The Tau CASTE SYSTEM | Warhammer 40k Lore

foreign within the young technological Marvel which is the Tau Empire its Society is based upon the teachings of the greater good this philosophical view inscribes the idea that each individual who resides within the Empire plays an essential role and that the benefits of the many should always be placed above the benefits of the few from this we can gather that no single individual would ever be considered as being more important than that of their peers and that the work of each citizen should always be aimed towards turning the wheel of progress in order to best serve the needs of society in order to best achieve this the Tau are broken up into five castes which are a series of distinct groups within the Empire who each serve a separate role for the benefit of society each tau is born into their caste and they will remain within it until the day of their death the ethereals strongly forbid any form of interbreeding between members of different castes and for an individual to Aspire towards the goals of a separate caste would result in their shunning and potential re-indoctrinations for going against the will of the greater good the caste system was initially based around the divisions in Tau Society in the old tribal days of their Homeworld this time of Civil War and strife was known to The Tao as Monto and was where a series of large racial and political groups had Arisen which drove a huge divide between the Tau peoples this period was where the ethereals first appeared and after brokering a peace between the factions they implemented the caste system where each of these groups would become the first members of their respective caste in creating the system they preached the importance of the greater good and implored the tower to consider their roles within Society and how with every action that they could help to propel each other into the Stars each individual's social standing and status is based upon their rank within their own cost for example the suffix of La is used for those of the lowest rank throughout each cast so a fire cast initiate would be named as shasla and an earthcast worker would be named similarly as Fiola the societal ranks are as follows initiate members who are still children and have not been inducted fully to a caste are known as Sal the first rank as mentioned is La then we the next is rare then the second highest is L and finally the highest possible rank is o I should note that members of each cast whilst all Tau are perhaps not as similar towards each other as we may believe we could almost view the different cast members as being of a different subspecies due to how different the physiology of its members appear it is likely that the different caste species were to some extent artificially evolved in order to best serve their roles within Society for the ethereals the advancement of the Tau Empire is Paramount to their success and so to them it is justifiable to mold the biology of the Tau in order to best reach these goals this artificial Evolution will sometimes be described as genetic modification and while it may not be done through tools which directly alter a Tower's genome it is still a method of enhancing certain genetic traits to create an individual which better suits their role within Society the First cast to mention is the Fire cast known to The Tao as Shahs these are the Warriors of the Tau Empire they make up the ground forces and will pilot the mighty Battle Suits which have become synonymous with Tower Warfare these members have been selectively bred to produce incredibly strong and aggressive Offspring who each carry a greater level of muscle mass and a fiercer temperament compared to that of the other castes in the old days of the tribal Tower they acted as the hunters and Warriors of the burgeoning species where they would live out on the rough grassy Plains entrenching their genome with traits of strength and endurance which were only enhanced by the eugenics-based artificial evolutionary methods of the ethereals the firecast is Guided by a Doctrine known as the code of Fire this ancient rule set has been passed down since the old tribal days and it can be seen as a system of Honor which teaches the firecast members on how best to act in order to bring glory to their people it is a system which will impact their entire lives from the member's birth to their death guiding them on what actions to take to forge them into a cohesive Elite military force the four main points of this code are to bring honor to yourself and your people to be obedient to the firecast and the Tau Empire to fulfill your duties to your kin and your society and to follow in a path of self-sacrifice all for the greater good the members of the firecast will spend their entire lives preparing for or partaking in Warfare from the time where they can first walk they will be initiated into military training camps they will undergo years of brutal physical training in order to strengthen them up into powerful true fire Warriors at an early age they will also begin their combat simulation trainings where they will use Advanced virtual reality Suites in order to practice through hundreds of combat scenarios honing their psyche into that of a deadly and efficient Warrior once a firecast member has endured this training they will advance from underling to fire warrior and will be equipped for battle before being sent out into the Stars ready to join in whichever conflicts the ethereals Divine to be of importance to the success of the greater good more veteran members of this cast will earn the right to Pilot a battle suit allowing them to become something of a versatile weapons platform easily capable of outclassing most foes which they may encounter in order to progress through the ranks a member of the firecast must undergo a trial by fire these are rituals in which a tower will be subjected to a horrific simulation intended to Showcase their leadership abilities however in order to ensure that their actions are genuine they will sometimes not even be made aware that this scenario is simply simulated the actions that the individual takes during this situation will be reviewed by more senior firecast members and if they deem their actions to have been Noble true and of adherence to the teachings of the firecast then they will be promoted to their next rank bringing with it benefits such as the privilege of piloting more advanced Battle Suits or commanding small squads of Tau fire Warriors next we have the air cast known to the Tau as core the duty of these tau is to Pilot the ships and aircraft of both the military and civilian wings of their empire these cast members differ greatly from their compatriots as they will universally live off world being stationed in floating orbital cities this has resulted in them taking on the nickname of the invisible cast as the vast majority of aircast members will never set foot upon a planet's surface meaning that most of their fellow Tau will never lay eyes upon them only seeing their aircraft soaring high above them physically they are also incredibly distinct from any other castes its members are the tallest of any tile where they will carry a long slender frame supported by hollow bird-like bones this is partly due to the low and often zero gravity conditions afforded to them in their orbital habitats which has reduced both their muscle mass as well as their bone density the genetic adaptations of this cast has also exacerbated some of these features and in a rather dystopian way restricts them from ever being able to live upon a planet's surface as the strong gravity would surely lead to their live frames quickly succumbing to damage and injury as they attempt to fight against its pressures in the distant past these tiles still displayed some of these traits however they also possessed a strong membrane stretching out from their limbs connected to their torsos essentially acting as a set of wings this allowed them to fly for short distances making them Adept Messengers who could Glide across a planet by following strong air currents ready to deliver orders and instructions to distant tile tribes they possess innately quick reflexes making them incredibly Adept at piloting fighter jets where they will bank and dive rapidly adapting to complex aerial dogfights easily outperforming even the most veteran of human Pilots this has been further enhanced by the Advanced Technologies of their aircraft as well as of their superb helmets which provide a constant stream of analytical data to the pilot who must interpret and act upon even the smallest changes of wind speed or air pressure to best control their fighter craft even though their physical frames are rather weak they have an unmatched ability to resist g-forces which affords the pilots with the ability to take incredibly daring and risky maneuvers which would likely send even a fully trained pilot of a lesser species into the void of unconsciousness culturally they see their ships and aircrafts as somewhat of an extension of themselves and they utilize them to fully Express their desires of independence from the restrictions of land-based life it also allows them to display their freedom as they careen through the clouds until they finally break through into the stratosphere putting the entire galaxy within their reach the next is the earth cast known as the Theo throughout the empire their role is to essentially act as the Builders of the Tau where they work as laborers engineers and Artisans constructing everything from a humble chair to the mightiest of Tau battleships or suits this cast also encompasses the Tau scientists and technicians who work on discovering and producing new technologies to propel the Tau empire into new heights of advancement the original members of this cast were the first of the Tao to have mastered Agriculture and to have constructed great cities giving the entire species a permanent place to call home rather than moving as groups of nomadic tribes the other shortest of all the Tau standing rather squat but also being nearly as muscular as that of the fire cast likely so that they can handle the hard labors of construction even if it is always supported by cadres of drones to assist them the majority of Tau are born into this caste making it the largest in terms of its members but this makes a great deal of sense for How could a species grow into a star-spanning Empire without the combined might of tens of millions of workers constructing its foundations they're placed within society and the general labors which they perform has given most members of this cast a rather stoic and straightforward mindset where they will be content to work the Agri drone fields or oversee the polymer forges for the good of the empire similarly many of them may be described as seeming rather simple or dark when compared to members of the other castes however this does not dissuade them from carrying out their work as even a humble life of hard labor can bring them great pride for supporting their kin it may be worth mentioning that this attitude was likely reinforced by the genetic adaptations of their caste which may to some degree explain why the Tau Empire seems so stable it is far easier for the ethereals to rule over a society in which most of its members are seemingly Placid and content to work rather than one where its individuals are ambitious and more eager to explore other ideas and Concepts however we will discuss this idea more when we come to the ethereals themselves this is not to say that the Earth cast are not Forward Thinking or that they're not made up of erudite members for we must remember that all of the technological marvels of the Tower Empire were formulated in earthcast Laboratories and research facilities for example the mighty Riptide battle suit is known to all as a true Wonder of both science and engineering being constructed as a massive jetpack equipped suit powered by an experimental Dark Matter Nova reactor which outclasses almost all Imperial power sources in both its output and efficiency it has proven to be the bane of the tower's enemies and it stands as a true Testament to the novel creativity scientific aptitude and material engineering prowess of the earth cast the fourth group is the Water cast or poor to the toe these members act within any of the societal roles which require some degree of communicative ability as such they will serve as bureaucratic administrators ambassadors Traders merchants or as diplomats any relations or interactions with other species will be done through water cost diplomats who will ascertain whether or not its members can be swayed into joining the fold of the Tau Empire or if the Fire cast should be deployed to wipe them out and eliminate them as a Potential Threat they are named as the Water cast since they are to be seen as water flowing through the other castes or species and harmonizing all under their honeyed words rather distinctly from the other Tau Water cast members are primarily identifiable based on their extremely emotive faces often softening alien diplomats with their welcoming smiles and warm gazes they have been known to pick up and emulate the subtlest of facial movements of others mirroring their emotions and communicative abilities making even the most hostile of diplomats feel at ease some would call this manipulative but to the Water cast it is simply a tactic to further the goals and aspirations of the Tau Empire its members are also innately skilled in the art of linguistics being able to quickly pick up new languages with a near Supernatural ability partly because of their long history of doing so and partly due to their genetic enhancements to this regard this enables a child Diplomat to swiftly integrate himself in an alien Society where he will ingratiate himself with the local Lords before spinning a graceful story of the boons to be afforded to them by the adherence of the greater good its members will undergo significant training programs similar to the firecast initiates however this training will be focused on the art of diplomacy communication and General Social etiquette finally we have the fifth cast the ethereals known to the Tau as the on it is somewhat difficult to describe them as being equal in status to that of the other castes since they are distinctly held above all others within Tau Society however they are still considered by the towers being in an equitable position despite the clear inequalities which are to be discussed this mysterious group are the spiritual leaders of the Tau Empire since they first arrived to unite the warring tribes they have acted as the ultimate rulers of all Tau directing their species and Society into the Tau Empire as it stands today they preached the importance of unity and first introduced the concept of the greater good where all Tau should put aside their differences for the betterment of their own unified civilization basically they appear as any other Tau aside from a distinct diamond-shaped Ridge of bone which slightly protrudes from their foreheads within this bony protrusion lies a small organ which has been speculated as being the source of a pheromone which when released causes all other Tau to be far more amenable to the suggestions and directions of an ethereal this combined with their revered position within society and the strong social enforcement towards following them means that almost any request by an ethereal will be obeyed without question if an ethereal ordered an earthcast member to abandon a project they would surely comply if an aircast member was ordered to make Planet fall and live a life in contact with the solid earth they would not hesitate to abandon their craft and find a home of rock and stone on the world's surface even though a high-ranking water cast Diplomat May dictate the policies and plans of a city they only do so if it falls within the purview of the ethereal's plans similarly any military operation of the firecast must be vetted and approved by an ethereal who will judge whether or not it will further the teachings of the greater good or if it seems to merely be a Fool's errand which will needlessly damn the tile occasionally an ethereal may be encountered outside of the safety of their cities where they will join the firecast warriors on a distant Battlefield for this a somewhat debated with some claiming that they act as military leaders who are there to inspire and embolden the Tau troops into fighting with increased fervor and tenacity alternatively their presence may be to Simply observe the high-ranking firecast generals as a way of keeping them in line with their directives for who would dare oppose the will of the ethereals they are the masters of the eugenics-based artificial evolutionary methods which have previously been described as genetic modification whilst widespread genome-based modification tools have likely not been implemented we can clearly see that they have set up their society in a way which reinforces the distinct traits and features of each cast there is a reason why they forbid the cast from interbreeding and that is to ensure that all Tau who are born into their caste will inherit the most beneficial traits to their societal role aside from physically affecting the towel it also reinforces the belief that each Tower was born with a specific place within their civilization How could an air cast member ever Aspire towards becoming a fire warrior if their bodies are too feeble to perform a field test and why would they choose to abandon their void dwelling families to live upon a planet's surface the answer is that they would never do so not just because their bodies are incapable of handling the gravity but also because they would never dare to oppose the directives of the ethereals all Tau accept the restrictions placed upon them by the ethereals and while it may seem rather dystopian to us it has led to the flourishing and Rapid advancement of their young Empire this brings us to the end of our study it is worth noting that all other species within the Tao Empire fall outside of this caste system the recruit live in tribes known as kindreds which are akin to an extended family and are each led by a shaper who has a stronger knowledge in the methods of gaining beneficial genetic adaptations through feeding which is an innate skill to the highly versatile crude species vespids are led by what have been assumed to be senior insectoids who have been granted a special communion Helm which allows them to communicate with the tile and pass down instructions to the remaining vespids Warrior groups of these creatures are known as strains and its leaders form incredibly strong bonds with the senior Tau leadership members some believe that this connection is more similar to an imposed mind control system from the Ethereal cast since not even the most advanced of water caste linguistic experts could decipher the complex language system of the vespids truly none but the highest ranking of ethereals will know whether or not these creatures are actually loyal to the Tau or if their minds are simply Shackled into obedience by the circuitous Helms human populations within the Tau Empire are known as guervesa and they have integrated themselves well within Society but are kept distinctly separate from the caste system whilst they may live side by side with the towel the Water cast administrators are always subtly discouraging them from following the teachings of the Imperium and will continuously try to indoctrinate newborn humans into adhering to the ways of the greater good within the Tau Empire all castes are seen as being of equal value towards building a new society which can afford a high standard of living to every individual even the lowest of Earth cast members are just as important to the growth of the Empire as that of the highest ranking ethereal and all will bring glory to each other through the teachings of the greater good foreign

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Published: Sat Jul 29 2023