Losing your front rank does not lose your Champion attack.

I've seen a lot of people saying things like "you can lose your whole front rank and not be able to attack back." Yes - but only if you do not have a Champion.

> Although models are removed from the back of their unit, very often the casualties will have fallen elsewhere, usually in the front or fighting rank. Removing models from the back of a unit represents warriors behind the front rank 'stepping forward' to fill gaps in the front rank. However, a model cannot make any form of attack (shooting or combat) during a phase in which it stepped forward. It is too busy clambering over the fallen bodies of its comrades.

This is the text from Step Up. However, your command group is always placed in the center of your unit's front rank and the champion is not removed until they are the last models in the unit. This means that they are not being removed from the fighting rank, even when casualties exceed their rank.

> Unlike other members of their unit, a champion can only be removed as a casualty under specific circumstances. If a champion is removed as a casualty, the model is removed and replaced with an ordinary rank and file model.

RAW, they are allowed to then attack.

This means that your points put into Champions are not only for their bonuses, but it guarantees that they will be able to strike back. Unless they get targetted/challenged, of course.

But Musicians and Standards don't offer the same benefit. Both have a line like this:

> If a standard bearer model is slain, another rank and file model belonging to the same unit, but that is not a command group model, will step forward to raise the fallen standard. Therefore, a unit cannot lose its standard bearer unless it and the champion (if there is one) are the last two remaining models in the unit. This applies even if the standard bearer is targeted by an attack that allows a specific model within a unit to be targeted, or finds themselves lying underneath a template.

So the standard and musician does die each time the fighting rank is attacked, they are replaced with Step Up, so don't get to attack.

This is right, right? Champions will fight 'til the end? Make sure you're quoting rules text if you're going to refute, please.