40K Rules Conundrum: Interceptor & Overwatch in the same turn?

A little rules conundrum I came across in Warhammer 40K, which I thought I’d share (not least to get some opinions).

Can a unit in Warhammer 40K with the Interceptor special rule fire its weapon twice during the opponent’s turn, once using Interceptor and once using the Overwatch rule?

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#1 – A Day in Warhammer 40K

Alright. Two players (armies) face off against the board. Player Red (Tau) and Player Blue (Space Marines).

Player Red has a few units with the Interceptor special rule (Tau Broadsides, for example).

Player Blue, on his turn, brings in some units (say, a Flyer or Drop Pod) from reserve (tempting Player Red to use his Interceptor firepower). In the same turn, Player Blue charges said Interceptor (e.g. Broadsides) with a different unit (say, Assault Marines), perhaps even because Player Blue thought his assault units were now safe from the Broadside’s Overwatch.

Would Player Red be able to have said Broadside fire on Overwatch during the Player Blue’s Assault Phase, despite having fired as Interceptor during the Player Blue’s Movement Phase?

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#2 – Relevant Rules

• The “Pro-”Argument

The argument I saw, to allow Player Red to fire twice in Player Blue’s turn, pivots on the argument that the Interceptor forbids a units ability to shoot in the “next” (player) turn, but doesn’t actually forbid it to fire again in the same turn.

I suppose there is also an argument to be had about whether, to use the example of a Broadside again, it could use its secondary weapons for Overwatch in the same turn.

• The “Contra-” Argument

The argument against allowing both Interceptor and Overwatch in the same player’s turn follows from the basic shooting rules, which ask players to pick a unit that hasn’t actually fired in this particular turn.

The Shooting Rules on p. 12 state the following in the little grey box explaining the sequence.

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 #3 – Interceptor & Overwatch – The Poll

Thanks for voting.

Don’t forget to leave a comment below and add a bit more detail to your call on this one!

Z.