Bombardment casualties and Leaders

[cjsiam]

So....
Russian howitzer in a field (field don't matter) was with an officer/leader.

That dang German dropped Off Board Artillery on the hex.....

The Artillery comes down as 48pts......meaning it uses the 42 column---But there is a +1 for the Artillery being the target.

So this becomes one of those two different columns -- 42 for the leader target---and 55 for the Artillery...
Rolls low and gets an X on the 42, gets a 2X on the 55.....
dang.

So clearly the 2X takes out the Arty......

What happens to the leader? 
1) he takes it as an X..... and he is eliminated.....
2) he is not a combat unit---so he is not impacted by the X---but he does take the M2, and rolls also for the step loss....

We did 2---but if the decision is 1) we can rectify it before the next turn...

thanks!
cj

[plloyd1010]

Firstly, I think it comes down on the leader as 55. We always played as the leader is with the least vulnerable unit in the hex (assuming he isn't hiding in a halftrack or something).
Now, since he isn't a lone leader, the X doesn't roll of on him. So he needs to take an M2 (because units were eliminated in the hex), then he needs to do a survivor roll. We had that part of the discussion in a thread long ago.
The survivor roll gets a little murky for me. Should unfulfilled X's be applied against the survivor roll. I would say yes, but the RaW seems to suggest no.

[cjsiam]

Firstly, I think it comes down on the leader as 55. We always played as the leader is with the least vulnerable unit in the hex (assuming he isn't hiding in a halftrack or something).
Now, since he isn't a lone leader, the X doesn't roll of on him. So he needs to take an M2 (because units were eliminated in the hex), then he needs to do a survivor roll. We had that part of the discussion in a thread long ago.
The survivor roll gets a little murky for me. Should unfulfilled X's be applied against the survivor roll. I would say yes, but the RaW seems to suggest no.

your thought being that the extra step loss (with a 2x, and only 1step artillery, one step is not applied) that would end up additional -1 on the die...
So instead of the 1 step arty loss (-1) it would be (-1arty-1additional step)....
I think the 2X is meant to signify a ferocious and effective bombardment....causing maximal casualties...

I think this is a rational and defendable within the game system approach/interpretation.....

Another good House Rule.... (Is there a special section of House rules we could choose, and print out?....)
thanks peter

[dxdavieau]

This is going to be controversial, like all house rules, so I apologize ahead of time.
I play it that if every other unit in a hex is eliminated, the leader(s) are too. My reasoning is that, considering what just happened, even if he's still alive, he's got bigger problems now with all the dead & especially the wounded. Maybe he's efficient/cold enough to move on to another unit....
If playing by the rules, I think (IMHO) you played it correctly, ie; option 2