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2013/10/10 02:45:54
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau (Completed)
This is a practice match for the Feast of Blades GT coming up this weekend. My opponent for the game is Adam and his Tau. No, this is not the same Adam as my regular opponent, Triptide Adam. We actually have another Adam in our LGS who plays Tau. He runs pure Tau with no allies. Henceforth, I shall call him Puretide Adam. In any case, Adam asked me to bring my competitive army so I decided to bring my Wraithwing Tesla-crons. There is also a side story here, and that is my Necrons are on a quest to crush any and all upstart Tau and Eldar armies.
I've played against Adam before and I know he is a good player. He has also been playing Tau for as long as I can remember so he is a very experienced Tau player. However, his current list is a new one and he actually hasn't been playing it for very long. He's only played 2 games with them so far and told me he "desperately" needs to get more practice with them before the tournament. I was more than happy to oblige. I'm going to teach my opponent that Tau are NOT the big bullies on the block, at least not while my crons are still there.
1850 Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
1850 Wraithwing Necrons
Destroyer Lord - 2+, MSS, Ressurrection Orb
Destroyer Lord - 2+, MSS, Ressurrection Orb
5x Necron Warriors - Night Scythe
5x Necron Warriors - Night Scythe
5x Necron Warriors - Night Scythe
5x Necron Warriors
There's a lot of hoopla going around how the dominating build currently is Tau/Tau or Tau/Eldar, but there isn't much being said about pure Tau. Are pure Tau really inferior to Taudar or Tau-squared? IMO, not really. They are every bit as good. Here the trade-off is some mobility for more firepower. You've also got to play them slightly more differently. Namely, without jetbike troops, you need to plan out how you're going to reach those objectives and head out earlier. Fortunately for my opponent, he doesn't have to worry about objectives in this game. In Purge the Alien, his army may even be better than the Taudar armies that we normally see. That is because his list is all about firepower. It is a brute-strength gunline list that will just put the smackdown on most opponents with sheer volume. Believe me, a pulse-bomb Tau build - with massed fire warriors and an Ethereal (or 2) and supported by Markerlights - is a very powerful build.
Adam also doesn't play like the typical Tau player. He is a crafty general and he is actually very aggressive with his Tau. He may play gunline Tau, but don't expect his guys to sit idly by (at least not in an objectives game). However, since we are playing VP's here, he can afford to castle up like Tau players normally do. With that said, his list is somewhat unusual. Aside from its awesome firepower, there are going to be 2 things that will stick out. They stick out because they are actually really good units that are also highly under-utilized. These units will surprise a lot of people who go up against them. The first is his flyer, which is an excellent hunter of other flyers. The 2nd are all those free gun drones from his vehicles. 2 measly little drones from each vehicle may not seem like much, but believe me, they can be annoying as heck. Their main purpose is to screen out and act as roadbumps. However, it is hilarious how sometimes, they can pin an entire non-fearless unit! Fortuntately for me, most of my units are fearless and can jump right over them.
Why will this be a difficult matchup for my necrons? Because in Purge the Alien, my opponent doesn't need to advance. Rather, he can shoot, retreat and then shoot some more. I swear, Tau currently are soooo good in VP missions. It just lets them play to their strengths and to ignore their main weakness, which is to advance towards the objectives. Also, in Purge, my strategy of dropping off my troops onto objectives is now a moot point. It has been neutralized from a necron strength to a non-factor. So in this mission, necrons become weaker and Tau becomes stronger. That's a double-whammy against the crons.
Despite the mission "disadvantage", I still have confidence I can pull off a necron victory. I've got the experience advantage over my opponent. I also feel that I've got the necessary durability to survive his firepower and I just need a fraction of my original army to reach his lines in order to do a lot of damage. Also, at 1850, he's got less guns to do as much damage to 18 wraiths as the 2250 Tau army I just played against recently. I expect my wraiths and ground forces to be bloodied and battered before the game is over, but I also expect that I will be able to kill off enough of his units by then to pick up a minor victory.
Wraiths sneak down the right flank. BTW, I was short 1 wraith so borrowed one of my opponent's suits.
Wraiths then run. Barges opt to move flat-out instead of shooting. I didn't feel that I could do enough damage with shooting, especially since my 2 rear barges didn't have either LOS or range to the target.
Tau 1
Spoiler:
Tau Movement phase. Ethereals give the units extra firepower and FNP. Riptides do not nova-charge.
Gun drones disembark from their vehicles. Vehicles shimmy for the jink cover save.
He markerlights and shoots my left wraithstar, putting 2W on the D-Lord and killing 1 wraith.
He also kills 1 wraith from the middle wraithstar unit (my Warlord's unit) with an over-charged Ion blast.
So far, damage is manageable. However, I still need to survive 1 more turn of Tau shooting before I am in range to assault.
Necrons 2
Spoiler:
Unit of warriors on foot comes in.
As do 2 flyers. However, with the exception of the right pathfinders, my opponent's army is out of range of my teslas this turn.
AB's move 6". 1 of my AB immobilizes itself jumping onto impassable terrain.
Wraiths advance.
Right wraiths are actually in range to assault this turn! I would need to make a 6" charge.
However, that now means I can't fire at this pathfinders with my 2 night scythes lest I take them out of assault range of my wraiths.
Barges fire at and kill off only 5 fire warriors from the left unit.
I then declare my charge. Pathfinders and supporting fire from a riptide and 1 unit of warriors take down the lead wraith and put 1W on another wraith. Now I need to make a 9" charge!
Fortunately for me, I just barely make it into combat.
However, he kills 1 wraith before I can even attack and then my wraiths whiff in combat. We actually tie combat 1-1....and that is actually a good thing.
But crap, no First Blood!
Tau 2
Spoiler:
Sunshark comes in.
Tau movement. Ethereals do triple-shot and FNP once again.
My opponent should have done triple-shot and Stubborn.
Another perspective of his Movement phase.
Hammerhead has sights to my AB.
BAM! Immobilized AB down to give the Tau First Blood.
Necrons: 0, Tau: 1
Adam basically focuses his entire army - or those who could see anyways - into my left wraiths. The result is 4 dead wraiths.
Sunshark fires at my night scythe, takes off 2 HP's and target locks it (immobilizes it).
The Tau also do 1W to a wraith in my Warlord's unit.
Finally, his skyray fires a seeker missile to my night scythe (which was marked by the sunshark networked markerlight) and blows it out of the sky.
Necrons: 0, Tau: 2
Last but not least, the riptide assaults another AB....
Eh, it was there a minute ago....
Necrons: 0, Tau: 3
At least my wraiths are able to finish off his pathfinders to prevent this round from being completely dominated by the Tau.
Necrons: 1, Tau: 3
Necrons 3
Spoiler:
Only my warriors come in from reserves.
Just as I am about to move my AB to blow away the sunshark, my barge friggin immobilizes itself! F**K!!!
Wraiths go around his riptide.
I actually like the way my opponent plays. Unlike many of the Tau players I see, he was actually willing to give up his riptide. Not only give him up, but use him as bait to delay my wraiths. That's how you should play Tau. Any unit that isn't scoring (in an objectives game) is a sacrificial unit. Sacrifice them without any hesitation for the "Greater Good". Heck, that's how I play my wraiths and even my Destroyer Lords. Now that's a pro-tip for you fledgling Tau players. Almost every unit in your army that isn't a scoring unit is an expendable unit. Use them thusly.
Too bad I'm not that green behind the ears. With the superior mobility of my wraiths, I ignore his riptide and go after my true prize - his Ethereals.
Left D-lord splits off and go after the skyray. I need to take care of it. That tank can one-shot my flyers with the help of the markerlight from his flyer.
My shooting. I kill a total of 5 fire warriors. Arcing from the tesla destructors also wipe out a unit of 2 screening gun drones.
Basically, the goal for my shooting is to clear a path for my inevitable assault. I'm also going to make it extremely difficult for his Supporting Fire by charging in with 3 units, starting with my weakest units first. I'm not sure my opponent saw this coming. I think he actually expected me to assault his riptide.
Everyone then make their assaults with no casualties.
Well, almost no casualties. 1 wraith croaks to Overwatch.
But the important thing is, I charge both of his HQ's and they aren't Stubborn currently.
First off, I make scrap metal out of the skyray.
Necrons: 2, Tau: 3
Doh! Fire warriors actually beat down my lone wraith!
Necrons: 2, Tau: 4
Finally, I wipe out both Ethereals (1 via a failed Look-Out-Sir) and 1 unit of fire warriors. His other unit of fire warriors manage to pass Morale. I also get his Warlord, who is worth an additional +2 VP's instead of the normal +1 VP.
Necrons: 5, Tau: 4
Actually, I'll just include the VP's for Slay the Warlord and First Blood into the totals.
Necrons: 7, Tau: 5
Tau 3
Spoiler:
I'm not exactly without my share of mistakes also. Stealth suits outflank. I forget to run my warriors behind the ruins last turn! Doh!
The Tau get into position to unleash some pulsating fury.
Sunshark shoots down another necron flyer.
Necrons: 7, Tau: 6
Riptide nova-charges his plasmas and shoot down my D-lord. He would not get back up.
Necrons: 7, Tau: 7
Because of my blunder, I lose my warriors.
Necrons: 7, Tau: 8
Both hammerheads fire at my last, immobilized AB out in the open and with no cover...but fail to kill it.
Finally, and without the aid of his Ethereals, 2 units of fire warriors and 1 riptide shoot into my Warlord's unit. I was expecting to lose 1, maybe 2 wraiths only. However, I roll poorly for my saves and lose 3 wraiths as well as take 2W on my Warlord. Ouch!
He then charges in with his riptide, hoping to tie up my Warlord for a turn so that I don't go around killing the rest of his troops next turn. Instead, I mindshackle him and inflict 3W on the riptide. Fortunately for him, he passes Morale and succeeds in tying up my wraithstar.
In the other combat, wraiths kill 5 fire warriors and they break. I fail to catch them.
That was a great comeback by my opponent. It was stupid of me to forget to run my warriors, but my opponent also got lucky that I didn't sweep his riptide.
In any case, we have a game again.
Necrons 4
Spoiler:
My last night scythe comes in. I use the ruins to protect it from his Intercepting sunshark. I need to get rid of his stealth suits. Not only can they kill my guys in the back field, but they are giving my opponent Linebreaker as well. Warriors disembark from the flyer. Another unit of warriors come in from reserves as well.
Wraiths jump behind the building to go after his pathfinders. This is to prevent Supporting Fire Overwatch from my opponent. His other guys cannot Overwatch if they cannot see my unit (though I can see his pathfinders in order to charge them).
My immobilized AB shoots at and kills 2 fire warriors after they go-to-ground.
Warriors and night scythe kill 4 stealth suits. Tesla arcs and kills 1 of my warriors.
Wraiths make the charge. Only 2 pathfinders could see to fire Overwatch....and they still manage to cause 1W to my wraiths.
What is it with wraiths against pathfinders? Once again, I roll poorly and only manage to kill 1 pathfinder, after losing 1 wraith to their assault first.
Finally, my D-lord finishes off the riptide.
Necrons: 8, Tau: 8
Tau 4
Spoiler:
Tau movement.
His fleeing fire warriors continue to flee and run off the table.
Necrons: 9, Tau: 8
Bomber continues to go after my night scythes. It finally drops off its unit of 2 drones.
This is where unfamiliarity with my opponent's army is going to come back and hurt me. I was not aware that his drones can fire S7 AP4 blasts....
Focus-fire from his army brings down my my Warlord and the unit!
Necrons: 9, Tau: 11
Hammerheads take out my last AB.
Necrons: 9, Tau: 12
Stealth suits and the drones combine to take out 1 unit of warriors and kill off 4 from the other unit. Doh!
Necrons: 9, Tau: 13
BTW, my night scythe is unharmed. I just took it off from the base temporarily for Adam to place his blast markers on my warriors.
Dammit! If I had known about the drones, I would have spread out my warriors. I can't fault my opponent though. I believe he did mention it, but I probably just failed to process it in my mind.
The only bright spot is that 3 warriors get back up.
Oh, did I say "only"? Haha....it wasn't my only "bright" spot this turn.
Necrons: 9, Tau: 11
Finally, I kill another 3 guys but those damn pathfinders just won't give up!
Necrons 5
Spoiler:
Time is winding down. This could be the last turn.
Night scythe goes after one of his troops. I don't do much damage.
I decide to assault with my warriors instead of shooting his stealth suits. The reason is because I don't want to get shot up by his drones next turn. We played this combat slightly wrong, thinking that his stealth suits are T4 when they are actually only T3.
Combat is a tie.
And then the dead warrior gets back up.
I decide to take out his much easier-to-kill vehicles with my Warlord.
Done!
Necrons: 10, Tau: 11
WTF?!? I can't believe this. I fail to kill a single pathfinder. I cause 2W and he makes both saves.
Tau 5
Spoiler:
Now you may ask why is the sunshark so good against other flyers? Because it has a 360 degree arc of fire. With clever maneuvering, he can get to my flyers while I can't get to his. BTW, the sunshark has also got Interceptor as well!
Fire warriors go after my Warlord. Riptide goes to help out his pathfinders.
Fire warriors don't even need to shoot. His remaining hammerhead fires at my Warlord. I then fail my 4+ cover and I fail to get back up as well.
Necrons: 10, Tau: 13
Finally, his riptide makes it into combat.
I'm going to show you guys why this is a bad idea.
He fails to get through my invuln saves. I then focus on his pathfinders and finally wipe them out. Because of that, I am able to sweep his riptide without even attacking it.
Necrons: 12, Tau: 13
Finally, I finish off his stealth suits. Because of that, I also deny him Linebreaker. That's a 2-pt swing.
Necrons: 13, Tau: 13
Wow....this game is too close to call! But it sure is exciting as heck.
Right now we are tied, but if the game ends, I win because I've got Linebreaker with my wraiths.
We then roll to see if the game ends and....
Necrons 6
Spoiler:
I go after his drones. BTW, they are not worth a VP. They are a completely free unit for the Tau, but I need to deal with their offense.
Night scythe has no good target due to movement limitations and so go after the hammerhead. I fail to do anything to it with my shooting.
Wraiths go after the larger unit of fire warriors.
Assault! Wraiths take 1W to Overwatch.
I actually opt to assault his drones instead. He kills 1 warrior with Overwatch and then I kill 1 drone in combat. His drone then breaks and I consolidate 6" to get away from it.
I break his unit but fail to catch them.
Next turn is going to be crucial. He can potentially wipe out my wraiths and my night scythe. Moreover, his warriors can still regroup.
Tau 6
Spoiler:
HAHA....they run away!
Necrons: 14, Tau: 13
Now if my wraiths can survive, I should win this.
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!
Fire warriors shoot and do 3 wounds. I then fail 2 out of 3. There goes my wraiths for 1VP as well as Linebreaker!
Necrons: 14, Tau: 14
Fortunately, my night scythe survives.
There will be 1 final turn. Now the game is for me to lose if he can take out my night scythe (who has been pretty lucky to survive so far).
Necrons 7
Spoiler:
Warriors go and hide from his drone, which regrouped last turn.
Now it's just a matter of me surviving.
Tau 7
Spoiler:
Crap! I can't shake him....mayday, mayday!!!
I survive!
Necrons: 14, Tau: 14
Game ends. I've only got 2 units of warriors and 1 night scythe left. Adam has got 1 hammerhead, the sunshark and 1 unit of warriors left. We are both severely depleted.
--- EDIT ----
I was under the assumption that the Ethereal is worth an additional +1 VP only if he was the Warlord. However, it was kindly pointed out to me (and verified from the codex) that all Ethereals, not just the Warlord, are worth an additional +1 VP in Purge the Alien.
Thus, the non-Warlord Ethereal should have given me an additional +1 VP, which means:
Wow! What a great game! This was the most exciting and intense game I've had in quite some time with my necrons. I came into this game thoroughly expecting to trounce my opponent, especially after my Turn 3 assault. I never thought my crons would be fighting for their lives instead.
We both made some mistakes in this game. My main mistake was in not running my warriors. Had I done so, his stealth team would have had no target and he wouldn't have had that easy VP. That might have been the difference there. I also should have spread out my warriors when I disembarked them. By not doing so, I gave my opponent another easy VP. My opponent had more mistakes than I did. Had he more experience with his army (and against my army), I think he would have (and should have) won. Then again, I can see why he desperately wanted to get a practice game in against me. He just hasn't played enough with his army in 6E. Once he gets enough practice, however, he is going to be kicking a$$ with his army. Once he cleans up his game somewhat, Adam's Tau is going to be a force to be reckoned with. He is actually a very good player.
Dice was also a factor in this game. We both had our ups and downs. Adam was making his armor saves like a man possessed. It was because of his saves why I had so much problems beating his pathfinders and fire warriors in combat. On the other hand, I was making my jink saves like a mad man. Especially my last night scythe, which survived 3 turns of basically almost all of his vehicles firing at it. Also, my Lords haven't been getting up as often as they have been in recent games. Only 1 Lord got up once. If he had gotten up again, I'm pretty sure I would have won the game. But that's a lot of "what if's". Overall, our extreme dice probably canceled out.
Congrats to Adam for doing so well. His army came the closest to beating my competitive necrons so far. Good luck at the Feast of Blades!
This message was edited 15 times. Last update was at 2013/10/16 00:51:06
Oh, its interesting to see a Tau flyer, I haven't played 40k in a while but I really enjoyed the Drone look to them and i always hoped that they were simply outshone by better options and not that they were bad, i'm looking forward to seeing their performance.
Silacier & Rozgarth: Hey you should start playing warmahords with us.
Me: OK (sets down Tyranid, drives to store and picks up Legion of Everblight)
Me: the more things change....
2013/10/10 03:06:09
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
I keep seeing fire warriors in these tau builds and its frustrating as they are without a doubt not the troop of choice in my Tau codex.
TK - 2012 40K GT Record 18-5
4th in 2nd bracket Feast of Blades 2012 (IG/SoB); 4th Overall Midwest Massacre (IG/SW); 5th Overall Indy Open (IG); Final 16 Adepticon Open (IG)
TK - 2013 40K GT Record 24-4
Best General Indy Open (Crons/CSM)
Top 5! Bugeater GT (TauDar)
Final 4 Nova Invitational (Eldau)
Best Overall Midwest Massacre (Crons/CSM)
sandant wrote: Oh, its interesting to see a Tau flyer, I haven't played 40k in a while but I really enjoyed the Drone look to them and i always hoped that they were simply outshone by better options and not that they were bad, i'm looking forward to seeing their performance.
IMO, the sunshark bomber is quite a good flyer. I think this report will open some people's eyes about Tau flyers. Their only downside? They're relatively easy to shoot down.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Tomb King wrote: I keep seeing fire warriors in these tau builds and its frustrating as they are without a doubt not the troop of choice in my Tau codex.
I actually like massed fire warriors with an Ethereal (aka the Pulse-bomb). You can build viable builds both with or without massed fire warriors, though if you are going for a pulse-bomb build, I do recommend bringing Eldar allies for some mobile scoring.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2013/10/10 03:12:01
Very interested to see the outcome of this. I actually think this will be a harder match-up for you (although I'll reserve judgement until I see the deployment and if he seizes). Your great mobility doesn't mean quite as much without objectives.
Your assault elements should be less effective, thanks to those free Gun Drones. Plus, his mini-pulse bomb will be trouble for the Wraiths.
What was the Tau Warlord trait? Any of the 3 possible options could be trouble.
2013/10/10 04:12:37
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
Siphen wrote: Very interested to see the outcome of this. I actually think this will be a harder match-up for you (although I'll reserve judgement until I see the deployment and if he seizes). Your great mobility doesn't mean quite as much without objectives.
Your assault elements should be less effective, thanks to those free Gun Drones. Plus, his mini-pulse bomb will be trouble for the Wraiths.
What was the Tau Warlord trait? Any of the 3 possible options could be trouble.
Honestly? I don't remember what his Warlord trait was. We both had pretty useless Warlord Traits. I got Night-Attacker.
I think the Necrons have the right tools for the job again, you have arial dominance, and if any of those wraiths make it into assault the tau list folds.
I think it partly comes down to how he rolls with those hammerheads. If they fail to blow up your barges right away, I don't think his gunline will stand up to the return fire.
Bedouin Dynasty: 10000 pts
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MajorStoffer wrote:
...
Sternguard though, those guys are all about kicking ass. They'd chew bubble gum as well, but bubble gum is heretical. Only tau chew gum.
2013/10/10 20:22:48
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
There's a lot of hoopla going around how the dominating build currently is Tau/Tau or Tau/Eldar, but there isn't much being said about pure Tau. Are pure Tau really inferior to Taudar or Tau-squared? IMO, not really. They are every bit as good. Here the trade-off is some mobility for more firepower. You've also got to play them slightly more differently. Namely, without jetbike troops, you need to plan out how you're going to reach those objectives and head out earlier. Fortunately for my opponent, he doesn't have to worry about objectives in this game. In Purge the Alien, his army may even be better than the Taudar armies that we normally see. That is because his list is all about firepower. It is a brute-strength gunline list that will just put the smackdown on most opponents with sheer volume. Believe me, a pulse-bomb Tau build - with massed fire warriors and an Ethereal (or 2) and supported by Markerlights - is a very powerful build.
Adam also doesn't play like the typical Tau player. He is a crafty general and he is actually very aggressive with his Tau. He may play gunline Tau, but don't expect his guys to sit idly by (at least not in an objectives game). However, since we are playing VP's here, he can afford to castle up like Tau players normally do. With that said, his list is somewhat unusual. Aside from its awesome firepower, there are going to be 2 things that will stick out. They stick out because they are actually really good units that are also highly under-utilized. These units will surprise a lot of people who go up against them. The first is his flyer, which is an excellent hunter of other flyers. The 2nd are all those free gun drones from his vehicles. 2 measly little drones from each vehicle may not seem like much, but believe me, they can be annoying as heck. Their main purpose is to screen out and act as roadbumps. However, it is hilarious how sometimes, they can pin an entire non-fearless unit! Fortuntately for me, most of my units are fearless and can jump right over them.
Why will this be a difficult matchup for my necrons? Because in Purge the Alien, my opponent doesn't need to advance. Rather, he can shoot, retreat and then shoot some more. I swear, Tau currently are soooo good in VP missions. It just lets them play to their strengths and to ignore their main weakness, which is to advance towards the objectives. Also, in Purge, my strategy of dropping off my troops onto objectives is now a moot point. It has been neutralized from a necron strength to a non-factor. So in this mission, necrons become weaker and Tau becomes stronger. That's a double-whammy against the crons.
Despite the mission "disadvantage", I still have confidence I can pull off a necron victory. I've got the experience advantage over my opponent. I also feel that I've got the necessary durability to survive his firepower and I just need a fraction of my original army to reach his lines in order to do a lot of damage. Also, at 1850, he's got less guns to do as much damage to 18 wraiths as the 2250 Tau army I just played against recently. I expect my wraiths and ground forces to be bloodied and battered before the game is over, but I also expect that I will be able to kill off enough of his units by then to pick up a minor victory.
I am actually looking forward to this report. I have very much begun to dislike Necrons, for no other reason then they beat my Marines to bits. However...reading these reports HAS helped me figure out target priority for Necrons....
Its a game, have fun. If you arent for some reason...find a new one.
2013/10/10 21:39:12
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
iGuy91 wrote: I think the Necrons have the right tools for the job again, you have arial dominance, and if any of those wraiths make it into assault the tau list folds.
I think it partly comes down to how he rolls with those hammerheads. If they fail to blow up your barges right away, I don't think his gunline will stand up to the return fire.
I hope so (that they fail to blow up my barges). I plan to shoot the crap out of his troops (and pathfinders).
Alexi wrote: I am actually looking forward to this report. I have very much begun to dislike Necrons, for no other reason then they beat my Marines to bits. However...reading these reports HAS helped me figure out target priority for Necrons....
No worries. A lot of people dislike the crons because they can be an extremely difficult army to play against. Whether my report helps you to play as or to play against necrons, I'm happy if you're able to learn a thing or 2 about the army.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/10 21:39:55
Oh its not that I dislike the army. I think they are pretty cool. I just dislike playing against them, they wont stay dead!!! One of these days Space undead skeletons...I will grind you into Iron shavings!!
Its a game, have fun. If you arent for some reason...find a new one.
2013/10/10 23:08:48
Subject: Re:1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
I'm really not a fan of that Tau list. It seems to lack bite. A Buff Commander and Broadside team is too good to pass up.
2nd Place 2015 ATC--Team 48
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7-1 at 2013 Nova Open (winner of bracket 4)
2013/10/10 23:17:40
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
Not just a necron victory but most likely a board wipe is my prediction. Is your opponent actually bringing that list to FoB?
TK - 2012 40K GT Record 18-5
4th in 2nd bracket Feast of Blades 2012 (IG/SoB); 4th Overall Midwest Massacre (IG/SW); 5th Overall Indy Open (IG); Final 16 Adepticon Open (IG)
TK - 2013 40K GT Record 24-4
Best General Indy Open (Crons/CSM)
Top 5! Bugeater GT (TauDar)
Final 4 Nova Invitational (Eldau)
Best Overall Midwest Massacre (Crons/CSM)
It's actually deployed in the corner. It's just totally obscured by the ruins in my picture.
JGrand wrote: I'm really not a fan of that Tau list. It seems to lack bite. A Buff Commander and Broadside team is too good to pass up.
Ethereal and skyray/hammerheads give a different kind of "buff". While the B.C. + broadsides are more common in most tournament builds, pathfinders/skyray markerlights does most of the "buffing" for a pulse-bomb build. Moreover, his vehicles give free units as well.
His units definitely aren't commonplace in the current competitive Tau meta. However, IMO they are a different kind of "good" in a Tau list.
Tomb King wrote: Not just a necron victory but most likely a board wipe is my prediction. Is your opponent actually bringing that list to FoB?
Haha jk although it does seem like your friend might of tailored his list a little (A LOT!) to actually match up better against yours. (which is probably smart assuming you'll be one of the top contenders to win it all)
I think this game might come down to how well your ab's perform and how fast your opponent can blow them up.
If he can't blow up at least 2 of them turn 1 then it will probably be over.
Friendship is like peeing on yourself: everyone can see it, but only you get the warm feeling that it brings.
2013/10/11 00:19:40
Subject: 1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
jy2 - I like the Sunshark even though it is fragile. If it were am objective based game and the Tau flyer dropped a NS that could be huge.
I like Fire Warriors as well but agree with Tomb King in general Kroot are the better choice... They are a key element for Tau. In this game I don't think it is that big a deal since it's VPs.
"Tau currently are soooo good in VP missions. It just lets them play to their strengths and to ignore their main weakness, which is to advance towards the objectives." Truer words were never said. I hope the dice aren't crazy.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/11 00:23:07
That Tau list has some issues. I'm not sure it'd fare particularly well vs other Tau or Eldar armies. I'm also not sure it is good enough to take down Necrons. Buff Commander is too useful not to take, IMO. And I also think that Pathfinders are really poor in the current Meta. Serpents/SMS take them down way too easily. I'd much rather have some hidden Marker Drones in suit squads or Sky Rays. I'd also rather have Prescience/Guide from a Farseer.
I expect an overwhelming Necron win.
Bee beep boo baap
2013/10/11 15:54:27
Subject: Re:1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau
I guess I'm in the minority as I actually like the Tau list, I don't think its perfect but it has much more teeth than most would think.
That being said, jy2 getting first and him failing to sieze give jy2 a huge advantage here. Especially with the bonus VP for the Ethereals and his close grouping for Tesla. If he had siezed or gotten first turn I think we would be shocked by the hurt he would lay down.
Jy2 will win, but it will be bloodier than initially thought and is far from a guarentee.
Ouch, making that Pathfinder Charge was good for you and even better the way the combat played out.
Him not opting for Stubborn and layering to avoid a Multiassault is going to cost him next turn, at least he'll have a decent although not good enough of an overwatch before you slaughter the core of his army. I feel as if he has made some tactical mistakes as to his movement or lack there of for his Firewarriors.
Did the Sunshark drop off its intercepting drones or drop its bomb? Those Drones could have help to buffer the impending assault. It also could have made an assault by your Middle Wraiths much much harder.
I honestly think that Fire Warriors are a very underrated unit. I've found them to be much more effective than Kroot in many situations. I think the secret here is the Markerlights. Many Tau armies are running buffing Commanders, and while these are very effective at supporting a unit, they antisynergize with Markerlights.
An army built around Markerlights instead IMO does very well by selecting Fire Warriors as a mainstay unit, especially with Ethereals as well.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/11 21:50:07
2013/10/11 21:51:51
Subject: Re:1850 Feast of Blades Practice - Wraithwing Necrons vs Puretide Tau (Turn 2 Up)
Zagman wrote: Ouch, making that Pathfinder Charge was good for you and even better the way the combat played out.
Him not opting for Stubborn and layering to avoid a Multiassault is going to cost him next turn, at least he'll have a decent although not good enough of an overwatch before you slaughter the core of his army. I feel as if he has made some tactical mistakes as to his movement or lack there of for his Firewarriors.
Did the Sunshark drop off its intercepting drones or drop its bomb? Those Drones could have help to buffer the impending assault. It also could have made an assault by your Middle Wraiths much much harder.
T3 is going to be ugly for the Tau.
He did move his fire warriors. He actually had to advance some of them in order to get within triple-fire range of my left wraiths. That is his main focus target for this turn (and actually, his only viable target as they are the closest).
I was very happy with the pathfinder combat. That actually worked out very nicely.
Not giving his units Stubborn was a mistake. He also made another mistake as he moved his Ethereal more towards the center of his army....that put his pathfinders out of his LD10 bubble, thus allowing me to sweep his pathfinders.
No, the sunshark didn't drop off its drones....yet. However, his gun drones (from his 3 vehicles) are currently acting as his screens for his fire warriors.
I'm going to do some horrible things to him on T3. He put his riptide up as a sacrifice (more like bait) in the hopes that my wraiths will assault him. Heh....that may work on less experienced players, but it won't work on players like me.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Kingsley wrote: I honestly think that Fire Warriors are a very underrated unit. I've found them to be much more effective than Kroot in many situations. I think the secret here is the Markerlights. Many Tau armies are running buffing Commanders, and while these are very effective at supporting a unit, they antisynergize with Markerlights.
An army built around Markerlights instead IMO does very well by selecting Fire Warriors as a mainstay unit, especially with Ethereals as well.
I agree. Fire warriors are good. It's just a difference in Tau builds. There is the pulse-bomb Tau, where the focus is on firepower from fire warriors buffed by Ethereals and markerlights. And then there is mobile Tau, where kroots with their ability to infiltrate is a better fit. The builds that we are seeing more of in tournament play is mobile Tau.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/11 21:54:38
Alexi wrote: Oh its not that I dislike the army. I think they are pretty cool. I just dislike playing against them, they wont stay dead!!! One of these days Space undead skeletons...I will grind you into Iron shavings!!
Yeah, I can definitely see necrons as being annoying to play against. Mindshackle scarabs, reanimation protocols and troops in flyers....all can be pretty disgusting. Lol.
Haha jk although it does seem like your friend might of tailored his list a little (A LOT!) to actually match up better against yours. (which is probably smart assuming you'll be one of the top contenders to win it all)
I think this game might come down to how well your ab's perform and how fast your opponent can blow them up.
If he can't blow up at least 2 of them turn 1 then it will probably be over.
While his army may be better-suited to fighting mine than some of the other tau builds, it isn't by any means tailored at all. It is actually a decent TAC list. He's been running the sunshark bomber ever since the new Tau came out. Moreover, I believe he's had to submit his list to the Feast of Blades tournament long before he asked me for a game. BTW, he's the one who is going the the FoB, not me.
Dozer Blades wrote: jy2 - I like the Sunshark even though it is fragile. If it were am objective based game and the Tau flyer dropped a NS that could be huge.
I like Fire Warriors as well but agree with Tomb King in general Kroot are the better choice... They are a key element for Tau. In this game I don't think it is that big a deal since it's VPs.
"Tau currently are soooo good in VP missions. It just lets them play to their strengths and to ignore their main weakness, which is to advance towards the objectives." Truer words were never said. I hope the dice aren't crazy.
Yeah, I like the sunshark as well. It's crazy good against other flyers (particularly my night scythes).
Kroots and fire warriors each have their roles depending on how you'd like to build your Tau army. In general, I think a Tau army should use both unless they are allying the Farsight Enclave (in which case I prefer kroots and suits).
Automatically Appended Next Post:
LValx wrote: That Tau list has some issues. I'm not sure it'd fare particularly well vs other Tau or Eldar armies. I'm also not sure it is good enough to take down Necrons. Buff Commander is too useful not to take, IMO. And I also think that Pathfinders are really poor in the current Meta. Serpents/SMS take them down way too easily. I'd much rather have some hidden Marker Drones in suit squads or Sky Rays. I'd also rather have Prescience/Guide from a Farseer.
I expect an overwhelming Necron win.
Yeah, his list isn't perfect - he needs some mobile scoring - but it's good enough to play against most armies. The Buff Commander is good, but I'd argue that the Ethereal is actually even better especially as a force-multiplier. But with them, you are talking about apples and oranges. Both have their place depending on the Tau build. I see the Buff Commander more suited to mobile Tau whereas the Ethereal is better suited to a more static Tau army.
I think his list can be improved upon by swapping out 1 hammerhead + change for some Eldar allies (jetseer + windrider troops), but beyond that, I think his list is actually pretty good.
Serpent-spam will be a weakness of any static Tau builds, but there are no armies without its "kryptonite". Just like my wraithwing army is vulnerable to psychic-heavy armies and mechdar can be vulnerable to tesla-spam necrons or fast daemons.
Zagman wrote: I guess I'm in the minority as I actually like the Tau list, I don't think its perfect but it has much more teeth than most would think.
That being said, jy2 getting first and him failing to sieze give jy2 a huge advantage here. Especially with the bonus VP for the Ethereals and his close grouping for Tesla. If he had siezed or gotten first turn I think we would be shocked by the hurt he would lay down.
Jy2 will win, but it will be bloodier than initially thought and is far from a guarentee.
I like the traditionalist pulse-bomb Tau builds as well so maybe you're not in the minority.
And I also think that this will be a close and bloody battle.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2013/10/12 15:47:13
With the superior mobility of my wraiths, I ignore his riptide and go after my true prize - his Ethereals.
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