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Made in ca
Stormin' Stompa






Ottawa, ON

Soo'Vah'Cha wrote:To my knowledge the Tau are the only force that will accept an enemie's surrender, without killing/enslaving/eating or otherwise treating the said POW, the fact that the Tau accept races other than their own to carry arms and have homes and professions withon their empire also is unique in the 40k universe...perhaps too unique, since it seems to attract alot of bile and suspicion about their goals and motives.
And as to the Dawn of war ending, well Kronos was mainly ( at the time of the war ) a Tau planet, so perhaps that is how they deal with rebellions from less then loyal members....hmm I wonder how the IOM would deal with a planet that had rebel elements dwelling there...hm maybe alot of death and purges or perhaps even mass bombing of suspected sympathizers, quite a bit more of a savage response, and against their very own race.
In my opinion the Tau are not a goody-goody empire, and they will deal harshly with rebels and turncoats, so do not mistake thier kindness for weakness, they are a EMPIRE afterall.
But they are also the only race that seems to respect some of the rules of war we cling too today, and that in my opinion makes them the best of the 40k universe, the lightest grey in a sea of blackness.
again thats my take on it.


I agree

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Made in us
Dakka Veteran






We are sidebarring pretty hard on the Tau issue.

Keeping focus on if they are good guys or not is the issue.

So, lets factor in actions not PR as I agree it will be a better comparison.

First lets use just the sanctioned fluff. While I wouldn't mind using the game we can't. It portrays alternate realities in which each race had won the conflict. In the DoW II game they portray the Blood Ravens as having won the conflict. Given how garbled the fluff is I think it's a stretch at best and even at that, it would be the only example of such an incident.


Kroot: The Kroot were on the verge of being defeated by Orkz and were fighting a bloody stand-off. The Tau assisted them because they were so impressed by the Kroot fighters resolve. The Kroot joined the Tau Empire and recieved numerous upgrades to weaponry and way of life. They are now mentioned as mercs in the Tau military meaning they work for additional money, not absolute loyalty. They have never tried to break form the Tau Empire or been brainwashed by Ethereals.

Vespid: The Vespid were met and warmly welcomed by the Tau. Due to them being insectoid in nature language played a huge barrier. Technology was given so that they could communicate. Again, if a few are brainwashed it is likely a species would see this and rebel. Yet to date none have and fight freely among the Tau.

Humans: Humankind met the Tau, traded with them and eventually intergrated with them after several generations of negotiations and ongoing tech exchange. To date many humans have fought and died defending the Tau Empire's interest on various worlds, most notably Taros. In the Cain novels, humans were bias toward the Tau Empire on a planet with nids on it.


A planet population shift isn't hard to fathom, Tau live short lives and most likely breed fast. Kroot are avian and might lay eggs. Vespid are bugs...

Tau don't have a track record of commiting atrocities. Wanting to form an Empire is not really an "evil" as much as it is a need for expansion. Which given the various threats in the galaxy is a necessity.


In short, I still would count Tau as good guys in a universe where Adolf Hitler and Stalin would rank as good Planetary Governors among the IoM's standards.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2011/04/04 23:00:01


"AM are bunch of half human-half robot monkeys who keep tech working by punching it with a wrench And their tech is so sophisticated that you could never get it wrapped it out" thing a LITTLE to seriously. It also goes "Tau tech is so awesome I wish I was Tau and not some stupid Human" thing.

-Brother Coa Sig'd For the Greater Good 
   
Made in us
Stalwart Space Marine





Tau like almost all other races are not evil, but neither are they good. It is the choice of doing cruel and evil things when there are other options available that make people(or Xenos) evil.
I do not think the Tau want to be cruel to everyone else in the galaxy (as opposed to DE) and the mere fact that they try to make peaceful negotiations with other races puts them as the good-est race of 40k.
This still does not mean they are good. Like the Eldar they want to further their goals and the suffering of a few humans is not going to stop them from spreading the greater good.
In fact they are almost exactly like the Eldar, the only difference is that they are trying to create a empire, whereas the Eldar are mearly trying to survive.
They try to get what they want in the easiest way possible. and on the list of ways to conquer a plant having the defenders give up and join you is prolly one of the easiest ways to do it. This is why the Tau resort to diplomacy.

"Wherever you tread, tread lightly. We are closer than you think and our blades are sharp"  
   
Made in ca
Stormin' Stompa






Ottawa, ON

Here's a question, who's more evil: Dark Eldar or Chaos fallowers?

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2011/04/04 23:42:59


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Made in us
Stalwart Space Marine





I would say DE simply because some of the chaos marines were tricked/possessed whereas the DE all chose to follow their path of life.

"Wherever you tread, tread lightly. We are closer than you think and our blades are sharp"  
   
 
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