[commander heelit]

Hi i am new to Tau, after collecting tyranids. I have only got one thing, a crisis battlesuit oh and the codex. Now my only enemies i EVER play against are space marines and orks so i was really stuck on what to give my crisis battlesuits. Any ideas? i was thinking fusion blaster and flamer? But what should i use, i think mainly it would be against orks but it could go either way.
Thanks in advance.

[Mister Kay]

Originally Posted by commander heelit

Hi i am new to Tau, after collecting tyranids. I have only got one thing, a crisis battlesuit oh and the codex. Now my only enemies i EVER play against are space marines and orks so i was really stuck on what to give my crisis battlesuits. Any ideas? i was thinking fusion blaster and flamer? But what should i use, i think mainly it would be against orks but it could go either way.
Thanks in advance.

If you get enough flamer hits on space marines, they'll fail armor saves eventually and fusion hits will drop them instantly.

[Obon80]

It really depends on what roll u want them to play.There is alot of different combos you can do.Just don't over tax them, to much of a work is a killer

[commander heelit]

oh right thanks i will give them fusion and flamers and maybe shield generators to help them get close.

[ranzin927]

Crisis suits are a mainstay in the Tau army. They are very versatile and can make or break a game. ;D

My main opponent is normally Space Marines. For my Crisis suits, I normally opt for a Plasma Rifle and a Missile pod. If I was fighting Orks, the missile pod would be dropped for a Burst Cannon. Put a Multi tracker on the suit as well for more shots.

Why for Space Marines, Plasma and Missiles? Well, the Plasma Rifle was designed to take out armored infantry, or in other words, Space Marines. If you hit, it will kill a marine on a wound roll of 2+ (Or is it +3? Been a while since I played. Dang that wedding!!) There will be no armor save, so you are pretty much set if they are out of cover. Missiles are very nice for dreadnaughts and other lightly armored vechiles. A Marine with out a transport is a very slow object. A Crisis Suit with a Plasma Rifle is a faster predator. I think you get the theory.

What about Orks then? Well Orks come in a variety of list types. Those that will flood you with models, and those that will be tougher to kill as they try to get into close combat. (At least in my opinion.) Trading out the missiles for the burst cannon gains you an additional shot, but does not sacrifice the the low AP of the Plasma Rifle. So if the tougher guys are coming, I have the Plasma. If it's a green tide of troops, I have both.

Do not let the Orks or Marines get close. Tau are horrible at close combat. It's not like playing the Nids. It is a totally different playstyle. Playing the Tau is like a piano. It is very very unforgiving if you make a mistake. Playing the Nids, you have so many troops, you can make a few mistakes and still win.

As a note: of the units to buy, make sure you get some path finders or some other source of Markerlights. A lowly suit or Fire Warrior will be ok, but a Suit that has the markerlight support to take away cover saves, or a Fire Warrior with a higher BS skill will really make the game go your way. Some people play with out MLs, but I find my pathfinders useful with the MLs, and that they absorb so much fire if the enemy knows Tau. That way, my other units are able to kill theirs.

Good luck. (Now, if I could find a viable reason to link my Tau and Tyranid armies for casual games.)

[commander heelit]

thanks for all the help.

Good luck. (Now, if I could find a viable reason to link my Tau and Tyranid armies for casual games.)

linking nids to Tau? Come on be creative Tau have advanced alot and have put a technical (dog collar) thing on the hive queen, this has made them able to control the synapse, in terms, control the nids in that horde.

[emptythreat]

My storyline for a Taurinid army follows the idea that the Tau are experimenting with the Tyranids to try to bring them into the Greater Good. The Tau are able to direct the Nids synaptically through the unsavoury but nescassary means of Nid impregnation of some FW troops, then landing on an enemy controlled planet, and using the now impregnated FW's to act as a psychic beacon.

The main storyline follows that they lure the Nids to Necron tomb worlds, where the Nids destroy everything, leaving anything non-organic (ie technological marvels) for the Tau to later pick up...

also, don't forget about the Stealth teams, they are quit useful for thier infiltration capabilities.
also, if you want a similar army(or as close as) as the Nids, get some Kroot (though i won't touch them, not my style), they are basically a Termagaunt without without number..(yes there is supposed to be two 'without's...

[juraigamer]

A great way to deal with marines is what I use for my HQ, here I'll post the actual entry:


HQ 1: 1 XV8 Shas’o
Fusion Blaster
Plasma Rifle
Missile Pod
Stimulant Injector
Hard Wired Multi-tracker
Total: 134
Hq, runs same trick as below with the addition of having a insta death weapon for leaders and such (the fb)

Bodyguard: 2 XV8 Shas’vre
2 Twin Linked Plasma Rifles
2 Missile Pods
2 Hard Wired Multi-trackers
Total: 164
Designed to kill heavy infantry and light vehicles

How this rolls is as following, You shoot as much as you can at range, 3 shots per guy at 24 inches, but should they get into 12 inches that's 4 shots per guy, and they all hurt. Now the fusion blaster is there as an instant kill weapon, and for vehicles though normally anything that needs a shot from it is already down or elsewhere, This means all those expensive HQ's the marines have die, and they die hard. Only thing that can save them is an invulnerable save, and normally they fail it.

The same setup works against orcs this squad will target light vehicles and nobs mainly. The instant kill weapon on the hq can be dropped for a CIB, Burst cannon or an Airburster.

[commander heelit]

thanks guys im gonna right an army list soon.

[NikoTeen]

Versus Marines I bring at least two FireKnife sets. MPs do good damage to anything and have a nice reach and the Plasma Rifles beat SM standard armor, Artificer and Terminator armor alike. Bring broadsides for the tanks and walkers.

Versus Orks make sure that you have an AFP on the commander and TL Flamers & Burst Cannons all around. Since the Ork Defkoptah squadrons are as broke as TL st 10 ap1 railguns I always bring some broadsides as well to instant death koptahs, bikers, pop a truk or any 'ard boys that are not ferreted away in a group of boys.

Also when torching a group of boys I attack from the side furthest away from the 'ard boy in the mix. Even if every template I drop covers him the mix the Ork player doesn't have to assign the wound to him. So, the Ard boy cannot more through the boys and I don't have to worry about the Powerfist. Watch the player though I've seen several move the Ark boy from the front of the pack and try to place him against my suits. I call them out on it and they generally pout about it or move around their force so that he has a clear line to the suits.

The next round with a large group of boys they may not all be in CC. Cannot target the ones in CC but I can target the ones in the back and my templates can still land on those in CC.