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I am getting a Tau Infiltration Cadre a box of fire warriors and 3 crisis suits. I am wondering how i should build these as a 500 point force with a good base for building on for higher point games in the future. Tau make no sense to me and i have not got the dex yet cause the guy i am getting tau from still has that too lol. I was messing around with battlescribe but I really dont know what drones do and what options are good/bad/etc.

Any advice or pointers to threads would be awesome!

I also have about 2000 points of Eldar so a build as allies for them might be cool as well.

With the models you are getting, I would take:

Tau Empire - Combined Arms Detachment

HQ
Ethereal 50

Elites
Stealth Suit Team (3) 110
-Shas'vre with Homing Beacon
Crisis Suit Team (3) 180
-3 Shas'ui with Plasma Rifle and Fusion Blaster; 2 Gun Drones

Troops
Fire Warrior Strike Team (5) 55
-Missile Pod Support Turret
Fire Warrior Strike Team (5) 55
-Missile Pod Support Turret

Fast Attack
Piranha 50
-Fusion Blaster

500


This is a pretty balanced list for 500 points. The Ethereal sits with the Fire Warriors and provides buffs. The Stealth Suits infiltrate and provide accurate deep striking for the Crisis Suits. The Pirahna provides some anti-armor support. The Fire Warrior box only comes with 1 Support Turret but you can convert a second one out of the Pathfinder Recon Drone and some spare Missile Pods.

The first thing I would get is more suits - either Crisis Suits, Broadsides, or a Riptide. Any of these can provide anti-air support (Missile Pods for Crisis Suits, HYMP for Broadsides, and Ion Accelerator for Riptides; plus an Early Warning Override) and will add a lot to your army. Unfortunately Fire Warriors aren't the best choice and are normally left as 5-man squads with Missile Pod Turrets. Of course you'll also want to add your Pathfinders too - I recommend 2 units of 5 with no upgrades. Keep them cheap, because they will attract firepower!

I'd also recommend replacing the Ethereal with a Commander in higher point games. A Commander with 2 Missile Pods, a Drone Controller, and a Target Lock joining a unit of 4-8 Marker Drones provides additional Markerlight support. You can also have a commander join the Crisis Suits for a little more firepower.

X

Take a look at the Getting Started box set for tau. A box of 3 Crisis suits usually run like 90% of the cost of that box.

With the box youll get a squad of firewarriors and an etheral too.

I also highly suggest what dave said and magnetize your crisis suits...it also works pretty well on the Stealth suits. Then you can swap as needed. Took a bit of work but I would do it again.

A 500 point game is about high volume fire, so take guns that really pour out the shots. For the Crisis suits, dual Burst Cans.

Heading for 1500 points, get 3 riptides. They're nutsy good with the Mont'ka rules.

Ghostkeels are turning out to be really good, but a unit of 3 is what packs a wallop.