Top 5 Tau Battlesuit Conversions

Check out the top 5 Tau battlesuit conversions before you start chopping up your battle suits and see what kind of ideas you can use for your own Tau army.

It was too difficult to order the best Tau battle suit conversions from 1 to 5, so we'll start with the most influential conversion and take it from there.

Tael Battlesuit
Tael's battlesuit conversions are what inspired so many of us to start converting our Crisis and Broadside battlesuits in the first place.

It all started with an alternative head design which has almost become the standard alternative head for everyone's battlesuit conversions.

Meanwhile the addition of knee pads, chest armour and extra details carefully cut from Space Marine and Tau weapons, accessories and vehicle parts make this an incredible neat and detailed conversion which stands apart boldly from the regular Crisis Battlesuit kit. In the multi-tracker on the left shoulder pad has been subtly modified.

Old Shatter Hands
Like myself, Old Shatter Hands has taken inspiration from Tael's work and developed the designs further.

In this case, his Fire Knife Commander "Old Shatter Hands" has hands made from Space Marine power fists, additional leg armour from Space Marine lascannon shields and a missile pod which is actually a Space Marine hunter-killer missile.

Tau and Space Marine technology seems to work together exceptionally well when it comes to Tau battlesuit conversions. Although it's surprising that more people haven't emulated the use of Power Fists for battlesuit hands or the hunter-killer missile as a substitute for missile pods.

Of course, if you have friends who collect Space Marines, now is a good time to ask them for all those hunter-kill missiles they will probably never use!

Tau Sniper Suit
Created by Fil Dunn of the 'Eavy Metal team, this Tau sniper suit Broadside conversion inspired many people to place a single railgun in the hands of their Broadside battlesuits. Or to attempt the conversion at least, which is a lot harder than it looks!

The crouching legs were mostly scratch built with plasticard and plastic piping. Meanwhile the railgun is made from a single metal railgun with a shield generator stuck on the side and a modified plasma rifle stuck on top as a scope, along with some extra details for good measure.

The shoulders, head and other small details haven't been adopted by our community of battlesuit converters, but Fil was very brave to attempt something so different from the norm. However, his later conversions tended to stick more closely to the typical Tau technological aesthetics.

Tau Titan
Another of Fil Dunn's creations, this is actually the second Tau titan he created using parts from Tau Piranhas, Hammerheads and a Stealth Suit torso for the head!

You can play 'spot the conversion parts' all day with this one, from the Ion Cannon fuel cells for knees to the Hammerhead Targeting Array positioned above the twin linked rail guns.

While this conversion has also been imitated, you'd have to be very brave or skilled to attempt this one.

Iridium Armour Battlesuit
Bulked out with plasticard to create iridium armour for a 2+ save, this battlesuit conversion features an Imperial Guard Autocannon under slung beneath the right arm and an under slung Cyclic Ion Blaster made from a trimmed down Hammerhead Burst Cannon with replaced barrels and two ammo magazines from Space Marine Assault Cannons.

However, the real wonder of this conversion is how plasticard has been used (as well as Fire Warrior shoulder pads for knee pads) to lightly bulk up the regular Crisis battlesuit shape into something far more imposing.

The tiny rivets, indents and vents also prove plenty of detail to an otherwise flat and featureless surface, making the battlesuit resemble the mecha from Robotech or Armored Core.

Unfortunately, I don't know who made this one.


CONCLUSION
Hopefully seeing these top 5 Tau battlesuit conversions has given you plenty of ideas for your own Tau Crisis suits and Broadsides.

If there's one thing I've always loved about this hobby is how you can borrow ideas from other people, put your own slant on things and quite often they will borrow those ideas right back!

Not sure where to start with your own conversions? Then read my Tau Battlesuit Conversion Tutorial, which should make things easy for you.