It has really been an eye-opener to me just how many new people we've gotten. People have come up to me and asked if I even played 40k (because they see me just hanging out sometimes or playing a different game) hahaha, and another time one dude who saw me playing a 300 Power Rating Apocalypse game with my T'au Empire vs my wife's "Legiones Daemonica" (Chaos Daemons) came over to my table and arrogantly said "my T'au collection dwarfs yours by a lot" as if trying to impress me with the alleged size of his collection. I corrected that shit on the spot lol, NOBODY has wasted as much of their life and money on this game as I have haha! (Just a joke, exaggerating, relax people lol). We started discussing how many of certain units we owned, which ForgeWorld pieces we owned, etc, and it turns out we had comparable collections but of course ya boy came out on top with the most money wasted on toy soldiers. 💪
Anyway, I'll try to briefly recap my main experience with 40k. There was a period of about 7 years over 4th and 5th edition where I was playing 1-3 games on our club night on Friday nights, plus an additional game or two on Saturday, plus another game or two on Monday nights (an alternate club night for the older and more veteran players), plus another game sometimes on Wednesdays when we'd randomly go to other game stores to check out other metas and other communities. I did the math and I think I played over 2,100 games over that time period. And of course that didn't include days/nights where we'd play Apocalypse, special events, other games and of course tournaments (in fact those days would be far more games in a single day than a club night). While the 6th and 7th editions of 40k (released in 2012 and 2014 respectively) had a pretty severe downward-trend in games played on club nights (and not just at our club or store), I still managed to play quite a bit especially in 7th edition where formations and detachments and list building were probably the most crucial elements to the game.
As for tournaments, I've played in close to a half-dozen GT-level events over the years (never won any but still had a blast) and countless store-level events which I have won several of. My biggest claims to fame are beating Leafblower IG with my Tyranids back in 5th edition (when Imperial Guard aka Astra Militarum were just ridiculously good and when Tyranids were the paper to IG's scissors lol), and when I beat another really competitive local player's Descent of Angels 5th ed Blood Angels list (which I despised) again with my Tyranids (this time in 6th edition and Tyranids were widely considered garbage whilst the DoA list was doing quite well competitively). Otherwise I've won multiple store-level events with my Blood Angels and T'au including some close top-finishes as well. Most of that would be considered irrelevant though because store tournaments only number between 8 and 25 people and don't really represent the best players or the meta as a whole, but it is what it is, I've done things in the hobby that I'm proud of regardless of how big or small those accomplishments are.
It's funny actually, now that I think about it, whenever the big GTs came up I got a wild hair up my ass and pulled out an army I wasn't playing regularly and took it to a major tournament. What on earth was I thinking lol?
With the release of 8th edition and the indexes, I continued to play T'au and Tyranids with stellar results, winning all of my games with them. With T'au I was running some "Ninja T'au" lists similar to what Paul McKelvey was running, and for Nids I was just running Nidzilla with nothing but Old One Eye, a Malanthrope, and a ton of scything talon carnifexes (and maybe a Haruspex here or there). I tried my Blood Angels a few times and they were about 50/50 on Win/Loss, and the one game I played with my Eldar they were nigh unstoppable. Overall I had a blast with the index-phase of 40k 8th edition and after I did so well in my games and with a few people being salty with "how competitive my games were" I decided to tone things down and start shifting to other games until most of the Codexes were out.
I got back into Age of Sigmar with its 2nd Edition and I have to say the game is in an AMAZING place right now, in fact I went from hating what GW had done with Warhammer Fantasy (kind of still do if I'm honest) to making me excited to see some of the changes to AoS 2.0 make it to 40k. I also played more Battletech, board games like Twilight Imperium, and Outer Rim, and even tried the new Apocalypse rules set.
The problem with sidetracking myself so much from 40k is that with the influx with a bunch of new gamers showing up and not knowing anything about me or my club, and when I do randomly pull out 2,000 points of one of my several armies (including armies not listed here), they see me play a very slow game where I'm constantly referencing the rules and often losing (which losing isn't a bad thing, but it's the way in which I lose when I'm so out of practice that comes off as if I have no idea what's going on). The confusion around what tier of player I am (or was) is understandable and forgivable, but it does bother me lol. While I may not play in the super-huge GTs like LVO, BAO, NOVA Open, or Adepticon, and while I've never made "day two" in the smaller GTs I attended in the past, I do like to provide a challenging game and be considered a competent player at the local level at least for the very reason of letting people play-test lists and strategies against me knowing that they're going to get an informative game.
So I think it's time I return to bowling people over in 40k at my local club (of course with a disclaimer before we agree to play that the list I've brought is competitive so that no one is caught off-guard). And I'll start by playing with the dreaded T'au. In fact, here's a list I made that I used to run before I took a break that never lost a game:
2,000 pts T'au Empire, 9+ CP
T'au Sept Battalion
HQ
Commander Shadowsun
Cadre Fireblade
Ethereal (Warlord: Through Unity, Devastation, Puretide Engram Neurochip)
Troops
11 Kroot
10 Kroot
10 Kroot
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui (markerlight)
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui (markerlight)
Fast Attack
6 Pathfinders, Shas'ui, MV31 Pulse Accelerator Drone
11 MV4 Shield Drones
Heavy Support
3 XV88 Broadside Battlesuits (2 High-yield Missile Pods, 2 Smart Missile Systems, Advanced Targeting System), Shas'vre, 6 MV8 Missile Drones
T'au Sept Vanguard Detachment
HQ
Commander in XV85 Enforcer Battlesuit (4 Missile Pods)
Elites
3 XV25 Stealth Battlesuits, Shas'vre (Drone Controller, Markerlight + Target Lock)
3 XV8 Crisis Battlesuits (3 Plasma Rifles), Shas'vre
XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit (2 Fusion Blasters, Cyclic Ion Raker, Target Lock, Velocity Tracker)
XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit (2 Fusion Blasters, Fusion Collider, Target Lock, Velocity Tracker)
Sa'cea Sept Fortification Network
Remote Sensor Tower
Remote Sensor Tower
18 drops/22 units/9+CP
So clearly this is a castle/gunline list with mobile elements and plenty of infantry to claim objectives. For deployment which is arguably the most important part of this list, you'll want to deploy Shadowsun, the Stealth Suits (and their Drone Controller), the Shield Drones, the Ethereal, the Broadsides, and their Missile Drones all together in one castle. Screen with the 11-man Kroot Unit if necessary (like if the terrain won't let you set your whole army up in a huge castle so this way they have some bubble-wrap).
Then, the Cadre Fireblade, Fire Warriors, other Kroot, and Pathfinders all deploy near each other for layers of For the Greater Good plus the Pulse Accelerator Drone and Cadre Fireblade work great to increase the damage output of the two large Fire Warrior units (which if they were four smaller units then it's likely the outer-most two wouldn't reach the buff ranges). It makes them have an 18" threat range with 36 shots or practically the whole board if firing long-range. Sure, you could put the Ethereal here for its Storm of Fire to re-roll 1's, but there is so much of this in T'au (it's the first markerlight ability) that it's unnecessary and I think the Broadsides and Shield Drones benefit more from Sense of Stone (6+ Feel no Pain equivalent).
And then we come to the Remote Sensor Towers. These things don't get a lot of love from the community because they can be shot at whereas the usual Sa'cea sept Vanguard (2 Cadre Fireblades, 3 Firesight Marksmen) can't be shot at because they're all Characters. Then there's the fact that you CAN use the Uplinked Markerlight strategem on them which you can't on the Towers, but statistically you're putting out a few more Markerlights with the Towers than the Vanguard without the strategem because of math (which means you can use it on your other Cadre Fireblades or the leaders of the Fire Warrior squads, etc), so whatever. I prefer the towers.
You can advance and fire with the Kroot, Fire Warriors, and Ghostkeels, and then deep-strike 54 Plasma Shots (3 suits, 3 guns per suit, 3 shots per gun, rapid firing = 54) wherever you need them. Plasma may only be damage one, but they're usually wounding on 3's and ignoring most armor and they rapid fire so it's a decent way to put wounds on medium infantry or clear out light infantry. I may try swapping these for Burst Cannons or making room for Fusion Blasters, or maybe even Cyclic Ion Blasters, but stay tuned for that.
In the mean time, this list does great at the local level. I have not used it in ITC missions and to be honest I have little experience with the recent ITC missions. I VERY MUCH prefer the matched play missions presented in Chapter Approved 2018. They are very balanced and very fun, and it has rekindled my interest in playing 40k weekly again. I'm also a sucker for new missions lol.
I've got a newer version of this list in the works that puts out just a bit more firepower but in the mean time if you're reading this and you run T'au, I recommend giving it a shot (with a friend that won't mind a tougher game).
I got back into Age of Sigmar with its 2nd Edition and I have to say the game is in an AMAZING place right now, in fact I went from hating what GW had done with Warhammer Fantasy (kind of still do if I'm honest) to making me excited to see some of the changes to AoS 2.0 make it to 40k. I also played more Battletech, board games like Twilight Imperium, and Outer Rim, and even tried the new Apocalypse rules set.
The problem with sidetracking myself so much from 40k is that with the influx with a bunch of new gamers showing up and not knowing anything about me or my club, and when I do randomly pull out 2,000 points of one of my several armies (including armies not listed here), they see me play a very slow game where I'm constantly referencing the rules and often losing (which losing isn't a bad thing, but it's the way in which I lose when I'm so out of practice that comes off as if I have no idea what's going on). The confusion around what tier of player I am (or was) is understandable and forgivable, but it does bother me lol. While I may not play in the super-huge GTs like LVO, BAO, NOVA Open, or Adepticon, and while I've never made "day two" in the smaller GTs I attended in the past, I do like to provide a challenging game and be considered a competent player at the local level at least for the very reason of letting people play-test lists and strategies against me knowing that they're going to get an informative game.
So I think it's time I return to bowling people over in 40k at my local club (of course with a disclaimer before we agree to play that the list I've brought is competitive so that no one is caught off-guard). And I'll start by playing with the dreaded T'au. In fact, here's a list I made that I used to run before I took a break that never lost a game:
2,000 pts T'au Empire, 9+ CP
T'au Sept Battalion
HQ
Commander Shadowsun
Cadre Fireblade
Ethereal (Warlord: Through Unity, Devastation, Puretide Engram Neurochip)
Troops
11 Kroot
10 Kroot
10 Kroot
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui (markerlight)
12 Fire Warriors, Shas'ui (markerlight)
Fast Attack
6 Pathfinders, Shas'ui, MV31 Pulse Accelerator Drone
11 MV4 Shield Drones
Heavy Support
3 XV88 Broadside Battlesuits (2 High-yield Missile Pods, 2 Smart Missile Systems, Advanced Targeting System), Shas'vre, 6 MV8 Missile Drones
T'au Sept Vanguard Detachment
HQ
Commander in XV85 Enforcer Battlesuit (4 Missile Pods)
Elites
3 XV25 Stealth Battlesuits, Shas'vre (Drone Controller, Markerlight + Target Lock)
3 XV8 Crisis Battlesuits (3 Plasma Rifles), Shas'vre
XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit (2 Fusion Blasters, Cyclic Ion Raker, Target Lock, Velocity Tracker)
XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit (2 Fusion Blasters, Fusion Collider, Target Lock, Velocity Tracker)
Sa'cea Sept Fortification Network
Remote Sensor Tower
Remote Sensor Tower
18 drops/22 units/9+CP
So clearly this is a castle/gunline list with mobile elements and plenty of infantry to claim objectives. For deployment which is arguably the most important part of this list, you'll want to deploy Shadowsun, the Stealth Suits (and their Drone Controller), the Shield Drones, the Ethereal, the Broadsides, and their Missile Drones all together in one castle. Screen with the 11-man Kroot Unit if necessary (like if the terrain won't let you set your whole army up in a huge castle so this way they have some bubble-wrap).
Then, the Cadre Fireblade, Fire Warriors, other Kroot, and Pathfinders all deploy near each other for layers of For the Greater Good plus the Pulse Accelerator Drone and Cadre Fireblade work great to increase the damage output of the two large Fire Warrior units (which if they were four smaller units then it's likely the outer-most two wouldn't reach the buff ranges). It makes them have an 18" threat range with 36 shots or practically the whole board if firing long-range. Sure, you could put the Ethereal here for its Storm of Fire to re-roll 1's, but there is so much of this in T'au (it's the first markerlight ability) that it's unnecessary and I think the Broadsides and Shield Drones benefit more from Sense of Stone (6+ Feel no Pain equivalent).
And then we come to the Remote Sensor Towers. These things don't get a lot of love from the community because they can be shot at whereas the usual Sa'cea sept Vanguard (2 Cadre Fireblades, 3 Firesight Marksmen) can't be shot at because they're all Characters. Then there's the fact that you CAN use the Uplinked Markerlight strategem on them which you can't on the Towers, but statistically you're putting out a few more Markerlights with the Towers than the Vanguard without the strategem because of math (which means you can use it on your other Cadre Fireblades or the leaders of the Fire Warrior squads, etc), so whatever. I prefer the towers.
You can advance and fire with the Kroot, Fire Warriors, and Ghostkeels, and then deep-strike 54 Plasma Shots (3 suits, 3 guns per suit, 3 shots per gun, rapid firing = 54) wherever you need them. Plasma may only be damage one, but they're usually wounding on 3's and ignoring most armor and they rapid fire so it's a decent way to put wounds on medium infantry or clear out light infantry. I may try swapping these for Burst Cannons or making room for Fusion Blasters, or maybe even Cyclic Ion Blasters, but stay tuned for that.
In the mean time, this list does great at the local level. I have not used it in ITC missions and to be honest I have little experience with the recent ITC missions. I VERY MUCH prefer the matched play missions presented in Chapter Approved 2018. They are very balanced and very fun, and it has rekindled my interest in playing 40k weekly again. I'm also a sucker for new missions lol.
I've got a newer version of this list in the works that puts out just a bit more firepower but in the mean time if you're reading this and you run T'au, I recommend giving it a shot (with a friend that won't mind a tougher game).
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