TAU EMPIRE 1 Written By Miniatures Design Introduction. 2c... Tau Army List. . Andy Fonte Join Diz, Jo Gece q 40 ae Aeeitanal text Gary Maloy Mack arson | Overvow ofthe Tau... 8 Pete Hales, Grenem MeNelll 8 Sch Publ The Tu Mipke scccccet0 | EMegst. setae ead 8 Andy Chambers Bavagd be a path fan ea The Tau Artot War,.....12 Tone 8 Noa Kopin Nei Langdown, Darren Latam, Viotories of the Tau.....14 Fast Altack sa tustratian Weil Geen Keith ul Heavy Suppor... 40 Mate Gittens, Alek Boye aa Wetorpen Aliens in the Empire ....16 Paul Daintan, Nii Hodgson, & Risdon Wiha Work ecto AUNVE eee 42 Kari Kopin, rian Smith Te Sapa Worie: oe Graphic Design Evolution of the Tau ....20 O'Shavah .. cy Alun Davies & Stef Kopin Tau Language .....00..21 O'Shasersa . 46 Production chess Beret, Mare Ell Tau Command Structure. 22 Summary SM Actin Biclualtach Dylan Owe, ian Stockland & Nathan Winter Armoury. ....- cc Hobby Material and the Ancient and Stave Cumiskey, Ary Hoare ou Orc ‘& Damine Muay of Fechorests PRODUCED BY EL Copyrghl Garas Worsshog Lid, 2008, Gains Workshag. tha Gamee Workahay log “Tau, Ihe Tau caste aesiqnetions, Eme-eels, Gun Dane, Marker Svane, Shiels Oona. 3 Gunehip, Vespi Shrywirg. S1uol, Kioul Gan vor Aros! “suns, Siudion, Shapes, Corimender Shasoweun [O'Shasstrat. Gommangsr Furelide. Conran O'Shevahy, Aun ve (Maste” of the Uidying Spin. GPAs yi Shasyre, Shes’e|, Enas’o, XvB6 Broadside Aethas.it, es Aton Bakles.s, 3415 Stent Bullaral, Fis Waray, Palkia Kiva! le, Blackaws Filles, Yoapd Communion Hah, ¥eecid Neulian Blaster, Pvanha ‘eam, then bie Grin Da tenaes.of the Far Futura tagite, While Dwa, Citade), Gilade Davies Geen Demon, Warhemme’, the Warrammer 40,000 deviee, end el) asszoated mats, ono. pln si) ioe insipiiaidueivaelogon!spnbuls, whicles, lucabuns, espa, une, sharactare, groduGle IUEstiow an inagas rom the Wanarimer 2 either Oh TH ancror O Caras woreshos Lid 2000-2005, varably registered in te LIC era other countries around the works All Fights Fin MES WORKSHOP Sih Ci aluaniger PA licalan Dale, A watalugue 1620 Pictures are used for llustellve curpages only. Geran Gllade’ products may be dangerous If usad annrresily and Games Wovicshen ow ok racurwmmand Lar Hor use oy callie) und the a Whatever yout age, be caretu wher Using glues, bladed equpmert end sprays and make aura thel you res erd follow tha Inatursient an Me sHelaing for this Boom i avalable Horn tne sme Lorary Printed in China uK us Canada rae: Weekalus Lic anes Workesp hi Games Wicrhehop, wile Fie, mean, 6721" Brymer Dien 870 Pe Nottinghe-r lan Burnie Unie 3, Gece, GP 2 Riacdard 2 12 GAT Omari, Lat azo ISBN: 1-B4154-712.3 Games Workshop World Wide Welt site: htip:!Newer gumes- workshop, com Preauet Cus 18 02empire. This book wil Greetings, Commander, to this sacred tex! that will help you to further the Greater Good of the Tau guide you in collecting, painting and gaming with a Tau force in the Warhammer 40,000 game. The Tau way of war Is efficient and deadly, combining the hi-tech wargear and weapons of the Tau with the specialised skills of thelr allles, the Kroot and the Ves A Tau commander recognises the skills and abilities of all those under his command and uses them to fearsome effect. THE TAU EMPIRE The alen race known as the Tau Inhabit an area of space near the Eastem Fringe of the galaxy and aro a young, dyramic race, with highly advanced weaponry and technology. Though less than two thousand years old, their fledgling empire is rapidly expanding into space ard encountering all the elder races of the galaxy. In galactic tors, their empire is small, based around a deneely packed globular clustor of stars, which onablos the Tau to travel between them without many of the dangers normaly associated with warp tavel, The Tau ‘empire also encompasses several alien races wo have been subsumed into the empire volunlariy or whose services are bought through trade agreements, ‘Tau civilisation is based arourd a rigid system of castes, 22ch felating to the four elernents of nature ~ fire, water, air ang earth — which dictate a Tau's particular role win their socely, be it wartor, bureaucral pilot or worker Their rulers for @ mysterious fith caste, translated as, the Ethereals, who bind the other casies together. The Tau empire is underpinned by the coneapt that ii. only tight and noble forthe individual to set thelr own deskes aside to. work togethor for the graater good of the empire. Overall, they're very good at itto0 Unlike most alien races which Humanity has ‘encountered, the Tau are not overtly hostile, though they will fight lercely to protect those territories they have claimed as their own. The stieer dynamism of the Tau is pushing them further inio occupied areas of the galaxy and this has inevitably brought them into conflict with both Humans and other alien races. WHY COLLECT A TAU ARMY The Tau are avery stylish and powerful army with many specialised troops at their disposal. Their main stiength and appeal lies n_the diferent types of battlasuit equipped wanfiors. These highly mobile wamiors are hardened veterans and their batlesuits are cansbia of mourting a fearsome array of fuepoveer. Combined with their exceptional ermour protection, this makes them very aifficult 10 take out with most troopers’ hasic ‘weapons. If you'te looking for a manonuvrable army that ‘an pack a heavy punch while being able to soak up the enenty’s return fre, then the Tau are the force for you Tau technology is highly advanced with many exciting evices and Upgredes with which you can equip the Lulllesuils to further enhance their ablity to deal death Tau Fire Warriors are courageous fighters with solid leaders, and it 2 member of the Ethereal caste accompanies them, their confidence and self belie! will keep them fighting in the face of insurmountable odds, The Tau dislike cose combat, preferring to destroy thair enemies at long range with itech weaponry as. thay are naither particularly strong nor tough. When the fighting is likely to get close and bloody, the Tau can call upon allies in the shape of the K-oot and the Vespid. The Kroot are ferocious carnivores employed. 8 mercenaries and are capable of holding their own against most opponents. The Vespid are nimble Insectoids, whose swift wings allow them to outfank. and pin down the enemy while the Tau move into position for the killing blow. A tully painted Tau army tooks very stiking on the tabletop and suits painters who want the best of both ‘worlds. On the one hand you have the clean, elegant lines and bright colours of the Tau Fire Warriors in their battlesuits and grav-tanks, while on the othor you have the allies, with their large areas of flesh or chitin to colour. Even basic painting techniques will quekly roduce a battle ready force, giving you the chance to build a playabie army cuicky and eesily, and begin to expand the frontie’s of the glorious Tau empire, May the Ethercals guide you, Commander For even more advice on collecting, painting and gaming with @ Tau fore, log on to our website al www games-workshop.comThe TAU ‘;"_ Far from Terra, in the eastern reaches of the galaxy, lies the empire of the Tau. Though not extensive ‘encompasses a region of space some three hundred light years in diameter, with the Tau homeworid atits centre, and just over a hundred settled worlds. A number of these worlds are home to alien races ‘which are either subservient to the Tau or whose services are bought. The Tau are a young race, barely ssix thousand years old, yet they are highly advanced technologically and their empire is expanding ragidly, pushing further into space with growing self-confidence. DISCOVERY ‘The frst Imperial contaci with the Tau race came in 789.35, : when the Adeplus Mechancus Exploralor vessel, Land’s Vision, discovered and categorised what is now their homewold of T'au, Initial investigations revealed the planet to be dry and avid with faw lush armas and an abundance of ‘oceanic, aera and terrestrial xenomorphs, The frst Adeplus Mechanicus leans to explore the planot noted that tho savannah dwelling aliors had mastered the use of primitive ‘weapons and discovered fire, but nothing of worh wan perceived in ‘heir continued existence and the wort! was, armatked fo; touline cleansing and colorisation, Seeding ships were despatched to begin the colonisation of T'au but before thay arrives, freck warp storms of unimaginable tury engulfed them and, despite the prasenca af highly skiled avgators and captains, every vessel m the coluly feet was lost. Rather than simply blowing themselves out, the warp stoms continued to make space travel impossible for ligt years in all directions, and many whispered thai this was a Sign that the planet was cursed, In ary case, the Imperium soo hai fo tu ils altention to more pressing concems, ‘The 881st High Lord of the Administatum, Goge Vande, had proved t2 be a paraneld megalomaniac and led the Impetium into one of the boodiast periods in ils war-lom history, the Age of Aposlasy. However, is is not the place to ‘speak of Vandire’s Reign of Blood. Suffice to say that he was eventually overthrown and stability restored to the Impenum when Sebastian Thor was elected Ecclesiarch, The rebuilding ofthe Imperium waste take many hundreds of years and, while this work was under wy, the warp storms cuting T'au off from Imperial sorutiny ‘continued to rage, concealing the nascent development of the Tau race. aADVANCED EVOLUTION On the fowolten backwater of Tau, the species first catalogued by the Adoptus Mechanicus grew bigger and sronger, some plains tibas migratng further and furhar alield a5 hunting grounds grew scarcer 11 response to the increasing population. As the centuries passed, cach branch tl the Tau began developing in their own way, displaying a unique talent for rapidly adapting to their chosen environment. High on isoleted mourtain peaks, Tau soared fon thermals. rising up from the hol plains on. thin, membranous wings, and found plentiful employment amongst the othor Tau as messengers and scouts. Those ‘whose migaatiors had carried them to lush river valleys: began stapiahing woll-constucted farming communitio, developing their metallurgical, tool-making and mining sells lo create the first Tau settloments. Others realized that diferent communities could produce what they could nat and hegatiated tracle agreements belwomn the disparaie tnibes, recognising the inherent value in each olhe’s' skills, The laiyer Tau who remained on the plains grew stronger stl becorring ckiful and aggressive hunters. Thay took what they wantec and they hacto fightin honourabye baile to get it.50 much the batter. Far some unknown reason, technological innovation was at ‘amore accelerated pace than would normally be expected fora nouly emergent race. The Tau who had begun building Ie ret communites quickly escalated to use fortresses and ssmple black powder weapons to defend their settlements [ram marauuing Wibes of plains dwellers alied with the Tau of the air Trade routes were cut and the Tau who negotiated between the various tihes were atlacked ip prevent allarces, from being formed. Soon vast intertibal wars ravaged the ran gontirent, with Tau tribes tuming on each other in savage battos ullising primitive reams. The wars draqzed on for any yeers, thousands dying on evary side and wit | __mendtn the slaughter in sight. Squad conditions caused by tha fighting and a lack of fresh food and water allowed a vrulert plague 12 spread rapidly across the continent unt more Tau were dying of disease than were haing killed in bat, As the savagery of the fighting aecalatod, it aeomad as though the Tau raca would surely exinguish itself n the fres its own barbauity THE ETHEREALS The Tau now entoredthoir darkest age, when the entire race was. being destroyed by war and disease. As the 37th hillennium drew to a close, many strange portents and | emane were observed, such as fickering igh's in the right sky and fall-gimpsed figures in the mountains. Many ® tboliovod that those wore cigne that thoy wero living the last says; that extinction was nigh. “The Ethereals of Fiotaun’ is Fcne olthe foremost legends arnongs' the Tau arid tells of now ‘hei face was pulled back from the brink of arnitilation, “The legend tels that on a mountain plateau called Fiotaun, an allance of pine dwaliars and Air Tal laid siaga to the mightiest forrass-cty of the buitler Tau. Nearly seven ‘Wiousand teings diel in the great citadel and, in vain, |<. he traders attempted to negofate withthe plains wares, Their blocd Was. aire and they would brook no seitiement save thal ‘delivered al the end of a rie. For five seasons the cannons of Fiottun held the attackers et bay, but supplies were “A thousand fas connect each of us wi our fellow Tas and along those fibres our deeds run as causes hich coma back fo us as effects, Everytany we do -muat b9 in furtheranca af the Greater Good bet me return to tre Mona Be Teor. lbw end dsease wes rife within the city wals. A> night fel uupon another bloody day's fighting, the leaders within Flotaun prayedfor amirecte, Lite did they know that om this night thelr prayers would be answered. Emerging from the darkness, a Tau of unusual appearance walked inlo the bestgers' camp, asking to 2c0 fhe army's commandlor. He was softy spoken, yet tis said that he had An Undeniable auority and he santas to when he hac! announced himsel found Unenselves compelled to scot him to their leader. At tre same tme, within the walls of Fistaun, a similar indvidual presentad hiealf toe guards, How na nad penetated the datences othe aly te wend not sey, all ha asked was thal he be alowed to speak to the castolan of the fortoss. Again, his request could not be denied anc ne. was parmited an autience wath the ays leader Within the hour, the fortress gates were opened, the sttenger guiding the clades lasdars ‘bwaris the torchit carp of ‘hoe alluckers,‘As the gates opened, they were met by a party from their fenemy, led by a figure iho was the stranger's twin in all respects, The two reweomers called themselves Ethereals ‘and bade the others sit. Beneath a maiden moon of purest ‘white, they began io speak, explaining that the talents. of each af the tnbes could be hamessed. They spoke ot a Grester Good that could be achieved # they would put aside their warlke ways and work together. The two strangers talkod through the night their words carrying great power and as the sun cresied the horizon, a truce was agreed botwoon fre warring factone. Fio'taun was just the beginning. Soon, miore of the Ethereals emerged and the message of peace and Greater Good began to spread to every comer of the glob, the bales slowly dying out as the new philosophy fook hold. Within the space of a year, the wars were aver and the Tau flotrished like never before. Well eonsinucted ‘owns and cities sprang up fhroughou! the continent, conmeice routes ware re-established by the traders and communications maintained by the Air Tau. The warriors of the laine wore tha hardest to Gonvinco that this was the way forward, but as they saw the civilised wonders being efeated by tho other castos, they finaly agreed fo the Ethereals’ entreaties that they become honour bound defenders uf the Tau. t was decreed that irom that day forth each of the tribes | frould be known by the element that most bofitod is J tole in the Greater Gocd. The builders and arisins “ould be the Earth caste, the traders the Water caste, messengers and scouts would become the Ar _Gésfe while tne wamnrs of the plains would be known as "the Fire caste, Having saved the Tau from 4 slow racal oxtincion, the Ethereals were revered with the uimost devotion by the other castes, binding and guiding them as they looked towards the future with a new found sense of hope, DYNAMIC EXPANSION ‘The nex thousand years saw an unprecedented period of solentifie discovery and cutural and philosophical fadvaneement. Working together for the Greater Good became the comerstone of Tau sociely, the ultimate ideal to strive for it erabled the Tau to fully utilise cach caste'stalents and allowed thei t send thelr fst rockets into space. The Air caste wore heavily Involved in the early exploration of ‘Space and, within a short period of tire, orbital communities ‘wore establisned and the colonisation of the nearest moon ‘was well undarweiy. Wih orbital docks, lafger vessels could be consinucted ard Tau ships ventured further and further afield, with communities developing on almost every viable ‘moon, world and planainid within reach. Aircaste astrogators produced the first stelar maps of nearby celestial bodies, Favaaling thal their homeworld lay within a globular clisterof densely packed stars, The attendant risks of novae and ‘supemovae prompted further expansion ard the Earth caste began the construction of even larger colony shps. The expansion of he Tau empire continued at an explosive rate, the Tau making contact wih a number o} alien races and, despite the destruction of Several ships, the empre continued to advance. Many less advanced alien races were incorporated within as borders ait most of these witingly became pert of the Tau empire. The Orks were a notable ‘exception to this and the Tau fought many ballles with te Grecnskins nefore finally abandoning. their attempts 10 subsume them into the empife, Affer the successful navigation of a warp rit, the Ethereals and Alt caste worked to refine the fechnique of traveling through war? space bul, without the specialised mutation of the Navigator gene, theit colony ships could only make short ‘hops’ into warp space, kimming the edges of tha Inmatcrium. With the tightly packed nature of the Tau empire, this did not prove to bee preblom ane protected them fom mary of the inherent dangors of warp travel Given their Imited exposure to the Warp, the Tau found it dlffcult to comprehend the hallucinogenic effects tt had on olfer races and the terrible threat it could represent to paykors. Such talents were a mystery to the Tau as they tad rho psyehic abiiias whalsuever, their mnds barely even rgistarng inthe Warp at all Soon the Tau empire stretched over a tie move than thee: hundred light years and incorporated eicht heaviy_setted s. These formed the hub’ of sis ahd waypoints establishedAtthe tontiers of Tau space, traders with an of rite cata warrior rool enclave and foug therm ina bate against Ork raiders Inthe Kroot, the Tau recognised a. strength they could heme onary forces. Whales camibalistig: repulsed the 7 ‘thay valued and. respec their strength 25. wart perhaps Deliv Continued car lication. would ¢ show tho“itis not our tachnology that wil enable us ta prevail in this galaxy. it's our shared sense of frmmour and ‘commonalty of cause that unites us and wil ave us the power to detest our enemies. The Tau quickly cama to racognisa tha value ot integrating clher races inlo their empire, Within scant decades of raking contact with the first such races, alien subjects were being granted roles of responsibility wihin Tau society, Some aliens intagraied bacause they had tte alleralive. others because they saw genune benef to Uoing so. & stall numbe,, it was believed, might one day came ta recognise the Greater Good. and how doun to the Ethereals Ike the Teu themselves. The Tau would be first ‘emang oquale. Such became the dream of the Taw omplee IMPERIAL CONTACT With such rapié expansion of their empire, it was only a nate’ of ‘ime unt Tau colony ships entered Impemum tontrellad space. System defence sips slalioned al Devla if the Ultima Seymentum detected the arrival of an alon vessel that dd not halt at the designated checkooints, and immeciately attacked it, Unprapared for such an aggressive rasponse, the Tau ship fled, but was nabia to make good ile escape us Imperial Nevy ships sumrroned by the planetary governor destroyed it in an engagement at the system's edge. An. Imperial Investigation was launched into this technologically advanced race when Adepius Mechanics Gunelors Giscovered that genetic samples taken from the corpses an the allen ship matched those of the primitie xenos discovered six millennia before by Land's Vision. Further Rogue less violent contact with the Tau was made by reders and merchants exploring the darkness of the Eastom Fringes. Far from tho guiding light of the Astronomican, warp travel s0 farin the galactic east was treacherous and. word of such contact was slow to iltar back 10 the Adtinistaumn, Members of the Water caste had established trade agreements with Imperial worlds on ‘ne frontier and exchanges o! gocds and technology were common. Alarmed by the threat of alien cortamination, the Adminisiralum readied & suilable response and, almost a ventury later, the Damecles Crusade smeshed into Tau space, destroying several outing settlomerts and pushing deep into the Tau empire. However, when the Imperial fleet reached the sept of Dalyih, tha crusade graund to a boody slalemate as the formidable numbers and bigh technology of the Tau and their Kroot alles thwarted every attempt to capture the system, After many months of tarnba fighting with nothing gained on aither sida, Imperiel commanders averiually agreed lo requaals from the Watar caste for peace taks. The negotiations wore successful and tho Imperial flect withdrew frem Tau space, partially in rosgonse ‘o the negligible chance of victory, but also due to the Impending approach of Hive Flee! Beferath. As the tee! wilherew, Tau forees, one of which was led by the infamous Commancer Farsight, folowed in ts wake end retook thelr lost worlds, assimilating groups of Human deserters and renegades in the process. The Tau empire continues to expand ils borders, pushing ever further into space and estabishing colonies on every world eapable of sustaining life. However, a new threat has arisen in the form of Tyranid splinter fleets from Hive Fleet Araken and the Bsale of tena IV, altacks fran the Tyrants have fallen upon several Tau worlds ard the terrible dangor these voracious super-predators represent has quickly been realised by the Ethereals. As contact is lost with yet more colonies, the Tau empire girds itself for war. THE CASTE SUSTEM [As docreed by the Ethereals, Tau society Is divided into Tour castes, each hased on ane of the four elements of nature, Tau are born into ther caste and breeding between the castes is forbidden by the Etherea’s. By use of tho caste system, not only are the Tau performing the most basc form of genetic engineering, but they also reintorca tha individual's baliet that they heve a position to fill in the empire and that their afontsare rewarded. The four enstos are as follows:Fire — The Fire caste are the warriors of the Tau. itis the cuty of these warriors to project the other castes. Centuries of seleciive breeaing has led Wo the Fire caste being the tiggest and strongest of the Tau. The Fire wartiors are strongly metivated by a strict cade of henour in battle, but they are not mindiass thugs. Thay sea ranged comball as referable to the somewhat brulal affair of close combat. “Thay are not naturally equipped for such fights, proferting to use advanced weaponry rather than brute force to win battles. A warrior stars life as a young line trooper, a Shas'a, and atlar surviving faur years ‘on the line’ they ‘must take their frst Til by Fire. If hey aurvive the ordeal then they are fitto don the full battesut. If they eurvive a further four years, they take the second Tal and successful participants advance yal further. Aveleran who Manages ‘0 survive yal another four years Lecomes eligible lo lake part in a third Til ithe wishes and, if he is gill alve by the end, will tecome a Commander, or Shac'el, Commanders who survive tour years are allowed to retire from active service, join the councl of advisors snd play a yrealer part in Tau polices. Other than death, this isthe only way to leave the Tau miltary Earth ~ The Earth caste are the artisans and labourers of the Tau. itis they who build the machines, erect the dwellings and provide the food for the rest of socety. Without the Earth caste, the farms would not produce, the factories would sit idle and the work would remain uncone. None of the other castes would be able lo live without their continued easlence. Engineers and scientists beyond compare, the Earth caste are responsible for the maintenance of Tau technelagy but, unlike the Tachpriests of the Imparium, they filly understand the workings of their machines and are ‘expable of more than simply reproducing ancient dosigns, Water Water is the clement that can be found in all living things, flowing continuous, to alow life to function. So itis that Water caste members aie bureaucrats, poilicians, regaliators and administrators. They are the merchants ‘and diplomats, moving in and around the other castes to make eure that soelaty furctiors smoothly. Watar caste members olten accompany Tau expeditionary forces to negotiate safe lranst through alien systems and stnoulh the passage of Tau merchants and colonists. Alr— The Aircaste members were traditionally messengers and couriers bul now, with the march of technology, they are the Tau equivalent to the Imporia’ Navy. They are pilots ané spaceship crews, transporting goods and Warriors to where they are needed. They are the unseen force that can lay waste to towns and cities, bonibarding them from orbit. Air caste members lve clmost entirely coffworld, excopt for pilots of atmospheric craft (although frequently they live in orbital siations). They are the invisinla caste, normally urseen bul essential nonetheless, The Ethereals — The Tau word ‘Aun’ translates variously as the Celestial or Fihereal caste, and onginales trom the mysterious individuals who united the disparate Tau tribes, These are the rulers of the Tau ‘empire, headed by a council of the wisest Fihereals. Thay are advied by members of the highest familias within the different castes, bul have ultimate sovereignty over all the Tau. It is speculated that they exert some kind of pheromene based or Intent psychic control ovar the otter sstas, as loyally lo the Ethereals fs absolute and unswerving. If on Ethoreal were of such a mind, he could order another Tau to kil himselt and would be obeyed immediately. The Adeptus Mechanicus and Adeptus Mites are very Interested in this aspect of Tau culture,10 _— The Tau are 2 supremely dynamic and energetic ace. The principle of the Tau'va ~ the Greaier Good ~ drives them fever outwards from their homeworld, into te great unknown of space. Suc expansion has led to cont with many alien cultures. The Greater Good requires that all jon together and acknowledge the guidance of the Ethereal caste, and this includes any and all races with vwhom the Tau come into contact. Perhaps unsurprisingly. few faces are willing lo surrender unreservedly, and go the Fire caste has gone to war on numerous occasions Those words shat will not wilingy jon the empire are ¢ragged to the negotiating table under threal of annihilation. Those that romain openly defiant iace blitoration under the ortital guns of the Alr caste fleet, The Tau empire encompasses a dense yet astrographically small area of space. Many hundreds of Siar systems exist within this region, and an unusually high gropertion harbour an ervironmeht conducive to lit. As tho Tau steadily expand the borde's_of thet empire, they continue to encounter other aces. The empire now encompasses over twenty septs ~ fully develeped Tau systems ~ and a laige number of vassal alien homeworld, The populations of these worlds are fully integrated in to the empire, each stnving towards the Greatar Good. TAU - FIRST AMONGST EQUALS At the centre of the empire lies the race's homeworld, Tau. A largely arid world, with shallow, gentle seas and & wam climate, T’au Is the administrative and spintual cantre of the empire. From the Counell of the Highost, ‘orders and edicts are issued across the region, orders that fe followed without question, for tho Etheroal caste members who issue them are revered by countess billions, and their wisdom is beyond doubt, ‘The highest ranked officials of all the castes assemble al ‘councis within the glittering domes of Tau, there to THE PERDUS RIFT ANOMALY Tone galactic north east of the Tau empire tas an area of space long iorbidden to the Imperiui’s vessels. When the Tau egan to oxplore their regon, they too found the Perdus Rift an area hazardous fo any vessel allempling to cross it Tho Rit is an area of space through which the comuption of the Immatenum intrudes upon the ‘material universe. Wehin this egion. the laws of physics are stretched fo breaking point, tine and space having lita meaning. Worse, Ube anomaly acts as a gateway to elsowhere, through which things from nightmares may pase. Though instances of such intrusion have, thus far, proven rare, the forees of nearby Dal'yih hava en several ‘occasions been forced fo mobiise m response to a sudden incursion of previously unknown enemies through the Ritt. The Fthereals have now laced an invericuor ore: upor the region, and 's piqueted et all times by an Alt caste feet, evar vigsant against the horrors that lurk beyond. HE TAU EMRE recelve the wisdom of the Ethereal caste. Fire caste nigh commanders, upon whose word the bravast of the Fir caste march to war, sit beside Air caste admirals wh command massive conquest end colorisation fests Earth caste planners who administer entire worlds accompany Water caste ambassadors bearing the word o the Greater Good across the stars. All gather upon Tau t haar the word of the Ethereals, and to enaet it, fer th Groator Good of the empire. THE THREE SPHERES OF EXPANSION Key epochs jn the history of the Tau empire have beer ‘marked by intense periods o! expansion and colonisation So energetic are the Tau as a race thatit often appears Ic Dutsiiers that they are possessed of some manner o manic drive, pushing them ever outwards into space. The Fire caste iargely exemplifies this dive, but it is eve moderated by the guiding hand of the Ethereals, whe ‘ensure that the race's dynamism is employed te the gooc of al. Some outsiders have offered theories a5 to wha misfortunes may befall the race should the Ethereals’ gti ton their charger be lassanoe, They paint te the evente 0 the Farsight Enciaves as possible evidence. The Fire caste Commender OShaserra, called ‘Shadowsun’, leads the most racant expansion ~ that o ‘he Third Sphere. This young leader replaced the outcast Commander O'Shovah as pra-eminent Fire caste ‘igurehead. Farsights recidivistic actions al the closing o} ‘he Second Phase Experision ure seen by mary 10.08 In contravention of the Greater Good. The Second Phase ended witn the establishment of the Fersight Enclaves on the far side of tho Damocles Gull. O'Shovah has basn blamed for precipitating an unprezedented schism within ‘he empire by not recalling his forces alter the wars there had crawn to 2 close, Though tne Third Sphere is yot to become {ully astatlished, it has already come to embody the dynamism inherent in the Tau spin, Just wher this leaves Commander Farsight and his enclaves remains to be seen, ALIEN EMPIRE When the Tau encounter an alien race, they inevably look for those qualites thal may best serve the Greater Good, As the Tau harbour an unquenchable confidence in thei own manifest destiny, Hey are utterly determined that their own methods are the corraci methors, As a consequence, they tend to seek out those qualities thal bost complement thoir own over those that run counter to them. Hence, the Tau do:not necessailly seek out aliens that exhibit a particular penchant for close combat for example, regarding them instaad as savage and ‘unsophisticated. They value aliens with broadly similar methods to themselves ~ hence the stealthy Kroot complement tha Tau's Pathfinders and the Vespid work admirably alongside Crisis teams. This principle is canted over into many aspacts of Tau seciety. Many and vatied aliens are to be found working alongside their Tau ‘aversears in population centres. across the length of the empiraTHE TAU & HUMANITY Exactly when the Tau empire and tha Imperium of Man fist came into contact with one another is nigh impossible to discam, ‘or auch was slow to recognise tho nature of the otfer, For the Tau’s part, it was fringe. dissident or covertly renegade elements of Humanity that thoy frst encountered, in the form of Free Caplains and piraies ‘across the coreward barders the Damocles Gulf, Initial Cantacis ranged from friendly negotiations and trade to ‘outright host, It was some time before the Water caste ‘came to grasp the fact that the Humans they had encountered were merely the forgotten oulcasts of an incomprehensively vast galacte empire. So vast, in fect, thal any overt aggression on the part of the Tau might lea to their fledgling empire's complete destruction Though many of the more passionate leaders of ‘aste called for a wat of conquest, the Ethereals their instructions for the integration of the Human Iinperium into the Tau empire, The Water caste were to align themselves with nearby dissident Human factions, ‘and over the course o! several decades of patient ‘egotiations insinuate themselves into tho courts of severel dozen Imperial Conmmenders. The influence af the “Tau spread further and more rapidly than ary amount of rity action could have iaken i, until a swathe of worlds wera trading with the Tau in preference to the Imperium’s fade cartels, Algn goods and technology flowed through the markets of these border werlds in blatant contradicton fhe ancient laws of the Imperium. The secend phase of the Ethorosle’ instructions was reaty to be instigated, ty Upon a score of worlds, Water caste envoys 3 whispered Jong-rehearsed words into wiling fara. The seeds of rebellion had long: bean” cultivated, and now bore fruit as each Imperial Commander daciared himself rid of tho shackles off ‘he Imperius rule, In the ensuing power vacuum, ‘he Tau oxpandad, claiming for themesives those worlds that came to be known as the Farsight Enelaves. Zz The tmperiuin’s response was unusually swf yet characiristcally brutal. War was declared, and tho Damocies Guif Crusade launched, ‘Within a short period, the Tau's influence was plished back across the Damoolas Gui, but only et great cost to the Human armies. In fimo, the momentum of the Imperium= armies was spent, and more pressing concerns called for their “hasty deployment An uneasy peace descended seroee the Wwar-tomn border sectors. The imperium nad demenstrated but the merest fraction of its size, and power, yet the Tau had gained. invaluable "it wol that they are known as the Wlaler caste, One -mignt as weil ry te nal the sea to the wall es pin ther down wih a stralght answer. They low around you words unt thay wear you down, bike te inelle of wate that aver tle wil spl the rook, insight into its methods. More importently. the Tau had learned that thoce dieenfranchised and rejected by the Imperium could be manpulaied. Surely, they. reasoned, no matterie size, no power so fractured could Utimatoly sland befere the manifest destiny of the Tau, and the Greater Good of their empire. aree OFA Ra OF CoRR ‘Tau are organised in teams of warrioss orginating fom ne same sepl, cllen bourd by a Tallissera. Thess leems are {grouped jnto an al-arms combat force known as Hunter Cadre under the leadership of a Commander. In many casas, an Elheweal will accompany the force, and the balance of teame wil be selected for the partcularhuntto be undertaken, TACTICAL PHILOSOPHY ‘The ty most common forms of Hunter Cacho are the Months ‘and Kauyon, Each motiod i taught by the groat Fie caste fcademies on each Fre caste world and have their own tadheren's amongst the Shas and Shas'el masters, They are both based on hunting tecniques, Broadly speaking, there ‘fa two approaches to hunting: the first involves bringing the prey to the hunter, the second involves the hunter running the prey to ground: the former is Kauyon, the later Monta Mont’ka ~ Killing Blow Roughly trarslated, Mont'ka is the Kiling Blow. I is the art of idontiving a targct of opportunity and, attacking It swifty wth a Hunter Cadre, often deployed Irom a Manla missile destiover. A Cache pursuing the Monta may stand in readiness. for savarsl_ days awaitng the command to stike. During this time they will plan the axact movements they will perform when the cal comes, Ollen the decision to strike wil come froma Shas'e| or Shas'a with a good viow of the enemy or the Input of a wall-sited Pathfinder toarn, { S57 the Fire caste are the specialist warrior caste of the Tau - they have always been sturdier and more aggressive than the other castes and were suecessful plains hunters in ther early history. Tau batile tactics ‘ll derive from the discipline ofthe hunt and are based on effective coordination ofthe hunters and correct selection ofthe position from which to make the kil and the weapon with which itis to be made. ORGANISATION itis fimly believed that the bond of tust between he Cadre that conduets the Mont’ka and the Commander who orders ‘brings hanow to both. The attack will ba immediately called off ifthe prey remains resilient or evasive. Kauyon - Patlent Hunter In the Tau language the words for hunter and patience are Gerived from the same rool. This technique & the oldest of the Tau techniques and has the most variations. Essortally the technique relies on the interaction of the hunter and the lure. In recent times, auxilary loops such as Krool are used as the lure, although some septs stll regard the role as one that honours both hunter and prey and allow only bonded Fire Warrier toams to uncortake it “Tha lures role isto expose itz Yo tha pray ard draw it into a position where itcan be kiled ky the hunier. The more subtle ‘Commande heve been known to uso the abeones of troops fas a lure, Once the pray Is in position, the lure is tree to ‘o2cape oF help the huntor ae the situation dietatoo, Hunters fare frequently equipped with Crisis, Stealth or Broadside ‘armour wilh weapons carellly selected forthe particular prey. SIEGE ‘The Teu donat hold positions by choioe. Defensively the Earth caste consiuict bunkars and farifications 10 provide shelter fiom long-range or aerial bombammert, Sometimes they feanstruct& hdeen bunker ar Run’alt allew clase odsanation Olthe enerry, Neither are intended for staic defence, ‘The Fire caste are entirely committed to mebile warfare in \which targets ara identified, trackad and killed in an atficiant ‘and cautious manner, The Tau regard close combat as primitive and always plan thelr attacks around the ‘application of firepower Tau citles are not forified except under the direst “umstances and, wherever possible, they allempt 0 ether draw enemy attacks away or slow the enemy advance while an evacuation is performed. Once a city is evacuated, the Iau will defend i just as hey would a region, of rocky ravines, and many varianis of Kauyon are eolely cemed with exploiting the pecular layout ota city. (On tho fore coeatione when tho Tau are. abeolutoly ‘compallad to dafend a vtal resource, thay sill apply thelr lraditional technigues, In this eae, the Montka ie ‘applied as lightning fast forays aut of the elenices, ech aimed al kiliig the eneiny that poso the groatest throat. The Kauyon is represented by a ‘igned retreat irom the perimeter to draw the attacker into ‘a well prepared kill zone,Gh the offensive, Tau prefer nat to attack cities by storm, Instead, they watch the main approaches and use the ity a a lure to draw relief forces info ambushes. The Tau are {good night fghtere arc when darkness falls they move into range of te datences and systematically destioy them. ‘When hey absolutely must stam defences, the tack will beled by auxlary troops sucti ws the Kroot in a vaviation of Kauyon, The assault troops are not used as pawns ~ the Tau Way of War does not racognise the concept of expencable troops. Instead ther safety is entusted 0 the itoops proving the coverhng fhe who must kentify anu kill cremy firetasas hatore the assaul force suffers serous ram. (he Kivot are frequently used as ‘stormers’ because their natural felderaft skills allow them to make the best use oi natural caver as they advance. There is a Mont'ka variant where preosely planned strikes are launched (ollen by Crisis eames) against a carelul selection of targets whieh, when destroyed, compromse the entire defensive position. This technique isthe hallmark of a master slralegist and will rarely ba sanctioned olherwise. BATTLE 4s the Tau erpite expands, the nead to fight large-scale ‘engagements has caused the purist Fire caste approach to ‘te questioned and, al the suggestion of the Cthereal caste large rumbers of alnilaries have been incorporated into the “il mitary the most common being the mercenary Kinot tzid the insectoid Vospid ‘The Koot in paticular ara used lo maintain a bate ine round which the highly robile Tau Hunter Cadre oparate This change has alowed the Tau to light wars on a large ale whare preweusly they would havo boon limited to rad. Tau battlo plans are very complex as nach Hunter Cadre is assigned specific targets, locations and times. Teams are trisied al fength botorchand and simulations ara widely ‘employed, The Tau may start abattle with elaborate flowing stacks, each launched wilh perfect planning, but sooner or later heir prepared sconarios cease to apply and they lose omentum, Whan this eccurs, they wil disengage and . Plan anew. Ibis important to note that tha Tau regard terntorial gain as riltarly iralevant compared to the destruction of enemy foroes. Ground s for postion from which to make the kil ‘once the kil Is mada, the ground is for the taking. A Tau amy will gladly retieat irom a strong enemy altack to presenve Tau lives while it awaits is opportunity to strike hack decisively. jay airdue no dishonour to prudent relvewl arid see last stands as a lack of imagination of the last refuge of an eompetent cormander. Unlike the Imperlur of Man, the Tau empire cannot draw on limitless manpower, 50 the stratagy of attrition is unknown to them The Fire caste Is capable ot bale rage and there have been eecasions whera the death of an especially beloved Ethereal has ‘enraged an any beyond endurance. This ‘dbes not result in thein rushing inte hand lo-hand combet. Instead they advance eadly while pouring an unceasing volume ai fireinto tie enemy, Such an attack willonly be halted by the expenditure of al ammunition, COMMANDER PURETIDE At the time of the Second Expansion, a Fire caste ‘Commandar named Purotide came to lead the armies of bre Dalyth sept to many vietorias agains! those thal lenied the dactrina of the Groator cod, Many of the Second Sphere septs owe their very existence 10 ‘campaigns of conquest planned and executed by thie bilan inader. Grevously wounded towards the anc at Ins tile, Purctide became a hermit, commiting His accumulated wiscom and expenence to posterly. He Sincerely wished rose that would lear fram his uniquely balanced style of war mighl continue his work Many Pre Wardors studied under his tutelage, #hougtr fem, if any, grasped the fi! scope of his teachings. Meny went away only having feanned one aspect of Purelide’s works, and a number of schools of thought || evolved, cach centred araund one of tese individual Both Commander Farsight ard Commander | ‘Shadowsun wore one-Wme students of Pureide, adit [s apparent that both have taken one partioular aspect fof ins teachings and mastered io the exciusion of the others. Some suggest the lwa Commanders are ‘opposites n obier ways, and fhat confrontation | between their ideals is inevitable. \THE WAR OF THE PLACE OF UNION Al tha close of the first period of the Tau empire's fexpansinn, an exploration fleet out of Dal'yth encountered (ric attack shps firing cn Kroot warspheres. The previousiy unknown Kreot were defending ther enclave on Krath Unuilingly drawn into battle, the Tau fought back and their superior ships easily destroyed the Orks. However, the smellor chips had merely baen the vanguard for a much larger Ork fleet and the new allies soan found themselves lapped. Thus began an extended war that saw the Kroot and Tau light side by side againstthe Orks, holdng on long enough Jor a relist force of Fire Warriors from Sa'cea lave and complete the destruction of the Greenskins. So impressed were the Sa'coa Fire Warriors by the Kraot bravery tat they agreed to help liberate the remainder of their enclaves from the Orks. For the nex! tan years, Tay forces fought to drive the Orks from Krcot worlds, eventually ‘coming to the Kroo! homeworld atthe hahast of tha groatost Kroot leader, Anghkor Prok. At the sacred Oathstone on och, Anghkor Prok swern alagianee to the Tau empire and pledged his warriors ta the Greater Good, marking a period (of cooperation between the races that fas lasled 10 the + present cay. THE DAMOCLES GULF CRUSADE ‘The Second Phase Expansion culminated in the Tau crossing the Damocles Gulf and making contact with fronter Imperial worlds in tha Timbra sub-eector. Those worlds were known by the Administratum to harbour dissident tendancies. The Tau were quickly condernned as 2 polentialy dangerous xero-specios and the Imperium launched a Crusade to expel then front the region. Initialy in the Hydase eystom, tho Sy"kell eyetem and Viss’al, the Imperial juggemaut crushed the isolated Tau outposts tt encountsred, primarily through the power of Its fleet. It was in the Dafyth system, however, thet the ‘One of their light wakers carviod a weapon of lethal ffiact. It fred 3 foro of ulvaringh velocity project, 1 ‘Saw one of our tanks affer having bean hit by H. There vwa9 a oinail hole punched in either Hank ~ one the rojectie's antry point. the other is ext, The thy ‘munition hoc pessed through whe veticle with such speed that everything within the hull nat welded down had boon sucked out trough the exit hole. including the crow. We aver idertiiea thoi bodies, for al tat remained of thom was a od siain ypon the qrolrd, extending some twenty mets from the wreck ‘The history of the Tau empire [s one of glorious, It measured, expansion into space, Each perlod of colonisation has seen the empire expand with an energy and dynamism characteristic of the race. Nis. ‘ever the wartors of the Fire caste that bring the Greater Good ~ doctrine of the Tau'va ~ to those that reject the words of truth spoken by the envoys of the Water caste. Though it bears its share of defeats ‘and tragedies, the history of the Tau is the history of bold expansion, martial honour ‘sacrifice. Such Is the way of the Greater Goce. ind noble Crusade overreacned sel! when it attempted to purge & heavily populated Tau sept world and ran ito the full might, Of the Tau military, The Crusade fought iis way acres Dal'yth Prima but was gradually wom down by the Fau until they found themselves stslemated a long way from thelr ‘own bases. Titans exchanged fire with hovering Manta missile destroyers, Imperial Guard fought hand-to-hand with Kroot meroonaries, and Space Marines leased to respect the skill and courage of the Fire caste, Word had started to reach the Crusade of ranawad Tyranid atacke and within the High Command all hope of a quick vicory had already faded. It is conceivable that the Tau might have blockaded the Crusade but as an enlightened race the Tau saw mote acvanlage in opening a daloguo with the Imperium. The Grustade was allowed to withdrew, allowing the Fire caste to switly raciaim those worlds it had lost to the Impenum’s counter-attack at the cutset of the confit, THE ARKUNASHA WAR In ne aftermath of the Damoctes Gull Grusade the Tau cconsolicated their grip over the wortds they had wrested from the Imperium’s control. During this period, the now Infamous Commander Farsight rose to power as the pro- ‘eminent Fire caste leader, end won great glory in the name: of his caste. Farsight's greatest vietorias ware won amiget the arid oxide-deserts of Arkunasha. When the newly ‘eetablichod Tau colony thera waa threatened by Orks, he {ed the Fire Warriors in a masterful defence agains! many times their own numbers. Using the Immense canyons and gulleys criss-crossing the desert to maximum effect, O'shovah set the Ork invaders to chase shadows, Cconstanly boxing off and destroying isolated elements wherever they tured at bay. earning him the famous tite *Farsiaht for his actions Iti true that towards the end of the war O'Shovah was in {urn surrounded and besieged by massive numbers of Orks in the natural fortress of the Argap highlands, but even then his Fire Warriors held the meuntans for months until te last remnants were evacuated. Some believe thet the ‘Commander was embittored by the bodshed af the siege and blamed others for failing to break through the fencrclament. Instoad the Orks were alowed to batter themsehes to a standstill against O'Shovan’s detences before being easily scattered the following year. THE KOLOTH GORGE MASSACRE The period following the Second Sphere Expansion saw only small-scale skitmishes along the borders of Tay and Imperium space, but this changed when the Tau attack an. Nimbosa heralded fresh expansion along the Eastem Fringe.The Imperium’ forces wore ill-disposed to meet this threat, the majority of the Ukima Segmentum flect engaged in Funting splinter fleets of Tyranids from Ichar IV. It woul be many months before any sizeable force could be mustered to fight the Tau. An envay under the protection of the Inperial Fists Space Marines was despatched to the rearest Tau sept of Tolku with instructions to commence Protracted negotiations in order to delay the main Tau tensive. vary day spant in nagatations brought the retribution of the Imperium's forces closer to Nmbesa and gave the telouguored Human colonists a chance of holding out ‘agains! the invaders. However, the world of Tolku is faried fanongst tie Teu fur the saye counsel, debaing and dplomatic skills of ils inhabitants and atlernpis to stall the Tau assaul were unsuecesstul, Led by Commander Erightsword, the full weight of the Tau fell upon Nimbosa and the colonists fought to the last, not 2 single soul ssuriving the final attack Four months later. Imperum {oroos fought their way tothe surface of Nmbosa, to find the Tau wel dug in and ready for a major offensive, Brighteword alowed the Imperial Guerd to batter themselves on his tofoncoe before. like O'Sravah had dene with the Orke, leading a series of aggressive ralds, running rings around ‘he penderous Imperial Quard formations, Eventually, at that Imperial scholars have since dubbed the Koloth Gorge hiassacre, Gnightsword trappedine Impenum's toroas win a narmw gorga and systematically destroyed them in a ‘tree-tour slaughter. It was roted that Brightsword was ‘summoned back ta Tau shortly after the Nimbosa war and ‘hare are those who believe it was to be censured for the ramorselessness of his tactics, THE WARS OF THE THIRD SPHERE Vihen Aun'va declared the Third Phase Expansion, armies fom Ualyth, Sacea, Viorla and a handlul of olher sepis vasved al the northern extreme of he Damoctes Gulf, led by their new figurehead, Commander Shadowsun. Respouing to reports of reduced levels of Inperial defenders at the bower, Shadowsun swept Dough a swathe of the. Imperum’s fiontior worlds, finding the defoncos of mary stropedto almost non- cxistentlovals. e $9 cam “Wis as we joi with overs, in a way that only tho Tay can, jo shared engagement io the Crester Good, dal we fied ourselves able fo fly realise our tue potential. Ard tha i te final source af aur hopes and intentions Those forces that did remain were ‘otally insufficient to hold the Tau atbay, and many, thanks to the actions of a Human trator operating out of Salcea, were convinced by the Water caste to lay down their aims without a strugcle Buoyed by her inal suovesses, Shadowsun led her armies deeper inte the Imperium’ space, where she encountered far greater resistance. Shadowsun saw that to overextend her forces woud lead toa lethal depletion inthe mamentum of her attack. Instead of crashing headlong Into the Impariums fences, she eplt her fleat ard scattered it on more than a ‘dozen headings. Fach mace a devastating serias of hitsand= nun attacks against targets that received no waming, and ‘against which the Imperium could mount no efective counter. AM longth, tho Impotium sottied info a static detence of handful of kay words, Shadowsun exploted this sialegy by marshaling her forces orce more and launching an al-out allack against a single cluster ol Imperial worlds, overrunning each and aiming Wem forall ime forthe glory of We “Tau empre. These worlds ae now flourishing sepls, and have been su heavly fomiied that “only a full-scale assaults tkely to restore ‘em to Imperial contol. yaCe ee ee ae ALIENS IN THE EMPIRE VESPID STINGWINGS ‘The world of Vaspid lias a more throe light yoars te the galacic south af the D'yanoi sept. Vespid is a bonighted Gas gant, and its atmosphere is entirely inimical to all but those life forms that evolved tere, The viole'-hued, storrr-wracked stratosphere of the world provides a shallow layer wilhin which life, against all odds, has evolved. Across this band skim islands of Tock that, by dint of the lighternarair gases Upped within, float upon the violent tides of the upper ‘almosphere. Each island is eroded by harsh gales into the form of a flat topped stalactite, and its innards are as, hollow as a termite mound. ‘The Stingwings have evolved In this harsh climate, anc ere well equipped to prosper in Vespid’s lethal ‘almosphere. Chitinous wings carry them aloft upon the cold, gusting winds, ard diamond-hard claws provide: the means to tunnel within the rock of the sky-borne stalactites. The Stingwings sharo their environment with a bawildaring erray of life forms, many of which compete with them for possession of the drifting islands, Others eke out an existence al higher or lower levels of the plane’s atmaspners. Priorto the Tau making contact with the Vespi¢, the race had developed to a point where the 300 or so largest stalactites were each ruled hy a stable government Ware between each of these drifing nations were infroquent. Though they ha¢ not developed space flight, the Vespids' technology had progressed to the point where weaponry was lethal enough that full-blown wars were undesirable in the extreme. Upon first contact with the Vespide, the Weter cacte fexpetieneed uificlties communicating wth tho planet's feaders. The mindset of the race appeared too radcally diferent to thet of other races the Tau had encountered. But at tha instructons of the Ethereals, the Earth caste constructed @ communicalions interface device thal faciltated a degree of understanding between ihe races This devise was later developed inio the ‘communion helir’ wom by Vespid leaders. Uniquely at the tine of thelr integration, the Vespids welcomed their place within the Tau empire, Thay bowed lo the pre-eminence of the Etheresls completely anc without debate, It has beon whispored that thie acoaplanee is linked (0 the fact that all of the race's leaders wear the interlace helmets given to thor by the Tau, but no evidence of this dlaim has proved fortheoming The weapons caried by the Slingwings represent 2 technology unique to Veapid. Mountad at the bariol of ‘each is ahighly energetic and unstable crystal harvested from the lowest levels of the largest islands. AL such depths, the atmospheric pressures create bizarre crystal formations, and it is only the larger female Vespids those who form the leader class, who are able to descend lo such depths and harvest the purest crystals, The Tau have provided the Stingwings with the technology to mount these weapons upon advanced and highly olficiont nowtren containment and projection systems, making them amongst the most deadly weapons of their ype. These weapons are only usable by the Vespid, for the constant, ultrasonic tone emitted by the vibrations of thelr wing casngs modulate the energies contained within the crystals. The Stingwings have proven themseWves of great use to the Fire Caste, who vaiue the allens’ speed and agiily as wall asthe lethality oftheir weapons. The Stingwings are dftan integrated into Huntor Cacres that are configured as fst-rroving, highly mobile forces, where they act as scouts alongsde infiliaiing Pathiinder teams. Theyhave also bean deployed as reserves for Cade with a high umber cf Criss teams ther speed and manoeuvrability allowing them to reapond to ordars snd raat to throats with astonishing epeed It is a great compliment thal the Fire caste regards the Vespid Siingwings as skill ed roliable alles, an honour yet to be paid fo the mercenary Kroct of Poch "The strength of your fore may be calculated oy muitping i weight by rs vebscty. Siive always to ‘maximize both and victory shal bo yours.”Jost ant. ere ri ee een a a ae THE KROOT The Kroot originated on the world of Pech, a world located In Utima Segmentum, in the north-west of the Tau empire. Hardy evergreen forests of jagga trees conver the prime cantinent. Those few areas of land nat forasted are rocky and inhospitable. Tha Kroot live in family graups known as kindreds and most dwoll In whoreal homes In the trees constructed from hides tound together with regurgitated dead wood. Kroct are tall and their bodies have a wiriness to them {hal appears deceptively fragile. In actuality, the Kroot musculature is extremely powerful and composed of dense fibre spindles with a greater power to mass ratio han is found in Humans, Swift muscle contractions creat a whiplash effect, allawing the Kroat to deliver powerful blows with great rapidity, Cn the ground, the Kroot tend to move with a bounding, hopping gait, but ‘nen in dense forests, can spring from tree to tree at raat speed, The Kroot favour primitive garb, hamesses worked from the hides of animals and adorned with bones, handcrafted amulets and circlets. By far the most sdious habit of the Kroot is thelr practice of eating the jiosn of the dead, In battle, this leads tham to ritually devour the corpses of those they have killed and almost nothing Is beyond their tastes. ‘Tho Kroot digestive system is extremely efficient, capable of breaking down almost any organic material IM an energy form that can be stored in specialised oigans scattered throughout their bodies called nymunes. The strangest quirk of Kroot digestion is their abilty to extract potentially useful strands of their food's ONA, ILis knewn that much of the double helix structure of their DNA is In fact blank, used to separate those areas that do contain genetic information. The Kroot have samehow inherited the ability to incorporate useful DNA codes into their own genetic make-up, Larger Kioot, called Shapers, who have an instinctive understanding of this process, can direct their kindred to tonsume certain prey in order that, in successive generations, hey may take on elaments of those genes. Pach is entirely integrated into the Tau empire, but not all Kreot fight for the Tau — it is not unknown for mercanary foes to be found fighting alongside Eldar, Human tenegades, the dread legions of Chaos and even Orks. The Ktoot have no deeply held prejudices against any parlicular alian races and give little or no thought to who they fight, only that they are paid. This practice is entirely a odds with the Greater Good, and so the Kroot keep knewladge of it from the Tau, itinerant Mercenary Kindreds avolding contact with Tau forces. The Kroct are fearsame apponents in close combat, Their fighting ability is without doubt greater than that of most Humans and is a factor of their corded muscle stucture and superior vision. Kroat are stronger than Humans although they have comparable tolerances to ‘njury, However, unlike Imperial soldiers who fight secure in the knowledge of tha Emperor's benevolence, the Kroot fight solely for reward and this Is reflected in the unpredictable level of their battlefield discipline. The, Kroot fight with a rifle, which, while relatively primitive, Is capable of delivering a charged round more powerful © © tha @ standard issue lasgun. These weapons are generally adomed with a collection of deadly close combat attachments that enable the skilled and long: limbed Kroot to fight without specialised assault weaponry. More powertul armament comes in the form of the Kroot gun, mounted on the back of the Kroatox beasts. These guns fire a larger, more powerfully charged round, capable of smashing lightly armoured vehicles and killing even the most powerful individual with a single shot, “They are tleree indeed these Krol, and savage, {0k pan them and tremble at their femoty, I can only hope that when tha anamy seas than they wemble as | do." Paves Tau Cho, Wier caste eavay fo Sy TKett (POY (a Me satay dur 172" Barak Dragon1 TAU SEPT WORLDS ‘The world or system from which a Tau hails forms a large part of hic identity. The culture of each of these so- called sept worlds is subtly unique. This Is cue in part to the age of the world ~ it may be one of the First Phase colonies established during the early stages of the Tau expansion into space, or It may be a much younger society. The relative proportions of the various castes differ from sept to sept too, and this may lend a certain outlook and character to the world and the Tau born there. FIRST PHASE COLONIES soy Tau |. The Tau homeworld. As the eldest sept, Tau from here are considered especially learned andwise. Though a world of varied terrain types, large areas of ts surlace are arid in nature and these are the regions in which the Tau fist flourished, aps Tau'n “The firt offwarle colony of the ampsee, Tau frm this world ae considered to be fioneering and often lead ‘exploratory missions throughout Tau space. Dyanol Meaning ‘twin moons’, Isolated for many years from the main bady of the Tau ompire, the Tau on this worta regressed to a more basic level o! technology. Though they have since regained their place in the empre, Hie inhabitents are still rogardad as somewhat rusiic and backwards. O'yanoi is cast in a perpetual halflight by the ‘complex interaction ofits moons with its own tide-locked ort. Bork'an A centre of learning & academia, with many universities and research facilities. A high percentage of the Fic casie come from this world », Dat'yih A vary cosmopolitan world whore trade is valued as much as conquest, Ta from this world welcome offworleers land, as such, the world has seen the most coniact with alien species. Nany Water caste merchants and traders ‘come trom this sept. Fal'shia ‘The Fio vaste mombors of this world are famed forthe quality of their artisans and ther work is much sought ater Many of the most important Tau technological innovations hhave come from this wodd, and Tau from this sept are regarded as great problem solvers. ,, Mlor'a Vior'a orbits a binary star and its name translates as otbloodes’, This is a notorious Fire caste world whose warrios are especialy aggressive and skilled in the ars of path, The oldest and most respected of the Fire caste ‘soademios was founded here many centuries a0 So'cca One of the hatast and most densely populated Tau worlds, this sept has a greater proportion of Fire Wartiors than almost any otter and 's highly miltarised. Those halling fram Sa’cea ere regarded as paricularly disciplined and honourable warriors. SECOND PHASE COLONIES 5 Au'tael 1 Well known as a verdant and beautiful sept where those Tau able te move freely throughou! the empre may ‘spend their free time relaxing. Tau from this world are known for thair essygoing altitude to thelr duty to the empire nd other Tau oftan raya them as lazy Ndras 5 For reasons unknown, this world was. voluntarily abandened ay the Tay nesily hall a century ago. The few Femaining Tau from Nidras are regarded as being tnirustwortty ard ar generaly of quicker temper end brooding countenance. », Ke'lshan <> Situated near the Perdus Rift, this sept has suffered ‘2 great deal at tho hands of all manner of alien racas and, {as such, the inhabitants have become mistrustl of those at known to them. Kelishan Tau are held te be solemn and taciturn, untiendly and sometimes openiy hustle to alin races, 10), Elay'sir Ronawned for the quantity and quality of their poetry tnd artwork, Tau from this septare regarded as intellectuals and are well respected for their creativeness. Tash var On the frontier of Tau space, this world has suffered depredations from Orks and other iratical races. Its inhabitants are seen as tenacious and hardy, practical and ‘courageous. a Vash’ya Kriown as the world between spheres’, members at thé Ker caste hava a long tradition on this pianet, providing the majority of the pilots and ship crew for the early Tau expansion into space. 2 Tolku Known for tha saga counsel, debating and diplomatic skis of its Ethereal caste members, mary of those Tau who have fad successful dealings with alien species originate from this worldTHE TAU EMPIRE THIRD PHASE COLONIES 43) Ksitm’yen Kamion has yet to omerge as a cietinct society, yat the rats of luck, subtly wid opportunistic subterfuge have ‘ready hecome associated with its people. The tis of tandiul of the so-called Thitd Phase. or Third Sphare colonies, Ksiim'yen was conquered largely by stealth A ‘combined force representing the fleets and Hunter Cadres cf a number of Second Phase septs moved in upon the world, which wae claimed by the Imporium, whilst it was striped of ts defenders die to pressing needs elsewhere. 3), Files: 7 The Tau ecoupying this world wrested it from the grip of a flarce Ork Warlord, though ding s0 cost them dear. ‘They have come to be recognised for a tsnacous refusal 0 ‘accept defeat, tampered by a stole acceptance of the price all must pay in the furtherance of the Greater Gocd.COCITATION ON ‘THE EVOLUTIONARY PROCESS AND TECHNOLOGICAL HERESY OF THE TAU: RACE Telegabie Deer Asviopeth-sermnis Torugan HL AdMech/OVHH84/ XenS8 Autbor: Grnctee Sevamdus Zachary Suna Report ‘Tonimirec: Korwyn Delta esesins ‘lam Dive S972. Mel EVOLUTION With increased contact being made with the xenos koown as Tan, it is becoming apparent that, with the exception of Tyranids, this race has displayed a rise to prominence unlike aay ‘other The’ first recorded comtact with the Tau, some six thousand years ago. found them in a primitive state, having only recently mastered the use of simple clubs and fire, Further information is cxtremely scarce as the planct appears to have been isolated for many thousands of years by warp storms of unusual ferocity and duration. Renewed contact. has revealed an evolutionary leap far beyond what would normally be expected, Since they were first catalogued. the Tau have progressed to a technologi¢al level that, while obviously not as enlightened as that of our own blessed order, ‘is nevertheless highly advanced. Dens ex Mechanicus. all praise to the: Onwnissiah! T have undertaken this study to deduce the ongin of the Tm in order to discover whether this progression is the result of aitural selection er some other external force, Natural scleetion is an evolutionary mechanism that takes place whea population are better able to adapl tw their environment and, consequently, produce more offspring Nature ultimately sclcets these individuals with the traits most likely to survive into adukthood and reproduce. As a comsequence, the evolulion is se gradual as tobe almost impossible to detect in ‘only. a few generations However, in the case of the Tau, there is evidence 10. suggest thar selected individuals of a resulting their species underwent short periods of ultra rapid change. We can oply guess vehat caused these changes, perhaps climatalogi¢al variance, altered feeding pattems of predators. food supply or some unknown extemal factor (see attached graph Ad/Mech32) The result would he an accelerated rate of change in gene pool frequencics of the traits that became most favoured by the new covironmenial conditions. Tt ts now quite apparent that the evolutionary history of the Tay ix extremely complicated, Different subspecies have evolved’ at different rates and those rates have changed through time im response to complex patterns of interaction with other species and cavironmental factors, What these interactions were we can only guess at. given the fittle information we were able to extract from the Taw test subject on his racc’s carly history, From the information gleaned, 1 humbly advance a theory, whieh T call “Zachary’s Theorem of Adaptive Divergence’, to explain the evolution of the, Tau. Driven by. natural selection, adaptive divergence is the diversification of a species imo twa or more subspecies as groups” adapt to their environment. T believe that the initial step is the separation of a specics iato distinct breeding poptlations, “which could occur as a-resuht of geographic. or social isolation, Over time, the yene pools of the isolated groups would diverge from cach other by gradually acquiring fandom mutations or as a result of genetic’ drift, In other words. nature selects different traits te exist within the gene pool of the different populations. Over time, the populations genetically diverge coongh so that, to all intents and purposes, they. bee separate subspecies, One would normally expect this process to take millions of years, syathetic proteing and amino acid chains within, the test subject's internal organs distinct ne bt evidence of Jeads ‘ine to believe that this process may haye been accelerated” Somehow. How’ this heresy against mature could shave occurred is beyond the scope of this document and « mystery T lewve ta other, more qualified investigators The heresy of these aliens reaches its zenith when one locks at their technology. While, admittedly, its performance can match and. occasionally exceed that of Imperial manufacture, it displays none of the proper obeisances to the holy spirit of the Machine God. Such effrontery J can searce believe and I recommend that all srecovered Ta artefacts he destroyed (in accordance with -Adeptus Mechanicus directive AdMech666). tt is the eastern frontier that one finds the most blatant disregard for’ Imperial doctrine, with many outlying colonies trading with these aliens for theit technology in the form of improved construction and agricultural machinery. Where Imperial servants have discovered such illegal op artefaets they have seized them and placed the offending colonists, in penal servitude The insidious influence of these aliens should not be underestimated, Though it is wot within my purvicw to advise on Imperial policy, Purge the recipicuts of this document to pursue the persecution of these deviant aliens with jhe utmost vigour wherever encountered. ‘Your humble servant. Ceetor Secundus, Zachary SantiagoTAU LANGUAGE © The language of the Tau is 4 complex, highly evolved form of communication. In sound it is deeply lyrical and saft, with many words and meanings dependant on nionation, glottal emphasis and even posture. Ils qulliple arrangements of polysyllabic word groups makes it difficult in the extreme for human vacal cords to pronounce. Only a skilful linguist would have any hope of speaking aven the most basic Tau words and phrases. The Tau have many ways of referring to one another. To the Tau, the most important part of their name is the caste they are born into and this forms the first portian of their identity, Broadly speaking, the Tau are organised into four train castes, each corresponding to the four elements, fire (Shas), earth (Fio), air (Kor) and water (Por). The Fire caste are the soldiers af the Tau, The labourers, builders and artisans are those of the Earth caste ~ the sustaining caste without whom Tau society could not Junction, The Air casle are messengers and the pilats al lau ships. Most of the Air caste remain in space as it would be hazardous in the extreme for them to return to a natural gravity environment. Lastly, the Water caste, with whom outsiders have had the most contact, are the siplomats and administrators, thase wha facilitate the smooth workings of the other castes. The name of the Iilh caste, {Aun} can be variqusly translated as ‘Celestial" or'Ethereal’ With the caste of a Tau established, the second portion of Iheir name refers lo their rank wilhin society. The Lau are unusual as @ culture in that there is no stigma attached ta any rank or profession, Each Tau has his or her place in society and enjoys the respeet of their peers no malter how manial a task they partorm, Each role Is recognised as being part of the greater whole and a furtherance of the common good. There are five major levels of Tau wank, each of which has a subtly different meaning dapendent on the caste to which It is suffixed. In ascending order of seniority, these ranks are as follows Tau Alphabet a a al m Do caserssseecns b | een a oo. Gk Baus oO a d o p A ene e Me t a. f g s a g Tice ee t Ba nsyngetnce h Us seco acess u Me iy v a. ji w 1 I ft x (including the best Imperial equivalent of each rank based upon the nuances of the Fire caste). ‘La - warrior “Ui- veteran ‘fre - hero "El - Noble (or possibly knight) °O- Commander Next ina Tau's name comes his ‘sept’ which translates as either his extended family or place ul birlh, This portian of tha Tau name is open to the widest interpretations and has many subtle differences in meaning. For example, a Tau from one of the elder worlds (sepis) may be perceived as wiser or more sophisticated by implication than one from a younger sept who in tum are regarded as more dynamic and practical. Certain worlds also contain meaning in themselves and can embody @ parlicular trail within the Tau who originate fram these worlds. For example, the name of the Tau planet of Vior'la means ‘hot blooded’ and is known as a parlicularly aggressive Fire caste world, Other such planets include Bork’an, which is regarded as a centre of leaming and study, Lastly comes a Tau's individual name and these names are earned in recognilion of some achievement rather than given at birth as is the case with humans. These are perhaps the most puzzling element of the Tau name and while some of their names may be relatively easily understood, such as “Showah’ (far-sighted) or ‘Kais' (skilful), others are more obseure. It is also possible for some remarkable individuals to accumulate more than one name in his itetima. Some of tha more notable Tau have literally dozens of names. It is common for these Tau te truncate their full names and be known by a much simpliliad appellation, &s an axample of how the Tau filles translate, the name Shas’O Viorla Shovah Kais Montyr can be broken down as follows. This individual is a member of the Fire caste {Shas), holes the rank of Commander ('0), hails from the world of Vior'la and has the personal names that translate as farsighted (Shovah), skilful (Kais) and blooded (Montyr). However, this Tau is mara commanly known as Q'Shovah ar Commander Farsight and this form of address is much more papular with Tau of great accomplishment. Tau Timekeeping The laucyr is an annual cycle on Tau. A Tau'cyr is broken down into 6 Kal'rolaa each of 80 rotaa, each kairolaa is dedicaled te a caste with the additional one dedicaled to the race as a@ whole, A rolaa is broken down into ten decs; decs are either lightume or daik-time, Must Tau need only 1-2 devs of sleep per rotaa. Conversion The Tau'eyr or Tau year lasts approximately 300 Terran days (297.74 to be precise). A kairotaa is therefore about SO Terran days, A rotaa is approximately 15 Terran hours and a dec is 1.5 Terran hours. 21ae TAU MILITARY ORGANISATION The most significant unit of the Tau Fire Caste is the Hunter Cadre. This force Is lead by an accomplished veteran commander, and is considered capable of dealing with most tactical situations it is likely to encounter upon the field of battle. But Hunter Cadres are not large enough to deal with every threat, and on occasion must group together to form larger armies, particularly when taking part in a larger wer ‘of conquest. Each and every unit within the Fire Caste operates as part of a whole, Its ultimate goal to fulfil the dictates of the Greater Good. TEAM (TAU: LA'RUA) The smallest unit; equivalent to 4 single squad or section in the Imperial Guard. The most common type is the Fire ‘Warrior team, consisting of six to twelve Fire Warriors and normally led by an experianced leader called a Shas’ui, A Fire Warrior team normally has a transport veticle, in the form of a Davillish troop carrier assigned to it, allowing it to operate as mechanised infantry, Often, however, the ransport will be left at a secured base of operations or aboard a transport vessel, with the team operating as light infantry. Other types of unit are also organised into (often: smaller) teams, including ad hoc units, equivalent to the Imperium’s kill-teams, consisting of mission-specific specialists of all types. Such teams are referred te as Mission Groups, and ara commanded from the far higher level of Coalition. CADRE (TAU: KAU'UI) A Cadre is an all-arms grouping roughly equivalant in size to an Imperial Guard company, led by a Cadre Hie COMMAND TRAM searing one gsm sana sat ois mare aa } FIRE WUARRIORS dilantin Satin Commander. The Cadre is a standing formation, and includes a number of infantry and vehicle units within it, including battlesuits and Hammerhead tanks. In this regard, the Tau are very different to the Imperium in the organisation of their military, for the different ‘ans’ are jully integrated al the tactical level and are considered in all respects part of the same unit. A Cadre normally consists of up to sie Fire Warrior teams, plus a number of Pathfinder, Stealth and Balllesuit teams, plus a handful of Hammerhead tanks or more specialised vehicles such as the Sky Ray. Auxiliary troops such as Kroot Carnivores may be atfached for a tactical role, being administrationally detached from a higher lavel such as a Command, A Cadre keeps a large stock of equipment and vehicles, allowing it io oparale in @ variety of roles. By fielding an equal amount of Devilfish-mounted Fire Warrior teams and Hammerhead tanks for example, the Cadre may operate as an armoured unit. By fielding Fire Warrlor teams on foot as support for specialised Staalth and Pathfinder teams for axample, the Cadre becomes an infiltration force. SAMPLE ‘HUNTER CADRE’ COMPOSITION ‘FURY’ Mobile Infantry Assault Configuration a3 fielded during the Solstice V Suppression. Acadra such as this /epresents a typical Tau Empire army in the Washammer 40,090 game, as detailed aver the fallowing pages. HAMMERHERD SUNSHIP: BIRANHA LIGHT SKIMMER TERMCONTINGENT (TAU: TIO'VE) A Contingent is simply a grouping of Cadres — normally three to six. The most senior Gadre Commander will be dasignatad Contingent Commander, and his own Cadre wil acl as an independent unit, or as headquarters security, while the other Cadres form ‘brigacied’ line units, A Conlingent is not a permanent grouping, though mistiluant Cadres may become expert in acting together in prolonged campaigns. Such a unit is of roughly equivalent size to an Imperial Guard regiment. BATTLE (TAU: KAVAAL) A Battle is a temporary grouping of Contingents, and the highest level of Fire caste organisation thus far committed in the field. To dale, all such formations have been gathered with the express purpose of taking a gvan objective — once this objective is achieved the jomation is dissolved. COMMAND (TAU: UASH’Q) Just as a Battle Is a force assembled with a specific objective In mind, ‘Command’ is a tarm tor all the farces: ofa given caste, ina given location. In all likelihood, the location will be a world, though it could be a planetary system. Thus, all Fire casta units on the world of Nimbosa were part of ‘Fire Caste Command Nimbosa’, while all Air caste units there came under the responsibility of ‘Air Casta Command Nimbosa’. A Command is headed by the most senior Commander in the force, who is referred to in the case of the Fire caste as a High Commander. COALITION (TAU: SHAN'AL) The four Commands are drawn together into # strategie organisation referred to as a Coalition, and presided over by an Ethereal, or a council of such. This is the level at which inler-caste cooperation is coordinated, for, while smaller unils may operate entirely independently for quite some time, the maintenance of larger forces requires the castes to work together as a uniled whole. Thus, a Coalition will consist of all Tau forces. on a given world or system, or the forces necessary to take such an objective. For example. a fleet setting out to conquer and colonise a new world would constitute a Coalition, far it would require the space-going expertise of the Aircasta, the diplomacy of the Water caste, backed up by the strength of the Fire caste, and the colony-building skills of the Earth caste, all lad by the Ethereal caste, This arrangement is notable in that it limits the otherwise largaly indapendent castes to a single planet, unless they act together, for the so-called Greater Good Therefore, in the unlikely event of ary sort of rebellion by the members of any given caste. the upheaval might be limited to a single world and easily conlainable by the combined action of the other castes. 23Eee This section of tha book take your fancy. The amy list is split into five sections. All of the teams, squads, vehicles and characters in an army list are placed in one of the five sections, depending upon their rola on the battlefield. Also, every model included in the army list is given a points value, which varies depending upon how effectivé that model is on the battlefield. In addition, the Armoury presents weapons and equipment that can be given to'your modals. Belore you can choose an army for a game you will need to agree with your opponent upon a scenano and upon the total number of points each of you will spend on your amy. Having dane this, you can proceed fo pick an army as described bolow. LSING A FORCE ORGANISATION CHART “The amy lists are used in conjunction with the Force // Organisation chart from a scenario Each Force Organisation chart is split into five categories that correspond to the sections in the any list, and each category has one or mare boxes. Each box indicates that you may make ene choice from that section of the amy list, while a dark toned box means that you must make a choice fram that section USING THE ARM LISTS To make a choice, look in the relevant section in the anny list and decide which unit you wish to have in your army, haw many models there will be in the unit and which upgrades that you want (if any). Remember that you cannot field models that are equipped with weapons and wargear not shown on the model. Once this is done subtract the points value of the unit from your lolal points, and then go back and make another choice. Continue doing this until you have spent all your points. Now you are ready to continue [He dynamic expansion of the Tau empire. Army List entries Each army list entry consists of the following: Unit Name: In addition to the nara, this may also show a. Imitation on the maximum number of choices you can make of that unit type (0-1, tor examples). Profila: These are the characteristics of that unit lype, including its points cost Where the unit has different warriors, there may be more than ane profile. Number/Team/Squad etc: This shows the number of models in the unit, of the number of models you may take for ane choices fram the Force Organisation chart. Often this is a variable amount, in which case it shows the minimum and maximum unit size. Equipment: These are the unil's slandard weapons and equipment. given over to the Tau army list, a listing of the different traops and vehicles a Tau commander can use in battle, or in your case games of Warhammer 40,000. The army list allows you to fight battles using the scenarios included In the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook, but it algo provides you with the basic infermation you'll require to fleld a Tau army in scenarios you've devised yourself, as part of a campaign series of games, ar whatever else may Unit Type: This refers to the Warhammer 40,000 Unit Type Rules chapter. For example, a unit may be Intantry, Vehicle or Jump Infantry Options: This lists the different weapon and equipment options for the unit and any adeitional points cost for taking these options. Character: Some entries may include an option to upgrade: ‘one team member to a character, If a team is allowed to hava models with upgrades then these must ba given (a ordinary team members, not the character, Transport: If a unit is permited to be mounted in a trangpon, this is mentioned here. Special Rules: This is where you'll find any special rules that apply to the unit. SPECIAL TAU NOTES Strategy Rating The Tau have a Strategy Rating of 1. Sentries When required to deploy santrias, the Tau player may use either & Gun Drones or 8 Kroot. Experience When playing Tau in a campaign In which experience is being counted, then experience is accumulated in the same way as normal. Drone squadrons never gain €xperence. The experiance deduction for being reduced balow SO% only takes effect if the unil loses more than 50% of non- drone models. STANDARD MISSIONS COMPULSORY OPTIONAL OPTIONAL THe THO 3 fest Attack 2Twops = A Togs = Mnawy ‘Bites SupporSane ‘The armoury Is split into three main sections — those items of equipment that may be taken by Tau equipped with a battlesuit, those that may be chosen by madels on foot, and vehicle systems. BATTLESUIT ARMOURY All models with battlesuits must take a number of balllesuit weapons and/or supporl systems, a& detailed in their ‘amy list entry, These may be in any combination, up to any points cost within the normal limits. A model In @ battlasuit that has access to the Armoury may also choose up to 100 points fram the Battlesuit Wargear list. No model can pick the same item twice, and all equipment, other than wargear (which is assumed to be integrated), must be represented an he model. BATTLESUIT BATTLESUIT BATTLESUIT WARGEAR WEAPONS SYSTEMS SUPPORT SYSTEMS. Bonding knife... 5 pls Ajrbursting Advanced Ejectian system fragmentation projector stabilisation system ...... 10 ptS (Special Issue) 15 pis {Special Issue) - 20pts Blacksun filter... . ....3 PIS Failsafe detonator Burst cannan.... 5. 8 pts/12 pts Gammand & control node (Special Issue} - . 15 pis Cyclic ion blaster (Special Issue). . . 10pts Gun Drone . 10 pts (Special Issue) - 15 pt Drone controller. . O pls jridiurn Armour Flamer. 4 ptsi6 pls Mulli-tracker Spis (Special Issue} - 20 pts Fusion blaster . 12 pis/1B pls Positional relay Hard-wired blacksun filter, . . 3 pts Missile pod 12 pis/18 pls (Special Issue) 15 pts Hard-wired Plasma rifle. 20 pts! GD pis Shield generator 20 pts drone controller Opts Target lock - .. 5 pts Hard-wiredt multi-tracker 5 pts Targeting array 10 pts Hard-wirad target lock 5 pts Se Vectored retro-thrusters Marker Drone . 30 pts - (Special issue)... 2... 15 pls Stimulant injector (Special Issue) 10 pis ‘twin-linked battlesuit weapons systems: Where » weapon system is given twa paints values, the first is the price far the normal, single-maunled version, and the sacond is for two weapons {counting as a twin-linked waapan of thal type). A single-mounted weapon counts as a single balilesuit weapon system, and a twin-linked weapon caunts as two. No moc! may carry three af lhe same weapons system. Special Issue Items: Items labelled as ‘Special Issue’ are unique systems undergoing field-testing prior to bacaming more widely available. Therefore, only one of each system may be taken per army, and only by those models whose army list entry states they may lake Special Issue systems. Hard-wired systems: Hard-wired systems take the form of cybemetic upgrades or warrior jewellery, and as such do not count towards the number of support systems a baltlesuit character can taka. The same rules apply to the system whether it is hard-wired or hard-point mounted: the difference is that only characters with access. to. wargear may chuuse them. Advanced stabilisation system Tau weapons systems = and Slow and Purposeful universal special rule for the remainder of the Airbursting fragmentation projector This weapon scatters fragmentation battlesuits are all equipped with stabilising gyroscopes that enable tham ta bring weapons to bear at speed. An advanced stabilisation system allows the wearer a degree of mobility whilst firing aven the heaviest of waapons. During the Movement phase, the battlesuit may choose to use tha turn, though if it does It may not make an additional jetpack move in the Assault phase. Also, if one modal in a team has advanced stabilisation then alll madels in the fam must be similarly equipped, and if one model makes: usa of the system, all must do so. The unit may still take drones. bomblets over a wide area, al a height calculated by a simple Al within each warhead lo cause optimum damage. ‘The weapon suffers no penalties for moving and firing, and may not benefit from markerlight hits. Range Str AP Type Gis" 4 5 Assault 1 Large Blast Marker, No Cover Savei) Blacksun filter This advanced optical filter enables the user to double the gistance rolled for determining how far they can see when fighting at night. See the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook for details of night fighting. Only models equipped with the blacksun filter gain any extra benefit. Eg, if a Broadside team leader has the filtar and his tear doesn't then only the team leader may fire at ranges above the normal 2D6 x 3 visibility distance at night Bonding knife This is a ceremonial knife, not intended for combat, carriad by tha leader of Fire caste Warrior teams who have performed the Ta'lissera ritual and banded as a group. Sa long as the bearer is alive, the bonded team may regroup even if below half strength. Battlesuit wearers nead not actually carry the knife but may have a knife design painted onto their armour. Burst cannon The burst cannon finds use across the Tau military, primarily mounted on battlasuits and vehicles. Utilising the plasma induction technology found in the pulse rifle and other systems, the burst cannon is a multi- barrel weapon able to sustain high rates of fire. Range Str AP 10° 5 5 Type Assault 3 Command and control node A sophisticated = Al-assisted transmission system. All friendly units with a model within 12" may use the baarer’s Leadership far the purposes of Target Priority tests. Cyelic ion blaster Developed to combat multiple, lightly armoured enemies, this weapon generates a rapid stream of ion radiation, unleashing it through its four barrels, Though the rate of fire Is stable, the ionisation effect is variable. Any rolls lo wound of a 6 count as AP1, regardless of the target's Toughness Range Sir AP 1a Baa Type Assault 5 Drone controller A drone controller acts as a hub for cammunicatians between the operator and a number of drones. A madel with a drone controller must lake one or two Gun, Marker or Shield Drones, in any combination, from the Wargear list Ejection system This system provides the pilot a chance of escaping catastrophic damage to his battlasuit, Should tha character lose his last wound to a shooting attack that does not cause Instant Death, the battlesuit is replaced wilh a single madel, representing the pilot, The profile of this model is the same as before the pilot ejected, lass 2 Strength, 1 Toughness and il has 1 Wound and no Armour Save. It is equipped with a pulse pistol only. Independant characters and singla- member teams (‘Monats') without drones only. Failsafe detonator This device is intended as the ultimate expression of the doctrine of the Greater Good, and is to be used only in the direst of circumstances. The failsafe detonator may be triggered if the bearer is part of a team that is forcad to maka a Fall Back move having lost an assault The team is moved as normal, but the character stays where he is and the enemy may nol make a Sweeping Advance. Once his team has moved, and before Pile In moves, the character activates the detonator — place the Large Blast marker centred on the character, and roll for partial hits on other models as normal. Every model hit takes a single, Strength 8 AP— hit, and the character is removed as a casualty. The enemy may not Consolidate. Note that the enemy unit need not take a Morale check should this attack inflict 25% casualties, as it occurs outside the normal sequence in which such checks are required. Flamer Used when fighting massed, lightly armoured opponents, the flamer is a lethal weapon when used by Crisis teams fighting in amongst densely- packed terrain. Range Str AP Type Template 4 5 Assault 1 Fusion blaster Fusion blasters are carried by Crisis suit equipped warriors as anti-tank” weapons, and many pilots have become adept at stalking enemy armour, using their high mebility to outilank the enemy and engage his weaker, rear armour. Range Str AP Type 12" 8 1 Malta Assault 1 Iridium armour plates The character's balllesuil is fitted with additional armour protection, in the form of iridium armour plates fitted across its surface. These increase the model's Armour Save to 2+, but the additional 6" mowe in the Assault phase is reduced to D6" Missile pod A simple shoulder or arm mounted multiple missila delivery system, tha missile pod is used by battlesuit- equipped teams for engaging enemy light vehicles al macium range Range Str AP Type 36" - 4 Assault 2 Multi-tracker The multi-tracker is a sophisticated fire control system mounted in a sensor node, often upon a battlesuit's shoulder. It enables the model to fire two battlesuit weapon systems in the same turnPlasma rifle Plasma technology is used by many races, despite its unstable nature. TAU favour a form of the technology that foregoes a degree of stopping power for increased safety of the operator. Range Str AP Type of = GS ~SsRRaapid Fire Positional relay This records detailed battlefield data and relays it ina tight-band, enerypled burst to a single unit operating #s a siralegic reserve. From the second furn onwards, as long as the bearer is bn the tabla al the beginning of the lurn in which this device is used, a single unit that is baing held in Reserve may be deployed on a DG roll of 2+, though no other units in Reserve may be deployed this turn. Railgun The Tau battlesuit railqun uses linear accelerator technology to project a solid projectile at hypervelocity. It is capable of punching through the thickest of armour and af taking down the largest of enemies. Range Sir AP Type jo" 1001) Heavy Stealth armour smaller suit developed for the specialised rate of int Shield generator The cohesive energy field projected by the shiald generator canlers a 4+ Invulnarable Save. Smart missile system The smart missile systam fires self- guiding missiles with the inteligence ‘of a drone, which first search for then hunt down the target, passing around any blocking terrain. The smart missile sysiem can engage any targel in range regardless of whether there is a line of sight to it af not. The target can ‘count the benefits of caver they are in, or are touching if il lies between them and the firer. Models finng a smart missile system do nat need to make a Target Priority test. In addition, smart missiles are nal affected by the Night Fighting scenario spacial rules. Range Str AP Type oa" BCS CHa 4 Stealth field generator A stealth field is projected from small nodes situated at points upon the user's body, surrounding fim in a distortion effect that makes him exiramely difficult to target. Enemy models attempling to fire at a unit wholly equipped with stealth field the Jetpack rules, as explained in the Warhammer 40,000 Unit Type Rules se drones may be deployed using the Deep generators must roll lo check their spalling distance by rolling 2D6%3 as if firing at night. If the models are not within spothng range, tha firer may not choose ta fire at a different target. The firing unit may, however, choose to ignore models equipped with stealth field generators and fire an a mare distant target, and in this case ‘will not be required to take a Target Priority test if this target is the nex! closest Models equipped with stealth field generators count as being in cover if they are assaulted. If firing at madels equipped with stealth field generators while the Night Fighting special rule Is in effacl, no further effect is gained. Barrage weapons roll an additional DE for scatter when targeting a model equipped with a stealth field generator. Any drones controlled by a model with a stealth field generator will also be shielded at no further cost in paints, ‘Stimulant injector The character's batllesuit is fitted with an advanced lifa support system (hat is able to flood his system with stimulants should he become wounded. The model is subject to the Feal No Pain special mule, as described in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook. fitration. Stealth team members are Jump Infaniry subject to tion and the wearer and any attached Strike special rule if tha mission being played permits it (though he may not tnake the additional 6" move in the turn he arrives). In addition, the advanced sensor suite employed by the battiesuit grants the wearer the Acute Senses special XVB Crisis battiesuil The most reliable and commonplace of battlesuits, caste, Crsis suits ate Jump Infantry subject to the JJelpack special rules, Unit Types Rules section, and the wearer and any attached drones mx | rule a3 deseribed in the ‘Wartiammer 40,000 rulebook. 34VB suils are the mainstay of the elite Crisis teams of the Fire aS oh ay be deployed using the Deep Strike ribed in the Warhammer 40,000 special rule if the mission being played permits it (though he may nat make the additional 6" move in the tum he arrives). In addition, the advanced special rule, found in the Warhanvr compensate for the recoil of light weapons fire, so they do not ‘weapons. This ability does not extend to heavy weapons, however, XV68 Broadside armour A powerfully built variant of the Crisis battle: wearer the Acute Senses special rule, fou! haltlesuits do not count as moving when they fire Rapid Fire weapons. ner 40,000 Universal Special Rules weapons. however, and the user mast be stationary to fire ther. sengor suite employed by the batticsuit grants the wearer the Acute Senses clon, The balllesuits ara designed ta count as moving when thay fire Rapie Fire and the user must be stationary to fie them. sult, the advaneed sensor suite employed by the baltlesult grants the nd in the Warhammer 40,000 Universal Sper jal Rules section, The This ability does not extend to heavyce Target lock This specialised targel acquisilion aystem enables the model to target a separate enemy unit to that engaged by the rest of its own unit. All firing in the unil must be declared before any ww hit rolls are made. One Target Priority test is made for the unit ~ if INFANTRY ARMOURY Amodeal nol equipped with @ balllesuil, wilh access passed, all the separate shots are taken; if failed, all shooting must be al the nearest targel, as specified by the Target Priority rule. Targeting array A relatively new application of the technology used in vehicle-mounted targeting systems, a targeting array grants the user +1 BS, up to BS 5. Vectored retro-thrusters The character's suit is equipped with additional thruster nozzles, allowing him a degree of additional manoeuvrability that may be useful in escaping an enemy that has engaged him in close combat. The character benefits from the Hit and Run universal special rule, as detailed in the Warhammer 49,000 rulebook. Independent characters, and single-member teams (‘Monats'} without drones only. ta the armoury, may choose up to 100 points from the Infantry Wargear list. No model can pick the same item twice, and all equipment, other than hard-wired wargear (which is assumed ta Bonding knife 5 pts EMP grenacies 3 pls Honour blade (Ethereal only}. 10 pts INFANTRY WARGEAR Hard-wired blacksun filter... 3 pts. Hard-wired drone controller . 0 pts. Hard-wired mulli-tracker Hard-wired target lock . 5 pls S pts be worn as warrior jawellery or cybemetic systerns) must be represented an the model Gun Drone. - 10 pts Marker Drone. 30 pts Shield Drone 2... 2. eee 19 pts Hard-wired systema: Hard-wired systems allow Tau wilhaul a balllesuil lo benefil (rom soma suppor systams normally only mounted on a battlesuit. See the Battlesuit section of the Armoury for each system's rules. Bonding knife This i a ceremonial knife, not intended for combat, carried by the leader of Fire caste Warior teams who have performed the Tallissera ritual and bonded as a greup. So long as the bearer is alive, the bonded team may regroup even if below half strength EMP grenades EMP grenades emit a brief electro magnetic pulse that overloads circuitry, causing fires, meltdowns and other critical malfunctions. They are used when assaulting snemy vehicles, hitting in tha same way as grenades and meltabombs. When determining damage. roll a O68. On a 4 or 5 they inflict a glancing hil, on a 6 they inflict a penetrating hit Honour blade This is a long, broad-bladed spear mounted on a lightweight metallic shall. The honaur blade is used to settle disputes between Ethereal caste members in stylised bloodless duels, |Lis usad in elegant sweeping movements where the blade becomes virtually invisible. The honour blade must he used in two hands count weapan Strength. the wielder, cannot therefore as carrying an additional It adds +2 to the wielder’s Kroot gun A larger calibre version of the Kroot rifle, the Kroot gun is so heavy it must be mounted upon the back of the lumbering Krootox and operated by a warrior dedicated lo ils use. The weapon finds its primary use in engaging enemy light vehicles Ranga Str AP Type 4B" a 4 Rapid FireKroot rifle A primitive slug-thrower relying on chemical propellant and the transtar of kinetic energy. The Tau have adapted the weapon to fire a charged pulse round, The new ammunition gives the Kreot rifle far greater stopping power and penetration. The Kroot rifle is fitted with blades near the muzzle and stock, which ara @ throwback to early traditianal Kroot fighting staves, The incredible hand speed that a Kroot possesses makes these blades effective assault weapons, and Kroal with Kroot rifles count as having an additional close combat weapon Range Str AP Type 2s" 4 «6 Rapid Fire Networked markerlight A nelworked markerlight is a specialised version of the standard system, bul il is larger and less eammon. Unlike @ normal markerlight, the operator’s own unil ray benefit from its use. Il is fired before the remainder of the unit fires. All other jules given for the basic markeright apply. For example, a Marker Drone is equipped with a networked markerlight, meaning that models in the same unit may expend counters placed as a result of Its own shooting Photon grenades A defensive grenade that blinds and disorients attackers with muti spectral light and a sonic burst Models charging against units equipped with photon grenades gain no bonus attacks for charging, but still employ any special close combat allacks they gain when charging. Pulse carbine The pulse carbine sacrifices range for portability and the charice to: mount an underslung photon granade launcher, Any unit suffering al least one wound from pulse carbine tira must test for pinning. Range Str AP Type 18" 5 5 Assault 1 Pinning Pulse pistol The pulse pistol is a smaller version of the pulse rifle, being issued to Tau personnel as a held-out weapon for use in dasperale situations. Range Str AP Type fob 8. Pistol Pulse rifle The pulse rifle uses an induction field to propel a particle, which reacts by breaking down to create a plasma pulse as it leaves the barrel. Range Str AP Type 30" 5 Ss Rapid Fire Rail rifle Broadside battlesuils. It has only recently bean authorised for issue fo frontline units, having completed an extensive field-tasting phase. Range Str AP Type 36° 6 3 Heavy 1 Pinning Vespld neutron blaster The weapon carried by the Slingwings is a hybrid of Vespid and Tau technology. The crystal mounted upon aach blaster emits a pawerlul neulron blast that is able to bypass: all but the most efficiently ray shielded anmaur. Range Str AP fot eae The rail rifle is an implementation of the technology utilised in the railgun that is mounted on vehicles and Type Assault 1 Markerlight Range Str AP Type 36" wa mwa Heavy 1 Amarkerlight is a hand-held device that projects a simple beam upon a larget, and It is usad lo guide other waapons to it with unerring accuracy. Models use a markerlight as a weapon with the above profile. Fach time you hit a target unit with a markerlight, pul a counter by that unit. The counters remain until the end af the current Tau Shooting phase or unlil they are used. Counters may ba expended by subsequently firing Tau (and Yespid units, sa long as the Strain Leader is alive} firing at the ‘marked’ unit. Every counter expended granis the firing unit one ef the following effects, which may be combined. « To allow a vehicle to tire a single seeker missile at the marked unit. This shooting is resolved normally in all regards at an assumed Ballistic Skill of 5, + To allow a unit which fires at the target to do so at +1 to Its Ballistic Skill, This affect may be stacked, allowing a Ballistic Skill up to a maximum of S. * Toallow the firing unit to automatically pass 4 Target Priority test when shooting at the marked unit, declared before the test is made. + To allow the firlag unit to ignore the effects of the Night Fighting rule when shooting at the marked unit *To impose a -1 Leadership penalty on the marked unit for the purposes of any Pinning lest imposed by the firing unit's shoating Multiple counters may be expended to impose a cumulative modifier. + To impose a-1 penalty on any Cover Saves the marked unit may have from the effects of the firing unit's shooting. Multiple counters may be expended ta impose a curfulative modifier. In any case, the use of a counter must always bs declared before to hit rolls are made by the firing unit, and the counter is only removed aller rolls to hit have been made, so if the firing unit is distracted by a closer targel or cannot $e the targel unit because of the Night Fighting rule (ar any other reason) the counter is not removed. Markerlight shots do nat benefit from the effects of othar markerlights.TAU VEHICLE ARMOURY Each vehicle may take the upgrades listed in its army list entry. With the exception of seeker missiles, only one of each upgrade may be taken per vehicle. Vehicle upgrades must be shown cn the model Sensor spines 10 pts Targeting array 5 pts Mulli-tracker . 10 pts Blacksun filter This is simply a vehicle-mounted version of the hard-wired filter system. The vehicle doubles the distance rolled for determining how far it can see when using the Night Fighting mission special niles. Decoy launchers Decoy launchers are mounted near the engines of Tau skimmers and fire clouds of reflective strips and tiny emitter drones to protect the vulnerable thruster arrays, Whenever an Immobilised result is rolled on the Glancing Hit Vehicle Damage table, the Tau player may force his opponent to re-roll the dice, though the second result stands, even if itis worse. Disruption pod Adisruption pad throws out distorting images in both visual and magnetic spectra, making it hard to target at range. Weapons firing al the vehicle TAU VEHICLE UPGRADES Blacksun filter Spts Targat lnck . - 5 pls Flechette discharger...... 10 pts tram more than 12" distant count the vehicle as an Obscured Targel. Flechette discharger Powerful clusters of reactive charges. are attached to the hulls of many Tau vehicles. if tha enemy approach, thay fire off vicious clouds of high velocity flechettes. Any madel attacking the wehicle in close combat will be wounded an a D6 roll of 4+, with Saves allowed, bafore rasolving ils allacks. Gun Drones Avehicle may be equipped with two. Gun Drones. The drones will move with the vehicla, salely contained in specially designed recesses. During any Tau Movement phase, the drones may disengage In the same way as infantry dismount from a transport and form an independent unit. Fram then on, the drones function as a Drone squadron. The drones may not rejoin the vehicle during a game and will never count asa Scoring Unit While attached, the Gun Drones may fire as part of the vehiele, using their own BS, in addition to any other weapons that would normally be permitted to fire, and are treated as passengers if the vehicle is damaged Hammerhead railgun The railgun is a linear accelerator which functions using standing wave acceleration along 4 number of cylindrical superconductive electrodes that surround the barrel. it can fire either a solid projectile or a sophisticated bundle ot submunitions. The submunitions Disruption pod . - 5 pts Decoy launchers - 5 pls Seeker missile ..... 10 pts each (maximum 2 per vehicle) ‘option is only available to the vehicle mounted railgun. Railgun (solid shot) Range Str AP 72" 10 1 Type Heavy 1 Railgun (submunition) Range Str AP Type 72" 6 4 Heavy1 Large Blast fon cannon lon weaponry generates a stream of high-energy particlas that are acceleraled by an electromagnetic field. These will react explosively with the target as a result of direct jranstar of energy al the atomic level Range Str AP Type 60" ii 3 Heavy Landing gear Though they utilise advanced anti- gravitic technology, Tau vehicles are fitted with basic landing gear in case: they should suffer malfunction. In any tum that the vehicle doss not move, it may choose to no longer count as a Skimmer until It moves again. This benefit does not apply on the first turn af the game. The vehicle-mounted multi-tracker is combined with advanced stabilisers enabling a vehicle to fire as if il were a fast vehicle, Seeker missiles ‘Seeker missile arrays are provided to allow Tau infantry to immediately obtain fire support, for Fire caste doctrine does not allow for organic, intagrated heavy weapons in Fire Warrior taams. Any model equippedwith a markarlight may request a seeker missile salve as detailed in the markerlight rules. Up to two seeker missiles may be fitted to a single vehicle, and one or bath launched in a single turn, each using different markerlight hits. Each is a single shot weapon. The missiles de not need a line of sight from the vehicle they are mounted on tothe vehicle, The missile is assumed to move in a straight line between the modal camying the missile and the targat itself for the purposes of deciding whether the shol strikes the front, side or mar. The missiles have no maxinum range. Ordinarily, the vehicle carrying the seeker missiles has no control over them and cannot launch them itself. The mechanism is remote and responds only to markerlight users. Drones The missiles may always be fired, each at different targets if relevant. ragardiess. of the distance the vahicle has moved or whether it has fired any other weapons. They may also be fired if the vehicle has suffered a Crew Stunned vehicle damage result, Range Str AP Type unlimited 8 3 Heavy 1 Sensor spines Sensor spines are used to feed dala to an advanced ground-following flight control system. The vehicle may opt to usa them insl#ad of moving normally, Whilst doing so, the vehicle does not hover above a tarrain feature — instead, it is counted as actually moving through It. It may therefore claim to be an obscured target in the same way as a normal vehicle in the same position, but the sensors allow it to avoid the affects of dangerous terrain, Targeting array Targeting arrays assist the vehicle gunnar's aim by adjusting for the largel’s range and speed, Add 1 to the vehicle's BS. Target lock The target lock identifies potential targets and plots fire plans te counter them, granting the vehicle gunner tar mare choice about the targets to be engaged. Each weapon on the vehicle may fire al a separale enemy unit if desired, subject lo the normal Drones are independent artificial intelligences, programmed to protect the Tau. Uniike the Imperium, the Tau make extensive use of machine intelligences. Normally drones will require regular orders fram a Tau, bul when several intelligences are networked together in a squadran they become capable of acting indapendently for a long period. Drones under the command of a drone controller are counted when assessing if the unit hey are with should take a Morale check having taken 25% casualties. They are similarly counted when determining if the unit is strong enough fo claim an objective. If their unit sutters lossas, drones are counted when determining if it is below 50% for Victory Point purposes, Crones must maintain coharancy with the unil their contraller is in, If he is an independent character then the drones. and character form a unit but the character and drones may still join another unit. If the character with the drone controller is killed then all his drones are removed al the end of the Shooting or Assault phase in which he died. ‘Shield Drone Gun Drone ws BS Ss T W 1 A Ld Sv ws BS S TW I A Ld Sv 2 2 3 x od 4 1 ma x 2 2 a 304 4 1 ma 44 Equipment: Twin-linked pulse carbine. Unit Type: As owner, or Jump Infantry (jet pack) il independent All Gun Drones on a vehicle or in a Piranha squadron must disembark at the same time, counting as a single unit. Equipment: None. Unit Type: As owner. SPECIAL RULES Close Protection: Shieki Dranas always have the same Toughness and Armour Save values as the individual they accompany. Sniper Drone Invulnerable Save: The Shield Drone is equipped with WS BS S$ TW oI A ld Sv powerful energy shields. Ithas a 41 Invulnerable Save 2a) o3 3 1 4 1 na & Equipment: Rail rifle, target lock & stealth field generator, targeting artay (bonus included above) Unit Type: As owner. Marker Drone ws BS S T W 1 A ld Sv 2933 39 1 4 1 Wa 4 Equipment: Networked markerlight, targeting array (bonus included above), Unit Type: As owner,+ COMMANDER CTAU: SHAS'EL OR SHAS] Commandar is 4 position of great honour for Taw of the Fire caste. If is attained only aflar yeurs progressing through the ranks of Fire Warriors to fight first in the Baitlesu teams and then as part al anolher Commander's Bodyguard. Proof of accomplisiment in nat only the tactical bul also the strategic arts of war may then eam the Commander's approval and elevation from Shas'vre. Tau Cormnarders lara formidable warriors. frequently sporting scars, blonics and disfigurements aarned in their carcer. According to their renown they may be called upon to command anything from a Cadre to a Battle. The number and size of previous commends [5 reflected in tha rings confining their Jong scalp locks. A Shas'el can only progress to the rank of Shas'a after repeated success irr the Feld. Point WS BS § T Ww 1 A Lad Sy Shas'o 75 4 5 6 4 4 3 4 Wow Shas'al 50 3 4 5 4 3 3 3 9 oH Unit Type: Jump Infantry (jet pack), Equipment: The Commander is equipped with an XVB Crisis battlesuit, and must select three battlesuit weapons systems or support systems. He may select additional items from the Baltlesuit Wargear list, including Special Issue systems. SPECIAL RULES. Independent Character: Unless accompanied by a Bodyguard, the Commander is an independent character and follows the Independent Character special rules in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook. If accompanied by drones, he may still join other units as an independent character. Bodyguard: The Commander may be accompanied by & Bodyquard, see the separate entry below, The Commander and his Bodyguard count as a single HQ choice. V8 battlesuit: The Commander's battlesuit grants him the Acute Senses and Deep Strike special rules. See the Amaury tor more details. Ve 'CRISIS' BATTLESUIT BODYGUARD TERM (TAU: SHAS'VREJ A Bodyquard team of Fire Warriors in Crisis batilosuit armour may accompany & Shaso or a Shas'el Tha Bodyguards wil! always be Shas'vre veterans, experienced and praver in baulle, itis common for such Badyquard teams to be predominantly made up of the Commander's kin or long-term friends, and it is a great honour to he chosen for such duty, The Bodyquard embody the Tau philosophy of striving tor the Greater Good at the expanse of personal glory and these warrlors are much respected by the resi of tha ary. Points WS BS §& + w 1 A La Sv Shas'vre 35 3 3 Ss 4 2 3 2 8 oe Team: A team consists of 1-2 Shas'vra. There can only be 0-1 team per Commander, and they may not be taken separately. Unit Type: Jurnp Infantry {jet pack) Equipment: Each Shas’vre is equipped with an XV8 Crisis battlesuil, and must select three battlesuit weapons systems or support systams. Each may solect adeitional items from the Baitlesuil Wargear list, including Special Issue systems. SPECIAL RULES XVB battlesuit: The Bodyguards’ baltlesuils grant them the Acute Senses and Deop Strike special rules. See tha Armaury for more details, 32ETHEREAL (TAU: AUN Lite is Known of the Tau Ethereal caste, appearing as shrauded, enigmatic figures that eschew ihe advanced equipment favoured by the tau Fire casle. Fthereats seem to combine the soles of poesthood and coyally within tau society, and command unquestioning Joyaly from all of the other castes. Ethereal casle members are oncasionally saen on the bulllaleld, allhough whelher leading or observing is unclear. Points ws BS S$ T Ww 1 A Ld Sy Ethereal 50 4 3 3 3 2 3 3 10 a Equipment: The Ethereal normally carries symbols af offica that can ba used as 2 pair af clase combat weapons (+1 Attack). These may be exchanged far an honour blade for 10 points. He may select equipment trom the Infantry Armoury. Unit Type: Intantry. SPECIAL AULES independent Character: Unless accompanied by an Honour Guard, [he Elhereal is an independent character and follows the Independent Character special rules in the Warhammer 40.000 rulebook. If acoompanied by drones, the Ethereal may still join friendly units Honour Guard: The Ethereal may be accompanied by an Honour Guard of Veteran Fire Warriars who have chosen to forgo the normal progression ic battlesuit pilot and then Commander. The Honour Guard is chosen as a normal Fire Warrior team (it does not count as the compulsory choice}, but does not take up an additional Force Organisation slot. These Veteran Fire Warriors cost an additional 2 points over the basic cost, and cach benefits from 41 Ballistic Skill, but otherwise have the same unit size, weapons and options. Inspiring Presence: The Ethereal and all Tau units {not Kroot, Vespid or drones} with a line of sight to him may re-roll any Morale checks ifthe Night Fighting rules are in use then roll ta determine the distance the unit can see. This includes passant Morale chacks. The re- rolled result stands. Any Tau unit joined by an Ethereal caste member becomes Fearless Price of Failure. Whilst the Tau are inspired by the presence of their Ethereals, they are conditioned to dread their death above all things, for fear of the return of the Montau the Time of Terror before the coming of the Ethereals. If a friendly Ethereal is killed then every unit of Tau on the tabletop (nat Kroot, Vespids or Drones) must take a Morale check at the start of their next turn if they are not in close combat or falling back. In addition, every Tau that takes the test will benefit from the Preferred Enemy universal special rule, with the enemy as their preferred enemy. This applies whether the Morale tast is passed or failed, and lasts until the end of the game.xXVB ‘CRISIS’ BATTLESUIT TEAM CTAU: SHAS'UN Those Fire Warriors who prove themselves in battle eam the right ta wear a battiosuit and bear the name of Shas'ul, Thay are experienced fighters who have fought tha deadliest foes and triumphed. Their joyalty and skill is heyond question and the best and bravest of them may be honoured by bairg elevated to become a bodyguard to thair Shas’o or Shas'el. Teams of Crisis battlesuit warriers will have fought logether for many years and, in many cases, Wil have performed the Taissera ritual where tha warriors swear oaths of commurian and loyalty to one another, placing the welfare of the team ahead of their own personal desires. Points WS BS SS T w 1 A Lad Sv Shas'ui 25 = 3 5 4 2 2 2 8 ot ‘Shas vre +10 3 3 5 4 2 3 2 8 3r Team: A team consists of 1-3 Shas'ul. Unit Type: Jump Infantry (et pack) Equipment: Each team member is equipped with an X¥8 Crisis battlesuit, and must select thrae baltlesuit weapons systams or support systems. Character: One Shas'ul per tearn may be designated as a team leader at 15 points, and may select items from the Battlesuit Wargear list. A Shas'ui team leader may be upgraded to a Shas'we for an additional § points, giving him access Io Special Issue wargear. SPECIAL RULES XV6 battlesuit: The team members’ battlesults grant tham the Acute Senses and Deep Strike special rules. ‘See the Armoury for more details.STEALTH TEAM CTAU: SHAS'UII Stealth teams, equipped with XV15 or the slightly larger XV25 Steaithsuils, are the ‘fone walves’ of the Tau army, eperating independently of other formations. They are intent upon ambushing isolated enemy treops and intervening in support of friendly units. They are nol factored direcily into Tau baltle plans and 30 enjoy a great deal of freedom of action within very broad parameters. The leaders of Stealth teams are offen regarded as being slighily eccentric and alight in ampioying new and unpredictable lactios. Many a foe of the Tau empire has found himself attacked from an unexpected quarter by Stealth teams Positioned ahead of the main army. Points WS BS §S 7 Ww 1 A Ld Se Shas'ui 30 2 3 4 3 : 2 2 a 3+ Shas'vre +10 3 3 4 3 1 3 = 8 3+ Team: A team consists of 3-6 Shas Unit Type: Jump Infantry (jet pack). Equipment: Each team member is equipped with a burst cannon and Stealth armaur with integral stealth field generator. Each learn member may selecl ane battlesuit support system. If this option is taken, all members must da so, though each may select a different system. Options: One in three modals (including the team leader or Shas'vie) may replace their burst cannon with a lusion blaster al a cost of 2 pts per model. Character: One Shas'ul per team may be designated as a team leader at +5 points, and may select items from tha Battlesuit Wargear list. A Shas'ui team leader may be upgraded lo a Shas'vre for an additional 5 points. The team leader or Shas'vre may also purchase a markerlight at an additional 10 paints SPECIAL RULES Infiltrate: Stealth armour teams can use their suits to move into forward positions ahead of the main army unseen. To represent this they can set up using the Infiltraters scenario special rule if the mission allows It. Any drones attached to the unit may accompany them. If the mission does not allow troops to use the Infiltrate rule then the Stealth armour traaps must sel up with the rest of the army. Stealth Armour: The team members’ battlesuits grant thom Acute Senses and Deep Strike special rules. See the Armoury for more details. THE XVEE BATTLESUIT Tau battiesuit fechnology is aver avalving, for the Tau lear from experience and ulilise their technology to overcome those obstacles that stand in the way of the Greater Good, Current marks of battiesult are easily mass-produced and known to be retiable, yet there are a number of other models in development, many of which make use of technological developments that the Earth caste are not yet abfe to produce on a mass scale Thase experimental suits are issued fo trusted commanders or iheir subordinates, where they can be field-tested and their performance analysed. The XV22 battlesuit wom by Cammander Shadowsun is such a sui, the first 2’ in the designation indiealing the suil’s mass class, the secand indicating that itis undergoing fleld-testing. Whether or not the XV22 bacomes approved for general use will be determined by its performance in the battles of the Third Sphore Expansion. Its future ratios as much upan Shadowsun as hers does on the XV2236 TROOPS 1 FIRE LUARRIOR TEAM CTAU: SHAS'LAI Fire Warrior teams are aver present iit Taw almies and are formed fram members at the same sept. They are cautious but efficient, anc their pulse sifle armament gives them exceltenl firepower. Often mounted in a Devilfish troop carrier, they ave able to rapidly deploy and lay down a withenng fusifizde upon their toc Points WS BS S$ T w 1 A ld Sv Shas'la 10 - 3 3 3 ir 2 1 7 a+ Shas'ui 110 2 3 a 2. 8 At bo Team: The team consists of 6-12 Fire Warriors. Unit Type: Infantry. Equipment: Pulse rifle, Options: Any number of the Fire Warriors in the team may exchange heir pulse rifle for a pulse carbine at no exlra points cost. The team may carry photon grenades at an additional cost of 11 paint per modal and EMP grenades at an additional cust of +3 points per model Character: One Fire Warrior Shas'la may be upgraded to # Shas'ul leam leader at +10 points, and may select items from the Infantry Wargaar list, A Shas'ui team leader may also purchase a markarlight al an additional 10 points. Transport; If it numbers twelve maciels or less (including drones), the team may be mounted in a Devilfish traap carrier. , een TRANSPORT: DEVILFISH TROOP CARRIER The Devilfish troop carrier is the workhorse of the Tau ground forces and is able to cary twelve warriors. Armed with a fearsome burst cannon, it can rapidly transport its passengers io their destination than act as mobile fire support once they have disembarked. The Devilfish alsa carries a pair of Gun Drones to provide aver rare firepower, Armour Points Front Side Rear BS Devilfish 80 12 " 10 3 Type: Tank, Skimmer. Crew: Tau Fire caste, Unit Type: Vehicle. Weapans: Burst cannon and a pair of Gun Drones. It is also equipped wilh landing gear. Options: The Devilfish may be equipped with any of the vehicle upgrades specified in the Tau Armoury. The Gun Drones may ba raplaced by a smart missile system at a cost of +20 pis. Transport: The Devilfish can carry up to twelve models. It may nol carty any troops in XW battlesuits Access Points: There are access halches al the rear and on cach side of the hull, Madals embarking or disembarking must be wilhin 2" af one of them. Fire Points: There are no fire points; the Devilfish is a pressurised environment. This means that passengers may not fire while aboard the vehicle.KROOT CARNIVORE SOUAD Keoot Camivore squads are the most common auxiliaries serving alongside the Haw armies, The Keoat worlds have tong been part of the empwe, ever since & Tau expeditionary farce hrelped liberate several Kroot enciieves trom Ork domination The Krot warriors have a strict code af honowe and. in saturn for the support of the Tau empire, supply farge numbers of warriors as exclusive marcenaties. Ther sett suiticiency and unparalleled fieideral! are a major assel to the Taw and @ useful contrast fo their moré technotogically dependent masters. Kroot squads may also tuntain the lumbering Krootox and agile Kroot Hounds, Whils! the Tau find the Krool’s prodilection for eating the flesfy of their vanquished foes barbaric, It is hopad that prolonged exposure to the Tau's sensibilities and culture wil eventually purge Ihem of this alstasioful hahit. Despite this, the Kroot are attorcied virtually the samc fave! of respect as a Tau, since their skit at anng is much valued by the lass physically ablo Tat. The Kroot are honoured for their martial prowess and are rewasded for their efforts, ¢ petits Joyal citizans of Ihe Tau empire. Points ws BS § T w | A ld Sv Kroot f 4 3 4 3 1 3 1 7 = Shaper +21 + 3 A 3 3 3 3 8 6 Kroot Hound 6 4 0 4 3 1 5 2 ? Krootax Rider 35 4 3 6 3 a 3 3 - & Squad: The squad numbers from 10-20 Kroot, 0-12 Kroot Hounds, and 0-3 Krootax Riders Unit Type: Intaniry, Equipment: Kroot are armed with a Kroot rifle, Krootox Riders ‘with a Kraot gun, and Kroot Hounds with their ferocious fangs Options: Ita Shaper is included in a Camivore squad, te members may acquire 2 G+ Anmaur Save at a cost of 1 point per model. Some Shapers carry weaponry gilled from the Tau, For an addilional replaced with either a pulsa rifle or a pulse carbine. 5 points, the Shaper’s Kroot rifle can be Character: One Krol may be upgraded to & Shaper al an additianal cost of 21 points. SPECIAL RULES Fieldcraft: Krool gain 11 te their Cover Save in woods or jungles, Kroot in woods or jungles do nat have lo roll a Difficult Terrain test; they can always move up to 6". In addition, they can see and shoot through | " of woods or jungle terrain rather than the 6" that would normally be the case, Infiltrate: If the squad does not contain # Krootex Hider it may infiltrate if the mission permits il. See the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook for the Infiltrators scenario special rules. RITUAL OF THE TALISSERR Many Tau groupings are ‘bonded’, according ta solemn ceremony known #8 the ‘Ta'issara’. The best transiation which xenotexicons can derive for this word is communion or marriage. ft appears to be some kind of sworn bond where groups of lau pledge support and communily to one anniher The Tau whe have swom these pledges may address sack other by their individual names and are much admired. This bond is seen as the ultimate Tau expression af raspect for one anothar #3 it symbolises Ihe sacrifice of individual paride to become part of a greler whole. The Talissera’ is cast commonly found within the ranks of Fire caste warriors and Earih caste wark fens, who regard themselves ag ennobled by their boned of communal purpose.