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I've been toying with the idea of building a Thousand Son based Chaos list for a while (because I LOVE the fluff), and last weekend, I just decided to go for it as an auxillary force to my other more competitive armies.

The more I think about it while list building, the more I want them to be competitive, but after talking to at least one Chaos 4E expert, it seems like it cannot be done. They are basically just overpriced Marines with an AP3 bolter, and a mediocre Psyker Sgt. The lists I've made all have Khorne backing them up, to compliment their lack of CC effectiveness. Most of the Chaos units in the current dex are...bad to say the least, so I'm scratching my head as to what else to field outside of Daemon Princes (1 or 2 depending on points), vanilla Chaos Marines, Khorne, Thousand Sons, Oblits, and maybe a Vindicator.

Has anyone had experience with Thousand Son armies? Is the Chaos codex really that non-versatile? Thanks in advance for the tips - keep in mind I want a measure of their competitiveness.

Well, they're fearless marines with 4+ Invulnerable Saves and Slow and Purposeful, so don't undersell them.

Unfortunately, they aren't the strongest troops choice in the Codex. Honestly though, if you love the fluff and the models I think that's more than enough reason to build the army.

The Chaos Codex is still much more competitive than people give it credit for IMHO; however, Thousand Sons are a weak unit in the Codex I'd argue.

Like Noise Marines, I'd say they're simply to expensive to have at the core of your list; similarly, they're not very flexible hampering their ability. Whilst their AP3 makes them a very good unit against MeQ, they are unable to take out tanks with any ease or more infantry than a standard CSM unit. As such, I'd advise having CSM units at the core, supported by Thousand Son units.

In terms of load-out, obviously a rhino is a must. I'd try to avoid full 10-men squads due to the cost, 7/8 sounds reasonable IMHO. I'd recommend giving the Sorcerer either Winds of Chaos, to clear enemies out of cover, or Doombolt for cheapness, all others are of limited efficiency in Thousand Sons IMHO.

If you support your Thousand Sons with Predators/Oblits/Vindicators/Defilers (or Havocs) to provide armour saturation and covering fire, then have the Thousand Sons advance alongside a squad or 2 of CSM's and 1 or 2 DP's then that should be a solid core IMHO.

However, as Monster said, if you like them then go for them! That's what matters most.

They're fun to use. AP3 Bolters, 4+ inv. Fearless, Relentless. Expensive. Thousand Sons builds tend to not be as competitive as other builds because everything is expensive when you side with Tzeentch.

I love Thousand Sons, played efficiently they can be cruel, especially against others Marine armies. Your model count tends to be low when you side with the Grand Manipulator.

You should never loose if you could manage 9 squads of 9 adding up to 999 points.

i suggest using marines with an icon of tzeentch if you want to use tzeentch. However, its always a good idea to have at least one squad with gift of chaos, so you can kill any HQ's or even eternal warriors in one turn. Being able to kill two enemies, before the actuall turn starts is always good my friend!

They are a unit that got screwed over by the change over from 4th edition to 5th. With cover saves being better and easier to get than ever, it reduces the effectiveness of their AP3 bolters and makes their 4+ invuln less unique. The fact they have relatively little in the way of dealing with mech for their points cost gives you a unit that is not optimal for the current state that 40k is in. They can be brutal against 3+ saves outside of cover, so taking a unit or two of them can be effective for forcing your opponent to stick to cover or feel your wrath. I just feel that they don't have the flexibility for their cost to be the backbone of an army.

Agreed. Cover is too easy to get, which steals their thunder, and the Aspiring Sorcerer is -ludicrously- expensive. It makes them very inneficient overall.

They really could use an ability such as the Dire Avenger's Bladestorm to let them pump extra fire when really needed, or tone down the sorcerer to cost 50 points TOPS, after fully kitted out.

I bought a box of them not long ago and hope to use them soon in large-scale games, though.

The biggest downfall of TS is their lack of versitility. They can't take any anti-tank weapons (minus Bolt) and they aren't that good in CC. What it really takes good support for them. They're kinda a one dimensional unit. Against Meqs they're wonderful. So CSM w/ MoT might be more of the way to go. Just make sure to have the right amount of anti-tank and cc units. Hope some of my ramblings helped good luck