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I'm currently trying to come up with the build I want to use for my first army once I get home from Afghanistan. I want to start small and work up. This is the list I have come up with (Not totally sure it is legal, due to some questions about force organization). Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

HQ: 1 Shas'el XV8 Battlesuit Commander w/ 97 Points
Missle Pod
Plasma Rifle
Targeting Array
HW Multi-Tracker

Troops: 2 6 man Fire Warrior Teams w/ 120 Points
Plasma Rifles

Elites: 1 Shas'ui XV8 Battlesuit w/ 53 Points
Twin-linked Missile Pods
Targeting Array

1 Shas'ui XV8 Battlesuit w/ 50 Points
Burst Cannon
Missile Pod
Multi-Tracker

Heavy Support:
1 XV88 Broadside Battlesuit Team Leader w/ 90 Points
Targeting Array
HW Multi-Tracker

1 XV88 Broadside Battlesuit Team Leader w/ 90 Points
Targeting Array
HW Multi-Tracker

Nice looking list, though I dislike any twin-linked weapon systems on suits.

I'm 99% sure it's legal.

One thing to keep in mind with the Tau is that you will need as many shots as you can get at low point levels as the heavy support options that provide the really high intensity firepower don't become practical until the higher levels. With that in mind, at this level most if not all battlesuits should be using Plasma Rifle/Missile Pod with Multitracker. Setting them up as different units is a good thing for non killpoints games, but if you put them into units of two you can make one a shas'vre and then give hive a hardwired target lock so that he can shoot at a different target than the other battlesuit while still making sure that the unit is sort of resilient.

EDIT: Corrected an important error to lessen confusion.

Also, the Broadsides will be sitting ducks here, and their points could be used to bring in more battlesuits. Battlesuits with Plasma Rifle/Missile Pod Multitracker can kill heavy infantry and also destroy vehicles at range and get closer to use their plasma rifles to rip apart light vehicles. The best use of broadsides here would be against IC's, but the problem is that IC's are usually joined to squads so high intensity firepower will be allocated to the rest of the squad. A suit with twinlinked flamers would be a good bet for anti-horde capabilities, as you can deepstrike it and then fire or you can have it maneuver around terrain and use the shooting phase to run into terrain before you get close enough to use the flamers. A hammerhead with the railgun might work as anti-horde, but the problem is that it is a huge point sink at this level and most IC's could rip it apart as they are CQC monsters.

zinlakin wrote:Shas'el XV8 , Missle Pod, Plasma Rifle, Targeting Array, HW Multi-Tracker

This is what I run. A good HQ.

zinlakin wrote:x2 6 man Fire Warrior

In larger games, upgrade to a team leader and Bond, but at low levels, eh, not so much.

zinlakin wrote:XV8 Battlesuit, Twin-linked Missile Pods, Targeting Array
1 Shas'ui XV8 Battlesuit w/ Burst Cannon, Missile Pod, Multi-Tracker

A couple things:
1. TL MP+ is for popping transports. You're not really going to see more than one transport at 500 points. I'd just go with 2 FireStorms; the 2nd suit BC/MP/MT.
2. You are planning to run them as two separate units, yes?

zinlakin wrote:
1 XV88 Broadside Battlesuit Team Leader w/ 90 Points
Targeting Array, HW Multi-Tracker

1 XV88 Broadside Battlesuit Team Leader w/ 90 Points
Targeting Array, HW Multi-Tracker

B-sides are anti-Armor, and you won't need them until 1k point games. I wouldn't start with them.

FireWarriors: Really fragile, so they need a Transport, and the Devilfish is one of the best in the game. Here's a good starter list:

HQ - FireKnife, as you wrote
FW unit with Devilfish - SMS, TA, MT, DisPod
kroot of FW unit
FireStorms

Your best bet, once back from Afghanistan (Happy Memorial Day to you), is a BattleForce box,

http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat140002&prodId=prod1060322&rootCatGameStyle=

and the HQ Crisis box and another two suits. $150 or so, depending on if you buy through ebay or the Warstore.

Drop the TA on the twin link MP, and replace with a flamer - cheaper, and you really won't miss the TA that much.

Two broadsides is at least one broadside too many for this point level. Drop one of them and bolster your FW squads, since you don't have transports for them (or bolster one and buy a DF for the other.)

Three FireKnives have nearly the same cost as four FireStorms. Or two FKs is slightly less than three FSs. FStorms have a safer range and dramatically more dice. Given the PR's hobbling of 5th Edition's abundant Cover Saves, the FK is not the Bees' Kneez anymore.


So when you say

MarkingLight wrote:One thing to keep in mind with the Tau is that you will need as many shots as you can get at low point levels a .... With that in mind, at this level most if not all battlesuits should be using Plasma Rifle/Missile Pod with Multitracker.

the config you ought to be advocating is the BC/MP/MT, FireStorm.


zinlakin:
When you get to building your suits, I advise to use RareEarthMagnets for your first 4 XV8 models. The articles on how to do it are out there, notably AdvancedTauTactica.com. You put the REMs in the wep mounts and suit sockets so you can change weps between games. I wouldn't bother after the 4th suit though. I did it for my first 6. Then I picked up a couple more suits, and just glued two as FireKnives and two as FireStorms.

When does your tour end? PM me when you get back to the states. I'd be happy to help you build up your army.

Sweet, thanks for all of the advice. My tour over here ends in about 2 months (August). Then we will redeploy to Bragg and hopefully I can get started in Warhammer 40k. I already bought the starter set (Black Reach?) and the tau codex and brought the rule book and codex over here so I could study up. One thing I was wondering is if the devilfish counts as a dedicated transport for firewarriors. It says 12 or less may ride in one, but it didn't use the word dedicated, so I wasn't sure if it would count on my force organization as another troop slot (although I still have 4 slots open, so it wouldn't matter in this case). I'll save all of these posts to my thumb drive so I can take it back to the tent and re-do my list. Thanks again for all of the help.

If you're really worried about being able to deal with horde armies, take an airbursting frag launcher. Wipes the floor with orks, guard, and tiny bugs.

The DF is indeed a dedicated transport - taking it as a FoC slot isn't even a possibility, so no worries there.

A few buying tips for you when you start getting models:

A Skyray box has 100% of the parts that come in the Hammerhead box, plus an extra sprue to make a Skyray - and they're the same price.

Forgeworld Broadsides are way snazzier than Gamesworkshop plastic/metal Broadsides, and depending on exchange rate, are only a buck or two more in price.

Suits are your workhorses. If you're not sure what to get, the answer is almost always "add a suit".

Pathfinders are basically Firewarriors without shoulder and leg armor. A few other differences, and different poses, but I know some people don't mess with the actual pathfinder models (I think they're worth it, but I'm big on the visual of my army).

Shield drones can either be purchased as an upgrade blister, or simply made from shield generators from crisis suits glued onto a drone - they really don't look much different from official ones on the table at all.

zinlakin wrote:... One thing I was wondering is if the devilfish counts as a dedicated transport for firewarriors. It says 12 or less may ride in one, but it didn't use the word dedicated,

"Dedicated" only means that the unit that bought it, *may* be the ones inside it at deployment, but that'll never be a problem.

When a player gets pathfinders, he/she immediately intends the mandatory Devilfish's use for a troop of FWs. You want the PFs outside and ready to use their MarkerLights. So, you have the FW troop unit deployed nearby and have them embark on your turn. No biggy.

zinlakin wrote:so I wasn't sure if it would count on my force organization as another troop slot

AFAIK, the only transport that counts in a FoC slot, is an eldar Falcon, SM Land Raider or variant (all Heavies). All else, Wave Serpents, D'fish, rhinos, etc. do not occupy FoC slots, nor do Mycetic Spores and Drop Pods.

So, you *could* run a tau army with 6 d'fish, each loaded with a FW troop unit. I wouldn't recommend it.