First Tau List

Oy vey, with the rules technicalaties...

Makes my brain hurt...

Here is a list I have been using with my Tau but isnt fully painted yet but does well vs mech armies and other hard lists:

1850 Pts - Tau Empire Roster - Unnamed

HQ: Commander Shas'el (1#, 105 Pts)
1 Commander Shas'el @ 105 Pts
Hard-wired Blacksun Filter; Hard-wired Multi-tracker; Hard-wired Target Lock; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Targeting Array

HQ: Commander Shas'el (1#, 105 Pts)
1 Commander Shas'el @ 105 Pts
Hard-wired Blacksun Filter; Hard-wired Multi-tracker; Hard-wired Target Lock; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Targeting Array

Elite: Crisis Battlesuit (3#, 186 Pts)
3 Crisis Battlesuit @ 186 Pts
Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker

Fast Attack: Pathfinder ( 197 Pts)
6 Pathfinder @ 197 Pts
Markerlight (x6); Pulse Carbine (x6)
1 Devilfish @ [125] Pts
Burst Cannon; Smart Missile System; Marker Beacon; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock; Targeting Array

Fast Attack: Pathfinder ( 197 Pts)
6 Pathfinder @ 197 Pts
Markerlight (x6); Pulse Carbine (x6)
1 Devilfish @ [125] Pts
Burst Cannon; Smart Missile System; Marker Beacon; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock; Targeting Array

Troops: Fire Warrior (9#, 90 Pts)
9 Fire Warrior @ 90 Pts
Pulse Rifle (x9)

Troops: Fire Warrior (9#, 90 Pts)
9 Fire Warrior @ 90 Pts
Pulse Rifle (x9)

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Heavy Support: Hammerhead Gunship (1#, 170 Pts)
1 Hammerhead Gunship @ 170 Pts
Railgun; Two Burst Cannons; Targeting Array; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock

Heavy Support: Hammerhead Gunship (1#, 170 Pts)
1 Hammerhead Gunship @ 170 Pts
Railgun; Two Burst Cannons; Targeting Array; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock

Heavy Support: Broadside Battlesuit (3#, 240 Pts)
3 Broadside Battlesuit @ 240 Pts
Twin linked Railgun; Smart Missile System; Advanced Stabilisation System

Looks nasty, I like it. Bring it down to Miami.

I don't see what's so nasty about this list. I'd love to see it in action. I like that fact you use kroot (they rock), but it seems you have a lot of pathfinders, but not enough decent shooting to follow through with. Aside from that, what role do the Kroot have in this type of army? 1 for bubble wrap around the broadsides and 2 for infil/outflnk? I'm very interested in seeing how this army is used.

It is a very well rounded list in the hands of a very accomplished general. Such a thing is quite deadly. Pathfinders make his key units hit like jesus. I too would like to see it played to uncover all of it's secrets.

I'm gonna have to disagree with you. It is not a well rounded list. 5 crisis suits in a tau list isn't enough. Fire Warriors are LOL'z. The Heavy support options are the only thing in this list that I would be fearful of. I like kroot, but 45 kroot? Have 3 heavy flamers in your army? Gratz you eliminated 3 kroot units. The pathfinders don't have effect on kroot and the Crisis suit's can only go up to BS 4 with leaders attached. You'll get an average of 3 marker hit's per squad so 6 a turn. Assuming no cover is on what ever get's ML What exactly do you have shooting at the target? Tanks are getting raped, crap troops are getting rocked, but what about everything in between? High toughness troops, bikes, MC, dreads, Terminators, etc... Like I said, I'd have to see this in action against a competent general.

Can you make a better Tau list?

WC_Brian wrote:Can you make a better Tau list?

What points level, sir?

How about 1850, like Hod's list?

1850 Pts - Tau Empire Roster - Hybrid Tau 1850

HQ: Commander Shas'el (1#, 87 pts)
1 Commander Shas'el @ 87 pts (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)

Elite: Crisis Battlesuit (3#, 186 pts)
1 Crisis Battlesuit @ 186 pts (Crisis Battlesuit; Crisis Battlesuit; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)

Elite: Crisis Battlesuit (3#, 186 pts)
1 Crisis Battlesuit @ 186 pts (Crisis Battlesuit; Crisis Battlesuit; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)

Elite: Crisis Battlesuit (3#, 186 pts)
1 Crisis Battlesuit @ 186 pts (Crisis Battlesuit; Crisis Battlesuit; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)
1 Crisis Battlesuit (Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker)

Troops: Fire Warrior (6#, 60 pts)
6 Fire Warrior @ 60 pts (Pulse Rifle x6)

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (17#, 112 pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 112 pts (Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle x10)
7 Kroot Hounds

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (17#, 112 pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 112 pts (Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle x10)
7 Kroot Hounds

Fast Attack: Pathfinder (9#, 216 pts)
8 Pathfinder @ 216 pts (Markerlight x8; Pulse Carbine x8)
1 Devilfish (Burst Cannon; Smart Missile System; Marker Beacon; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Targeting Array)

Fast Attack: Piranha Light Skimmer (4#, 150 pts)
2 Piranha Light Skimmer @ 150 pts (Fusion Blaster x2; Gun Drones x4; Disruption Pod x1; Target Lock x1; Targeting Array x2)
2 Gun Drones (Twin Linked Pulse Carbines)

Heavy Support: Hammerhead Gunship (1#, 180 pts)
1 Hammerhead Gunship @ 180 pts (Railgun; Smart Missile System; Targeting Array; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock)

Heavy Support: Hammerhead Gunship (1#, 180 pts)
1 Hammerhead Gunship @ 180 pts (Railgun; Smart Missile System; Targeting Array; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear; Multi-Tracker; Target Lock)

Heavy Support: Broadside Battlesuit (4#, 195 pts)
1 Broadside Battlesuit @ 195 pts (Team Leader; Twin linked Railgun; Broadside Battlesuit; Smart Missile System; Hard-wired Drone Controller; Shield Drone; Shield Drone; Advanced Stabilisation System)
1 Broadside Battlesuit (Twin linked Railgun; Smart Missile System; Advanced Stabilisation System)
1 Shield Drone (Shield Generator)
1 Shield Drone (Shield Generator)

Ripped straight from here : http://www.yesthetruthhurts.com/2008/09/my-tau-empire.html

Adjusted for 1850 and viola'. Tau are my first army and I toyed with different builds, but have had the greatest success with this build.
I've tried fish 'oh fury in 5th. Doesn't work nearly as well as in fourth. Kroot are sweet and I give much props to hod for having them in his army, but they fold like cheap suits in h2h with decent troops and flamers. So , imo , he has too many. They are annoying as hell to move when in cover, but once something get's there it's pretty much over. Maybe in Hods area his army would rape, but i think it would have more to do with him as a general than with his army being 'ard.

Well just speaking comparatively...

1) He has 5 Scoring units, 2 are mobile in Fish. You have 3 with 1 being mobile. Your army is probably much better in KP missions. It is definitely more of a kill the other guy list.

2) It is much easier to remove your Pathfinder support than his, and you need it to a greater degree.

4) People are ready for Nob Bikers, it stands to reason they are ready to Instant Death your Suits with shooting. Heavy use of suits without 4th edition area terrain doesn't seem like a great idea. I really don't like things that hit on a 4, they are very unreliable. So I see suits as something to support the army as opposed to the basis of the army.

From my poor experience, drop firewarriors except maybe two minimum in devilfish and maybe borrow pathfinder's. Grab a ton of Kroot infiltrating in cover, they are a bitch to get out. Load up on hounds too, they will rip orks to shreds. It is a cheap scoring unit that will take at least two to three turns to kill. Stealth suits suk and are too expensive, grab mostly crisis suits with PR and MP's. Good range and ap 2 shots. Drones on leaders help with dmg. Most important seems to be to max out your heavy slots with Hammerheads and broadsides. My mistake was relying on Stealthsuits since Joel didn't have any in stock for awhile. Now I got very jaded with them and threw my whole Tau army on ebay. Oh, well.

It is really hard to win with Tau because there are a couple of axioms in 40k list design:

1) It's good to have a strong assault unit.

2) If you rely on shooting make sure you are hitting on 3's, not 4's.

3) It's good if people can't easily blow up your stuff.

Tau fail at the first two in a big way.

Anyone try a list like this? No problems with armor, that's for sure. Is the ASS on the Broadsides worth it when you can almost always see everything thanks to TLOS? It seems like if you can't see something it is a matter of height and not angle that is the problem.

1850 Pts - Tau Empire Roster - 1850 Tau

Heavy Support: Broadside Battlesuit (5#, 275 Pts)
1 Broadside Battlesuit @ 275 Pts
Team Leader; Twin linked Railgun; Broadside Battlesuit; Smart Missile System; Bonding Knife; Hard-wired Drone Controller; Hard-wired Target Lock; Shield Drone; Shield Drone; Targeting Array
2 Broadside Battlesuit @ [150] Pts
Twin linked Railgun; Smart Missile System; Targeting Array
1 Shield Drone @ [15] Pts
Shield Generator
1 Shield Drone @ [15] Pts
Shield Generator

Heavy Support: Broadside Battlesuit (5#, 275 Pts)
1 Broadside Battlesuit @ 275 Pts
Team Leader; Twin linked Railgun; Broadside Battlesuit; Smart Missile System; Bonding Knife; Hard-wired Drone Controller; Hard-wired Target Lock; Shield Drone; Shield Drone; Targeting Array
2 Broadside Battlesuit @ [150] Pts
Twin linked Railgun; Smart Missile System; Targeting Array
1 Shield Drone @ [15] Pts
Shield Generator
1 Shield Drone @ [15] Pts
Shield Generator

Heavy Support: Sniper Drone Team (12#, 240 Pts)
1 Sniper Drone Team @ 240 Pts
Drone Controller; Networked Markerlight; Pulse Pistol; Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array; Sniper Drone Team; Sniper Drone Team
3 Sniper Drones @ [0] Pts
Rail Rifle and Target Lock (x3); Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array
1 Sniper Drone Team @ [80] Pts
Drone Controller; Networked Markerlight; Pulse Pistol; Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array
3 Sniper Drones @ [0] Pts
Rail Rifle and Target Lock (x3); Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array
1 Sniper Drone Team @ [80] Pts
Drone Controller; Networked Markerlight; Pulse Pistol; Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array
3 Sniper Drones @ [0] Pts
Rail Rifle and Target Lock (x3); Stealth Field Generator; Targeting Array

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Troops: Kroot Carnivore Squad (15#, 100 Pts)
10 Kroot Carnivore Squad @ 100 Pts
Add Kroot Hounds; Kroot Rifle (x10)
5 Kroot Hounds @ [30] Pts

Elite: Crisis Battlesuit (3#, 186 Pts)
3 Crisis Battlesuit @ 186 Pts
Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Multi-Tracker

Fast Attack: Pathfinder (11#, 181 Pts)
8 Pathfinder @ 181 Pts
Markerlight (x8); Pulse Carbine (x8)
1 Devilfish @ [85] Pts
Burst Cannon; Gun Drones; Marker Beacon; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear
2 Gun Drones @ [0] Pts
Twin Linked Pulse Carbines

Fast Attack: Pathfinder (11#, 181 Pts)
8 Pathfinder @ 181 Pts
Markerlight (x8); Pulse Carbine (x8)
1 Devilfish @ [85] Pts
Burst Cannon; Gun Drones; Marker Beacon; Disruption Pod; Landing Gear
2 Gun Drones @ [0] Pts
Twin Linked Pulse Carbines

Troops: Fire Warrior (6#, 60 Pts)
6 Fire Warrior @ 60 Pts
Pulse Carbine (x6)

Troops: Fire Warrior (6#, 60 Pts)
6 Fire Warrior @ 60 Pts
Pulse Carbine (x6)

HQ: Commander Shas'el (1#, 92 Pts)
1 Commander Shas'el @ 92 Pts
Hard-wired Multi-tracker; Missile Pod; Plasma Rifle; Target Lock

Total Roster Cost: 1850

Eh, it seems like the only competitive unit Tau have are Broadsides.

2 units of broadsides work decent

Yeah it seems like the pop vehicles really well but then aren't so hot against troops. Poor Tau, I'm glad I sold you.

5th edition raped the Tau, so much of what worked well for them is out the window.

i am a big believer in tau winning tournys (cause i did it)......this is what you do boss first off you need to drop your fish of fury tactics they will not work so well......tau philosophy "keep your distance from the enemy so do it!!!

5 squads of 8 firewarriors bonded and markerliht
2 squads of 6 pathfinders with their devilfish......remember after first turn the trans can pickup anyone
3 broadsides seperated
2 squads of 3 crisis plasma and rockets
and your big boss cyclic with airburst
around here should be 1500
and dont play kroot i found them to be a waste they are their to die not that great to be honest