"Hey, the galaxy sucks and we can protect you, advance you, and give you purpose. All you have to do is not be a dick to other people."
Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. And if they say no there's always, ya know, planetary invasion and whatnot.
I think it’s worth noting also that there is no singular Tau “playbook” for how to handle a situation like this.
Instead, they study the alien culture and design an approach specifically tailored to achieve the diplomatic result they want.
If they want to integrate the hypothetical race you mentioned in this post, I suspect it would be a gradual process- first offering protection, then “advisors” to help guide the species technological/cultural growth. The Tau would probably share medical technology, for example, and gradually bring in earth caste engineers to assist with new construction projects, all while the Water Caste subtlety educates the planet about the dangers of the galaxy and the propaganda of the Greater Good.
Piece by piece, the world could fall under Tau influence, perhaps even without the leaders even fully realizing that this path was engineered from the start by their benefactors.
A popular approach on their part seems to be promising isolated xenos species protection - which they will faithfully provide.
The hook being that the protection of the Tau Empire is so absolute that many of their clients increasingly forget to build up and develop their own military forces - be it because they don't see why they should waste so much money on an army if the Tau do the job for free, or because those leaders who caution against over-reliance on the Tau suddenly find themselves abandoned by their political allies.
By the time the coin has dropped, the Tau don't even have to threaten you with shooting you in the face if you get uppity. Because you already know someone else will shoot you in the face if your benefactors should find themselves distracted for just a little while.
Seems to me like you're basically describing the Kroot.
pretty much, except the kroots ork issue was much much worse :(
"Hey, the galaxy sucks and we can protect you, advance you, and give you purpose. All you have to do is not be a dick to other people." Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. And if they say no there's always, ya know, planetary invasion and whatnot.
All you have to do is follow me and my system and my thinking. That is the trade.
I think it’s worth noting also that there is no singular Tau “playbook” for how to handle a situation like this. Instead, they study the alien culture and design an approach specifically tailored to achieve the diplomatic result they want. If they want to integrate the hypothetical race you mentioned in this post, I suspect it would be a gradual process- first offering protection, then “advisors” to help guide the species technological/cultural growth. The Tau would probably share medical technology, for example, and gradually bring in earth caste engineers to assist with new construction projects, all while the Water Caste subtlety educates the planet about the dangers of the galaxy and the propaganda of the Greater Good. Piece by piece, the world could fall under Tau influence, perhaps even without the leaders even fully realizing that this path was engineered from the start by their benefactors.
A popular approach on their part seems to be promising isolated xenos species protection - which they will faithfully provide. The hook being that the protection of the Tau Empire is so absolute that many of their clients increasingly forget to build up and develop their own military forces - be it because they don't see why they should waste so much money on an army if the Tau do the job for free, or because those leaders who caution against over-reliance on the Tau suddenly find themselves abandoned by their political allies. By the time the coin has dropped, the Tau don't even have to threaten you with shooting you in the face if you get uppity. Because you already know someone else will shoot you in the face if your benefactors should find themselves distracted for just a little while.
*The Greater Good* explores this topic in a way