This was posted by DaemonKnight over on the 40KOnline rumour boards..
Quote:
An interesting interview
regular text for questions
bold for Adam Troke
>> 1) All Tau should be +1 BS, to BS 4 for basic Shas'la. They cannot be so adept with guns, and practice so much, and still have a Guardsman's accuracy. Increase their points if neccessary (say 11 or 12 points per Shas'la?), but do it!
Really? Should they really. I couldn't disagree more. The Tau train their Fire Warriors well, that is for sure - but so does the Imperium for its Guard. Bear in mind that the Tau firewarriors ALREADY have a +1 to their BS. A Tau civilian would doubtless be BS 2.
Raising their BS would mean that Space Marines, Eldar and other things that are *REALLY* good at shooting would need to go up too, since they are clearly better than the average Tau at shooting.
>> 2) Broadsides should be BS 4 at least, if not all the Shas. THey are after all the Tau who have proven most adept with weaponry above all ele, adn so deserve to be good at it!
Really? Why? They're *just* Tau still, aren't they? Not like a super-duper Elite fellow, or a Commander or wot-not. Perhaps my Imperial Fist Devastators should be BS 5... since they're clearly better than the regular joes... :-D
>> 3) Drones should not count towards squad size for the purposes of morale and "all on your own". That IS, after all, what they are for!!!
Erm... i'm not sure i get your point here... apparently it's a friday, and my brain is going in slow motion ;-)
>> 4) Shield drones should have a weapon. They are a waste of points otherwise. They may have an invulnerable save, but are more expensive that gun drones, who actually have a chance of doing damage!
Pardon? You can either have a shield drone... or a gun drone. Both are great - so you have to pick. Sounds like you want the moon on a stick, which would of course be greedy AND impossible (notwithstanding massive leaps in Moon-sticking) 😛
>> 5) More varied weaponry for Shas'la squads. The armoury is very empty for such a technologically advanced race, and so Shas'la should be allowed special weaponry, not just the Shas'vre in XV8!
Erm... Tau Firewarrior squads are armed in the way that the TAU prefer to fight. Lets not force every troop in the game into the Standard Imperial mould... they're different, and still effective.
>> 6) Perhaps some other races than Kroot. The Nicassar, for example, exist in BFG, and the Tau empire encompasses many many races, so perhaps some form of warrior from those races?
Perhaps, one day ;-) As for "Many, many"... the Tau are a relatively dinky race really, aren't they?
>> 7) Hard-wired Shield Generators, for Ethereals in particular.
Moon on a stick again... Try hiding him in a big squad of Fire Warriors - it's like having 15 extra wounds 🙂
>> Cool The ability to use Air caste, or Earth caste, or Water caste as well. They may not fight, but perhaps as a form of Engineer for the Fio (Earth caste) similar to a Techpriest, or as fortification manufacturers? Or perhaps something for the Por (water caste) that affects victory points at the end of teh game, due to negotiatory talks?? And they may be armed with some form of sidearm like a Pulse Pistol??
Bring civilians to war? What a splendid idea ;-) I'd like a Lolly-pop lady and a Post Man for my Imperial Fists, in that case 🙂
>> 9) Finally, the ability to upgrade gun drone squadrone, such as with pulse rifles, or Railrifles??
Uhhhh...
>> And PLEASE tell me Railrifles for pathfinders will have rules in the new book!?!?!?
I could tell you... but then i'd have also told the whole world... and that'd be giving away too much ;-)
>> I'm actually kind of annoyed at the GW person's smart assed manner. Most people had pointed out the problems with the first suggestion. The need to mock him in his list was unnecessary.
Ok... i should certainly reply to this - especially if it's percieved that i was rude and/or unkind. Honest and perhaps amusing responses is what i was trying for. It seems like i might have failed, which is a shame. Bearing in mind i was replying to a hyperbole laced text punctuated largely with exclamation marks (and multiple question marks?!?!) though, i thought i was responding on an appropriate level. If i've caused offense, sorry.
>> Um, have you seen the range of Tau battlesuit weapons. If the suits are meant to bust tanks and heavily armored troops, then they need to be able to hurt them. The best guns for this are fusion blasters (12"), plasma rifles (12"-24) and missle pods (48). Of those, only 1 can shoot at an enemy at full ability and not be charged by the survivors. That one lets heavy infantry make saves, so it is only marginally better than a pulse rifle at the same job.
If i may... the suits *can* jump away again, after shooting though, can't they? So that means only leaping units, or those with a good "fleet of motive-power" roll will get you. And you can always exploit area terrain etc to block LOS.
Add to that the fact that Tau have Rail weapons (Strength: 10, range: miles), and Strength 5 weapons all round - and i don't see the problem myself.
>> Feel free to respond with criticism. However, don't mock me. It makes some of us jaded.
Sorry to jade you... seldom my intention, never on a friday.
>> Thank you. For the Greater Good.
Indeed. For the Emperor, and Kill the Alien.
>> Shas'o Sa'cea Kauyon Kais.
Adam - Regular Human.[/b]