Image by Games Workshop LTD via Games-Workshop.com
If you play the Tau
Empire faction in Warhammer 40k, you’ve probably bought the new codex by now
and seen the rules for the new units. The most notable of these new units to me
is the Ghostkeel battlesuit, the model (while very nice) is rather expensive at
75 U.S. dollars per miniature. For what it costs both in points and currency it
can be a waste if used incorrectly, on the other hand if used correctly it can
be a great elite unit choice that can easily destroy vehicles in one volley of
fire, and put a decent dent in most infantry squadrons, if not outright destroy
them. The Ghostkeel can also be very well equipped for a tournament setting where
the opposing factions will be unknown. To show this units effectiveness we will
look at the stats, weapons, and rules it brings to the table.
The stat lines for the
Ghostkeel are fairly decent in terms of most Tau stat lines. WS2, average for
tau, BS 3, again average, S6, T5, 4 wounds, and its last four stats I2 A3 Ld9
and an armor save of 3+ are all fairly unremarkable. (Warhammer 40k Tau 90) Out
of all its stats the two really notable ones is its T (toughness) and wounds,
with a T value of 5 it sits rights between the regular crisis battlesuits (T4)
(Warhammer Tau 40k 88) and the riptide battlesuit (T6) (Warhammer 40k Tau 91)
making it a fairly resistant unit. The Ghostkeels wound count of 4 also sits it
right between the other two battlesuits (crisis battlesuit 2, riptide 5) and
its Toughness and wound count together make it extremely survivable.
Next is the Armament of this unit. In
total it has access to two primary weapons, the ion raker and the fusion
collider, in addition it has access to three secondary weapons, the twin-linked
flamer, the twin-linked Burst cannon, and the twin-linked fusion blaster. These
can be taken in any combination of one primary weapon and one secondary, with
the uses varying from anti hordes (large numbers of weak enemies) to anti heavy
and light tank, the primary weapons are both very formidable weapons, though
each has a very different use and their usefulness mostly sits as the personal
preference of the player. The Ion raker has a 24 inch range with strength 7, AP
(armor penetration) 4, and fires 6 times each shooting phase, (Warhammer 40k Tau
118) its range is average and its strength is above average, able to easily
harm most enemies on a 2+ and able to destroy any tank short of armor 14, the
AP is only effective against horde quality units, anything of a higher quality
can take their armor save against the ion raker. Lastly it can be overcharged
for a 1+ to the weapons strength, though with overcharging having the gets hot
rule doing so is not worth the risk of harming your own unit. The Fusion
collider is an 18 inch range strength 8, AP 1 melta weapon that fires a small
blast marker, (Warhammer 40k Tau 118) while this weapon may be good against
tank heavy armies, for the means of having a better-rounded Ghostkeel there
isn’t much need for this weapon due to the secondary fusion blaster being just
as proficient at destroying tanks.
Of the secondary weapons
(all of which are twin-linked) there is the flamer, which is the default
weapon, it’s fairly weak at S4 AP 5 (Warhammer 40k Tau 128) and being a
template, its good against hordes and not much else. The next weapon is a 5
point upgrade and is the burst cannon, it has a range of 18 inches, S5, AP5,
with 4 shots total, and it is a very middle of the line weapon (Warhammer 40k Tau
117), it’s decent, but its main use is again in hordes, or just pelting enemies
until they start failing armor saves. The last is the fusion blaster, at 18
inch range strength 8, AP 1, melta (Warhammer 40k Tau 118) it gives you a nice
anti-tank weapon for 10 points.
The Ghostkeel battlesuit
has access to a large arsenal of wargear that augment its survivability and
effectiveness in combat. It has access to all the special wargear other
battlesuits have access to, but the only two truly worth mention for this unit
are the velocity trackers (Warhammer 40k 124), and stimulant injectors
(Warhammer 40k Tau 124). The wargear the Ghostkeel starts with give it special
rules which in themselves are fairly formidable, the wargear in question is the
Ghostkeel electrowarfare suite (Warhammer 40k Tau 122), and holophoton
countermeasures (Warhammer 40k Tau 123). The two purchasable wargear upgrades
that we will be talking about are the stimulant injector and the velocity
tracker. First of the two is the stimulant injector, it is a 35 point upgrade
that grants the battlesuit a 5+ feel no pain saving roll, while the cost to
equip a full squad of three with this wargear (105 points) is quite steep, this
saving throw can be taken after other saving throws have been made and failed,
essentially giving you a weaker re-roll. The other upgrade is the velocity
tracker, which simply grants the ability to shoot at aircraft at full BS, it’s
not too expensive at 20 points, and if the tournament/games you’re going to are
going to have aircraft, it’s worth the cost.
The wargear that it
starts with is also quite good. The Ghostkeel electrowarfare suite has the
ability of “doubling the benefit of the stealth and shrouded special rules if
the unit attacking the ghostkeel is 12 or more inches away to a maximum of a 2+
cover save” (Warhammer 40k Tau 122), as long as one of the ghostkeels two
drones survives with it this wargear grants it a 2+ cover save in open ground at
12 inches away. The other wargear is the holophoton countermeasures which is a
one use only ability (per ghostkeel) that “allows it to choose one enemy unit
during shooting, that enemy unit can only fire snap shots (only hit on sixes)
when shooting at the ghostkeel or its unit” (Warhammer 40k Tau 123), again, a
very strong albeit one use ability. And the final special rule this unit has is
one called fireteam (Warhammer 40k Tau 116), what fireteam does is if the unit
of Ghostkeels is three battlesuits strong, their BS goes from 3 to 4, meaning
they go from hitting on 4+ (50% chance) to hitting on 3+ (66% chance) allowing
a full squadron to tear apart large numbers of enemies.
Comparing the Ghostkeel
to other units of similar price should solidify their usefulness, at range they
will dominate most, at close range though, like most tau units they will more
than likely lose. A full squad of three will cost in game points 420 points,
close equivalents are squads of 10 terminators with weapon upgrades (Warhammer
40k Dark Angels 116). If the Ghostkeels shoot first they will fire 3 fusion
weapons which have an 88% chance, which leads to 2.19 wounds, and out of the 18
other shots 9.86 of them wound. So the first 2.19 are AP 1 and as such go
through armor, meaning a save of 5+ (33%) meaning of the 2.19 hits 0.72 are
stopped, then the 9.86 allow for armor saves of 2+ (83%) and 8.18 of those
saves are successfully made, meaning of the total hits of 12.05 hits, only 1.07
make it through and kills a terminator. Then the terminators shoot back, for
this we are assuming they are beyond 12 inches away, and that their weapon
upgrade is still alive, of their 16 shots 3.48 wound, and the special weapon
fires 4 times, and wounds 1.74 times, all of these are against the same save so
we will resolve them all at once, of the 5.22 wounds, 4.33 of them are saved,
meaning in total 0.89 wounds are made this turn.
Repeating this math again
will result in continues rounds in which the terminators lose 1.07 while the
terminators in turn deal less than 1 wound a turn, and while the Ghostkeels deal
a constant amount of damage (1.07) the terminators steadily deal less and less
as they lose their numbers. In nine rounds the terminators are dead, if we were
to round each of the wounds they dealt to the nearest whole, they would have
dealt a total of 6 wounds. Which, if the Ghostkeel player distributed his units
right, would kill 5 of his drones and leave one wound left over to harm one of
the Ghostkeels themselves.
In conclusion the
Ghostkeel is a very useful and deadly addition to the tau codex if used
correctly, utilizing its 12 inch cover rule and its weapons against the right
targets it can outright destroy many units and easily damage others to the
point of them being non threats. Though if used incorrectly, like placing them
too close to enemy units or not making the most of their weapons range and
special rules, could serve to be a very large waste in points.
Warhammer 40,000 Codex:
Tau Empire. Nottingham: Games Workshop LTD,
2015. Print.
Warhammer 40,000 Codex:
Dark Angels. Nottingham: Games Workshop LTD,
2015. Print.
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