Compare this card to Tactical Squad Cardinis.  Less HP, one time AE, and same cost.  Sure, you get an infested planet, but was it worth it?

Compare this card to Tactical Squad Cardinis.  Less HP, one time AE, and same cost.  Sure, you get an infested planet, but was it worth it?

But it doesn't use up your attack to do it. 4/5

Exactly: ask the Zarathur players and they'll confirm that ability damage is awesome. This is an AoE 1 that you can do before the ranged step even occurs. Hell, you can do it before the battle even begins, or even if there's no battle present.

Also, the fact that Tyranids play alone means it's natural to include all types of effects and game abilities, but less consistently than other factions that focus in them.

You all have decent arguments.  But as better cards come out (because Tyranids don't really have any great cards), you will quickly see this card fade out of decks.  Comment again in one year when I have been proven right.

You all have decent arguments.  But as better cards come out (because Tyranids don't really have any great cards), you will quickly see this card fade out of decks.  Comment again in one year when I have been proven right.

Wow, harsh. Tyranids have some great cards. Termagant Spikers!

Wow, harsh. Tyranids have some great cards. Termagant Spikers!

Termagant Spikers is a good card, but it isn't a great card.  Yeah, I am being harsh.  Tyranids right now are subpar, because (due to the current card pool) they don't have any great cards.  Hopefully, FFG fixes them like they did with Orks over the course of the cycle.

I think saying this card is a one-time AoE 1 is missing some significant points.

Considering it doesn't need to exhaust and that can hit even before ranged, as Asklepios already mentioned, it's far far stronger than a unit with AoE, at least in certain circumstances.

While AoE 1 is a reliable form of swarm control because you can use it more than once, that usually means you get to use it also for the subsequent rounds, since against swarms either you've eliminated most of the units after the first round or the AoE unit is dead. It's a safe assumption that your unit is going to be targeted by everything your opponent has at its disposal to remove it before it gets to strike (again), if it could prove devastating for your opponent's forces.

The Spore Sacs OTOH can use AoE 1 before your opponent gets a chance to deal with them (even before Archon's Terror, if you hold the Initiative). They can hit when they're coming exhausted from HQ. Even if you have the Initiative and had a chance to attack with the AoE before your opponent could attack anyway (assuming he had no Ranged units!) you can now hit with AoE 1, then immediately attack with one of your units to immediately finish off a wounded survivor.

Those are the things that win battles that would've been lost otherwise. Think about how many times you had to decide between hitting with your Cardinis or with the Librarian: now you get to do both.

The downside of sacrificing it is surely significant, but I think its advantages more than compensate in a wide array of situations.

When you're going to fight the last decisive battle in which everyone throws in whatever he has to win the planet, you'll be much happier to have the Virulent Spore Sacs in hand rather than the Tactical Squad Cardinis.

Not to mention being able to play two on the same planet: AoE 2 before the battle even begins usually means there will be no real battle, after all.

Of course regular AoE will probably be better for keeping in check decks relying on swarm strategies, amassing a high number of low-hp units from the start, but the Spore Sacs can still perform the that task quite well and are better for the final showdown.

The added infestation is just icing on the cake, making it a staple for every Infest deck for a forseeable long time, from now on.

Wow, harsh. Tyranids have some great cards. Termagant Spikers!

Sarcasm, right?

Sarcasm, right?

If the planet is already infested can you still sacrifice this unit to deal one damage to each enemy unit? Because you can't infest an already infested planet you can't complete the action

Thank you, that is what I thought.  I had two of these units at a planet, my opponent Ragnar was there with 6 2 cost units, the final big battle.  I trigger one spore sac, then the other even though the planet was now already infested.  It felt like cheating, but was an unusual situation.

This is actually one of the most fearsome units in the Tyranid pool, in my opinion. While early in the game it's rather weak, as soon as an opponent begins committing to major battles, these things become monstrously efficient and possess very few counters against the initiative. The infestation can also be very useful in recurring them via Spore Burst. While you obviously can't fire and recur in a single turn, there are tricks that can be used to bring them back and they are my most frequent target for a Spore Burst in the late game.

As a late game unit, I find they are more frightening than a Harpy.

The infestation can also be very useful in recurring them via Spore Burst. While you obviously can't fire and recur in a single turn, there are tricks that can be used to bring them back and they are my most frequent target for a Spore Burst in the late game.
 

Is one method. Predation tricks, Scything Hormagaunt or simply Spore Burst at planet one when your opponent is camping later down the line are other methods.