Got the game going and watched a bunch of videos and looking at the rulebook. Much different than a computer game. I hope it gets easier.
I actually want to grab that one myself. I do a fair amount of board gaming but nothing military yet.
In general some of the heavier board games can be daunting. Plus it's easier to forget rules and such. I typically play, checking the rules when i think I have a question but if I make a mistake I just try to mentally note it for next time I play.
The Hunters is a great game. I've played it a ton. Once you get going with the rules it's really easy to play and you can crank out a career in a couple of hours... depending on your fortunes at sea that is.
It makes a good game to get into wargaming too as it's not that rules heavy and creates a great narrative.
There is a great map mod to use with the game on BGG:
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/filepage/97934/hunters-huge-board
I've put it in a poster frame and hang it on the wall, when not in play, it looks so good.
I've got GATO Leader from DVG games and Devil Boats on order.
I've owned the first two for awhile; the uboat and US Pacific ones. They're alright for doing short runs and packing back up in between plays. Although there aren't many, or varied, player decisions to be made. Mostly just rolling dice to see what happens. I wouldn't necessarily compare them to something like B-17/Target For Today or Ranger, however, as there isn't a big book of varied and detailed events like those.
I also own Gato Leader, but haven't played yet. I like how it seems to be more detailed and, perhaps, lends a bit more player input. However, there doesn't seem to be many cards in it, which is what drives the experience. Will have to play it a couple times before finding out whether they get repetitive too quickly; i.e. finding the same ships over & over from session to session.
Would like to hear about your experiences.
Thanks for replying to the thread. I didn't see many posts of late to the forum. and I finished the first month of the patrol. I don't think I missed any steps or special circumstances. I ended up sinking three ships, all unescorted. About 24000 tons. The chart that comes in handy is the flow chart on BGG. In this game, a lot of special situations and die roll modifiers. I guess it would be difficult to play if you take a lot of time in between. I have the Hunted and Silent Victory. I also have Gato but never opened. Let me know if you guys want to keep ideas going so we can learn better. I did notice something on vassal but not sure if it was this game. Thanks again and some good videos out there.
I picked up The Hunted a couple of weeks ago. Great game too, but hard to survive for long. My first captain didn't even get half-way through his first patrol. Still, it's very enjoyable.
You will have to try again Iron. I might get another patrol in on Thursday.
My third captain lasted much longer. He survived until late 1944 when his boat was forced to the surface. The crew managed to scuttle the boat and ended the war as POWs. Diving below test depth and deploying decoys saved his skin numerous times. But once you're in that depth-charge cycle, it can be hard to break free.
Hi Again, I just finished a patrol in December 1939 with the VIIA Uboat. The first role had me run into a convoy. Something new for me.
I did the aircraft check since I was in Transit and suffered one box of hull and flooding damage. I forgot to check with a die roll if flooding stopped. I found that out after the patrol was over.
2. With the Convoy, I identified the four ships and sank three of them. However, I for some reason didn't conduct the escort portion of the procedure. I looked through the rules and didn't find it right away, therefore, just continued on. After this encounter I ran into a few more ships and tankers and sunk a few more for a total of 30,900 tons.
3. I almost ran out of torpedoes and most of my sinking was due to un-escorted ships and surface attacks. I haven't faced a battle with the escorts but after two patrols, seems like part of the system and procedures are flowing into place.
Conclusion. I have one more successful patrol before I can start looking at some promotions. Please chime in if you think anything else needs to be looked at.
Thanks
I lasted much longer in my Hunters playthroughs than my Silent Victory one.
My usual worst-luck rolls resulted in my sub striking a mine in SV. Insta-death. Game over, man! :wow: