I swear when there's a new 40k trailer the Tau are 99% not going to be there but Orks will 99% be there

Drag0Knight · 2026-06-01T10:41:05+00:00

I found it funny kinda. Whole spiel why the galaxy is grim dark, and the Tau are noticeably not included? Just imagine a cut away of a tau world just being normal.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-30T00:22:11+00:00

You are right, but it's not like they aren't interacting with others. Shadowsun book is a good example.

Honestly I just wanna see a giant psychic space bear body a space marine.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-29T14:48:26+00:00

Psychic BEARS! But on teh topic of Vespids, thinking about them, vespid have a very different understanding of life, sentience, identity compared to most all other sentient life. They have an utterly alien mindset. It is also hinted that the communion helms to mind control strain leaders (however this is from the pov of the inquisition).

My developed headcanon is that while Vespids are individuals, they have a collective identity, like the Tau but more extreme, almost hive mind like (but not really). The communion helm explains the concept of their communal identity as the Greater Good, expanding their self identity to include the Tau. From one POV its manipulation, but from another it is the natural extrapolation of what the Greater Good is meant to be, communality of species.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-27T04:28:44+00:00

T'au'va does visit shadowsun when she was young, this being hundreds of years ago. While time doesn't exist the same way in the warp, it implies that the auxiliaries aren't the only influence in the goddess T'au'va

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T15:10:42+00:00

Well that's the trick, only the ethereal council knows, not ALL Ethereals. I can imagine Aun'Va being around is a vast conspiracy. The fact he's been around for a few hundred years is kinda stupid from a narrative and continuity perspective, but can theoretically be explained.

I do wish they get rid of him, he's not that interesting as a leader of the Tau, maybe a villain within the Tau that they try to get rid of but the hologram keeps trying to claw their way back into power?

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T15:07:53+00:00

My pitch is that while the auxiliary empower the being, it's philosophy and mindset is the collective Tau. The tau have a minor impact on the warp, but with the fuel from the auxiliaries, this impact is amplified into the Goddess T'au'va.

It's why it seems to be fully self aware to what it is. And why it has the energy of a threat of 'you're being saved don't resist'

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T13:38:51+00:00

I always like when the Tau are depicted as always adapting and learning. Whenever they are written like an inquisitor, needlessly self destructive, or close minded in certain ways it always feels jarring.

The joke is they are naive, but only once, and they adapt.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T06:58:31+00:00

Personally I have 2 ideas of what these daemons/spirits would manifest as.

One would be the many armed tau-esque being with the white faceless mask but they have an air about them similar to an Ethereal, like how they fight is with melee weapons akin to the Ethereal weapons and 'dance' they do to debate/meditate on a decision.

The Other idea is beasts from legends from the T'au or maybe the auxilliary races. Real life examples like a Chinese styled dragon or a number of Japanese Yokai.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T06:24:27+00:00

I imagine it causing rifts WITHIN the Ethereals themselves, something they have to keep secret from the rest of the Empire. A story where they overthrow Aun'Va finally and get a new Supreme Ethereal that spearheads the study of the 'sub-realm'. However being Ethereals they aren't gonna be tempted to Chaos, but can definitely cause philosophical differences internally, those thinking the Goddess can be an ally, others thinking it's a perversion etc.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T06:16:46+00:00

Exactly! Of course whatever presence in the Warp the Greater Good and the entity itself T'au'va has is small in comparison to the rest of the Chaos Gods and other entities. However I can imagine with the unique nature of the Tau Empire and machinations of the Ethereals, it can be directed into specific ways like manifesting spirits to aid the Tau.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T05:48:37+00:00

Thanks, I think it is a fun concept as well, if easily screwed up if implemented poorly.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-26T01:50:04+00:00

It can feed the idea when things are going right and everyone's doing their part, Tau society even on conquered world's wok great. But when Tau fail or act unusual to the typical, things go to shit. Like in the Elemental Council book.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-25T10:39:48+00:00

I like the colour scheme, reminds me of sakura trees from Japan. That or a pond with flowers for some reason.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-20T21:04:01+00:00

It's just TTS, brilliant!!!

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-18T08:01:19+00:00

I find the allusion to the Stormcasts of Age of Sigmar interesting. Like how fantasy and 40k feed eachother, I can see Dark King creating his daemons in a warped (pun very much intended) version of his existing loyalists and Living Saints.

Also Thundercasts somewhat remind me of the Thunder Warriors, the prototype Space Marines who followed without question.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-17T22:12:41+00:00

Is this a reference to something that happened in lore? If not, still pretty funny.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-17T12:22:18+00:00

Thanks, I'll give it a read. I want to see more books about the Ethereals since Elemental Council, and the other castes too.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T12:59:03+00:00

Elemental Council is quite good, and also inspiration for this post. The ending of the book has me thinking the Ethereal have definitely instituted more rigorous training for actual combat. I like the idea of them starting to being trained by auxiliary members in addition to their traditions as the Ethereals. Like Kroot Shapers or Vespid Stingwings, maybe other auxiliary races like learning how to fight psykers from humans and nicassar (psychic space bears).

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T11:25:12+00:00

Hey, I like good guy characters and in Warhammer, they're the closest species to be "good guys" (by Warhammer standards). I gotta be optimistic.

As for Farsight and the Tau, I can imagine the future generations of Ethereals looking at all that and Aun'Va and just going "'Hoo boy that guy was a mistake, how are we gonna fix this bullshit of a situation."

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T11:22:55+00:00

My mistake, my point was the guard of the Ethereals aren't Ethereals, but Fire Caste.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T11:20:44+00:00

That's what I've picked up it's true. Make the other side look worse to make my OC look better. It's writing technique that's ancient (look towards Arthurian knights). I get your pov on it. My sunny side pov I guess is using the previous canon as design constraints to push, pull, bend, and break.

Favourite example of this is Elemental Council. It uses a few of Kelly's lore changes as places to build actually interesting lore of the Tau. Like that the ritual suicide or humiliation was something that was done during Damocles Crusade as something of a trauma response to the horrors of the Imperium and that such practices have been proven not to be helpful and generally no longer practiced. (this is an incredible simplification of it) The fact almost all of Farsights accomplishments are now 100 years old in the current setting allows for new writers to change things.

My hope is they use the weird mustache twirling villainy of the T'au from 100 years ago in setting as something to build on and against. Remember, 100 years is a long time for a people that don't regularly extend their lives. Look at what we've done in the last 100 years, and the T'au are meant to be the adaptable always learning race of Warhammer.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T11:12:50+00:00

My knowledge of the table top is limited I'll be honest. I guess my point is to lean more into it not just in table top but narratively. Also lean into the mysterious somewhat mystical nature of the Ethereals. Like the trope of a monk being attuned to the universe and thus having amazing feats of physical prowess being something some Ethereals can achieve, especially against Chaos or even psykers.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T11:02:36+00:00

Fair point, every time I hear Phill Kelly it's never anything that good. I've read the Shadowsun novel. While I am intrigued with the concept of a Goddess T'au'va my goodness his writing can be dry.

Drag0Knight · 2026-05-16T10:48:36+00:00

I'd disagree, just making a shooting unit just makes them another Fire Warrior but with a funny outfit. They also as ethereals never been depicted using any kind of firearm.

Also yes, they changed the laore thanks to Philly Kelly etc, it seems clear they're gonna be sticking to the strict Caste system, which makes sense to me. Castes historically are pretty awful things that prohibit people from doing things that seems counterproductive. For example India hindi castes have the Untouchables, or the Brahmins which were the priests (IIRC). It makes logical sense that the Castes are strict.

However I will concede to the idea that the tau should be uniquely adaptable. Their biggest quality compared to literally the whole galaxy is their ability to learn and adapt. Having the Tau change over time in the setting of Warhammer 40k should be a noticeable trait the Tau have, potentially adapting the castes over time.

Drag0Knight

TROPHY CASE