Just an attempt at a Tau list, comments would be much appreciated. The Kroot hounds are there because I like them.
Tau Empire
HQ:
Shas’o: airbursting fragmentation projector, cyclic ion blaster, shield generator, iridium armour, hard-wired drone controller, hard-wired multi-tracker, 2x shield drone: 185pts
Elites:
XV8 ‘Crisis’ battlesuit team (3): multi-tracker, fusion blaster, plasma rifle, team leader: hard-wired drone controller, 2x shield drone: 221pts
XV8 ‘Crisis’ battlesuit team (3): twin-linked missile pod, target lock, 2x drone controller, 2x shield drone: 164pts
Troops:
Kroot carnivore squad (14): 12x Kroot, 2x kroot hound: 96pts
Kroot carnivore squad (14): 12x Kroot, 2x kroot hound: 96pts
Fire warrior team (12): 120pts
Fire warrior team (12): 120pts
Fast attack:
Pathfinders (8): Shas’ui: 96pts
Devilfish troop carrier: disruption pod: 85pts
Pathfinders (6): Shas’ui: 72pts
Devilfish troop carrier: disruption pod: 85pts
Heavy support:
XV88 Broadside battlesuit team (2): targeting array: 160pts
1500pts
The Deathrain Crisis team targets transports (In my opinion better than rifleman dreads, they lose a bit of range but have brilliant mobility), and the Broadsides go for the really big things like Land Raiders. I decided on targeting array because I know from experience with Wave Serpent turret weapons not to trust TL BS3 in small numbers, so the BS4 seems like a good call to me.
The Pathfinders gift their mandatory Devilfishes (with the thing which helps battlesuits deepstrike) to the Fire Warriors, and take up position with Scout moves to light up the enemy. The team of 8 light up a squad for the two Fire Warrior squads to fire at BS5 at (presuming an average of 4 hits). I figure that many S5 hits have got to hurt. The smaller 6-man squad will help out the Helios Crisis team by giving them a bit more BS and probably using any extra markerlight hits to lower cover saves.
Said Helios Crisis team will be a general hunter unit for things like Terminators, MCs and tanks if need be. The commander will generally blaze away at infantry. I may replace one of the guns with a fusion blaster, just because a BS5 melta can be a great saviour in dark times... and I figure I'm going to have a few dark times. However, such an accurate cover-ignoring large blast would be great against things like Tyranids and Orks, which I can see being the difference between pushing them back or being overwhelmed.
The Kroot are there to bodyguard and shield, especially the Pathfinders, as well as being fairly useful surprise attack squads.
Overall, I'm playing them because I like them, but I'd like to have a go at trying to make them work too.