Skins

As the name suggests, skins can be used to change the appearance of your troops. They are more than just cosmetic, however; they increase the power of your units, often quite substantially. There are actually four different kinds of skins in the game, each of which behaves slightly differently.

Units
Skins for units come in many different types, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Since a unit can only wear one skin at a time, in the earlier game it's best to pick the one that works best with your style of play and focus on that one. In the later game, however, you may find yourself using different skins for different types of missions. Some skins can be purchased with gold, while others are available as rewards from various events. These skins can also be upgraded with further gold expenditures, which further increases their stats.

Note that you may only ever own one copy of a given skin. If you happen to acquire a duplicate copy of a skin (for example, as an event reward), you will receive a certain amount of gold instead. For skins that can be purchased with gold, this amount is simply equal to the purchase price; for other skins, this value is listed as the "duplicate value" in the skin table. This can be used to get gold in events; if you get a skin in the first version of the event, then in the next occasion, you can buy the skin a second time with the event tokens and receive gold instead.

Because of the large amount of content, these skins are split onto their own pages:
 * Infantryman skins
 * Stormtrooper skins
 * Crusader skins
 * Ranger skins
 * Hammer skins
 * Lycanthrope skins
 * Berserk skins

Skins for the other walking machines and tanks (Stag, Korund, Guardian, Ram, and Scorpio), officers (Imperial Warrior, Field medic, Sergeant, Scout) and for faction troops are listed on the individual unit page, since they have fewer skins (at the moment).

Strategic points
Strategic points (machine gun, mortar, field healing, and victorious courage) also have their own skins, which you can equip at the design bureau. These work like the unit skins, although they generally can only be obtained as event rewards or through special sales. They also do not currently have any upgrades. For more details, see the individual pages.

Heroes
Skins for heroes are somewhat simpler. Heroes usually have only one or two skins available, and they only have one level. Most hero skins are available as rewards from special events or shops, although there are some that can be purchased with gold. For more details on hero skins, see the individual hero page.

Buildings
Skins for buildings increase your building production. However, unlike the other skins, they are only temporary! They cannot be purchased with gold, but require an investment of Kreds (on Kongregate). Their benefits are as follows: