Sun Shark Bomber

More skub then it could fly.

Due to their unique fighting tendencies and their highly mobile nature, Hunter Cadres do not use artillery in the conventional sense that most armies do. Which is dumb since they already have ship versions of drone-guided bombs launched by accelerators. They could easily make a fast grav-tank version that spits out tons of self-guided bombs rapidly. Instead, in association with the Air Caste, they have developed the Sun Shark Bomber - a sleek atmospheric aircraft that is capable of sweeping down from the skies and blasting ground targets with its potent payload. Some has taken to calling it a beautifully unique aircraft, others have likened it as one of the ugliest aircraft to ever exist since the appearance of the Stormfang. Blaming it for the bizarre connected wing handle design and the pointless circle prop underneath. All in all, it is the most Skub aircraft of the Tau which is unheard of given the really good designs of Tau aeronautics.

Overview

Sun Shark Bombers come equipped with a Pulse Bomb Generator, which produces a ball of deadly plasma beneath the craft. At the pilot's command, the pulsed induction field propels the glaring energy ball towards targets on the battlefield below. Sizzling the air around it, the pulse bomb explodes on the ground with an incandescent fury, spreading destruction over a wide radius. A shoal of Sun Shark Bombers flying in tight formation can blast apart even the most surging of Ork WAAAGHs! with a single flyover. An extremely effective weapon, once fired, the pulse bomb generator immediately begins to form another destructive charge. Sometimes, however, a persistent glitch from its prototype days results in a power failure, meaning the Sun Shark cannot drop further bombs until the engineers can reconfigure the micro power plant.

With this in mind, the Sun Shark has also been equipped with several other weapons, including a pair of seeker missiles. Many a desperate Pathfinder or Fire Warrior Team owe their continued existence to those airborne seeker missiles, which they call in using their markerlights. Their ability to strike enemy vehicles or make short work of armoured infantry with the help of nearby air support greatly increases their chances for survival. The Sun Shark also bears a tail-mounted missile pod, which can be upgraded to a twin-linked version, as well as a nosemounted networked markerlight to line up bombing runs.

To ensure the Sun Shark survives long enough to deliver its bombing run, the vehicle is equipped with a pair of wing mounted Interceptor Drones. Each armed with a powerful twin-linked ion rifle, Interceptor Drones can either stay attached to the Sun Shark, where they act like turretmounted weapons, or, they can detach from the flyer and serve as an escort. When disembarking from the Sun Shark Bomber, the Interceptor Drones position themselves to intervene between the bomber and any oncoming fighters. They also have the ability to boost their jets, giving them a rare burst of speed, that allows Interceptor Drones to better position themselves to lock onto aerial targets and attempt to blast them out of the sky. Few enemy flyers are capable of withstanding the vaporising effects of the ion rifle, and some Interceptor Drones have racked up impressive kill totals; a source of bragging rights for the Sun Shark's Air caste pilots, if not for the AI powered drones themselves.

Crunch

The toughness 6 and 4+ save really kills them. But they shine in another way: Mortal wounds. Sharks have a bomb generator on the bottom that causes Mortal wounds on anything with the INFANTRY keyword on 4's, rolling a single dice per model for up to ten models. The downsides are you must choose which unit to bomb, all other keyword units get the wound on 5's, and you'll usually pull this off exactly once. Still, great source of mortal wounds against those beefy Custodians and hordes of Guardsmen, Daemons, and Guardians. They also serve as wonderful distraction Carnifexes.

Next of course we have a Markerlight. Usually useless, but its something? You also have the two Seeker missiles, which are incredibly useful for an early strike on an enemy vehicle. You have the choice of taking Twin linked missile pods, which is strongly recommended in that they'll at least be able to cause the odd wound or two on something.

The best part of this vehicle though, is by far the Ion Rifle Drones. Each one carries a twin linked Ion Rifle, and if you can get the markerlight hits, they can be buffed into the Juicy heavy D3 range for a glorious number of shots. Seriously, no one wants to deal with four heavy d3 shots, and is one of the only times you'll find use outta Ion Rifles. Ultimately, it comes down to this: Keep its weapons in range, use the Bomb ability well, and get the markerlight hits for it to actually work. Anything less than four and its an overcosted heap of plastic.