@bessemer + ThaneAquilon Actually Tau can't conduct H&R, but Kor'Or"Vesh vessels have full boarding value and can board however and whenever they please, as far as the faq 2010 goes anyhow. I think the H&R is what horizon was alluding too.
We did mess around a bit with the tyrant's fluff, and no one found that offensive, so keeping the hero powerful is not an issue...but even smotherman puts it at 217.5, minus the difference between armored prow/deflector and half boarding rules (-5pts each I would assume)...so I would be okay with the full strength Hero at 200-210pts. Or we can stick with our voting and established fluff and just cut two lances, making it a more versatile but less line ship-y than the lunar.
@horizon My smotherman document doesn't have rules for tau torpedoes/launch bays...are these priced the same as imperials? In my mind they should probably be slightly more expensive (4-4.5pts per torpedo and 14-15 a lb).