Command German Aerial Squadrons, Lead A Convoy Across the Atlantic, and Fight for Richmond

Command German Aerial Squadrons, Lead A  Convoy Across the Atlantic, and Fight for Richmond
• In April 2022, Dan Verssen Games (DVG) launched a Kickstarter campaign (KS link) for Stuka Leader, a new solitaire, Leader game from designer Chuck Seegert, which plays in 45-120 minutes, and expands upon the gameplay of DVG's Corsair Leader and Zero Leader.

In Stuka Leader, you take command of a huge selection of German aircrafts in World War II, and work through a variety of campaigns with a unique blend of targets and goals. In addition, there are a few expansions available as add-ons that allow you to explore the Eastern Front, the Mediterranean, the Spanish Civil War, and more.

Here's a brief summary Stuka Leader from the publisher:
Quote:
Stuka Leader is based on Corsair Leader and Zero Leader, expanding gameplay from the previous games. You are in command of a German aerial squadron in Europe in World War Two, with aircraft including the Messerschmitt Me 109 and Me 262, Heinkel He 111, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, and the eponymous Junkers Ju 87 Stuka.

Board Game: Stuka Leader

You will need to select the right mix of pilots and aircraft under your command in order to carry out the different types of missions. Each aircraft has its advantages and disadvantages.

This game also expands additional aspects of German operations such as fuel barrels, wounds, and bail outs. There is also a new campaign sheet and tactical display, which will present a different feel to the well-established Leader gameplay.
• For an exciting, nautical World War II solitaire experience, keep your eyes peeled for Atlantic Sentinels, an upcoming 2023 release from Compass Games and designer Gregory M. Smith, which is available for pre-order.

Atlantic Sentinels plays in 120 minutes and challenges you to command a convoy across the North Atlantic with the goal of protecting Allied shipping and destroying U-boats. It's also worth mentioning Atlantic Sentinels was designed to be integrated with Smith's 2013 release The Hunters from GMT Games.

Here's an overview of what you can expect as described by the publisher:
Quote:
Atlantic Sentinels is a solitaire, tactical level game placing you as the Senior Officer of the Escort, shepherding a convoy in the North Atlantic from the attacks of U-boats, both singly and in wolfpacks.

You are in command of a convoy escort group, composed typically of 4-10 escort vessels guarding a convoy on its way across the Atlantic. Your mission is to protect as much Allied shipping as possible while simultaneously destroying as many U-boats as possible during the height of the U-boat threat – 1942 to early 1943.

Board Game: Atlantic Sentinels: North Atlantic Convoy Escort, 1942-43

Atlantic Sentinels provides players with a host of decisions as he is assigned to protect merchant convoys, typically ranging from 40 to 60 ships. The placement of escorts to offer front, rear, and flank protection to the convoy is complicated by the size of the convoy and available assets. Additional decisions must be made on where to place the escorts, which are equipped with Type 271 radars, the key to your defense.

As the game progresses, a player’s Escort Group may receive upgrades in the form of additional radars, HF/DF (High-Frequency Direction Finding) equipment, and possibly additional ships. Air support can be key, but until the CVE “jeep carriers” arrive, the “Black Pit” in the center of the Atlantic remains a high threat area.

Players will find it highly challenging to minimize convoy losses and keep them to an acceptable level.

Players may choose any of 9 historical Escort Groups (five British, four Canadian) armed with historical destroyers and corvettes.

These ships include:
B/C/D/E Classes DE
F Class DE
H Class DE
V&W Class DE
Town Class DE (American Lend Lease)
River Class FF
Flower Class Corvettes

Gameplay moves quickly, following a set sequence of events that are repeated until the end of the game. Once your initial Escort Group is set up, play proceeds by rolling for a convoy and escorting it across the Atlantic. Enemy forces range from single U-boats (typically a type VII, but possibly a Type IX) to entire wolfpacks. Wolfpacks increase in size (as they did historically) and will be your primary challenge. Encounters are randomly generated, ensuring no two careers will ever be the same. Weather can impact operations, as well as air support and crew upgrades due to experience. A logical but reasonably simple set of instructions bring the U-boats in to attack you from random directions, making your initial defensive array very important.

Of particular note is the game is designed to integrate with The Hunters if players wish to combine the games.

Atlantic Sentinels: North Atlantic Convoy Escorts, 1942-43 is meant to be a highly playable and interesting solitaire game covering the actions an Escort Group would have to deal with in fighting the U-boat peril during convoy escort.
Board Game Publisher: Hollandspiele
Board Game: Our God Was My Shield: Jackson's Valley Campaign
• In April 2022, Hollandspiele announced Mac and Lee, the second game in John Theissen's American Civil War Operational Series. Mac and Lee is a 2-player, American Civil War game which plays in 180 minutes and is a follow-up to Theissen's 2021 release, Our God Was My Shield.

Here's a brief overview of the tense experience that awaits you in Mac and Lee:
Quote:
Mac and Lee is the second game in John Theissen's American Civil War Operational Series. Specific units and their strengths are hidden from your opponent as you perform a tense dance of cat-and-mouse maneuvers. This is especially important when modeling George McClellan’s ill-fated Peninsula Campaign, where doubts about enemy numbers and positions exacerbated the extreme caution that saw the promise of “the young Napoleon” give way over the course of these operations to his reputation as a passive, bewildered commander who was hopelessly outmatched by his Confederate counterparts.

Board Game: Mac and Lee

If they want to succeed, the Union Player will need to be bolder and more decisive than Mac; the Confederate Player, for their part, must use a skillful mix of maneuver, bluff, and nerve to stymie the enemy’s advance on Richmond. Knowing when to attack and when to hold back, when to run and when to make a stand, are paramount, and as ever, subject to the fortunes of war.
Board Game: Antietam 1862
Board Game: Shiloh 1862
• For another take on the American Civil War, Worthington Publishing's Old School Wargames division launched a Kickstarter campaign in April 2022 for Grant Wylie's Seven Days Battles 1862 (KS link), the third volume in the Civil War Brigade Battle Series which is targeted to deliver in Q4 2022.

Seven Days Battles 1862 is a 2-player game which includes eight scenarios which can be played in 2-8 hours, depending on the scenario. The Kickstarter campaign also includes reprints of Antietam 1862 and Shiloh 1862 as add-ons, if you're interested in checking out the first two volumes in Worthington's Civil War Brigade Battle Series.

Here's brief excerpt on what Seven Days Battles 1862 is all about:
Quote:
SEVEN DAY'S BATTLES 1862 is Volume III in our Civil War Brigade Battle Series. It is an old school style hex and counter wargame that allows gamers to refight battles from the 1862 Seven Days Battles that occurred outside of Richmond, VA. One player will play the Confederate side, and one player will play the Union side. The victory conditions are the destruction of the enemy army and capturing key terrain objectives. The game include 8 scenarios over 4 separate battles. 2 of the scenarios allow the linking of 2 of the battles.

From gallery of candidrum
Box cover art is not final

The battles included are Beaver Dam Creek, Gaine's Mill, Glendale, and Malvern Hill. Beaver Dam Creek and Gaine's Mill may be joined in one of the scenarios to cover two days of the batttles, while Glendale and Malvern Hill may be joined in another scenario to cover two other days of the battle.

The 6 single day scenarios can be played in 2 to 4 hours, while the 2 two day scenarios can be player in 6 - 8 hours.

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