Warhammer 40K: The Problem with T’au Troops
The T’au Empire needs a new ride, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg for their Troop problems.
I would argue that there are a number of reasons that the T’au need a new ride, but overall the point of a transport in 40k is to protect the models inside. Of course, transports, and vehicles in general, have a variety of uses on the tabletop, but getting models from A to B is probably the most important.
An Issue of Durability
But this is only a problem because the T’au offers so little in the way of resilient infantry. The humble Fire Warrior, both the Strike and Breacher variety, is a Toughness 3, 4+ Save model. And while Breachers have access to a 5+ invulnerable save, most anti-infantry firepower will put a serious dent in a Fire Warrior unit. And of course, the issue of sub-par infantry is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the faction’s problems, but infantry are such an integral part of 9th edition that the subject deserves more exploration.
The T’au does have an equivalent to the Intercessor and the Heavy Intercessor. The problem, however, is that Stealth Suits and Crisis Suits aren’t nearly as useful as Intercessors and Heavy Intercessors. At a glance, these units look similar, but the Battlesuits don’t offer T’au players nearly as much as Emperor’s finest offer Marines players.
There is a simple solution to this problem. In the next T’au codex, Games Workshop could add a Battlesuit unit to the Troops slot. Imagine something roughly the size of a Stealth Suit but without the stealth capabilities. There are all sorts of interesting places GW could take such a unit, but would it be a good move for the faction?
Let’s be more specific. It’s obvious that adding a new option to the Troops slot would improve the T’au. This much is clear. But would it be a good direction to take the faction? This is a more interesting question. In editions past, T’au players — Farsight Enclaves players to be more precise — have had access to Crisis Suits in the Troops slot. This was a cool idea, and indeed it might be a cool idea in the near future, but overall I would argue that it doesn’t really solve the problem of poor options in the Troops slot. Crisis Suits are just a little too expensive to work effectively in such a role.
Of course, GW could make Crisis Suits cheaper. That would be one way of solving the problem. But Crisis Suits have been quite tricky to get right over the course of 8th edition. We only got to a point at which T’au players were beginning to field them again at the end of the edition. As soon as 9th edition was released, however, Crisis Suits lost a lot of their sheen again.
While it’s certainly possible that we could see the proper return of Crisis Suits in the next T’au codex, I think it’s unlikely that we will see them as viable options in the Troops slot. Here’s why I think so: GW will almost certainly release a couple of new Battlesuits when the army is updated for 9th edition, and GW will want to incentivize players to purchase these new Battlesuits. If we’re going to see Troop-slot Battlesuits, then, GW will want players to purchase shiny new kits, so I would imagine that we would see something entirely new.
Let’s Not Become Marines
But let’s return to the question that I posed above. If the faction had access to a Primaris equivalent in the Troops slot, would this make the faction less interesting to play? I have a couple of thoughts on this question. The first thought sounds something like this: each faction should be unique. Any overlap in the different factions’ units and abilities makes the game less interesting and less engaging. As far as I can see, this is a sensible way to look at the game. We don’t want T’au armies to turn into Space Marines armies. However, the second thought sounds something like this: the T’au needs something new in the Troops slot in order to be competitive. A new Battlesuit would fit the bill nicely, regardless of any similarities to already-existing units.
And while the second point here is absolutely true, I find myself more drawn to the first point. As a T’au player, I don’t want Battlesuits that play exactly like Marines. This would make the faction much less interesting. More importantly, it would make the faction less cool. And as we all know, the rule of cool is the way to play the game.
But what about the inevitable new Battlesuits that GW releases when the next codex comes around? I’m sure we’re going to have some great new options across the board, but are we going to see new Battlesuits in the Troops slot? As I mention above, it’s certainly possible, but I want to see something new. Here’s another danger: any new Troops-slot Battlesuit will very probably disincentive players to take Fire Warriors and Kroot. Obviously, there’s a significant disincentive to taking Kroot at the moment, but let’s presume that GW fix the problems with this classic unit and make it a good choice to take.
A Delicate Balance
This is something that we certainly don’t want to see. An interesting, well-balanced army is one that has depth, multiple builds and multiple playstyles. T’au players, and everyone else for that matter, do not want a book that offers only one way to competitively play the army. There was only one competitive T’au build in 8th edition. That’s not something that we want to go back to. Although, to be fair, one competitive build is better than zero competitive builds, but I digress.
Troops are a difficult part of an army to get right. Units in the Troops slot need to be good but not too good. In order to best incentivize a variety of competitive ways to play an army, players shouldn’t see Troops simply as a tax. Granted, 9th edition has gone a long way to improve things on this front. Back in 8th, a lot of players certainly viewed infantry in the Troops slot as a tax that had to be paid in order to get more Command Points. The way we build lists in 9th edition changed this, of course. As I mentioned last week, obsec is a very powerful ability, and tough, resilient Troops with this rule are particularly valuable. And it goes without saying that Fire Warriors do not fit into this category at the moment.
I would argue that the 9th edition T’au codex should fix the Troops that we currently have instead of adding more. Of course, these two options aren’t mutually exclusive, but between the two, I’d really like to see some interesting options for the Kroot and some cool new abilities for Fire Warriors. This changes, coupled with the new transport, would form a strong foundation upon which the rest of the army could sit.
~How would You help T’au TROOPS?
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