A Pacific dogfight – US Grumman Wildcats vs. Japanese A6M Zeroes.
Game is Lacquered Coffins, Aircraft are 1/600 from Tumbling Dice, Decals from Doms Decals.
These 2 aircraft are roughly equivalent in Lacquered Coffins, so we'll see how the nimble Japanese fighters hold up against the sturdier US aircraft. All the pilots are average quality for this battle.
Start of the game, a good old fashioned 4 v 4 dogfight:
Wildcats attempt to knock out a zero head-on:
It works! one of the zeroes are destroyed, while another is damaged. The Japanese respond
One of the Zeroes damages a Widlcat with the two 20mm cannons. The 2 light machine guns are ineffective in a head-on pass with the enemy pilot going evasive…
Mandatory moves: The aircraft zip past each other. Mandatory moves happen at the start of every turn – aircraft can't just stay still! Each aircraft moves a distance in inches equal to 2 times the number on it's speed dice (the green dice).
A Zero races past 3 wildcats, leaving them in the dust and confident in the knowledge they won't be able to turn hard enough to catch him…
The wildcats pull around, diving to gain speed. They are all either too low (The White dice is altitude – can only attack targets at your altitude or 1 altitude above or below) or too slow or facing the wrong way to get an attack in.
The game around turn 4: Some of the wildcats are wounded and have some damage, but there are still 3 zeroes vs 4 wildcats so it could go either way…
One of the zeroes gets on the tail of a wildcat…
One of the wildcats finds himself out of the fight, too far away to really help, he brings his aircraft around, but he's missing at a crucial time! A wildcat tails the Zero who is tailing his buddy. Another zero was shot down, but in the confusion no one seems to notice…
The game is now 4 Wildcats vs 2 Zeroes. The odds aren't that good for the Japanese!
The zero climbs up slightly from below to target the Wildcat – who is already damaged and with a wounded pilot! Another wildcat tries to shake the zero off his buddy's tail…
The wildcat is able to wound the Japanese pilot, and his buddy turns hard to escape, but another zero turns sharply behind a 3rd wildcat and 20mm gunfire rips through the wildcats air frame – it explodes!
The wounded wildcat pilot sees a squad-mate annihilated just below him:
The Tailing Zero swoops in for the kill, fighting through the pain from his wounds. 20mm cannon fire and fire from his light machine guns cause the Wildcat to explode! shrapnel fills the air and he narrowly avoids it
Overview of the game at this stage. It is now 2 V 2!
One of the zeroes comes around and funnels 20mm cannon fire into the wildcat with the wounded pilot. His aircraft bursts into flames! it is destroyed. The game has gone from 2 Japanese vs 4 US, to now 2 Japanese vs 1 US. What a turn around!
In the final turn of the game, one of the zeroes lines up the advancing wildcat, the one who was out of the fight briefly… 20mm cannon rounds tear through the wildcats canopy and kill the pilot outright. The aircraft makes a lazy left turn and descends towards the water…
Quite the reversal for the Japanese! They pull off a solid victory with 4 kills and only 2 aircraft lost.
is back from Council of Five Nations.
