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I don't collect any of these two armies. I'm also not planning to collect them. It's just that when we meet and we have a little bit more time than usual, that is enough to fool around with proxy armies, I like to test some strange armies or combinations like SoB or trying to get as many S6 in an Eldar army as possible.

This time I'd like to test either a 3 Dreadknight/1 Riptide combo or 1 Dreadknight/ 3 Riptide combo. Not sure which one is better. Also, I haven't seen the new Tau dex yet, but I've read several comments regarding it.

The list (or The idea)
GK
Coteaz
10-20 Strike Squad with Psycannons and other fancy stuff
1 or 3 Dreadknights with H. Incinerator and H. Psycannon/Teleporter (for more lulz) if points allow it

Tau
Either Crisis HQ with Crisis's with missile pods/plasma or the other guy that boosts your troops
1 or 3 Riptides with Ion Cannon and other stuff if points allow it
12-24 Fire Warriors
3 Broadsides with some fancy stuff (possibly this missile spam with missile drones for the lulz) or more if Tau is the primary detachment

No Vehicles. Just MC's and troops.
What do you think about it?

hahahahaha sillyness all around! Could definately be fun though

I've been thinking about this kind of list too. I haven't seen the Riptide in battle yet, so I don't know how well it really functions, but I'd guess either configuration could work. You'd just have to adjust your tactics to take into account what you're using.

3 DKs/1 RT would be the more expensive of the two, as the recommended (I find these mandatory) upgrades of Sword/H. Incinerator/Teleporter make DKs 260 points a pop. For this one, you'd probably want to make the Riptide an anti-Infantry or Anti-Air unit. Dreadknights will mulch most MCs and Vehicles, but can get bogged down in Infantry Swarms, even with the Torrent Flamer. You'd probably be aggressive with all of your mecha, trying to do overwhelming target saturation on your enemy, who'll have 3 fast-moving MCs in his grill turn 1 or 2.

On the other hand, having 3 Riptides would probably necessitate a more passive style of play, using the defenses of the Riptides to shrug off long-range shooting and equipping them for long-range stand-off, while the DK and Riptide shots destroy any plasma-toting dudes that try to get close.

Coteaz is of course a go-to HQ for GK, as he'll also allow you to do henchmen spam if you need cheap GK Troops for primary. Strikes squads are great, especially when they're not the targets of priority.

For Tau, I might actually consider Commander Farsight, if you want to go target-saturation style. He and a crisis suit brigade can DS in (no scatter if Tau's primary), adding another must-kill threat to your DK and close quarters shooting equipped Riptides (Maybe Hvy Burst Cannon and Plasma Rifle?) In the same vein, you can add Grand Master Mordrak instead of Coteaz, for yet another no-scatter HQ + Unit.

Alpha-Striking!
Tau (Primary)
Commander Farsight
Max Number of Crisis Suit Bodyguard (maybe fusion blasters to get First Blood and destroy vehicles, alongside other goodies)
2 x fire warriors, as we're spending too many points elsewhere
3x Riptides, with H. Burst Cannons and Plasma Rifles

Grey Knights(Allies)
Grand Master Mordrak and Ghost Knights
1 Full Strike Squad with the goodies
1 Dreadknight with Flamer/Sword/Teleporter.

This could only really be done at 2K, you'd have to cut stuff out at more normal points values.

I'm off to bed now, but there's a lot of stuff that could be very viable with these two armies allied.

still waiting on my dex but from what i can tell the Riptide would be best to have 3 of in this tactic because its guns are vastly superior, and the Dreadknight is quite deadly in melee and the only range weapon it should have is a flamer anyway (i HATE that thing when it reaches halfway across the table and burns my lootas out of their ruins)

Imagine, 3 JSJ Riptides shooting at insane range with a Dreadknight and whatever number of random bodies you can field buffering the mid-zone. Thats some scary shiz right there. I outta try that when i get my dex just to dink around and proxy a couple riptides (my friend plays GKs and has a dreadknight i can borrow and i bought a Riptide with my codex cuz why not)

If you want a silly list, I faced one not very long ago in a tournament (1850 pts)

primary GK
Draigo + Mordrak Deep Striking together on T1
2x1 paladins DS as troops
Vindicare assassin on an Icarus gun for sniping characters
3 DK with incinerators and Jump thingies

Allied BA
Mephiston
3 DC guys hiding in a corner

and .... that's it

I REALLY want to try this. Can't believe I didn't think of it. But i'd leave out the H. Psycannons and possibly take CC weapons instead. I have a soft spot for the sword....

I know some people swear by the Heavy Psycannon, but when we're already over LR price, I can't justify putting on another weapon. The Heavy Incinerator is basically better in most cases, and you don't need another weapon that will encourage you to stay out of CC and fire it. The critical failure point of Dreadknights (and Riptides without 3++ Nova) is enemy plasma shots, so you want to either get into melee, kill them first, or keep out of range. Riptides can JSJ and shoot them, the DK can only melee them while remaining effective.

I will however, swear by the Nemesis Greatsword. You know when you've got this really critical combat phase, and everything's riding on this guy with a Power Fist? Then he misses half his attacks, and the remaining ones roll 1s to wound... The Greatsword means that basically doesn't happen. When you have so few attacks (5 on the charge, 4 normal), you can't afford to have even 2 or 3 of them not kill, and the rerolls from the GS makes him so much more reliable at it. It also means that he basically will never fail at crushing vehicles, with effective Tank Hunters. Think about it -- the greatsword gives him Prescience, Shred, and Tank Hunters in one weapon, and he's still at S10, 4 attacks.

Does anyone have any ideas on what to field the Riptides with? Drones or no Drones, etc?

Tau (Primary)
Cheap Ethereal
2 x fire warriors, as we're spending too many points elsewhere
3x Riptides, with H. Burst Cannons and Plasma Rifles

Grey Knights(Allies)
Coateaz
3x warrior acolytes (basic)
2 Dreadknight with Flamer/Sword/Teleporter.

Not familiar with the Tau Codex but probably swap the fire warriors for pathfinders for some marker light shenanigans and points allowing add a third Deadknight with the same fitting.

FuzzyLogik wrote:
Tau (Primary)
Cheap Ethereal
2 x fire warriors, as we're spending too many points elsewhere
3x Riptides, with H. Burst Cannons and Plasma Rifles

Grey Knights(Allies)
Coateaz
3x warrior acolytes (basic)
2 Dreadknight with Flamer/Sword/Teleporter.

Not familiar with the Tau Codex but probably swap the fire warriors for pathfinders for some marker light shenanigans and points allowing add a third Deadknight with the same fitting.

You can only have 1 DK for your heavy slot for the GKs.

 Goat wrote:

FuzzyLogik wrote:
Tau (Primary)
Cheap Ethereal
2 x fire warriors, as we're spending too many points elsewhere
3x Riptides, with H. Burst Cannons and Plasma Rifles

Grey Knights(Allies)
Coateaz
3x warrior acolytes (basic)
2 Dreadknight with Flamer/Sword/Teleporter.

Not familiar with the Tau Codex but probably swap the fire warriors for pathfinders for some marker light shenanigans and points allowing add a third Deadknight with the same fitting.

You can only have 1 DK for your heavy slot for the GKs.

Sorry i don't use allies so i'm a bit rusty on the force organisation for them. In that case one DK seems a bit meh. It will be a very expensive turn 1 meat shield since your opponent will make sure it doesn't get in to combat. If you could take at least 2 I could probably justify it, but it would also be ridiculous.

I play Grey Knights with a couple DKs already in a 1500 point list, so definitely thinking of adding a 500 point ally detachment to get a Riptide in.

While playing around with unit configurations though, one thing I've concluded is that the Riptide needs markerlight support. For all its great weapons, BS 3 missing half of them would be terrible and cover saves too prevalent thanks to ADL, etc. anyway.

So, that kind of inflates the Riptide's point costs quite a bit if each one needs a support unit illuminating targets for it. Right now I'm thinking 1 Riptide + 1 Crisis Suit Commander with Drone Controller and a 6 Markerlight Drone Squad. The Commander would be a ridiculous bullet magnet himself, but with the Iridium upgrade not only can he take it, the weapons that threaten him are the ones I want to divert from my MCs anyway...

chaos daemons + tau make actually a fairly fun MC spam. (somewhat effective too but only at higher points levels unfortunately)

You can run
Tau main with

3x riptides

+

Chaos daemons with like Lord of change + winged daemon prince with armor. Very survivable. Throw down some fast attack khorn dogs scouting or seekers just running straight up backed up by guns which should have great firing potential given that most armies would have to focus on all the stuff headed for them to assault.

Even as desperate allies, all your daemon assets are just there to die for the greater good. I'd even go as far as to throw in some one squad of just very cheap troops and run them straight at the enemy guns to die as they won't be able to cap objectives. Have them far away from your gunlines and you can have a good time blasting things with the tau.

Wouldn't really be the "good guys" however lol

What about:

Cheap Tau HQ,
2 units of Fire warriors or Sniper Kroot
3 Riptides

Destroyer lord w/ Wraiths
2*5Necrons in scythe
1 Deathscythe

Don't think this will go well for the opponent, that destroyerlord ( almost a monstrous Creature) and wraiths will obliterate anything surviving the firepower.