B-17 Queen of the Skies

[nikimcbee]

http://home.earthlink.net/~flyingwombat/id23.html

I haven't played this game since probably 1991. I opened up the box today, and it was like opening up a time capsule.:dead: So I decided to start playing it after all these years:hmm: I'm going to do a "subsim" crew and post after action results.:up:

...more to come:cool:

[nikimcbee]

Here's a link to wargames.
http://grognard.com/titleb.html
This has all of the additional stuff you need to play the game. (ie replacement parts!!!!!!):up: :up: :up: :up:

You can print out the parts and have the game for free!

[nikimcbee]

Okay here goes:
http://www.alaska.faa.gov/fai/images/Aircraft/B17%20nose%20art.jpg


Bomber Name: Ol' McBee

Crew:
Pilot: Neal Stevens
Co Pilot: Rocky McBee
Bombardier: Steed
Navigator: Dowly
Engineer: KP
Radio Op: Sailor Steve
Ball Gunner: Subman1
Port Waist Gunner: Jimbuna
Starboard Waist Gunner: Takeda
Tail Gunner: Torplexed

[Dowly]

Hmm... I just might dig out the B-17 II: The mighty eight and make a SubSim crew aswell. :hmm::yep:

[Janus]

Hmm... I just might dig out the B-17 II: The mighty eight and make a SubSim crew aswell. :hmm::yep:
I have this game too, but I never really got into it (I could not cope with the bombsight and hit anything and it is very time consuming).

[Dowly]

Hmm... I just might dig out the B-17 II: The mighty eight and make a SubSim crew aswell. :hmm::yep: I have this game too, but I never really got into it (I could not cope with the bombsight and hit anything and it is very time consuming).

Practise practise practise. ;) After a long and flak-filled flight to the target, nothing's more satisfying than seeing the bombs hit the target. :yep:

[nikimcbee]

Mission 1: Completed and survived!:rock:

Target/type: Lille / industrial

Crew notes: none, no AA kills

Damage notes: Engine #2 KO due to flak, prop feathered w/o problems. Port Aileron damaged by flak.

Mission notes: The weather over the target was good. Our little friends did a great job of chasing off the kraut fighters. KP did manage to damage a 109. The lead bomber dropped out of formation, so we took the spot. Apparently all of that booze Steed drank the night before aided in his aim, as he put 95% of the bombs on target.:up: The flak over the target was light, although it did manage to find our port wing.

24 missions to go. Beer is on the house.

[Dowly]

Wohoo! :rock:

[TheSatyr]

I've seen "add-ons" for that game over on e-bay. One has a B-24 and another has a Lancaster. There may have been 1 or 2 more as well. I have that game as well. Maybe if I ever finish my Silent War Campaign I'll play B-17.

[Blacklight]

A definite blast from the past. I remember playing that game ages ago. I'm so dating my age. :D

Back when I was a youth, we didn't have any fancy ass computers ! We had hexagons and cardboard chits for OUR wargames ! We had CRT's (Combat resolution tables), TEC's (Terain Effect Charts), and hundreds of other charts and mathematical formulas that we had to actually pen, paper, and calculator figure out ourselves !! Heck !! Gulf Strike takes about 30 minutes to an hour just for ONE TURN !! Not to mention it's 70 page rulebook and it's 25 page chart book. (but it's one heck of a great game ! :up: )

[HunterICX]

Offtopic:p:

In the Next Episode- Mid Flight of the Bomber Ol'Mcbee:

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/8201/b17funnyso5.jpg

HunterICX

[nikimcbee]

I like where this is going!:up: Now we have graphics:hmm:

[TheSatyr]

If you see a red triplane coming...hide.

[Blacklight]

I'll follow and provide cover for you in my space shuttle !

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/95/orbiter1te1.jpg

[kiwi_2005]

Use to play Microprose - B17 Flying fortress the mighty 8th, loved it, my joystick sucked or most likely I sucked at just handling a bomber would always crash land no matter how damn careful i was.:-?

[tedhealy]

If you enjoy B-17 QOTS, definitely check out B-29 Superfortress which just came out recently.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/28907

[nikimcbee]

Saw this yesterday:up: It just needs an "Ol' McBee" painted on the side:hmm:
http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/9974/b171zc6.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/4937/b172fd1.jpg (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/)

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/7623/b173xr4.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/658/b174yu3.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/7529/ballgunll0.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/8027/ballgun2ti7.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)


Tail gun, the wood boxes are the ammo boxes.
http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/149/tailgunqv4.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/2805/tailgun2br1.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/2254/tailgun3cn1.jpg (http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://my.imageshack.us/v_images.php)

[HunterICX]

aaaaaaauuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuughhh...*drools*

:o you lucky dog, I wish there was a museum around here with that bird....damn you!
:cool:
Nice photos , thanks for sharing

HunterICX

[Hartmann]

I'll follow and provide cover for you in my space shuttle !

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/95/orbiter1te1.jpg

hey ! this is orbiter !!:D i use it sometimes, and is always in my hard disk

I played a lot of years ago the old "secret weapons of the luftwaffe" and i never was able to bomb Schweinfurt and return.

one time i bombed the target but in the change of heading for return to home i was shred in pieces by a german fighter, with a lot of impacts. i went down to the ground:nope:

[nikimcbee]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szrDmy71p8I

;) :up: :rock:

[HunterICX]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szrDmy71p8I

;) :up: :rock:

:o Wait...you can go inside that bird?

the last museum I went to the B25 was to remain behind the red line :damn:

HunterICX

[AVGWarhawk]

Hmm... I just might dig out the B-17 II: The mighty eight and make a SubSim crew aswell. :hmm::yep: I have this game too, but I never really got into it (I could not cope with the bombsight and hit anything and it is very time consuming).
Practise practise practise. ;) After a long and flak-filled flight to the target, nothing's more satisfying than seeing the bombs hit the target. :yep:

This is one game I wish they continued to work on. It had such promise to be very good. I still have it on my shelf and was considering loading it the other day.

[Dowly]

Hmm... I just might dig out the B-17 II: The mighty eight and make a SubSim crew aswell. :hmm::yep: I have this game too, but I never really got into it (I could not cope with the bombsight and hit anything and it is very time consuming).
Practise practise practise. ;) After a long and flak-filled flight to the target, nothing's more satisfying than seeing the bombs hit the target. :yep:
This is one game I wish they continued to work on. It had such promise to be very good. I still have it on my shelf and was considering loading it the other day.

Yes, it's awesome, but could need some work. I had the B17 1 and even that was very cool. :yep:

[nikimcbee]

Target: Meaulte / Aircraft Factory
Crew Notes: None, no kills
Damage: none
Target damage: 30% bombs hit target

Mission notes:Total milk run, moderate flak; only 2 fighters attack us.

[nikimcbee]

Target: St Omer / Airfield
Crew Notes: Tail Gunner (Sgt. Torplexed) 1 Me 109 kill:rock:
Damage: None
Target Damage: 0% bombs off target:nope:

Mission Notes: A cake walk into the target, light flak. All went well until a ferrett jumped on Steed's head and the bombs were dropped early:nope: . The Krauts threw everything at us on our egress. 5 109s attacked us. Torplexed managed to shoot down a 109.:rock:

[Sailor Steve]

Radio Op: Sailor Steve
How do I get out of this chicken job? I signed on as a clerk/typist!

[nikimcbee]

Radio Op: Sailor Steve
How do I get out of this chicken job? I signed on as a clerk/typist!

...and you believed what the recruiter said:rotfl: . Besides, you said that you like "talk radio". We interperated that, as you like to "talk on the radio." It seemed like a natural fit.:up: After you finish your 22nd mission, you are able to apply for a transfer. :hmm: :up:

[NEON DEON]

I had a bunch of AH games while growing up.

My first my dad gave me when I was 10. "1914"

I loved it but dad faded quickly. I then got Jutland followed by Afrika Korps, Stalingrad, Panzer Leader, Panzer Blitz, Battle of the Bulge 81, War at Sea, Victory in the Pacific, Merchant of Venus, Third Reich 81, Wooden ships and Iron Men.

Even tho I had a ton of their games, I never had their bigest game. Squad Leader.

I had three solataire games.

B-17, The Raid on St Nazaire, and The Peloponesian War.

When I played B-17, I never got to the 25 th mission. I always went down in flames.

The Raid on St Nazaire I thought was the best solitaire game put out by AH. Sadly all of those games are lost now.

[Raptor1]

Well, I'm too young to have ever played a Solitaire board game (Might have though, don't really know the definition), But now you fiends made me go and reinstall B-17: The Mighty 8th

Ah well, TONIGHT, WE DINE, IN HAMBURG! *misses again, stupid bombardier*

[mako88sb]

If you enjoy B-17 QOTS, definitely check out B-29 Superfortress which just came out recently.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/28907


Thanks for the heads up about this. I knew of only one place in Calgary that might have it and a quick search on their website showed one in stock. A half hour later I had my grubby little paws on it. That was on Saturday but I didn't get a chance to look at it much till yesterday. Looks pretty darn good so far and I'm quite amazed at how much the bar has been raised compared to B-17 QOTS. Couple new things I really like is the fuel and navigation handling.

From what I've read over at Consim and boardgamegeek, the developers have done a great job on creating the buggiest airplane Curtiss Lemay had to deal with. Hopefully be able to get a game in tonight.


Rob

[nikimcbee]

Target: Amiens / Railyard
Crew Notes: Tail Gunner (Sgt. Torplexed) 1 Me 110 kill:rock: (2 kills)
Damage: superficial
Target Damage: 30% Beer for Steed

Mission Notes: A cake walk into the target, light flak. Little friends earned their beer money today.

[nikimcbee]

Target: Cherbourg / Air Field
Crew Notes: KP dinged a 190, but it got away.
Damage: We took some hits and survived. The oxygen supply was hit a few times and fortunetly never caught fire. The port wing root took a hit, the wing stayed on.
Target Damage: 96% Beer for Steed and everybody:up:

Mission Notes: This is the last of the cake walk missions. The German armed forces didn't show up till after after the bombs were dropped, no flak. Over the Channel, a large group of 190s hit the flight. The escorts chased off most of them off, but 2 got through. The 190 lit up the radio compartment and the other 190 put some holes in the tails section.

[Sailor Steve]

Crew Notes: Tail Gunner (Sgt. Torplexed) 1 Me 110 kill:rock: (2 kills)
You know that when a DB-engined fighter rolled over to dive away the engine would sometimes emit a stream of smoke? There is a belief that a lot of the bombers' claimed kills were actually German fighters making good their escape.:sunny:

[nikimcbee]

Talk about a bad luck mission! I was hit >25 times:o . They build em tough at boeing I guess. This mission fits the Das Boot Story ending.

Target: Rotterdam / Ship Yard

Crew Notes: Steed and Dowly were KIA on the first pass by a FW190. Jimbuna was KIA by a German 109 ace over the channel. Rocky McBee was lightly wounded in the ear and Torplexed was also lightly wounded. Neal took some flak shrapnel through the cowboy hat. On a high note, Torplexed bagged another 110 (3 kills).

Damage: Where do I start:dead: . We should have been shotdown from the number of hits we took. Engine 2 knocked out, prop feathered. Port elevator destroyed. Ball turret, destroyed. Starboard aileron out. Autopilot system destroyed. Starboard tail root hit. Starboard wing root, hit. Fuel tank hit 3 times w/o a fire! Top Turret, destroyed. Tail gunner suit heater knocked out. Rubber rafts destroyed. We also took walking hits (every compartment takes a hit:o ). Pilot compartment was hit by flak that knocked out the oxygen system, so we had to drop ,10000 feet.

Target Damage: 0% Dead bombardier and navigator, plus bad weather over target. We're not hittin' anything.

Mission Notes: We had poor fighter coverage and a large group of 190s took advantage of this. Steed/Dowly were killed on the first pass from a 190, which was able to make 3 passes at us before being driven off. On the way back, we were hit by 3 German aces, which mad a combined total of atleast 10 passes at the bomber! Jimbuna was killed at this time and the top and ball turrets were destroyed. What was left of the bomber made it back to base to only crash land in the bad weather, destroying the bomber.
The bad news: we lost 3 crew members.
The good news: we have 3 openings, not taking applications.

New bomber name needed.:hmm:


http://www.daveswarbirds.com/b-17/photos/nose/nose2.gif

http://www.daveswarbirds.com/b-17/photos/body/turret1.gif

http://www.daveswarbirds.com/b-17/photos/body/side5.gif

http://www.daveswarbirds.com/b-17/photos/wings/no_prop3.gif

[Dowly]

WTF I WAS KILLED!? :stare:

[nikimcbee]

WTF I WAS KILLED!? :stare:

Yes, along with steed and jimbuna. The mission took me over an hour to play because I had so many knocked guns. Every time I'd roll for the fighter shots, they'd hit and every time I shot back, I'd miss:damn: . We'll find the ferret a good foster home, and we'll send the Keira posters to the next of kin.

I'm thinking about naming the new bomber "The fightin' Ferret".:hmm:

[Sailor Steve]

'Junkyard Dog'

[nikimcbee]

I'd like to welcome the replacements to our crew: HunterICX (Bombardier), Kratos (Navigator), AVGWarhawk ( Port waist gunner).

New Bomber: JunkYard Dog
http://therealboomers.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/98dog.gif

[nikimcbee]

And since I really don't know Kratos, he has to wear a name tag that say's: Hi, my name is Kratos.":)

[nikimcbee]

Mission 7: Completed and survived!:rock:

Target/type: Rouen / Railroad

Crew notes: HunterIcx 1 109 kill, bombs on target, KP 1 109 kill, 2 190 kills!:rock: :up:
Damage notes: Tail guns knocked out by flak.
Mission notes: The weather over the target was poor, but HunterIcx managed to but the bombs on tatget for 93%. The target shooting summercamp helped KP, as he shot down 3 planes.

[nikimcbee]

Target: Meaulte / Aircraft Factory
Crew Notes: HunterIXC 1 109 kill
Damage: Intercom system knocked out by 109, did not abort mission
Target damage: bombs off target, zero percent hit
Mission notes: Intercom knocked out over target by 109, no point in dropping out as we were near the target.

[JALU3]

If we all had copies is there a way we can all play on the same ship, or each flying own ship in a formation?

[Raptor1]

If we all had copies is there a way we can all play on the same ship, or each flying own ship in a formation?
Isn't the whole point of a Solitaire game to play...err...alone?

Oh, and I didn't know ships can fly

Damnit, I wish that the Mighty Eighth had multiplayer, that could be great...

[JALU3]

If we all had copies is there a way we can all play on the same ship, or each flying own ship in a formation?
Isn't the whole point of a Solitaire game to play...err...alone?

Oh, and I didn't know ships can fly

Damnit, I wish that the Mighty Eighth had multiplayer, that could be great...

It was understanding that each aircraft by some were called ships . . . and thatsome games could be played Lanned by a group of people . . . making it a worthwhile group experience, or have I been mislead?

[Raptor1]

Oh, that, It's a board game, board games can't connect to LAN (AFAIK)

[nikimcbee]

If we all had copies is there a way we can all play on the same ship, or each flying own ship in a formation?

Yeah, you can play with others and fly in formation, or play are the germans (a seperate set of rules).

[steinbeck]

http://home.earthlink.net/~flyingwombat/id23.html

I haven't played this game since probably 1991. I opened up the box today, and it was like opening up a time capsule.:dead: So I decided to start playing it after all these years:hmm: I'm going to do a "subsim" crew and post after action results.:up:

...more to come:cool:


Can't remember where, but I have seen a game in the same vein as B17 but it's about the 'Pacific War' bombing over Japan. Got a good review in 'boardgamegeek'


And, ww.dvg.com does make solitaire games such as 'Rommel Field Commander' which I have v. good solo game,


steinbeck

[Sailor Steve]

[Can't remember where, but I have seen a game in the same vein as B17 but it's about the 'Pacific War' bombing over Japan. Got a good review in 'boardgamegeek'
It was in the list from the link in Nikimcbee's second post, along with Lancaster and B-24 variants.

Here is the direct link:
http://mysite.verizon.net/rjlein/khyberpass/id38.html

[AirborneTD]

I highly recommend B-29. I've been playing it this last week and I really enjoy it. I think I've got 18 missions out of 35 complete with 4 planes lost. I've played it using Cyberboard and tabletop. Each mission plays fairly fast and is fun.

[GSpector]

Hello Nikimcbee,

It's great reading tales of the Mighty 8th again. I loved that Sim when I had it. I think I lost my CD a long time ago, but I still have the box:up:

I even created Bomber Forms to keep track of each Bombers history and Crewmen Forms to keep track of all 120 crewmen. To add more fun, I even managed to not only keep track of their Awards the game gave, I even brought up the total possible Awards to 18 (Ribbons & Medals) and added Badges.

http://cid-bf546ca73dee9239.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/B-17-%20The%20Mighty%208th/B-17%20Crew%20Awards.JPG

I think I was able to complete only 1 full campaign of all the flights I had and went through a few Bombers and a few Crewmen but it sure was a lot of fun.

I'm not sure what took longer, flying the missions or updating the personnel files.:doh:

Of the 12 Bombers, this was the Crew I preferred to fly in. My Crew after 10 Missions:
http://cid-bf546ca73dee9239.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/B-17-%20The%20Mighty%208th/B-17%20Crew01.JPG
Sorry, all the missing writing was done in pencil on the printed form. And yep, I had 12 of these to update after each mission

The real Hell's Angel Out of Chute 13:
http://cid-bf546ca73dee9239.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/B-17-%20The%20Mighty%208th/CHUTE13.BMP
The Navigator was George C. Brand, he was like a father to me (R.I.P. 8/25/02)

[Raptor1]

He's not playing The Mighty 8th, though it did make me go and reinstall it, too bad The Mighty 8th didn't have MP in the end, that could've been awesome

[GSpector]

He's not playing The Mighty 8th, though it did make me go and reinstall it, too bad The Mighty 8th didn't have MP in the end, that could've been awesome

Yea, I know, He's playing a Board game. One I've never tried or heard of. It did however, remind me of all the great times I had in that Sim and on Bombs-Away's Forum:
http://www.bombs-away.net/forums/index.php?s= :up:

I still blame Infrograms/Atari for its demise :cry:

[Sailor Steve]

It was understanding that each aircraft by some were called ships .
Sorry I missed this part earlier. Yes, in the 1930s and '40s it was very common to call a plane a ship - "The P-40's a sweet ship to fly."

[Skyhawk]

There are some currently active military aircraft which are also referred to as "ships". One example is the type of U.S.A.F. C-130 commonly known as the C-130 Gunship. :yep:

As far as the "B-29 Superfortress" boardgame, it as an excellent evolution/update to "B-17 Queen of the Skies". Different aircraft, different theater, but same basic gameplay flow. I have both and they are a lot of fun imho, especially when travelling or otherwise away from your pc gaming rig.

Steve Dixon (co-creator of "B-29 Superfortress") also created and ran a web-based virtual squadron/flight group based on the "B-17 Queen of the Skies" boardgame. After completing several full campaigns with "B-17 Queen of the Skies" and the subsequent completion and publishing of "B-29 Superfortress" his virtual Bombardment Wing (made up of two Bombardment Groups, with three / 7 aircraft squadrons in each Bombardment Group comprising a total of 42 individual aircraft manned by virtual aircraft commanders from around the world) made the move to "B-29 Superfortress".

Here is a link to his Virtual 30th Bombardment Wing website:

http://www.skdgaming.com/B29/index.html

Recently I had the pleasure of exchanging a few emails with him after joining his virtual Bombardment Wing, he happens to be an old "devil-dog" and we shared some common ground in our time serving in the U.S.M.C.

There are other virtual squadrons out there based on both of these boardgames but getting hooked up with one can be difficult because they have no difficulty filling their ranks and usually have a waiting or reserve list.

Regards :)

[Raptor1]

There are some currently active military aircraft which are also referred to as "ships". One example is the type of U.S.A.F. C-130 commonly known as the C-130 Gunship. :yep:


I'm sure you are referring to the AC-130 Spectre Gunship, since the C-130 has no guns whatsoever

A gunship in aircraft terms is a ground-support aircraft that is capable of circling the target and bombard it, as opposed to making strafing runs

[Skyhawk]

Quite correct on both counts Raptor1. I just figured that most would have heard of the C-130 or even perhaps seen one at an air show, was trying to strike a chord with as many as possible.

There are many variations on the basic C-130 airframe which fulfill different missions/purposes. Tomato / To - mah -to. Good on'ya.

Gunship, still an example of the "ship" terminology being applied to a modern day aircraft regardless of it's mission (which you so eloquently pointed out).

Regards :)

[Dowly]

Tomato

Awww!!! Now you got me playing BoBII again! One of the callsigns for Luftwaffe is Tomato. "Tomate Einz, SHOOT SHOOT!", "Tomato Zwei, BREAK! You got an bandit on you!". :rock: