Editing Battlesuit

{{Heresy}}
[[File:Stitch16.jpg|right|thumb|500px|From Cool to absolute godless [[cheese]]. And also [[Longstrike]].]]

'''Battlesuits''' are powered combat exoskeletons used by the forces of the [[Tau|Tau Empire]]. The Tau have developed several different battlesuit models with greated varied roles in battle. 

Each model's designation is usually preceded by the letters "XV", which derives from the Tau term "Her'Ex'Vre", meaning "Mantle of the Hero". Note that some sources place a hyphen between the "XV" and the numbers, and others don't. The first (or only) number in designation indicates a weight class of the suit, while the last indicates its purpose:
# Still in development model
# Undergoing field testing
# Custom-built model
# Command and control-compatible model
# Outfitted with stealth technology
# Suit, designed for a void operations
# Suit, designed for infiltration
# Suit, designed for long range fire support
# Suit, designed for shock assault and close range firefights
Sometimes there's a secondary numerical designation separated from the first with a hyphen. Those are just number assigned to a specific loadout for heavily customizable models. Sometimes they fit with a primary purpose designation (like XV-8-06 being designed for void operations or XV-46-4 being command and control model), and sometimes they don't (XV-8-05 is not even compatible with stealth technology, XV-9-01 is a finished mass-produced model). The largest variants use either KV or KX; what they stand for is currently unknown.
==Role on the Battlefield==

Tau battlesuits are a pretty broad descriptor as [[Longstrike|some battlesuits]] are barely larger or heavier than [[Carapace_armour|carapace armour]] while other suits serve as [[Titan|Titan-size weapon platforms]]. Generally speaking, what makes a Battlesuit seems to be that it is piloted by a single person through a direct neurolink. T'au commanders and officers in the field generally command their troops from a Battlesuit, usually an XV8 variant. 

The Fire Caste generally consider piloting a battle suit to be a massive honour which they are hesistant to afford anyone but their own respected Elites. Fire Caste battlesuit pilots are veterans with at least four years of combat experience and who have passed a ritual "trial by fire". There are some exceptions to this though; some [[Fire Warrior|Fire Warriors]] prefer serve with the infantry and are given the special title of [[Cadre Fireblade|known as Shas'nel]] while others refuse to take the test at all in order to pilot tanks and speeders. There is also at least once case of a human commissar piloting a Crisis Suit in the T'au Empire and an Earth Caste pilot in the Farsight Enclaves.

==Models==
[[File:XV02.png|thumb|right|200px|Trying to roleplay for Top Gun is often a recommendation.]]
=== {{anchor|XV02|XV-02}} XV02 Pilot Battlesuit===

An experimental model made for vehicle pilots (obviously) currently undergoing field testing; although it provides less protection than even Fire Warrior armor, it compensates by allowing pilots to interface more effectively with their vehicles, negating the need for multiple crew members. This works in tandem with the vehicle's A.I. by processing the cadre tactical network and incoming data quickly so that the pilot can react extremely rapidly (by Tau reflexes standards) to enemies attacking his vehicle or nearby units. 

The only one known to exist is in the possession of [[Longstrike|Shas'la T'au Sha'ng (a.k.a. Longstrike)]], who was selected for his reputation as a peerless [[Hammerhead Gunship|Hammerhead]] pilot. The battlesuit also features a multitude of specialised systems, plug sockets, vents, a wrist-mounted control panel and other technobabble shenanigans that allow Longstrike to pilot his personal tank without the need of those pesky annoyances called crewmates. 

Tau scientists have been working on producing more after the success of the original, but all other candidate pilots thus far have either been incompatible with its neural interface or became brain-dead due to information overload frying their brains. 

The battlesuit also incorporates a Blacksun Filter, but nobody cares about that.

The suit hasn't really actually done anything since 7th Edition except make Longstrike look different from any random Fire Warrior in a Hammerhead.

=== {{anchor|XV15|XV-15}} XV15 Stealthsuit ===
[[File:XV15.png|thumb|right|200px|XV25's rented cousin.]]
Little more than [[Awesome|modified Fire Warrior armor]], the XV15 was outfitted with stealth systems allowing it to infiltrate, jetpacks for mobility, and burst cannons for firepower. It also carried [[markerlight]]s. These older units are being phased out in favor of the XV25 series after the Imperium got their hands on an intact helmet from one, and the Tau fear it will be reverse-engineered and countered by the humans.

In a surprisingly unlikely move that somehow did not cause the AdMech to lobotomize everyone involved in the project with a siege drill for associating with xeno-tech, the Imperium did actually manage to reverse engineer the suits and learn about the technology, although the Tau were two steps ahead of them by rolling out the more advanced XV25 stealth suits as their new recon platform. 

The meta reason both these and the XV25's exist is because these were metal kits, and were replaced by the later plastic kits and less like a Fire Warrior with some extra equipment. Presumably the upscaling was done to make it harder to kitbash Stealth Suits from plastic Fire Warriors, but that's not really stopped anyone from trying.

Crunchwise, they're the same unless you consider the crunch changes between editions to be the difference. Use the models you like and have access to. (Pull a Dawn of War and use XV25s for the squad leader and XV15s for the chumps)

=== {{anchor|XV22|XV-22}} XV22 Command Suit ===
[[File:ShadowsunNov.jpg|200px|thumb|right|0% blueberry edition.]]

Officially part of the stealthsuit line, this heavier unit is quite expensive to produce; as such, it is limited in use to commanders (like [[Shadowsun|Commander Shadowsun]], [[Commander Or'es'Ka|Shas'o Or'es'Ka]], and [[Shas'o Kais]], who as you can see above have different versions of the suit; Shadowsun's has a unique helmet that resemble the later XV95, while Kais' resembles a Crisis Suit). With the right equipment and abilities you can make it go three times faster than a normal stealthsuit. ([[Ork|Red paint optional]]).

This was originally built as a prototype design for a next-generation stealthsuit pattern but finding ways to mass-produce these suits proved more difficult than anticipated. After the Imperium managed to reverse-engineer some of the XV15 suits ([[Advancing the Storyline|which, for some reason, doesn't cause the Inquisition to foam at the mouth]]) recovered from the battlefield, the Tau had to compromise by moving forward with the less advanced but easier to manufacture XV25.

In the beginning 8th edition, it was the Suit Shadowsun wore and carries two fusion blasters, plus a -1 to hit modifier. It got updated in "The Greater Good" To get a new model having some new drone rules, along with a few extra weapons, including a Missile pod, Options for two different types of fusion blasters, and pistols. No really. It also kept the -1 to hit and infiltration rule.
<gallery>
File:XV22.jpg|The addition of partner drones is always a guarantee.
</gallery>

=== {{anchor|XV25|XV-22}} XV25 Stealthsuit ===
[[File:StealthSuit.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Citadel exclusive "Tau Stealth" paint. Order it now.]]

''Main article: [[Stealthsuit Team]]''

An improvement over the XV15 which is larger, heavier and better armored while still retaining the maneuverability and subtlety of the XV15 series. Development and deployment of the XV25 was largely due to the fact that the Imperium managed to acquire a functioning sample of the old XV15 stealth suit during the [[Damocles Crusade]], compromising its use as a recon platform... A larger and more powerful reactor allows XV25 to be outfitted with a fusion blaster instead of it's basic burst cannon, and the suit also has one hard point on its back for an additional support system, although those are usually issued only to squad leaders.

The main wearers of these suits are of course the Stealthsuit Team, whose battleline roles include assassinations, sniping, sabotage and ambushes.

They operate like lite Primaris Intercessors with Jetpacks, worse BS, and shorter range dakka. Each suit can take a single support system, and you can take up to two drones per squad.
<gallery>
File:XV25.png|Now in camo edition!
</gallery>

=== {{anchor|XV46|XV-46}} XV46 Vanguard Void Suit ===
[[File:Tumblr Tauman Void Suit Vangard.jpg|190px|right|thumb|Fan art of what the Void Suit would look like, courtesy from Tau Man and ''[[Tumblr]]'' [[Derp|of all things.]]]]

Basically a Tau version of [[Terminator|Terminator armor]], bigger than the XV2 series, smaller than the XV8 and as heavily armoured as XV88 while still light enough to have jetpacks. It is designed solely for operating in spaceborn situations at close quarters, which means boarding action and [[Space Hulk]]-type investigation missions. 

The XV46 is highly effective against [[Genestealers|certain xenos species]] that are famous for slaughtering Terminators like they are nothing. With a fuckton of burst cannons, flamers and fusion guns on each of the suits, the little buggers would have a hard enough time getting close, but then there are electroshocks, grav-repulsors, and photon grenades to zap any fuckers lucky enough to break through the walls of fire, all triggered automatically. 

To make the Tau version of Space Hulk even less [[grimdark]], these suits are even equipped with smart ejection systems which are programmed to deliver the pilot back on board his ship if his suit gets wrecked. How this works without [[warp]] based tech is a crapshoot. Being both niche equipment and difficult to manufacture critical parts for, XV46s are rarely seen outside of Space Hulk missions. Even rarer is the XV-46-4 Commander variant.

The XV46 doesn't appear in the tabletop wargame; [[Fantasy Flight Games]] made it up for the [[Deathwatch (RPG)|Deathwatch RPG]]. As a result, there's no images of it. It however is used in [[Battlefleet Gothic Armada]], in which the Tau load them up in the cargo bay of their Mantas before letting them get dropped along with the payload onto enemy ships through their shields. 

Which suggests that the Tau in some extent would have capabilities to play a serious game of blue gremlin on the wing with other species, this combination is also particularly enraging for Eldar who have little to no defense against such an unusually bold action from the Tau. Since GW took forever to get the [[Deathwatch]] 7E Codex out. It would be a miracle for other FFG IP to get official rules and a model at all.

=== {{anchor|XV8|XV-8}} XV8 Crisis Battlesuit ===
[[File:Tau Crisis Suit Close Up.jpg|300px|thumb|right|"Keep trying, Gue'La. You have a 1 in 18 chance of actually wounding me."]]
'' Main Article: [[XV-8 Crisis Battlesuit]]''
<gallery>
Image:XV8.jpg|XV8 Team
Image:XV81.jpg|XV-81
Image:XV84.png|XV-84
Image:XV89.png|XV-89</gallery><br><gallery>
Image:XV8-05.jpg|XV-8-05 Enforcer
Image:XV-8-02.png|XV-8-02 Iridium
Image:Coldstar.png|XV-8-06 Coldstar
Image:Shas'o R'Myr.png|R'Myr's special XV8.
</gallery>

XV8 Crisis Battlesuits are the Tau Empire's general-purpose combat battlesuits. Check the main article for more information, since there's too much to cover here.

=== {{anchor|XV88|XV-88}} XV88 Broadside Battlesuit===
[[File:XV88.jpg|thumb|right|370px|Battlesuit evolution.]]
''Main article: [[XV88 Broadside Battlesuit]]''

XV88 Broadside Battlesuits are fire support platforms outfitted with either a large Heavy Rail Rifle or a [[Dakka|massive array of missiles]] to lay waste to the enemies of the Greater Good from afar.

They are basically the Tau's quintessential Heavy unit choice. Heavy Rail Rifle suit work well with Sa'cea Sept to snipe larger enemies, while Bork'an Missle Suits can devastate enemies from a distance. In 8th Edition up until present, they were primarily remembered as being centerpieces in T'au sept gunlines, since 5+ Overwatch combined with Missile Spam made the T'au Gunline a nightmare to charge. 

=== {{anchor|XV9|XV-9}} XV9 Hazard Battlesuit ===
[[File:XV9 smug face.jpg|200px|thumb|right|I'll tell you what's a hazard: being hostile and near this motherfucker.]]
Another Forgeworld blessing. Unlike most Tau battlesuits, the XV9 Hazard model is a dedicated spear-tip suit for fast and hard close-range engagements which is quite a deviation from traditional Tau combat doctrine. Its frame being more agile than other suits and it has photon grenades and retro-thrusters to halt enemy charges and then jump out of meat grinder respectively.

XV-9 have have the equivalent of seven Crisis Suit hardpoints, thanks to its twin-linked weapons and hard built support systems. Hard points:
::'''Twin-linked burst cannons''' are for mulching down infantry with enough dakka to make Orks jealous.
::'''Fusion cascades''', which are melta miniguns, less powerful than basic fusion blasters and more short-ranged but with a higher rate of fire, so they're more effective against light/medium vehicles, monsters and terminators rather than heavy tanks.
::'''Phased ion guns''' which were supposed to be "assault cannons-lite", and are more "well rounded" choice, being decent against both light and heavy infantry or light vehicles, though heavily outclassed by the previous two gun options.
::'''Pulse Submunition Rifles''', commonly referred by a player base as "shotguns", these are the most long ranged and expensive guns available to Hazard. They cover a huge area with a cover-ignoring blasts to root out heavy cover campers.

It should be noted that the number 9 is a significant number to the Tau given that they count in an octal numeral system (there is no 8 or 9; 10 comes immediately after 7), as opposed to [[humanity]]'s decimal system. [[Awesome|This means that to the Tau, the XV9 is literally cranked up to 11.]]

Shas'o R'alai has his own XV9 equipped with a shield and experimental next-gen PSR that fires in bursts and is loaded with a wide range extra-powerful (but unstable) experimental ammo.
<gallery>
File:XV9.jpg|XV9 AKA Mobile Suit T'au'dam.
</gallery>

=== {{anchor|XV95|XV-95}} XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit ===
[[File:XV95.jpeg|200px|thumb|right|<center>Striking hard and fast.</center>]]
[[File:XV95 2.png|thumb|left|200px|Blitzkrieg, Mecha style.]]
The Ghostkeel is a really big and powerful stealth suit <s>[[Creed|which you could swear was designed by a certain tactical genius]]</s>. It's the same weight class and size as Hazard, but has extensive armour plating for nearly double the survivability. Unlike the XV15 and XV25, the XV95 doesn't have full stealth system on itself, but rather its parts are spread between the battlesuit and its stealth drones, meaning only with a combination of both can the team becomes nigh-invisible, while separately they appear to be only slightly camouflaged, which, combined with an exceptional tankiness of the Ghostkeel, and mediocre survivability of his drones makes the XV-95 one of the few battlesuits that would take hits for its drones instead of drones shielding him with their cold, expendable, mechanical bodies. But being nigh-invisible is not enough for XV-95 - it carries an electronic warfare equipment in its left hand like a gun, and use it to fuck up enemy targeting systems even more, unless they are at point-blank range, and can overcharge it to shock-and-awe any opponent trying to gun them down, ensuring it can't hit shit, although it's a one-use trick, as the suit needs to recharge for a while to deliver this sensory shock again.

On the offense, the Ghostkeel has a set of twin-linked standard battlesuit guns on its back (sadly, only limited to flamers, burst cannons and fusion blasters), and a single BFG in its right hand, which could be a fusion collider, which is an extra bigger fusion blaster with extra barrel that shoots small blasts, or an ion raker, which looks and fires like bigger badder cyclic ion blaster with double the normal mode firing rate (for SIX autocannon-grade shots per burst), double overcharge blast size and slightly higher range. On top of that, Ghostkeel also have two extra hard points for supporting systems (meaning up to five hard points total) for extra customization options.

=== {{anchor|XV104|XV-104}} XV104 Riptide Battlesuit ===
''Main article:[[XV104 Riptide Battlesuit]]''
[[File:XV104.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The most spammable and rage inducing walker that the T'au have to offer.]]
[[File:Nova Reactor Energy.jpg|200px|thumb|left|"So this is the power of the Nova Reactor... Not bad, not bad at all..."]]
A new, extra-large battlesuit (at twice the size of the XV8) that made its first appearance in the 6th edition codex, the Riptide is presumably what would happen if Octacon tried to build a Gundam (specifically the ZZ Gundam, what with its XBAWKS HUEG build, optional missile system and destructive but stupidly risky energy weapon). The Riptide's primary weapon can be either a heavy burst cannon or an ion accelerator (with twin smart missile systems, fusion blasters or plasma rifles as backup weapons), while its defensive prowess is supplemented by a portable shield generator. All of these can be made significantly more powerful if the prototype Nova reactor built into the suit is used to charge the weapon or shield; however, doing so runs the risk of overloading the generator, releasing deadly radiation that can injure or kill the pilot.

While incredibly powerful, the Riptide's primary drawback ([[fluff]]-wise) is that the materials used to manufacture it are rare. Thus, their numbers remain fairly small within the Tau Empire's forces. Not that you'd know since every goddamn Tau list has them flying out of their asses. Then again, there's only supposed to be about 100,000 Space Marines in existance.

An extremely [[cheese|cheesetastic tactic]] on the tabletop with this fella is to model it to be as low as possible (like crouching forward) and then put it behind a piece of very big cover, like a bastion. It moves out during the movement phase, revs the Nova reactor, blasts nearby enemies into oblivion, then jet boosts back behind the bastion during the assault phase to block enemy LoS.

=== {{anchor|XV107|XV-107}} XV107 R'varna Battlesuit ===

[[File:XV107.png|right|thumb|300px|When you gotta take care of those 'Nids. Accept no substitudes.]]
Essentially a Riptide (made by [[Forge World]] of all folks) that threw mobility away for more armour and two exceedingly huge pulse submunition cannons (think plasma cluster bomb) for the purpose of fucking up your opponent's entire day. Its Nova Reactor also grants some unusual properties like a turn with Fleet, an electromagnetic shockwave that hits everyone around it, or double-firing weapons, but is no less risky to use. The fluff behind this involves an Earth Caste engineer from Sept Ke'lshan, called Sho'Aun, who managed to go behind the Ethereals' backs by building something so huge, expensive (even in in-universe terms), and lethal while he was supposed to make more stealthsuits. One [[Tyranids|Tyranid]] swarm later, however, he revealed this behemoth and with it helped dumpster all of the 'Nids and save the Sept.

One interesting note of mention is that in the early days of the R'varna's conception, before it was officially announced, there was indeed a rumor floating around that Forgeworld was actually designing a new stealthsuit. Given the fluff behind the R'varna, it's almost as though Forgeworld chuckled at the rumors and used those as a basis for their fluff, going so far as to craft the rumors of a stealthsuit into the XV107's fundamental history. '''The more you know!''' The X7 designation this suit has means it's supposed to be an infiltration unit (even though every other stealthsuit has been an X5 of some sort), which is the exact opposite of what R'Varna actually does - this is likely the result of it being developed as a part of Stealth Suit program.

In 7e, the R'varna was considered to be horribly broken by non-Tau players, and by many Tau players to be the most [[cheese|deliciously cheddar]] thing since [[Fish of Fury|Fish of Fury]].

Currently though, the R'varna a considerably more specialized TEQ/Monster/Light Vehicle killer than it used to be: it's lost its ability to scale its strength and inflict multiple hits on larger units, but deals 3 damage for every successful wound. The removal of blast weapons has made it less viable as an anti-horde unit, but it does crank out 6d3 S6 AP-2 shots. Its Nova Reactor abilities have been retooled as well: it's kept the electromagnetic shockwave (Which now deals mortal wounds!), but can now choose to either boost its invulnerable save to 3++ or re-roll any dice rolled to determine the number of shots it fires.

<gallery>
File:Xv-107-rvarna-battlesuit.jpg|That's a nice gargantuan creature you have there…it'd be a shame if something were to happen to it...
</gallery>

=== {{anchor|XV109|XV-109}} XV109 Y'Vahra Battlesuit===

[[File:XV109.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Bringing the Greater Good close and personal]]

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3lrhPeK6gU ''Hi, it's Sho'Aun with the Y'vahra, you'll be saying "wow" everytime you use this T'au'']. A regular Riptide doesn't do well too close to an enemy, this one does well at close or medium range. This is for the blobs, the Deathwing, the Armoured Ceramite'd AV14. Made in Ke'lshan Sept by Sho'Aun, you know that guy always makes good stuff. 

This is a Riptide that embraces its mobility and gets a super-flamer, a mega-haywire gun and has super-jetpacks able to turn it into a flying monstrous creature once each two turns. This one was made with the opposite goal of a Riptide: to jump in close and take the fight to the enemy, fling a burst of flechettes as it lands and then jump back out before it can be overwhelmed. With its S6 Torrent (at 6") Plasma Flamer that goes either AP3 Heavy 1 or AP2 Heavy 2 Gets Hot, and its S8 AP3 Haywire Cannon that also blinds, it can effectively total entire enemy units in one volley, and even more so with the Nova Reactor on (which gives it some more tricks, like the ability to Jink or move back into reserves while in close combat). 

As a trade off, however, it is more fragile than Riptide and its Nova Reactor options are also weaker. It is more focused on extra mobility and surviving/escaping close combat rather than blasting shit to death or keeping up that [[cheese|delicious]] 3++ against everything. Combined with extremely uncomfortable range of all of it's weapons Y'Vahra tends to go down much quicker than the Riptide.

When 8th dropped, the Riptide and its variants got a point hike up to roughly 400 points. This left the Riptide pretty much unusable, but the Y'vahra quickly proved to be worth every point. Chaanges to flamer and AP rules gave 2d6 strength 6 ap-2 autohits dealing 3 DAMAGE APIECE. Terminators? Melt them. Centurions? Kindling. A certain [[Spiritual Liege]]? Just 3 failed saves and he's charcoal. The Ionic Discharge Cannon is nothing to sneeze at either with strength 8 and -3 AP. Even the shield is better, granting a 4+ invuln when within 12" (Which it will be, given the loadout). The Nova Reactor effects are where this baby really shines though. You can either give it the usual 3+ invuln, the ability to move it off the table and deep strike it (Not recommended for anyone but Bor'kan sept players) and buffs to the weapons. The last one is what you'll be using most of the time, the flamer is bumped up to 3d6 autohits while the Discharge cannon gains a whopping 3d3 shots, 10 strength and 3 points of damage per shot. The 8e Codex gave the Riptide a much needed price cut and a stratagem but the Y'vahra is still pretty common on competitive lists... they are just that damn strong. 

In a nutshell, it is the only unit from the Tau that goes all fire and glory, and naturally Farsight and company love these things.

=== {{anchor|KV128|KV-128}} KV128 Stormsurge Ballistic Suit===
[[File:Stompin on marines.jpeg|200px|thumbnail|right|Teaching [[Abaddon|certain spiky gue-la]] how to be cool despite the lack of arms]]
[[File:KV128.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Teaching the Imperial Guard that they too can utilise missile spam.]]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUnjxftU6r0&feature=youtu.be&t=96 <strike>A WEAPON TO SURPASS METAL GEAR</strike>] <strike>Literally just a walking giant laser cannon.</strike>The new and improved chicken walkers!

One day one Earth Caste T'au got bitten by a radioactive [[Ork]] and realized that the Riptide wasn't big enough to fit all the [[dakka]] it needed. That day, the dream of the Stormsurge was born.

The Stormsurge is armed with a one of two giant pulse cannon. The first is the pulse blastcannon, which can use three separate profiles; either leaning into anti-infantry with 6 shots of S10, 0AP and 2D or wreck any vehicles that come up close with 2 shots at 10'' that are S14, -4AP and 6D. Meanwhile, the pulse driver cannon gives you a more variable number of shots with about a mid-range profile from as far as 72''. It also comes with a pair of hilariously large missile pods, an SMS on its back and a pair of airbursting frag projectors, which will have you tossing enough dice to make an Ork player blushh. Entire armies of GEQs can melt the moment this thing opens fire, and even terminators or monstrous creatures would be hard pressed to survive once they start failing their saves under that hail of wounds. It also houses four Destroyer missiles, which just deal out D3 mortal wounds for each hit. 

Be careful however as the Stormsurge is esquishy for its size and firepower; it's pretty much a heavy artillery piece that needs to stay way back and be protected in order to take its points back and is the one more geared for anti-infantry, so if you're looking for something to deal with Knights and Titans, look below for a proper front line Tau titan. Its squishiness probably has something to do with it being the only Battlesuit so far that has its crew sitting without any cover over their heads.

Fun fact: In 7e, if tank shock is used against an anchored Stormsurge, the Stormsurge is [[Awesome|destroyed]].

=== KX139 Ta'Unar Supremacy Armour ===

[[File:KX139.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|<center>[https://youtu.be/2vKz7WnU83E?t=46 To fight monsters, we created monsters of our own]</center>]]

A new super-heavy Overcompensator Class battlesuit, massive enough to claim the title of Tau [[Titan]]. After multiple run-ins with Imperial Knights and Tyranid bio-titans, the Ethereals were forced to admit the necessity of Titan-sized static defenses to deal with counter-expansion attempts into their own territory and asked the same Earth Caste nutter who made the R'varna and the Y'varha, Sho'Aun, to make something capable of fending off super-heavy assault forces too strong for their bombers to deal with. A bunker on legs in other words?

[[Awesome|He did not disappoint.]]

Yes, it lacks jet packs (much like its brother the R'varna), but you won't need one, you gave it to your enemy so they can RUN. FAR. AWAY. Which, would not work because with its long legs Ta'Unar is actually about as fast as jet and jump infantry. The Ta'Unar is armed to the teeth and damn hard to kill with T:9 and 10 wounds. Although it's a Gargantuan Creature like the [[Wraithknight]], it can fire Overwatch at BS2 with its two smart missile systems and two twin-linked burst cannons. Its main guns are no less effective- for arm weapons, it can equip either a Heavy 5 multimelta or an ion cannon that can fire either 6 shots at S7 AP3 or 3 shots at S9 AP2. The back-mounted Pulse Ordnance Multi-Driver can fire either a Strength D Massive Blast with 72" range or a S8 AP3 Apocalyptic Barrage (3) with Pinning and Ignores Cover with a range of 12-120". Defensively, it has a 2+/5++ save that improves to 4++ against shooting attacks, and it can sacrifice the invulnerable save for a turn to cut the number of wounds suffered from a "Deathblow" result on the Destroyer table in half. Its only real flaws are that it's expensive as all hell to field (both points-wise and in real-world costs, being a Forge World exclusive and all).

In the place of the Pulse Ordnance Multi-Driver, it can instead take a Nexus Meteor Missile System or a Heavy Rail Cannon Array for free. The Nexus Meteor Missile System is a Blinding Apocalyptic Mega-Blast with 24-120" range with S 10/7/5 and AP 1/4/5, for when you want to just nuke the otherside of the table. The latter on the other hand is technically two weapons, which can be fired simultaneously. It incorporates a Cluster Shell Launcher (a 36" range Apocalyptic Barrage (4) weapon with S6 AP4 and pinning meant to lock down anyone in relatively close range) and the Heavy Rail Cannon itself, a 120" ranged monster with the almighty D, AP1, a 3" blast, and the nasty rule "Mass Induction Targeting"- when using it to attack any superheavy or GMC, you roll twice on the Destroyer table and pick the higher result, therefore doubling your chances of getting that 6. Perfect for ruining any Titan's day! 

In 8th Edition, this had the Battlesuit keyword, so there are and were '[[That Guy|some]]' who would take this, an army of shield drones, and an ethereal, and nothing else. Which is almost worse than Triptide Shield Drone spam.

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000]]

[[Category: Xenos]]

[[Category: Tau]]

[[Category: Vehicles]]

[[Category: Walkers]]

{{Tau}}
{{40k-Armor}}