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I just don't get it. If you're willing to buy the 'fish, why not make it a full squad, maximising your markerlight/point ratio? I see a lot of lists with 6 man squads. Is there something magical about that number?

Rmeju

When playing my Farsight list, I want the pathfinders specifically for the Devilfish. The few troops inside don't really matter that much to me.

More smaller units lets you divvy up the fire at multiple targets. Do you really need 10 markerlight hits on a single unit?

Well, the max Pathfinder squad size is 8, and you're generally hitting 50% of the time, so four markerlight hits on a squad in cover will let you really whittle it down with either volume of fire or reduction of cover saves.

I almost always use 2 squads of 6 Pathfinders. Its my understanding that anyone can use the Pathfinder's Devilfish now, so I just stick some Kroot or FW in there and pretend it had nothing to do with the Pathfinders.

I find that a squad of 6 usually works well to get rid of the cover saves for a round of shooting from 1 unit, so I pair up with something, maybe a big beefy Broadside or Crisis PR/FB unit to destroy TMCs (I play 95% of my games vs. Nids or Eldar and they like their bigguns, and they like to hide them) or hordes of gribblies. Usually the extra 2 Pathfinders for a full squad is unnecessary for what I use them for.

Plus for some reason they are usually among the first targets, so keeping them a little cheaper works pretty well for me.

Iorek wrote:Well, the max Pathfinder squad size is 8, and you're generally hitting 50% of the time, so four markerlight hits on a squad in cover will let you really whittle it down with either volume of fire or reduction of cover saves.

Max Squad size is not 8.


When I run tau, I usally field.... 8. It gives just enough hits on average to boost the basalistic skill of one unit to BS4 and reduce the target units cover save to nil. In 5th I haven't really been using tau much. to perserve kill points I could see running 10, but then I'd have to dump the emp grenades... I think I'd rather live dangerously.

Check your Codex:Tau Empire. Max squad size for pathfinders is 8. Yes you can add 2 drones to the unit, but you still only have 8 pathfinders.

I only have 6 because the Shas'ui Blister (1) Pathfinder and shield drone, Tau Pathfinders Blister (3), and Tau Pathfinders with Rail Rifles Blister (2) so 6 in all.

none of these efforts matters, its still tau

I field pathfinders fully maxed with three railgun.

In every battle they have never lasted past turn 1 on account of my opponent expending every weapon until they are dead!

This does not bode well, me thinks I need to change the way i use them lol

In the Farsight camp now because my Tau Empire Gun line blows!!.. but I use 3x 6 man FW squads in Fish to run around and Smart Missle thing from behind cover and take objectives. to me the 60 point squad is a fish upgrade so it can take objectives. Farsight armies is all about suits and tanks. I use the FW as objective and fire support. Why make them 100pt upgrades?

hellsguardian316 wrote:I field pathfinders fully maxed with three railgun.

In every battle they have never lasted past turn 1 on account of my opponent expending every weapon until they are dead!

This does not bode well, me thinks I need to change the way i use them lol

This is part of the reason for taking 6. I find that 6 pathfinders are about as threatening to an opponent as 12 firewarriors, or 3 missile pod suits, or a devilfish, or a skyray, or 2 broadsides, or 20 kroot. Everything blends together and the opponent gains no benefit by focusing on any single aspect.

8 with 3 railrifles though, you may as well model them holding signs saying "shoot these first".

@ Moz
Great idea, the signs will help hide them from being shot

I love me some pathfinders.
I feel naked if I play without them.
I tend to only use them in 1750+pts games.
I feild two teams, ALL 8 pathfinders in each.
Six marker lights (average 3 hit, not bad).
Two with Rail Rifles, great against MEQs and Deamons.
I foolishly load all my tanks with seeker missils, two on my shooty-fish, and two on both my hammerheads.
Expensive, YES, but a great way to kill big nasty things and plague mariens and the rest of the nasty MEQs out there.
But I always bring 8, I have found it to be for the best.