Hello everyone, Frankie here to discuss some more lists. This week we have a couple of really different lists!
The first list is a Red Hunters list paired with Deathwatch:
Formation Detachment – Skyhammer Annihilation
Chapter Tactics – Red Hunters
Assault Squad (10) – eviscerator x2, vet. sgt. w/power fist
Assault Squad (5) – eviscerator, vet. sgt. w/power fist
Devastator Squad (10) – grav cannon x4, combi-grav, armourium cherub
Devastator Squad (10) – heavy bolter x4
Combined Arms Detachment – Space Marines
Chapter Tactics – Red Hunters
Chapter Master – bike, artificer armor, shield eternal, thunderhammer
Scouts (5) – bolters, land speeder storm w/heavy flamer
Scouts (5) – bolters, land speeder storm w/heavy flamer
Drop Pod
Quad Mortar Support Battery
Allied Detachment – Deathwatch
Ortan Cassius
Garran Branatar
Squad Donatus (5)
Jetek Suberei
Strategy:The Chapter Master joins Jetek (the White Scars biker) and they can hide and advance/flat-out, jinking. Jetek gives the CM skilled rider, hit and run, etc. and provides some great AP3 at-initiative support. He’s basically a 40pt upgrade ha. He also has a teleport homer, which Garran Branatar can use to show up and provide support.Garran is the Salamanders Terminator with master crafted heavy flamer, melta gun, and powerfist. This is a nice little surprise unit that’s also versatile and can play cleanup.Squad Donatus and Cassius hitch a ride in the CAD pod. They are a great all-purpose unit..they’ve got sternguard ammo, the frag cannon, melta, fearless, zealot, etc. and pretty decent cc against MEQs. I could also attach the CM to them to give them his CTs if I needed for a turn, later in the game.Since I’m using Red Hunters tactics, the grav or quad mortar could be my AA, or I could even give something interceptor (not so bad on the heavy bolters either).
First of all you get bonus points for bringing the Deathwatch marines. If you can make those work you will make a lot of jaws drop. I really like the Red Hunters as they can get skyfire, Counter-attack, Monster Hunter, Tank Hunter, Hatred, and Interceptor. They can only do one of those once per game but when they do it will help a lot. Over-all I can see your vision and can see it working on the table top.
A few changes I would make would be to give the Skyhammer Devastator squad Missile Launchers instead of Heavy Bolters. The longer range and blast templates I think will help this list out a lot. Plus Tank Hunter on a Missile is pretty good. I would also recommend finding a way to take at least one more Quad Mortar in the battery. It is great at dropping Void Shields and amazing at killing vehicles. One other thing to note is if you join the Chapter Master to Jetek they both lost the benefits of Chapter Tactics.
Best of luck with the army and you will have to let us know how it performs.
List two:
CAD with Riptide Wing formation:
CAD 1850
Tau EmpireCommander: iridium battlesuit; drone controller; stimulant injector
2 Drones: 2 × Marker Drone
6 Fire Warriors: Fire Warrior Shas’ui
6 Fire Warriors: Fire Warrior Shas’ui
3 Tetra Scout Speeder Team
3 Tetra Scout Speeder Team
3 XV8 Crisis Team: 3 × plasma rifle; 3 × plasma rifle
6 Drones: 6 × Marker Drone
KV128 Stormsurge: pulse driver cannon; twin-linked airbursting frag; early warning override; Stormsurge Shield Generator
Allied Tau Empire
XV104 Riptide: twin-linked fusion blaster; Riptide stimulant injector; velocity tracker
XV104 Riptide: Riptide stimulant injector; early warning override
XV104 Riptide: ion accelerator; twin-linked fusion blaster; Riptide stimulant injector; early warning override
I thought I’d reiterate that this list is for the LondonGT in case you wondered why it is only made up of 2 “sources/detachments”. Instead of the tetras I’d rather have taken the drone net formation but I had to chose either riptide wing or drones :-/
I am enjoying playing Tau and hope you are as well. First of all, I like the list. It is very similar to the one I play. My recommendations would be to check out my list as I think it is one of the strongest Tau builds. Not saying it’s the best just saying its been tested and works more than it doesn’t, haha. Anyways, I like what you have done with the list. The Tetra’s are awesome as is the little Crisis unit you have. The Crisis unit will be a great distraction and should give some nice support to the Riptide Wing.
So the changes I would make would be to the Riptide Wing. I would take all SMS; the SMS win me so many games by themselves it’s crazy. Being able to shoot something you cannot see is a just little powerful. Next change would be to switch the Ion to Heavy Burst. The Burst is my preference because it has more shots and has a potential of doing a lot more damage. I do like that you have Stim on all the Riptides, that has saved my butt every game. Last change I would make would be to drop two Marker Drones and take an extra Crisis Suit in the unit. With 4 you have a lot more damage output and will be harder to kill.
Not a ton of changes and I think if you don’t make any changes you will be fine at the tournament. Watch out for Close Combat as one Stormsurge is not the best for filling that gap. Good luck buddy.
Hope you all enjoyed the lists. Which one do you guys think would win a game between the two? Do you think the Deathwatch Marines will be able to hang on the top tables?