Having seen Andy K playing a game of Bandits High a couple of weeks before I asked him if I could give it a try. He explained that it was a collectibles game and that once the original set was bought additional planes were available in sets of 3 but bought blind so his collection is a bit eclectic. It is a part of the Axis and Allies stable.
The basics are pretty simple. All planes have a normal speed and a fast speed. To do anything other than a simple turn a dice roll is required, modified by stats that vary by plane. Each plane has a number of special abilities unique to each plane. Initiative rolls, to see who moves first, play quite a big part as the second moving player can react to his opponent and set up a superior position. Each plane has a certain number of firing dice and hit on a 4 5 or 6 depending on angles of attack. There are a few modifiers. A six is a double hit - most hits are cumulative with 3 being the usual number needed to shoot a plane down. Roll high enough and an instant kill is possible - on one occasion on 4 dice I rolled 3 x 6 and a 5 to very luckily achieve this!
The first game was between myself and Alan with Andy umpiring. I flew a Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien (Tony) against a Widcat and after a fair bit of manoeveirng managed a win. In the second game I added a Zero and Andy took over the Americans and added an Aircobra once again a decisive Japanese victory. We then tried one of the scenarios a bombing run by the Japanese. The Aircobra was replaced by a Lightning which proved pretty destructive and although I managed a few hits on the member both my planes were shot down so a win to Andy. In our final game we switched theatre and I was the interceptor taking a Spitfire and a Fulmar against a combined German/Italian force. The Spitfire proved deadly shooting down a FW 190 and Falco,
My overall impression is of a game that would be fun to play occasionally but might not stand regular outings. If I saw it on a Bring and Buy I might pick it up at the right price - the models themselves are certainly quite nice. Thanks for the introduction to the game Andy!
The basics are pretty simple. All planes have a normal speed and a fast speed. To do anything other than a simple turn a dice roll is required, modified by stats that vary by plane. Each plane has a number of special abilities unique to each plane. Initiative rolls, to see who moves first, play quite a big part as the second moving player can react to his opponent and set up a superior position. Each plane has a certain number of firing dice and hit on a 4 5 or 6 depending on angles of attack. There are a few modifiers. A six is a double hit - most hits are cumulative with 3 being the usual number needed to shoot a plane down. Roll high enough and an instant kill is possible - on one occasion on 4 dice I rolled 3 x 6 and a 5 to very luckily achieve this!
The first game was between myself and Alan with Andy umpiring. I flew a Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien (Tony) against a Widcat and after a fair bit of manoeveirng managed a win. In the second game I added a Zero and Andy took over the Americans and added an Aircobra once again a decisive Japanese victory. We then tried one of the scenarios a bombing run by the Japanese. The Aircobra was replaced by a Lightning which proved pretty destructive and although I managed a few hits on the member both my planes were shot down so a win to Andy. In our final game we switched theatre and I was the interceptor taking a Spitfire and a Fulmar against a combined German/Italian force. The Spitfire proved deadly shooting down a FW 190 and Falco,
My overall impression is of a game that would be fun to play occasionally but might not stand regular outings. If I saw it on a Bring and Buy I might pick it up at the right price - the models themselves are certainly quite nice. Thanks for the introduction to the game Andy!
Games 52
Rules played 21 New 9
Places played 8 New 0
Places played 8 New 0