I'm interested to hear what they have to say about the new DKoK rules.
I'm not really 100% sure how "Bad" is it.
I just reread morale phase.
No negatives on combat attrition is probably fairly strong.
One dude runs off the rest have to roll and fail for sure on a 1 or on a 1 and 2 if the unit is under 50%, which will probably be the case. And I see that Moral is taken by both player on each players turns, not like older editions used to do it. So this rule could come into play more often than expected , 10 times in a 5 turn game.
Is it amazing, not really. It is horrible, not really.
I think the best way to get the most use out of it is clearly more flame weapons and more Over charged Plasma weapons and smaller points games where Krieg can game the system. Wondering if this rule was designed as a Die for the emperor Meme.
Side note I am wondering if Krieg will turn up in any special regiment rules in the next AM/IG codex. supplemented by the options in this new book.
As for me, I don't play competitively and plan to use the death riders and maybe change their regimental doctrine to which ever one I am using.
My friends probably wont care.
As an avid, and fluffy, Krieg lad myself, I don't care about the doctrine changes so much. What I am gutted about, is the removal of our unique units/loadouts, but most of them can be circumvented like I'll lay out below.
As for the doctrine itself, sure, it means we're not just standing in withering hails of fire without caring anymore (fluffy as hell, Vraks personified). On the flipside, is that where we would get absolutely slaughtered in melee pretty often as soon as something touched a unit in melee after killing some models; now, in melee, we could lose 6 guys and not just very-likely automatically self-destruct unless we paid 2CP due to morale. In addition, the "maybe shoot when you die" for Characters and vehicles is a little pants, but we don't know, maybe there's more we don't know yet. Some specific strategem that will let us auto pass that test and fire all weapons at full BS for 2CP or something like that. That would be pretty neat/effective on any flavor of Leman Russ! Let's not forget hellhounds either. Hellhounds being able to 50% of the time get a last hurrah with their cannon (which has PRETTY GOOD range) will make being aggressive with them a bit more fun.
Now for unit losses:
- Units that were basically AM with different names and subtle loadout changes: (they were "ours", flair that our very expensive all-resin army had some nice uniqueness with.)
- Grenadiers were stormtroopers/scions, in every way except WS, loadout options and name.
- I don't like to see them go, but still being able to run them "the same" but as scions in terms of supported rules, points, etc... not too much a hit. I'll still call them Storm Grenadiers.
- DKoK infantry squad is much the same. Guardman with WS3, and no heavy weapon teams.
- Nothing says I have to run the loadout with a HWT, so they'll still be the same loadout and tactics.
- Mars Leman Russ
- The buff was SO minimal, it never even warranted a points increase over normal LR's. I'd say, as long as you're not at a tournament, nobody would likely be upset if you still used the Mars pattern rules for the +1 against S4 or less.
- DKoK HWS's
- Literally the same unit, but with different label, so nothing really lost. In a DKoK army, they are still "DKoK heavy weapons squads" if you say it with your mouth.
- Units that were entirely unique: (truly "ours" in all facets)
- Karis Venner
- Mayhaps we'll get a new "uber" commander character that's unnamed? We'll see. Never had an official model as far as I knew, everyone I know (myself) used the marshal model but painted differently.
- Centaurs
- RIP little tractors of adorable, suicidal emperor-serving goodness. Never got to use or make any, but always wanted to.
- I know these are tried and true to a lot of people, and I honestly don't have an idea of how to circumvent the squatting of these. Here's hoping for legends goodness.
- Quartermaster Cadre
- The lord of bones and his cyborg cronies were a cool kit. These will be missed. In the same vein though, putting him in a command squad as a medic is the flavor to use him now I suppose. Shame the coat & helmet holders are basically for flair now, but oh well.
- Still that "loss of our flair" that's most gutting. Relegating him to just some chump in a squad rather than the standalone unit who's sacred duty of getting all that gear ready to go on another dutiful servant of the emperor to redeem our planet and people for their past heresies is pretty lame.
- Storm Chimera
- My most-gutted-feeling unit loss. I looooooved my autocannon chimeras with armor skirts. I looooove the Venator, but tied for "coolest guard light/med vehicle" with it was the storm chimera. Something looks so "right" about that autocannon and skirt loadout
- Unique ability was worth filling leftover points with, but never something you really took out of hand. Not game-breaking to lose, and, again, any non-tournament opponent I'm sure will have no problem with you still paying 10pts for the +1sv against s4 or less. Hell, maybe even just taking it for free. I legit had it come into play less than five times in all of 8th.
- If you ever got the mine ability to be of use, congrats, no matter how many times we forced mines into games, it never ended up coming up for mine. (no pun intended)
- With a single autocannon being basically "nothing" with guard BS 4+, and likely having a small, fixed PT amount across all vehicles in new book, again, I'd say "Run a chimera, tell your opponent you're taking an AC in the turret instead of a ML. I don't think anybody will object. 2 shots per vehicle is nowhere near a fist-shakeable offense for "bending the list rules" a bit.
I've heard it proposed by many others that perhaps we'll get our own sort of "supplement" book? Maybe! Maybe in there will be rules for "DKoK" upgrades to a unit that transform a standard AM unit (scions, chimera, etc....) unit into a DKoK variant unlocking the wargear options of old units now no longer standalone in the IA compendium. A DKoK "masters of the chapter" type unit upgrade system. Wishlisty, sure, but could make sense.
I would like to see some other facet tied to our doctrine, like a "If your army is composed of solely DKoK detachments, all infantry squads, scions, HWS's, and veterans gain +1WS" come into play in this hypothetical supplement. (I'd say "all infantry", but bullgryns exist.) Heck, even just many other further rules for a DKoK-only force in the compendium (IE, no supplement) might be possible.
I'd love this the most, to keep us with that fluffy flair of grizzled trench fighters adept at even dragging down superhuman astartes by dearth of bodies, shovels, & bayonets with no regards for our own lives or well being.
</my2cents>