistol, Frag & Krak grenades
• 10 x Deathwing Terminator Squad  (Elite)
  Lightning Claw (Pair); 4 x Storm shield & Thunder hammer; 2 x Cyclone Missile Launcher, Storm Bolter & Power Fist; 2 x Power fist & Storm bolter, 1 x Chainfist & Storm bolter, Watcher in the Dark
• 10 x Deathwing Terminator Squad  (Elite)
  Lightning Claw (Pair); 4 x Storm shield & Thunder hammer; 2 x Cyclone Missile Launcher, Storm Bolter & Power Fist; 2 x Power fist & Storm bolter, 1 x Chainfist & Storm bolter, Watcher in the Dark
• 10 x Deathwing Terminator Squad  (Elite)
  4 x Storm shield & Master-Crafted Thunder hammer; Lightning Claw (Pair); 3 x Storm shield & Thunder hammer; 2 x Cyclone Missile Launcher, Storm Bolter & Power Fist; 2 x Power fist & Storm bolter, 1 x Chainfist & Storm bolter

Points: 2,000 | 87PL | Battle-forged + Vanguard - Hero of the Chapter - Paragon of the Chapter - Marked For Command: 9 CPs

Mission and Deployment

We're playing Surround And Destroy from the Grand Tournament 2021 pack. Six objectives (two central, and two in each deployment zone) and we start in opposite long ends.

Thousand Sons Secondaries

• Engage On All Fronts - 2VP for ending the turn in three quarters, 3VP for ending the turn in four quarters
• Retrieve Octarius Data - up to 12VP if I complete an action in all four quarters
• To The Last - 5VP each if Ahriman, Exalted Sorcerer and the Scarab Occult Terminators survive the battle

Deathwing Secondaries

• Oath of Moment - 1VP for never falling back, 1VP for killing a vehicle or monster, 2VP for being wholly within the centre at the end of the turn
• Raise the Banners - 1VP per Command Phase for a banner raised on an objective, plus a bonus VP for each one standing the end of the game
• Stubborn Defiance - pick an objective and gain up to 15VPs for sitting on it all game. If you know a Dark Angels player who doesn't take this every single game, have them checked for heresy.

No spoilers for the battle, but my last word is that not only was Winters' table-setting top-notch as always, but damn this Den of Imagination Deathwing army is pretty.