As mentioned previously, a firing unit can choose a single enemy unit as its target. There are several considerations when choosing a target: namely, can your unit see it, and will their weapons have enough range to reach it?

Your units will have a natural tendency to shoot at the nearest enemy, as in the tumult of battle these will be the easiest to spot and often the most threatening. However, a well-trained and led unit will overcome this and follow your orders to the letter. To represent this, you must pass a Leadership test if you want a unit to target any enemy unit other than the closest. If the test is failed, resolve the unit's firing at the nearest enemy unit instead.

Exceptions: Units are always able to ignore targets which cannot be fired on (units with all models engaged in close combat, for example) and units that are falling back (see the Morale section for more on this).

The Leadership test must be taken even if the unit does not normally have to take Leadership tests, or is assumed to automatically pass them. It there is any real contention over which unit is closest, take a Leadership test anyway and then find out what's closest. You may not measure the range to a target before choosing.

Many units carry tank-busting weapons, like missile launchers or lascannon, and are able to spot marauding vehicles, walkers or large creatures with ease. To represent this, when it comes to Choosing a target you can declare that your unit wishes to target enemy vehicles, artillery and monstrous creatures (these are the only unit types you can target this way, collectively referred to as 'Large Targets'). If you choose to target Large Targets then other units can be ignored in terms of determining the closest target. A Leadership test is still required to target anything other than the closest Large Target.