But the visitors didn't go down easily with a resilient performance that kept the Steel on guard.
Tactix captain Jane Watson and star defender Temalisi Fakahokotau were in formidable form once again as the pair proved why they had earnt the reputation as the top defending duo in the league.
Fakahokotau's feisty nature quickly put the Steel's Jen O'Connell under pressure as the young shooter showed some hesitancy in the opening quarter. But standing her ground under the hoop, O'Connell remained consistently accurate to secure her side a slim three-goal lead.
Meanwhile, Silver Fern midcourter Shannon Francois caused early problems for pocket-rocket Tactix centre Kimiora Poi. Francois' swift movement and tight defence slowed down Poi's ability to feed the ball from the circle edge as the tall Ellie Bird fought for space under the hoop.
Tactix head coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek called Australian import Kate Beveridge onto the court in the second quarter in a bid to catch up with the surging Steel.
Beveridge found good connection with Bird around the circle but the star goal attack's presence failed to make an immediate impact as the Steel extended their lead to six.
However, as the force of Fakahokotau and Watson's defence unit took full effect, the Tactix suddenly turned things around.
As their Southern rivals edged their way back one turnover at a time, the Steel were robbed of their lead with the Tactix securing a one-goal advantage at halftime.
Both teams delivered an accurate and intense third stanza, Fakahokotau adding to the drama with a speedy timeout to fix a split lip.
Initially, it was the visitors, on the back of the growing presence of Bird who looked set to take charge when building a five-goal buffer.
But as the see-saw affair continued throughout the final quarter, the Steel made back lost ground as the Tactix struggled to hold it together in the final minutes of the Southern derby.
In an exciting finish, the Steel stormed ahead to the cheers of a loud home crowd to secure the win and keep a perfect 11 for 11 home ground winning record.
The Steel will play the Pulse at 4:10 pm on Sunday afternoon at Palmerston North's Fly Palmy Arena in the highly-anticipated sold-out grand final.
The Pulse are expected to be in sublime form after sitting at the top of the table all season and after narrowly missing out on the title last year to the Steel, will be desperate for redemption.
