Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade

GamesRadar: We loved playing the Tau through the single player campaign, but man, did we get stomped when bringing them to bear online against the Necron - even against newbies. Just like in the tabletop version, the Necron are tough customers. Can you give us some strategic and tactical advice on how to play against the Necron with the Tau?

Stephan @ Relic: Using a mass ranged, high firepower army is one of the best strategies versus Necrons, so the Tau Commander with a massive Fire Warrior army would do very well against them. The most important thing to note when playing versus the Necrons is to keep distance between the Fire Warriors and the Necron Warriors. In order to do this, it's always a good idea to randomly place Snare Traps (the Tau Commander ability) in different locations. When encountering the Necron army, back up into these locations and fight there. The Fire Warriors and Snare Traps should deal well with most Necron infantry, and don't worry too much about the powercost of the Snare traps, because making a lot of vehicles (units thatrequire a lot of power) is not a good idea versus them.

Josh @ Relic: First and foremost, it's important to scout a slow race such as Necrons. Knowing if the enemy is massing Warriors or skipping ahead in the tech-tree is vital. Feel free to capture more map than you usually would against other races, as the Necrons have few military units early on that can only cover so many strategic points.

Stephan: In the late game, however, if the Necron player continues using an infantry based army, use Sky Ray Missile Carriers instead, because from tier two, Wraiths (detector units) will start joining the Necron Warrior based army. Sky Rays are exceptionally good at dealing with most units from a distance, but be wary of Necron Immortals.

Josh @ Relic: First and foremost, it's important to scout a slow race such as Necrons. Knowing if the enemy is massing Warriors or skipping ahead in the tech-tree is vital. Feel free to capture more map than you usually would against other races, as the Necrons have few military units early on that can only cover so many strategic points.

Stephan: In the late game, however, if the Necron player continues using an infantry based army, use Sky Ray Missile Carriers instead, because from tier two, Wraiths (detector units) will start joining the Necron Warrior based army. Sky Rays are exceptionally good at dealing with most units from a distance, but be wary of Necron Immortals.