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So, I recently got into tau, and saw their leaders are very weak.

So, why do you use tau leaders, only 'cuz of their Leadership?

There's no reason to ever put an Ethereal on the table. It might just be the worst 50 points you could spend in the entire game...

Just remember, it could always get worse, it could be Aun'va. Worst waste of points and space in the galaxy. He costs 4x more and is WORSE! (almost)

Double post!

why they send their political leaders, or whatever they consider them to be, into battle is beyond me.

and for a culture that hates hand to hand combat, why do they go to battle with an honour blade? They're not even good at it. All they do is turn your army into angsty teens who run off the table.

I agree, also the rule that comes into play when they die is silly as it gives the tau a bonus in CC, whereas in the Codex it specifically states that:
"The Fire Caste is capable of battle rage and there have been occasions where the death of a especially beloved Ethereal has enraged an army beyond endurance. This does not result in them rushing into hand-to-hand combat. (NOT being the operative word, clear fluffy rules error here in my opinion) Instead they advance steadily while pouring an unceasing volume of fire into the enemy. Such an attack will only be halted by the expenditure of all ammunition" - Quote from the Tau Codex.

Aside from that, the Crisis Suit Commmanders are useful for a variety of things such as long range support and blowing up tanks etc

Farsight is worth taking.

You can make a Farsight bomb out of him with 7 suits that do real nastiness. His power weapon catches people by surprise.

Dastardly Dave wrote:I agree, also the rule that comes into play when they die is silly as it gives the tau a bonus in CC, whereas in the Codex it specifically states that:
"The Fire Caste is capable of battle rage and there have been occasions where the death of a especially beloved Ethereal has enraged an army beyond endurance. This does not result in them rushing into hand-to-hand combat. (NOT being the operative word, clear fluffy rules error here in my opinion) Instead they advance steadily while pouring an unceasing volume of fire into the enemy. Such an attack will only be halted by the expenditure of all ammunition" - Quote from the Tau Codex.

Aside from that, the Crisis Suit Commmanders are useful for a variety of things such as long range support and blowing up tanks etc

Hmm. Seems like they should NOT fall back and all rapid fire weapons should becaome assault 2 or something.

Dashofpepper wrote:Farsight is worth taking.

You can make a Farsight bomb out of him with 7 suits that do real nastiness. His power weapon catches people by surprise.

What is a Farsight bomb?

Grotzooka wrote:
What is a Farsight bomb?

It's a large unit containing Farsight and 7 bodyguards with different weapons/wargear to abuse wound allocation. It may seem like a good idea but it cost too many points and is easily tided up in assault even with Farsights slight cc punch.

sniperjolly wrote:Double post!

I thought you were just stressing just how crappy Aun'va is.

To the OP, there is no way I'm gonna take an Ethereal. No WAY, unless their rules change big time. I have bought a few Ethereal's for collection sake but their rules are terrible. If they made it where they give +1 elite or heavy, or something similar then I'm down. Or maybe if you take an Ethereal you get access to super special Tau units but still keep their stupid rules, I would field them.

Don't Tau get really confused and disorientated when an Ehteral dies? I remember there's a story in the IG Codex about a Ratling sniper shooting an Etheral at the head of a Tau mechanised column and the column withdrew... without even having fired a shot.

Doombot001 wrote:[To the OP, there is no way I'm gonna take an Ethereal. No WAY, unless their rules change big time. I have bought a few Ethereal's for collection sake but their rules are terrible. If they made it where they give +1 elite or heavy, or something similar then I'm down. Or maybe if you take an Ethereal you get access to super special Tau units but still keep their stupid rules, I would field them.

I have to agree. I plan to buy one for the sake of having it for the collection, but its current rules are way too much of a hindrance on the battlefield. Sure, having an elite squad of Fire Warriors is kind of neat, but it's honestly way too risky to have him there, where a single shot could mean half your army is fleeing in terror. Besides, fluff-wise the Tau wouldn't even keep their political leaders on the battlefield in the first place. IIRC, they're one of the only races (Eldar is another, and possibly Dark Eldar) that actually has their squad leaders normally wear helmets. Heck, for years I had no idea what Tau looked like (Due to lack of codex) because every one of their models in Dawn of War are wearing helmets, with the exception of the Ethereal.

Commander Endova wrote:

Dastardly Dave wrote:I agree, also the rule that comes into play when they die is silly as it gives the tau a bonus in CC, whereas in the Codex it specifically states that:
"The Fire Caste is capable of battle rage and there have been occasions where the death of a especially beloved Ethereal has enraged an army beyond endurance. This does not result in them rushing into hand-to-hand combat. (NOT being the operative word, clear fluffy rules error here in my opinion) Instead they advance steadily while pouring an unceasing volume of fire into the enemy. Such an attack will only be halted by the expenditure of all ammunition" - Quote from the Tau Codex.

Aside from that, the Crisis Suit Commmanders are useful for a variety of things such as long range support and blowing up tanks etc

Hmm. Seems like they should NOT fall back and all rapid fire weapons should becaome assault 2 or something.

Now that would be a rule that actually made sense lol

I'll ask Vasarto, he plays Tau