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I am just getting back in to WH40k after about 12 years away, since a GW store opened up about 5 minutes from my house. They are setting up an escalation league starting next week, so I am planning to buy some units tonight and get them built and painted this weekend. I have never played Tau before, so I am starting from absolutely nothing, but have spend a lot of time reading.

I have searched and read and reread every 500 point list, but nobody really has come from the point of view of someone who has literally nothing, and wants to make efficient use of box sets. They all either already have units, or are doing something odd and experimental.

I am trying to find a list that will be competitive (it is a league afterall) but will be efficient for the pieces I need to buy. i.e. I don't want to take 11 firewarriors, because I will need a whole extra box, etc etc.


I am have been doing a ton of tweaking, and thinking about one of these two lists:

+++ Tau Commander (500pts) +++

++ Tau Empire: Codex (2015) (Combined Arms Detachment) ++

+ HQ +

Commander [2x MV7 Marker Drone]
····XV8 Commander Crisis Suit [Drone Controller, 2x Missile Pod, Neuroweb System Jammer, Stimulant Injector, XV8-02 Crisis 'Iridium' Battlesuit]

+ Elites +

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Burst Cannon]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Plasma Rifle]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Fusion Blaster]

+ Troops +

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]
····DS8 Tactical Support Turret [Missile Pod]

+ Heavy Support +

XV88 Broadside Battlesuits
····Broadside [Twin-linked High-Yield Missile Pod, Twin-linked Smart Missile System]


The thought here is that the commander being a warlord and markerlight source will attract a LOT of attention, so I spent some points to help keep him alive, while the rest of the units sneak up to take objectives and provide firepower. Not sure I have enough MEQ firepower for those marine armies though?

This would take a Get started box, a commander box, and a broadside box, for a total of around $185.


The other list I am looking at is this:

+++ Tau 500 (499pts) +++

++ Tau Empire: Codex (2015) (Combined Arms Detachment) ++

+ HQ +

Cadre Fireblade

+ Elites +

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Fusion Blaster]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Plasma Rifle]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Burst Cannon]

+ Troops +

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]
····DS8 Tactical Support Turret [Missile Pod]

+ Heavy Support +

TX7 Hammerhead Gunships
····TX7 Hammerhead Gunship [Railgun, Twin-linked Smart Missile System]

XV88 Broadside Battlesuits
····Broadside [Advanced Targeting System, Twin-linked High-Yield Missile Pod, Twin-linked Smart Missile System]

Which eliminates the commander for a fireblade, giving me the points for a hammerhead. With this I could maybe drop the fusion blasters for a pair of plasma rifles, to give me a little more MEQ/TEQ power. This would take a get started box, a cadre fireblade, a broadside, and a hammerhead, for a total of $215.

I also looked at a riptide list, something like this:

+++ Tau Riptide (499pts) +++

++ Tau Empire: Codex (2015) (Combined Arms Detachment) ++

+ HQ +

Cadre Fireblade

+ Elites +

XV104 Riptide Battlesuits
····Riptide Shas'vre [Advanced Targeting System, Ion Accelerator, Twin-linked Smart Missile System]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Plasma Rifle]
····Crisis Shas'ui [2x Plasma Rifle]

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits
····Crisis Shas'ui [Counterfire Defence System, 2x Fusion Blaster]

+ Troops +

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]

Strike Team [5x Fire Warrior with Pulse Rifle]


However, being that I have never met any of these people I will be playing with, I hesitate to bring a riptide to this low a point level. I definitely want eventually, but will probably wait till the 900 point level or later. It goes up 200 points each month.

Any thoughts?

Ive played low point Tau as well (750) and I suggest the Fireblade. The Commander is just too point heavy for 500 points. Around 1000+ is probably a good time to switch to the Commander.. Though as you said at 700 or 900 you can add the Riptide if you want

The Getting Started Box is pretty good on the $$$ value. 3 Crisis suits, a Fire warrior squad and an ethereal.

a. I agree that the starter box is the way to go from scratch. Then ebay. Srsly.

b. PRs and FBs are nice and have their applications, but at 500 points, you might have a rhino to shoot at? Otherwise, you'll be shooting at infantry, so go with the better Anti-Infantry guns. At 500 points, Anti-I will be dual Burst Cans on the suits. Dual BCs, at low points, pour out the dice heavily for the low cost of a Crisis Suit, and you can maul most anything at 500 points.

Once up to 1k in points, then you have Fire Warriors enough for S5, and the XV8s can then specialize with PRs and FBs.

c. 500 points - I suggest you get your buddies to go with Combat Patrol rules for 500 points games. No Armor 2+, no vehicles with 33+ armor, no need for an HQ, etc. It balances the game.

So here is what you do. Buy this stuff.

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Start-Collecting-Tau-Empire = $85

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US/Tau-Empire-Pathfinder-Team-2015 = $35

These will run you $120

This box set is the way to go to get started. You do need pathfinders because you need markerlight support.
From here, I would recommend picking up the retaliation cadre set. You get more crisis suits, a riptide, and a broadside.

O'Shovah's Desciple wrote:
You do need pathfinders because you need markerlight support.

I would state, in saving cash, to *not* buy PFs. The box will come with plenty of drones and bits to make a Marker Drone Squadron, which:
a. is often superior to PFs anyway
b. won't cost more $

I agree with the consensus of buying the start collecting box. At <1000 pts I would run pathfinders over a drone squad. Without formations or a Mark'O commander the pathfinders would be a little bit better since drones can't hold objectives or even contest them and pathfinders can make that last turn run towards an objective.

I would also debate the fireblade over ethereal at <1000 pts too just off the 1 VP for killing the ethereal could make a difference, but the ethereal has options with Invocations which could balance out the 1 VP if you move it smart.

Riptide <1000 is kinda a punk move. You have a big target and not enough support to throw his way and your other troops at the same time. He's going to run around 200pts and then you have to use most, if not all of your markerlight support a turn on him to get his points back. If your opponent knows how to deal with a Riptide he will just LoS it and tear the rest of your small army apart. I tried a Riptide at 750 once with the goading of a friend and got promptly beat down and that was right when they first came out and it was just like waving around a big middle finger.

So I agree with the SC box, pathfinders, and a fireblade to start. Then a Retaliation Cadre + an additional Broadside. That gives you a good base of units for dealing with hordes, AV and other crap. Oh yeah, buy magnets for your suits so that you can switch them to PR and FBs after you get past the lower points. Start them with the burst cannons and then change up later.

EDIT: Your drones should mostly be built to markerlight drones or don't glue at low points and use them as gun drones or markers.

Thanks for all of this, great advice. I decided to go with the first list, with a commander with 2 markers, 2 strike teams, 3 crisis suits, and a broadside, though changing the DS8 to a smart missile system. The commander might be too many points at this level, but being my first games in a long while I am probably going to get killed anyways. Might as well grab the commander now, because I know I will need him later, and I can experience markerlights on the two drones I am bringing with him.

Still debating which weapons to take. I will definitely bring the missiles on the broadside and the commander, but the 3 crisis suits are a mystery. I have no idea what I will face, so I don't know if 2 burst cannons 2 Pulse rifles 2 fusion makes sense to cover everything, or lay off the stronger stuff and bring more burst cannons.

Thanks for the advice, first game is Thursday!

Don't bring a riptide in such low points unless it is an uber-competitive environment. People will most likely hate you for it, a lot of people dislike that thing...

Onto the positive part, instead of 2 of each weapons on the crisis suits I'd do 1 fusion and 1 plasma each suit. You lose out on the rate of fire of the burst cannons but imo they were never good in the first place.

The ap 1 and 2 will do you very well in low points, and even in high.

I support the fire blade suggestion as well.

List is good.

Fireblade all the way in low point games! Cheap unit plus the extra attack for your Firewarriors is always great. Also it will allow you to add more Firewarriors to your squads.