Bomb Run Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Objective
• Components
• Game Overview
• Deck-In-Hand
• Card Overview
• Checks
• Key Action Words
• Game Sequence
• Receive the Mission
  • 1. Build the Mission Region.
  • 2. Assemble the Sky Region
• Take Off & Landing
• Outbound & Return Leg
• Encounters
  • 1. ATTACK BY ENEMY AIRCRAFT
  • 2. ATTACK BY ANTI AIRCRAFT FIRE (FLAK)
  • 3. RESOLVE DAMAGE
• Recover
  • 1. Crew Recovery
  • 2. Replacements
  • 3. Crew experience and bonuses
  • 4. Repair or replace your bomber
  • 5. Game Over
• Advanced Rules
  • Initiative
  • Stacking
  • Crew Reassignment
  • Bombing Success
  • Questions and Such
• 2 or 3 Player Cooperative Game
• The Bomb Run

Objective

Bomb Run is designed to provide the framework of an immersive and sometimes emotional experience that may or may not have a happy ending. No mission will be the same but it is your story and your imagination forms the narrative.

Each game simulates a World War II bombing mission over Europe in a B17G Flying Fortress. Each mission builds on the last mission with the ultimate objective to get as much of the 10-man crew through the required 25 missions.

Players will physically mark on the crew cards to show their record of downed enemy planes and completed missions. Use a Sharpie. When you need to reset your card, clean with alcohol.

Bomb Run is a solitaire, deck-in-hand, card game. That means there is no table-top required and the entire game fits in the player's hand. Each mission takes on average less than 10 minutes but it can easily be put away and picked up later and continued mid-mission.

Some subject matter knowledge on this topic prior to playing is a must. The movie, Memphis Belle is perfect for this.

Components

Rule Book

72-card deck:

• 1 Bomber Card
• 11 Double-sided Mission Cards
• 6 Zone Cards
• 26 AAF (Army Air Force) Cards: 10 Crew Cards, 10 Replacement Crew Cards, 3 Little Friends Card, 2 Wingman Cards, and 1 Random Events Card
• 8 Encounter Cards
• 12 Damage Cards
• 7 Reference Cards
• 1 Winged Boot Advert Card

Game Overview

Bomb Run attempts to capture the experiences of what these men on both sides went through. The history of World War II in the air is extremely vast and will not be covered in this tiny booklet. We will assume that the player already has an understanding of daylight bombing operations over Europe. It is key to understand that this game is from the perspective from a single bomber amongst many dozens in the sky with you.

Each deck contains the entire crew and everything that they will experience, from receiving the mission to take-off, encountering enemy, bombing, and getting to the ground one way or the other.

Deck-In-Hand

The entire game is played with the deck face-up in the player's non-dominant hand. The player CYCLES through each card, placing the top card to the bottom while searching for cards that progress the game.

There are 2 "Regions" within the deck which are divided by the "Bomber Card". This card is turned on its side so it sticks out the side of the deck. Notice the player has the option to name their bomber.

Everything in the deck above this card is the "Sky" region which contains all of the action in the game.

Everything below the bomber is the "Mission" region. These cards CYCLE amongst themselves to mark mission progress over Europe and gives intelligence on the expected opposition throughout.

Once the bomber starts to take damage, then each of those damage and crew position cards are taken from the "Sky" region and go directly behind the bomber and on top of the Mission Cards to indicate the bomber's status.

Card Overview

Bomb Run contains 6 card types:

1. Mission Cards: Double-sided cards that show the target, enemy intel, resistance intel, and fighter coverage.

1. Target name
2. Intelligence Forecast Chart
3. Zone cards required
4. Maximum number of encounters required to advance zone
5. Anti Aircraft density
6. Expected Resistance activity for rescue chance (Resistance = anti-German activity)
7. Fighter escort coverage

2. Zone Cards:

1. Zone label
2. Current bomber location (out or back)

3. Bomber Card: Represents the assigned B17G Flying Fortress.

1. Name Field for player to assign (see page 5)

4. AAF Cards: Army Airforce (AAF) Cards to represent all Crew, Wingmen, and Fighter Escorts.

1. Blue clouded text field to represent AAF Cards
2. AAF label
3. Health meter. TURN card to indicate injury
4. Advance Zone Icon/ Cancel Advance Zone Icon
5. Crew position reference
6. Enemy pilot icon (enemy pilot injured)
7. Crewman name
8. Crew abilities and restrictions
9. Crewman's mission tracker
10. Experience Mission Bonus
11. Icon bar
12. Position's defensive coverage
13. Machine gun position and capability
14. Crewman hit record
15. Fighter escort's fuel capacity

5. Encounter Cards: Encounters come in the form of enemy fighters and anti-aircraft fire (Flak).

1. Encounter label
2. Encounter type
3. Yellow clouded text field to represent Encounter Cards
4. Resolution instructions
5. Icon bar

6. Damage Cards: Damage cards apply to the player's bomber, wingmen, or enemy fighters.

1. Damage category
2. Enemy damage icon (enemy aircraft damaged)
3. Tan clouded text field to represent Damage Cards
4. Damage resolution instructions
5. Icon bar

Checks

Every card shows 6 icons along the Icon Bar. These are used to RESOLVE actions and encounters throughout the mission. Only one icon will ever be referenced for a CHECK before the card is CYCLED.

These Icons are:

1. Enemy attack position: 12 High/Low, 3 High/Low, 6 High/Low, 9 High/Low
2. Defense fire or attacking fire success: Hit or Miss
3. Damage extent: Superficial, Damaged, Fire, Catastrophic
4. Injury check: No Injury or Injury
5. Injury severity: Light (L), Serious (S), Killed in Action (KIA)
6. Success check: Success or Failure

Key Action Words

The following is list of action words that the player will use in the course of the mission. These key words appear in all CAPS, bold, and italics throughout this book.

• SEARCH - CYCLE through the deck to pull a specific card.
• REVEAL - Expose a card that requires or provides a resolution.
• FIND - SEARCH the deck for a specific card without CYCLING and bring it to the top.
• CYCLE - Move cards from the top of the deck to the bottom of that deck region.
• RESOLVE - An event presented by a situation requiring one or several CHECKS.
• CHECK - Seek answers to RESOLVE situations by CYCLING to the next card to see the necessary icon that provides the result.
• TURN - Turn the card 180 degrees so that it is now upside down.
• FLIP - Flip the card so that the backside is facing forward.
• EXERT - Turn the card 90 degrees within the deck so that it will stick out of the side. EXERTED Crew Cards can not perform further actions this Zone.
• BURY - Remove the card from the Sky Region to the Mission Region directly behind the Bomber Card.

Game Sequence

Each mission (game) follows a logical sequence in which the player will have to deal with challenges and encounters on the way to the Bomb Run and back to base.

1. Receive the Mission and prepare the deck. (p12)
2. Take Off. (p14)
3. Outbound Leg. CYCLE Zone Card once and SEARCH for Zone Progress (Z+ icon) or eligible Encounters. Repeat for each Zone Card. (p15)
4. The Bomb Run. Immediately following the final zone, CYCLE to the Mission Card. RESOLVE all Encounters and mandatory Flak. (p31)
5. Return Leg. Same as the Outbound Leg but CYCLE Zone Cards in reverse. (p15)
6. Landing. Same as Take Off but affected by sustained damage and injury. (p14)
7. Recover. Recover, rescue, and replace injured, lost, and captured crewman and update their records. Return bomber Damage Cards to the Sky Region. (p33)

Receive the Mission

1. Build the Mission Region.

A. Remove all Mission, Zone, Replacement, Little Friends, and the Bomber Cards from the deck. Separate the Mission Cards. Each Mission Card has a mission on the front and back. Randomly select one of these missions and place it face up showing the selected mission. Note the destination and the target and then note the Intelligence Forecast Chart along with the fighter escort range. Return the remaining mission cards to the box. If there is no escort then return them to the box. Otherwise, randomly select 1, add it to the deck, and remove the other 2.

B. Using the chart on the Mission Card starting with the Mission column and working left, start stacking the required Zone Cards face up: Z4 (Zone 4) down to Zone 1, the English Channel, and finally England will be the last card on the top of the stack.

C. Take the Bomber card and place it face up and perpendicular on the stack so the Bomber Name of the card sticks out.

2. Assemble the Sky Region

A. Ensure that all cards in the rest of the deck are right side up and facing up. Most cards are double-sided. Shuffle these cards while being careful not to mix up the facing of these cards. Place this deck face up on top of the Mission region of the deck.

B. Determine German resistance level.

• Conduct a number of Success (thumbs-up icon) CHECKs equal to the number of zones (not including England and the English Channel) in the mission. CYCLE these cards.
• For each Success (thumbs-up icon), CYCLE the deck and remove from the game that many German fighters in the order that they are REVEALED.

Take Off & Landing

Take-off and landing are the same procedure, however, landing will be modified by the amount of damage and injury sustained on the mission.

1. Take-off starts with the bomber in perfect working order with a heavy load. During a mission, a bomber can receive up to 9 total damage cards in 3 categories. Since there is no damage at this time, CYCLE up to 9 cards to REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon).

2. If this failed and you revealed any other crewman then you may CYCLE up to 5 more cards (half of 9 rounded up) to REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon). "The runway is getting short!" (This represents that somebody did a thing that made a difference (It's your story))

3. Landing procedure is the same as for takeoff, except the number of cards CYCLED to REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) equals 9 minus the Damage Cards sustained on the mission (Damage Cards behind the Bomber Card).

   • If this failed and you REVEALED any other healthy crewman, then you may CYCLE up to half the number above (rounding up) to REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon).

NOTE: If landing gear was damaged, follow the Damage instructions on the Landing Gear Card. If the Failure (thumbs-down) icon is shown, decide to either perform a Controlled Bailout or make a belly landing (p29) prior to a landing attempt.

4. When you are taking off and you REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon), then CYCLE your Zone Card and see the Outbound Leg section.

5. When landing and REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon), Congratulations. See the Recover section. (p.33)

6. Failing the take off or landing procedures results in a crash which totals the aircraft. Resolve injuries as if conducting an Uncontrolled Bailout (Though this is not considered a bailout). (p.30)

Outbound & Return Leg

In successfully taking off you've REVEALED a Zone Progress (Z+ icon). CYCLE the Zone Card from England to the English Channel. There are 2 ways to progress through a zone. You will either reveal a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) or meet the maximum number of Encounters as specified for the present zone on the Mission Card.

1. Whenever a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) is REVEALED in the present zone (NOT while RESOLVING an encounter), CYCLE the Zone Card to the next zone in the stack in the Mission Region.

2. Note the requirements of the present zone from the Mission Card. Maximum number of encounters to progress, escort coverage, and whether or not you've reached your Mission Zone. If you've extended past the reach of your escort coverage, then FIND Little Friends and FLIP.

3. As with all zones, CYCLE cards off the top of the deck 1 at a time to REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon), Random Event Card, or an Encounter Card.

4. When you REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon), then return to step 1 of this section to progress in your mission.

5. When you CYCLE for a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) but REVEAL the Random Event Card (Not during Take Off or Landing), conduct 3 Success (thumbs-up icon) CHECKS (note the order) to determine, from the card, what happened. React to the situation as directed. In some cases, the event will not apply, such as "I Think the Engine Might Be Alright..." when there are no damaged engines. Ignore the event in these cases. After reacting to the Random Event Card, FLIP and CYCLE.

6. REVEAL an Encounter Card which is an enemy fighter or FLAK (with yellow clouded text fields) then see the next section, Encounters (p17).

7. If you do not REVEAL a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) but you have dealt with the maximum number of encounters (keep count) as specified for your current zone on the Mission Card, then CYCLE the Zone Card and return to step 1 of this section.

8. Continue this process until the Bomb Run (p31) and then again for the Return Leg until it's time to land the aircraft. Or until you're shot down...

Encounters

There are two types of encounters in Bomb Run. They are either through REVEALING enemy fighters or FLAK. Keep count of the number of encounters you have for the present zone to determine when (from the mission card) you can progress to the next zone.

NOTE: The bomber can be attacked by aircraft or FLAK during an encounter but NOT both. Ignore the other.

The sequence of events for an enemy aircraft attack is as follows:

1. Initial attack (single or in formation) a. Defensive fire (Bomber) b. Offensive fire (Fighter) c. Fly-by fire (Bomber and Me110)
2. Successive attacks (by individual fighters) a. Defensive fire (Bomber) b. Offensive fire (Fighter) c. Fly-by fire (Bomber and Me110)

1. ATTACK BY ENEMY AIRCRAFT

A. REVEAL enemy aircraft while CYCLING for a Zone Progress (Z+ icon). Create an action hand in your dominant hand starting with the attacking fighter just REVEALED.

B. CHECK attack position (attack position icon, see Checks) on the next card to determine from where the enemy is attacking. Reminder: Always CYCLE the card after a CHECK.

C. SEARCH for any number of eligible crew to engage the fighter. Crew that can engage will show the attack positions they cover by the icons at the bottom of their portrait. (See p7 Label 12)

1. REVEAL up to 2 additional enemy (3 total) before all eligible crew have been REVEALED and add them to the formation (action hand).

2. REVEAL other AAF Cards that have applicable special abilities such as Little Friends Card or Wingman Cards and apply the effect listed on their card.

3. You can choose to stop SEARCHING for eligible crew at any point and RESOLVE the encounter.

D. Assign each REVEALED Crew Card or Wingman Card to an attacking fighter by placing it on top of the chosen fighter in the action hand. Multiple Crew Cards can be assigned to any fighter. (See Optional Advanced Rules on p36.)

1. RESOLVE defensive (bomber) fire one crew or wingman card at a time by referring to the Hit/Miss CHECK icon on the next card on the deck. Do a Hit/Miss CHECK for each "shot" allowed by crew position. (See p7 Label 13) a. If MISS, CYCLE this card and CYCLE the crew or wingman card. Note, some crew have 2 shots and some crew have the Ace bonus. (p34) b. If HIT, SEARCH for either a Damage Card (See p9 Label 2) or Enemy Pilot Icon (See p7 Label 6) for each HIT.

   1. CHECK Damage Extent for a REVEALED damage card or Injury CHECK and Injury Severity CHECK for a REVEALED enemy pilot icon. Apply the result. Follow the damage instructions printed on each Fighter Card. Keep the REVEALED Damage Card (which resulted in other than superficial damage) under the specific fighter in the action hand.
   2. Mark credit to appropriate Crew Card for any downed fighters. (p34)
   3. CYCLE all completed, downed, driven-off fighters, their attached damage, and resolved defenders (See Optional Advanced Rule on Initiative p36.)

   NOTE: All fighter encounters are regarded as different sets of fighters and should never be considered as re-encounters of the same fighters later in the mission. Therefore, Damage Cards on fighters do not persist after the encounter.

2. Resolve offensive (surviving enemy) fire one fighter at a time by referring to the Hit/Miss CHECK icon on the next card on the deck to determine if he hit the bomber. a. If MISS, move fighter to the bottom of the action hand and make a mental note that it's offensive fire was already resolved. Hold for Fly-by defense check. b. If HIT, SEARCH for either a Damage Card, Crew Card, or Wingman for each HIT.

   • If a Crew Card is REVEALED, RESOLVE for any injuries before applying damage to the aircraft. Injuries will affect the crewman's chances of survival should the same attack bring your aircraft down.

A crewman may be injured if a Crew Card was REVEALED during the SEARCH. Conduct an Injury CHECK (person icon) & then an Injury Severity CHECK (heart icon). Reminder, only one CHECK per card.

Crewman health status is signified by their orientation within the deck.

• Healthy = Right-side up on either the functional position or disabled position side of the Crew Card.
• Light Wound (L heart icon) = EXERT 1/4 turn in the deck. Cannot perform further action this zone. Return to Healthy in next zone.
• Serious Wound (S heart icon) = TURN upside down in the deck. No further actions this mission. ANY additional injury results in KIA (Killed in Action) icon.
• KIA (KIA heart icon) = BURY this card facing forward to indicate it does not count against Structure Damage.

c. CHECK Damage Extent (Superficial, Damaged, Fire, Catastrophic icon) for a REVEALED damage card or Crew Card.

NOTE: Crew Cards are considered Crew Position Cards that are part of the bomber and are counted against Structure Damage. RESOLVE for crew injury prior to applying damage here.

Crew Position damage is signified by its facing and placement within the deck.

• Fully Operational: Forward facing within the "SKY" Region.
• Damaged: FLIPPED within the "SKY" Region.
• Destroyed: As a result of a Catastrophic Damage Extent result, this card is FLIPPED and placed under the Bomber Card. This is considered a Structure Damage Card. Note, this results is an automatic KIA (KIA icon) and does not, by itself, bring down the aircraft unlike other damage cards.

2. Fly-by Defensive Fire - As an enemy aircraft passes by the bomber after its attack run, it is exposed to new fields of fire. For each surviving fighter, CYCLE to the next Crew Card regardless of their status. If eligible conduct a HIT (Hit icon) CHECK and RESOLVE as detailed above. Note, the Me110 also get's a fly-by attack with the rear-facing machine gun.

3. Successive Attacks - Depending on the aircraft, there will be 1 more successive attack or 2 more if it's a Bf109. a. Successive Attacks are now managed and RESOLVED 1 at a time each attacking from a new attack position (The enemy formation breaks up after initial attack run.) Follow the steps from 1D above for Fly-By attack with the exception that you will SEARCH and RESOLVE only the next crew position, Little Friends, or Wingman. b. Once all attacks are RESOLVED and you survived, either do a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) CHECK or advance your Zone Card if you've reached the maximum number of encounters for the current zone listed on the Mission Card.

2. ATTACK BY ANTI AIRCRAFT FIRE (FLAK)

A. REVEAL FLAK while CYCLING for a Zone Progress (Z+ icon).

B. Determine FLAK severity from the Mission Card.

• Light FLAK (AA L) = 1 HIT CHECK
• Moderate FLAK (AA M) = 2 HIT CHECKS
• Heavy FLAK (AA H) = 3 HIT CHECKS

C. Conduct a HIT CHECK for each shot listed in the Anti-Aircraft Severity column on the Mission Card.

1. REVEAL an additional FLAK Card during a HIT CHECK and resolve additionally at -1 HIT CHECK with a minimum of 1 HIT CHECK. (So AA H = +2 HIT CHECKS for 5 total.)

D. For each HIT CHECK REVEALED, follow the steps for RESOLVE offensive fire (p19.)

3. RESOLVE DAMAGE

• Always, first, conduct and RESOLVE an Injury CHECK (person icon) if the Damage was to a Crew Position.
• Damage occurs to basic STRUCTURE, CONTROL, ENGINE Cards, to Crew Position Cards, Landing Gear Card, Bomb Bay Card, and Wingman Cards. Follow special instructions on the cards.

A. Superficial Damage (Superficial icon): No damage to the aircraft.

B. Damaged (Damaged icon): Bomber took Damage. See Damage card instructions.

1. Crew Position Card is FLIPPED and not BURIED so it does not count against total Structure Damage. It may be repaired (p25.)

2. Any 3 BURIED Damage Cards in STRUCTURE or CONTROL Damage categories requires an immediate Controlled Bailout (p29.) Stop all other resolutions. 3 BURIED Engine Damage Cards can go 2 more Zones (see Out of Formation p26.)

C. Fire (Fire icon): REVEALED Damage location is on fire. Set Damage Card aside and RESOLVE encounter first and then see special instructions on the card.

1. Basic fire fighting procedures for any CONTROL, STRUCTURE, or CREW positions. a. FIND crew member of choice to fight fire. b. Conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) EXERT and CYCLE Crew Card. c. If failed, conduct a Damage Extent CHECK.

   • If Fire icon, then fire cannot be put out. Conduct a Controlled Bail Out. If Catastrophic icon, then conduct an Uncontrolled Bail Out (p30.)
   • FIND another Crew member of choice to repeat the process until out of Crew. A pilot must always be at the controls.
   • If out of Crew then conduct a Controlled Bail Out (p29.)

2. Engine/ Landing Gear Fire fighting Procedures. Follow procedures for each engine that would be on fire. a. FIND the Pilot, CoPilot, or Flight Engineer. b. Conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) to put out the fire.

   1. If failed, decide to do a Controlled Bail Out
   2. or continue mission with an Engine fire. Conduct a Damage Extent CHECK for every new Zone entered. a. Fire continues for Damage and Fire results. b. Fire burns out for Superficial result. BURY the Engine Card. c. Aircraft explodes for Catastrophic result. Conduct an Uncontrolled Bail Out (p30.)
   3. or (at any time) conduct an aircraft dive to attempt to extinguish the flame. a. Conduct up to 3 Success CHECKS (thumbs-up icon) each representing 10,000 ft. The 3rd failure is a crash and all are lost (no peeking during CHECKS!)
      1. If successful then BURY the Engine Card and you are now Out of Formation (p26.)
      2. If failed on 1 or 2 Success CHECKS (thumbs-up icon) and you pull up, then you may continue the mission with an engine fire. Diving is no longer an option. You are Out of Formation (p26.) You may do a Controlled Bail Out (p29.)

D. Catastrophic Damage (Catastrophic icon): The Aircraft suffers a devastating hit. See Damage Card for result.

1. Crew Position - The Crew position is destroyed and the resulting casualty is an automatic KIA (KIA icon). FLIP and BURY this card and consider it STRUCTURE Damage. 3 STRUCTURE Damaged cards results in an immediate Controlled Bail Out (p30.)

2. All other Damage locations is a sudden loss to the Aircraft. Conduct an Uncontrolled Bail Out (p30.)

E. Damage Effects:

1. Repairing Damaged Crew Positions and Bomb Bay. Crew position or the Bomb Bay (loaded) card may become damaged but still in the Sky Region of the deck. See Bomb Bay repairs for more details p28.) a. FIND and EXERT desired Crew member and conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) to repair position or Bomb Bay. If Success (thumbs-up icon) then TURN card to the functional position and continue mission. Do this between encounter and zone progress (Z+ icon) CHECKS. b. If Failure (thumbs-down icon) then decide to attempt repair with other Crew, wait until next Zone when Crew are unEXERTED, or continue mission with the damage.

2. Out of Formation. This occurs when either 2 Damage from any of the 3 Damage Categories are sustained (Includes engine on fire) (excludes landing gear), when the player chooses to dive the bomber to extinguish a flame, or when both pilots are KIA or Serious heart icons and the Flight Engineer has to take over. a. FLIP Wingman and Little Friends Cards. b. All Zone Encounters are set to a maximum of 3. A healthy Navigator reduces Encounters to 2 (Skilled navigation reduces time in Zone.) c. All FLAK severity is Heavy. d. Authorized to abort mission and return to base and receive mission credit. If aborting then re-start the current zone as return leg.

3. 3 Engines out or on fire. Can only travel 2 more Zones (Z+ icon). Must conduct a Controlled Bail Out or Ditch in the sea (p29) before entering the third Zone (Z+ icon).

4. Both Pilots are Serious (S heart icon) or KIA (KIA heart icon). a. A pilot must be in control at all times. They are still in control even with Light (L heart icon). b. The Flight Engineer can fly the Bomber but must remain EXERTED. The Bomber can finish the Bomb Run (p31) but must otherwise immediately start the Return Leg. The bomber is automatically Out of Formation (p26.) He cannot fly the bomber with Light (L heart icon). He can not dive the plane to extinguish an engine fire. He can land the bomber but only as if Belly Landing (p29) though landing gear may be functional. Consider Bail Out (p29.) c. If no eligible Crew can pilot the Bomber then conduct a Controlled Bail Out (p29.)

5. Bombardier (Light (L heart icon), Serious (S heart icon), or KIA (KIA heart icon)) or Bombardier Position Disabled or Destroyed, the bombs can still be dropped manually off the implied lead bomber signal. Follow the Bomb Run procedure (p31.)

F. Belly Landing or Ditching at Sea

If the landing gear was damaged and will not come down or the Bomber is forced to ditch in the Channel Zone, follow this procedure after REVEALING a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) for landing.

1. Conduct 3 Success CHECKS (thumbs-up icon).
   • 3 Success: Text Book. Conduct Injury CHECKS on each Crew. Any injury is automatically Light (L heart icon).
   • 2 Success and 1 Failure: Fair. Conduct Injury and Severity CHECKS for each Crew. Downgrade any KIA to Serious (S heart icon).
   • 1 Success and 2 Failure: Rough. Conduct Injury and Severity CHECKS for each Crew as usual.
   • 3 Failure: Crash. Check survival as if RESOLVING an Uncontrolled Bail Out.

Note: Previously Serious Crew will be KIA upon further injury.

2. See Recover (p.33)

G. Bail Out

1. Controlled Bail Out. A controlled bail out occurs whenever you decide to (engine fire can't be extinguished, landing gear damaged, etc) or whenever the bomber can no longer continue the mission and is still in control. a. SEARCH first Crew Card. If Serious (S heart icon) then BURY. b. If EXERTED, or Light (L heart icon) conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon).

   • If Success then remove from the deck.
   • If Failure then BURY. c. If Healthy, conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon).
   • If Success then remove from the deck.
   • If Failure (thumbs-down icon) then EXERT and CYCLE. d. Repeat until all Crew are out of the Sky Region of the deck.

2. Uncontrolled Bail Out. Disaster! It's every man for himself. a. Conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) to determine if Bail Out is even possible. If Failure (thumbs-down icon), all Crew are lost. b. SEARCH Crew. If Serious (S heart icon) then BURY. If Healthy, EXERTED, or Light (L heart icon) conduct an injury Severity CHECK. If Serious (S heart icon) or KIA (KIA heart icon) then BURY. If Light (L heart icon) then conduct a Success CHECK for Bail Out. Remove from the deck if Success (thumbs-up icon). c. Repeat until all Crew are out of the Sky Region of the deck.

3. Once Bail Out is RESOLVED, (See Recover p.33)

H. Abort the Mission

• A player is authorized to abort the mission and receive credit only when forced out of formation.
• Jettison the bomb load if able. If the Bomb Bay takes damage there's a high risk of detonation. FIND and EXERT a Crew of choice and FIND and FLIP the Bomb Bay Card if it is still in the Sky Region of the deck (See Bomb Bay Damage p27.)

Recover

After the mission whether successful or not, you will recover your Crew and Bomber and prepare for the next mission if anyone remains.

1. Crew Recovery

A. Whether the bomber landed, crashed, or the crew bailed out, remove all crew from the deck and set aside.

B. All healthy and injured crew are recovered in the deck. Mark each crew's successful mission.

C. For each Serious (S heart icon) injured crew, conduct a Light (L heart icon) check to determine their fate.

• Light (L heart icon) = Crewman recovers. Mark completed mission and return to the deck.
• Serious (S heart icon) = Crewman survives. Conduct a Success (thumbs-up icon) check to determine if he's added to the replacements pool or has a ticket home. If Success, mark completed mission and add to the replacements pool. Crewman is replaced and will not cycle back until replacement is MIA or KIA.
• KIA (KIA heart icon) = Crewman does not survive his injuries.

D. Captured or Rescued. Surviving crew that either bailed out over enemy territory or ditched at sea will either be rescued by the Resistance or maritime rescue.

1. Refer to Mission Card for rescue probability that matches the Zone where downed. Conduct 3 Success (thumbs-up icon) checks for each crew member.

   Required for rescue:

   • 3 Success = Rescue N (Not Likely)
   • 2 Success and 1 Failure = Rescue L (Low)
   • 1 Success and 2 Failure = Rescue H (High)

2. Recover all rescued crewmen and mark 1 completed mission and set aside all captured crewmen. You may keep these separate from the KIA crew if you wish to track them as MIA for your story. They will not be returning.

2. Replacements

Bomb Run comes with a full crew of nameless replacements. Use these to replenish your lost crew. In subsequent games, erase their mission record and start them fresh should they be lost. They'll continue to be recycled.

3. Crew experience and bonuses

As crew members score kills and complete missions, the player will mark the cards to reflect.

A. When a crewman shoots down a fighter, they will mark the kill on their card. When there are 5 kills, the crewman becomes an Ace. An Ace can do an additional HIT CHECK but can't make more HIT CHECKS than they have shots. For example, a waist gunner can only ever have a single shot.

B. Crewmen mark completed missions to mark their progress through their tour. The longer they survive, the luckier they get. Each mission column signifies 6 completed missions. For each completed column, the crewman earns 1 good luck charm allowing the crewman to re-CHECK any unfavorable result. FIND crewman and mark out the appropriate bomb under the eligible column. (Tie the explanation into your narrative.)

4. Repair or replace your bomber

Recover all damaged components of the bomber from the Mission Region to the Sky Region. If your bomber was lost then re-name your bomber card.

5. Game Over

If you have no more original crew remaining, your war is over. Reflect on your saga and then erase the mission record of your crew cards and go again.

Advanced Rules

If you like, you can step up the game by adding any of these advanced rules. These rules add realism at the cost of added complexity.

Initiative

Assign order of offensive and defensive fire (who shoots first). Compare each drawn Crew Card's Success icon (thumbs-up icon) with enemy card's Success icon (thumbs-up icon) to determine who will RESOLVE fire first. Tie goes to the defender. Stack cards in action hand by determined order. This adds logical realism and a nice twist while lowering your odds. But it adds a step and requires a little more physical hand management.

Stacking

As some encounters are RESOLVED you will CYCLE multiple used cards at a single time. You may choose the order of cards to CYCLE in a way that you deem best for future CHECKS.

Crew Reassignment

1. Crewman BURIED (KIA icon) but position is functional.

   • While CYCLING for defensive fire, any Crewman REVEALED may EXERT to cover functional BURIED card for a 1-time-per-Zone defensive fire. (Exception, waist gunners can cover each other's position as stated on their cards.) This will require that you maintain a keen awareness of what position is no longer in the Sky Region of the deck (yet functional) vs from what sector an attack is coming. This can be appropriately chaotic.

2. Damage and Injury: EXERTED Crew for these actions are considered to be located in the newly assigned location. Damage to vacant Crew Positions are considered to be to the positions and not those reassigned crew so resolve without an injury (injury icon) CHECK (they are not there.) In interest of simplicity, Catastrophic Damage to Crew Position will still result in KIA (KIA icon), so shape your narrative accordingly. Conversely, further damage to the reassigned location first requires an injury (injury icon) CHECK for all EXERTED Crew now considered here.

Bombing Success

Track your bombing success record in the appropriate section of the Bomb-shaped chart on the Bomb Bay Card. For any Destroyed target, remove that target card (and it's back side target) from the eligible targets after the current mission. To help improve future bombing results, put a mark through one Destroyed tick to allow an additional Bombing Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) and return a removed target card to the eligible targets. This represents both the bombardier's experience and targets returning to an operational status.

Questions and Such

There may come a time in your narrative where you have a story-related question or you want to know more detail. You can always seek the answer by asking the question and conducting a basic Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon).

For example: The tail gunner shoots down a BF109 on his third and final attack by scoring a catastrophic hit.

You might want to know, did the pilot bail out? Conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon).

2 or 3 Player Cooperative Game

Rules for adding 1 or 2 players to the experience greatly increases the drama but each player will need their own deck. Each player assumes the roll of 1 of the 3 bombers in the formation. Wingman Cards are marked with WM #1 and WM #2 to specify which player is assigned in other's decks.

Game set-up is the same but each player needs the same target.

Players advance the zones together but individually seek Zone Progress (Z+ icon) or draw Encounters. When all players have CYCLED a Zone Progress (Z+ icon) or when the max number of Encounters have been RESOLVED (collectively) then everyone advances to the next zone.

Players resolve enemy aircraft Encounters individually unless the Wingman #1 or Wingman #2 Card is drawn. Then that player will resolve combat and damage as normal against that fighter. FLAK from 1 player's encounter affects all players.

Determine who is the lead bomber. They determine the bombing success.

If a player is Out of Formation, they continue the mission on their own.

The Bomb Run

Once the Bomber has reached the Mission Zone you are on the Bomb Run. The Bomb Run continues until "Bombs Away" automatically following the mandatory FLAK Encounter.

1. EXERT the Bombardier if he's healthy. He's on the bombsight and cannot participate in defensive fire. If the Bombardier isn't healthy or becomes injured (Light (L heart icon), Serious (S heart icon), or KIA (KIA heart icon)) while on the Bomb Run (note the change in status from EXERTED to injured (Light heart icon)) then FIND a Crew member of choice and EXERT them to drop bombs manually off of the lead bomber (automatically after mandatory FLAK.) They can no longer participate in defensive fire this Zone and are considered in the Bombardier's position for injury purposes (See Optional Advanced Rule on Crew Reassignment p36.)

2. RESOLVING FLAK over the target signifies Bombs Away! RESOLVE all eligible encounters listed in the M column of the Mission Card or until a FLAK encounter is REVEALED. If all encounters are RESOLVED without a FLAK encounter then FIND a FLAK encounter and RESOLVE it.

3. Bombing result:

   A. Conduct a Success CHECK (thumbs-up icon) to determine weather/visibility over the target.

   1. Good (Success icon)
   2. Poor (Failure icon)

   B. Conduct 3 Success CHECKS (thumbs-up icon) to determine unmodified bombing success.

   C. Cancel 1 Success (thumbs-up icon) for each of the following modifiers.

   1. Poor weather/visibility
   2. Bombardier unavailable
   3. Bombardier position disabled

   D. Results

   1. 3 Success = Target destroyed
   2. 2 Success and 1 Failure = Target out of commission (OoC)
   3. 1 Success and 2 Failure = Target damaged