![]() Not only are they cheap at 5pts, but since Move Through Cover affects the whole unit if even a single model possesses it, you can save on points in a squadron by only buying it for one of the members. However, one does stand out- Sensor Spines. Piranhas also have access to the full Tau vehicle armory, although since they are priced for the heavier skimmers most selections are rather unattractive. Each Piranha in a unit can also take up to two Seeker Missiles at 8pts apiece, which are just Krak Missiles that can only fire once- though pricey, they can be devastating if you get them into someone’s rear arc and can drag down MCs in short order as well. The Piranha can also swap its Burst Cannon for a Fusion Blaster (a meltagun with 18″ range) for 10pts, which unfortunately ends up being a bit expensive for a vehicle that starts out so cheap, but if you’re looking for a way to bust tanks it’s a legit option, since it’s the only 12″ movement platform with melta that Tau have. However, unlike the Piranhas themselves, they are not a scoring unit and do not count for mission objectives (including kill points, first blood, etc.) One important thing to remember is that the Drones are exactly like normal Gun Drones purchased as a unit, which means they have the Supporting Fire rule and as passengers in an Open-Topped vehicle may fire out from their positions in support of other units (or their own squadron) if a charge is declared. ![]() Combined, this means that a single Piranha is putting out eight S5 shots per turn- pretty impressive considering how cheap they are. The Piranha comes with a pretty good set of kit for its price- it is armed with a Burst Cannon (18″ S5 AP5 four shots) and a pair of Gun Drones (each of which gets two S5 AP5 pinning shots.) As with all Tau vehicles, the Drones can either stay onboard (in which case they fire as passengers) or disembark (in which case all Drones from the squadron form a single unit), but any Drones onboard a wrecked Piranha are lost automatically. ![]() They are also Open-Topped, which ends up only being a disadvantage but with two HP often won’t be a big deal. More importantly than all that, however, is the fact that the Piranha is not only insanely cheap (only 40pts base) but also a Fast Skimmer that can be taken in squadrons of up to five, meaning it’s very easy to flood the field with them. It has the same middling Ballistic Skill as nearly all Tau, which will do the job well enough. Side/Rear 10 is obviously less helpful, and having only two Hull Points is a distinct disadvantage. Front Armor 11 means that it can shrug off Boltguns under most circumstances and is at least reasonably resilient to the various anti-tank weapons. ![]() The Piranha’s statline is nothing to get terribly excited about, although it’s far from bad. As a result, while it may be numerically similar to these other units (which tend to be somewhat mediocre themselves) the Tau Piranha is actually a very solid addition to their arsenal. The Piranha is superficially similar to many other vehicles of the same style such as the Vyper, Land Speeder, etc however, what sets it apart from these units and gives it a much more distinct role are its role in the army as well as the unique features of Tau as a whole. The 6th Edition codex saw them get bumped up significantly in strength, which I was most appreciative of, and their addition to the recent slew of formations only more so- I had more than enough models to field a Firestream Wing before it was even released, though of course I had to order a few more from Frontline Gaming in order to field the full formation once I saw it. I have adored the speedy little things ever since I started the faction back in 4th edition and, though they have changed in a number of ways over the years, I always manage to find a way to slip them into many of my armies. Click to read on, or check out the Tactics Corner for more reviews and strategy. Never a big shower, but with a surprising number of uses and a very solid unit for those looking for a fast, multirole harassment element. The Piranha, the Tau’s answer to the Land Speeder and similar light vehicles.
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