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Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User




Hey gents. My first 40K army was actually Tau, when I picked up the hobby when 5th edition dropped in 2008. I haven't touched them in 8 years or so, so I decided to strip the models of their horrible paint job and start fresh. Here is my draft 1st list for comments and criticism; I have no idea what is really good these days. I read the codex and did a bit of research, but that's it.

Caveats: I have no Enforcer or Coldstar, and am not planning on grabbing any. I have 5 additional XV-8s, 2 Devilfish, 2 Hammerheads, 4 additional pathfinders, 3 Pathfinders with Rail Rifles, 2 Broadsides with Missiles, 1 Broadside with Railguns, 1 built Broadside, and a huge pile of drones I can build. I can swap weapons and systems.

Tau Empire List, Battleforged, 13 CPs

Tau Battalion, Sacea Sept
HQ
Commander in XV-8 with 2 Missle Pods, Burst Cannon, Drone Controller
Warlord trait: Beacon of Honor
Relic: Puretide Chip
Etheral with Honor Blade
Cadre Fireblade with Pulse rifle, Marker light

Troops

10 Fire Warrior Strike Team, Marker Light
10 Fire Warrior Strike Team, Marker Light
10 Kroot

Elites

3 Stealth Suits with Burst Cannons
3 Stealth Suits with Burst Cannons
Firesight Marksman with Markerlight, Pulse Pistol

Tau Battalion, Sacea Sept
HQ
Commander in XV-8 with 3 Missle Pods, Advanced Targeting System
Cadre Fireblade with Pulse rifle, Marker light

Troops

10 Fire Warrior Strike Team, Marker Light
10 Fire Warrior Strike Team, Marker Light
10 Kroot

Elites

Ghostkeel with 2 Stealth Drones, Ion Raker, 2 Burst Cannons, Shield Generator, Advanced Targeting Sytem
Riptide with Ion Accelerator, 2 Smart Missile Systems, Target Lock, Early Warning Over ride
Riptide with Ion Accelerator, 2 Smart Missile Systems, Target Lock, Early Warning Over ride

Fast Attack

6 Marker Drones with Marker Lights
6 Marker Drones with Marker Lights
6 Pathfinders with Pulse Carbines, Marker Lights

Overall game plan is for the stealth suits to deploy first, infiltrate onto the midboard to deny space to the opponent and advance up the kroot squads before game start to do the same. Castle up the Markerlight units in cover near the Warlord with the drone controller with the marker drones. Deploy Strike teams on my objectives in cover, and advance up the board with the rest, shooting up units as they advance. Keep the Strike Teams in support range of the etheral and fireblades as they move up the table.

I plan on liberal use of the Sacea orbital marker light stratagem as my initial marker light, and then use the character markerlights with the Sacea reroll bonus if needed. Pile on 5+ marker lights to 2 units per turn and smoke them.
   
Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User




I think your heart is in the right place but you are going a little overboard with the markerlights.
I would suggest an XV-84 commander with a missile pod(or Shas'O'ralai if you are into forge world) with a drone controller(O'ralai comes with a drone controller, sits cushy in his xv9 hazard suit complete with an experimental shield generator, hyperdensity sabot rounds, and instant mortal wounds on vehicles. Oh and he has two of the best sources of markerlights with him via the black light marker lights) and a pack of marker light drones with 2 more cadre fireblades + their marker drones and you are already landing a significant amount of lights a turn. Slide a puretide chip in him, hide that guy with his drones in the back and you have a guaranteed markerlight generator. I trust the network markerlight system of the 84 and it comes with targetlock.

Your main source of markerlights, aside from fireblades, should be pathfinders(you should be taking the unique drones to boost your gunline, as well as the 3 rail rifles for hard cheddar rapid fire mortal wounds) or a fast choice with a couple more.

Also Tau become incredibly flexible when you add the dynamic that Forgeworld allows you, I speak mainly of the unholy mix between a leviathian siege dread and an f22, the xv109. Your flamer, on its worst day, will kill only one unit of terminators and most players refuse to play anyone with 2+.
8th edition nerfed the remora stealth drone, but kinda helped the Barracuda mk2. For a lower price, you could have two railgun flyers, instead of trying to hide two huge riptides.

Also as a Tau force you lack any real big guns. The inclusion of some broadsides or a single Stormsurge who can be from his own sept(pref the -1 ranged sept).

Also that firesight marksman wont help you much outside of a drone port.
   
Made in gb
Pulsating Possessed Chaos Marine







I think the markerlight spam could work well and with the stealthsuits and ghoskeel you get rid of some of the risk of being charged in the first turn. I've always thought, personally, that the tau sept was the most powerful.
Just a side not you could split that list up and gain a vanguard detachment with the elites and the cadre fireblade. Tau chew through CP like no other army!
   
Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User




Maybe throw in a droneport for the marksman. park the marksmen and pathfinders on it as well.
   
 
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