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Just starting Tau. I am trying to figure out what units I need to be giving marker lights. I have been told to keep my troops cheap so I'm assuming that means no marker lights for the Fire Warriors. I hear that marker lights are a big part of the tau battle plan, I'm just trying to make sure I'm not missing something

Any advice welcome, Thanks

One word: Pathfinders.

Your instinct is good.

Markerlights in FW units tend to cost way more than they're worth, especially because you have to plan out your shooting to work in a specific order to maximize your lights, which can interfere with target priority planning as it pertains to the roles of different units OH GOD MY TINY ORK BRAIN CAN'T HANDLE IT ALL!!!!!

Best to just use PF's. Find something else to transport in their fish.

RustyNails wrote:Just starting Tau. I am trying to figure out what units I need to be giving marker lights. I have been told to keep my troops cheap so I'm assuming that means no marker lights for the Fire Warriors. I hear that marker lights are a big part of the tau battle plan, I'm just trying to make sure I'm not missing something

Any advice welcome, Thanks

you need to take a marker light every single time you have the option to do it. marker lights are what tau do.

Another option is to take a Markerdrone with stealthsuits, a networked markerlight is a heavy weapon so usually a unit with one cannot move and shoot. This makes them a fairly unpopular choice because mobility is important in a Tau army.

However, Stealthsuits are jump infantry with jetpacks so they have the relentless USR which means that they can move and are still able to fire heavy weapons. Now normally this has no effect on stealthsuits since they can't carry heavy weapons, but in the Tau army drones take on the unit type as the same unit that bought them.

So if you buy a Markerlight Drone for a Stealthsuit team that Drone becomes Jump Infantry with the Jetpack special rules (so it also gets relentless) and can move and shoot. This means that the entire unit can move, shoot (with the markerlight shooting first so the stealthsuits can benifit from it) and you will still have your full compliment of shots from your Stealthsuits. That is of course assuming you have stealthsuits.

Markerlights are very important for Tau, they can greatly improve the effectiveness of another squad. Ive just started collecting tau(only have 500pts) and in the test games ive played just 1 markerlight on a unit can result in a massive increase in firepower(fire warriors are great beneficiaries of this).

I would say a squad of 8 pathfinders is a good place to start, giving them a shield drone or two will increase their survivability as well.

I dont generally agree with a markerlight in a squad of FW's because you need as much shooting as possible from them.

Ironskull's tactic of taking a markerdrone in a stealth team is a good idea, but this can be expensive points wise.

I've just played a tournament with markerlights in FW units and liked it a lot, units of 12 with a 'ui with BK, ML and TL. However this does mean that you have your FW on foot and most players are against this.

My other sources are Sniper Drones and a Sky Ray but both have the problem of taking a heavy support slot. I don't enjoy Pathfinders a lot since any half decent player will kill them first, leaving you without ML support.

You can also play Tau without ML support but that does take away a lot of flexibility.

I personally use the drones on a stealth team, and since they can get the option to take an upgrade, you could put all your markerlight points into that 1 unit...meaning take 6 stealth suits, all with 2 marker drones, and get a team leader with a markerlight...so, your looking at 555-560, give or take the shas'vre upgrade for it. It's a big chunk of points, but for another 10 points you can get a multi tracker/target lock and pop 1 random marker light into another unit...


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and they're alot more survivable than pathfinders, because they are a hard to hit taget from range.

In the 5th ed with cover saves galore they do have their merit.

I hear a unit of 4PF do okay and the DF is used for a mobile firebase/cover.

Personally I dont use them I would rather my scoring unit of 6FWs in a Devilfish.

If you are meching up, I would buy two sqauds of Pathfinders.

If you are doing Static gunline and using a Shas'ui in the Fire Warriors, use a Target lock on the Shas'uis with the Markerlight. Have each Shas'ui light up a sqaud for another squad of Fire Warriors( Most of the time the Fire Warriors will shoot the same target, but even so, use markerlights from one Fire Warrior squad to aid the Other).

If you have Stealthsuits(or using Crisis Suits with TL Missle Pods) , Put Marker Drones on them.

Mix and match, see what wrks best with your playstyle. Still use Pathfinders if you are going Gunline, but don't buy Shas'uis with Markerlights if you are meching up since they would be inside a Devilfish for the whole game.

Skyrays are also a nice source of Markerlights. They have two Networked Markerlights and a Target Lock, meaning it can use its Markerlights on two different units, and you have the option of firing off the Seeker Missiles at those two different targets. Good for gunning down Rhinos and the like and then supporting Firewarriors in gunning down the Marines that fall out.