A lot of forks are damaged by frontal collision (like mine was). The forks collapse in, and if you are lucky, they absorb all the energy, leaving the frame undamged.
If the forks are stronger then the head-tube will collapse inward.
With bent steel forks, you can do a roadside repair, using a drain grating, which will get you home.
Carbon forks fail catastrophicaly, ie they work, or break in half. They my be made so strong, that your frame will bend instead. You may be able to do a field repair using epoxy and carbon material.
Carbon is also quite soft, so hard objects can damage the surface.

Its a tough call, but I would like to try carbon touring forks, just for fun.