No fewer than three new codexes are coming in early 2022. We’ve already seen how the Genestealer Cults and Adeptus Custodes Crusade campaigns will work, but the T’au have been shrouded in mystery – until now. So let’s take a look at how Crusades work in the upcoming Codex: T’au Empire.
For all of their military might, the T’au Empire prefers to bring new worlds into its sphere through diplomatic means. Dead men make poor allies, after all. Accordingly, the decision on whether to use honeyed words or shockingly powerful weapons for the Greater Good forms the core of T’au Crusade campaigns. Call it railgun diplomacy.
You’ll start by generating a system to engage in a little ‘gunboat diplomacy’ with. You randomly create up to eight planets from a wide variety of types, which determines how well they’re defended and what benefits you gain from assimilating them. These represent some of the common types of planet the T’au tend to have their eye on, from highly populated Civilian Worlds to resource-rich Trading Hubs.*
To take each planet, you must reduce either their Military or Diplomatic power by increasing your own. Military points are gained by winning games, while Diplomat points require a special new Requisition.
You can also gain both kinds of power by completing Agendas, with tasks ranging from protecting important diplomatic officials to holding clandestine meetings in the middle of a battlefield.
Once you’ve got enough oomph, it’s time to let the planetary governor know there’s a new sheriff in town. And then you get to redeem all of the lovely Assimilation Abilities you've earned for taking control of the planet before planning your next conquest.
Once you’ve taken all of the planets in your chosen system, congratulations! The T’au Empire has a new feather in its cap,** and you can move on to the next juicy target. But before you make your tearful goodbyes, choose one of your planets and use the Set Up Supply Lines Requisition to earn the powerful Supply Ability – you can only do this for one planet in the system, so choose carefully.
You’re no doubt already mustering your expansion fleet, so keep abreast of all the future reveals from the upcoming Codex: T’au Empire – and a lot more besides – by signing up for the Warhammer Community newsletter. You wouldn’t want to miss out on our upcoming look at more T’au weaponry, would you?
* Core Worlds can be of any type and are the centre of the system’s power, and they can’t be taken until all others have been conquered.
** Don’t forget to give the system a fancy T’au name now that it’s yours.