Valkyrie wrote:1 Commander: Crisis battlesuit,2 Plasma rifles,Drone controller,Neuroweb System Jammer
2 MV7 Marker Drone: Markerlight
Hard to go wrong with a Commander, they are our best
HQ overall. You might think of giving him a little more protection, Iridium Armor goes a long way with a bonus to Toughness and a 2+ save. If he is in a unit of Bodyguards he can Look Out automatically against something that is AP2. Stimulant Injector is also excellent for the price. Consider his role too, it looks like you have him in a squad of Crisis Suits with Burst Cannons, Fusion Blasters and Markerlights for his Drone Controller. That seems a little bit all over the place. The Burst Cannons are close range light infantry killers, and the fusion blasters are our serious anti-armor. You have a Target Lock on the Fusion guy which is perfect, but both are short ranged, so they would probably want to Deepstrike to get into range without exposing the unit to Shooting or Assault while closing on the targets of choice. These two types of targets would need to be very close together or one part of this squad is wasting it's firepower. Also the Markerlights want to be on the field asap. They are a huge force multiplier for the Tau, and they have a great Range, so (unless your opponent can take them out from across the board on top of Turn 1) you raelly don't want them stuck in Reserves until turn 4, if you roll poorly. Missile Pods and Markerlights have the same range, and tend to work well in the same squad, Plasma Rifles are a good option too.
Valkyrie wrote:1 Crisis Shas'ui: 2 Fusion blasters
1 Crisis Shas'ui: 2 Fusion blasters
Often referred to as "Suicide Fusion", this loadout is fun and effective. If you ever have some points left to spend, giving them one Fusion Blaster and one Twin Linked Fusion Blaster each can help them operate with a little more Markerlight independence.
Valkyrie wrote:2 Crisis Shas'ui: 2 Burst cannons
1 Crisis Shas'ui: 2 Fusion blasters,Target lock
3 MV7 Marker Drone: Markerlight
Again, maybe focus the squads battlefield role, or give yourself a little more leeway with range restrictions on the weapon systems.
Valkyrie wrote:1 XV104 Riptide: Ion accelerator,Twin-linked smart missile system
Give this guy Interceptor. You won't regret it. Many people give their Riptide a Stimulant Injector, but it's pricy. I tend not to, but with one big guy for the enemy to focus on, it may work well here. Usually if my opponents are shooting at a Riptide, I have already lost, because they have taken apart all my other units. Riptides will usually under perform without proper Markerlight support. Never pass up the Interceptor on these guys, though. It's just too cheap to miss out on.
Our infantry has big pros and cons. The firepower these guys kick out is great. Sprinkle in a few Markerlights and when everything hits in double tap, you will drown things in wounds.
Ld is an issue though, because with only T3 they tend to take wounds as easily as they dish them out. Ethereals help greatly with this problem, and are cheap while also letting Fire Warriors triple tap at 15". They are also fragile, and you need to be careful with them too.
I have nothing good to say about Pathfinders. I hate them. They are immobile, flimsy, prone to breaking, and every enemies first target. In a Ranged Support Cadre, where they get Infiltrate and Shrouded, and their Marker hits count as double; they're good. On their own, I'd rather take Marker Drones or Tetras. I have a huge bias toward this unit, I may not be the best person to talk about these terrible, worthless, point wasters.
Valkyrie wrote:2 Broadside Shas'ui: Twin-linked heavy rail rifle,Twin-linked smart missile system
The Rail Rifle looks great right? It better, because that's the best thing about it. The missile Pods are kings on the Broadside, and a huge asset if you are just beginning Tau and want a backstop unit that you can rely on. They don't need Markerlights to be effective (but get even better with them), and are super reliable for Interceptor. There are some great conversion pics out there, where people have found ways to make the Missile loadout not look so awkward, and it's not hard.
Overall this is a good foundation to start Tau with. It has a little bit of everything, and will let you find out what aspects of their game you find the most fun. I think that the Tau really shine when you find a "style" of Tau that fits your tactics, then develop a strategy for them. The aforementioned Hunter Contingent would work great with this list, and keep the amount of Markers you need to a minimum, while giving the infantry you want to take a further role as fire support. I have frequently used Snap Firing Fire Warriors or Kroot (who had Gone to Ground or rallied) to get two other units the +1
BS from Coordinated Firepower. They don't have to be able to hurt it to make themselves useful. You could also look into the Farsight Enclaves
CAD to alleviate your Elite issue; it would make Crisis Suits into a Troop choice. Sorry for being so longwinded, hope something here helps!
