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So I left 40k half a year ago and I want back in. Always wanted to play tau so when I saw a very low price on the Retaliation Cadre preorder online, I bought 3. I have nothing but those three boxes and a riptide left over from my old collection. What should I do with them to make a very competitive army?

A codex!

But seriously, you have enough models to max out the retaliation cadre formation. Plus an extra Riptide and two leftover commanders.

Whatever you do next with them depends on how you want to play with them. The cadre can be taken as core in the Mont'Ka MFD, or as an auxiliary in the Kauyon one. I'd recommend looking into stealth suits or any other way you can get homing beacons up the field to mitigate the risk of deep strike mishaps.

Beyond that, you're thinking of fielding 3+ riptides so you'revalready on course to hit pretty hard.

 Captain Joystick wrote:
Beyond that, you're thinking of fielding 3+ riptides so you'revalready on course to hit pretty hard.

Just don't expect to make or keep any friends.

 Captain Joystick wrote:
A codex!

But seriously, you have enough models to max out the retaliation cadre formation. Plus an extra Riptide and two leftover commanders.

You can have 3 Riptides in a unit according to the latest codex. But, yes, two additional Commanders.

SG

 ServiceGames wrote:

You can have 3 Riptides in a unit according to the latest codex.

Yes, and those three you ordered plus the one you still have left over makes 4...

Still would love some tips!

Ha!

I got you and SG mixed up and carried on the conversation in other threads...

Are you looking to run them in CAD or formations? Empire or Enclaves?

 Captain Joystick wrote:
Ha!

I got you and SG mixed up and carried on the conversation in other threads...

Are you looking to run them in CAD or formations? Empire or Enclaves?

Leaning towards running them in a farsight enclave with the option of the formation for deep strike t2.

Ok, so.

If you want to run the formation, you're going to need something else on the field for that first turn. An anchor that you can resonably expect not to buckle after a single turn.

You've got at least one riptide left over that might serve well there, maybe you want to take some formations, maybe something that will draw the enemy out with range like a squadron of tanks or a stormsurge or something like that. Unless you're looking to go full dawnblade, I think you want to consider a CAD here. And there's an added bonus, in that you can make one FSE and another the Empire proper.

Consider the possibilities there: An Empire commander can take the buffmander loadout and be a useful augmentor to whichever unit you place him in, put him in a broadside unit and make those missiles terrifying for anything they wander close to (and they're relentless in the formation, so can actually do a lot of walking and shooting!), or put him with crisis suits with missiles and target locks give him a drone controller and as many marker drones as you can fit in to have a unit that dances around outside of the enemy's range marking him with BS5 drones and smacking vehicles as they get close, or put him in a unit loaded out with crisis suits with burst cannons, drones (with controller) and demand they pay attention to it or its going to eat every unit that feels the need to hide in cover, one at a time.

In contrast the FSE signature systems can provide great psychic defense, individual performance boosts, generally big effects with a big price tag attached. A number of them require good dice rolls, the SFN and the Warscraper Drone synergize well together, in general you want to know what you want the guy carrying that equipment is going to be doing with it and don't give the fusion blades to the same guy who's carrying the mirrorcodex (and certainly not the earth case pilot array!)

As for the formation itself, you can take the models you've got in those three boxes and max out the whole thing. If you do that, though, you're going to be spending a lot in points to kit them out properly, I think at least one of those crisis suit units should be equiped with fusion blasters and target locks, with the intent of them dropping into the enemy back field and popping tanks before they get taken out themselves.

Alternatively, if you go the minimal route, make all three of those crisis suit units suicidal fusion blaster rambos, put the commander in with the broadsides with the tau signature systems and let them be the secondary threat next to those three riptides. Meanwhile have the CAD backing them be more rounded, and use those leftover crisis models there.

Either way, consider stealth suits to bring homing beacons up the field and make those deep-strikes less dangerous.

3 Ghostkeels are pricey but can hold for a turn. Can turn it down to two, but if you absolutely need a unit that will tank a turn for stuff to come in and on the cheap its them. I wanted 3 Riptides but that was too costly. Ghostkeels fit the role of the one turn tank just perfectly.

Magnetize everything as you build them so you can swap weps, its super easy on suits, broadside arms are a little harder, though you'd be safe glueing the HYMPs on.. the HRR sucks :(.. other than that just buy some marker drones off ebay or gw if you want NiB so you can run the drone formation and you will be set with a competitive army. this way you can run retal cadre, riptide wing(3 groups of 1), drone network

 Captain Joystick wrote:
Yes, and those three you ordered plus the one you still have left over makes 4...

Ah ha! Really need to read all of the original post before responding. Sorry about that.

SG