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Simple question, complicated rules:

If I use Cypher as part of a Death Guard detachment, do models in that detachment get Inexorable Advance and Plague Host?

Cypher has the FALLEN keyword.

Codex: CSM wrote:The inclusion of Fabius Bile or FALLEN units in a Detachment does not prevent other units in that Detachment from gaining a Legion Trait. However, Fabius Bile and the FALLEN units can never themselves benefit from a Legion Trait.

Sigh.

It's annoying because they should, but the death guard bonuses are not called legion traits, so RAW it's no.

If someone told me that in a game, I would pack up right then.

By that logic, a CSM army with Cypher in won't benefit from Despoilers of the Galaxy because that isn't a "Legion Trait" either.

To all intents and purposes, Inexorable Advance is the Legion Trait for Death Guard, so they should still get it if they include Cypher.

I'm not saying it doesn't need an FAQ to make it explicit, but in this case, the intention is clear.

By strict RAW: A Death Guard detachment is not a Chaos Space Marine detachment. A detachment with a bunch of DG and Cypher is neither a Death Guard detachment nor a Chaos Space Marine detachment. So it can't benefit from Inexorable Advance or Plague Host (or Despoilers of the Galaxy).

However, I'd certainly allow an opponent with a DG-plus-Cypher detachment to gain the normal DG benefits. Outside of tournaments, I see no need to be super-strict with RAW.