"It is, however, interesting/ puzzling (in a positive sense) that the attacker can only achieve 'no effect' or 'enemy eliminated' result... there is no way to hurt yourself with a bad die roll :)"
[edit - I missed your point about the blocking strategy to stop them respawning. I think it can work sometimes, but as you say the unit values aren't really set up for this. Maybe in future designs. At the same time, I tend to shy away from mechanics that can be gamed in a way that wouldn't make sense in a real conflict, where possible]
Mm, this was because with one card played at a time, I thought it would be ok to leave the choice to return fire up to the commander. If it were more like a standard wargame where you play many units attacking at once, I would build in a return fire mechanic I think. In the larger version of this game I was working on before the jam, dead units get to return fire at half strength, and there is an overwatch system.
Good spotting on the KIA thing! I think I'll leave it - upside down = dead, no? haha