Tio'Vre Raatol - 3000pts of Tau Empire

[Dakarillion]

Hi am Dak.

So for the last thirteen years on and off I have been working on my Tau Empire army.
I believe it is finally finished (or until the next Codex) now at 3000pts, all of which I have somehow managed to fit into just one of the larger GW Figure cases.

The army has been through a lot over the years from multiply colour schemes in the same unit let alone army to models being scrapped or replaced, years in storage when I lost interest between Codexes or simply when I didn't have time for it and battling my own paranoia and lack of confidence in both my painting skills and gaming ability.

But with the release of the 6th Edition of 40k coupled with the new Codex last year and that the supposedly stealthy Pathfinders no longer have a mandatory Devilfish floating along with them like a sign saying 'hey try not to notice us', I finally knuckled down, spent some decent time reworking and ultimately improving the army.

Or rather armies as, thanks to 6th Edition, it is made up of two detachments.

I have only ever played two games with the entire 3000pts at once, each taking more than one day.
Usually it's lists of 1250, 1500 and 2000 I get to do and as such I just pick and mix units but I always have a back bone of either Commander, 2 units of Firewarriors and my Hammerhead.

Well, I am putting the full army list up here so people can shout at me for all the wrong choices I've made and rip apart my units, but I would like at least some positive feedback.

I jest of course be as cruel as you like.

Anyhow, here is the Army as it stands:


TASH'VAR PRIMARY DETACHMENT

HQ:

Cadre Fireblade = 60pts
Commander with Plasma Rifle, Twin-Linked Missile Pod, Shield Generator and Irridium Armour = 170pts
2 Shas'Vre Bodyguards with a Plasma Rifle, Missile Pod and Shield Generator each = 174pts

ELITES:

3 Crisis Shas'Ui each with a Burst Cannon and Twin-Linked Missile Pod = 156pts
3 Crisis Shas'Ui each with a Plasma Rifle and Twin-Linked Flamer = 141pts
4 Stealth Shas'Ui, one with Fusion Blaster and a Stealth Shas'Vre with a Markerlight, Target Lock and Homing Beacon = 180pts

TROOPS:

8 Shas'La and a Shas'Ui with Markerlight and Target Lock. All 9 have Pulse Rifles = 106pts
8 Shas'La and a Shas'Ui with Markerlight and Target Lock. All 9 have Pulse Rifles = 106pts
8 Shas'La and a Shas'Ui with Markerlight and Target Lock. 6 have Pulse Rifles, 3 have Pulse Carbines = 106pts
8 Shas'La and a Shas'Ui with Markerlight and Target Lock. 6 have Pulse Rifles, 3 have Pulse Carbines = 106pts

FAST ATTACK:

9 J'Kai'La and a Pulse Accelerator Drone. 6 have Pulse Carbines and Markerlights, 1 has a Rail Rifle and 2 have Ion Rifles = 149pts
4 Vespids and a Strain Leader = 100pts
2 Piranha with Fusion Blasters and Blacksun Filters = 101pts

HEAVY SUPPORT:

2 Sniper Drone Teams = 116pts
Hammerhead Gunship with Railgun, Smart Missile System, Blacksun Filter, Point Defence Targeting Relay and Submunition Rounds = 141pts
Sky Ray Missile Defence Gunship with Smart Missile System, Blacksun Filter and Point Defence Targeting Relay = 126pts


SA'CEAN ALLIED DETACHMENT

HQ:

Commander with Cyclic Ion Blaster, Fusion Blaster, Stimulant Injector, Vectored-Retro Thrusters, Neural Systems Jammer, Puretide Engram Neurochip, Marker Drone and Shield Drone = 176pts
Ethereal with Honour Blade and Homing Beacon = 60pts

ELITES:

XV104 Riptide with Ion Accelerator, Twin-Linked Smart Missile System, Counterfire Defence System and Advanced Targeting System = 193pts

TROOPS:

15 Kroot with Sniper Rounds = 105pts
14 Kroot with Sniper Rounds = 97pts

FAST ATTACK:

Sunshark Bomber with Twin-Linked Missile Pod = 165pts

HEAVY SUPPORT:

2 Broadside Shas'Ui one with a Heavy Rail Rifle, one with a High Yield Missile Pod and both have a Smart Missile System, Advanced Targeting System and Missile Drone each = 160pts

Total Points: 2996
Total Units: 22
Total Models: 117

[Gleipnir]

Looks like a fun list for narrative play.

Technically its a double force org list at 2000+ points with a single primary detachment.

Without taking away from how you already enjoy playing with it I'd maybe suggest splitting off units where possible to optimize your weapon profiles and present more targets example,

1 Broadside Shas'Ui w/ Twin Linked Heavy Rail Rifle w/ missile drone

1 Broadside Shas'Ui w/ Twin Linked High Yield Missile Pod w/ missile drone

4 Pathfinders w/ Shas'ui w// markerlight and carbine 2 ion rifles and 1 rail rifle

5 Pathfinders w/ markerlights/pulse carbines and a pulse accelerator drone

Just because you are also fielding a Fireblade and Ethereal I'd suggest maximizing your Fire Warrior Squads at 12 men apiece since they can get the most for force multipliers joined to the Fireblade that way and intersperse the carbines in one forward unit to give them Pinning shots.

Attach the Crisis Team Bodyguards to the Sa'cean Commander instead of your Iridium suited commander(they only serve to reduce his toughness joined to the Iridium Commander via majority Toughness.)

Attach the Iridium suited Commander to the Riptide along with the Ethereal and you have a tougher to kill Ethereal and Warlord since Riptides Toughness 6 is used for all 3, had you included two shielded missile drones with the Riptide you could add up to 3 additional drones for the commander and ethereal and the whole cluster would be Toughness 6.

If you have the models for it i'd suggest taking at least a Kroot Hound w/ each Kroot Sniper unit to give you Acute Senses if you choose to Outflank them, also I would consider adding a drone of some sort to each infantry unit, reason being it permits you to take Initiative tests at a 4 instead of at a 2, which can be important when trying to avoid being eliminated by Sweeping Advances or when joined by a commander with Hit and Run, imagine the horror of charging Fire Warriors w/ a Commander and being shot by 6 separate nearby units of overwatch, getting hit by a Repulsor Field at I10 and then watching you make an initiative test of 4 or less to move out of close combat at the end of his turn to set up and send a blister of fire into his face the following turn.