Scenarios, part 1
9 months ago
– Sat, Jul 15, 2023 at 10:19:14 AM
In this update we publish the first part of the Scenario book. This is not in the form as it will be printed, but only the text with diagrams. It has yet to undergo some changes (e.g. we plan to improve the clarity of all important information required to set up and play a scenario) and proofreading.
Scenarios
The criteria and guidelines for determining the initial parameters for short and simple games of AoD:WWII (Missions) are given in the Rulebook. These criteria allow players to design their own original Missions and to play games. The Rulebook text shows as many as 10 very diverse Mission examples.
For playing more complex and longer games, players should use Scenarios, either the ones given in this Scenarios Booklet or some created by the players themselves. The rules of this game realistically simulate the real features of aircraft from the WWII, while their number (especially if expansions are also owned) and the variety of aircraft categories (fighters, bombers, transport aircraft, minesweepers, etc.) allow for the creation of a wide variety of scenarios, according to historical facts, or to some very imaginative tactical and operational ideas.
Similar to missions, criteria and guidelines need to be established for creating scenarios:
1) The goal of the game (mission) and appropriate placement of Task Markers (if used)
2) Win criteria
3) Aircraft to be included (or a suitable criteria for choosing aircraft)
4) Starting positions of the aircraft tokens (e.g. east/west) and their starting altitudes (see rule 3.2.3. Service Ceiling on page __)
5) If Weather and Terrain Markers are to be used (pages __–__), and their placement
6) Whether Small Anti-Aircraft Zones are to be used and their placement
7) Who should take the first Turn (usually the player with a specific mission to achieve)
8) Whether the game should be limited to a specific number of Rounds (tracked by the Main Dial Counter)
For simple missions, 8) is optional, but for more complex battles and for almost all scenarios it is very important to introduce range/radius restrictions for all aircraft types, as this is a reality in air battles. In practice, this means that each player must have information on how long their aircraft can stay in combat, before they have to leave the battlefield. In reality, pilots look at the fuel gauge, and based on that and the distance from their own airport, they estimate for how long they can stay in the battle. In this game, there is a dial counter alongside a piece of information on paper for each group of aircraft regarding how many Rounds they have remaining before they leave the board.
Therefore, each scenario contains a diagram of the board with various markers and the initial positions of the aircraft and a Side Sheet with relevant information, for example:
This information means that Spitfires fly at L6 and must leave the board in the 17th Round at the latest, and Tempests (L7) and (L9) Meteors must leave the board in the 14th Round at the latest. The German Bf 109 (L4 and climbing) and Fw 190 (L8) must leave the board no later than the 15th Round, and the Me 262 (L11 and descending) must leave the board no later than the 12th Round. We emphasize that the player can decide to retreat some aircraft before the indicated Round if they are, for example, damaged or out of ammunition or the tactical situation dictates it.
A scenario can also determine in which direction should the aircraft leave the board, and what happens to aircraft that do not comply with the regulations. Generally, British and American aircraft leave the board in west direction, and the German ones in east direction, but this can be changed or specified in more detail in a Scenario. Regarding the Round in which they should leave the board, the aircraft that remain on the board after what should be their last Round are no longer allowed to participate in the battles, and may only take the shortest route to the edge of the board towards their base. That aircraft can still be shot down, but if it manages to leave the board, it generally counts as half a point for the opponent, as it is assumed that due to a lack of fuel, that it made a forced landing somewhere near its airport, so it is not a 100% loss (full point). But this value can be defined differently in each Scenario.
When writing a Scenario, the number of Rounds available to each group of aircraft is determined based on some tactical assumption: where the battle takes place (English Channel, occupied France, Germany, over Berlin, etc.) and according to the Endurance value found on control panels for each type of aircraft. For example, the Bf 109 has a much smaller radius (28) than the P-47 (56), but if the air battle is taking place over Berlin, the P-47 has already been flying to the battlefield for hours and must save a lot of fuel to return to base, and the Bf 109 has taken off from a nearby air field and in that tactical assumption, it has more time available before it has to leave the board.
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For creating diverse, realistic and interesting Scenarios, it is important to specify that some groups of aircraft enter the board later (a certain number of Rounds after the start of the game). The set includes Approach Panels that are placed along the edges of the board on which the aircraft tokens that will enter the battle later are placed. These aircraft enter the board to the points on the edge that are in contact with the Approach Panel. In a scenario, there can be several (up to 6) Approach Panels.
For aircraft on the Approach Panels, there are two numbers given on the Side Sheet: the first number determines in which Round that group of aircraft must enter the board, and the second shows the latest Round in which the group should leave the board. For example:
- Me 410 (L7): 6–26
- Ju 87 (L5): 8–23
This means that the Me 410 must enter the board in the 6th Round (at the altitude of L7), and that they should leave in the 26th Round or earlier. The Ju 87 (altitude L5), on the other hand, enters the board in the 8th Round, and should leave by the 23rd Round.
The following diagram shows a sketch of a board set up for a particular Scenario with a Side Sheet. In the initial position for this Scenario, some aircraft are already on the board, and some enter after a certain number of Rounds. The directions in which the aircraft must leave the board are also given.
The following can be observed from the diagram and the Side Sheet:
- Lancaster (British) and Bf 109 (German) aircraft are already on the board, flying at L5 (level pitch) and L3 (pitched up) altitudes; the Lancaster must leave the board by the 20th Round, in the east direction (which means they proceed to their bombing target), and the Bf 109 should leave the board by the 18th Round, also in the east direction (returning to their base).
- The British Spitfires are on the approach panel and fly towards the combat zone at the altitude L7; they enter the board in the 5th Round, and should leave by the 20th Round, in the west direction. The American P-51 is also on the approach panel, it flies at L8, enters the board in the 4th, and leaves by the 25th Round, in the southwest direction (towards the approach panel).
- Two groups of German aircraft are on the same approach panel: Fw 190 and Me 262. They fly at L8 and L10, enter the board in the 3rd (Fw 190) and 8th (Me 262) Round, and leave it in the 16th and 20th Round, in the east direction.
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As will be seen in the Scenarios that follow, these games can be quite complex and long-lasting. The aircraft listed as participating in the Scenarios are from the base game, but there are notes that say which types could be used instead if the expansions are also available. Some scenarios are intended for a board that has more than 3 bi-fold segments, but players that don’t own additional boards can adapt such Scenarios to one standard board by following the instructions that follow the particular diagram.
Circus Sorties
Circus sorties was the name for actions carried out by the RAF over occupied Europe after the Battle of Britain. These were attacks by small groups of bombers with a very strong fighter escort. The bombing of ground targets was not the main goal of such actions, as the intention was to lure German fighters for an aerial battle.
A group of three Bristol Blenheim Mk IV bombers is tasked with bombing the zone marked by the area corners on the opposite side of the board. The bombers are accompanied on the left and right by two pairs of Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX. Their primary task is to engage enemy fighters that are expected to intercept the bombers.
A group of four Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6/U4 comes from a nearby airfield, and after some time, these are joined by four Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 fighters.
Given that the British fighters were outnumbered, four Hawker Tempest FB Mk IIfighters, that were on patrol over the English Channel, were urgently called for help.
The bombers can choose paths to reach the bombing zone and to return to the west. As already said that in Circus sorties the bombing of ground targets was not the primary goal, but still, all three bombers should fly towards the assigned zone and try to drop their bombs (the bomb chit is then removed from the control panel and placed to a point on the board within the marked zone). The starting positions of the aircraft as well as all the markers are shown on the diagram below.
The British player plays first. The game lasts as long as there are aircraft on the board. The winner is the player who collects more points. Each enemy aircraft shot down counts as one point, and each successful bombing also counts as one point.
** Note: The fighters chosen are not entirely appropriate for this scenario, as they were mostly used in the second half of the war in Europe. That's why we suggest replacing these fighters with aircraft from expansions, if you have them at your disposal:
- The Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6/U4 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 can be replaced by any of the earlier variants of the Bf 109, version E or F that are included in Blitzkrieg, Battle of Britain and Eastern Front expansions.
- British Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX and Hawker Tempest FB Mk II fighters can be replaced with early variants of Spitfire fighters, versions Mk I, Mk II and Mk V, as well as Hurricanes from the Battle of Britain, and African Campaign expansions.
Ramrods
As variations on Circus Sorties, there were Ramrods actions, in which the bombing of assigned targets on the ground was the primary objective, and the main task of the escort fighters was to protect the bombers. In this scenario, the British and the Americans together carried out such an action.
The initial position of the aircraft and the layout of the markers are shown in the diagram. In this scenario, almost all the aircraft are already on the board at the beginning of the game, and only one group of fighters enters the battle later on.
Allied bombers are tasked with dropping bombs on a designated Task Zone. The accuracy criteria is respected (see 5.4. Bombing in the rulebook), so each bomber scores 2 points if it successfully hits the target, while a miss earns 0 points.
The Allied player plays first. The game lasts as long as there are aircraft on the board. Each downed plane scores 1 point. The winner is the player who has more points at the end.
Counter-Air Patrol
Counter-air patrols were actions of Allied fighter groups, that maintained constant patrols over German airfields. The goal was to attack the German aircraft immediately after they took off, using their altitude advantage. Also, the same patrols waited for the German aircraft to return to the airport, because then the Germans were usually without ammunition and with very little fuel. The Me-262 fighters were especially vulnerable to such attacks because their jet engines had to be throttled some time before landing so that the landing speed would not be too high.
* This scenario requires a double board (6 bi-fold segments).
The diagram shows the initial position of the aircraft and the layout of the markers.
A patrol consisting of four North American P-51 D Mustang fighters has been flying in the area of a German airfield for a long time. They are expecting German Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe fighters to return after a successful interception of the Flying Fortresses.
To protect their incoming jet fighters, the Germans send four Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 fighters into battle.
Me 262 fighters enter the board from the western side; they are currently at L6 and have fuel for only 7 more Rounds. They must leave the board in the direction to the east and at L1 or L2. They cannot use the full throttle anymore and since they are in the landing phase, they can't fly fast, so they can only use blue dice m1-m4. Both fighters have ammunition left for only one burst each, and one of them has wing damage (making it fly slower).
Since the P-51 fighters are low on fuel, the Republic P-47 D Thunderbolt fighters arrive to continue patrols over the German airfield.
The German player plays first. The game continues as long as there are aircraft on the board.
The main task for the Allies is to shoot down Me 262 fighters, each counting 3 points.
If the Me 262 fighters leave the board by the 6th Round in the given direction and at the given height, the German player gets 3 points for each aircraft. If they leave the board after the seventh Round or at an altitude level higher than L3, no points are earned.
All other downed aircraft count as 1 point each. If an aircraft does not leave the board in time, it counts 0.5 points for the opponent.
The winner is the player who has more points at the end of the game.
Close Support
Age of Dogfights: WWII features aircraft that were used in the second half of the war in Europe. At that time (after the Allied landings in Normandy) there were major land battles, while the Allies always had a significant advantage in air forces. That’s why it’s important to say that this Scenario doesn’t have a historical basis, because in it, the number of aircraft on both sides is equal. A similar scenario, but a lot more detailed, will be part of the Eastern Front Expansion, as on that front many large ground battles took place, in which both sides had strong air support. Here we wanted to give gamers the opportunity to compare two different concepts of close support: the German one is mainly based on dive bombers, and the Allied one is based on fighter-bombers. History connoisseurs already know that fighter-bombers performed better in the war, so the Germans also gradually reduced the participation of Ju 87 dive bombers, and began to mass-produce Fw 190 F and G fighter-bombers.
* This scenario requires a board made out of 4 segments. If you don't have an additional segment (the base game contains only 3), the scenario can be adjusted by moving the markers on the board closer to each other, while all the aircraft should leave the board 3 Rounds earlier than suggested. If you want to play a game on a board with 5 or 6 segments, you can add some more target markers and extend the duration of the game by 3 to 6 Rounds.
The layout of the markers and the initial position of the aircraft is shown in the following diagram:
German ground forces are on the eastern part of the board. The Zone Targets represent artillery positions, with each having Durability value of 600. On the southeastern part of the board, there is a point marker that represents a fortified German command post, with Durability value of 40. Artillery positions and the command post are defended by four Small Anti Aircraft Zones with a Durability of 10 each. Near the middle of the board, there are six German tanks, represented by area corners, with Durability values of 25 from the front and 15 from the back.
The allied land forces are located on the western part of the board, and they also have two artillery positions that require being hit by bombs worth 600 each in order to be destroyed. They are protected by Small Anti Aircraft Zones with a durability of 10. The location of their command post (point marker) is not fortified (Durability 5). The Allies have 9 tanks, with Durability of 15 from the front and 10 from the rear.
Regarding the aircraft, at the beginning of the game, the Germans have four Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 fighters without bombs (although they can strafe targets on the ground) and four Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6/U4 with bombs that play the role of fighter-bombers. The Allies have four Hawker Tempest FB Mk II (without bombs) and four Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX (with bombs) on the board.
In the immediate vicinity of the battle, both sides have aircraft ready to enter. On the German side, these are: two Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse(with bombs), three Junkers Ju 188(with bombs), three Junkers Ju 87 D-5 Stuka (with bombs), three Focke-Wulf Fw 190 F-8 (with bombs), two Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Uhu (with bombs) and two Focke-Wulf Ta 152. The Allies have the following aircraft on standby: two Bristol Beaufighter Mk VI (with rockets), three North American B-25 J Mitchell(with bombs), two Fairey Battle (with external and internal bombs), three Hawker Typhoon Mk I B (with rockets) and four Republic P-47 D Thunderbolt (with bombs). At the start of the game, all standby aircraft are on the approach panels (Germans on 2 panels along the eastern edge of the board, and Allies on 2 panels along the western edge of the board). All of them can enter the board in any Round, whenever the player chooses to do so (they are located near the battle area), first by placing them on the points on the edge of the board and then moving from the next Round. It is only important that all aircraft of the same type must enter in the same Round. All of these aircraft (both German and Allied) should leave the board by the 25th Round.
The Allied player plays first. The game lasts as long as there are aircraft on the board, maximum 25 Rounds. The winner is the player who collects more points:
- Completely destroyed Zone Target (hit by bombs and rockets with total Power of at least 600) – 10 points;
- A partially destroyed Zone Target also brings points: the dropped bombs value gets divided by 100 and rounded down (e.g. 460 = 4 points);
- Destroyed command post – 10 points;
- Each destroyed tank – 2 points;
- Each Small Anti Aircraft Zone destroyed – 1 point;
- Each enemy aircraft shot down (by fighters or by AA cannon) – 1 point;
- Each enemy aircraft damaged – 0.5 points;
- An aircraft that does not leave the board in time – 0.5 points for the opponent;
- If a damaged aircraft does not leave the board in time – 1 point for the opponent (it is assumed that the damaged aircraft cannot successfully make a forced landing, so it is considered a complete loss)
A Bridge Too Far
During September 1944, the Allies carried out an ambitious strategic operation in the then-occupied Netherlands, with the intention of advancing more than 100 kilometers in just 2 to 3 days. The key was the capture of bridges on rivers and canals along the direction of the attack, and airborne forces were to play the main role. After ten days of heavy fighting, the Allies suffered a defeat. If by some chance the operation had succeeded, the Allies would have been able to penetrate very easily from the conquered territories into the very heart of Germany, which could have meant the end of the war before the end of 1944.
A complex ground-air operation that lasted ten days cannot be simulated in a single game of Age of Dogfights, but this scenario is inspired by that battle and shows a particular situation that could have been a part of that big operation.
* This scenario requires a double board (6 segments). If you don't have an extra board, the scenario can be adjusted by moving the markers on the field closer to each other, and by reducing the maximum number of Rounds by 6 for all the aircraft.
The layout of the markers and the initial position of the aircraft is shown in the following diagram:
Allied landing troops are located in two zones bordered by purple area corners. American landing troops are located in the smaller zone (the one near the middle of the board) and British landing troops are in the zone near the northern edge of the board. On the edge of the British zone, there is one of the bridges that should be saved from demolition, marked with a point marker. There are German troops in the three zones bordered by orange area corners. As a precaution, the Allies are ordered not to fly over these zones as there may be anti-aricraft cannons.
There are three Avro Lancaster B Mk I bombers in the southwestern part of the board; they are loaded with supplies of food and ammunition to be dropped by parachutes in the zone of British troops. In order for the cargo to be successfully dropped by parachute, the aircraft must fly over at least three points in a straight line above the given zone, at the height of L4. Then the "mission" marker is removed from the Lancaster's control panel and placed on a point within the zone.
In front of the Lancasters, there are two pairs of Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX protecting them.
In the second wave, two Douglas Dakota carry supplies of food and ammunition, but these should be dropped in the zone of American troops. The Dakotas are accompanied by four North American P-51 D Mustang fighters.
German Junkers Ju 188 bombers are coming from the north-east, loaded with bombs, and their task is to demolish the bridge. To destroy the bridge, only one hit to the point marker is enough. The Round of bombers’ entry and the flying altitude are free choice, but they must exit by the 30th Round. Tip: Given that the point of entry of the bombers is near the bridge, the Allies have little time to try to prevent the German bombers from completing the mission. They need to have fighters on patrol at several different altitudes.
The Allied player plays first. The game continues as long as there are aircraft on the board, the latest until the 32nd Round. The winner is the player who collects more points.
- Each successful cargo drop in the given zone gains 2 points to the Allies.
- A hit bridge is worth 10 points for the Germans.
- Each downed plane is worth 1 point.
- Each damaged plane is worth 0.5 points. Each plane that does not leave the board by the last turn is worth 0.5 points for the opponent.
Actions on surface targets
11 months ago
– Wed, May 31, 2023 at 05:58:58 AM
In Age of Dogfights: WWI, the representations of actions against targets on land or water are quite modest, as in reality, the main battles were fought on the ground, and the planes had their separate fights in the sky. The ability of aircraft to influence ground battles was very modest for a number of reasons: the limited ordnance load capacity, the limited accuracy, the high vulnerability of aircraft to anti-aircraft fire, and also the fact that flying was largely dependent on weather conditions.
In AoD:WWI, there are a total of 12 markers for ground targets: rectangles (each covering 6 points on the board) marked with the letters A, B and C, as well as silhouettes of vessels (each covering 3 points on the board), also marked with the letters A, B and C. The rules for zone bombing are extremely simple - it is enough for the plane to fly over a target (marked by a rectangular zone or a silhouette of a ship) and it is considered that the bombing has been carried out. There is no exact moment (nor a corresponding point on the board) that indicates the bomb drop-off. Also, there are no criteria for distinguishing hard from soft targets, however, in some scenarios, there are descriptive recommendations, such as: "the target is destroyed if 2 (out of 3) bombers successfully drop bombs..." and the like. The rules for torpedoing are a little more precise, as they state the altitude of the aircraft and the direction relative to the target needed in order to carry out an action successfully.
When designing Age of Dogfights: WWII, from the beginning, our intention was to include many more aircraft characteristics compared to AoD:WWI. Also, from the start, we announced much more exact rules for flying (various restrictions, primarily when performing turns), we introduced a new type of tilt, and introduced much more complex situations and positions during air battles. All those changes are completely justified, because the planes and their capabilities were much more complex compared to the WWI period (please note that those more complex rules in AoD:WWII do not have to be applied if you want the game to have the same level of complexity as AoD:WWI).
Originally, we did not intend to significantly improve the rules for the effect on surface targets, however, in the meantime we realized the rule updates were necessary. The additional rules bring much more realism and provide incredible opportunities to come up with a wide variety of scenarios. Also, the new rules require new game elements, and we have already described some of them (terrain markers, in the Update #30).
Another novelty are the markers for surface targets - in this game, there are a total of 74,in different forms:
1) Rectangular zones of action covering 6 points on the board. They have different marks in form of a geometric shape (square, triangle or circle).
2) Silhouettes of vessels in 3 different sizes, covering 3, 4, or 5 points.
3) Point targets in the form of hexes that cover one point on the board.
4) Hexagonal rings that cover a total of 7 points, and have a dual purpose: they indicate the AA action zone (6 outer points) and the AA gun itself, which is in the middle and represents the target that the planes can act on.
5) Corner markers that have two roles: they can represent the boundaries of some zones that need to be bombed or photographed, and they can also represent point targets with one significant difference compared to hexagonal markers - there can be a different hardness of the target if attacked from different directions. For example, tanks aren’t protected the same from the front and from the rear.
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In the following text, we present several introductory paragraphs from the rules, but please note that this is not the final text and that it’s missing accompanying images and examples:
Actions on ground targets
During WWII, aviation had a very important, almost decisive influence on all battles fought on land or sea. The fact that the winners of land and sea battles almost always (with very rare exceptions) had supremacy in the air, which enabled them to make maximum use of the potential of attack and bomber aviation, supports that claim. Unlike WWI, when aircraft had rather limited capabilities to engage land/sea targets, during WWII, ordnance and tactics were brought to near perfection.
In this game, the rules show different modes of action of aviation on surface targets:
- Strafing - shooting at targets from machine guns and cannons
- Rocket attacks - acting with unguided rockets
- Torpedoing - targeting ships with guided torpedoes
- Bombing - dropping bombs from different heights, that includes several different tactical procedures (from horizontal flight or diving)
Markings of targets and their durability
Surface targets can be very different: troops, various vehicles, vessels, fortifications, cities, etc. In game, markers made out of transparent plastic of various colors are used to mark them. The durability of the objectives is not predetermined, as it is determined by the mission brief, or in scenarios, or even in an agreement between the players before the start of the game. The targets are divided into:
- Point Targets (individual tanks, cannons, vehicles, bunkers, small objects, houses, command posts, small vessels, etc.), marked with rectangular plastic markers that cover only one point on the board. Such targets are primarily attacked by strafing. The durability values for some of the point targets are as follows:
- tanks (light, medium, heavy, super heavy): 10 - 20 - 30 - 40;
- armored vehicles: 10 to 15;
- artillery positions (guns): 5 to 15;
- bunkers: 20 to 50;
- trucks and other non-armored vehicles: 4 to 6;
- troops in the open (manpower): 2;
- troops in the trenches: 4 to 10;
- houses and other buildings: 8 to 15;
- small vessels: 4 to 15;
- Ship targets: larger vessels (ships and submarines) are marked with plastic markers of a characteristic shape. Their durability values can be from 20 (smaller civilian ships) to 300 (battleships).
- Task Zones represent larger targets (positions of larger units, port facilities, factory complexes, city neighborhoods, etc.) that are marked with rectangular plastic markers that cover 6 points on the board. The durability value ranges from 2 (manpower) to 500 (bunkers for submarines and the like).
- Large target areas (cities, industrial plants, ports, etc.) are bordered with corner markers (area limiters). In these cases, the durability of the target is usually not important, but in some scenarios, a value can be assigned.
All these plastic markers can be used for other purposes as well (depending on the scenario): to mark places to scout or to drop paratroopers, to place naval mines, etc.
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In the next update, we will publish finished pages from the rulebook.
On this occasion, we remind bakers that in February, on our secondary Kickstarter profile Forsage Light Games, we had a campaign for our old game Carom Mini Golf. The aim was to provide some work in production for our workshop and some income, while we, the authors, did not need to spend any time on it, because we are fully committed to completing the rules for AoD:WWII. The CMG campaign had a modest success on Kickstarter, so the components are already being mass-produced, and the games will be delivered during the month of June (2023), which is well ahead of schedule: CMG production update.
Since we have to find a way to further employ our capacities, we decided to launch a campaign for the reprint of our most successful game, Tank Chess, on our main Kickstarter profile. The campaign will be led by our colleague Stefan this time, while the author duo continues to focus on AoD:WWII. As always, we have prepared interesting gifts for backers who pledge in the first 48 hours and, of course, for our returning backers. More details HERE.
