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Offline Heretek

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #20 on: March 5, 2008, 04:19:54 AM »
It's hard to say one way or another, there isn't a lot of fluff (that I'm aware of) that deals with Tau culture. Most of what I see is based around military, this is a war game after all but I'd still like to know my Tau a little better.

Have you read Kill Team, by Gav Thorpe? Despite what the name suggests, it offers a pretty good look at Tau society. It's set from the perspective of an Imperial Soldier, and that does colour it a bit, but it still comes across as relatively accurate.

Offline Shas'Oink

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #21 on: March 5, 2008, 04:24:00 AM »
well, despite a (relatively) poor writing style theres no denying that Gav knows background... i'll have to pick it up and see how i get on with it. thanks for the heads up.

Offline Andro Ist Keine Schwedischen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #22 on: March 5, 2008, 11:49:51 AM »
Why do people assume that female Tau would be weaker then the males?  That's often only true of humans*, even on this planet.  Throughout nature females are often the stronger sex, so why might that not be true of the Tau?

* And actually, when humans are first born the girls are the stronger sex and tend to servive more often.

Hell, it's very possible there's no difference between them at all.  They have been selectively breed for many generations after all, and if they are all treated and trained the same way from birth then any differences would be minimal.

Not to mention there's nothing to say Tau even reproduce the same way as humans.  They may spawn in the same way as fish do, which means they'd have zero use for breasts.  Thus it's easy to assume that under their armour all Tau look pretty much the same - and even removing their helmets would do little to change things for the average human.  A Tau is a Tau to them, after all**.

** Same princible with Kroot.  They probably lay eggs like birds, and no human is going to be able to tell their genders apart from looking at their faces.  The same doesn't apply to Vespid, however - their females wear helmets that the males are literally too stupid to be able to use - thus, they are easy to spot. 

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Offline Rudkin

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #23 on: March 5, 2008, 12:12:07 PM »
Thus it's easy to assume that under their armour all Tau look pretty much the same - and even removing their helmets would do little to change things for the average human.  A Tau is a Tau to them, after all.
I wholeheartedly agree. I figure at least 25% of my army is female; I just don't know which 25% that is!  :P

The only difference that I can think of for sure (and even this is debatable) is the 'nose slit' that the Tau have; if you compare the helmetless Fire Warrior head to Shadowsun's helmetless head, the slits are different. The Fire Warrior has a single vertical slit. If I remember correctly, Shadowsun has a sort of Y-shaped slit.

I'm not sure if that's gender-based or not, but it's certainly possible that that's how one tells them apart without looking too closely.

Offline Kaiizen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #24 on: March 5, 2008, 12:17:55 PM »
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agreed. i suppose this means you can make the tau whatever you want them to be... until we are told otherwise (or not) that is.

Indeed! Maybe I'll start a Gareth style all female Tau army. Lets see now... where did I put my milliput...

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ps: i dont think you have been complemented on them yet but I'm loving the artwork.

Thanks, I think the drawings were drowned out in a sea of controversy, not necessarily a bad thing though =).

Offline The GrimSqueaker

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #25 on: March 5, 2008, 12:21:53 PM »
Have you read Kill Team, by Gav Thorpe? Despite what the name suggests, it offers a pretty good look at Tau society. It's set from the perspective of an Imperial Soldier, and that does colour it a bit, but it still comes across as relatively accurate.

Kill Team was also written prior to Tau fluff being solidifed around common grounds so there's a few things in there that appear out of place now where before it was colourful (Tau dietry habits and hiring psykers for example).
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Offline Shas'Oink

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #26 on: March 5, 2008, 12:31:43 PM »
i think the only difference between male and female tau heads seems to be the shape of the face bum they have... note how shadowsun has this crazy three pronged one...

perhaps thats a sign of the sexes...

i dunno if its right to assume that the female tau would have longer (or more) hair... but they certainly look nice with it...

Offline Andro Ist Keine Schwedischen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #27 on: March 5, 2008, 01:23:26 PM »
There's nothing to actually prove that Tau have hair at all.  The locks that some Fire Warriors wear could actually just be a form of decoration or rank (in a similar manner to Ork Hair Squigs).

Thus it's quite easy to assume Tau females are, infact, completely bald.

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Offline Kaiizen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #28 on: March 5, 2008, 05:52:36 PM »
Eh, bald women aren't my thing, and since theres nothing in the fluff that says otherwise, I'm just going to assume that Shadowsun is the ugly step sister.

Speaking of which, here's the original topic culprit here, finished.

Right Click View image to see the whole thing


I wash my hands of it, I need to get back to my real work =].

Offline Fasor'ith

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #29 on: March 6, 2008, 02:42:48 AM »
Andromidius, what you said about woman being stronger and surviving through the hardships closer to birth is merely because woman are immune to certain diseases whereas men aren't. Like Alexi, he suffered from Hemophilia, when he got cut the blood would not clot, this is merely an example of a disease transported by women who are immune to it unto men who can now be treated (occasionally).

I agree with Kaiizen, bald woman, don't appeal to me either but i don't think they appeal to any man for that matter.
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Offline Andro Ist Keine Schwedischen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #30 on: March 6, 2008, 02:54:43 AM »
Why would Tau appeal to anyone?  They are aliens after all.

And my point still stands about girls being stronger then boys.  Strong doesn't always mean huge muscles, it can mean being able to resist injury more effectively.  And since girls suffer far fewer genetic defects, that makes them more able to survive and thus stronger.

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Offline Kristovich

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #31 on: March 6, 2008, 05:09:55 AM »
Interbreeding between the Castes is forbidden IIRC, so there have to be Fire Caste females, and it wouldn't make much sense to have part of your warrior caste sitting around doin' nothin'.

As how to tell them appart, if you take your avrage man and woman, dress them up in combat gear, then you won't be able to tell much difference unless you're close enough to see the faces. Shadowsun has the experimental suit and all that, so she doesn't count! I really don't think there's any need for Tau female models as such.

I do like to think that Tau females keep their hair while the males migh shave it off for some reason.

Just my two teef...
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Offline Heretek

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #32 on: March 6, 2008, 05:20:21 AM »
Interbreeding between the Castes is forbidden IIRC, so there have to be Fire Caste females, and it wouldn't make much sense to have part of your warrior caste sitting around doin' nothin'.

As how to tell them appart, if you take your avrage man and woman, dress them up in combat gear, then you won't be able to tell much difference unless you're close enough to see the faces. Shadowsun has the experimental suit and all that, so she doesn't count! I really don't think there's any need for Tau female models as such.

I do like to think that Tau females keep their hair while the males migh shave it off for some reason.

Just my two teef...

I think one of those teef is mine, considering I'd made the point about inter-caste breeding already...

As for Tau males being bald, all of the Ethereal models and bare-headed Shas'la sport scalp-locks, as do the Water Caste diplomats that appear in For the Emperor. Ciaphas Cain theorises that the degree of ornamentation present on an individual's braid could denote seniority, and believes that they may have assimilated the idea from their Kroot allies. But Cain is hardly an expert on the Tau, and those are simply his observations based on an earlier encounter with a Kroot Shaper.

Offline Sihylm

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #33 on: March 10, 2008, 08:57:34 PM »
It is a well known fact that Tau are decended from Cows and infact have small udders and chew the cud.

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The problem being, of course, that 'In the Grim Darkness of the Far Future Most of Us are Pretty Much Okay' doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

Offline Kaiizen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #34 on: March 12, 2008, 02:04:01 AM »
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It is a well known fact that Tau are decended from Cows and infact have small udders and chew the cud.

Ah shoot! I should have left room in the armor for udders =).

Seriously though, I drew her this way for no more reason than 'I felt like it'. I'm not saying that tau women look like this, in fact there is quite a bit of evidence in the codex alone to contradict it. I guess I could say I was 'inspired' to try something different.

I do think that Tau female might have a smaller jaw than males, as this seems to be indicated on the miniatures and even hinted at in pictures in the codex. They DO have some vaguely feminine features when compared to humans, but it gets a little foggy when they are so very very far from human looking.

Offline Gornon

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #35 on: March 12, 2008, 12:14:06 PM »
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Seriously though, I drew her this way for no more reason than 'I felt like it'. I'm not saying that tau women look like this, in fact there is quite a bit of evidence in the codex alone to contradict it. I guess I could say I was 'inspired' to try something different.

And it looks great for it.
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Offline Sihylm

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #36 on: March 13, 2008, 08:34:44 PM »
If I were to hazard a guess at what make tau females look different I'd say slightly different facial structure, a Y shaped face crater and a slightly more rounded body (There's a reason wimminz look like that and it's not to do with looking hot).

As for big fat tau tats I'm not sure, I figure they've probably lost them due to selective breeding.
The problem being, of course, that 'In the Grim Darkness of the Far Future Most of Us are Pretty Much Okay' doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

Offline Gornon

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #37 on: March 15, 2008, 12:50:12 AM »
Hey did you do this one too?  Though I admit I am rather poor in the art section and telling different artists apart.

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Offline Kaiizen

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #38 on: March 15, 2008, 01:42:15 AM »
Yeah, that was my first attempt. Kinda drew myself into a corner there so I elected not to show it everywhere =\.

Offline Irandrura

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Re: Female Tau
« Reply #39 on: March 15, 2008, 08:46:09 AM »
To add a few thoughts myself...

If we take seriously Xenology's claims seriously, and in this particular case it seems reasonable to take it as a broad outline (though remaining skeptical of the specifics, naturally), the Tau are a mammalian race, possibly originally herbivorous ruminants, though the origins of the Fire caste in hunting groups suggests an omnivorous diet. In any case, that does suggest certain broad similarities with the human race and other primates. I see no reason why the Tau would not follow the same basic pattern as our terrestrial mammals, and so, like our races, their females would tend to be more lightly built and more flexible than the males. The degree to which they are may be less pronounced than in humans, but it seems to me that Tau females would look more 'feminine' than Tau males, by human standards of femininity.

As such, I quite like your pictures, Kaiizen. In a general sense, I would imagine Tau females looking something like that. Perhaps not exactly like that, but it fits the basic idea. I must say I'm pleased that those Tau women aren't over-sexualised - something this game is often at risk of. Some Sister of Battle artwork springs to mind, which is kind of creepy, as they're supposed to be chaste and modest.

That said, sexuality isn't irrelevant either. What Tau taboos exist and don't exist could be an interesting question, though I hesitate to proceed with that line of thought. Rummy, do you think we can handle a few thoughts on that?

On another note, Khemri mentioned hair as a status symbol before, and I'd be inclined to agree with him. One also has to point out that in some areas, particularly the Fire caste, long hair can be a practical liability. Contrary to the pictures, I'd guess most Fire caste Tau would have shaven heads or keep their hair closely cropped. The Tau are usually represented as a quite pragmatic race, after all. Perhaps as time goes by more ostentation is allowed, for ceremonial purposes. Speaking of hair, any hints on colour? Most artwork we see sticks to plain black; is that all of it, or would Tau have a greater range of colours? They're advanced enough to have invented hair dye, if worst comes to worst. ;)
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