Editing Last Stand - Tau Commander (section)

===Shields===
The Tau Commander's shield slot is normally used for equipping Shields that boost his health and armor rating, and provide other useful benefits. It can also be used to equip the Networked Weapon Interface, in case you want to scream: ''"[[Commissar Fuklaw|fuck shields]]!!"'' and go for even more [[Dakka|shooty goodness]].

*'''Shield Hardpoint''' - ''Default''
**Shield
***Like all default weapons, the Shield Hardpoint is a place-holder and should not, under any circumstances, be used on its own merits. It offers no benefits, and solely exists to have items replace it. Avoid.

*'''Shield Generator''' - ''Level 1''
**Shield
**+50 Armor
**+25 Health
**Abilities: Energy Shield (Activates a powered shield that absorbs incoming damage in the form of energy)
***Unlocked from the start, this little shield gives a good health and armor boost - 50 Armor, 25 Health - and it makes available the ''Energy Shield'' ability - 
Don't underestimate this early-game shield, especially when backed with Ion Batteries and/or Coolant Injectors. It adds a surprisingly heavy amount of survivability to what is already a phenomenally-durable class (only the [[Last Stand - Mekboy|Mekboy]] and [[Last Stand - Necron Overlord|Necron Overlord]] can withstand anywhere near as much abuse). It works the same way as the Hive Tyrant's Warp field. This can actually be amazingly utilitarian when backed with the "Agile" Crisis Suit and works very well for waves against heavily-shooty opposition (such as Space Marine Scouts). This said, the Tau Commander tends to use energy a lot, which makes this ability more of a "get out of death free" card rather than the mass survivability boost of the Hive Tyrant. The health and armor boosts are welcome, and make this worth taking even if you don't want to spend the energy on the bubble shield.

*'''Repulser Shield''' - ''Level 7''
**Shield
**+50 Armor
**+25 Health
**Abilities: Kinetic Pulse (15 Energy; Discharges stored kinetic energy, knocking back and dealing damage to nearby enemies)
***Unlocking at Level 7, This shield gives the same health and armor boosts as the Shield Generator (+50 Armor, +25 Health), but instead has the incredibly useful ''Kinetic Pulse'' ability. For 15 energy, the Tau Commander generates a short-ranged shockwave that deals decent damage and hurls away lighter foes. This can be used offensively (jump into a crowd and activate it to hurl them away), or defensively (bunker down and use it to throw away enemies that love crowding you, like Sluggas and Banshees). This versatility makes it one of the best overall shields in the game, and a staple of many builds. The only drawback: Can't be used with Networked Weapon Interface.

*'''Iridium Shield''' - ''Level 11''
**Shield
**+75 Armor
**+50 Health
**Traits: Heavy (Lowers range of Jet, but increases damage of impact and adds stun effect)
***Unlocked at Level 11, and boasting the largest health and armor boost of the shields, the Iridium Shield is all about defense. Having the Iridium Shield equipped, due to its mass, gives the Tau Commander the trait ''[[Heavy-chan|Heavy]]'', which increases the damage done by jumping on foes, but cuts the range of the Tau Commander's jump. This same trait is given by the XV8 "Armored" Crisis Battlesuit Armor, and if both are used, a [[Extra Heresy|Double Heavy]] state is acquired, which further boosts the damage and impact of the Tau Commander's jumps (the other effects, such as the range and stun duration, are unchanged). It does, however, lack the Kinetic Pulse of the Repulser Shield, the Energy Shield of the Shield Generator, and the always-useful Twin-Linked trait of the Networked Weapon Interface, so bear this in mind.

*'''Networked Weapon Interface''' - ''Achievement Unlock: Kill 100 Enemies by Jumping on them''
**Shield
**Traits: Twin-Linked
***Not really a shield, this achievement unlock, earned by getting the Dynamic Entry achievement, gives no health or armor, and instead duplicates whatever weapon your commander had in the primary weapon slot in his shield slot, allowing the Commander to fire 2 of whatever his weapon of choice was. A side-effect of the twin-linking is that both weapons are about 25% weaker - so you trade 25% of one gun's firepower to gain a second 75% damage gun. This upgrade benefits the Tau Commander's various weapons in different ways - the Burst Cannon and Flamer lose almost no damage from being twin-linked, so the upgrade is a flat damage improvement, whereas the primary benefit to the Fusion Blaster and Plasma Rifle is being able to fire at more than one one round per cooldown cycle, compensating for some of their accuracy issues. The Airburst Fragmentation Projector and Flamer get a second pieplate/flamerplate to drop. You're trading defense for offense here, so make sure that whatever weapon you choose, to make the choice worth it.