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Hi all, the army building guide is back in its final instalment – 2000pts. Even at 1500pts the list is beginning to get personalised. There are many different ways to build a balanced and effective army at these levels – so as ever this is just my list that is aiming to be totally balanced in all areas, and with the capability to take on all enemies!

In fact 2000pts is perhaps a little higher than you will regularly play, but if you have enough models it can be a fun change to do!

Anyway, lets look back at the 1500pt list -

HQ -

Shas'el, Missile Pod, Plasma Rifle, Multi-tracker - 85
Ethereal - 50

TROOPS -

10 Kroot - 70
10 Kroot - 70
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui, - 225
[Devilfish with Decoy Launchers]
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui - 130

ELITES -

6 Stealth Suits - 180
2 Crisis Suits, Twin Linked Plasma Rifles, Flamers - 120
1 Crisis Suit, Twin Linked Missile Pod, Flamer - 57

FAST ATTACK -

8 Pathfinders, Shas'ui - 201
[Devilfish with Decoy Launchers, 2 Seeker Missiles]

HEAVY SUPPORT -

Hammerhead Gunship, Railgun, Burst Cannons, Decoy Launchers, Multitracker - 165
Hammerhead Gunship, Ion Cannon, Burst Cannons, Decoy Launchers, Multitracker - 145

TOTAL – 1498

HQ –

With 500 points still to spend, our commander deserves to be taken to the next level – become a Shas’o. Taking advantage of his superb BS5 he is often best equipped with one shot weaponry not normally taken on other Crisis Suits. I have given out Shas’o (apart from his Multi-tracker) a Fusion Blaster and Plasma Rifle to deal death to any heavy infantry/character and Vehicle when up close. Granted it doesn’t pump out volumes of fire, however his Fusion Blaster is able to instant kill most Characters, and at 12” away this guy is deadly.

TROOPS –

The mistake in 2000pts can easily be not to bother about beefing up troops and spend your points on more attractive options such as Battlesuits. However Fire Warriors in bulk are a fearsome thing against any army – hence I am adding another squad in a Devilfish, and another static team (now I am using all 6 of my troops slots). As a good rule of thumb it is always balanced to have about 40% or more of your points invested in troops.

ELITES -

Not much really needs to be done here, we have the option of boosting our anti-vehicle crisis team or our anti-heavy infantry team. As we will add some Broadside Battlesuits to give us some serious raw firepower, one more Twin-linked Plasma Rifle suit will suffice to bring that team up to a full trio. The other Crisis suit, despite being all on its own can play an important role as it should get less fire directed to it, and while alive will always be a unit capable of capturing a table quarter and scoring.

HEAVY SUPPORT –

We already have two tanks, so for a change let’s dabble in the other Heavy Support option for the Tau – the fearsome Broadside battlesuit. With each coming with a Twin Linked Railgun as standard this team makes perfect tank/monstrous creature hunters. With two more railguns added to your army it also means your Hammerhead can fire its large blast submuntitions round more often.

After 4 months we finally have a huge 2000pt list, hopefully balanced and useable against all on-comers. It contains most of the Tau units available to you, and a variety of tactics can be used with it – it has both static and mobile elements, and a good mix of different types of weaponry. I hope everyone who uses these lists or advice enjoys playing with their Tau as much as I enjoyed writing this guide!

HQ - 158

Shas'o, Plasma Rifle, Fusion Blaster, Multi-tracker - 108
Ethereal - 50

TROOPS - 800

10 Kroot - 70
10 Kroot - 70
11 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui, - 205
[Devilfish with Decoy Launchers]
11 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui, - 205
[Devilfish with Decoy Launchers]
11 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui – 120
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui - 130

ELITES - 387

5 Stealth Suits - 150
3 Crisis Suits, Twin Linked Plasma Rifles, Flamers - 180
1 Crisis Suit, Twin Linked Missile Pod, Flamer - 57

FAST ATTACK - 211

8 Pathfinders, Shas'ui - 211
[Devilfish with Decoy Launchers, 2 Seeker Missiles]

HEAVY SUPPORT - 460

2 Broadsides, Multi-trackers - 150
Hammerhead Gunship, Railgun, Burst Cannons, Decoy Launchers, Multitracker - 165
Hammerhead Gunship, Ion Cannon, Burst Cannons, Decoy Launchers, Multitracker - 145

TOTAL – 2016

I hope everyone who uses these lists or advice enjoys playing with their Tau as much as I enjoyed writing this guide!

Brought to you by your friendly Ethereal Aun’Ro’Elan’42