Victory at Sea: Battle for the Pacific
Victory at Sea: Battle for the Pacific Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
The Basics
Ships in Victory at Sea
Every ship in the game is defined by its ship card, detailing all the game information you need to play with that ship. An example ship card (USS Northampton, Northampton-class Heavy Cruiser, Type: Cruiser, Flank Speed 6", Armour 2+, Hull 23/7, Traits: Aircraft 4) has the following parts.
Class Name. The name of the class of warship. A list of individual ships of that class is named on the back of the ship card.
Type. Describes the size and function of the ship in the Victory at Sea game, such as destroyer, cruiser, carrier and battleship.
Points Value. Every ship has an associated point value, which reflects how powerful the ship is relative to all the others. Points values are used when playing the War at Sea scenario (see page 54).
Flank Speed. The maximum distance in inches a ship can usually move in a single game turn.
Armour. The higher the value here, the better armoured a ship is and the longer it will be able to withstand incoming fire.
Hull. The first figure shows how many points of damage a ship's hull, frame and superstructure can withstand before being destroyed. The second marks the point at which the ship has taken enough damage to become crippled. On the card shown, once the USS Northampton takes 16 points of damage, reducing her to 7 Hull overall, she becomes crippled.
Traits. Many ships have abilities and rules that allow them to perform actions unavailable to others. The USS Northampton has the trait Aircraft 4, meaning she carries and can launch aircraft. Traits are detailed on page 48.
Weapon Systems. Most warships will have multiple weapon systems, all of which are detailed on the ship card. Each line in this section details a single weapon system (so, Light Guns would be one weapon system, A turret another, and B turret a third). Every weapon system is defined by its fire arc, range (point blank, short, long, and extreme), the number of Attack Dice (AD) it uses, its Armour Piercing (AP) rating (i.e. its ability to penetrate Armour), and the Damage Dice (DD) dealt when a hit is scored. Some weapon systems also have Traits, as defined on page 48, which further influence their effect in the game.
Additional Information. On the back of the ship card you will find some biographical information and a list of any refits made to ships in the class during the course of the war. Note that refits are cumulative, so all refits up to and including a specific year are applied.
Tools & Counters
The game uses: a Turning Gauge, Smoke Markers, an Initiative Token, a Re-Arm Token, and Critical Hit Tokens (Engine Area, Crew Area, Weapons Area and Vital Systems Critical Tokens).
Pre-Measuring
You are allowed to pre-measure distances and ranges in Victory at Sea. Captains and admirals of the Second World War had quite sophisticated fire control systems, sometimes tied into radar or aided by observation aircraft.
All distances in Victory at Sea are measured from the bridge of a ship's model. All distances are measured in inches.
Dice
Victory at Sea uses both six-sided dice (often abbreviated as D6) and ten-sided dice (abbreviated as D10). When called on to roll a dice, take note of the number rolled then add or subtract any relevant modifiers - the final number is known as the result. Sometimes the rules may ask you for a result of a 'natural 1' (or 10, or 6). Simply put, this is when the dice score matches that relevant number before any modifiers are applied.
Re-Rolls
Some special situations may call for you to re-roll a dice. This simply means you ignore the first result a dice has rolled and roll again. You must always accept the result of the second roll, even if it was worse than the first - re-rolls can be used to get you out of a tricky situation, but they are never guaranteed! You may only re-roll a dice once, no matter what the circumstances.
Ship Models
The Victory at Sea model ships are used to represent only their relative positions. In reality, at the sort of scales and distances a Victory at Sea battle represents, true-to-scale models would be unfeasibly tiny. As such, any movement or measurement is made from and to the bridge of each model. The bridge, therefore, represents a truer approximation of the actual position of the vessel on the open sea.
The Game Turn
In a real naval battle, all ships within both fleets are always in motion and continuously firing as they go, all at the same time. To make this process of naval combat a lot easier to replicate in Victory at Sea, the game is split into discrete game turns. Each game turn is then further split into four distinct phases. During a game turn, both players will participate in each phase together and, when each game turn is complete, every ship on each player's side will have had a chance to act and affect the outcome of the battle.
The four phases are played in order - Initiative Phase, Movement Phase, Gunnery Phase and End Phase. When the End Phase has been completed, the current game turn ends and the next one begins with a new Initiative Phase.
Initiative Phase
The Initiative Phase is used to resolve any actions that do not require players to make any choices and to decide who will have the Initiative for the turn - in other words, who has gained a position of tactical advantage.
At the start of each turn, both players roll a D10 for Initiative, taking note of the result. Any ties are re-rolled. The player that rolled the highest has won the Initiative Phase and should claim the Initiative Token as a reminder of which player holds initiative this turn.
Movement Phase
The player who lost the Initiative Phase must now nominate one of their ships and move it. Their opponent then chooses one of their vessels and moves that. Continue alternating moving ships in this way until all ships have been moved. Note that a particularly large fleet may still have ships to move after its enemy has finished moving all of its own. In this case, the larger fleet will carry on until they have all had a chance to move.
Gunnery Phase
Once ships have been moved into position, they fire their weapons in an effort to destroy their enemies. Players alternate the firing of their ships. The player who won the Initiative Phase nominates one of their ships and then attacks with it, resolving all damage dealt. Their opponent then nominates one of their ships and attacks. The players continue alternating until all ships have attacked or at least had a chance to attack.
Note that it is not compulsory for a ship to attack, even if it has a viable target. The player may simply nominate it and choose not to fire. However, they may not select it again that turn and attempt to fire - the player must make the decision to attack there and then, and not hold back!
End Phase
The End Phase is used to 'tidy up' the battlefield and make sure all players know what is happening. This is the time Damage Control and other functions are performed. Once complete, a new turn begins, starting with the Initiative Phase.
Movement Phase
The ability to manoeuvre a ship into a position of advantage is vital. By outwitting your opponent, you will gain the opportunity to keep your ships at optimum range for their weaponry while keeping out of the fire arcs of your opponent's most dangerous guns.
Once it has been determined which player has won the Initiative Phase, players then take turns to move their ships, with the player who lost moving first. A ship may only be nominated to move once in every turn and every ship must be nominated. You are not allowed to skip or ignore ships, even if it means moving a ship into a position of disadvantage!
Moving Ships
When nominated to move, a ship can move a distance in inches up to its Flank Speed score. However, unless the ship has had its Flank Speed reduced to 0 due to damage, it must always move a minimum distance of 1" forward.
A ship can change the direction of its movement only after it has moved at least 2" forward in a straight line. It can then make a turn of up to 45 degrees to either port or starboard (that is left or right, respectively). The turning gauge included helps facilitate this (Diagrams 1 and 2: using the turning gauge; making a turn).
A ship may turn any number of times during its movement, but it must travel at least 2" forward in a straight line before making each turn. If, for whatever reason, the ship cannot move the full required increment of 2" forward, then it cannot turn and remains facing forward at the end of its move.
Ship models may never be stacked on top of one another and so you may never end your movement 'on top' of another ship. If this occurs, the player moving the ship simply places it wholly to one side or the other of the stationary vessel, whichever side the moving ship's bridge would have ended up on.
These are all the rules you need to know in order to move your ships and begin attacking with them. However, there are a range of Orders you can attempt during this phase instead of just moving normally, from scrambling fighters on an aircraft carrier to taking evasive action when under attack. See page 47 for a list of these Orders.
Gunnery Phase
Starting with the player who won the Initiative Phase, players alternate the firing with each of their ships. Rolling to hit, calculating all damage, and resolving any critical effects before moving onto the next attacking ship. This, of course, makes winning the Initiative Phase very important in some turns.
Once a ship has been nominated to fire, the player follows this process:
- Nominate targets for every weapon system that will fire this phase
- Check fire arc and range for each weapon system
- Resolve firing
- Resolve damage
Nominate Targets
For an attack to be successfully launched, two conditions must first be met:
- The target must lie within the fire arc of the weapon system that is firing;
- The target must be within range of the weapon system.
You must nominate a visible target for every weapon system you intend to fire from your ship at the same time, before any attacks are made. As the ship models themselves are only representational, they do not block the line of sight.
You must always measure from the bridge of your ship to the bridge of that target when checking for both range and whether a target lies in an appropriate fire arc or not.
Unless your ship has rules to the contrary, you may fire each weapon system once during every turn, and every weapon system may be fired at a different target.
Maximum Visual Range
The maximum range a ship can attack a target at is 30". Targets beyond this are considered to be over the horizon and require a slightly more complicated approach to hitting their target (see Beyond the Horizon Attacks).
Splitting Fire
If a Light Gun or AA Battery weapon system has more than one Attack Dice, then it may split its fire among multiple different targets. This is done when targets are being nominated and the amount of Attack Dice allocated to each target must be declared before any firing takes place. Other weapon systems may not split their fire and engage multiple targets in this way, all Attack Dice from Main Guns, Torpedoes and Bombs are directed at a single target.
Torpedoes
Each Attack Dice listed for a given Torpedo weapon system represents a single torpedo. The player thus has the option to fire some or all the torpedoes at the designated target from that Torpedo system. By firing only part of that Torpedo weapon system's total Attack Dice, the player is choosing to hold the remainder in reserve for a later attack. If the torpedo system has the Slow-Loading Trait (see page 49), a torpedo cannot be re-loaded into a partially empty rack if that specific weapon system fires additional torpedoes during that round.
While each specific Torpedo weapon system cannot split its torpedoes between multiple targets, ships equipped with more than one Torpedo weapon system, may direct each separate Torpedo weapon system at a different target.
Beyond the Horizon Attacks
Many guns of this era are so powerful they can hurl a shell far beyond the horizon or over small land masses. Given the difficulty of hitting a target that cannot be seen (even with radar), this is rarely done during battle but has applications in other military operations.
Finding the Target. Only stationary targets, either installations on land or anchored ships, may be attacked beyond a range of 30", or if land lies between attacker and target. In order to attack a specific target beyond 30", an Observation Flight is needed to guide attacks onto that target. If an Observation Flight has been assigned to 'spot' that specific target, then all ships in the fleet can attack that target as long as it is within the weapons system's extreme range.
Making the Attack. Even with an Observation Flight to make corrections and in perfect conditions, accuracy at these ranges is poor at best. All attacks will have the number of Attack Dice they use halved, rounding down, and each Attack Dice requires a natural 6 to be rolled in order to hit the target - Beyond Horizon Attacks are never modified for any reason.
A, B; Q, R; X, Y Guns
Each nation has their own system for identifying and naming the guns they carry and their positions. The Germans, for example, used their phonetic alphabet to assign guns sequential names such as "Anton", "Bruno", "Caesar", "Dora", etc. For consistency, Victory at Sea uses the Royal Navy system throughout, where A, B, refer to forward guns; Q, R refer to guns amidships; and X, Y, refer to a ship's aft guns.
Weapon Systems
There are several types of weapon systems used in Victory at Sea, though not every ship will possess all of them.
Main Gun. These are the main turreted weapons that made battleships famous. They are noted in ship descriptions as being mounted on turrets.
Light Gun. These represent the multitude of smaller weaponry that ships commonly carry. They may be used to attack any target in range, on any heading. Note that smaller ships may only possess Light Guns and have no Main Guns - while these smaller weapons may, technically, be the ship's primary weapons, they are still counted as Light Guns for the purposes of these rules.
AA Battery. Anti-aircraft batteries are usually the only defence a ship has against aircraft. Anti-aircraft batteries may target any aircraft within range and will fire at the start of the Gunnery Phase, before either player gets a chance to do anything else. The use of these weapons is described with the rules for Aircraft starting on page 50.
Torpedo. Mounted mainly on cruisers and destroyers, as well as some aircraft. Torpedoes are designed to attack ships below the waterline, where they are most vulnerable. Torpedoes are launched from the fore, port or starboard of most vessels.
Bomb. Carried by aircraft, some bombs are capable of smashing right through armoured decks to explode within a ship's most vulnerable areas.
Fire Arcs
Every ship in Victory at Sea has a number of firing arcs. The ship arcs are Fore, Aft, Port and Starboard, measured from the bridge (the arrow denotes the direction the ship's bow is facing). Weapon system fire arcs on ship cards are shown as combinations of these arcs: Fore; Aft; Fore, Port; Aft, Port; Fore, Starboard; Aft, Starboard; Fore, Port, Starboard; Aft, Port, Starboard; Port; Starboard; and Fore, Aft, Port, Starboard (all arcs).
Firing
Each weapon system on a ship card has an Attack Dice (AD) score listed. This is the number of D6 rolled every time the weapon system is fired.
For every Attack Dice that results in a 4 or more, a hit has been scored. However, each Attack Dice will be modified as follows (all modifiers are cumulative except those for range, where only the relevant modifier is applied).
Attack Dice Modifiers
| Condition | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Target is at Point Blank Range (note 1) | +1 |
| Target is at Short Range | +0 |
| Target is at Long Range | -1 |
| Target is at Extreme Range | -2 |
| Target's Ship Class is Destroyer | -1 |
| Fast Moving Target (target moved more than 6" this turn) (note 2) | -1 |
| Stationary Target (target on land, anchored or run aground) | +1 |
| Large Silhouette (you are in the target's port or starboard arc) | +1 |
| Weapon System is a Torpedo | -2 |
- Main Guns can only target battleships, carriers, cruisers and civilian ships at point blank range due to slow turret movement and the inability to depress their guns low enough.
- Light Guns and AA Batteries are able to track their targets more quickly and ignore the penalty for fast moving targets.
Damage
Once hits have scored on a target, it is time to see what damage has been caused. Every weapon system has a Damage Dice (DD) score listed. This is the number of D6 rolled for every Attack Dice that successfully hit the target. The weapon system's Armour Piercing (AP) score is then added to or subtracted from each Damage Dice rolled.
The resulting number on each Damage Dice is then compared to the target's Armour score. For every Damage Dice that equals or exceeds the Armour score, 1 point of damage is deducted from the target's Hull - move the damage sliders on the ship card to reflect this.
Each Damage Dice that rolls a natural 1 automatically deflects off the target's Armour, causing no damage, regardless of the weapon system's Armour Piercing modifier.
Each Damage Dice that rolls a natural 6 has the potential to also cause a critical hit. For every natural 6 rolled, roll that D6 again, even if no damage was dealt to the target ship due to the ship's Armour. If on this roll you get a result of 4 or more then, in addition to causing any damage as normal, you will also score a critical hit! More details on critical hits are given below.
If a ship's Hull is reduced to 0, it is considered to be destroyed and sinks. Remove the model from the playing area.
Plunging Fire. Shells fired at longer ranges by Main and Light Guns do not travel in a flat line to their target - instead, they are fired upwards and travel in an arc to dive down upon their target. This means shells fired in this way do not usually strike the thick hull armour mounted on the side of ships, but instead tend to plunge down toward their much weaker deck armour. Main Guns and Light Guns fired at a target within the weapon system's long or extreme range gain +1 to their Damage Dice results.
Heavy Armour. Some of the biggest and toughest ships afloat have an Armour score of 7. This means they can only be damaged by weapons that have a bonus added to their Damage Dice, such as from plunging fire.
Crippled Ships
The Hull score of each ship has a secondary value, as noted on its ship card. When a ship's Hull is reduced to this secondary value or below, it has been crippled.
For example, the USS Northampton has a Hull score listed as 23/7. This means that she can lose a total of 23 Hull to damage before sinking. However, when her Hull has been reduced to 7 points or fewer, she is crippled.
A crippled ship will permanently have its current Flank Speed reduced by half and it gains the Lumbering trait (see page 48). The Attack Dice of the ship's Light Guns, Torpedoes and AA Battery weapon systems will be halved (rounding down). In addition, roll a D6 for every Main Gun and Trait the ship possesses. On a 4+ the Main Gun or Trait is rendered inoperable and cannot be used again during the game.
Critical Hits
Roll one D10 for each critical hit scored and consult the Critical Area table below to determine exactly where the ship has been affected.
Critical Area Table
| D10 Score | Target |
|---|---|
| 1-4 | Engine |
| 5-7 | Weapons |
| 8-9 | Crew |
| 10 | Vital System |
When either the Engine, Weapons, or Crew area sustains a critical hit, that area's Critical Score increases by 1, to a maximum of 6. Keep track of critical hits by placing the relevant critical hit tokens on your ship's card. Critical hits against a Vital System are dealt with differently, see below.
Every time a critical area's Critical Score increases, immediately apply the extra damage to the ship's Hull and apply the associated penalty.
The effects of critical hit penalties are cumulative, so if a ship's Engines have a Critical Score of 3, it will have its Flank Speed reduced by a total of -2".
If an area already has a Critical Score of 6 and receives another critical hit to that area, apply both the extra damage and penalty for a Critical Score of 6 again.
Some critical penalties increase the Critical Score of other areas, if this penalty occurs immediately increase that critical area's Critical Score and apply the resulting extra damage and penalty.
The Escalation penalty means that, if left unattended, the areas Critical Score may increase, as fires and secondary explosions spread! The effects of this penalty are checked for and applied during the turn's End Phase - see below for details.
Engine Area
| Critical Score | Effect | Extra Damage | Penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Props Damaged | 0 | -1" to Flank Speed |
| 2 | Rudder Damaged | 1 | Must move 3" before each turn |
| 3 | Turbine Damaged | 2 | -1" to Flank Speed; Crew area Critical Score increases by 1 |
| 4 | Fuel System Ruptured | 3 | -1" Flank Speed; Escalation |
| 5 | Engines Disabled | D6 | Flank Speed reduced to 0" |
| 6 | Fuel Explosion | 3D6 | Crew area Critical Score increases by 1 |
Weapons Area
| Critical Score | Effect | Extra Damage | Penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Secondary Weapons Damaged | 1 | -1 Attack Dice* |
| 2 | Secondary Weapons Destroyed | 2 | -2 Attack Dice*; Crew area Critical Score increases by 1 |
| 3 | Turret Damaged | 3 | Random turret must roll 4+ before firing (ignore if no turrets present) |
| 4 | Turret Destroyed | D6 | Random turret destroyed (cannot be used even if repaired); Escalation |
| 5 | Magazine Explosion | 2D6 | Random turret destroyed (cannot be used even if repaired) |
| 6 | Multiple Explosions | 3D6 |
Crew Area
| Critical Score | Effect | Extra Damage | Penalty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shrapnel | 0 | -1 Attack Dice* |
| 2 | Fire | 1 | Escalation |
| 3 | Multiple Fires | 2 | Weapon area Critical Score increases by 1 |
| 4 | Heavy Shrapnel | 3 | The ship's crew quality checks gain a -1 modifier |
| 5 | Hull Breach | D6 | Engine area Critical Score increases by 1 |
| 6 | Explosion | 2D6 | Weapon area Critical Score increases by 1 |
* Each time this result is gained, roll a D6. On a 1-3, Attack Dice are lost from all Light Guns weapon systems, on a 4-5 from the AA Battery, and on a 6 from all Torpedoes. If a ship lacks any weapon system rolled, roll again until a system that is present is rolled.
Note that some ships do not possess turrets. In the case of such a ship suffering a Turret Destroyed or Magazine Explosion critical effect, halve the Attack Dice of all Light Guns, rounding down, instead and apply all other effects of the critical hit as normal.
Vital Systems
If a critical hit is scored upon a Vital System, things are about to get very, very bad for the ship involved. These are devastating hits that cause terrible, even terminal, damage. For each Vital System critical hit a ship suffers roll on this table to see what happens. Place the relevant Vital Systems critical token on your ship's card as a reminder.
| D6 Score | Area | Damage | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bridge Destroyed | 1 | For the rest of the game, the ship is no longer able to perform any Orders. |
| 2 | Rudder Jammed | D6 | Roll a D6. For the rest of the game, at every opportunity, the ship must: on a 1-2, always turn left; on a 3-4, no longer make any turns; on a 5-6, it must always turn right. |
| 3 | Fire in Engineering | 2D6 | For the rest of the game, the ship cannot perform damage control. |
| 4 | Magazine Ablaze | 2D6 | For the rest of the game, before each weapon system can fire roll a D6: on a 1-3 the weapon system cannot fire this turn; on a 4-6 the weapon system can fire as normal. |
| 5 | Secondary Explosions | 4D6 | Increase the Critical Scores of every area by 1. |
End Phase
Once all players have moved and attacked with all their ships, the End Phase completes the turn. This phase is used to complete any actions needed for special rules, as well as providing a vital chance for players to repair any damage their ships have sustained from critical hits.
You should go through the following procedures, in order, during every End Phase.
- Damage Control
- Check for Escalation
Damage Control
Warships train and maintain specialist groups of crewmen known collectively as damage control. It is their job to assess and report damage sustained, stop it from getting worse and, where possible, make repairs.
During the End Phase, each ship can use their damage control to attempt to repair damage sustained to a single critical area. The player who won the Initiative Phase this turn attempts this for all their ships first, followed by all the other player's ships.
Each ship may only attempt one damage control repair a turn. Pick a critical area (Engine, Weapons, or Crew) and roll a D6. For every point the result is above 4 the Critical Score of that area is reduced by 1, to a minimum of 0.
For example, a result of 6 reduces the Critical Score by 2. The ship no longer suffers the penalty associated with the old Critical Score; any previous penalties associated with the higher scores are ignored. However, any increases to other critical areas or extra damage sustained by the old Critical Score remain.
Locations with a Critical Score of 6 and critical hits to Vital Systems may never be repaired.
Check for Escalation
Some critical area penalties indicate the Critical Score there may suffer Escalation. All critical areas subject to the Escalation penalty must roll a D6. On a result of 4 or more, its Critical Score immediately increases by 1. Any extra damage or penalty resulting from the new score is applied immediately. Remember to keep rolling for Escalation every End Phase, until and unless the Critical Score drops below the point at which Escalation appears.
Orders
A ship's captain is the most important member of the crew. His leadership, discipline and tactical knowledge are vital to his ship's, and the fleet's, victory. During a battle, each ship's captain can issue specific Orders to his crew. Whether it is calling on all available crew to fix damaged systems or desperately manoeuvring the vessel to avoid incoming attacks, Orders are a key element of Victory at Sea.
Performing an Order
When a ship is nominated to move, a player can also choose to have that ship's captain issue an Order. Some of these Orders are followed automatically, while others require a crew quality check to succeed. Each ship's captain may only issue a single Order during a turn, though any number of captains may issue the same order every turn. An Order must be chosen before the ship begins to move. If the Order is successful, apply the Order's effect. If not, the ship moves as normal and ignores the effect of the Order attempted.
Crew Quality Checks
A crew quality check is performed by rolling a D6 and applying any relevant modifiers, if the result is 4 or more the check succeeds. Sometimes, a ship will be required to make an opposed crew quality check with another vessel. In this case, both ships make a crew quality check, with the highest rolling ship succeeding in the check. Re-roll ties.
The Orders
All Hands on Deck! (Crew Quality Check). The captain orders the entire engineering section to alert. During the End Phase, damage control may be attempted on all critical areas rather than just a single area. Additionally, the ship gains +1 to their damage control rolls. However, during the Gunnery Phase, every attack the ship makes with each of its weapon systems suffers a -1 penalty to their Attack Dice rolls.
Come About! (Crew Quality Check). Pushing the ship's rudders to maximum deflection, the captain orders his ship to turn hard to gain a position of advantage. During its move, the ship can make a single direction change of up to 90 degrees. However, the ship cannot make any other changes to direction until its next turn.
Create Smoke! (Automatic). Burning excess oil, the ship begins to belch thick clouds of black smoke, cloaking a large area. Place one smoke counter in contact behind the ship for every full 3" the ship moves. No ship may draw a line through these counters and no attacks can be made through them at all. The smoke counters are removed in the End Phase.
Evade! (Automatic). Turning hard at random intervals, the ship tries to throw an attacker off-guard, causing weapons to miss simply by not being where it was predicted. All attacks made by a ship performing the Evade! Order suffer a -1 penalty to each of its weapon system's Attack Dice rolls and the ship may not use Torpedoes. Additionally, the ship's current Flank Speed is halved (round up) for this turn. However, all enemy Attack Dice which successfully hit this ship in this turn must be re-rolled. Destroyers are particularly good at the Evade! Order, if their current Flank Speed (before being halved) is greater than 6", enemies retain the Attack Dice penalty for targeting a fast moving target (see page 44), regardless of how far they have actually moved.
Flood Magazines! (Crew Quality Check). An order all commanders hope to never issue, flooding magazines with water in order to extinguish fires is only done in the direst of circumstances. If the crew quality check is successful, Critical Scores of all locations are immediately reduced to a level where the Escalation rule is no longer present (so the Crew area will have a maximum Critical Score of 1, and Engine and Weapons areas a maximum score of 3). However, one random Main Gun weapon system is put out of action for the remainder of the battle and cannot be repaired (if no turrets are present, halve the Attack Dice of all Light Guns, rounding down).
Scramble! (Crew Quality Check). With utter precision born from months of hard training, the deck crew work to turn around launching or landing aircraft in rapid succession. The carrier may launch or recover two Flights in this turn (see page 52).
Traits
In Victory at Sea, Traits are applied to ships, aircraft and weapons. These are abilities that in some way alter the core rules of the game. For example, an Agile ship will prove very nimble at sea, able to run rings round clumsier vessels. In the same way, there are weapons that are exceptionally powerful compared to normal guns and others markedly less effective.
Ship Traits
Ship Traits can affect the game in all kinds of ways, including movement, firing and the ability to resist damage, as well as wholly new effects that take place outside of normal combat. Traits are one of the ways that vessels from different fleets distanced themselves in the ongoing technological race throughout the Second World War.
Advanced Radar. As the war progressed better surface radar systems were developed. A ship with this trait may track enemy fleets for longer and from a greater distance. Ships committed to scouting with the Advanced Radar Trait (see page 56) gain +2 to their dice roll and can re-roll their dice.
Agile. Some ships are very manoeuvrable, either by virtue of their speed and size or advanced rudder systems. An Agile ship may change direction after every 1" of forward movement, rather than after the usual 2".
Aircraft X. Though not proper carriers in the truest sense, many ships carried a small number of aircraft that were launched from short catapults or slings, to be used as Observation Flights. They are used for scouting (page 56) and guiding Beyond the Horizon Attacks (page 42).
Armoured Deck. The ship has reinforced armour lining its deck. Main Guns and Light Guns firing upon this ship do not get the +1 bonus to their Damage Dice roll for plunging fire (page 44). Additionally, attacks against the ship from aircraft with the Dive-Bombers and Kamikaze roles suffer a -1 penalty to their Damage Dice rolls.
Carrier. The ship is an aircraft carrier, serving as a mobile floating airbase. It may launch or collect one aircraft Flight per turn so long as its captain does not perform any Orders other than Scramble! this turn.
Lumbering. This ship is particularly ungainly in the water. It may only make one change of direction during its movement. Additionally, Lumbering ships may not use the Evade! Order.
Radar. The ship is fitted with a surface radar system that allows it to operate effectively at long ranges, ideal for scouting enemy fleet movements. Ships committed to scouting with the Radar Trait (see page 56) gain +1 to their dice roll and can re-roll their dice.
Torpedo Belt X. A thick reinforced layer of armour, often supplemented with individual compartments filled with gas or water, lies beneath the waterline of this ship and is capable of minimising the effects of a torpedo hit. Whenever this ship is hit by a torpedo in its side arcs, the Torpedo Belt score will be deducted from each Damage Dice rolled by the Torpedo weapon system attack.
Weapon Traits
The Traits used for weapon systems typically revolve around the capabilities of the weapon itself and what it can do in battle. Some weapons are made vastly superior by these traits, while others have their effectiveness reduced.
Devastating. This weapon is exceptionally powerful, capable of blasting small targets apart and causing serious problems for even the largest vessels. Instead of causing one point of damage with each successful Damage Dice roll, a Devastating weapon will cause an amount of damage equal to what each Damage Dice actually rolls, regardless of whether it exceeds the target's Armour score or not. In addition, a Critical Hit is scored for every Damage Dice that rolls a 5 or 6 (before any modification by Torpedo Belts). Any critical hits scored will have a Critical Score set to the roll of one D6 (however, if the location already has a Critical Score that is higher than the dice roll, the new Critical Hit is ignored).
DP. Dual Purpose, or DP, Light Guns are capable of attacking surface shipping or aircraft, making them extremely versatile. Up to half of a DP weapon's current Attack Dice (rounding up, minimum of 1) may instead be used as AA weapons to attack aircraft or motor torpedo boats at up to half the weapon's normal range. However, this weapon may not be used in the same turn to attack other units.
Fast Track. These guns can re-adjust their aim quickly, making them well-suited to firing upon rapidly moving ships. Fast Track weapons ignore the penalty for firing upon a fast moving target and can attack all targets within its point blank range.
Heavy. Weapons with this trait are capable of blasting through armour to damage critical areas of a target. The chance of a critical hit scored with a Heavy weapon on a Damage Dice is 5 or 6, rather than the usual 6.
Local X. Most AA Battery weapons mounted on ships have very short ranges and are only capable of protecting their own vessel. This weapon may roll an additional number of Attack Dice equal to the Local score, but these may only be used against Flights in contact with the ship. In addition, these Attack Dice may also be rolled against any and all Flights that physically move over the ship in the Movement Phase. These attacks are performed immediately, as the aircraft are moved over the ship. Local weapons may be used any number of times during the Movement Phase and may then be used (just once!) in the Gunnery Phase.
One-Shot. Ammunition or payload is limited for this weapon, so once fired it may not be used again for the rest of the battle.
Restricted. Some ships are so large that though they mount many Light Guns, not all can be fired upon the same target. A Restricted weapon may only fire a maximum of half its Attack Dice (rounding up) against targets in the port and starboard fire arcs.
Slow-Loading. Some weapons take an inordinate amount of time to reload. These weapons may not fire if they were used in the previous turn. Ships with Slow-Loading torpedoes may only reload once, after which they may no longer be used.
Twin-Linked. These weapons are mounted in pairs or even quads, concentrating their available firepower. The hail of fire these weapon systems can unleash is awesome to behold and very difficult to avoid. Any Attack Dice for this weapon that do not successfully strike their target may be re-rolled although the second result applies even if it fails.
Weak. Due to small shell size or design, some weapons are simply not as powerful as others. Weak weapons cannot cause critical hits except against ships of the civilian type.
Aircraft Traits
Traits used on aircraft reflect Flights that have unusual or notable qualities. Some will make Flights a great deal more effective in battle while others represent aircraft that had some serious failings.
Large. This Flight is particularly large or ungainly and thus easier for AA Battery crews to knock out of the sky. All AA Attack Dice rolled against this flight has a +1 bonus to their result.
Tough. This Flight is unusually well-armoured and can withstand incoming fire. Two hits are needed from a single AA Battery system in order to destroy it.
Very Tough. This Flight is exceptionally well-armoured and can endure a tremendous amount of incoming fire. Three hits are needed from a single AA Battery system in order to destroy it.
Aircraft
As the design of aircraft advanced, navy tactics employing them evolved in tandem. With an aircraft carrier, a fleet gained the ability to strike at targets hundreds of miles away with relative impunity. Despite the advance of anti-aircraft weaponry and the presence of defending fighters, aircraft spelled the eventual demise of the battleship as the rulers of the oceans.
A fleet may have supporting aircraft directed to its position from land-based airfields or it may possess its own aircraft carrier. If any Flights of aircraft are bought individually from the fleet lists and not assigned to a carrier also in the fleet, they are considered to be land-based for the purposes of these rules, though they could also conceivably have been launched from another aircraft carrier far from the battle.
In some scenarios, your entire 'fleet' can comprise nothing but aircraft. Battles of this nature certainly took place in the Second World War, with Taranto and Pearl Harbor being the most notable examples.
Aircraft Flights and Type
All aircraft in Victory at Sea are organised into Flights. A Flight of aircraft is represented by a model of up to four aircraft on a flying stand. Many types of aircraft appeared in the Second World War, but the following types are used in Victory at Sea.
Fighter. Dedicated to gaining air superiority by annihilating an enemy's air force, fighters are tasked with the defence of the fleet.
Bomber. Covering a multitude of aircraft from fighters fitted with under wing bombs to dedicated attack craft, these aircraft pose a great threat to any fleet.
Dive-Bomber. First exploited by the Luftwaffe, but quickly finding favour across the world, dive-bombers use speed and altitude to gain phenomenal accuracy as well as imparting enough kinetic energy to their bombs to pierce armoured decks.
Kamikaze. These are suicide aircraft which are flown into their enemies to cause great damage. The rules for their use are given below (Kamikaze).
Torpedo-Bomber. Perfected by Submarines, it was inevitable that torpedoes would also be mounted on aircraft. However, the technology of the Second World War had trouble catching up to the task and air-launched torpedo attacks were notoriously hard to perform.
Observation Flight. Either seaplanes or long-ranged land-based aircraft, Observation Flights operate on their own but provide a vital service to fleets. These aircraft are used for scouting in scenarios that allow it (see Scouting under War at Sea), and for guiding Beyond the Horizon Attacks (see Gunnery Phase). Observation Flights operate differently to combat aircraft - see Observation Flights below for information on their use. Because of the way Observation Flights work, no model is required for this Flight, although you can field them to add more atmosphere to your games should you wish.
Movement Phase
Aircraft move slightly differently to ships. Once all ships in both fleets have moved, the player who won the Initiative Phase must then choose whether to move their aircraft first or force their opponent to do so. Once this decision has been made, then all aircraft in a fleet are moved at the same time. Then the opposing fleet does the same with its aircraft.
A Flight can move in any direction, taking as many turns as it wishes. However, a Flight of aircraft may never perform an Order. All measurements are made from and to the lead plane on the Flight model, exactly as if it were the bridge of a ship model. This reflects the freedom of movement aircraft have in battles involving huge warships and keeps things quick and easy in battles featuring many Flights of aircraft.
Gunnery Phase
Shooting Down Aircraft. Most ships have some form of defence against aircraft in the form of an AA Battery. If enemy Flights are in range, a ship's AA battery is fired automatically at the beginning of the Gunnery Phase before anything else happens - the ship's crew are expecting battle and aircraft will rarely have an easy time attacking a ship. Remember that an AA Battery with the Local Trait may also attack during movement (see Traits).
Aircraft may only be attacked by AA Batteries, Light Guns with the DP Trait and other aircraft. When targeting enemy Flights, roll the Attack Dice of the AA Battery as normal. These Attack Dice are never modified. Every 6 rolled on the Attack Dice will result in a Flight being hit and destroyed. Against a Torpedo-Bomber Flight that is in base contact with the firing ship, a 5 or 6 is required to hit and destroy it. An AA Battery may freely split its Attack Dice between multiple Flights if desired, but it may never fire into a dogfight.
Aircraft Chart
The aircraft chart in the fleet lists gives for each Flight: Flight, Commissioned, Carrier, Role, Flank Speed, Dogfight, Damage Dice, Traits and Points. The example given is the US Navy's Vought F4U-1 Corsair (Commissioned 1942, Carrier: No, Role: Fighter, Flank Speed 30", Dogfight +3, Damage Dice 0, Traits: Tough, Points 25).
- Flight: The name of the aircraft in the Flight.
- Commissioned: As with ships, the year in which the aircraft came into service and thus when it can be used.
- Carrier: Whether the aircraft can be launched or recovered from aircraft carriers or not.
- Role: This details the Flight's role in the battle, as described earlier.
- Flank Speed: This is the same as for ships, but Flights are much faster and far more manoeuvrable.
- Dogfight: This is a measure of how effective the aircraft is against other aircraft.
- Damage Dice: This is a measure of how much damage the aircraft can do against ships and other surface targets.
- Traits: Any traits that should be applied to the aircraft or its attacks will be noted here.
- Point Value: As with ships, this represents the Flights' relative power.
Additionally, carriers have the maximum number of Flights they may carry and the points values of these Flights are included in the point value of the carrier. Players are free to choose whichever aircraft they wish so long as the number of Flights does not exceed their carriers' maximum, and only Flights that are listed as being carrier-capable are chosen.
Aircraft may also be included without a carrier in the fleet. These aircraft are assumed to have taken off from land bases or carriers much further from the battle. However, you may only have a maximum of a quarter of your fleet's total points value represented by Flights that are not based on one of your carriers.
Attacking with Aircraft
To attack a ship, the aircraft Flight model must move into base contact with the target ship model during the Movement Phase, to show it is engaging that particular ship. Multiple Flights (of any type) may attack any single ship in the same turn.
A player may nominate to attack with their aircraft in place of nominating a ship to fire with at any point during the Gunnery Phase, when it is their turn to nominate a ship. If a player nominates their aircraft instead of a ship, they attack with all of the Flights they have in play, regardless of how many different ships they are engaged with. All aircraft attacks are considered to be simultaneous but for convenience they are resolved one at a time, in whichever order the player wishes.
To make an attack against a ship, each Flight rolls a D6, the result required to score a successful hit depends on the Flight's type as indicated on the Attack with Aircraft table.
Attacking with Aircraft
| Aircraft Flight Type | Roll to Hit |
|---|---|
| Fighter | 5+ |
| Bomber | 5+ |
| Dive-Bomber | 3+ |
| Kamikaze | 4+ |
| Torpedo-Bomber | 5+ |
If a Flight successfully hits its target, then roll its Damage Dice as normal, as described under Damage. Unless otherwise stated, all weapons carried by aircraft have the One-Shot Trait and must refuel and re-arm before it may attack a ship again. However, they may still dogfight as many times as they like. A Re-Arm token can be used to mark Flights that have spent their payload.
Dogfighting
Once one Flight moves into base contact with an enemy Flight, they are considered to be dogfighting. Only Fighters may move into other Flights in this way. Other types of aircraft may defend themselves in a dogfight, but they cannot initiate one. Fighters are free to move into base contact with more than one enemy Flight, if they are close enough. Once a Flight is engaged in a dogfight it may not move further in the turn contact was made.
Every Flight in contact with an enemy Flight must engage in dogfighting at the end of the Gunnery Phase. Both players roll one D6 each and add their Flight's Dogfight score.
Add +1 to this dice roll for every extra supporting Flight - that is, other allied Flights you have in base contact with your dogfighting Flight, but that are not themselves in contact with any enemy Flights. A Flight may support any number of dogfights in this manner but a Flight supporting a dogfight may never initiate a dogfight itself. Other than this, it is up to the player how they arrange their dogfights for the best advantage!
The winner of this roll will automatically destroy the enemy Flight (but not any supporting Flights).
If the dogfighting roll is a draw, all Flights are left in place and remain locked in the dogfight. No Flight may move away until all enemy Flights have been destroyed.
Escorting
It was very common for fighters to escort slower, more vulnerable bombers, defending them against enemy attack. Only Fighters may escort another Flight. To do so, they must remain in base contact with the Flights they are escorting. A Fighter Flight may escort any number of friendly Flights, and any number of Fighter Flights may escort one friendly Flight, so long as contact is maintained between Fighter and the escorted Flight(s).
If an enemy Flight moves to attack the escorted friendly Flight, it must instead attack one or more of the unengaged escorting Fighter Flights. If all escorting Fighter Flights are already involved in a dogfight, then the escorted Flight may be attacked instead, so long as it is possible to move into contact with it without moving through any other Flights.
Carriers
The advent of the carrier meant that fleets no longer had to take to the ocean without air support. This changed the whole basis of combat at sea.
Combat Air Patrol
Fleets with carriers often had a combat air patrol (known as a CAP) flying perimeter around the fleet, looking for enemies. Unless the scenario you are playing states differently, you may start the game with two Flights in the air from each carrier in your fleet. These Flights may be placed anywhere in your deployment zone or moved on to the table with your ships in the first turn, as appropriate.
Wind Direction
Ships of World War Two had their own engines and were far removed from the days of sail where the direction and strength of the wind was all important. For most battles, the wind can be ignored but if a fleet includes any carriers, it becomes a great factor as carriers must sail into the wind in order to both launch and recover aircraft, as the ship's own motion increases an aircraft's air speed when taking off and effectively reduces its ground speed when landing.
Some scenarios will specify the wind direction. For all other battles involving carriers, the wind direction will be random. Roll one dice before any ships are deployed on the battlefield and consult the Wind Direction diagram (Diagram 3): the dice result gives the table edge the wind comes from, with arrows pointing into the table - a roll of 1-2 is the left-hand edge, 3-4 the right-hand edge, 5 the bottom edge and 6 the top edge of the diagram. A carrier is said to be sailing into the wind if the table edge rolled for wind direction is within the carrier's fore arc.
Launching and Recovering Aircraft
Ships with the Carrier Trait may launch or recover a single Flight every turn during the Movement Phase. In order to do so, the ship must move in a straight line into the direction of the wind without turning and may not perform the Evade! Order. Launched Flights are placed within 1" of the carrier after the carrier's movement. The Flights may not be moved further in this turn, as they need to assemble into formation and gain altitude.
To be recovered, the Flight model must move into base contact with the stern (back) of the ship model.
Only Flights that are listed as being useable by carriers may be launched or recovered. All other Flights are considered to be land-based and cannot be placed upon a carrier.
A carrier may not launch or recover Flights if it has a Crew area Critical Score of 2 or more. Fire was a major problem for carriers, and greatly reduced their operational capabilities.
Refuelling and Re-arming
Once a carrier has recovered a Flight, it may replace any One-Shot weapons the Flight has expended and get ready to send them up for another attack. Any number of Flights may be rearmed during the End Phase, but a separate crew quality check is required for every Flight to be rearmed successfully and ready for launch in the next turn. Flights that are not rearmed in one turn may try again in subsequent turns.
Deep Deployment
Carriers are not designed for frontline combat, operating far better when they are over the horizon and out of sight from enemy guns. Sending their aircraft to support their fleet, they can still fundamentally alter the course of the battle.
Some scenarios allow carriers in fleets to be placed in deep deployment, keeping them off the table and far away from direct attack. In such a scenario, a player may choose to remove one or more of their carriers from the table before the game starts and place them in deep deployment. Any number of their Flights may be placed on the table in the fleet's deployment zone.
Any Flights kept on the carrier may be brought into the battle during any turn within the game. When launched from the carrier, place the Flight in contact with the fleet's table edge. The Flight cannot be attacked in that turn and may move normally in the next turn's Movement Phase.
Attacking Deep Deployment Carriers
Enemy Flights moved off the carrier fleet's table edge may launch an attack on any carrier placed in deep deployment. The carrier player may dogfight attacking aircraft with any Flights still on board their carriers. After they have been resolved, any surviving Flights may launch attacks on the carriers.
Observation Flights
These aircraft travel on board ships that have the Aircraft trait and are typically launched by catapults mounted on the deck or on a gun turret.
Before the game starts, each ship must assign each of their Observation Flights to one of two tasks: Scouting or guiding Beyond the Horizon Attacks. An Observation Flight assigned to one task cannot partake in another. The effect of Observation Flights assigned to guiding Beyond the Horizon Attacks are detailed in the Gunnery Phase rules (Beyond the Horizon Attacks). The effects of Observation Flights assigned to Scouting are detailed under Scouting in the War at Sea scenario.
Kamikaze
The suicide attacks of Japanese Special Attack Units (called tokubetsu kogeki tai) became known as kamikaze (divine wind) due to inaccurate translation by the Allies. Japanese kamikaze attacks sank 81 American ships and damaged another 195. Thousands of Japanese pilots died in order to achieve this.
Whether purpose-built or converted from existing craft, kamikaze units were essentially human-guided missiles, packed full of explosives and fuel. They caused far more damage than more conventional weapons, were more accurate and even if they sustained heavy damage that would render other vehicles useless, they might still be able to carry out their missions.
The best-known kamikaze units were aircraft, but the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Italian Regia Marina also used motor torpedo boats to achieve the same effect.
Aircraft
The Imperial Japanese Navy fleet list features aircraft with the Kamikaze type. They all use the same rules provided here when attacking a target.
A kamikaze attack is declared in the Movement Phase, with the Flight moving into contact with its target. Any AA Battery fire is resolved as normal, but any Local fire gains a +1 bonus to all Attack Dice rolls; gunners on ships being attacked by kamikazes were not known for conserving ammunition!
After all AA Battery fire has been resolved, the Flight rolls to hit its target - due to the accuracy of being piloted right up to the last moment, any miss may be re-rolled. All normal modifiers are applied except those for range, which are ignored. Damage is then applied as normal. The Flight is removed from the table as a casualty, whether or not it successfully hit its target.
Whenever a Kamikaze Flight successfully causes damage to a ship, in addition to any other critical hits caused by the attack, the ship's Crew area's Critical Score will increase by 1, applying all effects of the new score immediately.
War at Sea
Now you have learned the rules, it is time to put your tactics into practice. While many scenarios are possible, covering a range of historically accurate engagements and common actions throughout the conflict, the War at Sea scenario provides a wide range of interesting battles that two opposing fleets can engage in.
Victory Points
Many scenarios use victory points in order to determine who has won. Victory points can be earned in many ways specific to each scenario but, unless otherwise stated, they are always gained for damaging the opposing fleet. Specifically, victory points are earned for the following.
- Destroying an enemy ship: Gain victory points equal to the ship's points value.
- Enemy ship executes a Tactical Withdrawal: Gain victory points equal to 25% of the ship's points value.
- Cripple an enemy ship: Gain victory points equal to 50% of the ship's points value.
- Destroying a Flight: Gain victory points equal to the Flight's points value.
Note that you can only gain victory points from an enemy ship once. If you Cripple an enemy ship and later destroy it, you will gain its points value in victory points, not one and a half times its points value.
Tactical Withdrawals
Any ship may choose to retreat from the battleground, by simply moving off a table edge. By doing so, the ship escapes safely but your opponent will receive 25% of its normal victory points at the end of the game. Note that some scenarios may have restrictions on which table edges may be exited safely. If one of these edges is not chosen, then the ship will count as if it has been destroyed and thus give up its full victory points.
Fleet Objectives
Both players should agree on a total points value for their fleets, and then each should roll on the Fleet Objective table to determine their fleet's objective during the battle.
Each objective will provide the player with a set of victory conditions needed to fulfil in order to win the battle, as well as whether the objectives are considered high, medium or low priority by the fleet's high command.
In all cases, the number of ships required to complete an objective is rounded up and does not include ships dispatched for scouting.
Fleets with a high priority objective gain a +10% bonus to the total number of points available for their fleet. Fleets with a low priority objective suffer a -10% penalty to the total number of points available for their fleet. Once players know exactly how many points they have to build their fleet, they can start choosing which ships and aircraft to take.
Fleet Objective Table (2D6)
| 2D6 Score | Objective | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| 2-3 | Destroy! | High |
| 4 | Breakout | Low |
| 5 | Defence Line | Low |
| 6 | Attrition | Medium |
| 7 | Sweep & Clear | Medium |
| 8 | Domination | Medium |
| 9 | Fighting Retreat | Low |
| 10 | Last Stand | Low |
| 11-12 |
Destroy! The enemy has gathered an assault force, amassing a great deal of their strength in one place. Sink every ship and the enemy will be irreparably weakened in this theatre. Cripple or destroy every enemy ship to achieve a major victory. Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory.
Breakout. A superior enemy force has cornered your fleet and stands ready to wipe you out. Break through their line to reach safety. Move at least half your ships off your opponent's table edge to achieve a major victory. Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory.
Defence Line. An enemy fleet has moved into the area, determined to reach its home port. You must hold the line and cause them to fail in their objectives. Stop the enemy from gaining a major victory and score the most victory points to earn a major victory. Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory. (Transcribed as printed.)
Attrition. You must cause as much damage as you can to the enemy fleet while minimising your own losses. Score 50% more victory points than your enemy to earn a major victory. Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory.
Sweep & Clear. Roving the sea, you must find an enemy to engage and destroy them without losing momentum. Move at least half your ships off your opponent's table edge and score the most victory points to achieve a major victory. Move at least half your ships off your opponent's table edge to achieve a minor victory.
Domination. This clear water must remain under your control for future operations at all costs. Divide the battlefield into four equal quarters. Make sure you have ships in at least three quarters while your enemy has no ships in the same quarters to earn a major victory. Make sure you have ships in at least two quarters while your enemy has no ships in the same quarters to earn a minor victory.
Fighting Retreat. The enemy has been pressing hard and your fleet forms a rearguard for a civilian convoy. Move at least half your ships off your own table edge and score the most victory points to achieve a major victory (remember that moving ships off the table in this way counts as a tactical withdrawal - see Tactical Withdrawals). Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory.
Last Stand. Your small force is trapped and likely doomed. Fight for your life and victory may still be yours! Sink at least one enemy ship and score the most victory points to earn a major victory. Score the most victory points to earn a minor victory.
Ultimate Enemy. One enemy ship in the enemy fleet is responsible for the destruction of several convoy ships. It cannot be allowed to remain operational. Destroy the enemy ship with the greatest points value and score the most victory points to earn a major victory. Destroy the enemy ship with the greatest points value to earn a minor victory.
Deployment
The battlefield can be any size, as long as fleets can start 36" apart. However, a 6' x 4' area is optimal. Both players should roll one D10, re-rolling any ties. The lowest rolling player must deploy their entire fleet first in one deployment zone, followed by their opponent.
The deployment diagrams show three layouts, each with the two deployment zones on opposite table edges 36" apart: Normal Deployment (each zone is a strip along its table edge, with 12" at either end of the edge outside the zone), Enhanced Deployment (each zone runs the full width of its table edge), and Superior Deployment (each zone runs the full width of its table edge and also wraps along the side edges as a 6" deep band, each player holding half of the side bands). Zone shapes are described from the printed diagram, which carries no further text.
Scouting
When the enemy is known to be in the area, fleets will expend a great deal of effort in reconnaissance. If one fleet can out-scout the other, it stands to gain a great advantage before the battle even begins.
Both players should secretly remove all destroyers and cruisers they intend to use for scouting from their fleet before deployment and put them to one side. In addition, they should assign which Observation Flights will be used for scouting as well. These ships and aircraft committed to scouting are not deployed with the rest of the fleet. Instead, the ships may return from scouting at some point during the battle.
In every End Phase, both players roll one D6 for every destroyer and cruiser they have committed to scouting. On the roll of a 6, that ship has returned to the fleet and may join the battle. It will move on from any point along a random edge in the next turn's Movement Phase (see the Returning Ships diagram: a roll of 1-2 is the left-hand edge, 3-4 the right-hand edge, 5 the top edge and 6 the bottom edge of the diagram).
Before the first turn of the game, both players reveal the ships and aircraft that have been used for scouting. For every ship and aircraft listed below used for scouting, the player will roll one D6.
- Every Destroyer
- Every Cruiser
- Every Observation Flight
Every dice that rolls a 5 or 6 will earn the player's fleet one Scouting Point. When all dice have been rolled, each player should total their Scouting Points and compare them to the Scouting Table.
Scouting Table
| Scouting Points | Fleet Advantage |
|---|---|
| 2 or more | Add 1 to your roll for Initiative each turn for the entire battle. |
| 4 or more | As above, and any carriers may be placed in deep deployment (see Deep Deployment). |
| 7 or more | As above and may immediately re-deploy any number of ships (including any scouts) in enhanced deployment zone, while carriers may start with half of their Flights in the air. |
| 8 or more | As above and add a further 1 (for a total of 2) to your roll for Initiative each turn for the entire battle. |
| 10 or more | As above and may immediately re-deploy any number of ships (including any scouts) in superior deployment zone, while carriers may start with all of their Flights in the air. |
Fight!
Once any adjustments have been made for scouting, the battle can commence! Players must try to achieve their objectives within 8 turns, after which the game ends and victory conditions calculated.
Victory or Defeat
The battle will end after 8 turns or when one fleet is completely destroyed or makes a Tactical Withdrawal. At that point, both players should compare their objectives and whether they succeeded.
- A player with a major victory will beat one with a minor victory.
- A player with a minor victory will beat one with no victory at all.
- Any other result is a draw.
Competitive Battles
The War at Sea scenario can provide some challenging objectives for players - this is entirely intentional and reflects the nature of naval warfare in World War II. Admirals quite often found themselves facing unexpected enemies or difficult objectives and had to keep fighting whatever the odds. However, if you wish to play a more balanced 'competitive' or tournament-style of game, we suggest the following matched objectives for each fleet - players can decide or dice off to see what their own fleet will try to attempt.
- Attrition vs. Destroy!
- Attrition vs. Fighting Retreat
- Breakout vs. Defence Line
- Destroy! vs. Last Stand
- Sweep & Clear vs. Defence Line
Additional Rules
The basic rules provide enough for you to play most games of Victory at Sea, what follows are a collection of additional rules allowing you to expand your games, add depth, and simulate the full range of naval engagements of the Second World War on your tabletop.
Bad Weather
Churning seas, heavy rain and high winds will all cause a problem for warships, greatly reducing their ability to fight effectively. Many Admirals in the past have lamented not having control of the weather, and just as many have blessed the sudden appearance of storm clouds.
In Victory at Sea, weather is defined as either Good or Bad. The rules assume you will be fighting in Good Weather. However, if a scenario calls for bad weather, the following changes are made.
Destroyers and MTBs (Motor Torpedo Boats, see Motor Torpedo Boats below) may not make any attacks with Light Guns or AA Batteries during bad weather, and no ships may use Torpedoes.
Destroyers, MTBs and Civilian ships have their Flank Speed halved.
All attacks made by both ships and aircraft suffer a -1 penalty to hit, in addition to all other modifiers. A -1 penalty is also applied to all Crew Quality checks.
Carriers may not launch or recover aircraft.
Bad weather affects visibility. Ships more than 25" away may not be attacked at all in bad weather. Those more than 15" away must be spotted (see below) before they can be attacked. Ships 15" away or less are automatically spotted.
As soon as an enemy ship ends its movement within 15-25" of a friendly vessel, make a Crew Quality check (as described under Orders). Success means the enemy ship has been spotted and may be attacked normally by any friendly ship within 25", as its location will be communicated to allies. Once a ship has been spotted, it will remain so until it moves beyond 25".
If an enemy ship is within 25" but has not been spotted, another Crew Quality check may be attempted in the next turn so long as it ends its move within 25". This means it is possible for a ship to move in close, not be spotted, and then move away again with their foes none the wiser!
Heavy rain and surging waves also impact radar performance, causing a -1 penalty when detection rolls are made using radar (see Radar below).
However, ships that have fired their Main Guns will be automatically spotted.
The Create Smoke! Order may not be used during bad weather.
Night Battles
The time and place of a battle is not always suited to an Admiral's best wishes and many duels at sea have taken place at night. Far from land, it can be difficult to appreciate just how dark the night is at sea or its effects on battles. If a scenario is set at night, the following changes are made.
All attacks made by both ships and aircraft suffer a -1 penalty to hit, in addition to other modifiers, such as for range and bad weather. Also, the player who won the Initiative can choose to force his opponent to fire first during a night battle.
In addition, ships more than 20" away may not be attacked at all at night. Those at closer ranges must be spotted before they can be attacked.
As soon as an enemy ship ends its movement within 20" or less of a friendly vessel, make a Crew Quality check (as described under Orders). Success means the enemy ship has been spotted and may be attacked normally by any friendly ship within 20", as its location will be communicated to allies.
Once a ship has been spotted, it will remain so until it moves further away than 20" from all enemy ships. Ships within 5" will be automatically spotted. Ships that fire Main Guns will also be automatically spotted, as will ships that are suffering from the Fire or Multiple Fires critical hits.
Searchlights
Any ship may use its searchlights at night to automatically spot any one enemy ship within 10" before it makes an attack. The -1 penalty to hit for attacking at night no longer applies for attacks on an enemy ship spotted by searchlights. As each player designates a ship to attack with, that player also indicates if the ship is using its searchlights, prior to firing its weapons. Ships using searchlights are automatically spotted themselves.
Star Shells
Ships with the Star Shell Trait may fire star shells from the ship's Light Guns, using a single Attack Dice for each shell (so ships with only 1 Attack Dice of Light Guns must choose between using a single star shell or making a normal attack). Star shells can be fired to any point within range of the ship's Light Guns with no Attack Dice roll needed. All ships, friend or foe, within 3" of a star shell are spotted for the rest of the turn. The -1 penalty to hit for attacking at night no longer applies for attacks on an enemy ship spotted by star shells.
Radar
A recent development for World War II, the use of radar quickly spread to the sea where it was used to locate enemy ships and direct fire. Additionally, radar made fighting battles at night or in bad weather easier.
When fighting at night or in bad weather a ship with the Radar trait may select one enemy ship within 30", that is also more than 5" away from any land, at the start of the Attack Phase. This ship must be a Battleship if any are present, otherwise it must be a Carrier or a Cruiser. However, if only Destroyers or Civilian ships are present, it may be any one of them.
Radar will detect that enemy vessel with a successful Crew Quality check (remembering to apply the -1 penalty for bad weather, if applicable). Once detected, an enemy ship remains so unless it moves more than 30" away or within 5" of land.
If an enemy ship has been detected by radar at night or during bad weather, it will be automatically spotted by the ship that detected it, as soon as they move within 20" of one another. Once spotted, the -1 penalty to hit for being night is no longer enforced. However, the -1 penalty for bad weather still remains in place.
Note that a ship that detects an enemy ship with radar may not pass this information along to other ships, allowing them to fire at it - they must all detect the enemy for themselves before they attack. In addition, a ship may only detect one enemy ship at a time.
Advanced Radar
Ships with the Advanced Radar trait use all the previous rules, with the following exceptions.
Advanced Radar gains +1 to the Crew Quality check to detect an enemy ship. Enemy ships within 5" of land may be detected.
When an enemy ship has been detected, Advanced Radar may carry on looking for others in subsequent turns, potentially detecting several enemy ships at once, given time.
A ship with Advanced Radar can opt to attack an enemy ship that is detected but not otherwise spotted (i.e. range greater than 20" at night, in bad weather, or behind Smoke). However, there is a -1 penalty for such radar-controlled fire in addition to any range penalties.
Squadrons
In larger fleet engagements, Admirals will often place several ships together in a squadron, in order to concentrate firepower and allow tactical objectives to be decided with greater speed.
Players may also find combining ships into squadrons a good way of playing huge battles involving dozens of vessels on either side. It is therefore recommended that you only use the squadron rules in games of at least 2,000 points.
If you use squadrons, you must organise ships into them before a scenario begins. Up to six ships may be placed in a squadron, though they need not be all of the same type.
Once ships have been placed into a squadron, they must always remain within 4" of at least one other ship in the squadron, unless they become Crippled or are destroyed. If either of these events happen, the ship automatically drops out of the squadron and is treated as single ship as normal. You may also choose to split the squadron apart at any time, simply by moving the ships independently instead as a whole squadron.
While in the squadron, all ships move and fire at the same time. In effect, you nominate the entire squadron to move or fire, instead of just one of its ships. You are under no restrictions to use the same Orders or target the same enemy ships with the entire squadron - the only requirement is that you keep all the ships within 4" of each other at all times and make every effort to maintain this formation if they are ever split up. By the same token, enemy ships will still choose individual ships within the squadron as targets for their weapons, rather than selecting the squadron as a whole.
Torpedo Nets
Some scenarios call for the use of torpedo nets. These were heavy steel mesh nets that were suspended beneath the surface of the sea, in order to trap torpedoes. They were also once fitted to ships as a matter of course, but by the time of the Second World War they were typically found only in harbours, protecting ships at rest.
The position of torpedo nets can be drawn on the table with a marker, or marked out with string, matchsticks, or anything else useful. No torpedo can target a ship if a torpedo net lies between them.
Barrage Balloons
A common sight above many cities and ports, barrage balloons are tethered with metal cables and float above valuable targets. The possibility of collision with either the balloon or the all but invisible mooring cable made areas covered by them difficult to approach with aircraft at best.
Some scenarios call for the use of barrage balloons. A barrage balloon can be represented either by a model or with a counter. No Flight may move within 2" of a barrage balloon, except for Level Bombers, which fly too high to be affected by them.
Submarines
Submarines began to affect the way fleets were deployed during the First World War, but it was during the Second World War that they truly came into their own. From midget submarines to the roving Wolf Packs of the Atlantic, the proliferation of Submarines served to end the dominance of the battleship, perhaps as much as the widespread use of aircraft.
Submarines require some additional rules to properly reflect their role on the oceans of the Second World War. What follows are all the rules required to use Submarines. All vessels with the Submarine trait are capable of using these rules. However, in all other respects they are treated as normal ships.
It was impossible to properly co-ordinate Submarines with surface units in the Second World War, so they were mostly confined to their own missions, such as the three provided in the Submarine Scenarios chapter (Ambush, Convoy and Harbour Attack; not transcribed here). However, with the permission of your opponent, they may be used in other fleet battles.
Deployment
Whenever Submarines are used, the table is divided into Sectors. Each Sector is a 12" x 12" square on the table. These are then given numbers, letters or codes (as you desire); the printed diagram numbers them 1 to 24.
Submarines may be deployed normally, but you will find it advantageous not to. Instead, secretly mark down which Sector each of your Submarines is within. You may place any number of Submarines in one Sector, but some scenarios may limit which Sectors you can place them in.
Depth
A Submarine that has a model on the table is always sailing at one of three depths.
Surfaced. The Submarine is on the surface of the ocean and may attack and be attacked like a normal ship. It will likely move faster on the surface but be far more vulnerable. It can also use its Light Gun and AA Battery (if it has any).
Submerged. The Submarine is at periscope depth. It will probably move slower than it would when surfaced but will be more difficult to detect and it may still make attacks with torpedoes.
Running Deep. The Submarine is far beneath the waves. It may not make any attacks but is almost impossible for all but the most specialised ships to detect.
A Submarine that has not been placed on the table but is noted as being within a Sector is automatically running deep.
Movement Phase
If a Submarine has a model placed on the table, it moves in the same way as a normal ship. Before a Submarine is moved, you must state what depth it is going to be this turn. If a Submarine is changing its depth, it may not perform any Orders.
A Submarine that is submerged may either surface or run deep. A Submarine that is running deep or surfaced may change its depth to be submerged.
Note that spotted Submarines that become submerged are no longer spotted.
Submarines have two Flank Speed scores. The first is used while the vessel is travelling while surfaced, the second while it is submerged or running deep.
Submarines that have not had a model placed on the table may not move from their Sector. However, their player may choose to voluntarily place them anywhere in the Sector at the end of the Movement Phase. They will be running deep.
Gunnery Phase
While a Submarine is on the surface, it is treated as a normal ship in all respects. While submerged, a Submarine may only attack using its torpedoes. However, other ships may only attack it with Depth Charges (or other specialized anti-Submarine weapons such as the Hedgehog or Squid) and then only once the Submarine has been detected by any ship or Observation Flight (but not ASW Flight). A Submarine that is running deep may make no attacks but can still be attacked with Depth Charges (or Hedgehog, Squid), and again only if it has been detected.
Unlike the surface ships, Submarines can fire individual tubes against separate targets (i.e. a Submarine with a 4 AD forward Torpedo system could target four different ships). All of the targets must still be located within the firing arc of the Torpedo system.
Detection
Any ship that does not have the Civilian type may try to detect a Submarine before it makes any attacks. In order to detect a submerged or running deep Submarine, a ship must be within 8" of it and make a successful Crew Quality check.
Detection Chart
| Condition | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Ship has Sub-Hunter trait | +2 |
| Submarine has Silent trait | -1 |
| Submarine is Running Deep | -2 |
| Submarine was detected or Surfaced last turn | +1 |
| Submarine fired a torpedo this turn or last | +1 |
The modifiers shown on the Detection Chart are used in the Crew Quality check.
If successful, the Submarine has been detected. A ship may only attempt to detect one Submarine in each turn, and a detected Submarine will remain so until the End Phase.
Only ships with the Sub-Hunter trait may attempt to detect a Submarine that is running deep. Other ships lack the specialised equipment necessary.
Depth Charges
The only weapon that may be used to attack a submerged or running deep Submarine is a depth charge (or similar weapon). By the same token, a Depth Charge may not be used against any other target. Attacks are performed in the same way as for any other weapon.
Depth Charges always hit their target on an attack roll of 5+, regardless of any other modifiers, and have the weapon profile shown below.
Depth Charge: Fire Arc Aft; Point Blank 3"; Short, Long, Extreme: -; AD 1; AP -; DD 2; Traits: Slow-Loading. (The Fire Arc entry is not legible in the source text; it is Aft per the Squid/Hedgehog note below.)
Squids and Hedgehogs are counted as depth charges in all respects, with the exception that they fire into the Fore arc instead of the Aft arc.
Poor Visibility
Submarines were notoriously difficult to spot when on the surface at night or in bad weather, and many of their captains took advantage of this.
If the battle is taking place at night or in bad weather, surfaced Submarines cannot be spotted until they are within 10" of a ship, and are only automatically spotted if they are within 3" of a ship.
Radar
Radar can only be used against surfaced Submarines. Due to their small size radar can only detect Submarines at a range of 20" or less and then only on a successful Crew Quality check. Advanced Radar allows for detection with a +1 modifier to their Crew Quality check and can carry on looking for others in subsequent turns.
Radar cannot detect Submarines during bad weather as the low silhouette of a Submarine allows it to be shielded by the surrounding large waves.
Spotlights and Star Shells
Spotlights and Star Shells can only be used against surfaced Submarines, but both are less advantageous.
Spotlights. Rather than automatically spotting a surfaced Submarine the use of a spotlight adds +2 to the detection roll.
Star Shells. Instead of being automatic, Star Shells need a successful Crew Quality check to detect a surfaced Submarine.
Long-Ranged Detection
Ships with the Sub-Hunter trait may try to detect any Submarines that have not yet been revealed. At the start of every turn, every ship with the Sub-Hunter trait rolls one d6. On a 6, all Submarines within the same Sector will be placed on the table, though they do not yet count as being detected. The Submarine player may place his Submarines anywhere within the 12" x 12" Sector.
Crash Dive
A Submarine can try to fill its ballast tanks quickly if an enemy approaches, in an effort to hide under the waves. If an enemy ship or aircraft approaches within 10" of a Submarine while it is Surfaced, it may try to crash dive. Make a Crew Quality check. If successful, the Submarine is immediately submerged, otherwise it remains surfaced.
Escape
When opposition grows too strong, a smart Submarine captain will dive for the depths and wait for trouble to pass overhead before coming back for another attack.
If a Submarine that is Running Deep is not detected during the turn, it may be removed from the table in the End Phase. It remains in the Sector from which it was removed but may be placed back on the table as normal, anywhere within the same Sector at the end of the next Movement Phase.
Aircraft and Submarines
Surfaced Submarines may be attacked by aircraft as if they were normal ships. Those that are submerged may only be attacked by aircraft with the ASW role (Anti-submarine Warfare).
ASW Aircraft. Any aircraft can attack a surfaced Submarine with any weapon it carries. The aircraft must move into contact with the Submarine as normal in order to do this. However, a submerged Submarine can only be attacked by aircraft with the ASW role.
Aircraft with the ASW role can attempt to attack a Submerged Submarine with a Depth Charge by moving to within 8" (instead of the normal 3") and rolling a d6. On a 5 or more, the aircraft has spotted the Submarine and can attack it. The aircraft receives a +1 bonus to this roll if the Submarine was detected or surfaced in the last turn, and a further +1 bonus if the Submarine fired a torpedo in this turn or the last. ASW aircraft may not attack Submarines that are running deep.
The usual modifiers to Attack Dice are not used when aircraft are attacking a surfaced Submarine. Instead, use the modifiers shown on the chart below.
ASW Attack Modifiers
| Condition | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Flight using a depth charge or bomb | -1 |
| Flight using a torpedo | -2 |
| Torpedo launched in the target's Port or Starboard arc | +1 |
| Bomb or depth charge dropped in the target's Fore or Aft arcs | +1 |
Observation Aircraft. An Observation Flight may be tasked to hunt for Submarines in the area, this should be announced before the start of the battle. Any Observation Flight used to hunt Submarines cannot be used for Scouting or guiding Beyond the Horizon Attacks.
At the start of each turn, before rolling to see who has Initiative, each Observation Flight hunting for Submarines can be assigned to attempt to detect a single Submarine. Note that multiple Observation Flights can be assigned to each Submarine. Roll a d6 for each Observation Flight assigned to a Submarine. On a 4 or more, that Submarine has been detected. The Observation Flight receives a +1 bonus to the roll if the Submarine was detected or surfaced in the last turn, and a further +1 bonus if the Submarine fired a torpedo in this turn or the last. Observation Flights may not attempt to detect Submarines that are running deep.
New Order
Rig for Silent Running! (Crew Quality Check; Submarines only). In an effort to avoid detection, the captain of a Submerged Submarine orders his engines to be throttled back and all other systems made silent. Vessels attempting to detect the Submarine suffer a -1 penalty for this turn. The Submarine may not move a distance more than half its Flank Speed in this turn and may not change direction or make any attacks.
New Traits
The following new Traits are available to use by Submarines, their weapons or the ships that hunt them.
Depth Charge. Ships with the Depth Charge trait can attack Submarines that are submerged or running deep using the rules given above.
Silent. This Submarine is exceptionally quiet, making it hard for surface ships to detect. Ships trying to detect the Submarine suffer a -1 penalty to their attempts to detect this Submarine when it is submerged or running deep.
Sub-Hunter. A few ships have upgraded ASDIC or sonar systems that allow them to hunt Submarines with great effect. The ship gains a +2 bonus when attempting to detect a Submarine.
Submarine. Submarines have the ability to render themselves all but invisible to their enemies when submerged. A ship with this trait may use the Submarine rules detailed above.
Wakeless. Some torpedoes do not leave the typical wake in the water, making them much harder to spot. Ships using the Evasive! Special Action may not force Wakeless torpedoes to re-roll successful attacks.
Kamikaze Submarines
The Japanese Kaiten was a manned torpedo and uses the following rules. One or more Kaiten torpedoes may be purchased as an upgrade for some Imperial Japanese Navy submarines, such as Matsu-class destroyer escorts and late war Kitakami-class torpedo cruisers. One Kaiten torpedo may be launched in the Gunnery phase in place of a normal torpedo. Because of the Kaiten torpedo's human pilot, a miss may be re-rolled. A Kaiten torpedo that successfully strikes a target will detonate, dealing damage with its warhead.
Motor Torpedo Boats
One of the most hazardous duties in the navies of the Second World War was to serve within the Coastal Forces. Many navies showed a passing interest in motor torpedo boats during the 1930s, when war broke out the utility of small craft to take the fight to the enemy in the 'narrow seas' was quickly realised. Main fighting units were supported by a myriad of gunboats, defence launches, motor minesweepers, minelayers and coastal transports.
Though the game Cruel Seas by Warlord Games covers the actions of such small craft in more detail, the following rules allow for their use alongside larger warships in games of Victory at Sea.
MTB Sections
All motor torpedo boats (MTBs) in Victory at Sea are organised into MTB Sections. An MTB Section is represented by a model of two motor torpedo boats on a base. MTB Sections have a slightly different set of characteristics from ships.
- Armour: This is a measure of how much punishment an MTB Section can withstand before it is sunk or driven away.
- Commissioned: As with ships, the year in which the boat came into service and thus when it can be used.
- Flank Speed: This is the same as for ships, but MTB Sections are much faster and far more manoeuvrable.
- Weapons: A list of any other weapons the MTB Section carries, such as Light Guns and Rockets, or Traits they can utilise, like Depth Charges.
- Smoke: Some motor torpedo boats are capable of laying down smoke screens.
- AA Battery: The Attack Dice of any AA Battery weapons the MTB Section carries - all Attack Dice will be used with the Local trait.
- Torpedoes: The Attack Dice of Torpedoes the MTB Section carries.
Weapon Systems
All weapon systems carried on board MTB Sections have the characteristics shown below. The number of Attack Dice (or Local score) for these weapons are listed in the description for each MTB Section.
| Weapon | Fire Arcs | Point Blank | Short | Long | Extreme | AD | AP | DD | Traits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light Guns | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | -2 | 1 | Weak |
| AA Battery | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Local* |
| Torpedo |
* The AD or Local score is individual to each MTB Section as given in the Fleet Lists.
Movement Phase
In a similar way to aircraft, all MTB Sections in a fleet are moved at the same time. After all ships on the table have been moved, but before aircraft are moved, the player who won the Initiative Phase must then choose whether to move their MTB Sections first or force their opponent to do so. Once this decision has been made, then all MTB Sections in a fleet are moved at the same time. Then the opposing fleet does the same with its MTB Sections.
MTB Sections can move in any direction, taking as many turns as it wishes, reflecting the relative manoeuvrability small boats have compared to larger ships. They have no facing or fire arcs as ships do and may launch attacks in any direction. All measurements are made from the bridge of the frontmost ship in the section. An MTB Section may never perform an Order.
Gunnery Phase
Attacking with MTB Sections. To attack a ship, the MTB Section must move into base contact with the target ship model during the Movement Phase, to show it is engaging that particular ship. Up to a maximum of four MTB Sections (of any type) may attack a single ship in the same turn.
A player may nominate to attack with their MTB Section in place of nominating a ship to fire with at any point during the Gunnery Phase, when it is their turn to nominate a ship. If a player nominates their MTB Sections instead of a ship, they attack with all of the MTB Sections they have in play, regardless of how many different ships they are engaged with. All MTB Section attacks are considered to be simultaneous but for convenience they are resolved one at a time, in whichever order the player wishes.
Resolve all weapon system attacks as normal, with all attacks considered as being at Point Blank Range.
Attackers never get the Large Silhouette bonus for attacking MTB Sections side-on. They are simply too small for this bonus.
Shooting at MTB Sections. MTB Sections can only be attacked by Light Guns and AA Battery weapons from ships or Bombs dropped from aircraft (though see Strafing below). Larger weapons cannot train effectively on these small targets.
If enemy MTB Sections are in range, a ship's AA Battery weapons are fired automatically at the end of the Movement Phase, as with AA Battery weapons used against aircraft. This happens outside of the normal turn sequence and is because the ship's crew are expecting battle and motor torpedo boats will rarely have an easy time trying to attack a ship.
When targeting enemy MTB Sections, roll the Attack Dice of AA Battery weapons as normal. AA Battery weapons may freely split their fire among multiple MTB Sections (and aircraft Flights) if desired.
Armour. If an MTB Section has been hit, Damage Dice are rolled against its Armour as normal, though no modifier for AP is used. AA Battery weapons roll one Damage Dice for every successful Attack Dice that hits the MTB Section. If a Damage Dice rolls higher than the MTB Section's Armour score, the MTB Section is destroyed and is removed immediately. If the Damage Dice rolls equal to the MTB Section's Armour score, the MTB Section survives the attack but has been driven off. It immediately loses any One-Shot weapons it was carrying.
Strafing Aircraft. MTB Sections can attack nearby aircraft with their AA Battery weapons using the usual rules. However, MTB Sections are incredibly susceptible to aircraft attack, even those not normally used in ground attack roles. An MTB Section may be attacked by a Flight using Bombs as normal but any Flight, even one that has expended its weaponry, may make a strafing attack on an MTB Section, using machine guns and cannon. A strafing attack uses the following characteristics and may only be used against MTB Sections.
| Weapon | Fire Arcs | Point Blank | Short | Long | Extreme | AD | AP | DD | Traits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strafing Attack | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | +4 | 1 | - |
Smoke Screens
Some MTB Sections carry smoke dischargers or smoke floats, as noted in their descriptions. These allow an MTB Section to deploy a smoke screen to protect itself from enemy fire.
An MTB Section capable of deploying a smoke screen can do so at the end of any of its movement and it lasts until the end of the turn. However, it can do this only once per game. An enemy attacking an MTB Section that deploys its smoke screen will have all successful Attack Dice re-rolled.
Kamikaze Attack
Some boats, such as the Japanese Shin'yo (Sea Quake) and the Italian 'MT-Boat', were purpose-designed suicide craft. These use the rules for MTB Sections, in addition they may make a Kamikaze Attack.
A Kamikaze Attack is declared in the Movement Phase, with the MTB Section moving into contact with its target. Any AA Battery fire is resolved as normal, but any Local fire gains a +1 bonus to its Attack Dice.
After all AA Battery fire has been resolved, the MTB Section rolls to hit its target - due to the accuracy of being piloted right up to the last moment, any missed Attack Dice may be re-rolled. All normal modifiers are applied except those for range, which are ignored. Damage is then applied as shown below. The section is removed from the table as a casualty, whether or not it successfully hits.
| Weapon | Fire Arcs | Point Blank | Short | Long | Extreme | AD | AP | DD | Traits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kamikaze Attack | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | 2 | Devastating, One-Shot |
Coasts & Shorelines
While battles were often fought on the open ocean, a great many also took place close to land. Harbours and ports were sometimes the direct target of fleets, while clustered defences were dangerous obstacles to be suppressed or bypassed.
Land
Land is featured on the charts of some scenarios or can be placed by players in a mutually agreeable manner. The easiest way to represent land is simply by denoting one or more table edges as 'land.' However, you can also draw lines on a table or use specially constructed terrain pieces to represent coasts, beaches or islands.
Land blocks all line of sight, and ships cannot target one another if land lies between them (though see Radar and Beyond Horizon Attacks for a possible, though rare, exception).
No ship with a starting Hull score of 10 or more may come within 1" of land without running aground. The exception to this is any areas designated as being a harbour, wherein all ships are permitted to move.
Ships that have run aground may only fire Main Gun, Light Gun, or AA Battery weapon systems. In addition, they may not execute any Orders, or launch and recover aircraft. Their Flank Speed is permanently reduced to 0 for the rest of the game, and they count as being Stationary Targets.
Shore Batteries
Shore Batteries are artillery pieces employed against approaching ships. Any fleet defending land may purchase Shore Batteries if the scenario being played allows it.
They use all the same rules as ships, with the following exceptions.
Shore Batteries have Structure instead of Hull but in all ways this functions exactly the same as Hull does for ships. All damage is applied to a Shore Battery's Structure just as it would to a ship's Hull.
Shore Batteries can never be Crippled. Shore Batteries never perform Orders. Shore Batteries have a Flank Speed of 0 and can never move. They count as Stationary Targets. Shore Batteries do not have Traits or aircraft Flights.
Being mounted on solid ground, Shore batteries are exceptionally stable firing platforms. All Guns fired from a Shore Battery gain a +1 bonus to their Attack Dice when firing.
When a critical hit is scored against a Shore Battery, use the following table to determine its effect.
Shore Battery Critical Hits
| D6 Score | Extra Damage | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | +1 | The Shore Battery now suffers a -1 penalty to each Attack Dice roll. |
| 2 | +3 | One random weapon is destroyed. |
| 3 | +3 | Roll a D6 for each weapon at the start of each Attack Phase. A weapon may only fire if a 4 or more is rolled. |
| 4 | +4 | No weapons can fire in this turn or the next. |
| 5 | +4 | Roll a dice for each weapon, on a 4 or more it is destroyed. |
| 6 | - | Reduce Structure to 0, the Shore Battery destroyed. |
Creating a Shore Battery
The creation of a Shore Battery consists of four steps. The first three involve defining the characteristics of the shore battery and include:
- Selecting number and type of weapon systems in the battery;
- Determining the number of Structure points the battery has;
- Determining the Armour of the battery.
The fourth step is to determine the points cost of the Shore Battery.
Weapon Systems. The first step is to select each weapon systems mounted within Shore Batteries. A generic list of guns is defined in the table below, with their various statistics and cost. Each weapon system must be purchased separately so, for example, a Shore Battery with three 8-inch guns would have a total cost of 45 points.
| Weapon | Fire Arcs | Point Blank | Short | Long | Extreme | AD | AP | DD | Traits | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light Gun | - | 3" | 6" | 9" | 12" | 1 | -2 | 1 | DP, Weak | 5 |
| 6-inch Gun | - | 5" | 11" | 16" | 22" | 1 | -1 | 1 | - |
Structure. The second step is to determine the number of Structure points the Shore Battery has. This represents both the general size of the Shore Battery and the amount of construction dedicated to it. The typical range of Structure is between 8 (minimal construction/open field) to 36 (massive concrete reinforced structures).
Armour. The third step is the degree of armour the Shore Battery has. The table below lists the Armour values, an example description of the defences, and their cost, which will be used in the following step.
| Armour | Description | Armour Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | No armour | 0.1 |
| 2 | Sandbag or dirt berms | 0.2 |
| 3 | Hills and natural occurring bunkers | 0.4 |
| 4 | Built-up natural bunkers | 0.6 |
| 5 | Caves, reinforced revetments/entrenchments | 0.8 |
| 6 | Massive steel reinforced concrete buildings | 1.0 |
Purchasing Shore Batteries. Having designed the Shore Battery, it is necessary to determine its points cost. Follow these steps:
- Multiply the Cost of each weapon system by the number of each in the battery
- Divide the Structure by 16 and then add the Armour Cost
- Multiply these two totals and round up to the nearest value of 10
For example, a Shore Battery is designed with four 15-inch guns, 24 Structure and Armour 6+. The cost would be calculated as:
Step 1. Four 15-inch guns times 40 (the Cost for each 15-inch) is 160. Step 2. 24 Damage divided by 16 is 1.5. Step 3. For 6+ armour, the Armour Cost is 1.0, which added to the Step 2 value of 1.5 equals 2.5. Step 4. 160 times 2.5 equals 400 points.
The book also lists example historical Shore Batteries (for example Coastal 6-inch Defence Battery: Armour 3+, Structure 20, 8 x 6-inch Guns, 130 points; Hardened Coastal Battery: 6+, 24, 4 x 15-inch Guns, 400 points; Lindemann Battery: 6+, 36, 3 x 16-inch Guns, 490 points); the full list of named examples is not transcribed.
Coastal Structures
Some scenarios may feature warehouses, command posts, airfields and other buildings as important objectives that need to be defended or destroyed. Players may also like to include Coastal Structures in other games that feature coasts and islands.
Coastal Structures use all the same rules as Shore Batteries and AA Emplacements, but they do not have any weapons (if you want to feature a Coastal Structure that has, say, an Anti-Aircraft weapon, simply place an AA Emplacement on or near it). Coastal Structures can vary significantly in size and strength, and therefore have separate modifiers to Attack Dice rolled against them and Armour values. As Coastal Structure have no offensive capabilities, and are mainly used as scenario objectives, they have no Cost associated with them.
| Coastal Structure | Attack Dice Modifier | Armour | Structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bunker | -1 | 5+ | 10 |
| Church | +0 | 4+ | 20 |
| Control Tower | -1 | 3+ | 10 |
| Hangar | +1 | 3+ | 12 |
| House (masonry) | -1 | 3+ | 8 |
| House (wood) | -1 | 1+ | 4 |
| Mansion | +0 |
AA Emplacements
Important coastal regions are heavily protected by Anti-Aircraft Emplacements (AA Emplacements), as harbours and ports are extremely vulnerable to bombers. Whereas Shore Batteries tend to be large, solid bunkers, an AA Emplacement tends to be rather more dispersed in nature, with several separate guns spread around a confined area.
AA Emplacements use the same rules as Shore Batteries and can be considered as smaller versions armed with different weaponry. They use all the rules for an AA Battery on ships with the exception they can target Level Bombers.
AA Emplacement Weapon Systems
| Weapon | Point Blank | Short | Long | Extreme | AD | AP | DD | Traits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local AA Battery | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | Local 1 |
| Light AA Battery | 1" | 3" | 4" | 6" | 1 | - | - | - |
| Medium AA Battery | 2" | 5" | 7" |
Purchasing AA Emplacements. Any fleet defending land may purchase AA Emplacements if the scenario being played allows it. The cost for each AA Emplacement is listed below.
| AA Emplacement | Armour | Structure | Weapons | Points Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local AA Battery Emplacement | 2+ | 1 | 1 x Local AA Battery | 5 points |
| Small AA Battery Emplacement | 3+ | 2 | 2 x Light AA Battery | 25 points |
| Medium AA Battery Emplacement | 3+ | 8 | 4 x Medium AA Battery | 50 points |
| Large AA Battery Emplacement | 3+ | 16 | 4 x Heavy AA Battery | 75 points |
Building a Fleet
The fleet lists provide all the essential game details for each of the major navies fighting in World War Two (not transcribed here). With this information, players can build fleets to either re-enact historic battles, generate interesting 'what if...?' scenarios, or build point-matched forces that are balanced against each other.
Points Cost. Every ship detailed in the fleet lists has a points cost, which is derived from how powerful the ship is relative to all the others. This allows you to build fleets that, under normal circumstances, should be fairly balanced against one another. Simply decide a maximum points value with your opponent for the scenario you have agreed to play, and purchase ships from your fleet list up to this value.
Commissioned Dates. Every ship within a fleet's list has a commissioned date, which lists when a ship first came into service. As an optional rule, players might like to decide on a specific year for each scenario or campaign. For example, if a scenario is decided to be taking place in 1943, no ship, aircraft or refit having a commissioned date of 1944 or beyond may be chosen, while anything listed as 1943 or before is valid.
Aircraft. All Aircraft Flights must be purchased from a fleet's points allowance. Carriers in the fleet lists have the maximum number of Flights they may carry detailed in their descriptions. The cost of these Flights is included in the cost of the Carrier, and players are free to choose whichever aircraft they wish so long as the number of Flights does not exceed their carriers' maximum, and only Flights that are listed as being carrier-capable are chosen. However, if commissioned dates are being used, this will also limit the choice of aircraft available.
Aircraft Flights may also be purchased without a Carrier in the fleet. If you do not have any carriers or do not have enough space upon them for all the Flights you wish to use, any excess are assumed to have taken off from land bases or carriers much further from the battle. However, unless the scenario you are playing permits otherwise, you may only have a maximum of a quarter of your total points spent on such Flights that are not based on one of your carriers.
Motor Torpedo Boats. Motor torpedo boats (often abbreviated as MTBs) may also be purchased for a fleet. However, motor torpedo boats have no place on the open ocean and are confined to regions near land, typically used for fast strikes rather than major fleet actions. If you choose to include motor torpedo boats in your fleet, you may not include more than one Battleship or Carrier.
Refits. Fleets have the potential to upgrade or refit their ships. A ship may take any number of options available to it. Unless otherwise stated, options listed by year assume you have already taken (and paid the points for) the options for all preceding years. The use of refits and options will bring an additional level of complexity into your games; the book recommends that for your first few battles with your own fleets, you do not use refits. They are included for historical accuracy and not as a means for 'improving' ships or gaining a competitive edge (indeed, some refits removed weapons and equipment!).