State of Play: Undaunted: Battle of Britain (with 100% more Heinkels)

 

 

Nominated for the Charles S. Roberts Award for Best World War II Game, 2023

 

Another week, another game of Undaunted: Battle of Britain (Osprey Games, 2023). This report will be a short one because it was over so quickly, and probably the last one before a review of the game because there are other things I want to write about.

Initial set-up for Scenario 4: Hellfire Corner

We played at my place this week, which accounts for the slightly better lighting (the generally poor quality of the pictures is still all down to me). I decided to skip Scenario 3: When the Bombs Fell and go on with Scenario 4: Hellfire COrner. A number of new elements are introduced in this (and the previous) scenario. Land targets – markers placed on land hexes indicating valuable infrastructure and therefore worth risking a flight of expensive bombers to try to take out – make their debut appearance, as to Anti-Aircraft Artillery. Also new are cloud cover (which a plane can fly through but will make offensive actins more difficult), and Barrage Balloons, which can really mess up your day (you don’t want to finish your movement facing a Barrage Balloon hex or you’ll crash with your next activation – it’s less about the balloons and more about the cables tethering them that will sheer through a wing like a hot knife through butter).

This was the shortest game we’ve played yet. I think we both felt confident with the rules and parameters of the game, and bombing land-based targets is functionally the same as attacking ships at anchor in the Dynamo scenario. Also, as the British defenders, I only had two sections of Hurricanes so I was cycling through my deck much more quickly*, and we had both taken up all the reserve cards early on, which meant we didn’t have the choice of using Bolster or Inspire when the Squadron or Section cards came up. Limited choices make for quicker decisions, and both of us used these cards for the Guide (a free extra move and manoeuvre for one plane) to good effect.

T was on mission for the whole scenario. While the German bombers only move one hex per order, they each begin with two cards in the German player’s starting deck, and each has a total of four order cards instead of the fighters’ three. In our last contest, I was only just able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with a lucky shot that took out T’s second Stuka a round or two before he would be in place to sink his fourth ship for the win. Going into this scenario, I knew it would be a tougher thing to pull off.

Maintaining a Defensive posture.

The German victory conditions require the destruction of five relatively soft targets; like the ships, land targets can have an innate defensive value of 6 or 8, meaning once over he target, a bomber may attack the target below and needs only to exceed the target number (in this case all 6s) on one of their three dice to neutralise it. The Heinkel 111 has a base defence number of 7, to the Stuka’s 6. This means that even if the British player gets in just one hex away from the plane to fire, they need to roll a 9 or 10 to hit the damn thing. Then to take it out, you have to hit it again three more times.

As the Battle of Britain developed, a doctrine of mixed interception waves was adopted whenever possible, where the Spitfires would keep the escorting Bf109s busy while the Hurricanes would go after the bombers. Hurricanes through the course of the battle accounted for many more bombers than the Spitfires for this reason, but with just browning machine guns, even eight of them focussed to a tight grouping at about 150 yards, would often be unable to penetrate the Heinkel’s armour. A direct hit to an engine or the cockpit would often stop a bomber, but it wasn’t a guarantee.

T showed remarkable discipline in bringing his flights into the fray, guiding his planes around the barrage balloon obstacles, while keeping his fighters in comms range. By dint of our respective starting positions, I was cautious, waiting for him to come to me. I knew this was going to be a big ask, and that I would lose some of the positions I was trying to protect, but it’s a game of triage, and you have to save the ones you can.

Mechanical engineers build weapons. Civil engineers build targets.

I could wax eloquent about the brave boys who risked their lives every time they took off, defending this Sceptred Isle from the encroaching Nazi menace and thwarting Goering’s plans of an easy victory, but that fact it, that wasn’t what happened this time. I’d argue that the scenario is weighted slightly in favour of the Germans – I think this is true – but the fact is, through a combination of card draws and some hesitation on my part at a crucial moment, T’s Germans took the day. He handily took out five targets in quick succession, and try as I might – I had at least five good shots on his Heinkels – I managed only two hits and one of those was an opportunistic potshot at a passing 109.

T tried not to crow too much, disingenuously claiming this was his first victory for the whole year. He told me my look of frustration at losing was palpable. If I’m honest, I did feel like I’d let the side down. That Gerry had slipped through the net and made mischief in the Home Counties. But that’s a good thing, I think. It speaks to the immersive quality of the game, the way the unfolding narrative draws you in.

On the upside, I didn’t lose any pilots and all the planes came back safely, which at this stage of the battle was nearly as important as spoiling the enemy’s efforts. And, of course, there’s always next time.

I flew in Hellfire Corner and all I got was two mingy hits.

* By this stage in the battle, the Defiants, which were not designed nor ever intended for interception duty, had proven to be inadequate for the roll and taken out of the mix. Many were transferred to Coastal Command where they proved more than adequate for ocean surveillance, especially over the Channel, until more Short Sunderlands and other aircraft with a much greater range became available.