A Bit of Confusion Facilitated by Over-Preparation

During the flurry of holiday festivities, I try to write a few blog posts ahead of schedule. While I've succeeded in staying ahead, I did mess up the order for the past two weeks. Sorry about any confusion. Hopefully, you've also gotten caught int he joyful crunch of love and activity making my mistake a mere footnote of your otherwise festive day. The mistake is now fixed. Happy Thanksgiving!

Dogfights- Luftwaffe Aircraft

And now to finish up, the aircraft of the opposition. The posts of this series and the whole bunch of new material will be compiled into a Dogfights PDf available to download from our Resources page in the next year.

Bf 109 E3 (Luftwaffe Fighter)

Length: 28 ft

Wingspan: 32 ft

Crew: 1 (Pilot/Bombardier)

Movement: 345 Mph (555 km/h)

Handling: +5

Health: 12

Armor Value: 2

Armament:

Pilot- 2x MG 17 machine guns above the engine (10)

Pilot- 2x MG FF cannon in wings (9 AP4)

Optional Ordinance:

1x 551 bomb (-2 Handling)

Bf 110C (Luftwaffe Fighter)

Length: 39 ft

Wingspan: 53 ft

Crew: 2 (Pilot, Navigator/Rear Gunner)

Speed: 295 mph (475 km/h)

Handling: +1

Health: 18

Armor: 4

Armament:

Pilot- 2x MG FF cannon in wings forward (9 AP4)

Pilot- 4x MG 17 machine guns in nose forward (14)

Rear Gunner- 1x MG 15 machine gun cockpit rear (5)

Do 17 Z (Luftwaffe Light Bomber)

Length: 51 ft

Wingspan: 59 ft

Crew: 4 (Pilot, Navigator/Rear Gunner, Bombardier/Nose Gunner, Ventral Gunner,

Movement: 255 mph (410 km/h)

Handling: +1

Health: 24

Armor Value: 5

Armament:

Nose Gunner- 1x MG 15 machine gun forward (5)

Rear Gunner- 1x MG 15 machine gun cockpit rear (5)

Rear Gunner- 2x MG 15 machine gun cockpit side (7)

Ventral Gunner- 1x MG 15 machine gun rear (5)

Ordinance:

4 x 551 lb bombs

He 111 (Luftwaffe Bomber)

Length: 53 ft

Wingspan: 74 ft

Crew: 5 (Pilot, Bombardier/Nose Gunner/Navigator, Side Gunner, Dorsal Gunner/Wireless Operator, Ventral Gunner)

Movement: 270 Mph (435 km/h)

Handling: +2 black dice

Health: 42

Armor Value: 6

Armament:

Nose Gunner- 1x MG FF cannon forward (7 AP4)

Nose Gunner- 1x MG 81 machine gun forward (9) 
Dorsal Gunner- 1 x MG 131 machine gun rear (11)

Dorsal Gunner- 1 x MG 131 machine gun forward (11) 
Ventral Gunner- 2x MG 15 machine guns rear (7)

Side Gunner- 2x MG 15 machine guns port (7)

Side Gunner- 2x MG 15 machine guns starboard (7)

Ordinance:

1x 4,409 lb bomb 
8x 551lb bombs

Ju 87 (Luftwaffe Dive-Bomber)

Length: 36 ft

Wingspan: 45 ft 

Crew: 2 (Pilot/Bombardier, Rear Gunner)

Movement: 211mph (339 km/h)

Handling: +1

Health: 30

Armor Value: 5

Armament:

Pilot- 2x MG 17 machine guns mounted in wings forward (10)

Rear Gunner- 1x MG 15 machine guns rear (5)

Ordinance:

1x 550 lb (carried externally)

4x 110 lb (carried externally)

Ju 88 A (Luftwaffe Bomber)

 Length: 47 ft

Wingspan: 65 ft

Crew: 4 (Pilot, Bombardier/Nose Gunner, Wireless Operator/Rear Gunner, Navigator/Ventral Gunner)

Movement: 280 mph (450 km/h)

Handling: 2 black dice

Health: 42

Armor Value:  5

Armament:

Nose Gunner- 1x MG 81 machine gun cockpit nose (9)

Rear Gunner- 1x MG 131 machine gun cockpit rear (11)

Rear Gunner- 1x MG 131 machine gun cockpit rear (11)

Ventral Gunner- 2x MG 81 machine guns rear (11)

Ventral Gunner- 2x MG 81 machine guns front (11)

Ordinance:

6 x 1,102 lb bombs

10 x 110 lb bombs

That wraps up the previews from Dogfights. The complete PDF will be up on the Resources page in early January. Next week, we start our annual holiday tradition: Ghost Stories for Christmas!

Dogfights- RAF Aircraft

The following attributes break down an Aircraft’s abilities into game statistic useful for dogfights:

-Length and Wingspan are simply self-explanatory descriptors of an Aircraft’s size.

-Crew describes how many persons the Aircraft requires to function at peak efficiency. Any crew position listing two different jobs divided by a slash (such as Bombardier/Rear Gunner) designates the position performs two vital jobs both of which are performed at their assigned station within the aircraft.

-Movement, given as both miles and kilometers per hour, is the absolute top speed of the aircraft. If movement needs to be represented by a dice pool for a chase between aircraft, simply divide the Movement by 10 and round down to generate the dice pool.

-Handling measures an aircraft’s performance in speed, maneuverability, and ease of piloting. The Handling attribute contributes to most actions undertaken by an aircraft’s pilot, and black dice pools of enemy gunners targeting the aircraft.

-Health represents how much punishment an aircraft can take before it loses its ability to remain in the sky or dissolves into a fireball of metal. Its Armor Value declares the aircraft’s ability to shrug off incoming enemy fire, whether from thick armor, redundant systems, or self-sealing fuel tanks.

-Armament lists the weaponry available for fending off or attacking enemy aircraft. Each weapon’s descriptions starts with the crew position operating it, followed by the number of identical weapons linked to fire during a single attack, the weapons’ name, the weapon’s location, and finally, the damage dice for all the linked weapons combined. A successful attack with a spitfire’s 8x .303 Browning machine guns (20) does not roll 20 dice 8 times for damage. The damage dice already factor the linked weapons in their total.

The explosive shells fired by cannons devastate even the hardiest of aircraft armors. The “AP” following the number of a cannon’s damage dice stands for Armor Piercing. For every point of Armor Piercing a Weapon possesses, it bypasses a point of an aircraft’s Armor Value.

For the sake of clarity and simplicity, limits of range and ammunition have been ignored in Aircraft’s Armaments due to the tremendous speeds, distances, and constant repositioning inherent to aerial combat. The Gamemaster may rule an aircraft runs out of ammunition or flies beyond their range at their discretion.

-Ordinance numbers the payloads carried by bombers. Obviously, each bomb may be dropped only once. 

For each 500lbs worth of bomb weight (rounded down) dropped during a Drop Bomb action, the bombardier adds 2 dice to their pool.  For large or particularly well-entrenched targets, the Gamemaster may require multiple successful hits for complete destruction. Some fighters may be fitted with bombs at a penalty to their Handling. These fighters have an Optional Ordinance listed followed by their Handling penalty.

Boulton Paul Defiant

Length: 35 ft

Wingspan: 39 ft

Crew: 2 (Pilot, Rear Gunner)

Movement: 304 mph (489 km/h)

Handling: +1

Health: 18

Armor Value: 3

Armament:

Rear Gunner- 4x .303 Browning machine guns in dorsal turret (12)

Bristol Blenheim (RAF fighter/ light bomber)

Length: 42 ft

Wingspan: 56 ft

Crew: 3 (Pilot, Wireless Operator, Navigator/Bombardier)

Speed: 265 mph (428 km/h)

Handling: +1

Health: 24

Armor: 4

Armament:

Pilot- 1x .303 Browning machine gun in Port Wing (6)

Bombardier- 2x .303 Browning machine guns rear (8)

Wireless Operator- 2x .303 in Browning machine guns in dorsal turret (8)

Ordinance:

4x 250 lb bombs

Hurricane Mk II (RAF Fighter)

Length: 32 ft

Wingspan: 40 ft

Crew: 1 (Pilot/Bombardier)

Movement: 330 Mph (531 km/h)

Handling: +3

Health: 18

Armor Value: 3

Armament:

Pilot- 4 x Hispano Mk II cannon (15 AP5)

Optional Ordinance:

2x 500 lb bombs (-2 Handling)

Spitfire Mk I (RAF Fighter)

Length: 29 ft

Wingspan: 36 ft

Crew:  1 (Pilot)

Movement: 360 Mph (579 km/h)

Handling: +5

Health: 12

Armor Value: 1

Armament:

Pilot- 8x .303 Browning machine guns in wings (20)

That’s the RAF sorted. Next week, it's the opposition

Dogfights- Optional Rules

Optional Rule: Emergency Landings and Bailing Out

When an aircraft’s health reaches zero, it and all its occupants turn into a bullet hole-riddled fireball plummeting to the ground. Crew members must take desperate steps to avoid this ugly end before their craft’s health depletes.

Ordinarily, a pilot lucky or skilled enough to safely reach his airfield after a sortie lands his aircraft without needing to roll but normalcy dries out very quickly in war. Whether because of damage to their aircraft or their person, sometimes a pilot must land in terrible conditions. To attempt an emergency landing, the pilot makes an Aviation + Handling test with a black dice pool based on the landing environment. On landing, the aircraft takes damage equal to the Environment Damage minus the successes of the Aviation + Handling roll.

Environment                     Black Dice           Damage

Roads or fields                    0                              4

Lakes and thickets              3                              6

Open sea or villages           6                              8

Forests                                  9                              10

Cities                                      12                           12

At any time, the occupants of a plane may Bail Out and open their parachute with no roll necessary at the Gamemaster’s discretion. Once out of the plane, the evacuee no longer contributes to the Dogfight, but they may take potshots at other parachutists or make use of other opportunities as they crop up. They reach the ground in 1D6 Dogfight turns and suffer 8 pips of damage from the sudden impact. They may attempt an Athletics test (0 black dice). Each success negates a point of damage.  Those without a parachute need not roll the test; they simply start a new character.

Optional Rule: Crew Damage

The bullets tearing through an aircraft also tear through the aircraft’s crew. If an aircraft looses more health pips than its Armor Value x 2 in a single attack, someone’s been hit! The Gamemaster rolls a die to determine the casualty of a damage (5) hit.

Roll        Result

1-2          The pilot

3-5          A random crew member

6              Vital components (all actions undertaken by the aircraft during the combat phase suffer 3 black dice until the damage gets repaired)

Optional Rule: Weather and Night Fighting

While in the thick of it, pilots worry about wind, rain, and lightning almost as much as enemy bullets. On clear sunny days, Dogfighting actions suffer no penalties for the weather, but flying through a fog, blizzards, hail, or thunderclouds gets messy fast.

Weather Conditions        Black Dice penalty

Cloudy/Raining                   3

Thick fog/Storm                  6

Additionally during dark nights bereft of spotlights or a full moon, all Dogfighting Actions suffer +3 black dice.

Optional Rule: Skip the Squadron Phase

Obviously, the Squadron Phase is meant for massive air sorties with more than 10 aircraft battling through the skies. For smaller more mechanically nuanced fights, remove the Squadron Phase and move directly into the combat phase every round with a few adjustments. Instead of basing their initiative on the Squadron Roll, every pilot rolls their Aviation plus their aircraft’s Handling to determine their aircraft’s initiative. The crew then takes turns performing their actions as they see fit. In case of a disagreement, the aircraft’s pilot decides the order of crew actions.  Instead of the Tactical Action, pilots gain the Spot Action.

I’m very proud of the Dogfighting rules. With a little tweaking and some new Actions for the Combat Phase they could work very well for all sorts of Victoriana mass combats. Now that we have the rules, we just need some planes.

Dogfights- The Combat Phase

After the Squadron Roll’s resolution, the Combat Phase begins. PCs and important NPCs take turns performing actions much like a regular combat turn. Instead of rolling initiative, the aircraft belonging to the squadron which won the Squadron Roll perform their actions first, followed by the planes of the losing squadron. Ties break in favor of the side with the biggest dice pool in the previous Squadron Roll (which makes the Defend Maneuver a little more appealing). Players decide the order of friendly actions in the Combat phase as does the Gamemaster for the Enemy. The very first character to act each round receives the usual Initiative bonus.  Just like a combat round on the ground, combatants may take multi-action penalties to perform more than one action a turn.

Obviously, aircraft are constantly in motion. Pilots may position their craft and speed through the dogfight freely, although the Gamemaster may rule that it takes several turns to reach an objective. Characters piloting aircraft perform Pilot Actions, while characters operating other stations aboard an aircraft perform Crew Actions. While characters may perform other actions than those listed with Gamemaster approval, most actions fall within the following categories.

Pilot Actions

                Attack- The pilot chooses a target to attack with one of their aircraft’s pilot armaments and rolls a Gunnery + their aircraft’s Handling test against a black dice pool consisting of their target’s Handling +3. If the target’s Handling is black dice, they are added to the attack pool as bonus dice. On a success, the pilot rolls damage. Ties go in favor of the attacker.

                Defend- The pilot attempts a test using their Aviation + their aircraft’s Handling. Until the start of their next turn, they add the test’s net successes to their aircraft’s (or another friendly aircraft’s) Armor Value.

                Escape/Chase- The pilot tests their Aviation + their aircrafts’ Handling with 9 black dice if the enemy squadron outnumbers their friendly squadron. If the friendly squadron equals or outnumbers the enemy squadron, the Escape test suffers no black dice.  On a success, their aircraft leaves the dogfight. If unsuccessful, they remain in the dogfight and an enemy aircraft chosen by the Gamemaster makes a free attack against them.

This action may also be used to chase escaping aircraft. The pilot follows the same procedure to Pursue an enemy aircraft that successfully performed the Escape (or Chase) Action since the start of the Pilot’s last turn. If unsuccessful, the pilot loses his target and remains in the Dogfight. If successful the pilot and the target begin a vehicle chase as described starting on page 32 of the Victoriana Sourcebook Marvels of Science and Steampunk.

                Tactical- The Pilot attempts a test with their Aviation or Tactics skills + their aircraft’s Handling. If successful, their Squadron adds a number of dice equal to the number of successes to their next Squadron Roll. If multiple pilots in the same Squadron perform the Tactical Action in the same Combat Phase, only the highest counts towards the next Squadron Roll.

Crew Actions

                Attack- The gunner chooses a target to attack with one of their station’s armaments. They roll a Gunnery + their aircraft’s Handling test against a black dice pool of their target’s Handling +3. If the target’s Handling is black dice, they are added to the attack pool as bonus dice. On a success, they roll their armament’s damage. Ties go in favor of the attacker.

                Drop Bomb- The bombardier rolls a Gunnery test with 6 black dice. For each 500lbs worth of bomb weight (rounded down) dropped during a Drop Bomb action, the bombardier adds 2 dice to their pool.  If successful, the bombs fall right on target. With a failure they miss entirely, causing massive devastation to a random spot below. On a partial success, the bombardier rolls a d6. On a 6 or a 1, the desired target still sustained extensive damage but remains standing. On a 2 or a 5, the bomb causes savage destruction elsewhere.           

Repair- Any crewmember may attempt an Ad Hoc Repair test with 3 black dice to return lost health pips to their aircraft. Each success restores 1 health pip up to a maximum equal to their aircraft’s Armor Value.

Spot- Any crew member may attempt a Perception or Gunnery test and choose another member of their aircraft’s crew or pilot. That crew member reduces the black dice penalty of their next action by the number of successes generated by the test.

With all that out of the way, next week we’ll taste the frosting of our Dogfighting cake: Optional Rules

Dogfights- The Squadron Phase

A round of dogfighting consists of two phases: The Squadron Phase and the Combat Phase. During the Squadron phase, the chaotic cloud of feints, bullets, dives, and destruction buzzing through the heavens boils down to a single opposed roll called the Squadron Roll. Afterward, PCs and other characters more interesting than unnamed airmen perform individual actions during the Combat Phase. If the fight remains unresolved by the end of the Combat phase another round of dogfighting begins with the Squadron Phase.

The Squadron Phase

Every Squadron Phase, both sides of the dogfight gather a dice pool consisting of 1 die for every aircraft in their squadron, including fighters, bombers, monsters, and aircraft piloted by PCs. Each side also adds the highest Handling attribute among their aircraft to their Squadron’s pool. The friendly squadron rolls white dice and the enemy squadron rolls black. Black successes negate white, and white successes negate black just like a regular roll. Any remaining successes are net successes and their effects depend on the Squadron Maneuver chosen before the roll. Due to the opposed nature of the roll, any 6s rolled by black dice explode just like the white. Ties mean neither side accomplishes their maneuver. The players keep track of the number of planes in their squadron and choose their Squadron Maneuver. The Gamemaster performs the same tasks for the enemy squadron.

Example: The RAF 11 Group sends 3 Spitfires, 2 Wyverns, and 4 Hurricanes to intercept a Luftwaffe swarm of 7 Bf 109s, and 5 He 111s. The highest Handling attribute among the RAF’s aircraft is the Spitfire’s +5. For the Luftwaffe squadron, it’s the Bf 109’s +3. Therefore the RAF dice pool for the Squadron Roll is 14 dice and the Luftwaffe Pool is 15. Both sides choose the Attack Maneuver. The RAF Squadron rolls 4 successes while the Luftwaffe rolled 6, leaving the Luftwaffe 2 net successes.

Squadron Maneuvers

                Attack- For every net success in the winning squadron’s pool, the enemy removes a fighter from their squadron of their choice. If the winning squadron wishes to target special aircraft, such as enemy bombers, monsters, and planes piloted by PCs or important NPCs, for every 3 successes spent they make a damage roll against their chosen targets using one of their fighter’s armaments. The number of successes from the Squadron Maneuver does not contribute to the damage. The squadron engages the enemy’s planes in furious combat.

Defend- The squadron adds dice to their Squadron Roll pool equal to half of their current Squadron Roll pool (rounding up). However, if they win the Squadron roll, they remove enemy fighters from the dogfight for every 3 successes or damage special aircraft for every 6. The planes circle up, fly evasively, or avoid direct engagement with enemy fighters.

Escape- For every net success, 1 friendly aircraft safely leaves the battle to fight another day. Successes during an Escape maneuver do not remove enemy planes from the dogfight nor aircraft piloted by PCs. Planes perform an emergency landing, fly away, or escape in thick cloud banks.

Tactical- Net successes from the Squadron Roll contribute to this turn and boost the next turn’s Squadron Roll. Aside from canceling out the enemy squadron’s success, Net Successes from a Tactical Maneuver cause no other effect during that turn they were rolled. Successes from a previous Tactical Maneuver in the next turn count towards the net successes as normal and can remove enemy planes from the dogfight for an Attack, help more planes getaway during an Escape, etc. Tactical Maneuver successes do not contribute to a Tactical Maneuver in the following turn. The squadron climbs to a higher elevation to attack enemy planes from above, circle behind enemy formations, or maneuver out of the sun’s glare.

Next week we’ll look at the Combat Phase, where players and important NPC’s shine.