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Before the new codex (and before this esteemed forum changed format) there were a set of "unofficial" rules of Tau.

If my memory serves me well (wishfull thinking) there were something like this;

1. Buy more shots.

2. Never Bonding.

3. Never TL

4. The Torgoch-Shal'el was considered the most cost effective.

5. Stealth-suit was generally considered superior to Crisis.

6. If Crisis-suit were used, the Fireknife-configuration was considered a good all-rounder.

7. Deepstriking Monat-suits was a no-no.

8. *space left blank in case of memory-lapse*

Has any of these changed and in which ways?

 

9. Markerlights were "meh" as they only allowed one model to hit on a 2+
I dont think anyone still bonds.

1. still true

2. Bonding might now be useful in certain situations, espicially in a static list with shadowsun.

3. even more true since your suits can get targetting arrays

4. only true if your opponent uses transports

5. this really depended on your tournament environment, in the UK crisis suits were king while in the US were the missions allowed infiltrate to overrule escalation, stealth's were favored.

6. still true

What is "fireknife" config?

Happypants

The Fireknife is a Missile Pod, Plasma Rifle, Multi-Tracker. . .

And its still one of if not the best version of the crisis suit, its been used in tournaments as long as the tau have been out. . .

JTS had 4 rules of tau,

1- always buy more shots
2- never bond
3- never twinlink

4- i cant remember but it was another 'never', probably  never deepstrike.

 

i think probably the reason the torgoch suit got named thus is cos it broke one of the rules, = got told to shut up, but then he proved rigously that it was a good config and important for the role it played (glancing rhinos in 3rd ed was critcal)

There is still a place for Deathrain/Torgoch suits. (TL MPs)

Landspeeders and Vypers. These need to be brought down, and it can be hard to manuever enough S5 firepower to bring them down.

Of course, you do not need many at all.

I still like the Plasma/Fusion Commander suits with no bodyguard. Save your life against termies and the like.

Don't use torgoch Shas'el. Firstly, rhinos drop like crazy, and second, you get BS5 with an array.

So what's the new optimized Command suit (he asks, looking at his two lovingly converted Torgoch'els)? Fireknife'el with array? PR/Ion w/array?

I'm guessing it would be a Shas'el with missile, plasma, tracker and targetting array. The Ion looks alright too, but i haven't played it yet.

yea, shas'el, plasma/missile/targetting array/HW multitracker - 97

he's ace, ironically the same pts as the torgoch from the previous codex. gets more hits overall
in the prev. codex i used a twin missile/plasma, and twin plasma/missile pair of shas'els, they were good but are switched straight away  to fireknife-5's cos they get more hits overall.

these guys are totally sweet and i expect to see them everywhere, as a standard suit.

I'm really digging the Shas'el, Plasma, Targetting Array, HWMtt. The Cyclic ion works out to be double the effectiveness of the missile pod vs. most infantry types (except nurgle blessed marines, and T4 4+ save models). I run plenty of S7 in the rest of my list, so the Shas'el cyclic ion has found a good home.

yea, i agree. in one list i'm thinking of using at 1500 with 6 broadsides and 5 fireknives, one of the shas'els has dropped his missiles because i think they're redunant enough, and has taken burstcannon/CIB/bs5, which gives him loads of anti-infantry powah (as much anti-meq as 133 pts worth of stealths)

i'd only take a str3 weapon if you were absolutly sure you had enough anti-tank in the rest of the army. if you do, then its a nice weapon. but in a 'normal' (stealth & mech FW & railhead) army then i'd insist all the crisis had potent anti-tank because you need the options available.