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Burning D Rachens Burning Drachens: Rulebook Rulebook
Burning D Rachens Burning Drachens: Rulebook Rulebook
Burning D
Rulebook
WOW003-BD EN Rulebook.indd 1 09/09/2005 16.53.15
rachens
Burning D
BATTLES IN THE SKIES OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR
Wings of War is a card game in which one or more players control airplanes and anti-aircraft
defenses during World War I. Each set in the Wings of War line is a standalone game, but all sets are
fully compatible and work together to allow for larger battles with different airplanes.
GAME MATERIALS
KAISERLICHE UND
KOENIGLICHE
LUFTFAHRTRUPPEN
FLIK 61J
Oberleutnant
J A 14 ALBATROS D.III
FLICK 61J Ludwig
L. Hautzmayer
12/16 Hautzmayer I 14/18 14/17
3/3
REGIO ESERCITO
80 A SQUADRIGLIA
5
Sottotenente
28 PARSEVAL - SIGSFELD I B 12 NIEUPORT 17
80A SQUADRIGLIA Giannino
G, Ancillotto
Ancillotto
A
4/16
Game boards (2) Balloon (4) Allied Airplane Ground Card (8)
Card (8) Target Card Trench Card Machine Gun Anti-Aircraft Gun
Last Maneuver
performed Special Damages Scenario Goals
Straight Maneuver Jammed Machine Guns Successful Successful Pilot / United States Airplane British Airplane German / Austrian Balloon Destroyed
Bombing Mission Spy Recovery Mission Shot Down Shot Down Airplane Shot Down
Immelmann Turn / Smoke Successful Successful Observation / Belgian Airplane Italian Airplane Turkish Airplane
Split-S Photographic Mission Artillery Direction Mission Shot Down Shot Down Shot Down
Steep Maneuver Flame Successful Generic French Airplane Russian Airplane Romanian Airplane
Strafing Mission Successful Mission Shot Down Shot Down Shot Down
Rockets Incendiary bullets Balloon observer Artillery counter Silenced gun Silenced Climb counter Altitude counter
machine gun
If you use
multiple planes
of the same
model, place a
second copy of
the airplane card
here to identify
which one this
game board
refers to.
Last Maneuver
performed
Altitude and
climb counters
(optional rule)
First Maneuver programmed Second Maneuver programmed Third Maneuver programmed Unused Maneuver cards
Optional Rules the following rules for more fun and realism. You can use some
or all of these rules as you see fit, but all the players must agree
to them before the start of the match.
SPECIAL DAMAGE
Some damage cards have symbols beside the number of dam-
age points: These symbols indicate special damage to the target
airplane (exception: Jammed guns ( ) affect the firing airplane,
see page 4). Some special damage results have to be announced
to the other players immediately, while some may (and should!)
be kept secret. Where appropriate, players announce the special
damage and put the proper damage counters in the “damage”
section of the game board. However, even when the special
damage must be announced, do not tell the other players the
amount of damage points on the card(s).
• Cards with the symbol indicate that the airplane has caught
TAILING
Sometimes a pilot is in an advantageous position in which he
fire. The player must announce this special damage. The targeted
can anticipate the actions of his adversary. This is called “tail-
player takes three “flame” counters and puts them in the “dam-
ing”: Check for it at the start of each turn.
age” space on the game board. Each turn, before revealing the
first maneuver of the turn, the player removes a flame counter
To see if tailing is possible, use the ruler to connect the center dot
and takes a damage card from the A deck. Only damage points
of an airplane with the center dot of any plane(s) in front of it.
and explosions are taken into account; all other special damage
The plane at the rear is attempting to tail, while the plane ahead
results are ignored. In addition, the plane smokes: It cannot per-
of it is being tailed. Tailing is possible if 1) the ruler reaches both
form “tailing” (see below) for the rest of the turn and for the next
dots, 2) it passes through the front side of the tailing airplane
two turns, until the flame counters are removed. If you do not
card and the rear side of the tailed airplane card, and 3) the ruler
have A cards, take two B cards for each discarded flame counter.
does not cross any other airplane card in between. If a plane can
tail two or more enemies, it must choose only one for that turn.
When a plane takes more than one type of special damage, all
of them take effect. For counter tracking purposes, if a plane
The planes plan their turn as normal, but before revealing the
takes a specific type of damage that it is already suffering from,
first maneuver, the tailed player has to show his first maneuver
ignore the older damage result and begin tracking the new one.
card to the tailing player: The tailing player can then rearrange
If a plane takes multiple special damage results of the same type
the three cards he has chosen for the tailing plane in the order
simultaneously, only count the last one drawn.
he wants. Then the maneuvers are revealed and the planes are
moved. After firing is resolved, but before revealing the second
AIM maneuver, check whether tailing is still possible between those
When a plane is firing at the same enemy plane from the same two planes. If it is not, the rest of the turn is played normally. If
gun (front or rear) for consecutive rounds, it can fire with more tailing is still possible, the tailed player has to show his second
accuracy. From the second consecutive phase of fire onward, card to the tailing player, and the latter can rearrange the order
even from one turn to the next, all non-zero damage cards score of the tailing plane’s two remaining maneuver cards.
one additional damage point. Zeros still cause no damage.
Tailing is possible only between two aircraft that were in tailing
Example: if a D.H. 4 shoots a Fokker Dr.I at the end of a position at the beginning of the turn. Planes cannot begin tail-
turn, and then shoots it again, at short distance, in the first ing a new plane in the middle of a turn, but they can lose the
round of the next turn, the Fokker Dr.I takes two cards of ability to tail in the middle of a turn.
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Do not fire the gun as soon as it is loaded, as per the multiplayer When a balloon catches fire, put a flame counter on it. The bal-
rules. Instead, wait one round, then shoot as soon as any part of loon takes an A damage card at the start of each turn, just as
an enemy airplane card is within range of the gun (two rulers of airplanes do. Only damage points and explosions are considered;
distance). Don’t place the counter as per the multiplayer rules. all other types of special damage are ignored. Do not discard the
Instead, draw an A damage card to see if the aim of the AA bat- fire counter: For balloons, fires do not end after the third turn as
tery is correct. If there is no special damage on the card, the aim they do for planes. Instead, a balloon that is on fire takes a dam-
is wrong and the shot is wasted. If there is any type of special age card every turn until the balloon is destroyed or reaches the
damage (including jammed guns), ignore the result on the A ground. If a balloon takes more than one fire damage, in the same
card and draw a C damage card. turn or in different ones, put a flame counter on it for each fire
damage taken and draw an A card for each counter each turn.
Don’t fire at a target if any point of the airplane card is within a
half-ruler of distance from a friendly balloon or airplane. A balloon explodes if it 1) takes an “explosion” special damage
result or 2) reaches its maximum damage while on fire. In either
If more than one target could be shot at by the AA gun, choose case, it is removed from the game and all the airplane cards
one randomly, unless the scenario you are playing provides a overlapping the balloon with any part of their card take one C
specific rule stating which airplanes are more important. (For damage card immediately. For the planes, take into account only
example, two-seaters may be seen as more important for artillery damage points, explosions, and fire, and ignore other types of
to shoot at than fighters.) special damage.
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The Split-S cannot be executed in the same turn as a dive. Crashes: If a plane loses its last climb marker while it is at 0
level and its red dot is out of the landing field (due to bad plan-
BLOCKED AIM ning), it crashes: It takes 4 A damage cards (or 8 B cards if you
When an airplane fires at a target at the same altitude, its aim do not have an A deck).
is blocked only by airplanes or balloons which are also at that
altitude. Only the altitude level counts, not the number of climb If a grounded plane ends a maneuver with its central red dot
counters on the airplanes or balloons. outside the landing field while it is taking off (after the stall or
the straight) or landing (after the straight or stall), it crashes. It
FIRING takes 2 A damage cards (or 4 Bs) if it happens with the stall, or
When a plane fires at a target that is one level of altitude higher 3 A cards (or 6 Bs) if it happens with the straight.
or lower than itself, treat short-range shots (half a ruler) as if
they were long range (the target takes only one card of damage).
Take into account damage points, explosions, and fire, but ignore
Planes cannot fire at targets that are one level of altitude higher
other special damages. The plane is grounded and must remain
or lower and more than half a ruler of distance away. Planes also
completely still for the remainder of this turn and all of the next
cannot fire at targets that are two or more altitude levels away.
turn. If it is not destroyed, it can then be moved or turned, and
may start a new takeoff if it can get back inside the airfield.
LANDINGS, TAKEOFFS, AND CRASHES
At the start of the game, if you want to have a landing field in Maneuvering planes on the ground: At the start of the second
the game, set its limits. It should be at least 9 x 27 cm. Draw round of a turn, before any maneuver card is revealed, the owner
on the gaming surface or use a sheet of paper of the right shape. of a grounded plane can move and turn the plane card freely,
This could represent a real airfield or just a flat area where some- but the plane’s central red dot must stay within the area covered
body is waiting for rescue. by that same plane card at the start of the turn.
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Infantry fire can also reach 0-level planes that are one ruler’s If a balloon explodes (because of an explosion special damage
length away, and 1-level planes that are half a ruler away. result or because it takes too much damage while on fire), one
C damage card is taken by each airplane within a half-ruler
ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS of distance and at the same altitude level, and by all airplanes
overlapping the balloon that are at the level just above or below
When placing the artillery counter on the table, the player must
declare the altitude at which the shot is aimed (minimum level it. Anti-aircraft batteries and ground targets are unaffected by
1, maximum level 5). Only planes and balloons at that level are exploding balloons.
affected; those overlapping the counter but at different altitudes
are not. Subtract a half-ruler of range for each additional level BALLOONS AND ARTILLERY
after level 1: The counter can be put at two rulers of distance Players may not place the artillery counter on a balloon, or on a
at altitude 1, one and a half ruler’s distance at level 2, one ruler spot where a straight line from the red dot on the gun to the artil-
at level 3, a half-ruler at level 4, and must overlap some part the lery counter crosses a balloon, no matter the altitude of the bal-
gun card at level 5. (This rule supersedes the rule on page 10 that loon. If a balloon is at the same altitude and within half-ruler dis-
the artillery counter may not be placed above the gun card itself.) tance of an artillery burst, the balloon takes one C card of damage.
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Planes not having an Immelmann card cannot execute overdives. The balloon and the Sopwith don’t collide, since one has
(They are not maneuverable enough to do so.) climb counters and the other does not. The Pfalz and the
balloon both collide with the Nieuport, so they take a single
C card each while the Nieuport takes two C cards.
BAILING OUT
Balloons’ observers had no heavy weapons and usually bailed out
from their basket, parachuting to the ground, if enemy planes BALLOON BARRAGES
were sighted. One of the goals of planes was to force observers Balloons were used not only as observation points but also as bar-
to parachute. Their mission was then interrupted and the bal- rages. The balloons were set up in a line, with steel cross-cables
loon, damaged or not, had to be taken to the ground to allow between them. Balloon barrages prevented airplanes from pass-
them to get back into the basket and resume their duties. ing through or below them. To form a barrage, place a line of
balloons spaced one ruler of distance or less from each other. If
If players use or design a scenario in which the observers are any part of an airplane card is between two adjacent balloons, at
part of the victory conditions, as in “A Lonely Sentinel,” they the same altitude or lower of the lowest of the two balloons, the
may add this rule. Each balloon has two observers, unless the plane is eliminated. A plane is also destroyed if it is between the
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CLOUD COVER
Players can agree that there is cloud cover at a certain altitude
above the starting altitude of all the planes involved.
When a plane reaches the altitude of the cloud cover, it stops
moving on the table. The player keeps on planning maneuvers
as normal, but the airplane card stays in the same position it
reached after the climb. It cannot fire, be fired upon, or collide
with other planes.
The maneuvers of the plane that climbed into the cloud cover
are kept one on top of the other (or written down) until the
plane executes a dive or a Split-S. In that round, the player
takes the pile of the maneuvers planned since the climb and he
executes all of them immediately, in the order he planned them.
If the plane exits the gaming surface at the end of any maneuver
card, the plane is out of the game. If not, as soon as the plane
executes the dive or the Split-S, it is back under the cloud level
and can fire, be fired at, and collide normally.
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Scenarios rials included in this box. The last two can be played if you have
one or both of the other Wings of War sets: Famous Aces and
Watch Your Back!
The playing area lengths and widths listed below are suggested
minimums. Length is given as the distance from the German to
the Allied side of the table (they are always opposite each other).
Every scenario states which rules are needed. Any optional rules
can be added if all the players agree to do so before the start of
the game.
After you are familiar with the game, feel free to invent your own
scenarios, using the ones below as examples. If you own different
sets and/or several copies of the same set, you can design far richer
gaming situations. Feel free to mix the nationality of your planes
as you wish: A couple of captured airplanes that Central Powers
pilots used are included to allow more varied scenarios.
If you have other sets, you can also decide to enrich the scenar-
ios given here with additional planes. For example, you might
add an Allied Camel and a German Fokker to a trench-strafing
or a balloon-busting scenario.
SCENARIO RULES
These are special rules used only in a few scenarios.
BULLET CHECKER
“Bullet checker” pilots checked every single bullet before taking
off and discarded the defective ones, so when they fire, ignore the
jamming damage result on cards with a green cross; bullet-checker
pilots jam only when their target draws a card with the red cross.
BURNING DRACHENS
When playing a scenario with balloons but not the Altitude rules,
if after 12 turns any balloons have not been destroyed, they are
considered on the ground and taken out of the game. However,
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Game design and development: Andrea Angiolino and Pier Giorgio Paglia.
Plane drawings and cover: Vincenzo Auletta.
Layout and graphics: Fabio Maiorana.
Additional graphics: Dario Calì.
Editing and supervision: Roberto Di Meglio, Kevin Duke, Simone Peruzzi, Fabrizio Rolla
Playtesting: David Anderson, Ian Duncan, Carlo Gualandri, Christopher L. Heinzmann, James D. Pink, James J. Pink.
Historical consultants: Gregory Alegi and Paolo Varriale.
© 2004, 2005 Nexus Editrice srl. Wings of War™ is a trademark of Nexus Editrice srl.
All rights reserved. Made in the E.U.
Thanks to Dan-San Abbott, Daniel Clamot, Iulian Iamandi, Antonio Iozzi, Robert G. Ohlsen, Miroslav Pokorny,
Etienne Reunis, Mike Westrop and to all our friends at www.theaerodrome.com and www.boardgamegeek.com.