4 vs 4 free for all. shooting into combat?

[DjDaMode]

recently i played a 4 vs 4 free for all. And a rules debate came up. In the 40k rule book, it says nothing about shooting into combat if you aren't involved in said combat. Is there any rules for that? I know you can't shoot into your own CC but what about other players?

[thecactusman17]

Actually, there ARE rules (in the main book no less, but I can't for the life of me remember where--it may be only in the hardcover version in the campaign section).

You may only fire into combat if no friendly forces or allies of any sort are in the combat -- it must be a genuine fight where both groups are enemy units. If you do, roll to hit as normal then randomize the hits between both sides, then roll to wound based on each majority toughness. Allocate as normal, but you can't take cover saves (because in a fight like this, nobody can chance ducking behind cover when whoever they're fighting against is already going there themselves for the same reason). If one side or the other is killed, the surviving units consolidate as normal at the end of the phase, assuming they don't get pinned or fail morale checks for losing 25% of the unit in the same phase.

[DjDaMode]

Thanks. I've never seen it in the book. But It sounds valid. It will solve many quarrels!

[thecactusman17]

Sure. BTW, an addendum to the previous statement: Units that are left unengaged by the previous attack, assuming the fight is not ongoing with other units, do not count as winning or losing the fight if any particular rules might be invoked for it. They just survived!