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So is it worth it to take the following for a competative list:

Broadsides (HYMP+SMS) x 3
6 missile dronse
-270 pts

Broadsides (HYMP+SMS) x 3
6 missile dronse
-270 pts

Broadsides (HYMP+SMS) x 3
6 missile dronse
-270 pts

It seems to be a list that would be able to slaughter a lot of enemies before they get close?


And then farsight, a few fusion crisis suits and perhaps some remoraz'es?

Broadsides spamming missiles have always been a hot build. Never seen it done with missile drones.

I like to run my missilesides with Target Lock. That lets you target 3 (4 if you use missile drones too) different groups per turn with 8 missiles each. I love it too cause you can split up your shots however you need. you could do 1 on each, 2 and 2, 3 and 1, whatever you need depending on the situation per turn.

Your list would be perfect with 1 Riptide too which lets you do the Firebase Support Cadre, 2 groups of 3 broadsides and 1 riptide. it gives them preferred enemy space marine and Tank Hunter. Tank Hunter broadsides with target lock is so brutal, each broadside can glance/pen most vehicles to death by themselves.

 Dioxalyn wrote:
I like to run my missilesides with Target Lock. That lets you target 3 (4 if you use missile drones too) different groups per turn with 8 missiles each. I love it too cause you can split up your shots however you need. you could do 1 on each, 2 and 2, 3 and 1, whatever you need depending on the situation per turn.

Your list would be perfect with 1 Riptide too which lets you do the Firebase Support Cadre, 2 groups of 3 broadsides and 1 riptide. it gives them preferred enemy space marine and Tank Hunter. Tank Hunter broadsides with target lock is so brutal, each broadside can glance/pen most vehicles to death by themselves.

4 Shots at S7 = 3 hits with twin-linked. That's going to be an average of 1 glance on AV13, a bit over 1.5 on AV12, 2.25 on AV11 (the smart missiles will probably be enough to finish it here). It's pretty great, but you might not want to oversell it. And of course they do nothing to AV14 ad can't ignore cover unless you take some markerlights which the firebase support cadre lacks (except marker drones, I guess?).

I'd advise to use missile drones only if you have buildings. Keeping so many drones in the open is an invitation for Ld checks.
I like Imperial Bunker with a Void Shield - 3 Broadies and 5 drones will be comfortably nested there.

I have played a list with one unit like that, 3 missilsides and 6 missile drones. It was brutal. I could not imagine facing it 3x over.

Man, this list just isn't friendly. But seriously what you need are more markerlights. A list of markerlights and missiles. the M&M list. that would be my worst nightmare.

HYMP are obnoxious. I miss seeing rail-sides.

They over needed the railgun. It was already one shot. It should have been str 10 ap2 or str 8 melta like. Str 8 ap 1 its a weak lascannon.

 Vector Strike wrote:
I'd advise to use missile drones only if you have buildings. Keeping so many drones in the open is an invitation for Ld checks.
I like Imperial Bunker with a Void Shield - 3 Broadies and 5 drones will be comfortably nested there.

If your worried about leadership and plan on spamming broadsides then just bring an ethereal. Their Ld 10 bubble plus 6+ FNP, Stubborn, or Run + Snap Shot (if your moving the broadsides then your snap shooting, might as well get a run move for free) can greatly benefit broadsides as well as any other infantry your bringing. They are also dirt cheap to field and broadsides make amazing ethereal body guards.

That could work at high point levels. At lower points levels you are going to have too many units that are mostly immobile and 36" range. I have fought lists like this repeatedly with various different armies. There are a lot of tricks you can pull to really mess up this armies ability to effectively engage. Worse is my DKoK heavy artillery carriage army with 9 Str8 AP3 large blasts a turn that can fight from up to 120" away. This sort of army badly needs units that can badly hurt stuff at 48" like ion riptides and R'Varna. You also need to consider how you are going to score objectives outside of your deployment zone as the broadsides are not going to do it.

I have also noticed a lot of Tau players take extreme builds like this and ignore the idea that enemies might get into melee with them. Thus they don't take any speed bump units nor morale control (ie stubborn Ld10). This has been a disaster against new DA, White Scars, Khorne Daemonkin, and Imperial Knight armies when I play them as I always manage to get into melee with turn 2-3 and then even 2 wounds on the broadside units on average means a wiped out broadside unit.

Broadside is good but very boring to play because they have such little mobility. I would much rather build a broadside with two missile pods on a crisis suit and teaming them up with a buffing commander. They can move shoot and jump allowing you to really get into tactical possition

 ansacs wrote:
That could work at high point levels. At lower points levels you are going to have too many units that are mostly immobile and 36" range. I have fought lists like this repeatedly with various different armies. There are a lot of tricks you can pull to really mess up this armies ability to effectively engage. Worse is my DKoK heavy artillery carriage army with 9 Str8 AP3 large blasts a turn that can fight from up to 120" away.

9 pie plates sounds pretty extreme, but AP3 is not enough to punch through broadsides 2+ armor, so they're as durable as can be against such an onslaught anyway.

 triplegrim wrote:

 ansacs wrote:
That could work at high point levels. At lower points levels you are going to have too many units that are mostly immobile and 36" range. I have fought lists like this repeatedly with various different armies. There are a lot of tricks you can pull to really mess up this armies ability to effectively engage. Worse is my DKoK heavy artillery carriage army with 9 Str8 AP3 large blasts a turn that can fight from up to 120" away.

9 pie plates sounds pretty extreme, but AP3 is not enough to punch through broadsides 2+ armor, so they're as durable as can be against such an onslaught anyway.

S9 does ID them.

 Vankraken wrote:

 Vector Strike wrote:
I'd advise to use missile drones only if you have buildings. Keeping so many drones in the open is an invitation for Ld checks.
I like Imperial Bunker with a Void Shield - 3 Broadies and 5 drones will be comfortably nested there.

If your worried about leadership and plan on spamming broadsides then just bring an ethereal. Their Ld 10 bubble plus 6+ FNP, Stubborn, or Run + Snap Shot (if your moving the broadsides then your snap shooting, might as well get a run move for free) can greatly benefit broadsides as well as any other infantry your bringing. They are also dirt cheap to field and broadsides make amazing ethereal body guards.

Indeed, but Ethereals are squishy. You'll need to put them inside a Devilfish, a nearby building or inside the bunker with the broadies (which means 1 less missile drone). Leaving him in the open by himself or with a squad is just asking to have him killed.

 triplegrim wrote:

 ansacs wrote:
That could work at high point levels. At lower points levels you are going to have too many units that are mostly immobile and 36" range. I have fought lists like this repeatedly with various different armies. There are a lot of tricks you can pull to really mess up this armies ability to effectively engage. Worse is my DKoK heavy artillery carriage army with 9 Str8 AP3 large blasts a turn that can fight from up to 120" away.

9 pie plates sounds pretty extreme, but AP3 is not enough to punch through broadsides 2+ armor, so they're as durable as can be against such an onslaught anyway.

As stated Str9 is ID. Also that is 675 pts.

The worst situation I actually put such a list into was when they went up against a Typhon in a white scars grav biker list. That was a little extreme though and was a terrible game. It was essentially splat turn 1 to ~1.5 units, me turbo boosting my bikes up into range, and then me tabling the opponent the next turn. I had actually forgotten about it as it was not fun and not particularly memorable.

BTW the Tau firebase cadre formation of 1 riptide and 2 broadside units with tank hunters is a vastly better way to run such a list. The broadsides are much better with tank hunters and in most lists 2 units of broadsides will be about as many as is comfortable to fit and still get support.

 ansacs wrote:
as As stated Str9 is ID. Also that is 675 pts.

There's a counter for all, most things would be in trouble against 9 pieplates lik that.

Which book are the Earthshaker/Medusa rules in?

Imperial Armour 1 Second Edition has the rules for the heavy artillery carriages with earthshaker cannon. The rules are also in Imperial Armour Vraks (within both of the army lists there) and Imperial Armour 13 (Renegades and Heretics army list).

Honestly the mass artillery list like that is not actually as dangerous as you might think. Against most quality lists 9 large blasts will just not hit enough models before you can get too close to the artillery carriages for them to effectively fire on you anymore. Large blasts usually only catch 3-5 models a shot, being Str9 AP3 matters very little when shooting scouts, IG infantry or bikes (who have jink). Against vehicles the lack of AP and relatively low number of shots is usually lethal. I just happen to play both DKoK deathrider regiment and Renegades and Heretics armies. This is pretty much the primary source of anti tank in those lists.

The reason they work well against broadsides IME is that the broadsides are ineffective in return, take a lot of points, and the 3 bases within 2" of each other + T4 W2 usually means a lot of damage for each marker that lands.

But dont you get their 2+ save against str 9 AP3 weapons?