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Hey all,

I like the look of Mech Tau, and I was wondering what you guys thought of this list.

HQ
Shas'El (Plasma Rifle, Missile Pod, Multi-Tracker, Hard-Wired Target Lock) - 94 pts

Elites
3 XV8 Crisis Suits (Plasma Rifle, Missle Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 186
3 XV8 Crisis Suits (Plasma Rifle, Missle Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 186

Troops
6 Fire Warriors with Devilfish Transport (Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker, Target Array) - 180
6 Fire Warriors -60
12 Kroot - 84

Fast Attack
5 Pathfinders - 60
Devilfish (Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker, Target Array) -120

Heavy Support
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175

Piranhas + Broadsides (Extra railgun goodness) seem to be the things I'm lacking that seem to be relatively effective (as is the general consensus amongst other lists) What do you guys think?

thanks in advance!

You have 3 scoring units that total 24 models which are weak as hell, one of which being mobile?

Honestly don't even bother with 12 kroot. Any half decent close combat unit will tear it to pieces. Kroot either need to be a big enough unit to bog down a good assault force or points spent elsewhere.
I'd probably switch up the crisis suits' weaponry, maybe give them more of a variety. Horde defense seems lacking, so a flamer/burst cannon in each unit wouldn't be a bad idea.

PS Props on the name.

Hi

I think it's safe to assume that the other six fire warriors get into the pathfinder's devilfish immediately, and most likely the kroot always outflank to reduce their exposure to fire.

I guess that the pathfinders are supposed to boost the plasma fire to a reasonable BS? - if that is the case, I don't think it will work. With so few targets for anti-infantry fire, they will die quickly.

If you can find 10 more points, drop the pathfinders, and add the team leader upgrade and 1 marker drones to each unit, asit may be a better bet than the pathfinders to find efficiencies.

The Warfish and Railheads seem pretty standard, although target locks on the Railheads would probably be helpful.

Cheers,
Carlos the Craven

Marker Drones suck IMHO, 30 points for a markerlight? No thanks.
Some things that might mesh well with this list:
Drop one railhead, add 2 broadsides in it's place. They aren't as mobile, but they're still pretty tough and have more railgun-y firepower.
It also frees up 25 points, and for that much you can drop the kroot also, giving you 109 points to play with,
If you make one squad of crisis suits Deathrains instead of Fireknives, you can free up 27 more points for 136 total.
with which I would add another warfish for your FWs.
16 more points to play with. 1 more pathfinder.

punkisntdeadyet wrote:Hey all,

I like the look of Mech Tau, and I was wondering what you guys thought of this list.

HQ
Shas'El (Plasma Rifle, Missile Pod, Multi-Tracker, Hard-Wired Target Lock) - 94 pts

Elites
3 XV8 Crisis Suits (Plasma Rifle, Missle Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 186
3 XV8 Crisis Suits (Plasma Rifle, Missle Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 186

Troops
6 Fire Warriors with Devilfish Transport (Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker, Target Array) - 180
6 Fire Warriors -60
12 Kroot - 84

Fast Attack
5 Pathfinders - 60
Devilfish (Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker, Target Array) -120

Heavy Support
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175
Hammerhead (Railgun, Smart Missile System, Disruption Pod, Multi-Tracker) - 175

Piranhas + Broadsides (Extra railgun goodness) seem to be the things I'm lacking that seem to be relatively effective (as is the general consensus amongst other lists) What do you guys think?

thanks in advance!

you need far more troops than you have remember hammerheads only have 1 wound (so to speak) and 1 shot, dropping one h/hd and taking fire warriors will gain you 12+ wounds and shots to match plus more scoring units .....kroot are soo over rated never seen them last anything worth shouting about in combat which for a combat unit ain't good ...tool up your pathfinders with railguns and don't dismiss adding drones to your battlesuits (it effectively adds extra wounds to them making them more survivable

)

I think your troops are allright though I would try and juggle the points around to get two units of pathfinders and drop the devilfish from the firewarriors. Then hold the fire warriors in reserve and when they come on put them into the pathfinders devilfish and hide them away from the combat.

Just because 5th needs troops to capture objectives does not mean you need lots of them... It just means you need to keep them alive, which holding them in reserve and then using tau vehicles in a sensible way is good enough to do.

I would be a bit nervous about only having the 3 railguns, maybe switch to some melta's on the suits? Or again try to juggle points to get some piranhas in there... Or switch out a hammerhead for a broadside team maybe. Dunno, I guess it really depends how much heavy mech you expect to face.

I'd take 3x 10 Fire Warriors in Devilfishes as a starting point. Kroot are weak so that I wouldn't consider them.
Start from there to fill out the HS and Elite slots.

Hey everyone,

Thanks for all the responses. Appreciate all the comments/criticisms I get.

@wustenfex: I agree. The Kroot were kind of just used to eat up points I had leftover at the end. I didn't have enough to add more suits so I just threw them in for extra troops/bodies. The plan with them is either to infiltrate them into a forest and use them as bait/yard stick (the more time spent shooting at them leaves more time for my harder units to fire back). Although fire warriors I have found aren't the deadliest troops in the game either. Although Strength 5 AP 5 shots are pretty good, with my devilfish I get about 7 shots at 18'', and a bit more mobility(and survivability).

@Leotilt: That's actually not a bad idea. Do you really need two squads of pathfinders? I guess for the extra 'fish, but they are quite costly. I figure with 5 (possibly bump them to 8) I can generate enough markerlights to pick off tanks/hard stuff one at a time. And definitely concerned about the 3 Hammerheads as the only source of rail gun. I also want to keep the enemy pretty far away, and the melta option seems to bring them a little too close. Maybe switch out a hammerhead for two piranhas?

@darkangels_rule: Yeah it is a little under-trooped, but it's much easier to squash 12 firewarriors than a hammerhead with a d-pod. most heavy weapons that can hurt tanks only have 1 shot. The disruption pod should give me reasonable defence against any of that madness. The kroot, like I mentioned earlier were just to eat up points/infiltrate into cover so they can get attacked. Also defend against any deep striking jerks.

@Canonness Rory: Yeah I may end up dropping the kroot to bulk up the pathfinders/ add in the broadsides. Do you think Pirahnas will be better or just go for the railgun goodness?

@carlosthecraven: Yup, that was the plan. Although I did consider the danger the pathfinders were in, being the only infantry out running about. I guess the kroot fulfill that nook? acting as a secondary target (in cover and always going to ground).

I love pathfinders, they are godly in 5th. I would prefere having two units because of redundancy, if one gets wiped out you still have the other, I hate things in singles and people eventually click on and then they become fire magnets. Also the synergy with two minimised firewarrior squads and fish sharing is nice and efficient

I think you are right about the suits and keeping stand off with them so for me I would be leaning towards dropping a hammerhead and taking pirahnas. I like fast attack skimmers setup for anti tank (love speeders in SM too) since they are like disposable surgical tools for removing pesky threats. A lot fo people have a big downer on these types of units in general so I guess it's a YMMV thing.

Kroot are a mixed bag... I keep flip flopping my views on them. I love them as speedhump units that buy me more shooting but I dunno, points get tight and I keep thinking I can play without em but when I use them I love that ability to hug cover or to suicide block an assault unit for a turn. *shrug*

Although with Piranhas, they have an effective kill range of about 18'', which can either be used to scare off assaulting Land Raiders (although I doubt this) or any rhino rushes (combined with the other arms).

I assume you use them as yardsticks to keep people away from your center, although the third hammerhead provides redundancy and extra templates, which is always a plus. AND they are pretty hard to squash, with the D-POD and relatively tough front armour. Although the two piranhas seem like a cool option.

I really wish I could go up to a table with Tau on it and not see 3 Hammerheads.

You need more troops and your suits are way to expensive.

Go Plasma/Burst Cannon on 3, then missile pod/burst cannon on the other 3. Way cheaper this way.




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I really wish I could go up to a table with Tau on it and not see 3 Hammerheads.

You need more troops and your suits are way to expensive.

Go Plasma/Burst Cannon on 3, then missile pod/burst cannon on the other 3. Way cheaper this way.

@MauleedlovesYakeface: Plasma/Burst is a weird combo. Any reason for this particular pairing? It would take away from being able to take down light vehicles (which is what my army is lacking). Missile Pod/Burst is a combo I've seen before, but then my army can't deal with terminators/anything with 2+ saves. The plasma let's me peg them from 24'', before pounding them with the rapid fire at 12''.

I figure with the two crisis suits [edit: teams!] with the same loadout, they can both take down pesky rhinos and deal with those ubiquitous 2+ saves. Although nothing really stops the TH/SS combo effectively.

The Hammerheads are just too good! No way I'd leave them behind

I think the list is pretty similar to what we've been running locally, with our Tau players. I'd try and fit in piranhas if it were me, b/c they're good for getting in the way, slowing the opponent down from getting in your face too soon. That seems to be my biggest 'thing that gets me killed' earlier than desired.

I think broadsides for 1 hammerhead is good, but I also think all mech is good, so really up to you there.

The reason is cost and fire for affect. Your get 4-5 shots with the Plasma combo and 5 with the Missile combo. Believe me when you face a horde army you'll like the extra fire power.

Also for light armour you can still use Str 5 weapons. Rhino's and Speeders can be brought down with Str 5 weapons.

It also lets you use both choices differently. You can throw your Plasma's at 2+ guys and keep them close to the target. You can also use the missiles as vehicle hunters and keep them at distance.

The main part is that they are cheaper.

@MauleedlovesYakeface: Don't you think the three hammerheads dropping the big Strength 6 AP 4 templates is enough anti-infantry?

I don't think Strength 5 is good enough to go about dropping Rhinos/Speeders. With Rhinos the best you can hope for is a glance, which means about half the time you do hit you're just stopping it shooting. Speeders are a little more susceptible to Strength 5, but still not enough to warrant those shots. I'll save the Strength 5 shots for infantry, and I'll get 7 shots from my Devilfish(14 from both), so they can fulfill that nook.

I'm not entirely sold on the idea of these two loadouts. While it is a pretty good way to conserve points so I can add in the Piranhas or other goodies, I think the fact that I can use both suit teams at 24" gives me
a) redundancy
b) effective combination against TEQ, MEQ, and Light Vehicles (and in a pinch AV12 vehicles)