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So my current Tau models are all really old (I started in 2001, still have my first Crisis suit commander)

My paint job is something like this: Linky

I am getting new models, and since my last army was a casual with something like a 5-500-5 record, I want to re-do everything and make this army win.

Everyone knows the first, most important thing is how the army looks on the tabletop.
Not really, but I still want to have a newly-painted army.

So, the debate is not only the right color scheme for Tau, but the style as well.

I am a huge fan of the clean lines and solid colors of classic Tau, but have seen some pretty awesome things like stealth team conversions and paint jobs that were all about grunge and blood and mud spatter and everything else, so I am torn, and my friends, local store's regulars, and owners are also divided on the issue.



So I have two questions:

What style should I do for the paint job? (clean or grungy or something else entirely, with examples)

What colors should I use for the paint job?

Maybe a bright, clean aesthetic, but dirtied and dulled by battlefield wear-and-tear, etc?

Maybe the "gritty-factor" could be applied to represent more experienced soldiers, or elements of the army accustomed to dirty-work?