Devastating Wounds may be very swingy. But I once got to hold off my riptide until the 3rd round to start getting Kauyon, guided the riptide with a Tetra. Re-rolling the hits, sustained hits 2. Activated Nova charge, overcharged the Ion Accelerator. At the end, I got 3 devastating wounds and dealt 12 damage to a Seraptek Heavy Contstruct from the Necrons.
With the price drop, its defensive profile is finally an asset to the Tau. It might not have the killing power of the Hammerhead or Sky Ray(which are cheaper) or the Broadsides and Crisis Teams, but it can take damage like a champ and dish enough of it out to be a threat. My only real issue with this thing right now, is the Nova Charge ability. It does help at times, but it does not feel like a "this will change the battle"-ability that you can use once per game. It is more of a "this can potentially bypass the saves of 1 or 2 of my attacks in total"-kind of ability. And sometimes, it does nothing(you activate it, and you do not roll any 6s to wound). I would never activate it, unless I am in Kauyon and guided(chance of more shots, meaning higher chance of more Devastating wounds). It does get both the Battlesuit Support System and Weapon Support System, and it is a flying heavy walker, so I guess it shouldnt have a super awesome ability on top of all that(unless the pts cost was increased again).
riptide would have been a great choice for the "pick one of three abilities in the command phase to apply to this unit" that every other faction got, but for some reason passed us over.
yea the fall from 9th was hard for the riptide. no drone support lacking rules and weapon S not keeping up with vehicle T has made this thing more of a bullet sponge, something you want to be taking the big hits while ur hammerheads and/or broadsides work down the enemy heavies
I think if they wanted to buff it, a fun idea is to make Novacharge a beginning of the round ability and say that you get Devwounds on ranged weapons and turn your 4+ invuln to a 3+ until the start of your next turn.
It's the perfect distraction unit that can soak up damage and dish out enough in return. I mostly like it for board presence. Want to try out more than one!
In my opinion the riptide takes the role in the army of damage 3/4 high ap. Competing with thr plasma rifle but with longer range. Defensively is the "tank" with high wounds, tougness and an invuln. Good to put on the point to pressure engagement and survive most thing. I take 2 riptide. 3 is not enough damage.
Was wondering if you could do a video on the Firesight team. Haven't seen or read much on them for 10th except they make alright back objective holders and spotters. With lone op and precision i feel they can be an "assassin" unit for tau especially up against a character heavy army like Astra Militarum issuing out mass oders to army. Wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts on the unit.
I have been using 1 Iontide in my list and its been great. I wish the burst cannon was a little better but it really has issues with -1D or AOC. Maybe it just needs a few more shots
I would love for the various Burst cannons to have some form of Rapid Fire. The regular Burst Cannons and the Accelerator Burst Cannons should get Rapid Fire 2(total of 6 shots within 9" range). The High-output Burst Cannon of the Coldstar Commander should have Rapid Fire 4, and the Heavy Burst Cannon of the Riptide should should also have Rapid Fire 4. At least that way, getting close for anti-infantry firepower would be potent, and you have enough shots to damage tougher targets if they get too close.
Should definitely be tougher IMO! T10 I'd say and its Ion gun should also be more anti tank S9 standard and S10 over charged fo sure. Would be great also so see its nova charge back each turn with the 3 options but most unlikely. But let's wait for our new codex and see if it gets any buffs ❤
Stop asking for a single unit that can "do everything". If you make it tougher, you need to increase the cost again. It is already one of the most efficient "tanks" for the Tau. The Hammerhead Tank might have T10 and is 130 pts, but it is a 3+ save(not 2+) and it has no invul. Crisis Teams have the Invul. if you take the Shield Generator, but are T5 with a 3+ save(small arms fire, and especially Plasma, can bring them down fairly easily). Meaning the Riptide, as is, can absorb small arms and even plasma fire better than your Hammerheads, Broadsides and Crisis Teams, and also absorb a lot of damage from things like Lascannons and Melta weaponry due to T9(3+ or 4+ to wound) and 4+ Invul.. It remains fully combat operational right until it is destroyed. What more do you want for 165 pts? If its Ion Accelerator becomes S9 or S10, you are encroaching on other unit roles. You now have a unit that is insanely durable(if pushed to T10) and can fairly easy take down both elites and most tanks(if pushed to S10). Why would you take expensive Broadside suits for anti-tank, if you can get similar results from a faster, more durable(and cheaper) platform? Why would you pick a Hammerhead, if you have a far more durable platform in the Riptide, that also matches its firepower? The Riptide is already competing very well with other heavy choices in the Tau Roster. If you buff it to the degree you are suggesting, every list will contain 3 Riptides, as they would be the superior choice by far.
@fendelphi not comparing anything, just a comment based on this vid alone. Don't use broadsides or hammerheads (do you see them in competitive play!?). Riptide not doing enough damage in my book is all. Ion profile makes no sense at current strength stats when it's accelerated!? Ap and dam fine. I'm going off lore. Riptide should be a tank killer. Hammerhead 50% useless against anything with an invul unless you roll a 6. 1 shot = nothing most of the time. But we all got our opinion 😃
@@drewethan666 There was a recent tournament(156 players) with a Tau player who brought 2 Hammerheads with Railguns as part of the roster(won 5, lost 1), so yes, they are used competetively. My point is that Riptide has a place right now in the roster. They do not need to become even more durable or even more deadly, unless you want them to also be more expensive in points. Needlessly buffing them will only lead to overshadowing other units in the roster.
Also Games Workshop only ever increases their prices. So buying with them sooner rather than later is always a good idea. Then again I'd order from Amazon or some other 3rd party so that you might find cheaper ones.
Two just disappointing things with the riptide: 1) The Nova Charge is pointless - I ignore it until turn3 when Kauyon turns on to *maybe* get some better odds for it to do anything. 2) The strength on the weapons are laughably low for the size difference between riptides vs crisis battlesuits. The secondary shoulder-mounted plasma rifle is more potent than the car-sized Ion accelerator....wtf GW? the points drop is nice but GW really missed the mark for the role this unit could have served
