Infinity/N3 Tactics/Spiral Corps

Unit Overview and Tactics for Spiral Corps

Why play Spiral Corps?

The Tohaa are the masters of bio engineering, and now have a merc corp that gives them alternate tricks up their sleeve and human minions help. Spiral Corps represents the Triumvirate forces that are trying to manipulate the Human Sphere from behind the scenes. Violently. While twirling 90's cartoon villain mustaches.

Alternatively, Play Spiral Corps if you love fireteams. Fireteam: Triads allows the Tohaa to mix and match different troopers in a single small 3-man team, and now you can toss in more traditional fireteams as well for even more ability. The Tohaa are very mobile and they have a very wide selection of troopers and alien auxiliary to field. And now, one fireteam can have a Tri-Core, which bumps a Fireteam:Triad up to 5-man link bonuses.

Alternatively alternatively, pick it up as a sectorial to pretend you actually have a Sygmaa army until Corvus Belli gives us more CA-aligned Tohaa.

Faction Features

Line Infantry: Being based on Tohaa purist dogma, the Spiral Corps is almost entirely Line Infantry designation. Also being Tohaa, those Line Infantry have an enormously wide range of skills, equipment, and capabilities that cover the gaps most other forces require the whole range of troop types for. If you want an unhackable army without sacrificing quality (Ariadna) or capabilities (Haqqislam), Spiral Corps can do it.

Special Skills

Symbiont Armor: Symbiont Armor is a living piece of armor that gives the bearer an extra profile "layer" and wound. Wounds have to go through the Symbiont Active profile before getting to the Inactive profile. This counts as having multiple wounds, therefore, Shock and Viral will not insta-kill them. In addition, Unconscious troopers possessing Symbiont Armor receive a +3 to Physique tests when testing for Regeneration, Medikit, or Automedkit checks. Symbiont Armor is highly sensitive against Fire ammunition. Failing a single ARM roll will completely kill the Active Profile. Active Profiles cannot be repaired.

• Be sure to pay attention to the differences in both Active and Inactive profiles.

Fireteam: Triad: Tohaa can form small 3-man fireteams, and there is no limit on how many Triads you can take. Additionally, Triads can consist any unit just as long as they have the Fireteam: Triads rule. This allows the Tohaa to mix units in a team.

StratosCloud: Single turn of Saturation zone and Low Vis zone. You can either deploy with it active, or trigger it on a short skill. A model with this skill ignores the effects (on either side of the shooting). The most obvious use of this is to counter-shoot at defensive fireteams since it removes the two main benefits of 5 man fireteams.

Weapons and Equipment

Viral Ammunition: Being master bio engineers, the Tohaa have a lot of Viral weapons including Sniper Rifles, Combi Rifles, and CCWs.

Phermonic Ammunition: This ammo wounds against BTS and puts the target into the Targeted state whether or not the target passes his BTS Roll. This also counts as a successful Forward Observer attack!

Corahtar Discipline: During deployment, the user of this skill can assign Symbiomates or Symbiobombs to other troopers or themselves as long as they meet the requirements.

• Symbiomates: Up to 1 'mate can be assigned to any trooper with Symbiont Armor. The first time a trooper takes a hit, they gain Arm/BTS 9 and Total Immunity. Beware Flash Pulses that will cheaply strip your powerful ability.

• Symbiobombs: Up to 1 'bomb can be assigned to any trooper with Symbiont Armor. By spending the 'bomb, the trooper can make a Pheroware attack.

Pheroware Tactics: Pheroware is the Tohaa version of Hacking. Has unique skills, and only works against troops with wounds.

Nullifiers: Often overlooked. However, Nullifiers can be very handy tools. Once deployed, Troopers in ZoC of a Nullfier cannot use Hacking, Technical Weapon, Comms Attack, or even Sepsitor. However, troopers, weapons, and even equipment cannot be the target of Hacking, Technical Weapon, Comms Attack, or even Sepsitor. This even means Tohaa troopers in a Nullifier's influence, can deny enemy hacking, Forward Observe, Flash Pulse, Jammer, etc etc. This can even potentially deny your opponent some Classified Objectives which is very vital in ITS missions like Highly Classified.

Unit Overview

Light Infantry

Brawlers: Flexible line infantry with a ton of choices. Having both a rifle AND a light shotgun on the base profile is nice, though the accompanying 16pt price tag can feel harsh given their Wip12. In return, you get access to an MSV2 Multi-sniper. These will build you a decent, traditional, core link if that's what you're looking for. Just remember that you're paying extra for the slight armor increase over other base troops, which is relatively unreliable.

• Taagma: you can add Taagma Schemers to the link and holoproject to hide them. This can turn a defensive-looking link team into a solid mid-field link.
• The lack of an HMG or a Spitfire can lead this link to struggle in fighting itself out of the deployment zone, but remember that Spiral Corps is about synergy between elements: bring other stuff along to clear away threats that the core link can't deal with itself.

Chaksa Axuilliars: Chaksa Auxiliars are very useful tools. The 10pt baggage Chaksa are great order filler, and even comes with Sensor and HFT. There is a Chaksa with a 360 Visor, HMG, and Neurocinetics as the Tohaa version of a TR Remote. The last option gives the Chaksa Auxiliar a Smart HRL.

• The FTO option gives a cheap defensive link to a Taagma in holoprojector state, or a cheap boost to a Taagma Viral Sniper.
• Sadly, the 360 visor HMG is strictly inferior to every other TR bot because it can't be boosted with Marksmanship and can't go on the offensive. It doesn't even have the mimetism of the Sin Eater. Instead, use the points you'd spend here to buy units that better play towards Spiral Corps' strengths: cunning and subterfuge.

Chaksa Longarms: A potentially fantastic unit pulled down by its cost and BS11, without the ability to Triad. Avoid the temptation to put one in as an ARO unit.

Chaksa Servants: 3-point brainless automata that fill the role of everyone else's helper bots. They're S2, but they can go prone. Good trade-off overall.

Cube Jäger: Your only AD troop, and limited to Airborne Infiltration. Can be a decent headhunter, and the E/Mitter can be nice if you're able to catch someone out of position, but it's otherwise distinctly lacking compared to other AD troops in other factions.

• The main power of an AD troop is being able to hold them off the board and change the dynamic of a fight mid-game. Your only other tool for that is the Calipsos.

Draal Saboteurs: One of the new units for Spiral Corps. It's a toolbox full of skills, key of which being Stratuscloud. It's priced at a slight premium, but provides a lot of potential for that price.

• a key job for the Draal to provide anti-fireteam attack vectors. Stratuscloud negates both the +3 BS and the extra burst from a fireteam. Paired with a Tri-core Taagma in a triad, you can go active hunting.
• a Dazer profile gives them the opportunity to be a bog-pit unit in the mid-field. Slow down and mess with attack pieces that don't have multiterrain.

Greif Operators: Note: it's Grei f Operators, like "Griffin". Inferior infiltration has a combi-rifle and 2 breaker pistols. Drop it outside your opponent's deployment zone (in a hard-to-get-to) as a threat. Even consider using it as a turn-2 haymaker, after your opponent has moved out and started going for objectives. Remember that it can't go back into impersonation state, so revealing it is an important decision.

Hatail Aelis Keesan: Aelis Keesan is Tohaa's Dire Foe character based on the Kamael profile. She's a very pricey trooper, but she brings quite a lot to table. She has Regeneration (which gives Shock Immunity), Fireteam: Triad, and Sensor (which allows Triangulated Fire). She is a Killer Hacker making her a, ITS Specialist, and there are 2 options. Both options include D-Charges, Nanopulser, and Flash Pulse (at WIP14), but she gets to choose between either a Viral Combi Rifle or K1 Combi Rifle. Both K1 and Viral are good, but Viral tends to be scarier. Aelis is a toolbox trooper who brings a lot to her Triad.

• Triad: In a Triad Fireteam, she can fulfill multiple roles as a specialist trooper and a short ranged gunfighter. She's pricey, but brings a lot to the team, but make sure she's accompanied by tougher troopers.

Helot Militia: Still great as a cheap bog-pit unit. Unless you're freaked out by their looks or their lack of a model (for now), there's no reason to avoid taking them. Remember their Neurocinetics.

Kaauri Sentinels: Nice little defensive units. Has both visors, SSL2, and a relatively low points cost to provide defense against anything that wants to try and surprise you.

• Note: These are one of your few STR units (alongside Reex and the Anaconda). Fortunately Kumotail Bioengineers don't care.
• Entertainingly, this protects them against Pheroware attacks, so they're immune to all forms of hacking as well.

Kaeltar Specialists: Chain of Command and Symbiomate bringers. Auto-include? Not as much anymore after Symbiomate changes, especially compared to vanilla Tohaa; but still super useful units

Kerail Preceptors: While nice and a source of smoke, the real reason you're bringing these guys along is for their Symbiobeasts.

• Symbiobeasts: The very definition of rip and tear. Take the 8pt one with a viral CCW and strike fear into the hearts of anyone and everyone. Treat them like the cheap suicide units they are and see if you can trade them for something worth way more points.

Kiiutan Imposters: Symbiont Armor-equipped Inferior Infiltrators. Essentially 2-wounds that can risk deploying in your opponent's deployment zone, or assuredly infiltrate right outside their DZ. If you're feeling more risky you can leave them outside their Imp-2 state and instead give them a Symbiomate as a stronger attack piece. They have close-range weapons (which is fine given their deployment skill) and can surprise-shot once if you want to shed their marker state and stealth. 0.5 SWC to add an E/Mauler might be a bit steep, but if you regularly face heavy infantry, REMs, and/or TAGs it's a shiny option.

Kosuil Assault Pioneers: Either an engineer or a minelayer, but both are equipped with Symbiont armor and Fireteam:Triad. The engineering profiles as sturdy specialists that want to run up the board with their Triad to accomplish objectives. Don't take one to actually engineer things, since that's not a huge part of Spiral Corps in general.

• Panzerfaust gives one of the profiles a potent long-range threat to clear out an ARO piece. It's a bit of a gamble to rely on, but it's a handy tool.
• Minelayer is one of the few in the faction, and can help you turtle up for your beta strike. Sadly, you lose the specialist skill if you pick this guy.
• Nullifier is interesting, and can help as an escort for Neema against hacking-heavy armies, but it'll be a more niche choice.

Kriigel Agents: Gives access to white noise (mirrorball) and isolation against models with wounds, that both act like hacking attacks. Picks between LGL, smoke launcher, and a Pherobooster.

• Pherobooster: a weapon that grants the 'targeted' state if it hits. It's a relatively efficient way to distribute targeted across the opponent's team. Consider pairing it to the Chaksa Smart Heavy Rocket Launcher for the entertainment value.

Kumotail Bioengineers: Kumotail have both Doctor and Engineer skills and with D-Charges, they are excellent ITS specialists.

• Triad: In the Triad team, Kumotails need to depend on the other 2 team members to get it to the objective. Kumotails costs 22pts which is fairly expensive considering she doesn't have Symbiont Armor, and is a soft target.
• Chaksa Servants: Chaksa Servants are the G:Servants for the Kumotail. Unfortunately, the Kumotail cannot be in a Triad if she has a Servant.

Monstruckers:

Reex Escorts: Not exactly cheap, but not exactly expensive. They bring a couple good gun options and can triad with a Kriigel to boost their firepower and order efficiency. Think of them like Grunts from Halo, and you won't be far off.

Rasail Boarding Team: Awesome, dangerous, and with a Chaksa follower for extra HFL goodness. Can pair with cheap Chain of Command for a first-turn LT order run. Nanoscreen gives you some extra options that don't require you to hug cover all the time.

• note: Their big advantage over Neema is that they're classified as LI, so they're not hackable. Surprise!

Taagma Scheemers: A potent shell-game unit. Holoprojector 1 limits how long they can remain in their shell state, but their other tools make up for this limitation. At 16pts, the base Taagma is better than a base brawler for the same cost; but your AVA is limited.

• Tri-Core: An automatic skill that bumps your triad up to a 5-man. It's on a squishy platform, but has some powerful bonuses and keeps your triad in a compact foot-print. Attach it to your lead triad, since you can only have 1
• Fireteams: Taagmas can slot in all over the army. They add solid firepower, good skills, and surprise to any package you want to put together. If you don't need to reveal it on a given order, hold off to keep your opponent guessing as to where exactly your Taagmas are.
• Viral Sniper: Powerful as both an ARO platform and as an attack piece, but squishier than other options in the army. Shock immunity helps (so keep a chaksa servant around), but bad luck can take it off the board relatively easily.
• Fake Chaksa Link: An obvious triad choice is to bury an LT Taagma in a Chaksa link... a less obvious choice is to triad all 3 of your Taagmas in a Chaksa holoprojector state. If you bury them correctly and make them annoying enough to leave alone, you can then roll out with 3 Taagma in a tri-core boosted triad to make your opponent's life annoying.

Tohaa Diplomatic Delegates: The Tohaa Diplomatic Delegate is an irregular 5pt Special Operative. She's got very little in offensive power (Nanopulser, Pistol, Flash Pulse), but she's super dirt cheap and a Specialist. The Irregular doesn't necessarily hurt the order pool because of how order efficient the army can be. Not bad at all.

Warcor: 3 point flashpulse and irregular order. You'd think it would be a war crime to take these guys considering how often they die heroically taking pictures of the battlefield.

Wardrivers, Mercenary Hackers: WIP 13, and your only source of a standard hacking device (at the cost of a full 1 SWC). Note that there aren't any REMs in Spiral Corps, and no drop troops, so no need for Gadget-2 programs. Conceptually you could use it to drop Fairy Dust on your HI. If you like defensive hacking though, take the Taagma WHD instead for a couple extra points.

• If you really need Fairy Dust, and you've already filled up your Taagma AVA, then the Wardriver is your only option.
• AVA 2 means you can pack a couple more hackers into your army if desired, but Spiral Corps can play better games than just hacker-spam.

Medium Infantry

Armand Le Muet, Freelance Killer: Armand is very expensive, but gets you an expert sniper with ODD and 2 Wounds. Thanks to Symbiont Armor, he can even benefit from Symbiomates and/or Symbiobombs.

• In some ways, it's more 1.5 wounds, since his Symbiont Armor is what has his ODD. Once he loses the first wound, he becomes a lot less threatening.

Heavy Infantry

Kiel-Saan Covert Assault Unit: An S5 Heavy Infantry unit from the same mold as the Dayokai. High price, CC skills, mid-range guns, and the ability to join an expensive special triad. Take it with the Draal Sabateur link to plan for midfield domination (Dazer required).

Neema Sataar: An obvious lieutenant choice, with cheap chain of command backups to protect her. She's a powerful attack piece and can be slotted into a Tri-Core link for extra abilities. However, as a Heavy Infantry choice, she's hackable unlike almost all of your other attack pieces. Beware of hacker nets if you take her, and treat her like a mini-TAG in terms of how much you protect her. This philosophy conflicts a bit with her breaker-combi profile that wants to get close in order to do damage. Unless you need the +1 burst and +3 to hit (or the extra SWC), consider the Rasail as a more flexible unit filling the same role.

TAG

Anaconda: It's a TAG. So, if you absolutely need one to score a couple extra points... I guess you can take this one? There's not a whole lot going for it though compared to your other options in this price bracket.

• Conceptually, you could Duo it with a Brawler engineer or a Taagma WHD, or any other brawler/taagma combo you can think of. But, compared to the other Triad choices and Brawler core, there's just not a lot to make this stand out as a great choice. It's not even that it's sub-optimal for ITS play, so you shouldn't take it; it's just a lackluster, not-so-stompy robot that isn't all that fluffy for the force.

REM

NONE

Skirmishers

Clipsos Infiltrators: A real bargain for a T/O camo infiltrating combi-rifle (it costs the same as an Igao), and your only choice for an infiltrating specialist. Also has a boarding shotgun profile, and a Sniper rifle (note: NOT a MULTI weapon) profile.

• Nimbus Plus Grenades: an interesting option that adds an unmodifiable -6 and Suppression Zone for a turn.
• Nullifier: shut down enemy hackers, or protect your HVT from hacking classifieds. Pretty situational, but it comes with a Boarding Shotgun which is pretty useful.

Igao Unit: Your infiltrating, camouflaged, CC-focused, anti-skirmisher murder hobo. No specialist profile, so know going in that its a hunter and not a universal tool.

Warband

NONE

General Tactics

• Spiral Corps is an army about striking swiftly, and as brutally as possible right at the start. It lacks many of the options (like off-board powerhouses, and multiple-use skills) that other factions use to maintain board presence throughout a game. You're going to find that you wear out your tricks by the end of turn 2 unless you've done an excellent job protecting vital late-game profiles. Consider keeping something of a strategic reserve on the board whose sole job is to stay fresh until turn 3.
• Consider playing as a 'beta strike' army: huddle up and hide your important pieces as things that will scare off your opponent from pushing too hard right at the start. Leave some impersonators hiding in places ready to exploit over-commits, have a Calipsos hiding somewhere, and threaten to roll out quickly if they don't eliminate your major threats.
  • This could struggle against armies that can strike quickly across the board (Other Spiral Corps, Invincible Army, Ariadna, etc..), but you'll be rewarded for judging your opponent's tactics.