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In my other threads I've come to the conclusion of tau or ig. So i would like to here who has better guns, artillery, point value and I'm not worried about infantry or close combat I'm going to ally with my main army nids. Warning I'm very new to war hammer and would like any help thats usefull.

Tau and IG are both shooting armies. If you like artillery and brute force tactics (IG is called 'Hammer of the Imperium' for a reason) then IG is your choice. If you prefer actual tactics in your list, then go Tau. Tau tends to be able to buff its shooting much like Tyranids can buff their combat units, while IG is more of an all rounder.

I will freely admit to playing both. I abandoned my IG because I didn't care for the psychic phase, and then added a Culexus to my FE, so go figure.

(whichever you go, let me know as I have some models for either that I could give you a deal on)

IG has and needs a lot of support, and big part of that comes from psykers. By itself most IG units are meh, tops, they won't hit anything, they runaway from anything, they die to anything. You can give them to hit re-rolls, make them fearless, and give them invulnerable saves with support units (actually you don't really need them to be more survivable).

I don't play Tau, only know IG. As I see IG works like "just throw more bodies at the problem until it disappears". It has lot of bodies, lot of tanks, lot of special and heavy weapons, and has some force multipliers that makes the all three statline hit really hard.

IG lacks long range fire support. Yes, seriously, all those tanks and artillery and whatnot mostly good for mid range. While you have a couple of 48"+ range weapons, most of them are not good, or you have better choice is. While, as I know Tau shines at long range.

Also while Tau mostly sucks at close combat, IG can build some really nasty melee units, which can either tarpit anything forever, or kill them. That's pretty surprising feat from S3 I3 I3 guys.

As above they are both shooty armies,

IG will have a more array of armour whereas Tau have some shiny toys its 50:50 really, Bother are Come the apocalypse with Nids so even there.

Im a Tau player but i do have much respect for guard armies especially the leman russ with all plasma (mmmmmmmm donuts Plasma)

I play both and I feel that IG do almost everytging that Tau does but better.

They had better vehicles.
Better gunlines.
Access to psykers.
Battle brother allies.
Cheaper plasma spam (yet more fragile).

Yet IG do not get the hate thatTau does...

IG lack the ability to jump into hiding after shooting.

They do not have Markerlights and can only Ignore Cover by orders.

They do not have MCs, which are harder to kill than vehicles (more wounds than HPs, get cover just by standing in certain terrain instead of requiring 25% obscurity, don't risk weapon destroyed/explodes results etc.).

IG actually have to see their target to shoot at it (except barrage).

There is a reason for why Tau has a 55% win rate at tournaments (source: ToF) and IG is around 30%.

Tau ignore 85% of the game, the rest of the game they excel at. Lets not mention unlimited supporting fire....

Markerlights = orders, yet IG have orders AND psykers (which is rather OP IMO).

IG have mortars and basilisks which ignore LoS whilst Tau have SMS... So IG ignore LoS more.

Maybe IG rank lower because less people play them (as more people turn to the top four which are Eldar, SM, Daemons and Necrons).

My lists definitely feel more powerful as IG, especially with the ally shenanigans (which us why I rarely play them anymore).

Last time I checked SM ignored the most rules...


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Let's not turn this into another Tau hate thread, there are enough of those around for some reason.

Straight out shooting? Tau would win. better basic weapons. in numbers and range (ish)

Artillery obviously IG

Armored death IG

LD support il probably have to give it to Tau for LD10 ethereal bubbles. Though IG have Priests and Commissars (costs a lot to put em everywhere)

Gamebreaking rules Both. Orders are nuts and so are markerlights and there relics.


Hate magnet: Tau

Better short range shooting = IG with their 150 rapid fire lasgun shots.

SGTPozy wrote:
Better short range shooting = IG with their 150 rapid fire lasgun shots.

Las guns
St3 bs3

Tau get 48 st5 ap5 shots at up to bs5+ within a little bit more rapid fire range.
(etheral + fireblade powers + markerlights if we really wanna go full ham)

 Desubot wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:
Better short range shooting = IG with their 150 rapid fire lasgun shots.

Las guns
St3 bs3

Tau get 48 st5 ap5 shots at up to bs5+ within a little bit more rapid fire range.
(etheral + fireblade powers + markerlights if we really wanna go full ham)

IG have 150 twin linked (prescience), str3 ap- shots at rapid fire range.

I'd say they're pretty equal

Edit: they're also fearless, have hatred and reroll armour saves, to wound rolls and have loads of 'smash' attacks from 14 Ministorum priests.

Wow that's pretty inefficient... they don't even get armor save from the pulse rifles...

 Quickjager wrote:
Wow that's pretty inefficient... they don't even get armor save from the pulse rifles...

Yes, but they get cover saves from their Aegis Defence Line and night fighting bonus.

SGTPozy wrote:

 Desubot wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:
Better short range shooting = IG with their 150 rapid fire lasgun shots.

Las guns
St3 bs3

Tau get 48 st5 ap5 shots at up to bs5+ within a little bit more rapid fire range.
(etheral + fireblade powers + markerlights if we really wanna go full ham)

IG have 150 twin linked (prescience), str3 ap- shots at rapid fire range.

I'd say they're pretty equal

Edit: they're also fearless, have hatred and reroll armour saves, to wound rolls and have loads of 'smash' attacks from 14 Ministorum priests.

Well if you wasted 2 priests in that unit to get the smash + Rerolls to wound on a 50% chance then i think Tau will be ok.

SGTPozy wrote:
Yes, but they get cover saves from their Aegis Defence Line and night fighting bonus.

What is going on with an IG and Tau gunline both in rapid fire range of each other at night behind fortifications?

I'm looking more for long range so Im going to go with tau now but thank you'll for the advice

Lest the OP be led astray, realize that SGTPozy has the same hate for imperial armies that most people have for Eldar (currently the most powerful army in the game, by far).

If you're going to ally with tyranids, realize that due to the ally rules you will be limited in how you can deploy them, especially since both tau and IG suffer from poor base leadership values. You specifically mentioned artillery, so I would suggest guard because they have a lot of options in that department. I could see flyrants pairing very well with a tank/artillery gunline. The ideal engagement range for tau is about 18-36" (plasma, melta, rapid-fire), whereas guard have a band from 0-12" (rapid-fire, tarpit assault) and another from 48-72". Most other armies can't put out the same amount of raw firepower in that second band that guard can simply due to limited force org slots. For example, you can get 9 S9 AP3 large blast barrage shots with more range than your table in a standard CAD. That's 177 square inches, or a 13x13 square..inefficient, but possible. Also thanks to squadrons, you can get a lot more heavy support units thanks to squadrons in your standard allied detachment.
Tau have more surgical options, and riptides are more durable than tanks. They have AP2 in spades, and good maneuverability with their battlesuits. If you go with Tau, I would use riptides to lob shots across the table while your nids close in. Like with guard, your fire support will sit back while the rest moves forward, keeping you out of the "one eye open" bubble.
The last consideration is that if you go with Imperial Guard allies you could style them as a genestealer cult, which could be pretty fluffy. You could also have Tau under the influence of the Hive Mind or ethereals that mind-controlled some Nids if you go with tau.

 greyknight12 wrote:
Lest the OP be led astray, realize that SGTPozy has the same hate for imperial armies that most people have for Eldar (currently the most powerful army in the game, by far).

I hate Eldar too, I just hate on the IoM more because I'm making up for everyone else's lack of complaints.

Obviously Tau win at range (however IG artillery will still wreck Tau) but IG win at close range.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 obsidiankatana wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:
Yes, but they get cover saves from their Aegis Defence Line and night fighting bonus.

What is going on with an IG and Tau gunline both in rapid fire range of each other at night behind fortifications?

It's just a fairer comparison of the two 'gunline' armies (even though no one uses gunlines(for Tau anyway) anymore due to Maelstrom).


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Desubot wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

 Desubot wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:
Better short range shooting = IG with their 150 rapid fire lasgun shots.

Las guns
St3 bs3

Tau get 48 st5 ap5 shots at up to bs5+ within a little bit more rapid fire range.
(etheral + fireblade powers + markerlights if we really wanna go full ham)

IG have 150 twin linked (prescience), str3 ap- shots at rapid fire range.

I'd say they're pretty equal

Edit: they're also fearless, have hatred and reroll armour saves, to wound rolls and have loads of 'smash' attacks from 14 Ministorum priests.

Well if you wasted 2 priests in that unit to get the smash + Rerolls to wound on a 50% chance then i think Tau will be ok.

Everyone always uses the marker light argument when complaining about Tau so I gave IG an unlimited number of priests as I'm keeping the comparisons fair.

I think they're limited to 5 priests...

Sounds like you want Death Korps! Quad thudd guns S5ap5 heavy4 barrage. Turn those Tau and Vanilla Guard into dust.

SGTPozy wrote:

Everyone always uses the marker light argument when complaining about Tau so I gave IG an unlimited number of priests as I'm keeping the comparisons fair.

They can have 3 priests per CAD, that's not unlimited.

Both armies will provide plenty of shooty to cover your nids advance.

IG with artillery and mortars will put holes in the enemy lines.
Plus the Lemans are a good well rounded tank that can be fitted for many jobs.

Tau can also bring good range threats. misslesides are great and efficient. The riptide has good range and very intimidating presence. As in the enemy will be hard pressed to not shoot it and ignore the advancing bugs. And finally you have the crisis suits. The swiss army knife of Tau, they do most things you need. Anti meq/teq fire, horde removal, tank removal. Nothing like dropping in a suit bomb full of melta and plasma to wreck face.

Zsolt wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

Everyone always uses the marker light argument when complaining about Tau so I gave IG an unlimited number of priests as I'm keeping the comparisons fair.

They can have 3 priests per CAD, that's not unlimited.

Go unbound.

I honestly do not believe IG needs psyker support to win like some are saying here, armor saturation and weight of fire can be just as brutal. I personally don't like psykers for my own head cannon with my regiment so I don't use them and I do okay. Don't let anyone make you believe that psykers are a "requirement" for IG to do anything.

First of all, I can't read what you're typing. Second, don't ally with 'Nids. One eye open, ya know?

SGTPozy wrote:


Everyone always uses the marker light argument when complaining about Tau so I gave IG an unlimited number of priests as I'm keeping the comparisons fair.

Well to be fair. just to get to Bs5 ignore cover for a Bs3 FW is 4 markerlights. which is only 8 pathfinder. hardly unlimited..

Which models do you prefer? You will be painting a lot of little dudes ether way.

 ultimentra wrote:
I honestly do not believe IG needs psyker support to win like some are saying here, armor saturation and weight of fire can be just as brutal. I personally don't like psykers for my own head cannon with my regiment so I don't use them and I do okay. Don't let anyone make you believe that psykers are a "requirement" for IG to do anything.

Psykers are a force multiplier. You can either use prescience, or use 50% more guns. Your choice. They have some other nice feats, like protecting it's unit from enemy psykers to some degree, may roll some useful other powers. I wouldn't advise new players not to use psykers because you don't like either psykers or the psyker phase. Of course it's useful info, that you can do without them, still the constraint is an artificial one.

Look up Genestealer Cults. That would make a cool IG army that would fit with a 'nid army. Lots of cool opportunities for conversions and stuff.

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Genestealer_Cult

http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Genestealer