#14 : Tau Empire

Tau Empire

 When Imperial scouts discovered a new race in the outskirts of the Imperium that had just created fire and mastered simple tools, the world had been labeled for cleansing and colonization by the Imperium. But before this could occur, the planet became surrounded by a giant Warp-storm that lasted 6,000 year. By the time the Imperium revisited the planet, they faced technology unparalleled in all the galaxy.
The Tau evolved extremely quickly. With resources limited, those who employed tools and developed superior weaponry survived. The race split into four castes: Earth, Air, Fire and Water, each group was named for the element that best described their behavior. Civil war erupted, and a divided Tau struggled for survival. Then came the Ethereals, Tau who spoke of peace and understanding between the entire race. The Tau  united behind them, creating the beginning to a great civilization.

A relatively young race, the Tau emphasize the "Greater Good" above all else. Unable to access the Warp, Tau are unable to aggressively expand their empire due to their incapability to travel long distances quickly. The Imperium have an uneasy relationship with the Tau, but they are more occupied with wars against Chaos and the Orks to be bothered with the Tau. More information on the Tau can be found here :   Tau - Lexicanum

 The Tau are a good race for beginners and advanced hobbyists. Their basic color scheme of brown, white and black can be achieved with relative ease, while some of their more advanced color schemes seen in their codex take more skill. With Battlesuits, infantry, drones and tank-like ships, along with the very unique Kroot, a Tau army can be equipped with any number of different units.