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Hey guys. I used to have a 2000 point Grey Knights army back in 5th edition, but life happened so I took a hiatus. I am now back and roaring to go and am deciding between Necron or Tau. I already have my hypothetical 2000 point lists for each made. I just need some help deciding which one to pursue.

I am leaning toward Tau with one major reservation:

New Necron rules just came out, while tau have been out almost 2 years. This makes me worried that I'm gonna start Tau when there is possibly some new models / changes coming soonish, while Necron I would be starting out right at the start. Is this something I should be concerned about?

There is a rumor that kroot are possibly getting there own release. So if you were thinking about kroot then that is something to consider. You could just use them as allies though if it actually came to be.

It depends:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Do you want a fun mid/higher-tier army? If so, play Tau.

Necrons are strong but not really "OMFG CHEESE LOL TROLLZ" anymore...

Tau have great weapons, long range, lots and lots of abilities (Lol what cover save), and some really cool looking models. They have one of the brightest lore's in the grim dark for the 41st millenia as well. Downside is they tend to be rather squishy, are one of the worst armies in melee, and people will give you looks for fielding multiple riptides.

Necrons in contrast are arguably the most resilient army currently in 40k, also really cool looking models, medium to long range and now melee options. Lore wise I find there classic lore to be best, but most hobbyist agree there is new lore is much better. Downside to playing Necrons is that you lack a lot of high strength low AP weapons, Strength D pretty much removes your special snowflake abilities, and people will HATE you for having basic infantry that can rip through their land raider like wet tissue paper, but at the same time being able to take punishment like no one else can.

In essence go with Necrons if you like the idea of slow walking terminators walking up the field ripping through everything and everyone.
Go with tau if you like the idea of people serving a great cause with advanced weaponry and mechs zipping around the battlefield like your standard Gundam show.

Both solid armies cant go wrong with either in my opinion.

If winning is vital, or you're doing the tournament thing, I'd pick Necrons. They have a solid codex that just came out (so its won't change for awhile). Within that codex there are several good builds and quite a bit of flexibility.

I like Tau better, but, like you said, they'll get a new dex sooner than later and who knows where that goes. I'm guessing it goes down in power, not up.... so of the 7th ed dexes, Necrons will probably be the best.

However, if club play is your thing, I'd go Tau. Play the codex you want to play for its fluff, models, and character.

Neither, I hate both

 jreilly89 wrote:
Neither, I hate both

I hate Dark Angels.

SGTPozy wrote:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Mind elaborating on that, please?

Whatever looks cooler. No matter how good a codex is, there's no point getting it if you hate looking at them.

And remember, you can always get both.

 krodarklorr wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Mind elaborating on that, please?

Decurion formation.

SGTPozy wrote:

 krodarklorr wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Mind elaborating on that, please?

Decurion formation.

mostly just the new Wraiths + formation.

other than that I don't think they're that cheesy. Durable as hell, but not so cheesy. Just don't expect a vehicle heavy army to work well.

What's your favorite color? Seriously if you like Tau better then go collect Tau.

SGTPozy wrote:

 jreilly89 wrote:
Neither, I hate both

I hate Dark Angels.

Congrats? Thanks for the input.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Play whatever style/lore appeals to you. Necrons will most likely get FAQ'ed soon, but before Tau get a new book, I expect the next codex to be either CSM or DA.

Thanks for all the advice guys! The other issue I am running into is cost. My 2000 Point Necron army list is $600 retail, while my 2000 Tau list is over $900 retail. Those dang broadsides are so cost inefficient and my list has 6 of them.

notredameguy10 wrote:
Thanks for all the advice guys! The other issue I am running into is cost. My 2000 Point Necron army list is $600 retail, while my 2000 Tau list is over $900 retail. Those dang broadsides are so cost inefficient and my list has 6 of them.

Try eBay or Craigslist, heck, even the Swap Shop. A lot of the stuff you may want you can pick up 2nd hand for cheap.

Necrons allow you to play a few different ways, so if that's important to you then keep that in mind. They obviously have the shooting, but their melee units aren't bad either. Outside of the psychic phase, Necrons can participate in all the phases of the turn.

Tau on the other hand do one thing and one thing only, and that's shoot guns.

Necrons are suuuuuuper simple to paint and play. So for newbs, Necrons.

If you're a very strategically minded person, and really enjoy puzzles, I feel the Tau Empire is a really fun Sandbox to play in.

Just don't be boring and play gunlines with either one. Too many fun things to do. With tournaments including a Maelstrom element, mobility is king and both do a great job of hopping around the battle field.

 jreilly89 wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

 jreilly89 wrote:
Neither, I hate both

I hate Dark Angels.

Congrats? Thanks for the input.

And thank you for your input... We all really needed to know that you hate both.

NauticalKendall wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

 krodarklorr wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Mind elaborating on that, please?

Decurion formation.

mostly just the new Wraiths + formation.

other than that I don't think they're that cheesy. Durable as hell, but not so cheesy. Just don't expect a vehicle heavy army to work well.

I don't even see how Wraiths are that scary. They're durable, yes. But they're damage output has stayed the same, if not gotten worse because of no Destroyer Lord.

Wraiths are good. that's all you need know!

 krodarklorr wrote:

NauticalKendall wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

 krodarklorr wrote:

SGTPozy wrote:

Do you want a purely cheese OP army? If so, play Necrons.

Mind elaborating on that, please?

Decurion formation.

mostly just the new Wraiths + formation.

other than that I don't think they're that cheesy. Durable as hell, but not so cheesy. Just don't expect a vehicle heavy army to work well.

I don't even see how Wraiths are that scary. They're durable, yes. But they're damage output has stayed the same, if not gotten worse because of no Destroyer Lord.

Outside of Maelstrom and Purge the Alien, durability is king. With Obj. Secured, you can park Warriors on objectives and most of the time tie up scary units in CC. I would happily take a decrease in damage for better survivability.

 jreilly89 wrote:


Outside of Maelstrom and Purge the Alien, durability is king. With Obj. Secured, you can park Warriors on objectives and most of the time tie up scary units in CC. I would happily take a decrease in damage for better survivability.

Not that it helps the argument of Necrons not being OP, they may be resilient, but they still have plenty of offensive power.