An oldie but a goodie. The box is relying heavily on sellotape for its structural integrity but the contents are all present and correct.
Anyway, to cit a long story short I had the opportunity to acquire a copy of the base game at a price that was frankly too good to turn down - so I didn't!
As befits a game released in 1964 the rules are pretty straightforward but do not let that fool you because this offering has oodles of period feel and flavour. It is certainly simpler than Flat Top - which I am a huge fan of - and I would have no hesitation in trying this at the club. All the key elements of carrier operations are there - endless searches, assembling and delivering strikes and protecting the all important carriers. I knew that a number of fan based additional scenarios had been drafted and a chap on eBay produces them. These cover the familiar Coral Sea and Eastern Solomons campaigns (back in the day I played these to death using Flat Top) and also one that I have never looked at - Leyte Gulf in 1944. Both of these are now in the same box as the base game - acquired for completeness naturally!
The contents snuggly stored n the original box
The Midway search boards
The battle board - combat is odds based, how very old school!
The search boards for Coral Sea/Eastern Solomons and Leyte Gulf along with the scenario details and log sheets etc. There are two copies of each map, one for each side.
I must admit that for carrier games this collection is probably more likely to be used than either Flat Top of CV, simply because much as I love both of those games they do need a lot of time and dedication to play successfully. Maybe one day I will be able to persuade someone to give either of them a spin.
In the meantime though, the Avalon Hill game is a welcome addition to the collection and, as I recall, there is a Mediterranean WW2 version available featuring the RN and the Italian Navy using the same system. I will keep an eye open for that for sure!
4 comments:
Trying again. We played this game many many times in the late 70s/ early 80s. My box is also held together with tape!
I was able to buy the Avalon Hill version of Coral Sea/Eastern Solomons when they were published. Then there was The Wargamers Guide. This page has a full table of contents: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/96016/wargamers-guide-to-midway
We only played Leyte Gulf once. It was just too huge and not much fun.
Enjoy!
Hi Ed,
I have a digital copy of the Wargamer’s Guide and will be sure to check the files on BGG. I was thinking that maybe Leyte might be a little on the large side but I would be keen to give it a go at some point.
All the best,
DC
Fascinating! Those 'search maps' for Leyte Gulf and Coral Sea look VERY tasty! Just the thing for my thumbnail navies of Jono's World!
My one caveat: not hexes. But one can't have everything.
Cheers,
Ion
Hi Archduke,
The maps were squared to maintain the connection to the original version. They do look rather nice though and I will probably get them laminated for durability.
I also need to undertake some research on Leyte Gulf - usually my Pacific adventures tend to finish at the end of 1942!
All the best,
DC
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