The Riptide is seen as the new black by some now that the Tau codex is out. As game changing as the Heldrake/Dreadknight. These monsters pack a wallop with the Ion Accelerator's template. The Riptide works best in 3's and I'm going to put together two lists that should help emphasize their prowess.
Showing posts with label Pathfinders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pathfinders. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Tau Empire: Part 7, Fast Attack
The army really flops here. Think about the CSM codex, you have a few units that can be taken. Obviously everyone wants to take the Heldrake because it's ridiculously powerful but Bikers are fine (Nurgle bikers), Raptors and Warp Talons are pretty good too. Spawn, in my opinion, are bad and supposed to be so that you aren't happy when you roll them on the Boon Table. But look at the slot as a whole: good units, each of them changes the way the army plays and most importantly can be taken individually and not diminish the rest of the army. What I mean by that is, if you take Nurgle Bikers, your unit of Havocs is not worse off for it. If you take 3 units of Warp Talons, your cultist blobs do no lose effectiveness. If you have Heldrakes galore, your basic troops are not now weaker than if you had taken another unit.
Now look at the Tau Fast Attack slot. They need Pathfinders. The rest of the army relies on shooting and Pathfinders are an army-wide buff to that. If you don't take them you are severely diminishing every unit. But Tau are one of the armies that can't do blobs or semi-mech (tanks are wickedly expensive in this codex and they suck. What.) so they need flyers to support them. How are you supposed to do that with just one?
Another thing you'll notice is Piranhas and Vespids. Vespid Stingwings are nowhere near as good as Chaos Raptors but cost a point more each. They have no options other than a near mandatory upgrade and they have weirdly specific stealth too. To get both Kroot and Vespid stealth you'll have to fight in Machu Picchu apparently. Regardless aren't Vespids insects that live on a gas giant? What the hell in that cultural upbringing gave them Stealth (Ruins)? The fluff in this book is almost completely moot in the army rules it seems. Regardless Vespids are bad and expensive which segues perfectly into Piranhas 40 points to start off? A Rhino has 1 more BS 1 more side AV and 1 more HP and it's 35 points. Does fast and skimmer really count for that much? Is the burst cannon that much better than the combi-bolter? What about gun drones? Are they what tip this unit over the charts on points? Clearly not as those drones are just wound sinks that aren't able to perform that job for the vehicle. What can this unit do outside 18''? Nothing. Unless you want to dump more points into it but then you'll need Pathfinders for the smart missiles you just bought. Oh woe is thee.
Well, I should do a proper analysis of these units anyways but suffice it to say: you need two pathfinder units and you'll want a Sun Shark Bomber even though you'll need 2-3 of those too. Too bad you can't split units like MEQ or, you know, take support systems like some units. Like, I donno, Target Lock? Velocity Tracker? Drone Controller? But ah, whatever, Pathphinders are so good anyways it's not like they set up your whole army right? Let's take a look at Tau Fast Attack.
Now look at the Tau Fast Attack slot. They need Pathfinders. The rest of the army relies on shooting and Pathfinders are an army-wide buff to that. If you don't take them you are severely diminishing every unit. But Tau are one of the armies that can't do blobs or semi-mech (tanks are wickedly expensive in this codex and they suck. What.) so they need flyers to support them. How are you supposed to do that with just one?
Another thing you'll notice is Piranhas and Vespids. Vespid Stingwings are nowhere near as good as Chaos Raptors but cost a point more each. They have no options other than a near mandatory upgrade and they have weirdly specific stealth too. To get both Kroot and Vespid stealth you'll have to fight in Machu Picchu apparently. Regardless aren't Vespids insects that live on a gas giant? What the hell in that cultural upbringing gave them Stealth (Ruins)? The fluff in this book is almost completely moot in the army rules it seems. Regardless Vespids are bad and expensive which segues perfectly into Piranhas 40 points to start off? A Rhino has 1 more BS 1 more side AV and 1 more HP and it's 35 points. Does fast and skimmer really count for that much? Is the burst cannon that much better than the combi-bolter? What about gun drones? Are they what tip this unit over the charts on points? Clearly not as those drones are just wound sinks that aren't able to perform that job for the vehicle. What can this unit do outside 18''? Nothing. Unless you want to dump more points into it but then you'll need Pathfinders for the smart missiles you just bought. Oh woe is thee.
Well, I should do a proper analysis of these units anyways but suffice it to say: you need two pathfinder units and you'll want a Sun Shark Bomber even though you'll need 2-3 of those too. Too bad you can't split units like MEQ or, you know, take support systems like some units. Like, I donno, Target Lock? Velocity Tracker? Drone Controller? But ah, whatever, Pathphinders are so good anyways it's not like they set up your whole army right? Let's take a look at Tau Fast Attack.
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