Editing Last Stand - Tau Commander (section)

==Commander Items==
The Tau Commander's Commander Items are all, interestingly enough, Drones. Once placed, they will roam about, doing their thing until destroyed or they move far enough away from the controller. Each Drone is useful, either with or without the drone controller accessory, so the key is in their individual abilities. Note that, due to a bizarre coding algorithm issue, drones will cheerfully wreck most cover they come into contact with - this can be either advantageous or not, depending on the map and what your team composition is.

* '''Shield Drone:''' - ''Level 5''
**Ability: Shield Drone (35 Energy; Summon a Tau shield drone to the battlefield. Shield drones emit a protective field that reduces incoming ranged damage by 50% to allies within range.)
***Deceptively powerful, especially given how early it unlocks. The Shield drone generates a (surprisingly large) shield that cuts the ranged damage all allies within the shield take by half. For a predominantly-ranged team (or one that has a Hive Tyrant with Toxin Cysts), this can effectively make for a mobile firebase - provided the drone doesn't derp out and wander off, which, like all Drones, it of course has a legendary propensity for doing, unless you leash it (such as using the Southern corner of Bloodied Colosseum). It does, however, cost the most at 35 energy a pop, so bear that in mind.
***The EMP Field ability, used by the Drone Controller, functionally takes both the Drone and any enemies near it out of the fight for the duration; they cannot move or attack, nor can they take damage, but for the duration, you've effectively cut a huge chunk of enemy forces out of the fight - a ridiculously powerful advantage. This can easily be one of the most powerful of the Drone abilities tactically, since correctly used it can divide an enemy force significantly. Bear in mind, however, that it won't last too long - a mere five seconds.

* '''Heavy Gun Drone:''' - ''Level 15''
**Ability: Heavy Gun Drone (25 Energy; Summon a Tau heavy gun drone to the battlefield. Gun drones are equipped with twin-linked burst cannons and fire on the enemy.)
***Simple but effective, the heavy gun drone is tougher health-wise (although, without the benefits of the shield, it tends to die quicker when targeted) and packs twin-linked Burst Cannons. Sadly, unlike the Burst Cannons the Shas'O can equip, they don't cause suppression, but it's still a very good infantry-killer, especially when paired up with Markerlights and/or the Command Aura. It's less expensive than the Shield Drone, but still rather pricey.
*** When the Advanced Drone Controller is used, it gains the Overdrive ability, which boosts the damage of the drone and massively kicks up its fire rate, causing it to do phenomenal amounts of damage to infantry targets - its actual DPS essentially doubles due to this, making its damage rival the damage output of the Tau Commander himself in many builds, but it doesn't last very long. Best when used with multiple gun drone-equipped Commanders.

* '''Marker Drone:''' - ''Level 20''
**Ability: Marker Drone (15 Energy; Summon a Tau marker drone to the battlefield. Marker drones automatically mark targets. Marked targets receive increased ranged damage and can be targeted by Skyray Missile Barrages.)
***Ironically for a Drone you get at level 20, this is one of the least consistently useful drones.... At first. All it does normally is drop Markerlights (albeit for free) as it roams the battlefield. On one hand, this means it's vastly easier to mark targets, and the marked targets can be blown up by your Skyray Barrage ability (you still need the Markerlight to do so, however). Considering that Markerlight drops can be free with Coolant Injectors, this seems like a gimmicky - if useful - piece of wargear, though obviously best used alongside the Markerlight itself for Skyray compatibility. It is, however, the cheapest drone.
***The Drone Controller turns this gimmicky little drone into a devastatingly powerful impromptu weapon; it overloads the core and causes the drone to explode in an almost ludicrously powerful explosion that will instantly gib heavy infantry, deal heavy damage to vehicles, and punch your clones right into space. It can just as easily kill you or your allies, however, so be extremely careful in its use. It can easily be used offensively (jump into crowds, deploy, jump away) or as a trap for pursuing foes. Be wary of using it if your allies are using Marker Drones too.