Tau Kauyon Formations: Questions!

I enjoyed taking a flick through the The Damocles Crusade: Kauyon book yesterday and a read online about the various formations being introduced.

The ones that immediately look useful are the Optimized Stealth Cadre (I'm going to have to pick up a Ghostkeel to make that work with my stealth suits (pictured above) and the Firebase Support Cadre (fortunately I have the models for that one!)

In the meantime, because I rarely play the game, I'm struggling a bit to wrap my head around the rules for Contingents, Detachments and Auxiliary choices, and how they all fit together. 

Here is a question:
Can formations in the Montka book (which I don't have) be used with the Hunter contingent in the Kauyon book? 

For example, like most Tau players, I have quite a few Drones available. Although it isn't in the Kauyon book, can I use the "Tau Drone Net VX" auxiliary choice with the Hunter Cadre contained in the Kauyon book?
I'm not interested (for fluff reasons) in running a Farsight Enclaves army!

Yes, I'd like to get the most out of these guys using the Drone Net!

Regardless, I think it is time to do an inventory of my Tau...

A Warhammer 40K Winter.

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Blimey, this festive season really is a dream come true for Tau fans. In this post I’ll take a quick look at the gaming goodies that Shas’o Nic’laus, The Red-hooded Victor of Yule Prime, managed to fit down my life support hab’s exhaust system.

What I got 1: New storage. Citadel Crusade Figure Case

Over the years I have used both professional options (Battle Foam, GW cases) and home-brew (lots of plastic boxes in a cheap suitcase). Both approaches have their ups and downs, so on a recent trip to my local GW I thought I would take a look at the Citadel Figure case range. Specifically the Crusade case (the largest one).

Up close, my first impression of the Crusade case was that it was much smaller than I had anticipated! How much could I get in there? If my goal was my Black Templars that was a concern (multiple predators, Rhinos, Land Raiders, Speeders, Stormtalon gunship, bikes etc.)

My second impression was cost...14,500 Yen (or just over 80 GBP).

Worth it?

In the end I decided yes. I wanted a new case, haven’t supported GW in a while, and I would like to upgrade from my 100 Yen shop boxes! The GW staff gave me a tour of the inside, taking it apart and showing me the funky foam arrangements and possibilities.

So here it is, with a Space Marine to show scale.

Citadel Crusade Figure Case

FYI, while looking at what was available online, I came across the "Munitorum Battlepack Case Harness" option. After seeing it in person I immediately put it out of my mind. I like the idea of a rucksack solution for the Crusade case that also offers additional storage for books, but at 12,500 Japanese Yen (70 GBP) it is simply too much money for what it does (for me). The case does come with a shoulder strap after all. 

I haven't had time to try and actually fit stuff in and write a review yet (even though today is "Boxing Day") but watch this space!

What I got 2: Warzone Damocles: Kauyon

NOT buying the harness meant I could invest in something else, so I went for the War Zone Damocles: Kauyon rules. At 10,500 Yen (58 GBP) this also wasn’t cheap, but it gives me the rules that I need to supplement my Tau Codex, including some of the newer units should I get some new models (Ghostkeel, you shall be mine…)

Image credit: Games Workshop website

Frankly speaking, I love the hardback Codex books. Quality feels great, nice pictures and plenty of fluff. I haven’t started reading this yet, but I’m looking forward to the rules and the story.

What I got 3: Dice.

Yes, dice.

There is a story here that I won’t go into in depth, but it involves giving a workshop in a foreign land, 200+ attendees, and my dice. Or to be specific, NOT GETTING THEM BACK! (My fault, I should have told everyone the dice weren’t a freebie!

What I got 4: Darth Vader Grissini Breadsticks (Plain)

Breadsticks - crunchy mini lightsabers in a box.

Not WH 40K, but the marketing is strong with this one...

...”Merry Sithmas”!