Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hunters Contingent
Commander - 2x Cyclic ion blaster, drone controller, EWO, 2x Marker drone

Crisis Team - 3x Dual Fussion w/ target lock, 1x Dual Cyclic Ion Blaster w/ EWO

Strike Team 5x, Smart Missles
Strike Team 5x, Smart Missles

Strike Team 5x, Devil Fish w/ Smart Missles, Disruption Pod.

4x Pathfinder
4x Pathfinder
4x Pathfinder

Stormsurge, Pulse Driver Cannon, Airburst Fragmentation Launcher, EWO

Firebase Support Cadre

Riptide, Ion Accelerator, EWO, Stim Injectors

2x Broadside w HYMP, 1x Drone Controller, 4x Missile Drone

2x Broadside w HYMP, 1x Drone Controller, 4x Missile Drone

I just started collecting and I want to know if this is a good starting place to play with the tau. Thank you for any Advice in advance .

Go CAD for now, as Hunter Con. gains you not much. Most tourneys allow a Detachment to go with a CAD.

 Xenomancers wrote:
Hunters Contingent
Commander - 2x Cyclic ion blaster, drone controller, EWO, 2x Marker drone

a. Always take Irid Armor
b1. Personally, I don't like CiBs. I think dual MPs would be better for this guy, adding a unit of MarkerDs**
or
b2. AP2 is key in 40k, and Crisis Suits have a lot of great access to it, so loading Crisis Suits up with PRs is a great idea. I prefer Irid Armor, dual PRs, PEN chip and VRT and then he joins the unit below:

 Xenomancers wrote:
Crisis Team - 3x Dual Fussion w/ target lock, 1x Dual Cyclic Ion Blaster w/ EWO

Really ineffective with just FBs. A Crisis Team should be able to erase a MEq unit of 10 dudes. As is, they get 3 FBs hits, and maybe 4 or so hits with the CiB. 7 hits and 7 wounds, but marines will shrug off the CiB and use Cover on the FBs.

Better:
'Vre with MSS/C&CN, flamer (increasing fire power BS, and erasing Cover Saves)
XV8 - dual PRs, EWO
XV8 - dual PRs, EWO (there's the volume fire that'll kill 7 or 8 MEqs)
XV8 - dual FBs, Target Lock. But he should shoot with his peeps, usually. Allocate his S8 wounds to characters properly as the other get removed from the table.

Plus, you could have a dual PR Cmdr join this crew. They'll erase most things in 40k, including 10 spess muhreens.

 Xenomancers wrote:
Strike Team 5x, Smart Missles
Strike Team 5x, Smart Missles

Strike Team 5x, Devil Fish w/ Smart Missles, Disruption Pod.

IMHO, points spent on any transport is wasted, except for Drop Pods. That's why SM get free rhinos in Demi Co.

A D'fish simply has so little fire power for its cost. Add FWs or XV8s instead. Better yet, another b-side to join your Firebase SC.

 Xenomancers wrote:
4x Pathfinder
4x Pathfinder
4x Pathfinder

**Change at least one unit to Marker Ds, have them join the Cmdr and now you've got Markers hitting on BS5, T4, and jsj.

All else, the Storm Surge and Cadre (Rip + Missile Sides ) are yummy good.

 Xenomancers wrote:
Firebase Support Cadre
Riptide, Ion Accelerator, EWO, Stim Injectors
2x Broadside w HYMP, 1x Drone Controller, 4x Missile Drone
2x Broadside w HYMP, 1x Drone Controller, 4x Missile Drone

EWO on the b-sides is gonna be your best Anti-Aircraft (their guns being Twin Linked), flier shows up, you punk it, whether he Jinks or you rack up enough Hull Points.

This all seems like good advice. I wanted a fish to work as an objective grabber - what do you use to take objectives? Riptide can do it for sure and suits are capable but need something hard to remove that is mobile and cheap I've had trouble removing devil-fish in the past with 3+ jink. What would you recommend for that roll?

You're using the hunger cadre. You're only troops are t3 and move 6". They also usually have rapid fire guns. You castle and sit on anything in your deployment. Otherwise you try to maximize on the friendly overwatch.

What I'm trying to say is the hunter cadre is not designed to take objectives. If you want mobile killing power take 3 devilfish with 10 breachers a piece. But if you want objective secured for tau CAD is the way to go.

Hunter cadre is designed to kill one really important model or unit a turn, and if you're cheeky carry over the buffs to other units but that's a house rules thing since its been struck down by ITC.

So do that, you have the stormsurge and firebase, with dropping the less optimized points like the devilfish and pathfinders you can easily fit in some more broadsides. And heck even a unit of sniper drones for more bs5 markers if you feel like it.

 Xenomancers wrote:
This all seems like good advice. I wanted a fish to work as an objective grabber - what do you use to take objectives?

Eldar Scatbikes.

I have not really had a fully tau army for more than a year (maybe one tourney last spring). Mostly I run elves. I had been using a Farsight Allied Atttachment: HQ, Troop (3 or 4 XV8s) and a Riptide for EWO and lotsa plasma rifles. Lately, just the Riptide Wing, HBCs.

Overall, I use whatever models I have, spiders, hawks, jetbikes, a WraithKnight. Using your ObSec units, like a D'fish becomes when taken with FWs, it's a great End-Game objective denier. But I chafe at 95 points of just a Burst Cannon's fire power. Yeah and 2 Drones. Or worse, another dozen plus points for SMS. To me, that 100 odd points is two more Crisis Suits, more mobile, survivable, better fire power, etc.

 Xenomancers wrote:
Riptide can do it for sure and suits are capable but need something hard to remove that is mobile and cheap I've had trouble removing devil-fish in the past with 3+ jink. What would you recommend for that roll?

Space Marines have that same 3+ save ... but are one of the more ubiquitously removed models in the game. AV12 is too easily glanced to death, IMHO.

I'm coming from a tourney goer point of view, so against pretty hard lists, d'fish just eat up points that can be spent on moar guns.

It's not 4th edition where FishofFury used to be sooo awesome.

In a relatively small sample of games against competitive lists (War Convocation, Eldar, TWolves), I've had good luck keeping Devilfish alive. Granted, I use the Ghostkeel Wing and Dpods for a 2+ jink on said Breacher delivery boxes. I wouldn't recommend dropping 80+ points on a useless armor shell under any other circumstances, though. Even a 3+ isn't really worth it.

Breachers in a D-fish are not bad. They can shred MEQ with disturbing ease if they can get close enough. With a D-pod, you can at least draw a bit more fire before your vehicle bites it. You don't take the thing for its firepower. You take it for ObSec and to move your Breachers close to the enemy and maximize their firepower.

I've used Breachers this way before, and I've had them used against me the same way. A couple of squads of them mulched my Ravenwing Command Squad after using some markerlights to remove the cover save. They can be good; it really depends on the rest of your list.

 ZergSmasher wrote:
Breachers in a D-fish are not bad. They can shred MEQ with disturbing ease if they can get close enough. With a D-pod, you can at least draw a bit more fire before your vehicle bites it. You don't take the thing for its firepower. You take it for ObSec and to move your Breachers close to the enemy and maximize their firepower.

I've used Breachers this way before, and I've had them used against me the same way. A couple of squads of them mulched my Ravenwing Command Squad after using some markerlights to remove the cover save. They can be good; it really depends on the rest of your list.

Generally, ZergS. you're describing a tactic called Fish of Fury, which was boss in 4th edition. Marines would not be able to assault the FWs for two or more turns, if the D'fish were properly positioned, and the FWs could gun them down for 2 turns of shooting, or more with proper movement. The d'fish would survive assaults because plasmaguns were favored over meltaguns back then, and it was difficult to get enough krak grenade Penetrating Hits to score the 'Wrecked!' result. And not a great chance of a PFisted Sgt. to get the job done either.

Now though, with the advent of Hull Points from 6e onward, three glancing hits and they're toast, which is easily accomplished by a marine Tac Squad assaulting it.

So, now Fish of Fury works to erase one or two tac squads, committing 2 or 3 full crews of FWs. But that whole wing of the army dies in the next turn or two. The SM player will kill one d'fish with Grav or a Melta, and with the other unit of marines, assault through its Wreck, to the FWs who were hiding behind it.

This last scenario was far, far less likely to happen 6 years ago. FoF still works, but no longer has the longevity of 2 or 3+ turns of effectiveness. And, therefore, begs one to use the codex's better options.

They are good if you can clear an enitre zone so nothing can fire or assualt your ever so fragile fire warriors. You can use the drones as a well positioned "speed bump" unit so you don't get assaulted but that only works once per fish.

Really though they are a suicide unit most of the time. The real way to make them work is drop a squad off within s6 ap3 range, then use markers and other buffs to completely destroy the thing you came to kill. 20 s6 ap3 shots at bs5 which only takes 3 markers can take down most monsterous creatures or a big squad of marines, say grav cannon devesators or a bike unit.

Target something more expensive than the Warriors and expect them to die. If they do anything else the rest of the game it's a bonus. The fish are the real objective grabbers in that CAD scenario.

But like it's been said. Tau's strength is not grabbing objectives. It's strength is shooting and maybe mobility with battlesuits. So play to those strengths. Don't worry about capping objectives so much as shooting the enemy off of them and eventually off the board.

If you want to secure objectives eldar skatbikes really are the bees knees right now or maybe gladius with support.