Picket Duty

Nefaro · December 10, 2013, 10:57:06 AM

I just unboxed Picket Duty from Legion Wargames. It looks wonderful!

http://www.legionwargames.com/legion_picket_duty_TGP.html

I'm getting excited about checking it out, after splaying everything out on the table. This certainly isn't a subject you see very often.

It's a solitaire wargame from the same designer who created B-29 Superfortress and it's Hell Over Korea expansion (also from Legion Wargames), which are descendants of the old B-17 Queen of the Skies. I also recently picked up B-29 and the Korea expansion but haven't started a game yet with those. The rulebook and tables book for Picket Duty make it look a bit easier to learn. I also wouldn't be surprised to see more decision making in Picket Duty, for damage control if nothing else.

I'm hoping to get started today. Between this and the soon-to-be-shipped The Hunters, I'll have a nice mix of solitaire naval command this Christmas season. 8)

The following 'unboxing' vid was the last nail before I ordered. Some nice looking stuff. :D

Nefaro · December 10, 2013, 04:33:18 PM

My initial impressions are good. It doesn't bury you under quite such a landslide of table rolls (although you'll still be doing them) as B-29 did and perhaps B-17 but I'm not sure, it's been soooo long since I played it.

There is a good amount of decisions to be made, mostly regarding allocation of fire & air support along with sending individual repair team sailors and officers to specific areas of the ship. This is the vast majority of decision-making: fire control and repair team allocation. I'm enjoying it.

I do have one complaint. I think the rulebook should've been given some more proof-reading. I've already discovered some incorrect table references and a few bits of the rules could use better clarification. I expect there to be some errata and FAQ update at some point. Nevertheless, it's been pretty easy to finger stuff out thus far but I'm just using the Basic Rules in this first 1-day game. I plan on starting a proper campaign using the Advanced Rules when this is done.

bayonetbrant · December 10, 2013, 04:51:16 PM

So when are you going to write a review for us for the front page? (hint, hint!)

PM me if you're interested :)

Thomasew · December 10, 2013, 11:13:51 PM

Picket Duty errata etc ..

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1082529/latest-pd-errata

Cheers
Tom

Nefaro · December 11, 2013, 08:29:09 AM

Quote from: Thomasew on December 10, 2013, 11:13:51 PM

Picket Duty errata etc ..

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1082529/latest-pd-errata

Cheers
Tom

Thanks! I hadn't checked to see if it was out yet.

Quote from: bayonetbrant on December 10, 2013, 04:51:16 PM
So when are you going to write a review for us for the front page? (hint, hint!)

PM me if you're interested :)

If I had a good camera it would be a possibility but I do not. ;)

DicedT · December 11, 2013, 11:43:24 AM

The counters are the most gorgeous I've seen.

Michael

Nefaro · December 12, 2013, 01:45:04 AM

Quote from: DicedT on December 11, 2013, 11:43:24 AM
The counters are the most gorgeous I've seen.

Michael

They're quite nice. Especially since they're punched so well that they practically fall right out of the counter sheets. That was a refreshing change from my last counter punching experience with RAF. That one had such stingy counter punching that I had even tore some of the paper off on a couple counters and they were sloppy as all hell, in desperate need of a trim. These, on the other hand, didn't need a trimming at all. The way it should be. :)

The rules still need more clarifications in parts. It's the only negative I have right now. There is still at least one facet that is almost completely missing info regarding it's game mechanics (what Fire counters do in Compartments - you're only told to place one there at a certain time). Just an example, but it needs a revised rulebook and there are still issues I've found that aren't in the errata yet.

Had fun with it yesterday afternoon, though. :)

weateallthepies · December 13, 2013, 05:34:02 AM

I think I read they would be releasing a new rulebook at some point.

Not had time to play it yet, might set it up later and have a look.

Nefaro · December 13, 2013, 08:11:21 AM

Quote from: weateallthepies on December 13, 2013, 05:34:02 AM
I think I read they would be releasing a new rulebook at some point.

Reportedly January.

I think I've fingered out most of the game mechanics, but there are still a couple areas that are pretty hazy. Especially the Fire Damage Markers placed in specific compartments when hit. I left a query on the 'Geek forums about it.

BanzaiCat · February 07, 2014, 08:49:56 AM

Just missed this update the other day (Tuesday 2/4) from BoardGameGeek on the 2.0 rules' status:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1101324/any-word-on-the-rules-update

QuoteThe latest from Ken today, 2/4/14. Copied and pasted from his post on CSW:

Still in progress. I've forwarded my comments and suggestions for about two-thirds of rules to Steve. I still have the repair sections to review. I'm a little hampered by that area simply because I've never had to repair anything in my games so far. It's been all-or-nothing with me: either my ship has had to return to port, in which case all repairs are completed in port, or no attackers appeared.

And I haven't started reviewing the charts yet. I expect that to be tedious.

Looks like it's going to be a while.

bayonetbrant · February 07, 2014, 08:58:43 AM

photos on the front page today!

Nefaro · February 07, 2014, 11:24:49 AM

Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 07, 2014, 08:49:56 AM
Just missed this update the other day (Tuesday 2/4) from BoardGameGeek on the 2.0 rules' status:

http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1101324/any-word-on-the-rules-update

QuoteThe latest from Ken today, 2/4/14. Copied and pasted from his post on CSW:

Still in progress. I've forwarded my comments and suggestions for about two-thirds of rules to Steve. I still have the repair sections to review. I'm a little hampered by that area simply because I've never had to repair anything in my games so far. It's been all-or-nothing with me: either my ship has had to return to port, in which case all repairs are completed in port, or no attackers appeared.

And I haven't started reviewing the charts yet. I expect that to be tedious.

Looks like it's going to be a while.

I'm not too concerned as long as the errata that fixes the incorrect text and such is fairly up-to-date.

I was able to grasp the rules easily, for the most part. There was just a small few things I needed clarified. After getting a couple things answered at the Board Game Geek forums, I was fine. The problem I had with the rules was mainly a few things not being fully explained.

The prime example is the Fire Damage counters compared to regular Damage Counters. The Fire Damage counters evidently have no game mechanic at all so when the rules stated that on the first hit on a compartment you must place a Fire Counter in addition to the Damage Counter, and said nothing else of the effects of these Fire tokens, it made me go a bit nuts. I still think it's strange they have all these fire counters included in the game and they do nothing. They're just begging for house rules. I suppose they added them for just such a thing, to add more difficulty, but there was no mention of this in the rulebook.

It really is a fun solo game and I think it flows much better than their earlier B-29 Superfortress system (which was based on B-17 QotS) once you get a couple game days in and experience how the damage system works. The pieces and map are beautiful and helps you get immersed.

If I had one additional request for Picket Duty, it would be having some potential for anti-sub action on rare occasions, even though I doubt it was anywhere near as likely an encounter as fighting off all the kamikaze planes in this period. If it includes such a thing already, it may just be reduced down to a die roll result but I haven't seen it yet in the two weeks of game time I've played. It would be nice to have a rules subset for such things so that you're not just shooting down suicide planes and the occasional torpedo bomber.

BanzaiCat · February 07, 2014, 01:45:42 PM

Ah, I remember reading that thread on BGG about the fire damage. I didn't even notice the name of the poster.

I remember you saying it was not insurmountable to get into, and I probably should just so I have a frame of reference for 2.0.

And you hit the nail on the head with another concern of mine - I know Kamikazes went after destroyers, but that was hardly their target of choice.

Another angle would have been appreciated, too, such as 'normal' aircraft attacks, which should have been easy enough to put in the rules. Consider that an airplane comes in and lines itself up on you - you don't know if it's going to strafe you, bomb you/torpedo you, or crash itself into you. There's a lot of tension there that could have been added to the game, I think. And then there's the 'normal' pilots that might have been so damaged that they would have tried to crash into the nearest target of opportunity when they normally might not have done so.

Nefaro · February 07, 2014, 03:33:56 PM

Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 07, 2014, 01:45:42 PM

Another angle would have been appreciated, too, such as 'normal' aircraft attacks, which should have been easy enough to put in the rules. Consider that an airplane comes in and lines itself up on you - you don't know if it's going to strafe you, bomb you/torpedo you, or crash itself into you. There's a lot of tension there that could have been added to the game, I think. And then there's the 'normal' pilots that might have been so damaged that they would have tried to crash into the nearest target of opportunity when they normally might not have done so.

Those are modelled in the tables. However, they're fairly unusual compared to kamikaze attacks. When you get them, they will drop a torpedo or bomb and then you roll again to see if they try to crash into you or they head home. However, you will experience far more plain 'ole suicide ramming attacks than those.

On specific days on the calendar, there is a potential for a much higher concentration of kamikazes. That's mainly what the calendar sheet is for, other than tracking how close to the end of the campaign you are.

The individual scenarios that shipped with the game seemed to have a lot of errata but I wasn't interested in those one-offs with extra rules anyway, so I've not played them. The campaigns are where it's at, for me. I've not had my destroyer seriously damaged yet, at least nothing my repair crews couldn't handle, but I've also not gone through many of those big days. I've had maybe two of those and both my rolls for spawning aircraft were pretty lucky on my part, along with some good AA rolling and damage stuff. I think the worst I got was one damaged engine room, a couple gun mounts damaged, and the rules state that if you have an engine put out you immediately RTB so that allowed me to retire to port and repair after making it through the rest of that day.

Maybe after I play a longer length scenario, I'll be seeing some larger waves of attackers and take some serious hits that could possibly cripple me if my repair teams aren't on top of things.

Nefaro · February 07, 2014, 03:36:12 PM

Quote from: Banzai_Cat on February 07, 2014, 01:45:42 PM
Ah, I remember reading that thread on BGG about the fire damage. I didn't even notice the name of the poster.

Yerp, that was me.

Took awhile to get a definitive answer but they pulled through as they often do. I just didn't expect such a damage counter to have no effect in the game. It was surprising.

I'll probably make a house rule up for them, depending no how difficult the longer campaigns prove to be. Anything from counting as an extra hit that you can't repair while underway to an actual fire your repair crew has to put out or it will spread.