Gun Drones
Content by Azraphael99, Written by Azraphael99, Edited by T0nkaTruckDriver
Fast and fragile, the gun drone squadron is an often-overlooked gem in any Tau army list, but it does shine brightly in Mech. Their jump-shoot-jump movement makes them exceedingly dangerous on the field, and their firepower (and relatively high range) make them excellent in a harrassment role against enemy troops and light vehicles. Don't let their low ballistic score fool you! With their twin-linked guns they hit more often than the average Firewarrior. That said, they're very very good at harrassment and diversionary duties, as all Fast Attack should be. Keep in mind that they're not disposable either - nothing in the Tau army really is. If you need proof of that, look to their leadership: if you're down to under four drones, it goes from a respectable seven to an utterly abyssmal 4! Keep 'em alive, and they'll do amazing things for you. With their ability to deepstrike and their fast movement, they're wonderful at tearing up the rear armor of most vehicles, and very reliable at doing so, too, as they're not percieved as much of a threat. You'll be shocked at how good they actually are for light vehicle hunting duty.
Primary: Anti-infantry shooting
Secondary: Light Vehicle shooting
Pathfinders
Content by Spooky, Azraphael99, o-DarkJester-o, and T0nkaTruckDriver, Written by T0nkaTruckDriver and Azraphael99, Edited by T0nkaTruckDriver
Pathfinders really take on a whole new life in the Mech list. Not only do they bring their own 'fish to the party, they also bring a stack of markerlights and - depending on how you equip them - a bunch of Rail Rifles, too. They're the ultimate support unit for Mech Tau, able to offer a lot of early high-strength threats to armor, and a lot of late ballistic skill boosts to Crisis Teams. Interestingly, they're very static in a well-played mech list - position is everything with these guys, and they'll draw massive amounts of firepower early from those who know just how dangerous they are.
Primary: (with Seekers) Medium-infantry/Medium tank shooting
Primary: (without Seekers:) Crisis Suit/Railgun guidance/Tau Army Support
Secondary: Anti-infantry shooting
Due to their extreemely steep learning curve, Pathfinders are an incredibly difficult unit to use well and consequently one that is shunned by many Tau commanders, both Mech and Static alike. However, with proper use, they can be incredibly powerful and it therefore behooves us to spend a few minutes considering their different battlefield roles.
The biggest advantage of Pathfinders is that they are our cheapest source of Markerlights. Spooky on the Mech Tau Forums did a detailed analysis of the various costs of Markerlight hits from different sources and I have compiled it into a table below:
| Unit Type | Cost per Markerlight hit per turn |
| 8 Pathfinders | 44 points |
| 6 Firewarriors | 160 points |
| 3 Stealths | 210 points |
As you can see, Pathfinders are by far our cheapest source of Markerlight hits. Keep in mind that this table only accounts for the value of the Markerlight hit and not any other weapons or abilities that the unit carrying them might have, so it is not a true measure of their full usefullness, but it gives us a good starting point and is helpful in its own right.
Pathfinders can also be equipped with Photon and/or EMP grenades and a Shas'ui can purchase one piece of hardwired wargear. Finally, a maximum of 3 Pathfinders in a squad can be equipped with Rail Rifles for +10 pts each and can further be equipped with hardwired Target Locks for an additional +7 pts each. If Target Locks are taken, the Rail Rifles suffer from 'Gets Hot'. Rail Rifles are a Chapter Approved addition to the Tau Codex and have the following stats:
36" range
Strength 6, AP 3
Heavy 1
Causes pinning
Although they don't have as many weapon and wargear options as a Crisis Suit, the versitility of the Markerlight allows them to fill nearly as many battlefield roles. The number of possible uses for Pathfinders is dizzying. Futhermore, while Crisis Suits seem flexible on paper, they really must be specialized in order to succeed on the battlefield. Pathfinders have the ability to adjust on the fly to fill 2 or 3 different roles all during the course of a single game. Let's analyze some of the ways our forward scouts can be put to good use:
Seeker Launch Team
In this role, our Pathfinder team sits at the back of the board, usually in some cover and targets vehicles and heavy infantry for destruction with Seeker Missiles brought on board our tanks. In the extreeme, even a modest Mech or Mobile army can field upwards of 16 Seeker missiles giving our 8 man Pathfinder Squad 4 turns of Markerlight triggered barrages. Although investing 160 points in one-use weapons seems risky, the advantage here is that the tanks these missiles are mounted on don't need to show themselves in order to fire their weapons. They can stay bottled up behind a forest for 4 turns until their Seekers are exhausted and then come out once the field has been cleared of heavy weapons. Furthermore, when compared against an Ion-Head, we're looking at 16 Strength 8 shots in 4 turns for 160 points versus 18 Strength 7 shots over 6 turns for ~150 points. Of course this doesn't include the cost of the Pathfinder unit itself, or the vehicles the Seekers are mounted on so the comparison isn't necessarily direct, but it gives us something to work from. As a Seeker Launch Team, Pathfinders allow a clever Tau commander to essentially bring a 4th Heavy Support choice. In this role, don't forget that Seekers can be useful against infantry as well. Strength 8, AP 3 is enough to insta-kill Marine Characters and Necron Warriors denying both their saves and WBB roles. They also excel at killing Eldar Wraithlords and Wraithguard.
Fire Support Team
In this role, the Pathfinders are truly 'marking enemy units for destruction.' A squad of Marines illuminated by 4-5 Markerlights is easy pickings for a Crisis Team armed with Plasma/Fusion inside 12" range. Call in an Ion-Head with that last Markerlight and the squad is finished. That squad of Genestealers getting a little too close to your lines? Light 'em up with the Pathfinders and call in the Stealth Team to finish 'em off. In this role, the Pathfinders are capable of drastically enhancing the effectiveness of your firepower at any place on the battlefield in a 3' radius. Furthermore, by using Markerlights in this way, you effectively deny cover saves to any enemy units marked for destruction (courtesy of the 4th ed FAQ). This is especially satisfying when calling in Railgun Submunitions against Tyrranids, Chamilion Cloaked Guardsmen, Kroot, Harlequins, or any other unit that relies on cover for their protection. In this role, you will often find yourself Markerlighting targets that are not the closest, so bringing a Shas'ui or attaching an Ethereal are useful options for the additional leadership. Depending on your opponent, bringing 3 Rail Rifles can also be effective for Pathfinders in this role. Against Marines and Necrons the Strength 6, AP 3 is perfect and both the Markerlights and Rail Rifles have the same 36" range.
Assault Team
With their pre-game move, a Pathfinder Team equipped with EMP grenades is uniquely positioned to be able to get in quick and dispatch those heavy vehicles. Unfortunately we're unable to assault out of our transports, so this tactic is more difficult than it was in 3rd edition, but it's still viable nonetheless. In this role, an Ethereal with an Honor Blade can add 4 Strength 5 attacks to help bring down light vehicles.
Harassment Team
A Pathfinder Squad is the only way to get a full Squad of Fire Caste Warriors equipped with Pulse Carbines, arguably the best harrassment weapon in the game. An assault weapon with 18" range that causes pinning? Yes please! The only downside to using Pathfinders in this role is that Gun Drones do it so much better. With twice the mobility, better accuracy and the ability to Deep Strike, this niche truly belongs to the frisbees of death. However, choosing this as a secondary role for your Pathfinders is still a very viable option.
As we mentioned above, the beauty of Pathfinders is that they can easily switch between these 4 roles at any point during the game. A typical game for a Squad of 8 with an Ethereal and 4 Seekers might look something like:
Turn 1: Markerlight a Predator, launch 4 seekers, blast it to bits
Turn 2: Markerlight an onrushing Assault Marine Squad hiding in a building, use the hits to guide a 6 man Stealth team
Turn 3: Markerlight a Devistator Squad, use the hits to guide an Ion-Head and 2 Deepstriking Plasma/Fusion Suits ignoring their 3+ cover save for being in a bunker
Turn 4: Load back up in the Devilfish
Turn 5-6: Unload and claim objectives, and/or harrass enemy stragglers with Pulse Carbines
So as you can see, it's possible to equip your Pathfinders to succeed in a number of the above listed roles with little to no investment in additional Wargear.
Devilfish Vehicle Upgrades
Listed below in order of generally accepted usefulness.
- Decoy Launchers: For 5 points, the Decoy Launcher increases the survivability of your vehicle by 11%, reducing the chance of a glancing hit destroying it from 33% to 22%. Because it will save your vehicle 1 out of 9 times and costs 5 points, is worth taking on vehicles which cost over 9 x 5 = 45 points... which is all of our vehicles. The sheer cost/benefit of this upgrade makes it essentially standard on every vehicle in a Tau Army. Don't leave home with out one!
- Multitracker: Since the durability of our vehicles relies on moving > 6" each turn, we lose the ability to fire the Burst Cannon and attached Drones on our Devilfish unless this upgrade is purchased. Paying 10 points for 5 S5 shots per turn isn't a bad deal, especially when you consider that a Firewarrior (1 or 2 S5 shot(s) per turn) is the same price!
- Target Array: This is one of the few places in the Tau army where we can buy a BS upgrade. Since the Devilfish Burst Cannon is a multi-shot weapon, it's not a bad idea to purchase this upgrade with leftover points. Keep in mind however that this upgrade is useless without the Multitracker, since BS 4 does you no good on a gun you can't shoot!
- Sensor Spines: The introduction of Castellan Missiles in the new Space Marine Codex has given this upgrade new life. Also (marginally) useful for dectecting Tyrannid Lichtor and Catachan secret deployment.
- Disruption Pod: Since enemy anti-vehicle weapons generally have ranges of 36-48", this upgrade is only useful on vehicles that operate ~42" from the enemy. That's definately not the case with our Devilfish in most circumstances. If being used as a "Missile Boat" as described above, perhaps consider this as an option.
- Blacksun Filter: Since the Burst Cannon has such short range, chances are if you're in range to fire it, you'll be within your Night Fight spotting distance. Not terribly useful on a Devilfish.
- Target Lock: Since the Devilfish only has one equipped weapon, this upgrade is useless.
Kroot Hounds