The Tau Empire from Battlefleet Gothic: Armada

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada, a Warhammer 40,000 themed strategy game, launched back in April with quite possibly the best "early adopter" incentive I've seen to date. Instead of locking away content behind pre-order bonuses and store exclusive deals, the developers decided to offer two free DLC packs to everyone that purchases Battlefleet Gothic: Armada within two months from launch!

The first of these two DLC packs added the Space Marines as a playable faction, complete with all new ships and customization options to play around with. The second DLC, this time around featuring the Tau Empire, is currently undergoing a public beta test and will soon be joining Battlefleet Gothic: Armada's multiplayer roster.

While the Space Marines are heavily armored and geared for close quarters combat, the Tau Empire prefers to use its advanced technology to tear through their opponents before they even get within boarding distance. In terms of weaponry the Tau Empire will feature a wide variety of upgrades and traits that further improve their Torpedoes and Ordnances, all with the intent to severely weaken the enemy ships before engaging in direct combat.

As with all of the other factions, the Tau Empire will come with their own specific ships, castes, gameplay mechanics, as well as a unique Path system. For those of you that might not have played Battlefleet Gothic: Armada, the Path system is essentially there to give you further customization options when it comes to how exactly you want to destroy your enemies. For example, the Chaos fleet can dedicate one of their ships to Khorne, the god of blood and slaughter, and in return receive powerful demons to attack the enemy ships with. Most importantly for us Warhammer 40k fanatics, every single Path drastically changes the visual style of the ship itself!

That little diversion aside, if you would like to help beta test the Tau Empire and have purchased Battlefleet Gothic: Armada within two months from launch, here's what you need to do:

Open your Steam library

Right click Battlefleet Gothic: Armada and go to Properties

Head over to the Betas tab

Under select you need to... well, select the Tau Public Beta

Close the window and Battlefleet Gothic: Armada should instantly queue up an update

If the update doesn't start instantly, just restart Steam and it should show up then

Have fun, and remember, you're doing this for the Greater Good!

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada Tau Empire Demiurg class vessel