| rdfs:comment | - Though early marks the V-series inundated their pilots with deadly radiation, later models were able to account for this problem, at which point Battlesuits began to be a mainstay of the military forces of the Tau Empire. It was not until the end of that first period of rapid growth that Battlesuit technology began to regularly appear within the Hunter Cadres. Not surprisingly, it was at these final stages that the Tau won their largest battles, as elite formations of newly-trained Battlesuit pilots began to refine their tactics to take advantage of what their armoured suits could do. By the start of the Second Sphere Expansion, great strides had been made in Tau Battlesuit design, particularly in the areas of power sources and the increased potency of weapon load-outs. By the end of this
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| abstract | - Though early marks the V-series inundated their pilots with deadly radiation, later models were able to account for this problem, at which point Battlesuits began to be a mainstay of the military forces of the Tau Empire. It was not until the end of that first period of rapid growth that Battlesuit technology began to regularly appear within the Hunter Cadres. Not surprisingly, it was at these final stages that the Tau won their largest battles, as elite formations of newly-trained Battlesuit pilots began to refine their tactics to take advantage of what their armoured suits could do. By the start of the Second Sphere Expansion, great strides had been made in Tau Battlesuit design, particularly in the areas of power sources and the increased potency of weapon load-outs. By the end of this period, repulsor jump jet technology came into its own and the Hunter Cadres were conquering new planets in the name of the Tau Empire at a rate never before seen. The greatest development, however, was the nanocrystalline alloy fio'tak that was dense, durable and incredibly light. Comparable in protection to Space Marine Power Armour, it enabled the Earth Caste to build more resilient Battlesuits without hampering manoeuvrability, an important consideration when taking into account the Fire Caste’s desire for fast, mobile warfare. The result was the X-series Battlesuits, the most successful of which has been, and remains, the XV8 Crisis Battlesuit. At present, Tau Battlesuits have never been more successful, and continual upgrades, different marks and variants, as well as new prototypes are continually being developed to advance the Greater Good. Yet the Earth Caste did not stop there. As the Tau Empire expanded across the stars, the Hunter Cadres encountered new and more deadly alien races, prompting the Earth caste to develop new battlesuits to fulfill particular battlefield roles or face certain foes. The compact XV15 Stealth Battlesuit, for example, was developed for scouting and infiltration missions, but was upgraded to the bigger XV25 following the Kappa Mortis Incident. The Great War of Confederation saw the development of the High-yield Missile Pod armament for XV88 Braodside Battlesuits to better tackle the Ork hordes that assaulted their lines. The XV104 Riptide was developed following contact with the Imperium’s vast armies in the Damocles Gulf Crusade, and the KV128 Stormsurge as a direct response to the Imperium's super-heavy tanks and Titans. The Earth Caste, it seems, never rests in its quest for technological superiority.
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