Ironstrider Alpha [Crucible]

While a Bodyguard unit contains a Leader, it is known as an Attached unit and, with the exception of rules that are triggered when units are destroyed (pg 12), it is treated as a single unit for all rules purposes. Each time an attack targets an Attached unit, until the attacking unit has resolved all of its attacks, you must use the Toughness characteristic of the Bodyguard models in that unit, even if a Leader in that unit has a different Toughness characteristic. Each time an attack successfully wounds an Attached unit, that attack cannot be allocated to a Character model in that unit, even if that Character model has lost one or more wounds or has already had attacks allocated to it this phase. As soon as the last Bodyguard model in an Attached unit has been destroyed, any attacks made against that unit that have yet to be allocated can then be allocated to Character models in that unit.

Each time the last model in a Bodyguard unit is destroyed, each CHARACTER unit that is part of that Attached unit becomes a separate unit, with its original Starting Strength. If this happens as the result of an attack, they become separate units after the attacking unit has resolved all of its attacks. 

Each time the last model in a CHARACTER unit that is attached to a Bodyguard unit is destroyed and there is not another CHARACTER unit attached, that Attached unit’s Bodyguard unit becomes a separate unit, with its original Starting Strength. If this happens as the result of an attack, they become separate units after the attacking unit has resolved all of its attacks. 

Each time a unit that is part of an Attached unit is destroyed, it does not have the keywords of any other units that make up that Attached unit (unless it has those keywords on its own datasheet) for the purposes of any rules that would be triggered when that unit is destroyed.

At the start of the battle round, you can select one of the Doctrina Imperatives below. Until the end of the battle round, that Doctrina Imperative is active for your army, and all units from your army that have the Doctrina Imperatives ability gain the relevant abilities shown below.

PROTECTOR IMPERATIVE
■ Ranged weapons equipped by models in this unit have the [HEAVY] ability.
■ Improve the Ballistic Skill characteristic of ranged weapons equipped by models in this unit by 1.
■ Each time a melee attack targets this unit, if this unit has the ^^**Battleline**^^ keyword and/or it is within 6" of one or more friendly **^^Adeptus Mechanicus Battleline**^^ units, subtract 1 from the Hit roll.

CONQUEROR IMPERATIVE
■ Ranged weapons equipped by models in this unit have the [ASSAULT] ability.
■ Improve the Weapon Skill characteristic of melee weapons equipped by models in this unit by 1.
■ Each time a model in this unit makes an attack, if this unit has the **^^Battleline**^^ keyword and/or it is within 6" of one or more friendly **^^Adeptus Mechanicus Battleline**^^ units, improve the Armour Penetration characteristic of that attack by 1.

This ability always takes the form **Deadly Demise X**. Each time a model in this unit is **destroyed**, after the units embarked within it (if any) have made their **emergency disembark moves**, roll one D6. On a 6, that model suffers a **deadly demise**; each unit within 6" of that model suffers a number of **mortal wounds** denoted by **X** (if this is a random number, roll separately for each unit within 6"). 
***Example:** An Impulsor with a unit of Intercessors embarked within it is **destroyed** by ranged attacks. First, any unresolved attacks made by the attacking unit are resolved. Then the Intercessors make an **emergency disembark move**. Then the roll is made for the **Deadly Demise** ability, and on a 6, that ability is resolved. Finally, the Impulsor is removed from the battlefield.*

If every model in a unit has this ability, each time a ranged attack targets that unit, that unit has the **benefit of cover** against that attack (13.08).