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Im restarting my tau army from scratch, and I need to know how to use tau correctly. I want to have 6 crisis xv8s and 6 stealth suits, I no how to use the stealth suits, but what about the xv8s? I want to fill up all 6 troops slots with fire warriors, but what should I do with them? Can they be as effective as crisis suits? I would like to use piranahs, but they're too expensive in both money and points so Im going to use pathfinders, would you recomend rail rifles or pulse carbines? I think the only thing I know how to use are broadsides, and stealth suits. I might need some help with a commander loadout, and some field tactics. thanks!!!

OK, a quick review -

HEADQUARTERS - These suits are your friends. Use them in one man teams (maybe with a shield drone or two) and preferably in a strong role, possibly a suicide suit (two fusion blasters, multi-tracker). I love them in that role with pathfinders. Ignore the Ethereal.

ELITES - I still prefer suits in one man teams, and I prefer using crisis suits over stealth. Mainly because Burst Cannon range is not great and suffers from night fighting a little (and does nothings against Barrage), plus the T and W on Crisis suits are +1 for not many points more.

TROOPS - Fire Warriors are your friend, and against non-armored troops, kroot make fine assault troops (the new FAQ gives them two CCW, 3 attacks on the charge). Fire Warriors combined with markerlights can tear units to shreds.

FAST - On Pathfinders take the Markerlights so as to still have the markerlight, if you want the rail rifle, you can buy sniper drone teams. Ignore Vespids unless your group plays Marines all the time or you really love them for some reason. Piranha's should be ignored, for the most part. you have cheaper, more survivable anti-vehicle.

HEAVY - Your best slot, which is a shame since you have 4 good choices. Hammerheads are multi-taskers, but Broadsides get more shots (with squads), more reliable shots (twin-linked), and can take a drone to help protect them (even Marker Drones!). The Sky Ray is a great source of Seekers, but there are better ways to do it (stick missiles on your hammerheads and devilfish transports and use pathfinders to light up targets). I dislike Seekers, but that's me.

General Strategy (mine, at least) - Use Fire Warriors for long range support, with Pathfinders right behind them to take off cover and increase BS. Keep the Devilfish handy for screening and getting Fire Warriors out of the fire when assault gets too close. Use Suits as they are intended and tear vehicles to shreds with your railguns.

thats pretty much what i was thinking, but i dont see crisis suits as a threat in one man squads. the stealth suits can ifinltrate behind enemy lines to act as a distraction. so If the enemy is melle they will have to footslog through 18 inches of burst cannon hell , and then assault through cover, if they make it..... I want a bunch of broadsides, but 35 bucks a pop is a bit much.

In similar fashion to TheRedArmy's post:

HQ: I usually go with the Shas'el and add a targeting array. Other wargear can be hard-wired, and you still get BS 5 for 15 points less than a Shas'o. Weapon loadout is up to you; a lot of people use Plasma Rifle + Missile Pod, but I prefer Plasma Rifle + Cyclic Ion Blaster. All depends on personal preference. Just don't take the bodyguards; they're more expensive than the suits in the elite slot. Also, avoid the special characters AND all ethereals.

Troops: Fire Warriors are ok troops, and their S 5 weapons are a big plus. You can have them sit back and shoot, but I've found them a little fragile. I prefer to put them in Devilfish and then use Fish of Fury. Drop your Fire Warriors about 11-12" from the enemy, with the devilfish in-between as an assault blocker. Have the D-fish on the higher flying mount so you can shoot under it, and watch a 12 man squad unleash 24 shots of S 5 goodness. I don't use Kroot, but I've heard mixed reviews. They can apparently be used as a fairly effective 'bubblewrap' to buy your shooty stuff an extra turn. I'd try them with a proxy first if you're interested.

Elites: Crisis Suits all the way. Stealth suits are generally overcosted, although some people can use them effectively. I've never been able to, so I stick to the more competitive (IMHO) crisis suits. There are a few standard patterns, but what you want to use is up to you:

Fireknife: Plasma Rifle/Missile Pod/Multitracker- These are good general use suits. They are equally good for killing MEQs/Terminators (especially within 12" for the rapid fire on the Plasma) and light vehicles. They are a bit on the expensive side, but IMHO you get what you pay for.

Deathrain: Twin-Linked Missile Pods/Targeting Array- Good for taking down transports and Armor 4+ or worse. Not the best vs. power armor or better. They are good at consistant, long range wounds. They are less expensive than Fireknives, but I've almost always found it worth the extra points to upgrade.

Sunforge (?): Fusion Blaster/Plasma Rifle/Multitracker- Good at cracking power armor or better infantry as well as heavy vehicles. This suit lacks the range of the other, and is the same price as a Fireknife. If you really need anti-armor in the elite slots or need maximum terminator-killing power, these can be effective.

Some people will throw in a few others, but these are the ones I've heard the most often. Magnetizing your crisis suits is tricky (I don't do it, actually), but can be good for changing fighting styles.

Fast Attack: I really don't think that there's really anything stellar here. Pathfinders are ok, but are really expensive because of the mandatory D-fish. If you really want markerlights, they are the most efficient way to get them, and you could always give the D-fish to some firewarrior. I've heard some strategies for Piranhas, but because of the Dollar Cost I don't use them. Drone squads can provide bubblewrap against outflanking troops (in theory), but I've never heard of anyone using them so I'm probably stay away unless you hear otherwise. Vespids are supposed to be overcosted and weak, but I've never used them.

Heavy Support: Sniper Drone teams are a waste of the slot. In fast attack, troops, or even maybe elites there could be an argument for them, but not in Heavy Support. Hammerheads can provide anti-horde, are quite easy to maneuver compared to a broadside (especially if you take the vehicle multi-tracker). Broadsides have more reliable anti-tank, but are rather static and should be taken with several shield drones to mitigate their lack of an invulnerable save. Skyrays would be ok in another codex maybe, but are nothing compared to the Hammerhead. I've never used an ion-head, but I've heard good things as long as you don't expect miracles. I do usually run two Hammerheads with railgun, burstcannons, multi-tracker, target lock, and DISRUPTION POD (which should be on ALL of your vehicles, btw. Best 5 points ever spent. Ever.) They run 170 points each like that, but are quite good. I also run a squad of two broadsides for dedicated Anti-tank, and because they scare the crap out of people.

So that's Tau in a nutshell. We're not the most competitive army, but we're not Necrons or Dark Angels yet!

May the greater good always prevail,
Alphapod

Edit: Edited for grammar.

First, read Advancedtautactica.com. The mecca site for tau players.

Midnightdeathblade wrote:I want to have 6 crisis xv8s and 6 stealth suits, I no how to use the stealth suits, but what about the xv8s?

One full unit of Stealths is good. Either with Target Array or not, but all BCs. Consult ATT on the myriad of XV8 options.

Midnightdeathblade wrote: I want to fill up all 6 troops slots with fire warriors, but what should I do with them? Can they be as effective as crisis suits?

Bad idea. Go with a FW unit per 500 points of game. With 5e, tau's "meta level" (if I'm using that term right) pretty much tops out at 1850 points, maybe 2k. Going 6 units of FWs is going to eat up a lot of points that are better spent on XV8s, Railheads or B-sides. I don't even know SM players that max out troops.

Midnightdeathblade wrote: ... so Im going to use pathfinders, would you recomend rail rifles or pulse carbines?

Carbines only because you want PFs for their MarkerLights.

Midnightdeathblade wrote: I think the only thing I know how to use are broadsides, and stealth suits. I might need some help with a commander loadout, and some field tactics. thanks!!!

Except for Deep Striking suits (not a great tactic, IMHO), deploy in your deep edge if the enemy is DE, Orks, or BAs. Most other armies will need turn 3 to get to you. HQs? FireKnife Shas'el+ is a good starter.

Use kroot loops to protect b-sides from assault, especially against SW scouts or whatever drops into your door step if Drop Pods are involved.

Against a Drop Pod Army: Go in all reserve and then he has to ' circle the wagons'.

There's tons of other things to consider, probably better tackled on a case-by-case basis.

well thank you very much for your tactics, it sounds pretty good to me. Im thinking of two hammaheads and 3 broadsides for my heavy support.

Unlike most races, the Tau battleforce is actually worth getting and provides a playable force directly out of the box.

This set contains
1 xv-8 Battlesuit
3 Stealth Suits
12 Fire Warriors
12 Kroot
1 Devilfish
90$

I would then add
2 xv-8 suits
1 xv-8 Commander
1 Hammerhead
1 Devilfish
145$

This addition will make a competitive 1000 pt list or a stretched out 1500 list

1 Hammerhead
3 Broadsides
3 Crisis Suits
205$

This will make a competitive 1500 list in the basic semi mech build that Tau must run to be effective in this edition

To get to your magic 1750, Its really up to you. This is the area where stuff begins to diverge from the "needs" to the "wants" I would suggest one of the following items

3 Piranhas 75$

8(9) Pathfinders 45$

10 Kroots hounds and 16 Carnivores 95$

3 Crisis Suits 60$

Tau are certainly not the easiest army to start with. They are very unforgiving and require a lot of games to get used to. Speaking from experience, it takes about 20 games to find your feet and more after that to become really proficient. Tau require constant attention to detail because the smallest mistakes in movement or target priority can be fatal. Websites like dakka as well as Advanced Tau Tactica, and Yes The Truth Hurts can get you up to speed and should be consulted early and often. This is not meant to be discouraging, far from it. However, when you do start Tau, realize what you are getting into.

A little more about playing Tau at this level.

Once you reach this level and above, the great Pathfinder v No Pathfinder debate starts. Pathfinders are increadibly useful units, that can cover a number of flaws in the Tau list. IMO however, I can't justify the 200+ points it costs to field a full Pathfinder squad and their Warfish until I reach 2000 pts. YMMV and certainly others will tell you that they are a mandatory unit and they may not be wrong. My advice is to try them for yourself.

Kroot are another major bone of contention with Tau players. Many people use them as "bubblewrap" to protect high point crisis and broadside teams. Other people despise them and will never field them. The two major unit sizes are the basic 10 carnivores and the 5 hound 10-12 carnivore groupings. The first is a ultra basic cannon fodder troop. Because I can't ever seem to find the 60$ for kroot hounds, this is my preferred size. I always outflank with them to keep them alive. In this role, they serve to chew up small board hugging squads and vehicles. If used in this role remember one rule, Double Tap Marines, never assault them. Marines will slaughter your carnivores before they can swing and you will do less damage overall. This initiative deficiency is why you have hounds. With hounds, you can assault marines, just remember to put the wounds from the marines on the hounds, so your carnivores survive to swing. The shaper and the armor upgrade are worthless. For the cost, you can get more carnivores and do more damage.

Fire Warriors have so much potential, but often fall short of what you expect of them. Always set you expectations low for FW, any damage they do is a bonus. Their main duty is to ride in their transport and make it scoring. Sure they can pop out and rapid fire something (Land speeders come to mind) but their main role is to sit pretty. You will never need more than 12 FW. The only time I have needed more is for kill team. (where they are awesome) Put a squad of 6 in a devilfish and drive them around. I have two in my lists. That said, a FW squad sitting innocuously in cover in a corner can cover a surprising amount of the table with strength 5 shots. Against light vehicles like Land speeders and vypers this is a potent threat and one you opponent will often overlook.

Devilfish are the unit that keep Tau competitive in 5th edition. These should always have a Disruption pod. 5 points for a 4 up cover yes please. I always make my Devilfish a Warfish by addition a targeting array, multi tracker and Smart missile system. This makes up for the lack of shooting from the FW team inside. It also replaces the drones that count as an extra kill point. It does add about 40 points onto the cost of an already expensive transport however, so YMMV

Steath Suits are just not very good unfortunatly. They are simply too expensive and take an elite slot away from crisis teams. If they were cheaper or could take more special weapons they would be more useful. Right now they are an over priced torrent of fire unit that lacks definition.

Crisis suits are the backbone of most any tau army and are a topic of much contention between Tau players. There are many opinions on the subject, many of which have merit. I will present mine here and hopefully others (if Focusedfire hasn't ninja'd me already ) will chime in with their ideas so you can get a broader picture. IMO, and I stress, IMO anything that gets in the way of providing the maximum number of shots is a bad thing. I would prefer to the maximum number of crisis suits on the table, then to have fewer, more efficient, and to an extent more survivable suits. Call it quantity over quality, but IMO suits aren't tremendously survivable anyway and I would like to get more of them on the table so if I lose a few, I have more to fall back on. A Soviet Army ideal for the Space Commies (ooh the irony) With the philosophy out of the way, lets get to the configurations.

I run 4 (configurations) in my lists

My commander is a Shas'el with a Targeting Array, Missile Pod, Hard Wired Multi-tracker, and Fusion Blaster. (Modified FireForge) This is a multi role suit, who can attach to one of my other squads and support their fire, or can be deep struck to hunt armor with the melta.

I always run at least one, and usually two squads of (Fireknives) This is the most common suit configuration, and is a true multirole suit. Simply a Plasma Rifle, Missile Pod, and Multi tracker this suit covers most all of your bases and is a must include in all of my lists. Its an expensive suit (a squad of three runs just shy of 190 pts) but the utility, is invaluable.

My other must include unit is a unit of (Deathrain-F) This suit is designed to be cheap, but it does its job reliably and cover's some bases that I find lacking in my lists. With a Twin Linked Missile Pod and a Flamer, this squad will drop a chimera or a rhino every turn or can reliable put wounds on high toughness creatures and HQ's. If necessary, it can close and use the flamers for anti-horde. Note this configuration has no multi tracker, so its an either/or situation with the weapons.

The last configuration is a response to the large numbers of FNP Blood angels and Loganwing armies I have started to see much more regularly. The (Sunforge) is a major sacrifice to the ideal of ignoring armor and FNP. Using a Plasma Rifle, Fusion Blaster, and a Multi tracker this unit will utterly decimate most units not in cover. However, the extremely short range makes this a one way mission if you can't totally wipe the squad in question. Costing equal to the Fireknives, its an expensive suicide unit, but its very effective vs low model count elite armies. It also smokes Carnifexes. This squad more than any other benefits from markerlight support to make sure that those shots count.

Vespids are unfortunately made of fail. While its occasionally satisfying to drop the bug bomb on the local marine player, they are far too fragile and expensive to be used competitively.

Piranhas are a matter of personal taste. I really enjoy taking them, and I find they provide a useful function for me. However, they do give up a lot of kill points if they aren't squadroned. I always field mine with a Fusion Blaster, a Targeting Array, and a Disruption Pod. This provides maximum utility, but makes them a little expensive. Their use it very situational, but boils down to either Tank hunting or being a speed bump. The tank hunter is self explanatory. Being a speed bumb means turbo boosting directly in front of a fast moving assault unit to slow them down or directly in the path of a vehicle to force them to move around the piranha (or risk dangerous going through the piranha's wreckage ) This "Stiff arm" can buy you critical early turns where Tau can win or lose the game. ( a note about the drones, don't forget the piranha is a open topped vehicle and the drones can assault out of it. Use this to contest late objective or to keep a fleeing squad from regrouping. Also despite their crappy BS, the drones can occasionally pop rear armor with S5 Shots, so sometimes its worth ejecting them to go for the twofer when behind the enemy. Their shots are also pinning FWIW)

Sniper Drones have never been a favorite of mine. This is simply a recognition that field sniper drones means less railguns. In lower point games (1000 or less or in team tournaments) they can be very effective. The combination of dropping marines on two's w/ no armor save and the BS4 networked markerlights are nice and they would be used much more if they occupied a different FOC slot, but they don't and I can't recommend them. Slipping a rail rifle or two into your pathfinder squad is a better way to get rail rifles onto the battlefield.

Skyrays are also something that is probably in the wrong FOC. The combination of limited ammuntion and weak (and expensive) secondary armament makes it a no go for me. Great in Apoc though.

Broadsides are simple the final answer in Anti-anything really. If its a single target that resides on the table and can be seen, broadsides can kill it in at most two turns. Broadsides are pretty simple to deploy. Always give them the unfortunately named Advanced Stabilization system, so they have limited mobility. (and so Dawn of War doesn't screw you for a turn) Also near mandatory are two shield drones. These provide the protection from all of the scary weapons that will come their way. Broadsides nearly always should find a elevated position (cover is really nice too) and simple dominate the battlefield. I always give the team leader a target lock so that he can independently target from the squad. (Always check to see how your gaming group deals with this piece of wargear, which rides the ragged edge of legality due to an outdated codex) Don't forget that despite their tank killing prowess, that Broadsides do have a Smart Missile System as well which is much more effective vs hordes than turning one or two termagaunts into component atoms with the railguns. Broadsides should always have priority for markerlights. Reducing cover against the railguns is invaluable.

Hammerheads are the opposite side of the coin, trading concentrated firepower for mobility and the almighty large blast template. Never forget that Hammerhead have an integrated targeting array and are always BS4. Hammerhead should ALWAYS have a Disruption pod and should most of the time have a multi tracker so that you can fire like a fast vehicle. Target locks are also nice so that you can shoot two separate targets. I find that I primarily use the large blast with the hammerhead, not that the hammerhead isn't a capable anti tank platform, I just find that I have an overwhelming tendancy to roll ones and twos when I really need them. The blast template is the really the only one the tau have available, so I really try to let the broadsides and crisis suits deal with the tanks and use the Hammerhead for anti infantry.

I find that for the point levels that you are talking about, that a 1 to 2 Broadside to Hammerhead ratio is ideal. Its really fun to "bring the rain" with multiple Broadside teams, but you risk being too static to survive.


I will copy in another post on playstyle after this but I want to mention one thing.

Target priority is where Tau win and lose the game. Certain things must die for tau to have a chance. Wasted shots are the worst sin a tau player can commit.(followed closely by being so excited about the shooting phase that you skip the movement phase) To prevent wasted shots, carefully consider line of fire to the targets and what abilities your units have (anti tank, anti MEQ, anti horde) and then fire the units with the most restricted target selection first, so that you have redundancy if a units fails to destroy a target.

ie My hammerhead can only shoot the Rhino, so I will shoot it first. Followed by the Deathrain team who can target the rhino if the hammerhead misses or take out the land speeder in the open. Finally, the Broadsides will target, the Land Raider if everything has been destroyed or cover one of the other teams surviving targets. This way you never waste shots because you always have targets of opportunity available. Enemy mobility should always be targeted first. Tau can outshoot almost anyone from across the board.

Final Thoughts
Always buy the Skyray box, it contains all parts for any tau tank
Keep your troops cheap
Deploy carefully

Have Fun with Tau



Razor

I'm going to be a dissenter here. I despise 1 man crisis teams. Especially if you DS them in. It shows up (Hopes for a good scatter). MAYBE kills one unit, then dies to a ML, lascannon or just bolter fire.

Piranhas are awesome. I run a squad of 2 with fusion blasters. Turn one they flat out & either A draw a ton of fire away from all my other units & die. Or B move 12 & melta that big ugly AV14 vehicle. For 70 pts apiece you get a 11 10 10 with a 4+ cover save and melta gun. If you want give them flechette dischargers & use them to block charges. Front AV 11 means they won't die to Str 4 infantry weapons.

Skyrays, suck I have never seen them used effectively. Those markerlights spent on krak missiles could be better spent upping the BS of your hammerhead / broadsides.

Broadsides - I usually run 2 teams of 2 with 2 shield drones. Missiles, TA, TL & drone controller on the squad leader. So essentially I have 4 hammerhead solid shots. This does leave them vulnerable to running away however.

I usually play with one squad of kroot who sit on my objective in cover & go to ground at the first sign of trouble. Failing that they ride in a devilfish to provide support where needed.

Pathfinders I run 2 squads of 6 for the markerlights, I can reliably have 3 lights on 2 targets which is wonderful.

Sniper drones, Uselss

Drone units, Useless

Ethereals, Useless

Stealth, Next to useless - yes they can do their job but I feel crisis are a better choice

Crisis, Fireknives are nice all around. Str 7 means they can pick on light armor vehicles (You're broadsides can then focus on the heavy stuff). Or they can knock out infantry especially with the plas. Also shield drones are a must IMO, again the vast amount of ML seen now will ID them otherwise.

Vespids, Useless

Tau are tough to play, and in the 5th edition are a little on the under powered side. Not saying you cannot build a great list with them, just that armies IG and space wolves will be an uphill battle to beat from the start.

That being said, I love to play my Tau.Tactics I use are not the epitome of the army. My disclaimer: There are better tau players than I, I do have fun with them though. I do not have a string of wins a mile long with them, when I win it is usually a close game that my opponent and I talk about for weeks to come. And when I lose, well it's not pretty all the time!

Razorlead covered it nicely. I will just hit on the points I think matter most. warning...opinions may differ from player to player!

Tau are very dependent on target priority. Take out what will cripple you as early as possible. I do this by forcing the enemy to deal with a threat (sacrifice a pawn....hopefully just pawns!) by infiltrating a threat for them to deal with. This can be with piranha (can't infiltrate but they get attention when you turbo boost to their side of the table round 1), kroot, or stealth suits. This forces them to do something in a location you choose. I block line of site, or easily traveled routes for the enemy by sacrificing vehicles in those areas. If a path leads to a weak point in my army, I will put a devilfish or piranha there to slow the enemy. If they don't blow it up, it lives to do it again next turn elsewhere or make its points back.This can assist in your suits staying alive. Lead your enemies to areas where you have clear lanes of fire, or outflanking units can get in and out(stealth suits). Make them choose between 2 targets, making sure they can only get one if it gets to that. If you are going to lose a squad, make sure it is saving something else. This means at times you will lose a power piece or 2, just don't lose them for no reason. If I can, I will try to make the enemy backtrack to get something, that way they muddle around an area I can deal with them in or hopefully get away with the surviving squad (2 steps forward 1 back for them). I do this often with stealth suits and my XV8's, the opponent will almost always choose to try to get the XV8's over stealth suits, but whittling them down is better than nothing. Markerlights reducing cover saves can be the difference between a win and a loss against armies like nids or orks.

These are basically the core things I do with my tau. The above posters already covered units and their opinions on them. No point in me putting a list up, as our play styles and opponents may differ. I think mostly everything you need to mull some stuff over and try some stuff out has been said.

There's been some VERY good advice in this thread. Good show!

If you want a more detailed breakdown of Crisis Suit options, I've got an article posted about it:

http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Tau_Crisis_Suit_Loadouts

Good luck, don't get frustrated, and keep playing until you get the hang of the Tau.

yeah i also dislike 1 man crisi squads, not enough firepower and survivability.