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.

I'm just getting back into 40k, was an avid player for years. I'm looking for feedback on my army, particularly about the best load outs for crisis suits, as well as advice with drones: what to take and when to take them. I am modeling my army as a kind of darker, predatory Tau under the command of R'alai. The pathfinders infiltrate, covered by the Y'hara, paint the targets with marker lights, suits can come in easy with the recon drone, then they bring the rain with the FIrebase Cadre and Stormsurge. I'm relatively new to Tau, and love the forge world models which my local clubs allow. Any advice on drones, marker lights, and/or crisis suit load outs would be greatly appreciated.

Detachment 1: Combined Arms Detachment (Farsight Enclaves)
HQ:

Commander: Commander R'alai

Troops:
XV8 Crisis Team: 3 suits, x3 Cyclic Ion Blaster, x3 Flamer, Shas'vre with Neuroweb Jammer, x1 Vectored Retro Thrusters, Bonding Knife Ritual, x1 Shield Drone
XV8 Crisis Team: 3 suits, x3 Missile Pod, x 3 Plasma Rifle, x1 Vectored Retro Thrusters, x1 Shield Drone

Fast Attack:
Pathfinder Team: x5 Pathfinders, MB3 Recon Drone, Bonding Knife Ritual
Pathfinder Team: x6 Pathfinders, Bonding Knife Ritual
XV109 Y'vahra Battlesuit: x1 suit, Early Warning Override, and Stimulant Injector

Lord of War:
KV128 Stormsurge: x1 suit, Pulse Driver Cannon, twin-linked Flamer, Early Warning Override, Shield Generator, Advanced Targeting System

Detachment 2: Formation: Firebase Support Cadre

Riptide Shas'vre: EWO, Ion Accelerator, Stimulant Injector, TL Smart Missile System
Broadsides: x2 suits, x2 TL High-Yield Missile Pod, TL SMS, EWO, Velocity Tracker, x 1 Shield Drone
Broadsides: x1 suit, x1 TL Heavy Rail Rifle, TL SMS, ATS

total: 1847

comes out to about 1847. In retrospect after typing this all out, the missile pods on the second team should be replaced with something else, but I don't know what. The crisis suits job will be to jump on objectives and/or protect the pathfinders/stormsurge

Well you need 8 Reliable Markerlight hits in a round to fully realize the destructive potential of the StormSurge. 11 Pathfinders won't be enough.

I would also advise you that the Heavy BNurst Cannon Riptide Wing is so powerful that if the points allow, they can and should replace Broadsides.

- Don't mix weapons on crisis
- When in doubt, missile pods are the answer
- Don't bother with shield drones
- Don't bother with the 'vre unless you really need the sig systems
- Replace Pathfinders with a drone net
- You can't have 2 systems on broadsides, either EWO or VT's, not both.
- I think you've got too many ML hogs and not enough ML's. At least 1 suit team (2-4 lights), the Surge (4-8 lights depending on how free with your missiles you are) and the Riptide (5 lights) all want a bunch of ML's and you're not going to be able to feed them all.

I agree with the above, but that's a solid start on a list. I wouldn't be super quick to replace the Broadsides with anything. That volume of firepower for the points is unrivaled. If you can keep them alive, they mow things down like nothing else. They also happen to be pretty independent of marker lights, so you won't need to baby them much.

I am not trying to become a 1st place winner in a tournament anytime soon. This is merely my beginning first draft. My scene in Texas is swamped by Ad Mech who are braggarts of the worst kind. I want to prove to everyone they can bleed. I want to show people that they can create armies that are unique that can be effective. I already own the stormsurge, riptide, a crisis suit team. O'Ralai and the XV109 are on their way from forgeworld. I simply need to aquire more drones, another crisis team, and some broadsides.

well your Crisis Team #1 is gonna lay some hurt down. they are going to need help gliding in though. Gonna need the Drone to make sure they make it in okay.