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My FLGS is launching a Start Collecting / Escalation League and I'm taking out a second mortgage to begin a Death Korps of Kreig army. I have the AM Codex and I'm waiting for the Index to arrive from the UK. For this League I need to approximate the contents of the Astra Militarum Start Collecting Box, basically a Commisar, a Leman Russ, heavy weapons team and 10 infantry. I just need to know if there is any real fundamental difference in stats between DKoK Infantry and the Cadian Shock Troops. Vague answers are fine, TIA!

Wait.. i hope your joking about the 2nd mortgage! lol

I like the DKoK better b.c you can take them and not worry about moral via shooting, they cost 1pt? more but they dont suffer moral for wounds taken against shooting attacks.

I dont know much about them other than that and how the horses work.

DKoK stats are the same except for WS, which they get a +1 on.

DKoK are fairly similar, but their organization is different. There are not command squads per se, IIRC, but you get platoon standards in regular squads, and regular squads can't get a heavy weapon (I don't think?) because those are all in HWSs... I think. Honestly I'm a bit out of sorts with the DKoK list.

Yes, they are very different in playstyle imo. Big differences are:

1) They ignore morale from shooting, which is huge. They hold objectives like no other.

2) They have WS3+, and their regimental banner gives +1A within 6". Combine that with a priest, and their CC focused orders, and a blob of krieg can actually hurt things in CC. Watchmasters with power mauls, banner, priest and fight twice orders are putting out 8 3+/S5/-1/1 attacks a round. It's hard to pull off but if you fancy a ragin'guard list, DKoK are you boys.

3) no HWSs. A big downside I'm afraid.

4) List composition is so forgiving for DKoK, because their special ability (moral immunity) is tied to the unit, rather than the regiment. This is bad (because they pay for it - 5ppm instead of 4ppm) but also good (because you can flout regiments and just go full imperial chowder.) So you can go shopping for any imperial units your heart desires, and just plonk them in your Krieg detachments - Celestine is particularly good in this way.

5) They have Death Riders, a unit so good they're worth singling out. They WILL bankrupt you, but buy them. Buy them all.

Basically, they have better WS, have shooting morale benefits, cost more than their Codex counterparts and cant take heavy weapons in infantry squads nor Deep Strike with Grenadiers (who have half the weapon alotment of codex Stormtroopers), but have functional Rough Riders.

Basically, theyre largely inferiror to their Codex equivalents in most ways, theyre an attrition oriented IG infantry army thats always kneecapped in being less capable at attrition than other IG armies because FW always insists on overcosting that enhanced WS.

Also keep in mind that you can use the models as normal IG. I have been for years now, it wasn't until this edition that the FW rules were easy to obtain so I never wanted to deal with explaining their rules every time I played and carrying around the massive FW books, so I just use them as normal guard.

I may consider painting up new models so that I can finally actually use them as DKoK now but like Vaktathi said, they're worse in just about every way, the exception being Death Riders.