Today we look at the grand Ethereal of the Tau sept, Aun’va. Click to read on, or check out the Tactics Corner for more reviews and strategies.
Overview
Aun’va is the original named Ethereal for the Tau army, and as such he is quite distinctly different from the others in both statline and other respects. To start off with, Aun’va is not one model but three- Aun’va himself and his two bodyguards. The big man has more or less what you would expect for a named character, minus a few changes to represent his advanced age. 6″ movement is standard, as is ballistic skill 4+, but 6+ weapon skill is as bad as it gets, not that you were planning on charging into a fight anyways. Strength two is similarly terrible (but irrelevant) and toughness three is fine. Six wounds is a nice buff over the standard version. The Guards have similar numbers where it matters (movement, toughness) but get weapon skill 3+, three attacks, and two wounds as standouts from the usual Tau statline. All members of the squad have a 5+ armor save. At 80pts, Aun’va is an excellent deal for what you are getting.
Special Rules and Wargear
Aun’va comes with several of the standard Ethereal rules in upgraded forms as well as some rules of his own. Inspired to Greatness gives the usual ability to do actions while shooting; Supreme Loyalty lets anyone within 9″ use his leadership for tests. And finally, Leadership Caste means he can go into an army of any subfaction without breaking its traits, though he only gets the Tau trait if he is in a Tau army.
Beyond that, Aun’va carries the Paradox of Duality, which grants the unit a 5+ invulnerable save and -1 on all wound rolls- note that unlike in previous editions, this works against all attacks, not just shooting. The two Guards also carry Supreme Honor Blades (Str+2 AP-1 Dmg2) should they get into combat. Last but not least, Aun’va knows three invocations and can chant two of them per turn on a 2+.
Uses
Much like with Aun’shi, you are getting a fantastic deal on Aun’va just at a first glance- with twice as many wounds as an Ethereal for only a token number of points more, plus the extended aura, plus the better defenses, plus the improved chanting, and heck, he even comes with a decent warlord trait if you want that. There’s a lot to love here, regardless of what sept your army is, and if you have the model including him in the place of your basic Ethereal should be a major consideration.
However, as with his brother in leadership, there are some considerations. Aun’va cannot get a Hover Drone to speed up his movement, and being three models (one of which is pretty bulky) he is a lot harder to hide or move around than a normal Ethereal is. He does compensate for this by having larger ranges on things, but if you are worried about tight positioning- say, from a melee assault- Aun’va is going to be at a disadvantage. Like other named characters he also cannot carry a relic, and though a normal Ethereal is generally stuck using The Humble Staff to do what Aun’va does for free, it’s still a consideration to keep in mind.
On the other hand, being three models strong can be an advantage as well; to be clear here, all of Aun’va’s innate auras and such are measured off of the main man himself, so you’re not going to be able to cheat any extra distance that way (since they refer specifically to the Ethereal keyword and only the actual space pope has that one.) However, since Aun’va is a character with less than ten wounds himself, the unit cannot be targeted despite the presence of his two buddies, so this gives you a bit more leeway in positioning or tiptoeing onto objectives than you otherwise might have. Do note that his two companions don’t have the Character keyword, and thus don’t contribute to secondaries which key off of character models.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, Aun’va is mostly just an Ethereal++, the premium model that does everything you want and more. Are you willing to pay a few more points for that (and scrounge up what is a fairly obscure model at this point)? Well, you probably should be, for most Tau lists. 1CP saved for less than twenty points is pretty much always worth it, and Aun’va’s advantages are even more distinct than those of Aun’shi. However, given the extra hassle of him and the fact that it’s not uncommon for a half-inch to make a big difference in play, it’s very understandable that some players choose not to bring him- but if you’re building a Tau army, make that a choice, not simply a matter of forgetting that he exists, because the option is absolutely there if you want it and I think more often than not, it’s the right call to make.
As always, remember you can get your wargaming supplies at great discounts every day at the Frontline Gaming store, whether you’re looking to start a new army or expand an existing one.
