Fulcrum Leader

Fulcrum Leader Rulebook

Table of Contents

1. Welcome to Fulcrum Leader
2. Game Components
3. Component Details
4. Sequence of Play
5. Campaign Set Up
6. Daily Operations Phase
7. Pre-Flight Phase
8. Target-Bound Phase
9. Over-Target Phase
10. Combat
11. Radio-Electronic Combat
- Radio-Electronic Combat (REC) Techniques
- REC Techniques
12. Home-Bound Phase
- Draw a Home-Bound Event Card
- Resolve Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR)
13. Mission Debriefing Phase
14. Daily Summary Phase
15. Optional Rules
16. Interceptor Campaigns
Appendix A. Aircraft and Ordnance
- Tactical Aircraft

1. Welcome to Fulcrum Leader

Sequence of Play

This rulebook covers all the information you will need to set up and play Fulcrum Leader. It describes the various Phases of action as well as the steps within each Phase in the order of play. It begins with setting up the game, choosing the Campaign to play, and selecting your squadron's Pilots. A Campaign is a series of "days" where you will perform Missions each Day, by assigning the Pilots under your command to carry them out.

Once you have selected a Campaign, the Campaign length will determine how many Days you will need to complete for that Campaign.

You will have Special Option (SO) points to manage and spend on resources such as special weapons and Squadron Assets to help you complete your Missions.

You will also earn Victory Points (VP) by destroying your Targets as well as earning Experience Points (XP) for completing Missions flown by your Pilots.

Each Day begins with the Daily Operations Phase where you choose your Targets and determine how many Missions you will fly for that Day, and concludes with the Daily Summary Phase.

Between the two daily Phases, you will perform one to two Missions, each comprising five Phases:

Pre-Flight Phase - this Phase sets up the enemy's Sites around the Target, as well as assigning and arming your Aircraft to carry out that mission.
Target-Bound Phase - this Phase resolves your Aircraft passage toward the Target.
Over-Target Phase - this Phase comprises of 5 Turns which cover air-to-air and air-to-ground combat as well as aerial movement, as your Aircraft fight their way through enemy defenses to attack the Target.
Home-Bound Phase - this Phase resolves your Aircraft returning to base.
Mission Debrief Phase - this Phase allows you to consolidate and record the outcomes of the Mission.

When all the Missions for that Day have been completed, the Daily Summary Phase concludes with that Day's administrative and maintenance tasks, such as promoting and replacing Pilots, and updating overall Campaign status.

Changes in Fulcrum Leader

Fulcrum Leader has been built on the framework of Hornet Leader: Carrier Air Operations, and while the gameplay is similar to previous titles in the Air Leader series, there are also a number of changes to the rules and terminology which will be different from what players may be previously familiar with.

These changes are intended to reflect the key differences in how the Soviet order of battle and operations differed from NATO in the 1980s, as well as to capture the flavor of frontline service in the Soviet Frontal Aviation forces. Some of these changes are:

Your Squadron will have a Commanding Officer and a Zampolit. The Zampolit is a political officer who is not only a combat-ready Pilot in his own right, but also has the added role of ensuring ideological purity and party loyalty in the Squadron.
Player-controlled Soviet and Warsaw Pact Aircraft and Weapons are being introduced into the Leader series for the first time. Rather than list every type of munition on the Aircraft card, for some Weapons, we use an abbreviated notation by weight class to indicate which munitions can be carried.
Squadron Assets (SQA) are auxiliary Aircraft which are not directly part of your squadron, but they can be purchased and used on Missions to enhance your Squadron's attack or degrade the enemy's capabilities. They broaden the narrative of the story, and add a new flavor to your Missions.
The Campaign Sheet introduces the Loyalty and Ops Strategic Tracks, in addition to Intel and Infra Tracks. The Recon Track has been removed. The Recon Priority mechanic to pay SO for additional Target card draws is not in this game.
The sequence of steps have been divided into Day-specific and Mission-specific Phases for better clarity. Daily Phases (Daily Operations and Daily Summary) occur at the start and end of each Day. Mission Phases (Pre-Flight, Target-Bound, Over-Target, Home-Bound and Mission Debrief) cover the steps to perform a Primary or Secondary Mission.
The Phoenix Missile Attacks step in Hornet Leader: Carrier Air Operations has been expanded into the Use Extended Weapons (ER) step.
Some of the Expansion have additional rules which are covered in this manual for completeness, in particular Expansion #4: Interceptors. This was a design decision to have all the rules consolidated in a single place, rather than having various instances of the rules spread over different sets.

Questions on Interoperability and House-Rules

Fulcrum Leader has many components and rules, and it is possible to encounter a situation created by a combination of card text, rule effects and die rolls which is not fully covered by the rulebook. In this instance, exercise judgment to resolve the issue in the best spirit of the rules. In the case of any doubts, please do not overthink the rules.

It is also possible that some players may like to adjust the rules to suit their personal style of play. Please go ahead and make your house-rules which best suits your enjoyment of the game!

If you prefer to do everything "by the book", that's fine, too. As designers, we have done our best to make these rules as complete and integral as we can, but always remember the most important rule of all: rules are merely guidelines which should not get in the way of your enjoyment.

2. Game Components

Fulcrum Leader comes with the following components:

Sheets

Campaign Sheets These sheets present the required information to play the Campaign, including historical background, Target selection, campaign length and evaluation, and available Aircraft and Weapons by year.

Tactical Display The Tactical Display is used to resolve the Over-Target Phase of each Mission. This display shows the Sequence of Play and has areas to organize your cards.

Player Help Sheet This sheet has helpful reference charts and general information which will help you to play the game.

Traits Help Sheet This sheet has a list of Traits and their definitions used in the game. Traits are the common keywords found on Target, Event, Aircraft and Zampolit cards which describe an effect or constraint.

Pilot and Zampolit Skills Sheet This sheet has a list of Pilot and Zampolit Skills and their effects in the game.

Squadron Control Sheet This is a stylized display of a fictional Soviet airbase where you can "park" your squadron's Aircraft counters when they are not on a Mission.

Player Log Record your Campaign and Pilot information on the Player Log. The information recorded on the Player Log is used to track Pilot experience, Special Option point expenditures, Target status, and campaign outcomes. Permission is granted for this sheet to be freely photocopied or printed for personal use, and a digital PDF can also be downloaded from DVG.com.

Card Decks

Event Cards When you are asked to draw an Event card, draw from this deck.

The top section describes Mission Events and their effects that occur on the way to the Target in the Target-Bound Phase.

The center section shows Mission Events which occur at the start of the Over-Target Phase.

The bottom section shows Mission Events that occur in the Home-Bound Phase.

Unless stated otherwise, the effects of the Event card take effect immediately when they are drawn. The title of the Event is for narrative purposes, and has no game effect.

Some Events have the "XP 1" Trait. When this Event is drawn, all the Aircraft and GCI Crew participating on the Mission gain 1 XP each, which will be accrued in the Earning XP step during the Debriefing Phase.

Target Cards Target cards detail your Mission objectives and their defenses. The Target number is in the top right corner. If this number is listed on a Campaign sheet, then this Target will be used in that Campaign.

Event and Target Traits Some Event and Target cards have Traits, which describe an additional effect or condition to the card text. A detailed list of Traits is on page 21.

Zampolit Cards Zampolit cards describe the actions and orders from the Zampolit in your squadron, which reflect external effects from the Party which may directly affect and influence the execution of your campaigns and missions.

These effects may be positive or negative, and how you handle them will determine your political standing with the Party on the Loyalty track.

Some Zampolit cards have the Optional Trait. You may choose to disregard the effects of an Optional card, but at a cost to your Commanding Officer's Stress.

Aircraft Cards (Pilot Cards) Each Aircraft card represents an aircraft and its crew. In Fulcrum Leader, the term Aircraft is used interchangeably with Pilot, and both terms refer to the same card.

Aircraft cards have their callsigns at the top left of the card. The designation of the Aircraft and its operational years is displayed on the left and right sides.

Unlike their NATO counterparts, the use of personal callsigns was not widely adopted amongst Soviet pilots. Instead, each Aircraft in Fulcrum Leader is designed by a common unit callsign followed by a numerical identifier.

The Pilot's stats for the Okay and Shaken Status are displayed in two rows along with the Stress levels, as well as Speed, Air-to-Air (AtA) and Air-to-Ground (AtG) modifiers. The Pilot's Situational Awareness (SA) and Cool (CL) rating is also shown on the card.

Aircraft with Internal ECM capability will also have an ECM rating, along with its Weight Point (WP) rating which represents its combat payload.

At the bottom, the card will list all the Weapons usable by this Aircraft, as well as a Cannon hit number, if the Aircraft carries one.

Pilot Status

A Pilot will always be in one of three Statuses: Okay, Shaken or Unfit.

A Pilot who is Okay is operating at normal, optimal capacity.
A Pilot who is Shaken is suffering from fatigue and stress, and their stats will be reduced to reflect their diminished abilities.
A Pilot who is Unfit is no longer operationally ready, and cannot be assigned to a Mission until their Stress recovers to Okay or Shaken levels.

During a Mission, if a Pilot becomes Unfit at any point, the Pilot is immediately no longer able to Attack or Suppress, and any Aircraft with special abilities also lose those abilities. An Unfit Pilot may still perform Evasion and Movement.

When a Pilot accumulates Stress, including whilst on a Mission, it is added immediately, along with any changes to the Pilot's Status and Air-to-Air/Air-to-Ground modifiers.

Pilot Skill Levels

Pilots have a Skill Level rating which is one of six levels (in ascending order): Newbie, Green, Average, Skilled, Veteran and Legendary. Each Pilot card has two sides that show different experience levels for the Pilot, and each Aircraft for a single Pilot will consist of three cards, with the six sides corresponding to each of the Skill Levels.

Ground Control Intercept Crew Cards

Each Ground Control Intercept (GCI) Crew card represents a radar station and its crew.

GCI Crew cards have the radar station's location at the top left of the card. The designation of the radar and its operational years is displayed on the left and right sides.

Their abilities include Situational Awareness (SA), which can be given to other Aircraft on the Mission, as well as the ability to Ignore Events.

They can also provide bonus Air-to-Air, Air-to-Ground or ECM modifiers to Aircraft on the Mission. These modifiers apply to all the Aircraft on the Mission. However, if an Aircraft does not have the required rating, it cannot benefit from the modifier.

Example: The MiG-29A Fulcrum has no ECM rating, thus it cannot make any Internal ECM Decoy rolls, or receive any benefit from the GCI ECM modifier. If the Aircraft carries an ECM Pod, it will apply the ECM modifier to its Decoy rolls.

Similar to Aircraft cards, GCI Crew have six Skill Levels of progression and three cards for each GCI Crew. They can also gain XP on Missions and be promoted to the next Skill Level, like Pilots.

Card ID

Every card in the game has a unique identifier in the bottom left corner which consists of a prefix and a number. Cards from the core game have a prefix "FL" and cards from the expansions have the prefixes "FL1" to "FL7". These can be used to help you sort and verify that you have all the cards in the game. They have no effect on gameplay.

Ten-Sided Die

Whenever a die roll is required, roll a ten-sided die. This will generate random numbers from 1 to 10.

It is quite common in the gaming hobby for ten-sided dice to have numbers ranging from 0 to 9. In this instance, treat the die's "0" face as being a "10".

Counters

Aircraft Counters Each Aircraft counter has a Low Altitude side and a High Altitude side. The names on the counters correspond to the callsigns on the Pilot cards. There is one Aircraft counter for each callsign.

Aircraft and Support Aircraft have counters, but Squadron Assets and GCI Crews do not.

Weapon Counters Each Weapon counter represents a type of munition which can be carried by an Aircraft. Based on the mission's Target for that Day and the Hostiles which you expect to face, you will have to make some decisions on which Weapon counters to arm on each Aircraft going on that mission. The availability of each Weapon counter restricts how many of them you can choose - you may not use more of any type of counter than what is provided in the game.

There are two main types of Weapon counters as well as ECM Pods:

Air-to-Air Weapons (AtA): All Air-to-Air Weapons have diagonal yellow stripes. These weapons can only be used against Air-to-Air targets such as Bandits and Objective Targets.
Air-to-Ground Weapons (AtG): These Weapons can only be used against Sites and Targets.
ECM Pods: An electronic countermeasures (ECM) Pod is not a Weapon, but rather an electronic defense which is carried by Aircraft to protect them from radar-based attacks.

Some Aircraft in the game have an internal Cannon(s). This will be indicated on the Aircraft card with a Hit value and is not represented by a Weapon counter.

Tactical Nuclear Weapons There are also two Tactical Nuclear Weapons available to Soviet forces, the RN-28 and RN-40, as well as the Chinese KB-1 from Expansion 7.

Tactical Nuclear Weapons may only be used in a Campaign if it is included on the Weapons list, and when the Ops Track has reached the Tactical Nuclear Authorization space. This reflects the state of the campaign reaching a tipping point where the Party Secretariat has authorized the use of such drastic actions to swing the conflict back in its favor. The special rules covering the use of Tactical Nuclear Weapons are on page 58.

Air Defense Counters Each Air Defence counter represents an enemy. These counters are double-sided, with a Site on one side and a Bandit on the other.

Sites are ground-based enemy air artillery and missile platforms that Attack your Aircraft.
Naval Sites, which are included in some expansions, are ship-based weapon platforms. These Sites are illustrated in blue-grey with a ship silhouette, and are used with maritime Campaigns and Targets.
Bandits are enemy fighters that Attack your Aircraft.
Bombers are a special type of Bandit that you may face on some missions. The counter represents two Bombers on one side, and one Bomber on the other. Attack each Bomber as you normally would with a Bandit. However, Bomber counters do not have an Attack value and thus do not Attack your Aircraft. They remain in the Centre Area and do not move on the Tactical Display.

In the Interceptor Missions from Expansion 4, Bombers may be placed in either the Centre or any of the Approach Areas.

Some Air Defence counters have one or both "No Bandit" or "No Site" notations. These counters are counted as part of the draw when making Site or Bandit draws, but are removed from play after the draw is completed and replaced in the draw cup.

When making a counter draw because of a card effect, such as an Event or Target Trait, and a "No Bandit" or "No Site" is drawn, do not redraw these counters. Return them to the draw cup.

Each Campaign Sheet will list a specific set of Sites and Bandits. When setting up the Campaign, place the Air Defense counters listed on the Campaign sheet in a cup to draw from. The other Air Defense counters will not be used and can be set aside.

Information Counters These counters are used to track the status of your Pilots as well as the overall progress of the Mission and Campaign.

Stress counters are used to record the amount of Stress suffered by each of your Pilots. When a Pilot suffers Stress, immediately place a Stress counter on that Aircraft card.

Situational Awareness (SA) counters are used to record the Situational Awareness points that each Pilot has during a Mission.

Hit counters (also known as Damage counters) are used to track the number of Hits which has been scored on the Target.

Loyalty / Intel / Infra / Ops counters are used to indicate each respective Strategic Track's space on the Campaign sheet.

The Target counter is used to track the Mission Zone of your current Target. Place it on the Campaign Sheet to indicate where your Target is.

Angle of Attack counters are used to indicate which Areas that the Sites in an Approach Area can Attack and be Attacked from. They represent obstructions and terrain which limit the visibility of the Site. Place all the Angle of Attack counters in a cup.

The Flight Leader counter is placed on the Pilot with the highest Skill Level selected for the current Mission. If two or more Pilots have the equal highest Skill, select one of them to be the Flight Leader.

The Commanding Officer and Zampolit counters are placed on the respective Pilot cards with those roles.

The Turn counter is placed on the Tactical Display to keep track of Mission Turn progression.

Pilot Skill counters are used to customize and indicate individual Skills for each Pilot. These Skills can be purchased with SO points for each Pilot at the start of the Campaign, up to two Skills purchased per Pilot.

Zampolit Skill counters are also used to indicate special abilities which are only available to the Zampolit assigned to your unit.

Bogey counters are not used in the core game, but they appear in Expansion 4: Interceptors where the exact enemy forces are unknown at long distances. Under specific situations, the Bogey counters will be resolved and swapped out for Bandits and Objective counters. The detailed rules for the Interceptor Expansion are covered in Chapter 16 - Interceptor Campaigns.

Track counters are likewise not used in the core game, but are reserved for possible future expansions to represent unknown surface units.

Technique counters are used to indicate the specific Radio-Electronic Combat (REC) Techniques employed by Support Aircraft to assist other Aircraft during the Mission.

Pilot Status counters are used to track the status of your Pilots as they accumulate Stress over the duration of the Campaign.

Aircraft Status counters are used to track the status of your Aircraft over the duration of the Mission.

3. Component Details

Campaign Sheet

Campaign Title and Year - The year in which the Campaign takes place, which will determine which Aircraft and Weapons you can use, as well as which Sites and Bandits you will encounter.
Difficulty - There are four levels of Difficulty: Introductory, Standard, Skilled, and Expert. Any special rules for this Campaign will also be included.
Duration and Evaluation - Campaigns may have up to 3 lengths: Short, Medium, and Long, which specifies how many Days the Campaign lasts. The Campaign length also determines the amount of SO points available, as well as the Campaign rating based on the amount of Victory Points earned.
Standard Weapons / Special Weapons - These are the Weapons available in this Campaign. Standard Weapons do not cost SO to purchase and use, but Special Weapons have to be purchased for each Mission.
Threat - These are the hostile Sites, Bandits and Objective Aircraft that will appear in the Campaign.
Targets - Each Campaign lists the Targets which will be included, along with their Mission Zones as well as any Zone-specific modifiers and penalties, including limits on which Aircraft or GCI Crews that can be used in a particular Zone. The shape of the Target indicator (circle, square, diamond) may also incur additional Stress on the Pilots.
Pilot Loss Penalty - There are four increasing levels of severity to recover Pilot losses: Negligible, Nominal, Moderate, and Severe. This level will determine how easily or difficult it is to replace any Pilot losses.
Strategic Tracks - There are up to four Strategic Tracks which show the progress of the Campaign, as well as any external geopolitical effects: Loyalty, Intel, Infra, and Ops.

Tactical Display

The Tactical Display is where the Over-Target Phase is resolved. This phase represents the Mission Aircraft arriving at the Target, and consists of combat and movement as they attempt to Destroy the Target.

Turn Counter - The Aircraft have 5 Turns to Destroy the Target in the Over-Target Phase.
Target / Event / Zampolit Decks - Shuffle and place the respective decks in these spaces. Each Campaign will have a list of Targets stated on the Campaign Sheet.
Target Card - When the Target for the Mission has been selected, place the Target card in this space.
Tactical Areas - The Tactical Display is divided into 1 Center Area, 4 Approach Areas, 8 Pre-Approach Areas, and 8 Stand-Off Attack Areas.

An Area may be occupied by any number of Aircraft, Sites and Bandits, and an Aircraft may occupy any Area. Objective Bandits and Bombers will always remain in the Center Area, with the exception of Interceptor Missions.

An Aircraft or Bandit can Move into any Adjacent Area. An Adjacent Area is defined as Area which shares a common edge with the current Area.

When calculating Range for an Attack or Movement, always use the shortest path between Areas. Range 0 refers to the current Area itself.

Sequence of Play - This lists the phases and individual steps in the game for easy reference.

Aircraft / Pilot Cards

Each Aircraft / Pilot card represents both the Aircraft as well as its crew, and both terms are used interchangeably throughout the rules.

Each Aircraft card has two sides that show different Skill Levels for the Pilot. The six Skill Levels for each Pilot span across three double-sided cards.

Callsign - Each Aircraft/Pilot has a callsign by which they are referred.
Aircraft Type and Service Years - The Aircraft's designation, and the years which the Aircraft was in service.
Roundel - In the upper right hand corner, the roundel shows which nation the aircraft belongs to.
Skill Level - Each Pilot will be at one of six Skill Levels: Newbie, Green, Average, Skilled, Veteran, and Legendary.
Promotion Number - The number next to the Skill Level is the amount of XP required for the Pilot to be Promoted to the next Skill Level.
Situational Awareness (SA) - Pilots can spend their Situational Awareness counters to make Fast and Slow Attacks in an Over-Target Turn.
ECM - Aircraft with Internal ECM will have a value, which is used for Decoy rolls.
Cool (CL) - Pilots with Cool recover from Stress faster.
Weight Points (WP) - This is the maximum amount of Weapon Weight Points that the Aircraft can be loaded with.
Stress - Pilots suffer Stress when they fly Missions, and it is used to determine their Status.
Status - Pilots will have a Status of either: Okay, Shaken, or Unfit, which is determined by the amount of Stress accrued.
- Okay - If a Pilot's Stress is in the "Okay" range, use the stats in the Okay row.

The Weapon notation may appear as a parent designation, which includes all variants of that Weapon usable by the Aircraft. Variants are indicated by postfix character(s) to the parent designation.

Example: The Su-24 Fencer has the notation for the Kh-25 on its card. It is able to carry Kh-25 and Kh-25MP counters.

The MiG-27 Flogger-J has the notation for the KAB-500L on its card. It is able to carry KAB-500L and KAB-500L-KE counters.

The exception to this notation is the R-27E Weapon, which can only be carried by the Su-27 Flanker.

Example: The MiG-29 Fulcum-A and Fulcrum-C both have the notation for the R-27 on their cards. However, they are not able to carry the R-27E.

The notation "Unguided 250/500/1500kg or less" indicates that the Aircraft is able to carry Unguided Air-to-Ground Weapon counters of that stipulated weight or less.

Special Abilities - Some Aircraft may have additional special abilities, which will be described on the card, as well as Traits. The list of Traits is on page 21.

Target Cards

Title - The type of Target. This is descriptive and has no game effect.
Maximum Aircraft - This number indicates the maximum number of Aircraft you can assign to this Mission, excluding GCI Crew, Support and Squadron Assets. You may choose to assign fewer Aircraft, but you cannot exceed this number.
Target Number - Each Target has a unique Target Number. The Targets used in a Campaign is listed on the Campaign Sheet.
Sites and Bandits - These are the numbers of Sites and Bandits drawn for each of the Approach Areas (App) and the Center Area (Cen).
Hits - The number of Hits needed to Destroy the Target.
Victory Points (VP) - The Victory Points earned when the Target is Destroyed.
Traits - Most Targets have one or more Traits, which modify how they can be Attacked as well as introducing any special effects they have on the Mission. The list of Traits is on page 21.
Strategic Track - When a Target is Destroyed, one or more Strategic Track counters may be moved, representing the success of the Campaign.
- Loyalty - This is the number of spaces to move the Loyalty counter to the right if you Destroy the Target.
- Intel - This is the number of spaces to move the Intel counter to the right if you Destroy the Target.
- Infra - This is the number of spaces to move the Infra counter to the right if you Destroy the Target.

If you are conducting a Primary and a Secondary Mission on the same Day, do not adjust your Strategic Track counters until after both Missions have been completed.

Objectives (Objs) - Some Targets have Objective Sites, Bandits and Bombers. Air Objective (Bandit and Bomber) counters do not Move or leave the Center Area. In the Interceptor Expansion, Air Objectives may be placed in Center or Approach areas.

Place the Objective Site, Bandit or Bomber counters in the Center Area. These counters have to be Destroyed to successfully complete the Mission.

If the Target has Objective counters and a Hits value, both the Objective counters must be Destroyed and the required number of Hits must be scored on the Target to successfully complete the Mission.

Traits

Some Aircraft, Event, Target and Zampolit cards as well as Weapon counters have Trait keywords. Their effects are detailed here:

1 Bandit / 2 Bandits - Draw 1 or 2 Bandit counters at the start of each Turn in the Over-Target Phase. Place the Bandits in the Center Area. If the draw is "No Bandit", do not place the counter and do not redraw. Bandits drawn by this Trait are not considered Objective Bandits, and may Move out of the Center Area.
Air Objs - See Objective.
Big - All Air-to-Ground Attack rolls against this Target gain a +1 modifier.
Bonus - If the Target is Destroyed, gain the stated Bonus, in addition to other benefits. If the Bonus reduces a Site or Bandit draw to less than 0, treat it as 0.
Dispersed - Each Air-to-Ground Attack cannot inflict more than 1 Hit on the Target.
Fixed - Some Weapon counters have an "F" notation. They can only be used to Attack Targets with the Fixed Trait.

Example: Target #3 "Infantry Formation" does not have the Fixed Trait. Target #12 "Aircraft Dispersal" has the Fixed Trait. A Weapon with the "F" notation cannot be used against Target #3, but it can be used against Target #12.

Friendly Fire - For each Air-to-Ground Weapon Attack against this Target which fails to Hit or Suppress, the Attacking Pilot suffers 1 Stress.
Ground Objs - See Objective.
Hard - Subtract 1 Hit from the Hits inflicted by each Air-to-Ground Attack against the Target. As an Aircraft's Cannon Attack only inflicts 1 Hit, this means that Cannons cannot inflict any Damage on a Hard Target.
Improvement - A Target with the Improvement Trait remains in play until it is Destroyed. It is not discarded if it is not selected for a Mission. Improvement Target cards which have been drawn on a previous Day do not count against the current Day's quota for Target cards.

An Improvement Target will also have a negative effect, which takes effect immediately and remains in play until the Improvement Target is Destroyed. If there is more than one Improvement Target in play, the effects from multiple Improvement cards are cumulative.

Example: Target #12 "Aircraft Dispersal" has the Improvement: All Targets get +1 Center Bandit. This means that all Targets, including Target #12, gains the effect of having 1 Bandit draw in the Center Area each Turn in the Over-Target Phase, until Target #12 is Destroyed.

Naval - Some expansions have Targets with the Naval Trait, which represent maritime combat units. Some Weapons may only be used against Targets with the Naval Trait.
Nuclear - Targets with the Nuclear Trait are susceptible to escalating the conflict. When you Destroy a Nuclear Target, move the Ops Track counter 1 space to the right. If more than one Nuclear Target was Destroyed in the same Day, the Ops Track counter moves for each Target.

If the Ops Track counter moves onto the space to the left of the final rightmost space, you instantly Lose the Campaign. This space will have a description of why you have lost, such as "Global Thermonuclear War" or "NATO Nuclear Escalation".

Objective - Place the stipulated Objective Site, Bandit or Bomber counters in the Center Area. Destroy these Objective counters to complete the Mission. Redraw any "No Bandit/ No Site" Objective counters. They cannot be removed by Intel adjustment or Event effects.

You do not need to Destroy any other counters in the Center Area to complete the Mission, including counters drawn from an Improvement effect.

Some Target cards with Objective counters also have Hits. To Destroy this Target, you must Destroy the Objective counters and inflict the stated number of Hits on the Target.

Optional - When you draw a Zampolit card with this Trait, you have a choice to play the stated effect, which will be a combination of a benefit and a cost/penalty, or to ignore its effects.

If you choose to ignore the Zampolit card and avoid the effect text, incur the specified Stress cost to your Commanding Officer.

Overkill - If the specified number of Overkill Hits are inflicted on the Target, gain the stated bonus. The modifiers from the Infra track apply to both Hits and Overkill Hits.

Example: Target #32 "Supply Depot" has 7 Hits and Overkill if 10 Hits scored. On the Infra track, there is a -2 Hits modifier, which means Target #32 requires 5 Hits to be Destroyed and 8+ Hits to gain the Overkill bonus.

Penalty - If you fail to Destroy the Target, suffer the noted penalty. If the penalty is "End Campaign", the Campaign ends immediately with a Dismal Evaluation.
Scramble - As soon as a Scramble Target is drawn, you must immediately select this card as your Primary Mission for the Day. You may also select a Secondary Mission if you have other Target cards drawn with the Secondary Trait.
Secondary - This Target may be selected as a Secondary Mission for the Day. You have to decide whether to fly a Secondary Mission when you select the Primary Mission or draw a Target with the Scramble Trait for the Day. A Pilot can participate in a Primary Mission or Secondary Mission on any given Day, but not both. If there are more than one Secondary Targets drawn, you can only select one as the Secondary Mission.
Small - All Air-to-Ground Attack rolls against this Target suffer a -1 modifier.
Soft - Some Weapon counters gain a bonus when Attacking Soft Targets.
-1 Stress / +1 Stress / +2 Stress - Subtract or add the indicated amount of Stress to each Pilot and GCI Crew who participated in the Mission, in the Adding Mission Stress step in the Mission Debriefing phase.
-1 Turn / +1 Turn - Subtract or add 1 Turn to the Over-Target Phase.
Unguided X kg or less - This indicates that the Aircraft is able to carry Unguided Air-to-Ground Weapons of the stipulated weight or less. Soviet munitions are referenced using the weapon's designation followed by its weight in kilograms.

Example: The MiG-27 has the notation "Unguided 500kg or less" on its card. It is able to carry any Unguided Air-to-Ground Weapon counter weighing 500 kg or less. This would include munitions such as the FAB-100 / 250 / 500 iron bombs, ODAB-500P fuel-air explosive, BetAB-500 penetrator, ZB-500 napalm, all of which are unguided and 500 kg or less.

Vehicle - Some Weapon counters gain a bonus when Attacking Vehicle Targets.

Weapon Counters

Weapon counters represent the ordnance carried by the Aircraft. They are expended when used to Attack Sites and Bandits or to cancel out Event Attack effects.

Soviet Air-to-Air Weapons are prefaced with a R-x/RS-x designation. Air-to-Air Weapon counters also have diagonal yellow stripes as a visual reminder, and can be used only against Bandits and Bombers.

All the other counters are Air-to-Ground munitions, and can be used to Attack Sites and Targets.

ECM Pods are not used for Attacks, but instead provide a defensive capability to the Aircraft carrying it by Decoying enemy Attacks.

Each Weapon counter has the following characteristics:

Weight Points - This is the Weight Point cost for arming an Aircraft with this Weapon. The total number of Weight Points carried by an Aircraft cannot exceed its Weight Point rating.
Attack Number - This is the range of one or more numbers which the Attack roll has to match or better to Hit the target. Air-to-Ground Weapons may have up to four Hit numbers.
Maximum and Excluded Attack Range - The black circle indicates the maximum Range at which the Weapon can be used. The red circle indicates the excluded Range at which the Weapon cannot be used.

Example: The R-27 cannot Attack at Range 0, but it can Attack at Ranges 1-3.

Anti-Radar - Weapons with an "R" (Radar) notation can only be used against radar-based Sites. Radar-based Sites have a matching "R" notation as well.
Dispersed - Weapons with a "D" notation ignore the Dispersed Trait on Target cards, and are able to score more than 1 Hit per Attack.
Extended Range (ER) - Weapons with a Range of 5 can are capable of Extended Range Attacks, and may be used in the Use Extended Range (ER) Weapons step.

Example: The Kh-58U has a Range of 5. It may be used in the Use Extended Range (ER) Weapons step to Attack an enemy Site.

High / Low Altitude Attacks - Weapons with the "H" notation can be used at High Altitude. Weapons with the "L" notation can be used at Low Altitude. Weapons with "H" and "L" notations can be used at both Altitudes.
Independent - Weapons with the "I" notation are Independent and each Weapon counter can be used to Attack multiple Sites or Bandits. When a Pilot is declaring their Attack, the Pilot can declare each Independent Weapon against a different Site or Bandit.

When using Independent Weapons, all the Attacks have to be made using either Air-to-Ground or Air-to-Air Weapons. A Pilot cannot use a mix of Air-to-Ground and Air-to-Air Weapons when making Independent Attacks.

Soft - Weapons with the black "S" notation provide the noted Attack roll bonus against Sites or Soft Targets. All Sites automatically have the Soft Trait. Some Targets may also have the Soft Trait.

Example: The RBK-500 iron bomb has an "S+4" notation. When used against Sites or a Soft Target, it gives a +4 bonus to the Attack roll.

Suppression - Weapons with the yellow "S" notation provide the noted Suppression roll bonus when used to Suppress. There is no Attack bonus when it is used for a normal Attack.

Example: Rockets have an "S+3" notation. When used to Suppress, they give a +3 bonus to the Suppression roll, but not for an Attack roll.

Unguided - Weapons with the "U" notation are Unguided. These can be carried by any Aircraft with the "Unguided" Trait which is equal to or less than the stated weight capacity.

Example: The RBK-250 and RBK-500 iron bombs have the "U" notation. An Aircraft with the Trait "Unguided 500kg or less" can be loaded with these weapons.

Site and Bandit Counters

Sites are ground-based enemy air artillery and missile systems that Attack your Aircraft. Some expansions include Naval Sites, which are ship-based weapon platforms. Naval Sites are illustrated in blue-grey with a ship silhouette, and are used with maritime Campaigns and Targets.

Bandits are enemy fighters that Attack your Aircraft. Their counters have diagonal yellow stripes as a visual reminder that they can only be Attacked by Air-to-Air Weapons.

Air Objectives (Air Objs), including Bombers, are enemy aircraft that have to be Destroyed to complete the Mission. They do not Move and do not perform Attacks against your Aircraft. In the Interceptor Expansion, the Mission Objectives may also include Escorting or Identifying Air Objectives.

Every Campaign uses a different set of Enemy Sites and Bandits, which is listed in the Threat section of the Campaign Sheet.

Site and Bandit Attacks

Sites and Bandits counters have their Attack numbers across the top. When making an Attack for them, roll a die and refer to the Attack numbers to determine the outcome.

Missed - If the modified die roll is less than the first number, there is no effect on the Targeted Aircraft.
Stressed - If the modified die roll is equal to the first number but less than the second number, add 1 Stress point to the Target Pilot's current Stress Level.
Damaged - If the modified die roll is equal to the second number but less than the third number, the Target Aircraft is Damaged. Remove all Weapon, Pod and Situational Awareness counters, and give the Pilot 2 Stress points.

If an Aircraft is Damaged a second time during a Mission, it is Destroyed.

Destroyed - If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the third number, the Target Aircraft is Destroyed.

Remove the Destroyed Aircraft from the Mission. Conduct a Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR) check for each Destroyed Aircraft during the Home-Bound Flight phase.

Altitude - The "H" and "L" notation indicates a Site's ability to Attack Aircraft at High, Low, or both Altitudes.
Soft - The "S" notation on all Sites indicates that they have the Soft Trait. Some Weapons have a bonus to Attack or Suppress Soft Targets, and this is indicated on the Weapon counters.
Site Hit Modifiers - Some Sites have an Attack modifier that makes them easier or harder to be Hit. This is notated as "+/- X" where X is the modifier.
Bandit Hit Modifiers - Some Bandits have an Attack modifier that makes them easier or harder to be Hit. This is notated as "+/- X" where X is the modifier.
Radar Sites - The "R" notation on a Site indicates that it is a Radar Site. Weapon counters which have the "R" notation can only be used to Attack Radar sites. Other Weapons can also be used to Attack Radar Sites.
Range 0 Sites - These Sites can only Attack an Aircraft which is in the same Area as the Site. Remember to check that the targeted Aircraft is at the correct Altitude which the Site can Attack.
Range 0 Bandits - These Bandits can only Attack an Aircraft in the same Area as the Bandit. Bandits do not have any Altitude restrictions to Attacks.
Range 1+ Sites - These Sites can Attack Aircraft at any Range up to their maximum Range, which is notated in the black circle.
Range 1+ Bandits - These Bandits can Attack Aircraft up to their maximum Range, which is notated in the black circle.
Very High Speed/Altitude (Interceptor Expansion) - The "V" notation is found on some Bandits in the Interceptor expansion, which have very high speed and altitude capability. When an Aircraft attempts to Escort an Objective Target with the "V" notation, roll two dice and take the lower result.

Angle of Attack Limitations

Angle of Attack counters are an abstract representation of obstructions and blind spots in the counter's line of sight, such as hills, ridges and buildings.

For each Site counter with a Range of 1+ in the Pre-Approach and Approach Areas, draw an Angle of Attack counter. Sites in the Centre and Stand-Off Areas do not use Angle of Attack counters.

Place the Angle of Attack counter next to the Site with its arrow pointing away from the Center Area. Each Site has its own Angle of Attack counter, even if there are multiple Sites in the same Area.

The Red Zones on the Angle of Attack counter denote the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas which the Site can Attack into and be Attacked from.

The Black Zones on the Area of Attack counter denote the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas that the Site cannot Attack or be Attacked from.

Site Addition and Movement

If a card effect from an Event or Target moves or adds a Site with Range 1+ into an Approach or Pre-Approach Area, draw an Angle of Attack counter.

If a Site is moved into the Center Area or Stand-Off Area by a card effect, discard its Angle of Attack counter.

If a Site with an Angle of Attack counter is moved into a different Approach or Pre-Approach Area, discard its Angle of Attack counter and redraw a new Angle of Attack counter.

Stand-Off Area Exclusions

Aircraft at Low Altitude in a Stand-Off Area cannot be Attacked by Sites with a Range 1+. Aircraft at High Altitude in a Stand-Off Area can be Attacked by a Site with the required Range and Altitude, regardless of Angle of Attack limitations.

Naval Site Exclusion

Some expansions include Naval Sites. Naval Sites do not use Angle of Attack counters, unless otherwise specified on the Campaign sheet.

4. Sequence of Play

This is an overview of the sequence of play for Fulcrum Leader. Subsequent sections will explain each of the steps and game mechanics in greater detail.

Campaign Set Up

Select the Campaign you wish to play. Next, select and customize your Pilots, and select the required Site and Bandit counters corresponding to the Campaign. Set up the required Target cards to create the Target deck. Shuffle the Event and Zampolit decks. Select your Commanding Officer and Zampolit. This phase is only required once for each game.

Daily Operations Phase

Draw one Zampolit card and resolve its effects.

Draw Target cards. Select a Primary Target, and optionally, a Secondary Target.

Each Mission has five Phases: the Pre-Flight Phase, Target Bound Phase, Over-Target Phase, Home-Bound Phase and Mission Debriefing Phase.

Pre-Flight Phase

Mission Pre-Flight Draw and place the required Sites on the Tactical Display. Select your Pilots who will be performing this Mission.

Arm Aircraft and Acquire Squadron Assets Select (and purchase, if necessary) the required Weapon counters for your Aircraft, and acquire Squadron Asset support units as required.

Target-Bound Phase

This Phase depicts your Aircraft taking off and flying toward the Target. Place your Aircraft counters on the Tactical Display and choose their Altitudes (High or Low).

Draw and resolve a Target-Bound Event card. Determine and Place Bandits on the Tactical Display.

Make any Intel Air Defense Adjustments.

Draw and resolve an Over-Target Event card. Aircraft equipped with Extended Range (ER) Weapons may perform a preliminary Attack against enemy Bandits and Sites, including Objective Bandits and Sites.

Place the Turn counter in the "1" space.

Over-Target Phase

This Phase depicts your Aircraft attacking the Target, and consists of 5 iterative Turns with identical steps.

Fast Aircraft Attack Your Fast Aircraft perform their Attacks.

Sites and Bandits Attack Hostile Sites and Bandits perform their Attacks. You may have one Pilot attempt to Suppress each Attack, and a Pilot under Attack may attempt to Evade.

Slow Aircraft Attack The remaining Slow Aircraft perform their Attacks.

Aircraft Move and Adjust Altitude You may Move any of your Aircraft on the Tactical Display and change their Altitude.

Bandits Move Resolve movement for any Bandits in response to your Aircraft movement.

Resolve Tactical Nuclear Weapon If you have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon, resolve its effects.

Advance Turn Counter Advance the Turn counter 1 step and repeat from the Fast Aircraft Attack step, unless the Turn counter is already on Turn #5. When five Turns are up, proceed to the Home-Bound Phase.

Home-Bound Phase

This Phase depicts your Aircraft returning from the Target.

Home-Bound Flight Draw a Home-Bound Event card and resolve its effects.

If any of your Aircraft were destroyed during the Mission, roll for Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) for each Aircraft.

Mission Debriefing Phase

Record the Mission outcome, including any Victory Points (VP) earned, Campaign Track shifts (Loyalty, Intel, Infra, and Ops) and Special Option (SO) points earned or lost, but do not apply these adjustments yet.

Adjust any Stress accrued from Target and Campaign effects as well as record individual Pilot Experience (XP) and Stress. This step concludes the actions for one Mission.

Daily Summary Phase

These are the final bookkeeping steps when all the Missions have been completed for the Day.

Resolve any Pilot Stress recovery, as well as adjust the Loyalty, Intel, Infra and Ops Tracks on the Campaign sheet. Finally, promote any eligible Pilots to the next Skill Level, and replace any missing Pilots including selecting a new Commanding Officer or Zampolit, as required.

This step concludes the actions required for one Day. Repeat the next Day's actions from the Pre-Flight Phase, until the number of days in the Campaign have been completed. When the Campaign has been completed, the game ends and you will receive a Campaign evaluation based on the total VPs earned.

The Sequence of Play Flowchart on page 30 of the printed rulebook is a diagram. Its steps are the ones listed above and are covered in the sections that follow.

5. Campaign Set Up

Place the Tactical Display on the desktop, and select the Campaign you wish to play.

Choosing Campaign Duration and Special Option Points

Choose the duration of the Campaign. Each Campaign has three durations: Short, Medium, and Long. The Campaign duration will determine the number of Days that you will fly Missions, as well as the amount of Special Option (SO) points which are available, and the Victory Points (VP) you must score to determine your success level in the Campaign.

SO points are sometimes notated in the format (X/Y/Z) where X, Y and Z are the SO points available for a Short, Medium and Long Campaign respectively.

Example: A card effect states "Gain 1/2/3 SO points." This means you gain 1 SO point if you are playing a Short Campaign, 2 SO points for a Medium Campaign, and 3 SO points for a Long Campaign.

If your Special Option points ever fall below 0 during a Campaign, the Campaign immediately ends with a loss.

Place Tracking Counters

Place the Intel, Infra, and Ops counters on the left-most space on the corresponding tracks on the Campaign sheet. Place the Loyalty counter to the left of the "Start" space. When referencing the Strategic tracks, use the information on the space to the right of each counter.

Loyalty tracks your standing with the Party, and how closely they think you are aligned to their goals and ideals.

Intel (Intelligence) represents the enemy's ability to respond to your Mission and their preparedness to defend against it. As you degrade the enemy's intelligence capability, you also reduce the number of Sites and Bandits in play.

Infra (Infrastructure) represents the damage which you have inflicted on the enemy's energy, transportation and organizational capability. As their infrastructure suffers damage, the number of Hits required to destroy a Target is reduced. If the number of Hits required to destroy a Target is adjusted below 1, treat it as requiring 1 Hit to Destroy. The Hit adjustment from Infra does not modify the number of Target counters, if any, that must be Destroyed as part of the Target objective.

Example: Target #23 "Strategic SAM Sites" requires 3 Hits and 2 Strategic SAM Counters to be Destroyed as printed. The Infra adjustment is -1 Hit, so the Target would require 2 Hits and 2 Strategic SAM Counters to be Destroyed to complete the Mission.

Ops (Operations) represents both the impacts from your Mission outcomes and more broadly, the influence of your Campaign's progress on the wider conflict. As you achieve more successes or failures on your Missions, this has various effects which are represented on the spaces in this track.

Setting Up the Card Decks

From the complete set of Target cards, select the cards with the Target numbers shown on the Campaign Sheet. These selected cards will form your Target deck for this Campaign.

Set aside the remaining Target cards - they will not be used for this Campaign.

Shuffle the selected Target deck, the Event deck and the Zampolit deck, and place them face-down on the indicated areas on the Tactical Display. If you have additional Event and Zampolit cards from the Expansion sets, you may add them to the cards in the core set, even if you are not playing the expansion Campaigns. Some Expansion may also have Campaigns with new Target cards.

During the game, if any of the decks becomes depleted, shuffle its discard deck to reconstitute a fresh deck.

From the Threat table on the Campaign Sheet, select the listed Site and Bandit counters required for this Campaign, and place those counters into the Site/Bandit cup. Select any additional Objective aircraft or sites listed on the Threat table and place them adjacent to the Site/Bandit cup. Set aside the other counters, as they will not be used for this Campaign.

Selecting Squadron Aircraft

Select your Aircraft cards based on the duration of the Campaign (Short, Medium or Long). You may only select Aircraft with a Service Year range that matches the Campaign's Year.

Select the number of Aircraft in each Skill Level as follows:

Short Campaign Squadron (8 Aircraft): 1 Newbie, 2 Green, 4 Average, and 1 Skilled.
Medium Campaign Squadron (10 Aircraft): 1 Newbie, 2 Green, 5 Average, 1 Skilled, and 1 Veteran.
Long Campaign Squadron (12 Aircraft): 1 Newbie, 2 Green, 6 Average, 2 Skilled, and 1 Veteran.

On the Player Log Sheet, record each Aircraft's Callsign, Skill Level, Promotion XP and Cool rating. You may purchase and select any Support Aircraft at this step. Support Aircraft have Skill Levels like Pilots, and count as part of your Campaign Aircraft selection.

Example: You can select up to 12 Aircraft for a Long Campaign. You have selected a number of Su17, MiG-23, MiG-27 and MiG-29 Aircraft. In addition, you also decide to purchase a Yak-28PP Brewer-E radio-electronic warfare Support Aircraft at the Average Skill Level, which will count as one of the 6 Average Aircraft as well as the overall total of 12 Aircraft.

Warsaw Pact Aircraft The Fulcrum Leader core and expansions include Aircraft from other Warsaw Pact nations. You may include these Aircraft in your selection, even though they are from different nations. The air forces of the Warsaw Pact nations trained and operated based on Soviet tactics and procedures, and are fully interoperable with each other.

Superior and Inferior Aircraft Selection The MiG-29 Fulcrum is the baseline quality for Aircraft in the game. Selecting an Aircraft with superior or inferior ability relative to the MiG-29 will come at a cost or gain of extra Special Option points. The number of Special Option points which you will Pay or Gain will depend on the quality of Aircraft as well as Campaign duration, and it will be indicated on the Aircraft card.

Example: You decide to select two MiG-21bis Fishbed-Ns for your Long Campaign. You will gain 3 SOs per Aircraft for a total of 6 SOs. You also decide to add a Tu-126 Moss AEW, which costs 6 SO. You end up breaking even selecting these three Aircraft.

Select Commanding Officer

Select one of your Pilots to be the Commanding Officer (CO) of your Squadron. Your initial CO must be an experienced Pilot with a Skill rating of Skilled or higher, and may fly any Aircraft and come from any nation. The Commanding Officer is always exempt from the effects of a Zampolit card effect. Place the CO counter on the Aircraft card.

Example: A Zampolit card effect states to randomly select a Pilot from the squadron to miss the next Mission. The CO is exempted from that selection.

If a Commanding Officer's Aircraft is Destroyed, select a replacement Pilot of the highest Skill Level to be the new Commanding Officer in the Replace Pilots step in the Mission Debriefing Phase.

If your Commanding Officer is lost over the course of the Campaign, and a replacement has not been selected, the Pilots in your Squadron will continue to fly Missions as normal.

Selecting the Zampolit

One of your Pilots will be the squadron's Zampolit. Each Soviet combat unit was assigned a political officer, the Zampolit, who was tasked with ensuring the political ideological purity of the pilots and technicians, in addition to being a fully-qualified specialist in their own right - for instance, the Zampolit of a fighter squadron would also be a fighter pilot himself.

Sometimes, the Zampolit could make things more difficult for the squadron, by placing party requirements over actual operational needs, but he could also use his influence and knowledge of the bureaucracy to help make things happen and remove impediments.

To select the Zampolit, place all of the squadron's Aircraft counters in a cup except the CO, and randomly draw one counter. Record that Pilot as the Zampolit, and place the Zampolit counter on the Aircraft card.

Alternatively, you may choose the Zampolit from one of your Pilots in the squadron.

A Zampolit can be the Pilot of any Aircraft and be of any Skill Level or nation.

Selecting Ground Control Intercept Crews

Select one of the Ground Control Intercept (GCI) cards with an Average skill level as part of your starting crew. Soviet GCI radar stations were an integral part of their air combat operations. Some Expansions include GCI cards which are naval units, although they are in every respect of gameplay similar to the ground-based units.

Like Aircraft cards, GCI cards may also be promoted to higher Skill Levels over the course of the campaign by earning XP, although their progression is slower than for Pilots. GCI Crew cards do not count against your Squadron Aircraft quota.

Selecting Pilot and Zampolit Skills

You may purchase up to 2 Skills for each Pilot. Each Pilot Skill costs 1/2/3 SO points. You may purchase the same Skill for different Pilots, but you cannot purchase the same Skill twice for the same Pilot. A Pilot cannot have more than 2 purchased Skills, in addition to any Skills which were already pre-printed on the Pilot card. The availability of Skill counters in the game does not limit the number of times you can purchase the same Skill for multiple Pilots.

Skills may be purchased for Pilots of any nation in the Fulcrum Leader core or expansions - there is no restriction based on the nationality of the Pilot. Refer to the Pilot Skills Sheet for the specific effects of each Skill.

Record each Skill's SO cost on the Player Log Sheet and record the Skill under the Pilot's name. This is the only time you can purchase Skills for Pilots. Skills cannot be purchased or transferred between Pilots during the Campaign.

Zampolit Skills may only be purchased and used by a Zampolit. A Zampolit has the same restriction of a maximum of 2 purchased Skills like normal Pilots, but their Skills may be Pilot or Zampolit Skills.

GCI Crews, Support Aircraft and Squadron Assets do not have Pilot Skills.

Crew Promotion Priority

Once you have selected your Pilots and GCI Crews, you can use the Crew Promotion Priority Option. This allows you to immediately Promote one or more of your Pilots or GCI Crew to their next higher Skill Level. You can Promote a Pilot or CGI Crew more than once. Each Pilot or GCI Crew Promotion costs 6/12/18 SO points. This is the only time you can purchase the Crew Promotion option for your Pilots and GCI Crews.

Using Squadron Assets (SQA)

In addition to the Soviet Frontal Aviation aircraft under your direct command, there are also other units such as radio-electronic warfare and airborne radar aircraft available to you from a different service branch, which are represented in the game as Squadron Assets. Unlike Aircraft or GCI Crew cards, Squadron Assets have two Skill Levels, Average and Veteran, and are represented as a double-sided card.

Squadron Assets can be purchased each day during the Assign Pilots step, by paying the number of SO points indicated on the card for an Average or a Veteran unit.

Once purchased, each Squadron Asset is available for one Mission each day. A Squadron Asset purchased and used on a Mission cannot be used for another Mission on the same day. Any effects or restrictions from using the Asset will be stated on the card.

Squadron Assets do not need to be selected during Campaign set up, and do not count toward your Pilot selection quota at the start of the campaign. They do not count toward your Target Aircraft limit when they are assigned to a Mission, and do not have counters that enter play on the Tactical Display.

Squadron Asset Attacks

Some Squadron Assets are capable of making Attacks against Bandits, Sites and Targets. You may freely choose whether to resolve their Attacks in the Fast or Slow step. Squadron Assets cannot use Situational Awareness to make Attacks in both Fast and Slow steps.

Any Trait modifiers from the Target which apply to normal Aircraft Attacks also apply to Squadron Asset Attacks.

Example: You have purchased an Su-25 Strike to support the day's Mission. It is Attacking Target #16 "Major Bridge" which is Hard (-1 Hit). You roll a 10, which normally would cause 3 Hits, modified to 2 Hits.

Note: Do not confuse Squadron Assets with Support Aircraft. Although both types of cards represent Aircraft which can participate in your Mission, Squadron Assets are single-cost, single-use units which are effective for one Mission per purchase.

6. Daily Operations Phase

Once the Campaign setup is completed, you will commence the Campaign by carrying out daily Missions. Each Day begins with the Daily Operations Phase.

Draw Zampolit Card

For better or worse, the Soviet Party Secretariat has policy-making authority which will affect your mission planning, and as such, their voice in your Squadron is represented by the Zampolit, or Political Officer, which will have a direct influence on your plans.

Draw a Zampolit card and resolve its effects immediately, including any Loyalty, Intel, Infra and Ops track adjustments. Some Zampolit cards have effects which will occur during the Mission or are conditional; for example, "if the Mission is successful". Any reference to a Mission effect refers to the Primary Mission for that day, unless stated otherwise on the card. The Cyrillic title of each Zampolit card is provided for flavor, and has no game effect.

Some Zampolit card effects have an Optional Trait which will present both a positive and a negative effect. On these cards, the text will begin with the specific phrase: "Optional: You may…" which you can choose whether to play this card, or have the Commanding Officer override the Zampolit.

If you choose to play an Optional card, you must resolve and apply the effects from both positive and negative texts.

If you choose to ignore an Optional card, your Commanding Officer incurs 1 Stress immediately, and you may discard the Zampolit card. If you do not have a Commanding Officer, you cannot choose to ignore an Optional Zampolit card.

If the Zampolit deck becomes depleted, reshuffle the Zampolit discard pile and reconstitute a fresh Zampolit deck.

Draw Target Cards

Refer to the Loyalty Track on the Campaign Sheet to determine the maximum number of Target cards you can draw for the Day.

Draw one Target card at a time. Each time you draw a Target card, you may choose whether to Attack any of the Target cards already drawn, before drawing the next Target card.

If you have any Improvement Targets from a previous Day's draw, they do not count against the current Day's quota. You may also choose not to draw any new Targets and instead Attack the Improvement Targets which have been already drawn.

If you draw a Target with the Scramble Trait, you must immediately select this card as your Day's Primary mission and stop drawing Target cards.

If you draw one or more Targets with the Secondary Trait, you may choose to Attack one of them as your Secondary Mission for the Day.

When you have selected your Target card(s) for the Day, return the other unused Target cards to the Target deck except Improvement Targets, and reshuffle the Target deck for the next Day.

Example: Your Loyalty Track shows "3", which lets you draw up to 3 Target cards for the Day. You already have 1 Improvement Target from the previous Day. You may choose to Attack this Improvement Target without drawing any further cards.

You draw the first Target, which has the Secondary Trait, and choose not to Attack it. You draw the second Target, which has the Improvement Trait, and still remain undecided. You draw the third Target, which has the Scramble Trait.

You must Attack the Scramble Target as your Primary Mission. You may choose to Attack the first Target as your Secondary Mission. Once you have decided, you retain the two Improvement Targets in play, and return the other Target cards to the Target deck and reshuffle it.

Select Target

Select Primary Mission Select one of the Target cards as the Primary Mission for the Day, unless it is a Scramble. Place it in the Center Area of the Tactical Display Sheet.

Select Secondary Mission In addition to the Primary Mission, you can select another Target card with the Secondary trait and perform a Secondary Mission in the same Day.

You must decide whether to perform a Secondary Mission when you select the Primary Target for the Day, or when you draw a Scramble.

Pilots can participate in either the Primary Mission or Secondary Mission each Day, but not both. GCI Crews can participate in both the Primary Mission and Secondary Mission on the same Day. In all other respects, a Secondary Mission is resolved in the same way as a Primary Mission, and going through the same Phases.

Flying Two Missions If you choose to perform two Missions, complete the Primary Mission first before performing the Secondary Mission. Assign your Pilots to the Primary Mission and complete all the steps in the Pre-Flight, Target-Bound, Over-Target, Home-Bound and Mission Debrief Phases before doing the same steps for the Secondary Mission. You do not have to assign your Pilots to both Missions when you are planning for your Primary Mission.

When both Missions have been completed, perform the Daily Summary Phase for all your Pilots and GCI Crew who participated in a Mission that Day.

Nuclear Targets

Some Targets have the Nuclear Trait. When you Destroy a Nuclear Target, move the Ops Track counter 1 space to the right. If more than one Nuclear Target is Destroyed in the same Day, the Ops Track counter moves each time.

If the Ops Track counter moves onto the space indicating to the rightmost space, you instantly Lose the Campaign. This space will have a description of why you have lost, such as "Global Thermonuclear War" or "NATO Nuclear Escalation".

Note: the Nuclear Trait entry under Traits (page 22) describes this as the space to the left of the final rightmost space. Both are transcribed as printed.

Down Time

You can choose not to fly a Mission for the current Day and rest your Pilots. If you decide not to fly a Mission, move the following track counters:

Move the Infra counter 1 space to the left.
Move the Intel counter 1 space to the left.
Move the Loyalty counter 2 spaces to the left.
Move the Ops counter 1 space to the left

Go directly to the Daily Summary Phase and complete the remaining steps for the Day.

7. Pre-Flight Phase

Determine and Place Sites

On each Target card is a number specifying the number of Sites to be drawn in each Approach Area (App) and another number specifying the number of Sites to be drawn in the Center Area (Cen).

Example: For Target #16 "Major Bridge", draw and place 2 Sites in each of the four Approach Areas and 3 Sites in the Center Area.

Randomly draw the stated number of Air Defense counters from the Site/Bandit cup for each Area. Place the counters, with their Site side facing up, in the respective Approach Areas and Center Area on the Tactical Display.

If a counter reads "No Site", remove it from the Tactical Display and return it to the cup. Do not redraw "No Site" counters. The counters remaining on the Tactical Display represent the enemy Sites defending the Target.

Place Angle of Attack Counters

If your Campaign Sheet uses Angle of Attack counters, randomly draw one Angle of Attack counter for each Site in an Approach or Pre-Approach Area with a Range of 1 or more. Each Site with a Range 1+ will have its own Angle of Attack counter. Sites in the Center and Stand-Off Areas do not use Angle of Attack counters.

Place each Angle of Attack counter next to its Site with its white arrow pointing away from the Center Area.

The Red Zones on the Angle of Attack counter denote the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas which the Site can Attack into and be Attacked from.

The Black Zones on the Area of Attack counter denote the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas that the Site cannot Attack or be Attacked from. These represent visual and radar blind spots in the weapon's line of sight, such as hills, ridges and buildings.

Assign Pilots

You must now decide which Pilots to send on the Mission. Select the Pilots from your Squadron for this Mission and place their cards in front of you so they can be armed with Weapon counters.

Pilots who are Shaken may be assigned on a Mission, although their abilities will be reduced and there is a greater chance that they may continue to accrue Stress and fall into an Unfit state during the Mission. Pilots who are Unfit may not be assigned to a Mission.

Each Target card indicates the maximum number of Aircraft which can be sent on the Mission. You may choose to assign fewer Aircraft on a Mission, but you may not have more than the stated number.

Ground Control Intercept / Airborne Early Warning

You may assign one GCI Crew or one AEW Aircraft to the Mission, but not both. On some Campaign Sheets, there may be Target Mission Zones in which the GCI Crews will be unavailable, indicated as "No GCI". GCI Crew and AEW Aircraft do not count against your Target Aircraft limit.

Support Aircraft

There are several types of mission-specific Support Aircraft which may be assigned to a Mission, which provide attacking or protective effects for the other Aircraft on the Mission. Support Aircraft do not count toward your Target Aircraft limit.

Each Support Aircraft can only be assigned to one Mission per Day. You can assign more than one of the same type of Support Aircraft to a Mission, and any effects or bonuses from multiple instances of the same Aircraft type in the Mission are cumulative.

Squadron Assets

You may purchase Squadron Assets by paying the number of SO points indicated on the card, and allocate them to the Mission immediately. Each Squadron Asset has two Skill Levels, Average and Veteran. Choose the Skill Level of the Squadron Asset when you purchase them.

A Squadron Asset purchased for the current Mission cannot be purchased for another Mission on the same Day. Squadron Assets do not count toward your Squadron selection quota at the start of the campaign, and do not count toward your Target Aircraft limit for a Mission. Unused Squadron Assets do not carry over to the next Mission. They do not have counters that enter play on the Tactical Display.

Once your Squadron Assets have been purchased, record the number of SO points you spent on the Player Log.

Arm Aircraft

For each of the Aircraft which have been assigned, allocate Weapon counters to arm them for the Mission. The type of Weapons you choose will depend on the Target you are attacking, the Sites and Bandits you are expecting to face, as well as the combat role you expect each Aircraft to perform on the Mission. The number and types of Weapon counters your aircraft can carry is limited in several ways:

Weight Points (WP) per Aircraft,
the Weapon list shown on the Aircraft card,
the Standard Weapons and Special Weapons available on the Campaign Sheet, and
any SO points you may wish to spend on Special Weapons.

It is also helpful to look at the Sites and their Angles of Attack on the Tactical Display to determine which Weapons to use, and think ahead to how you will set up the Aircraft counters on the Tactical Display. Once your Aircraft are armed, record the number of SO points you spent on Special Weapons on the Player Log.

Situational Awareness

Place Situational Awareness (SA) counters on the Aircraft and GCI Crew cards that have Situational Awareness points.

Select Flight Leader

Select the highest Skill Level Pilot on the Mission to be Flight Leader. If more than one Pilot has the same highest Skill Level, select one of them to be the Flight Leader. Place the Flight Leader counter on that Aircraft card.

You are now ready to commence the Mission!

8. Target-Bound Phase

This phase represents the series of events from when your Aircraft take off until they reach the Target's vicinity.

Draw a Target-Bound Event Card

Draw an Event card and resolve the Event in the top section. Unless stated otherwise, apply all Event effects immediately including any gain or loss of SO, XP, Stress or Pilots.

Aborting a Mission

After the Target-Bound Event is resolved, you may decide to Abort some or all of the Aircraft on the Mission.

Aircraft that Abort the Mission do not gain XP but they will incur Mission Stress, based on the Target's Location in the Mission Zone on the Campaign map. If you choose to Abort all your Aircraft and end the Mission, proceed directly to the Mission Debriefing Phase.

Aircraft that do not Abort will continue with the remainder of the Mission.

Place Aircraft on the Tactical Display

Place each of your Aircraft counters in one of the Stand-Off Areas on the Tactical Display, selecting also the initial Altitude of each Aircraft (Low or High). You may place any Aircraft in any Stand-Off Area, at any Altitude.

Determine and Place Bandits

The Target card shows the amount of enemy fighter cover over the Target. The exact quantity and type of fighters present is not known until you commence the Mission.

On each Target card is a number specifying the number of Bandits in each Approach Area (App) and another number noting the number of Sites in the Center Area (Cen).

Randomly draw the stipulated number of Air Defense counters from the Site/Bandit cup for each Area. Place the counters, with their Bandit side facing up, in the respective Approach Areas and Center Area on the Tactical Display.

Example: For Target #16 "Major Bridge", draw 1 Bandit counter for each Approach Area, and 2 Bandit counters for the Center Area.

If a counter reads "No Bandit", remove it from the Tactical Display and return it to the cup. Do not redraw "No Bandit" counters. The counters remaining on the Tactical Display represent the enemy Bandits defending the Target.

Make Intel Air Defense Adjustments

Refer to the Intel track to determine if there are any Site and Bandit counters to be added to or removed from the Tactical Display. Site and Bandits counters which are added to the Tactical Display are placed randomly in either of the four Approach Areas or the Centre Area. Roll a die to determine the placement of each counter:

Roll	Counter Placement
1-2	East Approach Area
3-4	South Approach Area
5-6	West Approach Area
7-8	North Approach Area
9-10	Center Area

When removing a Site or Hostile counter from the Tactical Display from an Intel adjustment, you can choose which Site or Hostile counter to be removed. However, Objective counters cannot be removed in this way - they have to be Destroyed by Aircraft Attacks.

Example: The space on the Intel track notes "+1 Bandit and Site". You draw one additional Bandit counter and one additional Site counter. The Bandit counter states "No Bandit", so you place it back in the cup. You roll an 8 to determine where the Site counter is placed, and place it in the North Approach Area. As this Site has a Range of 1, you also draw an Angle of Attack counter for this Site.

Draw an Over-Target Event Card

Draw an Event card and resolve the Event in the middle section. Unless stated otherwise, apply all Event effects immediately including any gain or loss of SO, XP, Stress or Pilots.

Use Extended Range (ER) Weapons

Aircraft equipped with Extended Range (ER) Weapons may use some or all of them during this step to Attack enemy Bandits and Sites, including Objective Bandits and Sites. Weapons with a Range of 5 are considered ER Weapons.

Declare all ER Weapons to be launched as well as the target of each Weapon, before rolling to resolve the Attacks. For each declared ER Attack, roll two dice and use the lower of the two rolls. Apply Air-to-Air, Air-to-Ground and Skill modifiers to these Attacks as normal.

During this step, ER Weapon Attacks ignore Range limitations, and Aircraft carrying Air-to-Ground counters do not suffer any Weight Point modifier penalty. Air-to-Ground ER Weapons ignore Angle of Attack counter limitations, as they are equipped with inertial waypoint guidance systems and have sufficient range to fly around obstacles.

Enemy Bombers are screened by Bandits against ER Weapons. If you are Attacking enemy Bombers, your ER Weapons may only be targeted against a Bomber when each Bandit in the same Area as the Bomber has also been targeted by at least one ER Weapon.

Example: Sable 501 and Sable 502 are a pair of Su-27s carrying 4 R-27E missiles each. There are 6 Bandits on the Tactical Display: two F-15s and four F-4s. Sable 501 declares 2 R-27E missiles against one F-15 and 2 R-27E missiles against the other F-15, while Sable 502 declares one R-27E missile each against the four F-4s, for a total of 8 missile Attacks. You roll 2 dice for each missile Attack, taking the lower of the two rolls.

Example: Sable 503 is an Su-27 carrying 4 R-27E missiles. There are 1 Bandit and 2 Bombers on the Tactical Display: an F-16 and two F-111s. Sable 503 cannot attack the F-111s as they are Bombers, unless the F-16 has also been targeted. Therefore, Sable 503 declares 2 R-27E missiles against the F-16, and one R-27E missile each against the two F-111s, for a total of 4 missile Attacks. You roll 2 dice for each missile Attack, taking the lower of the two rolls.

Place Turn Counter

Place the Turn Counter in the "Turn 1" box on the Tactical Display.

9. Over-Target Phase

Sequence of Actions

This phase depicts the Mission Aircraft arriving in the vicinity of the Target, and consists of combat and movement as they press their Attacks against enemy Sites and Bandits on the Tactical Display.

The Over-Target Phase consists of five identical Turns. At the end of the Advance Turn Counter step in Turn #5, the Over-Target Phase ends, and play proceeds to the Home-Bound Phase.

Use the Turn counter on the Tactical Display to keep track of the current Turn. The steps in this Phase are:

Fast Aircraft Attack - Any of your Aircraft which are Fast may perform their Attacks.
Sites and Bandits Attack - Hostile Sites and Bandits perform their Attacks.
Slow Aircraft Attack - Any of your Aircraft which are Slow may perform their Attacks.
Aircraft Move and Adjust Altitude - Move any of your Aircraft on the Tactical Display, or change their Altitude, or both.
Bandits Move - Resolve movement for Bandits in response to your actions.
Resolve Tactical Nuclear Weapon – Resolve Tactical Nuclear weapon effects, if one was deployed during the Attack step.
Advance Turn Counter - Advance the Turn counter and repeat the above steps, unless five Turns have been completed.

Situational Awareness

Some Pilots have Situational Awareness (SA) counters. These counters allow your Pilots to make multiple Attacks in a single Turn.

Expending a Situational Awareness counter allows a Pilot to make an Attack in their normal Fast or Slow Aircraft Attack step, in addition to making a second Attack in the other Aircraft Attack step, for that Turn only.

A Slow Pilot can expend one of their Situational Awareness counters in the Fast Aircraft Attack step to perform an Attack in the Fast Aircraft Attack step. The Pilot can make a second Attack during the Slow Aircraft Attack step in the same Turn.

A Fast Pilot can expend one of their Situational Awareness counters during the Slow Aircraft Attack step to perform an Attack during the Slow Aircraft Attack step of the Turn, even if they have already performed an Attack during the Fast Aircraft Attack step of the Turn.

Pilots can only expend their own Situational Awareness counters to give themselves extra Attacks. With the exception of the Flight Leader, Pilots cannot use Situational Awareness counters to benefit other Pilots.

Any unused Situational Awareness counters are removed at the end of each Mission.

Flight Leader Situational Awareness

The Flight Leader can expend a Situational Awareness counter to either gain an extra Attack for themselves, or give the counter to another Aircraft on the Mission. They may give multiple Situational Awareness counters to different Aircraft in the same Turn. They do not have to be in the same Area as the other Aircraft.

GCI Crews and AEW Aircraft Situational Awareness

GCI Crews and AEW Aircraft at higher Skill Levels also have Situational Awareness counters which can be given to Pilots flying the Mission. They may give Situational Awareness counters to different Pilots in the same Turn. Unused Situational Awareness counters do not carry over to other Missions.

Fast Aircraft Attack

Fast Aircraft perform their Attacks before other counters on the Tactical Display. To perform an Attack, for each Aircraft declare one Site, Bandit or Target to be attacked, as well as the Weapons to be used.

Declare and resolve each Attack for one Aircraft at a time, before declaring and resolving the next Attack for another Aircraft, in any order. The detailed steps for performing Attacks are covered in Chapter 10 - Combat.

Fast Aircraft may not defer their Attacks in this step to be performed in the later Slow Aircraft Attack step.

Sites and Bandits Attack

After the Fast Aircraft Attack step, all the remaining Sites and Bandits will perform their Attacks against your Aircraft.

Each Site and Bandit makes its Attack individually. A Site or Bandit may only Attack one Aircraft each Turn. In any order, resolve each Site or Bandit Attack one at a time, before resolving the next Attack for another Site or Bandit.

A Site or Bandit automatically targets the closest Aircraft. If more than one Aircraft is at equal closest Range, randomly determine which one will be Attacked. The detailed steps for Site and Bandit Attacks are covered in Chapter 10 - Combat.

Slow Aircraft Attack

Slow Aircraft perform their Attacks after the Sites and Bandits have completed their Attacks. Their Attacks are performed in the same way as Fast Aircraft Attacks.

Fast Aircraft which did not Attack in the previous Fast Aircraft Attack step cannot make Attacks in this step, unless the Pilot spends Situation Awareness to allow acting in both Fast and Slow steps.

During the Sites and Bandits Attack step, a Pilot's Speed may drop from Fast to Slow as a result of becoming Shaken or Unfit. A Fast Pilot which becomes Slow in this manner does not act again in the Slow step, unless the Pilot spends Situation Awareness to allow acting in both Fast and Slow steps.

Aircraft Movement

After all the Attacks have been resolved, you can Move any of your Aircraft from their current Area into an adjacent Area. An Aircraft can also remain in the same Area without Moving.

You may also change the Altitude of your Aircraft in this step. There are two Altitude Levels in the game, High and Low, which affect the Weapons that can be used by an Aircraft, as well as which Sites can Attack Aircraft. Bandits and their Attacks are not affected by Altitude.

Example: Onyx 111 is a MiG-29 Fulcrum at High Altitude in the East Approach Area. It can move to any of the following Areas: the Center Area, the North or South Approach Areas, or any of the 3 Eastern Pre-Approach Areas, or it can remain in the same Area. Also, Onyx 111 can choose to go to Low Altitude, or remain at High Altitude.

Ending the Over-Target Phase Early

You may choose to end the Over-Target Phase of the Mission early, during the Aircraft Movement step of any Turn. If you choose to do so, remove all your Aircraft from the Tactical Display.

If the Over-Target Phase is ended early, all the Aircraft must be removed from play. Some Aircraft cannot be removed from play in this step, while other Aircraft are left on the Tactical Display.

Example: In Turn #3 of the Over-Target Phase, the Aircraft have already successfully Destroyed the Target. The Over-Target Phase can be ended early during the Aircraft Movement step. To do this, remove all the Aircraft counters from the Tactical Display, and proceed to the Home-Bound Phase.

Example: At the end of Turn #5, the Aircraft have not inflicted enough Hits on the Target to Destroy it. However, Turn #5 is the end of the Over-Target Phase, so the Aircraft counters are removed from the Tactical Display, and play proceeds to the Home-Bound Phase.

Bandit Movement

Bandits Move after the Aircraft Movement step. Each Bandit may Move up to one Area, but it is not required to Move. Bandits do not have an Altitude. To determine how a Bandit moves:

If there are one or more Aircraft within the Bandit's Attack Range, the Bandit does not Move.
If there are no Aircraft within the Bandit's Attack Range, Move the Bandit one Area closer to the nearest Aircraft in the shortest distance.
If there are two or more Aircraft in different Areas at the equal closest Range, randomly determine which Area the Bandit moves toward.

Example: During the Bandit Movement step, an F-5 Bandit is in the Center Area and Sable 501 is in the South Pre-Approach Area. The F-5 moves into the South Approach Area.

Example: An F-104G Bandit is in the Center Area. Sable 501 is in the South Pre-Approach Area and Firebird 246 is in the North Pre-Approach Area. As Sable 501 and Firebird 246 are at the same Range from the Center Area, the Movement of the Bandit is randomly determined.

Example: A Mirage III Bandit is in the Center Area. Titan 331 is in the North Approach Area. The Mirage III does not Move, as it has an Attack Range of 1.

Resolve Tactical Nuclear Weapon

If your Campaign has authorized the use of Tactical Nuclear weapons and you have deployed one during the previous Attack steps this Turn, resolve the effects of the Tactical Nuclear weapon. The detailed steps for resolving a Tactical Nuclear detonation is covered on page 58.

Advance Turn Counter

Move the Turn Counter to the next step, unless it is at Turn #5. When five Turns have been completed, end the Over-Target Phase and proceed to the Home-Bound Phase.

10. Combat

These are the rules for resolving Air-to-Air, Air-to-Ground and Site and Bandit Attacks.

Aircraft Attack Conditions

An Aircraft may Attack an enemy unit (Site, Bandit or Target) if all of the following conditions are met:

The Weapon is in Range of the enemy unit.
- The Aircraft must be in the same Area as the enemy unit (Range 0) for a Cannon Attack.
The Weapon is at the correct Altitude to launch the selected Weapon.
- The Altitude for the Weapon's use is indicated on the counter (H or L).
- The Aircraft must be at Low Altitude to make a Cannon Attack against a Site or Ground Target.
The Weapon is the correct type for the enemy unit.
- An Air-to-Air Weapon can only Attack Bandits (including Bombers).
- An Air-to-Ground Weapon can only Attack Sites and Ground Targets.
- Some Air-to-Ground Weapons are restricted to the types of Targets they may Attack, e.g. Radar, Naval, Fixed, etc.
- Cannons can be used against Air and Ground enemy units at Range 0.
If Attacking a Site with an Angle of Attack counter, the Aircraft is in the Red Zone of the Site's Angle of Attack.

When declaring the Attack, the Aircraft may use its Cannon (if it carries one) or any combination of Weapon counters against the enemy unit. An Aircraft cannot use its Cannon and Weapon counters in the same Attack.

Example: Obsidian 146 is a MiG-29 Fulcrum at High Altitude carrying 2 R-60 and 2 R-73 missiles. There is an F-15 Bandit which is 1 Area away. Obsidian 146 can declare an Attack against the F-15 using one or more R-60 and R-73 missiles in any combination, up to a maximum of all four missiles. However, it cannot declare a Cannon Attack as the F-15 is out of Range.

Example: Talisman 403 is an Su-24 at Low Altitude carrying 4 FAB-250 and 2 KAB-500L bombs. There is a Patriot Site in the same Area, and a HAWK Site 1 Area away. Talisman 403 can declare an Attack against the Patriot using up to four FAB-250 bombs or with its Cannon. It cannot use its KAB-500L bombs as it is not at High Altitude. It cannot attack the HAWK Site as none of its Weapons or the Cannon has a Range of 1.

Resolve the Attacks one at a time for each Aircraft. You can choose to make your Attacks in any order. Declare and resolve the Attacks for one Aircraft before declaring and resolving an Attack for the next Aircraft.

Sites and Bandits are Destroyed if they suffer at least 1 Hit.

When Attacking a Target card, the amount of Damage required to Destroy a Target is stated on the Target card.

Example: Target #16 "Major Bridge" requires 4 Hits to be Destroyed.

Range to Enemy Unit

The Range from the Aircraft to its target is calculated by counting the number of Areas from the Aircraft counter to the enemy counter through the shortest path. An enemy counter in the same Area as the Aircraft is considered to be Range 0. The Aircraft's Altitude does not affect Range.

Resolving Air-to-Air Attacks

When you Attack a Bandit with Air-to-Air Weapons, roll a die for each Weapon used and remove the Weapon counter from the Aircraft. Compare the die roll to the Attack number for the Weapon, after applying any modifiers to the roll.

When you Attack a Bandit with a Cannon, roll a die for the Cannon Attack. Compare the die roll to the Attack number for the Cannon, after including any modifiers to the roll.

If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the Attack number, a Hit is scored on the Bandit. A Bandit is Destroyed when it suffers 1 Hit.

If more than one Weapon has been declared against a Bandit in the same Attack and the Bandit is Destroyed before the remaining Weapons can be used, those Weapons are also considered expended and removed from the attacking Aircraft.

Air-to-Air Attack Modifiers

When making an Air-to-Air Attack roll, include all applicable modifiers:

Apply the Pilot's Air-to-Air modifier
Apply the Bandit's defense modifier
Apply a modifier from a Pilot Skill
Apply a modifier from the Weapon bonus
Apply a modifier from an Event or a Zampolit effect

Example: Onyx 102 begins a Mission with 0 Stress, so he is Okay. He also has the Fighter Pilot Skill. During the Over-Target Phase of the Mission, he Attacks a Tornado F.3 Bandit in an adjacent Area. He is Fast and thus Attacks the Tornado before the Bandits can Attack. For his Attack roll, he gets the following modifiers: +2 for his Air-to-Air rating, +1 for the Tornado's defense modifier, and +1 from the Fighter Pilot Skill, for a total of +4. He fires an R-27, expending the Weapon counter, which has a Hit rating of 7. He will hit the Tornado if he rolls at least a 3 or better.

In the following Mission, Onyx 102 has accrued 7 Stress, putting him into Shaken. As he is now Slow, Sites and Bandits make their Attacks before he can Attack. After surviving their onslaught, he takes his frustrations out and Attacks an F-4 Phantom with his Cannon, which has a Hit rating of 10. His Attack modifiers are: +0 for his Air-to-Air rating, +1 for the Phantom's defense modifier, and +1 from the Fighter Pilot Skill for a total of +2. He will shoot the Phantom down on a roll of 8 or better.

Weight Point Penalty

When an Aircraft is loaded with Air-to-Ground Weapon counters, its maneuverability is reduced and suffers a penalty to some of its Air-to-Air Attacks.

When Attacking or Suppressing a Bandit at Range 0 whilst loaded with Air-to-Ground Weapon counters, the Aircraft suffers the following Air-to-Air penalty modifiers:

AtG Weight Points Carried	AtA Penalty at Range 0
2 or less	-0 AtA
3	-1 AtA
4	-2 AtA
5 or more	-3 AtA

These penalties do not apply for Attacks or Suppressions made at Range 1 or greater. Weight Points from ECM Pods do not count against this penalty.

Air Combat Results

If a Hit is scored, the targeted Bandit is Destroyed and removed from the Tactical Display. Place the Bandit counter back in the cup. Remove each Weapon counter from the Aircraft which was declared for the Attack, even if they were not used. Once declared, they are considered as expended.

Resolving Air-to-Ground Attacks

When you attack a Site or Target with Air-to-Ground Weapons, roll a die for each Weapon launched, and remove the Weapon counter from the Aircraft. Compare the die roll to the Attack numbers for the Weapon, after applying any modifiers to the roll.

When you attack a Site or Target with a Cannon, roll a die for the Attack. Compare the die roll to the Attack numbers for the Weapon, after including any modifiers to the roll.

If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the Attack number, a Hit is scored on the Site or Target. A Site is Destroyed when it suffers at least 1 Hit. Place the Destroyed Site counter back in the cup. Some Air-to-Ground Weapons can inflict one or more Hits, depending on the success of the Attack roll.

If more than one Weapon has been declared against a Site or Target in the same Attack and the Site or Target is Destroyed before the remaining Weapons can be used, those Weapons are also considered expended and removed from the Aircraft.

Air-to-Ground Attack Modifiers

When making an Air-to-Ground Attack roll, include all applicable modifiers to the roll:

Apply the Pilot's Air-to-Ground modifier
Apply the Site's defense modifier
Apply a modifier from a Pilot Skill
Apply a modifier from the Weapon bonus
Apply a modifier from an Event or a Zampolit effect

Air-to-Ground Weapon Attack Numbers

Some Weapon counters have multiple Attack numbers, up to a maximum of four. These Weapons are capable of inflicting more than 1 Hit with a single Attack. The damage scored is calculated as:

If the modified die roll is less than the first number, the Attack has missed.
If the modified die roll is equal to the first number but less than the second number, one Hit is scored.
If the modified die roll is equal to the second number but less than the third number, two Hits are scored.
If the modified die roll is equal to the third number but less than the fourth number, three Hits are scored.
If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the fourth number, four Hits are scored.

Example: Garnet 445 is a Su-17M Fitter-C. It drops a KAB-500L laser-guided Weapon on a Target. If the Attack roll is 1-2, the bomb misses. If the roll is 3-4, it scores 1 Hit. If the roll is 5-6, it scores 2 Hits. If the roll is 7-8, it scores 3 Hits. If the roll is 9 or greater, it scores 4 Hits.

Example: Garnet 445 drops a FAB-250 on the Target and rolls a die. The roll is a 10. The Target suffers 2 Damage. A 2-Hit Damage counter is placed on the Target card.

Recording Target Damage

Use the Target Damage counters to record the Hits inflicted on the Target.

A Target is Destroyed if it accrues a number of Hits equal to or greater than the Hit number on the Target card. You do not have to Destroy the Sites and Bandits in the Centre Area to Destroy the Target, unless they are Objective Sites and Objective Bandits.

Some Targets do not have a Hits rating. These Targets cannot be Attacked directly with Air-to-Ground Weapons, and are not modified by the Infra Hit modifiers. Instead, they have Objective counters which have to be Destroyed in order to complete the Mission.

Example: Target #37 "Combat Air Patrol" has no Hits. You will need to Destroy 3 Strategic Bombers in order to complete the Mission successfully. The exact type of Strategic Bombers to be attacked will be indicated on the Campaign Sheet.

Carry Over Damage

Hits inflicted from an Attack on a Target does not carry over to another Target or other Sites. Any extra Hits inflicted on a Site do not carry over to another Site or onto the Target.

Site and Bandit Attacks

A Site may Attack an Aircraft if all of the following conditions are met:

The Aircraft is in Range of the Site.
The Aircraft is at an Altitude that the Site is capable of Attacking.
- The Altitude for the Site's Attack is indicated on the counter (H, L).
The Aircraft is in the Red Zone of the Site's Angle of Attack in an Approach or Pre-Approach Area, for Sites with Angle of Attack counters.

Sites Attacking Aircraft in a Stand-Off Area also have the following conditions:

Aircraft at Low Altitude in a Stand-Off Area cannot be Attacked by Sites with a Range 1+.
Aircraft at High Altitude in a Stand-Off Area can be Attacked by a Site with the requisite Range and Altitude, regardless of Angle of Attack limitations.

A Bandit may Attack an Aircraft if the Aircraft is within Range. Bandit Attacks are not affected by Altitude.

A Site or Bandit will Attack the closest Aircraft based on the above conditions. If there is more than one Aircraft within equal closest Range, randomly decide which Aircraft will be Attacked.

Example: Firebird 242 is a MiG-27 Flogger at Low Altitude with a Bofors L70 Site in the same Area, and a Nike Hercules Site in an adjacent Area, and a Hawk Site 2 Areas away. The Flogger is in the Red Zone of the Angle of Attack for all the Sites, which means it can Attack the Sites as well as be Attacked. The Bofors and Hawk are both within the Range and Altitude parameters, so they can Attack Firebird 242. The Nike Hercules is within Range, but not within Altitude (as it can only Attack Aircraft at High Altitude), so it cannot Attack the Flogger.

Aircraft Reaction to Attacks

When the Site or Bandit has determined which Aircraft it is Attacking, the Aircraft being targeted may react to the Attack in up to three ways:

Decoy - The targeted Aircraft may first attempt to Decoy the Attack with ECM (using Internal ECM or an ECM pod).
Suppress - If the ECM decoy attempt fails or the Aircraft has no ECM capability, you may choose to Suppress the Attacking Site or Bandit.
Evade - If the Suppression attempt fails or you choose not to Suppress, you may attempt to have the targeted Aircraft go Evasive.

Using Electronic Countermeasures (ECM)

When an Aircraft with ECM capability (either with Internal ECM or an ECM Pod) is Attacked by a Site or Bandit, roll a die for the Decoy attempt using ECM. If the roll matches the ECM value or higher, the Attack is canceled. An ECM Pod always has an ECM value of 6.

An Aircraft without ECM capability cannot make a Decoy roll, even if it receives an ECM bonus (for example, from a GCI card.)

If an Aircraft has both Internal ECM and is carrying an ECM Pod, use the better effect of the two, and make one Decoy attempt.

Example: Agon 204 is a MiG-23ML Flogger-G which has been targeted by a Roland Site. The MiG-23ML has an Internal ECM value of 8. Agon 204 chooses to attempt to Decoy the attack and rolls a 4. Agon 204's Internal ECM has failed to Decoy the attack.

Making a Suppression Attack

An Aircraft may attempt to perform one Suppression Attack on the Site or Bandit making the Attack. A Suppression Attack is similar to a normal Attack, except that a successful Suppression Attack roll does not inflict a Hit, but rather cancels out the Site or Bandit's Attack.

Most Air-to-Ground Weapon counters can be expended to perform a Suppression. However, the RN-28 and RN-40 Weapons, which are tactical nuclear devices, cannot be used to Suppress Attacks.

All the conditions for performing an Attack must be met for the Suppressing Aircraft to perform a Suppression Attack, and all Attack roll modifiers are applied as normal. If the modified Attack roll is successful, the Site or Bandit's Attack is canceled.

Only one attempt at Suppression can be made for each Site or Bandit's Attack. If the first attempt at Suppression fails, the same or another Aircraft cannot make a second Suppression attempt. An Aircraft, however, can attempt to Suppress other Site and Bandit Attacks, as long as all the conditions for making an Attack are present.

Example: Agon 204 has been targeted by a Roland Site and failed to decoy it with ECM. Agon 204 attempts to Suppress the Site and drops an FAB-250, successfully hitting the Roland. Roland's Attack against Agon 204 is canceled, but the Site is not destroyed.

Example: Onyx 107 has been targeted by an F-15. Onyx 107 has no Internal ECM and is not carrying any ECM Pods, so its first option is to attempt a Suppress. Onyx 107's wingman, Onyx 109, fires an R-73 at the F-15, and makes a successful Attack roll. The F-15's Attack is canceled, but it is not Destroyed and Onyx 109 does not get the credit for a kill.

Going Evasive

The Aircraft which is the Target of an Attack may choose to go Evasive to reduce its chances of being Hit. When an Aircraft goes Evasive, it incurs 1 Stress.

When a Site or Bandit makes its Attack roll against an Aircraft which is attempting to Evade, roll 2 dice for the Attack roll and use the lower result.

Example: Brazier 303 is a MiG-21bis Fishbed-N targeted by a Hawk Site. The MiG-21 has no ECM capability and chooses to go Evasive. Brazier 303 accrues 1 Stress point. When resolving the Site's Attack, two dice are rolled. The rolls are an 8 and a 3, taking the lower number as the effective result, which is a miss. Brazier 303 successfully Evades the Hawk's Attack.

Going Evasive can be used against Site and Bandit Attacks while an Aircraft is in the Over-Target Phase, as well as when reacting to an Event card where weapon counters can be expended to reduce the number of Event Attacks.

Example: In the Target-Bound Phase, the Event card "Smoke in the Air!" is drawn, and Firebird 245 is randomly targeted by the Event's Attack. Firebird 245 decides to go Evasive, accruing 1 Stress point. Rolling two dice for the Attack roll, the results are 5 and 10. Taking the lower number, Firebird 245 suffers an additional 1 Stress and avoids getting Damaged by the Event Attack.

Site and Bandit Attack Resolution

Site and Bandit counters have three Attack numbers, and are capable of inflicting increasing amounts of Stress and Damage depending on the result of the Attack roll. Roll a die to resolve the outcome of the Attack. Include all applicable modifiers:

Apply a modifier from an Event card
Apply a modifier from the Pilot's Skill
Apply a modifier from Support Aircraft and Squadron Assets

The damage inflicted from a Site and Bandit Attack is resolved as:

Missed - If the modified die roll is less than the first number, the Attack has missed and there is no effect to the Aircraft.
Stressed - If the modified die roll is equal to the first number but less than the second number, immediately add 1 Stress to the Pilot.
Damaged - If the modified die roll is equal to the second number but less than the third number, the Aircraft is Damaged. Damaged Aircraft can no longer perform Attacks or Suppressions, but may Evade further Attacks. Remove all Weapon, ECM Pod and Situational Awareness counters from the Aircraft, and immediately add 2 Stress to the Pilot. If the Aircraft has a Cannon or Internal ECM, those systems are no longer operable.

If an Aircraft is Damaged a second time during a Mission, it is Destroyed.

Destroyed - If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the third number, the Aircraft is Destroyed. Remove the Destroyed Aircraft counter from the Mission. Conduct a Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) check for each Destroyed Aircraft during the Home-Bound phase.

Example: Garnet 446 has been targeted by an F-4 Bandit (with Attack values 3/6/9). Garnet 446 does not Suppress or Evade. The F-4 makes an Attack roll. If the result is 2 or lower, the Attack misses and Garnet 446 suffers no effect. If the result is 3 to 5, Garnet 446 suffers 1 Stress. If the result is 6 to 8, Garnet 446 is Damaged, and can no longer perform any Attacks or Suppressions. If the result is 9 or higher, Garnet 446 is Destroyed, and a CSAR roll will be made in the Home-Bound phase to see if the Pilot is rescued safely.

Event-Initiated Attacks

Some Event cards will perform Attacks against the Aircraft on the Mission. On these cards, the Event Attack will begin with the specific phrase: "Roll an Attack…"

Some Event Attacks may be canceled by simply expending Air-to-Ground Weapon counters. If this is allowable, it will be stated on the card. Otherwise, all the Attacks stated on the Event must be resolved.

An Aircraft suffering an Attack from an Event may attempt to use ECM (with Internal ECM or an ECM Pod) to Decoy the Attack, as well as attempt to Evade the Attack. Decoying and Evasion works in the same way as for Site and Bandit Attacks.

The sequence for resolving Event Attacks is:

When an Event Card with an Attack effect is drawn, randomly decide which Aircraft will suffer the Attack(s). An Aircraft may be randomly selected more than once.
If the Aircraft has ECM capability (Internal ECM or an ECM Pod), you may attempt to Decoy the Attack and cancel it. If an Aircraft has both Internal ECM and an ECM Pod, use the better effect of the two, and make one Decoy attempt.
If the attempt to Decoy is unsuccessful, Air-to-Ground Weapon counters may be expended to cancel the Attack. Any Aircraft may expend one or more Air-to-Ground Weapon counters, including "R" notated (Radar) Weapons, to cancel an Attack on itself or another Aircraft. The exceptions are the RN-28 and RN-40 Weapons, which are tactical nuclear devices, and cannot be expended to Suppress or cancel an Attack.
If you do not have Air-to-Ground Weapon counters or choose not to expend them, the Aircraft may attempt to Evade the Attack. Add 1 Stress to the Pilot. Roll 2 dice for the Attack roll and use the lower result to determine the outcome of the Attack.

Example: The Event card "Smoke in the Air!" is drawn in the Home-Bound Phase, which has two Event Attacks against the Aircraft on the Mission. A MiG-29 Fulcrum-C (Obsidian 144) and a MiG-21bis Fishbed-N (Brazier 305) are randomly determined as the targets of the Attack. Obsidian 144 has Internal ECM and attempts to Decoy the Attack. The Decoy attempt fails, so it remains under Attack. Brazier 305 does not have any ECM capability, thus it cannot attempt to Decoy. Brazier 305 expends one R-3S Air-to-Air missile to cancel the Attack on the Fulcrum-C, which is a more valuable Aircraft. However, this means that Brazier 305 will suffer the Attack on itself. Brazier 305 decides not to go Evasive and rolls one die. The result is 2 and the Fishbed-N suffers 1 Stress.

Resolve Tactical Nuclear Weapon

Tactical Nuclear Weapons have a radioactive symbol on the counter. There are two Tactical Nuclear Weapons available to Soviet and Warsaw Pact air forces, the RN-28 and RN-40, and in Expansion 7, the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force has the KB-1.

When a Tactical Nuclear Weapon is deployed in an Attack during the Fast Pilots Attack or Slow Pilots Attack step, the outcome is resolved after the Bandits Move step. This is to simulate the parachute-delayed descent, so as to give the dropping aircraft time to escape the ensuing blast.

A Tactical Nuclear Weapon may only be deployed against a Target in the Center Area, and cannot be used against individual Sites or Bandits. It can be used against one or more Air Objective Targets. It cannot be used to perform a Suppression, or expended to avoid an Event Attack.

Rolling an Attack for a Tactical Nuclear Weapon is similar to other Air-to-Ground weapons with a single To Hit number. No other modifiers, including the Pilot's AtG or Skills, are applied to this die roll.

If the die roll is less than the To Hit number, the Weapon has failed to detonate and there is no effect.
If the die roll is equal to or greater than the To Hit number, the Tactical Nuclear Weapon has detonated successfully.

If a Tactical Nuclear Weapon successfully detonates, the Target as well as all the Sites, Bandits (including Bombers and Air Objectives) and friendly Aircraft in the Centre Area are Destroyed, and are removed from the Tactical Display. Any XP gained from destroying these counters is accrued by the Aircraft which deployed the weapon.

If a Target has the Overkill Trait, the conditions for meeting Overkill bonus are treated as completed, and the Overkill bonus is gained.

Nuclear Detonation After Effects

In the next Turn following a successful Tactical Nuclear Weapon detonation, there is a residual effect from the nuclear weapon's EMP (electromagnetic pulse) blast.

In the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas, all Sites, Bandits and Aircraft can only make Attacks at Range 0. In addition, any Sites and Weapons with the "R" notation in these Areas cannot make any Attacks in that same Turn.

Example: An RN-40 weapon was deployed in Turn #3. At the end of Turn #3, an Attack roll is made with the result 8, meaning that it has successfully detonated. The Target as well as all the Sites, Bandits, Bombers and Aircraft in the Center Area are Destroyed.

In Turn #4, all Sites, Bandits and Aircraft in the Approach and Pre-Approach Areas can only perform Attacks within their respective Areas, which represent Cannons as well as optical and infra-red guided weapons. Any Sites and Weapons using active radar guidance (with the "R" notation) also cannot make Attacks in Turn #4.

11. Radio-Electronic Combat

Radio-Electronic Combat (REC) capability is provided by specially-configured Support Aircraft to supplement Soviet aircraft regiments. In Fulcrum Leader, these are implemented as different types of REC Techniques with specific effects, and represented by REC counters.

Radio-Electronic Combat (REC) Techniques

There are four REC Techniques introduced in the core game. REC Techniques cost Stress to activate, and they provide a benefit to your Pilots by degrading the enemy's attacking capability.

REC Techniques may be activated at the start of the Over-Target phase, or in response to an Event Attack. When activating a REC Technique, place the respective REC Technique counter onto the Support Aircraft card. The Stress cost of activating the Technique is listed on the card, which is immediately accrued to the Pilot.

For Over-Target phase Attacks, the Area of effect will be described in the REC Technique.
For Event Attacks, all the Aircraft on the Mission are covered by the REC Technique.

Once activated, the REC Technique lasts for the remainder of the Over-Target phase or until the Event is resolved, unless the Support Aircraft is shot down or the REC Technique is voluntarily turned off.

REC Aircraft can employ multiple different REC Techniques simultaneously, by paying the Stress cost associated with each REC Technique. The REC effects from a single aircraft are cumulative. In addition, the REC Techniques Sirena and Geran are cumulative between multiple Support Aircraft.

REC Techniques

Sirena ("Lilac") – Subtract 1 from all enemy die rolls that are targeting any Aircraft in the Support Aircraft's Area, including the Support Aircraft itself. These modifiers apply to Site and Bandit Attacks while Over-Target, and when reacting to an Event Attack where Weapon counters can be expended to reduce the number of Attacks.

Landysh ("Lily of the Valley") – Subtract 1 from all enemy die rolls that are targeting any Aircraft in the Support Aircraft's Area. Additionally, subtract 1 more (for a total of -2) from any enemy Attacks targeting the Support Aircraft itself. These modifiers apply to Site and Bandit Attacks while Over-Target, and when reacting to an Event Attack where Weapon counters can be expended to reduce the number of Attacks.

Buket ("Bouquet") – All Radar Sites have their Attack Range reduced by 1 when targeting any Aircraft in the Support Aircraft's Area, including the Support Aircraft itself.

Fasol ("Beans") – Hawk Sites have their Range reduced to 0 when targeting any Aircraft in the Support Aircraft's Area, including the Support Aircraft itself.

Example: Topaz 701 is escorting several Aircraft and wants to provide both Sirena and Buket REC Techniques to the strike group. Any Site targeting Aircraft in the same Area as Topaz 701 would suffer a -1 penalty to Attack rolls, in addition to all Radar sites targeting these Aircraft would have their Range reduced by 1.

Example: Topaz 701 and Topaz 702 are both escorting a strike group, with both providing Sirena REC Techniques, and Topaz 702 is also providing Fasol. Any Site targeting aircraft in the same area as Topaz 701 and Topaz 702 would suffer a cumulative -2 penalty to Attack rolls, in addition to all Hawk Sites would have their Range reduced to 0.

12. Home-Bound Phase

Draw a Home-Bound Event Card

Draw an Event card and resolve the Event in the bottom section. Unless stated otherwise, apply all Event effects immediately including any gain or loss of SO, XP, Stress or Pilots.

Resolve Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR)

For each Aircraft that was lost on the Mission, including Aircraft which were Destroyed in the Over-Target Phase, or by Target-Bound or Home-Bound Event effects, roll a die on the Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) table and adjust for any modifiers:

Roll	Result
9+	Quick Recovery - Return the Pilot to the Squadron. The Pilot suffers 3 Stress in addition to any Mission Stress suffered, and gains 1 XP for flying the Mission.
6-8	Recovered Under Fire - Return the Pilot to the Squadron. The Pilot suffers 5 Stress in addition to any Mission Stress suffered, and gains 1 XP for flying the Mission.
5-	Missing in Action - Treat the Pilot as Unfit for the rest of the Campaign until recovered by a "Combat Search and Rescue" Event card. Once recovered, the Pilot returns with 1 XP for flying the Mission, and resets to 3 Stress.

The modifiers for the CSAR roll include:

Add +1 for each Weight Point of Air-to-Ground Weapon counters expended by any Aircraft still flying the Mission. This modifier is only applicable for one CSAR roll.
Add +2 if the Aircraft was Destroyed during the Target-Bound Phase
Add +1 if the Aircraft was Destroyed during the Home-Bound Phase
Subtract the Weight Point penalty for the Target (shown on the Campaign Sheet map)

If a Commanding Officer or Zampolit becomes Missing in Action and is recovered at a later stage, they return to the squadron as normal Pilots. Their replacement CO and Zampolit Pilots continue in their respective roles.

Example: During the Mission, two Aircraft were Destroyed. Agon 204 was Destroyed in the Home-Bound Phase, and Garnet 441 was Destroyed during the Over-Target Phase. Firebird 245 remains unharmed and carries an FAB-250 Weapon counter.

Firebird 245 expends the FAB-250 Weapon for Agon 204's CSAR roll. The result is a 5, with additional modifiers +1 for the expended FAB-250, -1 for the Target's Weight Point penalty, and +1 because Agon 204 was Destroyed in the Home-Bound Phase, for a modified roll of 6. Agon 204 is successfully Recovered Under Fire - the Pilot gains 5 additional Stress and 1 XP, and is returned to the Squadron.

Firebird 245 does not have any more Air-to-Ground Weapon counters. Garnet 441 rolls for CSAR and gets a result of 3, with an additional modifier of -1 for the Target's Weight Point penalty for a modified roll of 2. Garnet 441 is unfortunately Missing in Action. The Pilot is treated as Unfit and removed from the Campaign, unless the Pilot can be recovered later by the "Combat Search and Rescue" Event card.

13. Mission Debriefing Phase

Update SO Points and Target Status

Record the SO points spent during the Mission, as well as the amount of remaining SO points under the Pilot information on the Player Log.

Record the final Target Status:

If the Target was Destroyed, place an "X" in the Target Status and record the number of Victory points (VPs) earned for the Target in Victory Points Earned.
If Target was Damaged, place a "D" in the Target Status and record 0 Victory Points.
If the Target was Undamaged, place a "U" in the Target Status and record 0 Victory Points.

Note Campaign Track Adjustments

If the Target was Destroyed, refer to the Target card to determine which Campaign Tracks (Loyalty, Intel, Infra, Ops) have been adjusted and by how many steps. The number stated on the Target card is the number of spaces to the right that the counter is moved.

Make a note of the required adjustments - these adjustments will be made in the Daily Summary Phase after all the Missions have been completed for the Day.

Destroyed Nuclear Targets

Some Targets have the Nuclear Trait. If a Nuclear Target was Destroyed, make a note to move the Ops Track 1 space to the right. If the Nuclear Target was not Destroyed, do not adjust the Ops Track.

Example: Target 31 "Naval Base" has Loyalty 1 and Infra 2. It was Destroyed in the Primary Mission. Target 2 "Mechanized Forces", with Intel 1 and Infra 1, was Destroyed in the Secondary Mission. You make a note to adjust Campaign Tracks the following number of spaces to the right: Loyalty 1, Intel 1, and Infra 3.

Resolve Target Status

If the Target was Destroyed during the Mission, set the Target card aside until the Campaign is over. A Destroyed Target will not reenter play in the current Campaign.

If the Target was not Destroyed, do not adjust any of the Campaign tracks, remove all Damage inflicted on the Target and shuffle the card back into the Target deck, unless it is an Improvement Target. If the Target card is drawn on a subsequent Day, it reenters play with its full undamaged stats, reflecting the repairs made by enemy forces.

Likewise, any Damage to Improvement Targets is also removed before the next Day begins, even though the Target card remains in play and is not reshuffled back into the Target deck.

If the Persistent Target Damage optional rule is being used, record the Damage inflicted on the Target before reshuffling the card back into the Target deck, unless it is an Improvement Target. If the Target card is drawn on a subsequent Day, it reenters play with the Damage previously inflicted. Improvement Targets also retain their Damage to the next Day.

Adding Mission Stress

After the Mission has been completed, each Pilot that participated in the Mission suffers Stress depending on the distance to the Target as well as the Target type. The amount of Stress suffered by each Pilot is based on the Target's location in the Mission Zone on the Campaign Map, as well as the Target Indicator (square, circle or diamond).

If the Target has the -1/+1/+2 Stress Trait, include these Stress modifiers in this step.

Example: Pilots who flew the Primary Mission against Target #10 suffer 2 Stress from the Mission Zone and 1 Stress from the Target Indicator, for a total of 3 Stress. Pilots who flew the Secondary Mission against Target #38 suffer 1 Stress from the Target Indicator.

14. Daily Summary Phase

These are the steps which conclude the Day's activities, once all the Mission(s) have been completed.

Pilot Stress Recovery

After each Mission's Stress points have been determined, reduce the Stress suffered by each Pilot by the Pilot's Cool rating.

Example: Onyx 103 starts the Day with 4 Stress (Okay). During the Mission, Onyx 103 suffers 1 Stress from a Bandit's Attack, and another 1 Stress while attempting an Evasion. The Mission Zone for the Day's Target adds 2 Stress. Onyx 103 has a Cool rating of 2, which reduces the Stress total by 2. Onyx 103 finishes the Day with 6 Stress (Shaken).

When a Pilot does not fly during a Day, the Pilot's Stress is decreased by an amount equal to the Pilot's Cool rating + 2.

Example: Onyx 103 has Cool 2 and starts the Day with 6 Stress (Shaken). Onyx 103 takes a day off to recover. At the end of the Day, Onyx 103 will be at 2 Stress (Okay) due to 2 Stress removed from Cool, and another 2 Stress removed for not flying that Day.

Komsomol Fizkultura

The Komsomol is the abbreviation for the Youth League and Fizkultura refers to the physical and sports culture which together were used to encourage recreational activity and self-motivation for all loyal Party members.

Once per Day after all the Missions have been completed, you may pay the cost of 6/9/12 SO to conduct a Fizkultura to remove 2 Stress in addition to each Pilot's Cool for every Pilot in your Squadron, including any Pilot and GCI Crew which did not participate in a Mission that Day.

Adjust Loyalty, Intel, Infra and Ops Campaign Tracks

If the Target was Destroyed, the Target card will indicate how the Strategic Tracks should be adjusted. From the Campaign Track Adjustments step in the previous phase, move the Loyalty, Intel, Infra, and Ops counters to the right along their respective tracks by the number of spaces noted.

A counter is never moved to cover the rightmost space on the track.

Campaign Evaluation

If this was the last Day of a Campaign, the Campaign evaluation is shown on the Campaign sheet based on the amount of Victory Points earned.

Example: If you were playing the Able Archer 1983 Campaign at Medium length (8 Days) and earned 30 VP, you have achieved a Great Campaign Victory outcome.

Damaged Aircraft

Remove any Damage counters from the Aircraft. Any Damaged Aircraft are considered to be repaired by the ground crew and are ready to fly the next Day. The main limitation on availability for the next Day's Mission is the Stress accumulated by the Pilot.

Destroyed Aircraft

When a Pilot is recovered by CSAR, add the indicated amount of Stress to the Pilot, as well as any XP earned on the Mission (even if the Aircraft was Destroyed.) The recovered Pilot rejoins the Squadron and is able to resume flying Missions as normal.

De-arming Aircraft

Remove any unused Situational Awareness and Weapon counters from the Aircraft, including Special Weapons. Any SO points spent on unused Special Weapons are forfeited and not recovered. Any unused Squadron Assets purchased for the Day are also removed from your squadron.

Earning XP

Each Pilot and GCI Crew which participated in the Mission gains 1 XP, even if the Aircraft was Destroyed. Record the XPs gained on the Player Log.

If the Target was successfully Destroyed and no Aircraft were Destroyed on the Mission, each Pilot and GCI Crew which participated in the Mission gains an extra 1 XP.

Pilots may also earn XP on the Mission from Target and Event card effects, as well as from Long-Range Targets.

Example: During the Target-Bound Phase, the Event "Baba Yaga's Curse" was drawn, which has the "XP 1" notation. All the Aircraft and GCI Crew on the Mission gain 1 XP in this step.

Long-Range Target Bonus XP

In some of the Expansions, there are Targets in the most distant Mission Zones which are worth bonus XP. These Long-Range Mission Zones are noted with the +1/2 XP bonus on the Campaign Sheet.

All the Pilots and GCI Crew who participate on a Mission against one of these Targets and Destroy the Target gain the stated XP.

If the Mission Zone has the notation "No GCI", then the GCI Crew cannot be selected for this Mission.

Promoting Pilots and GCI Crews

After tallying up the XP earned for the Day, check for Pilot and GCI Crew Promotion.

If the accrued XP for a Pilot or GCI Crew is equal to or greater than the Promotion number, they are Promoted to the next Skill Level.

When a Pilot or GCI Crew is Promoted, switch their current card to the next higher Skill Level and record their new Skill Level on the Player Log. The next Skill Level may be on the opposite face of the current card, or on a different card.

The Skill Levels that Pilots and GCI Crew can be Promoted to are: Newbie to Green, Green to Average, Average to Skilled, Skilled to Veteran, and Veteran to Legendary.

The Pilot's current Stress remains unchanged and is carried over to the new Level. Check their Stress to determine if their Status (Okay, Shaken, or Unfit) has changed. Also note any changes to the Pilot's stats in Cool, Situational Awareness, Air-to-Air and Air-to-Ground modifiers. Some Support Aircraft and GCI Crew also gain new capabilities when they advance to the next Skill Level.

Update the Pilot's Promotion number and Cool on the Pilot's Log, as required.

Recalculate the Pilot's XP by subtracting the XP required to Promote them to the new Skill Level, and carry over the remaining XP. It is possible, although rare, to Promote a Pilot through two Skill Levels at the same time.

Example: Firebird 242 at the Green Skill Level with 2 XP has just completed a successful Mission, earning 2 XP, bringing the Pilot's XP total to 4. As it requires 3 XP for Firebird 242 to be promoted, the Pilot is advanced to the new Skill Level Average with 1 XP carried over. Firebird 242 has Stress 3, which is Shaken as a Green Pilot. At the new Skill Level Average, the Pilot's Stress status reverts to Okay. In addition, Firebird 242's Cool increases to 2, and the Air-to-Ground modifier improves to +1/-1.

Replacement Pilots

If you suffered any Pilot losses during the Mission, you may replace a lost Pilot with a new one. The availability of Pilot replacements depends on the Pilot Loss Penalty level for the Campaign.

Pilot Loss Penalty

Each Campaign Sheet shows one of four levels of Pilot Loss Penalty:

Negligible - No penalty to SO or VP. Regain an available Pilot at one Skill level below the level of the Pilot lost. This replacement Pilot cannot have been previously Destroyed.
Nominal - No penalty to SO or VP. Regain an available Pilot at the Green Skill Level. This replacement Pilot cannot have been previously Destroyed.
Moderate - No replacement Pilot available. Lose 2/4/6 SO points for each Pilot lost. Regain 2/4/6 SOs if the Pilot is recovered by the "Combat Search and Rescue" Event card at a later stage.
Severe - No replacement Pilot available. Lose 1/2/3 VP for each Pilot that was Destroyed during the Campaign.

Replacing a Pilot

If you are eligible for a replacement Pilot (Pilot Loss Penalty level Negligible or Nominal), randomly select a Pilot with the stipulated Skill Level of the same Aircraft type as the lost Pilot.

If you are playing with an Expansion which adds Aircraft from the other Warsaw Pact nations, you may include Aircraft of the same type in the random selection for the replacement even though they are from a different nation.

If there are no remaining unselected Pilots available for that Aircraft type, you cannot receive a replacement.

Replace Commanding Officer

If your Commanding Officer's Aircraft was Destroyed and not recovered, select a Pilot with the highest Skill Level, who is not the Zampolit, to be the new Commanding Officer. If there are two or more Pilots of equal highest Skill Level, choose one of them to be the new Commanding Officer.

The new Commanding Officer may fly any Aircraft or be at any Skill Level, as long as the selected Pilot is at the highest Skill Level amongst the remaining Pilots.

A Pilot who is already a Zampolit cannot become a Commanding Officer, even if he has the highest Skill Level.

Replace Zampolit

If your Zampolit's Aircraft was Destroyed and not recovered, select a Pilot who is not the Commanding Officer to be the new Zampolit. The new Zampolit may fly any Aircraft, and be at any Skill Level.

15. Optional Rules

At the start of a Campaign, decide which Optional Rules you wish to use and record them in the Campaign Notes section of the Player Log. Optional Rules cost SOs to activate, which is paid once before the Campaign begins, and remains in play for the entirety of the Campaign. You may have more than one Optional Rule in play.

Flying 1 Less or 1 More Aircraft

You can take 1 more Aircraft than the Target card specifies on a Mission, but you pay 1 VP at the point of selecting your Mission Aircraft. If you take 1 less Aircraft than specified on the Target card and Destroy the Target, you gain 1 extra VP. If you do not have enough VP to pay, you may not take an extra Aircraft.

When using this optional rule in combination with the Persistent Target Damage optional rule, each Mission must be flown with one less Aircraft in order to gain the +1 VP bonus when the Target is Destroyed. If you are taking one more Aircraft than the Target card specifies, pay the 1 VP penalty for each Mission flown with the extra Aircraft, if it takes more than one Mission to Destroy the Target.

If you choose to use this option, pay 3/6/9 SOs.

Selecting a Squadron Randomly

Instead of selecting your Pilots, you can determine them at random. Place all the selectable Aircraft counters based on the Campaign Year and availability in a cup. Randomly select the required number of counters from the cup for each Skill Level, beginning with the Newbie Skill Level. Gain or pay any SOs required for each Aircraft drawn, as required.

If you choose to use this option, gain 6/12/18 SOs.

Example: You choose to select your Squadron at random for the "7 Days to the Rhine" Short Campaign. First, you place all the available Aircraft for 1975 into a cup. A Short Campaign comprises 8 Aircraft: 1 Newbie, 2 Green, 4 Average and 1 Skilled. The first Aircraft counter you draw will be at the Newbie level. The next two Aircraft will be Green, and the next four Average. Finally, the last counter will be Skilled and also becomes the Squadron's Commanding Officer. Whilst you have these counters handy, you can also randomly draw and select your Zampolit.

Making High Stress Attacks and Suppressions

Before a Pilot performs an Attack or Suppression, you can add +1 to all the Attack and Suppression rolls made by the Pilot for that Turn, in exchange for giving the Pilot 1 Stress. The Pilot accrues the Stress point before making the Attack/Suppression roll.

If you choose to use this option, pay 3/6/9 SOs.

Gunfighting Attack Bonus

Your Pilots gain a bonus 1 XP each time they Destroy a Bandit with a Cannon Attack.

If you choose to use this option, pay 1/2/3 SOs.

Persistent Target Damage

During the Over-Target Phase, if you score at least one-half of the Hits needed to Destroy a Target (rounding up), but fewer than the Hits needed to Destroy the Target, you have Damaged the Target. On the Player Log, make a note of the number of Hits scored on the Target.

During the Resolve Target Status step, you earn half of the Target's VPs (rounding down), remove all Damage counters, and reshuffle the Target card back into the Target deck, unless it is an Improvement Target.

If you draw a previously Damaged Target on a subsequent Day, it reenters play with the Hits previously inflicted on it. If it is Destroyed, you earn half of the Target's remaining VPs (rounding up) and all its Loyalty, Intel, Infra, and Ops track adjustments. A Target may be Attacked multiple times before it is Destroyed, but you only earn VP once when it has suffered enough Hits to be Damaged, and then once more when it is Destroyed.

Some Targets have the Objective Trait which includes Sites or Bandits that have to be Destroyed. For such Targets, to score at least one-half of the required Hits to Damage the Target, you will have to destroy at least half of the stipulated counters (rounding up), as well as inflicting Hits to the Target, if any.

Example: Target #23 ‘Strategic SAM Site” is a Target with 3 Hits and 2 Objective Site counters. To count as Damaged, it would require at least 2 Hits and 1 Objective Site counter Destroyed.

If you choose to use this option, pay 3/6/9 SOs.

Nobody is Irreplaceable, Comrade

If the Loyalty counter is pointing to the space with Last Turn, you may choose to replace your Commanding Officer by discarding the CO's Aircraft card and moving Loyalty two spaces to the right. The Pilot with the next highest Skill Level who is not the Zampolit becomes the new Commanding Officer. If there are two or more eligible Pilots, you may select one of them to be the Commanding Officer.

At the end of the Day during the Mission Debrief step, you may perform this action and gain a Replacement Pilot in accordance with your Campaign's Pilot Replacement rules.

If you choose to use this option, pay 1/2/3 SOs.

16. Interceptor Campaigns

Dedicated Interceptor aircraft were employed by the Soviet Air Defence Force (PVO) across the Soviet Union to defend against NATO strike aircraft. Most were geared toward engaging large formations of strategic bombers, but as the Cold War progressed and long-range tactical strike aircraft like the F-111 were fielded by the US, the ability to find and destroy a high-speed bandit flying at low altitude became the focus of the PVO weapons doctrine and systems.

Expansion #4 - Interceptors extends the Fulcrum Leader core game to include aircraft of the PVO such as the MiG-25 Foxbat and MiG-31 Foxhound. These Campaigns do not have Air-to-Ground targets, but instead they will present a limited series of Air-to-Air engagements that will play out differently each time they are drawn.

In addition, the enormous distances normally covered by PVO interceptors will mean that there are several changes to the Fulcrum Leader rules to present the player with the similar challenges in range, intercept geometry and weapons loadout that the PVO aircrews faced during the Cold War.

Interceptor Campaign Tracks

In an Interceptor Campaign, the rules for the Infra and Ops Tracks have been amended:

Infra Track - The modifiers on the Infra track apply only to Objective counters. If the modifier reduces the number of Objectives counters, randomly determine the Objective counters to be removed. Objective counters can never be reduced to less than 1.
Ops Track - The Ops Track is used to track the progression from a peacetime Cold War setting to full military conflict with NATO, using the Threat Warning Condition status.

Threat Warning Conditions

An Interceptor Mission will be in one of three Threat Warning Conditions: White, Yellow, or Red. This status is color-coded on the Ops Track. The status of the Threat Warning Condition will define how Bogeys and Bandits are placed, revealed and move once they are revealed.

Mission Orders

Mission Orders in an Interceptor Campaign fall into three types of actions: Identify, Escort, and Destroy. They are indicated on the Ops Track along with the Ability number to successfully perform the task on a die roll. This Ability roll may be modified by the Pilot's Air-to-Air modifier, Skill or a card text effect.

Types of Mission Orders:

Identify (ID) – Your task is to visually identify all of the Objective aircraft.
Escort (ESC) – Your task is to intercept and escort the Objective aircraft away from Soviet airspace.
Attack (ATTK) – Your mission is to interdict and destroy all enemy Bandits and Air Objectives. Attack becomes the default task once the Operations Track indicates Threat Warning Condition Red.

The Ops track also provides the Activation Range at which unidentified Bandits, known as Bogeys, will be identified during the Resolve Bogeys and Bandits Attack step.

Very High Speed / Altitude Objectives

Enemy aircraft like the SR-71 Blackbird and the U-2 made the life of an Interceptor Pilot difficult due to their extreme altitude and speed. These Objective counters have the "V" notation.

When an Aircraft attempts to Escort an Objective counter with the "V" notation, roll two dice and take the lower result.

When an Aircraft Attacks an Objective counter with the "V" notation, the munition used must have a Range of 2 or greater. For the Attack, roll two dice and take the lower result.

Playing an Interceptor Turn

Perform the usual phases and steps for carrying out a normal Mission, with the exception of the steps described below.

Draw Target Cards

Draw the Target cards one at a time, up to the limit indicated on the Loyalty Track. You may choose whether to select any of the Target cards already drawn for the Day's Mission, before drawing another Target card.

If you draw a Target with the Scramble Trait, you must immediately select this card as the Primary Mission. You may choose to continue drawing Target cards to select a Secondary Target, but if you draw a second Target with the Scramble Trait, then that Target must be your Secondary Mission.

Event Cards

In an Interceptor Mission, Event card draws are handled differently, and these changes apply to all three phases of Event card draws (Target-Bound Event, Over Target Event and Home-Bound Event).

Discard and redraw any Event cards with text effects on Sites, Target Traits, and any Event that involves the expenditure of Air-to-Ground Weapon counters to avoid an Event Attack.
Whilst in Threat Warning Conditions White and Yellow only, discard and redraw any Event which involves the expenditure of Air-to-Air Weapon counters to avoid an Event Attack.

Example: Wraith 382 is flying an Interceptor Mission at Threat Warning Condition White. For the Over Target Event draw, the Event "Broadband Jamming" is drawn. As the text effect affects Sites, this Event is discarded and another Event card is drawn.

However, if this had been drawn as the Home-Bound Event, it would have been put into play as its text effect affects the Pilots (but not Sites, Target Traits or Event Attacks.)

Any Event modifier to Pilot Attacks apply to all Mission Orders (Identify, Escort and Attack).
Any Event modifier to Bandit Attacks apply to all Bandit actions (Interfere and Attack).

If an Event card effect adds Bandits to the Tactical Display, add that number of Bandit counters to the Bogey cup, and place a similar number of Bogey counters onto the Tactical Display.

Interceptor Placement

In the Place Aircraft on the Tactical Display step of the Target-Bound Phase, place all the Aircraft counters flying in the Mission in up to two adjacent Stand-Off Areas on any single side of the Tactical Display.

Example: Target #55 "Barrier CAP" indicates that up to four Aircraft can be selected for this mission. The selected Aircraft counters are placed on the Western edge of the Tactical Display, in both Stand-Off Areas.

Bogey Counters

Bogey counters represent enemy forces at a distance which have not yet been positively identified. They are a placeholder on the Tactical Display, and under specific conditions, will be resolved into Bandits or Objectives.

Bogey counters are represented as an aircraft silhouette which points toward one of the counter's corners. The silhouette on a Bogey counter is illustrative and is not meant to represent any specific aircraft type.

Unlike Bandit counters, when a Bogey counter is placed on the Tactical Display, the Bogey counter always points toward one of the four edges of the Tactical Display, representing the compass cardinal points, North, East, South or West. The initial direction of the Bogeys will be pointing toward your Interceptor Aircraft on the Tactical Display.

Example: In the previous step, a pair of Interceptor Aircraft, Spectre 601 and Wraith 382, were placed in the West Stand-Off Areas on the Tactical Display. When placing the initial Bogeys, the Bogeys begin facing in the direction of the Interceptors.

Bogey Placement

In the Place Bandits Step, randomly draw the required number of Bandit counters stated on the Target card, adjusting for any Intel and Ops Track modifiers, and place them into a separate Bogey cup without revealing them.

Add the Air Objective counters stated on the Campaign Sheet and Target card into the Bogey cup as well. It is possible to draw either a standard Bandit or an Air Objective as the result of an Identify action. In an Interceptor Mission, an Air Objective (including Bombers) may be placed in either the Centre or any of the Approach Areas.

Next, place a similar number of Bogey counters in each respective Approach Area and Center Area, as stipulated on the Target card, adjusting for Intel and Ops Track modifiers.

Finally, place additional Bogey counters in the Center Area equal to the number of Air Objectives on the Target card.

Place the Bogeys pointing in the direction of your Aircraft counters.

Example: Target #55 "Barrier CAP" indicates 4 Bandits to be placed in the Center Area, in addition to 2 Air Objectives. A total of 6 Bandit counters are drawn and placed into the Bogey cup. Next, 6 Bogey counters are placed in the Center Area on the Tactical Display, facing in the direction of the Interceptor Aircraft.

Use Extended Range (ER) Weapons

In the Use Extended Range (ER) Weapons step of an Interceptor Mission, before resolving any Attacks with ER Weapons, select one of the following intercept tactics against the enemy formation:

Stern Conversion - Rotate all Bogey counters to face away from your Aircraft. No Extended Range Weapons may be used. All Identify and Escort Rolls have a +2 modifier. Reduce 1 Turn from the Over-Target Phase to 4 Turns.
Beam Entry - Rotate all Bogey counters to face 90 degrees away from your Aircraft, with all counters facing the same side. Extended Range Weapons may be used with a -2 Attack modifier.
Pincer Intercept - You may choose to move any of your Aircraft counters on the Tactical Display to the opposite Stand-Off Area at a cost of 2 SO per Aircraft. Rotate all Bogey counters to face 90 degrees away from your Aircraft, with all Bogey counters facing the same side. Extended Range Weapons may be used with a -2 Attack modifier.
High Aspect Intercept - Rotate all Bogey counters to face your Aircraft. Extended Range Weapons may be used. All Identify and Escort Rolls have a -2 modifier. At the end of the Use Extended Weapons (ER) step, your Aircraft must immediately Move into a new Area.

Example: The Beam Entry intercept tactic has been selected for this Mission. The Bogey counters are rotated to face toward the North edge, pointing 90 degrees away from the West Stand-Off Area where the Interceptor Aircraft have been placed. If the Aircraft are carrying Extended Range Weapons, they may Attack the Bogeys at this step with a -2 modifier to the Attack roll.

Once all the Bogey counters have been oriented, Aircraft equipped with Extended Range (ER) Weapons may Attack the Bogeys. You may also choose not to perform any Attacks in this step.

The facing of the counters is used to determine the setup as well as intercept tactic for each Interceptor Mission. After this step, the counter facing has no further gameplay effect.

Interceptor Extended Range (ER) Attacks

To perform an Attack, declare one or more ER Weapons to be launched as well as the target Bogey of each Weapon. Complete all your Declarations before you resolve each Attack.

Once all the Attacks have been Declared, draw and replace each Bogey counter which has been declared as the target of an Attack with a Bandit counter from the Bogey cup.

If a counter drawn is a No Bandit, then no counter is placed and the No Bandit counter is discarded. The declared Attack is wasted and the Weapon counter(s) is discarded.

For each ER Attack, roll two dice and use the lower of the two rolls to determine the result. Apply the Pilot's Air-to-Air and Skill modifiers to these rolls.

Fast Aircraft Attack / Slow Aircraft Attack

In the Fast Aircraft Attack and Slow Aircraft Attack steps, Interceptor Aircraft can attempt one of three actions: Identify, Escort or Attack. The required action is indicated on the Ops Track, along with the required Ability number to perform the action.

Identify Action

When an Aircraft performs an Identify (ID) action, they are attempting to identify all the Bogeys at Range 0 (in the same Area). The Ops Track will stipulate the Identify ability number required to successfully perform the action. Each Aircraft may perform one attempt per Turn to identify all the Bogeys in its Area.

When making an Identify roll, roll a die and include all applicable modifiers:

Apply the Pilot's Air-to-Air modifier
Apply a modifier from a Pilot Skill
Apply a modifier from a Support Aircraft or Squadron Asset
Apply a modifier from an Event or a Zampolit effect
Subtract one for every Bogey counter in the same Area

Identify Action Result

Based on the modified Identify roll:

If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the Identify number, then all of the Bogeys in the Area are Identified, and each is replaced with a counter drawn from the Bogey Cup. This counter may be a standard Bandit or an Air Objective. If a counter drawn is a No Bandit, then no counter is placed and the No Bandit counter is discarded.

Once all the Bogeys on the Tactical Display have been Identified, the Mission is completed.

If the modified die roll is less than the Identify number, then none of the Bogeys in the Area are identified, and the Aircraft gains 1 Stress.
If the unmodified die roll is a natural 1, regardless of modifiers, then an incident has occurred during the Identify attempt, and the Interceptor Aircraft is Damaged. A modified die roll of 1 is a failure, but the Interceptor Aircraft does not incur any Damage.

A Damaged Aircraft can no longer perform Interceptor Actions (Identify, Escort or Attack) or Suppressions, but may Evade further Attacks. Remove all Weapon, ECM Pod and Situational Awareness counters from the Aircraft, and immediately add 2 Stress to the Pilot. If the Aircraft has a Cannon or Internal ECM, those systems are no longer operable. If a Damaged aircraft receives a second Damaged result, it is Destroyed.

Once all the Bogeys on the Tactical Display have been Identified, the Mission is completed.

Example: Spectre 601 is in the South Approach area with 2 Bogeys, and during the Slow Aircraft Attack step, attempts to Identify the Bogeys. The Ops Track indicates that the Identify number is 3+. Spectre 601 rolls a 5. With an Air-to-Air modifier of +1 and the two Bogeys giving a modifier of -2, the modified roll is a 4. The Identify action is successful, and the Bogey counters are replaced with Bandit counters drawn from the Bogey cup.

Escort Action

When an Aircraft performs an Escort (ESC) action, they are attempting to Escort a single Air Objective counter in the same Area. The Ops Track will state the Escort ability number required to successfully perform the action.

A Bogey cannot be Escorted until it has been Identified and resolved as an Objective Bandit. Once all the Objective Bandits on the Tactical Display have been Escorted, the Mission is completed.

When making an Escort roll, roll a die and include all applicable modifiers:

Apply the Pilot's Air-to-Air modifier
Apply a modifier from a Pilot Skill
Apply a modifier from a Support Aircraft or Squadron Asset
Apply a modifier from an Event or a Zampolit effect
Subtract one for every Bandit counter in the same Area

Escort Action Result

Based on the modified Escort roll:

If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the Escort number, the Air Objective is Escorted. Place the Air Objective counter under the escorting Aircraft's counter to indicate it has been Escorted. Each Aircraft can only escort one Air Objective at a time. Non-Air Objective Aircraft cannot be Escorted.

When an Aircraft attempts to Escort an Objective counter with the "V" notation, roll two dice and take the lower result.

Once all Air Objectives have been successfully Escorted, the Mission is completed.

If the modified die roll is less than the Escort number, then the Objective remains unescorted and the Interceptor Aircraft gains 1 Stress.
If the unmodified die roll is a natural 1, then an incident has occurred during the Escort attempt, regardless of any modifiers, and the Interceptor Aircraft is Damaged. A modified die roll of 1 is a failure, but the Interceptor Aircraft does not incur any Damage.

A Damaged Aircraft can no longer perform Interceptor Actions (Identify, Escort or Attack) or Suppressions, but may Evade further Attacks. Remove all Weapon, ECM Pod and Situational Awareness counters from the Aircraft, and immediately add 2 Stress to the Pilot. If the Aircraft has a Cannon or Internal ECM, those systems are no longer operable. If a Damage aircraft receives a second Damaged result, it is Destroyed.

Example: Spectre 601 and Spectre 605 are in the West Approach area with a Bogey. During the Slow Aircraft Attack step, Spectre 601 attempts to Identify the Bogey by rolling against the Identify ability 3+, and rolls a success. The Bogey is replaced with a randomly-drawn counter from the Bogey cup, and which is an E-3 Objective Bandit. Spectre 605 now attempts to Escort the E-3, rolling against the Escort ability 6+ stated on the Ops Track. However, the roll is unsuccessful, and the E-3 remains Unescorted. The interceptors will have to try again in the next Turn.

Attack Action

Aircraft may perform Attacks against Bandits and Bogeys as normal. For each Aircraft performing an Attack, declare which mode of Attack (Cannon or Weapon counters) is being used, as well as the enemy being targeted, as long as the usual Attack conditions are met.

When an Attack is declared against a Bogey, draw a Bandit counter from the Bogey cup and replace the Bogey counter on the Tactical Display with the Bandit. If the counter drawn is a No Bandit, then no counter is placed and the No Bandit counter is discarded. The Weapon counter(s) used in the Attack is also expended.

Resolve the Attacks one at a time for each Aircraft. You can make the Attacks in any order. Declare and resolve the Attacks for one Aircraft before declaring and resolving another Attack.

An Aircraft which is Escorting an Air Objective can Attack another enemy counter (Bogey, Bandit or Air Objective). If an Escorting Aircraft declares an Attack against its Escorted Air Objective, it is no longer being Escorted, and its counter is moved out from under the Aircraft to show that it is no longer being Escorted.

When an Aircraft Attacks an Objective counter with the "V" notation, the munition used must have a Range of 2 or greater, and it is resolved by rolling two dice and taking the lower result.

Tactical Nuclear Weapon Omission

There are no Tactical Weapons deployable in Interceptor Missions, and there is no Resolve Tactical Nuclear Weapon step.

Resolve Bogeys and Bandits Attack

In an Interceptor Mission, the Resolve Bogeys and Bandits Attack step replaces the Site and Bandits Attack step. Bogeys and Bandits will respond differently depending on the current Threat Warning Condition.

Threat Warning Condition White

During Threat Warning Condition White, Bogeys and Bandits will not Attack, even if they are Attacked.

Threat Warning Condition Yellow

During Threat Warning Condition Yellow, Bogeys may reveal themselves and Interfere with your Aircraft during the Resolve Bogeys and Bandits Attack step.

During this step, the engagement Range is specified on the Ops Track. If the Range is not specified, the Bogeys will take no action.

If Range 0 is specified, replace each Bogey counter in the same Area as your Aircraft with a Bandit counter drawn from the Bogey cup. If the counter drawn is a No Bandit, then no counter is placed and the No Bandit counter is discarded.

For each Bandit (including Bandits just newly placed) in Range, randomly select an Aircraft in the same Area which it will target to Interfere. If an Aircraft has already been targeted, randomly select another Aircraft. If there are more Bandits in an Area than Aircraft and every Aircraft has been targeted, then no further effects will occur.

An Aircraft can respond to an Interfere attempt by choosing to Decoy, Evade or both, but they may not Suppress. Aircraft that are already Escorting an Objective may not Evade.

Decoy - The targeted Aircraft may first attempt to Decoy using ECM (with Internal ECM or an ECM Pod). Make a Decoy roll and compare it with the ECM value. If the roll matches the ECM value or higher, the Interfere attempt is canceled.
Evade - If the Decoy attempt fails or you are unable or choose not to, you may attempt to go Evasive. Add 1 Stress to the Pilot. When the Bandit makes its Interfere roll, roll 2 dice for the attempt and use the lower result.

Bandit counters have three Attack numbers, and are capable of inflicting increasing amounts of Stress and Damage, depending on the result of the Interference roll. Roll a die to determine the outcome. Include all applicable modifiers to this roll:

Apply a modifier from an Event card
Apply a modifier from the Pilot's Skill
Apply a modifier from Support Aircraft and Squadron Assets

The result from an Interference is resolved as follows:

No Effect - If the modified die roll is less than the first number, the Interfere attempt has failed and there is no effect to the Aircraft.
Stressed - If the modified die roll is equal to the first number but less than the second number, add 1 Stress to the Pilot.
More Stressed - If the modified die roll is equal to the second number but less than the third number, add 2 Stress to the Pilot's current Stress.
Damaged - If the modified die roll is equal to or greater than the third number, an incident has occurred, and the Interceptor Aircraft is Damaged. Damaged Aircraft can no longer perform Interceptor Actions (Identify, Escort or Attack) or Suppressions, but may Evade further Attacks. Remove all Weapon, ECM Pod and Situational Awareness counters from the Aircraft, and immediately add 2 Stress to the Pilot. If the Aircraft has a Cannon or Internal ECM, those systems are no longer operable. If an aircraft receives a second Damaged result, it is Destroyed.

Threat Warning Condition Red

During Threat Warning Condition Red, Bogeys may reveal themselves and Attack your Aircraft in the Resolve Bogeys and Bandits Attack step. In this step, the engagement Range is specified on the Ops Track. If a Bogey is not within Range of any Aircraft, it takes no action.

For each Bogey counter within engagement Range of any Aircraft, replace the Bogey with a Bandit counter drawn from the Bogey cup, and immediately perform an Attack with the Bandit, if possible. If there are two or more Aircraft within equal Range, randomly select which Aircraft will be Attacked.

If the Bandit counter drawn is out of Attack Range of any Aircraft, it does not make an Attack but it still enters play and is placed on the Tactical Display.

If the counter drawn is a No Bandit, then no counter is placed and the No Bandit counter is discarded.

If the counter drawn is a Bomber, place it on the Tactical Display with the double Bomber side facing up, and randomly remove another Bogey counter from the Tactical Display.

Example: During a mission under Threat Warning Condition Red, the Ops Track is at Activation Range 2. A Bogey in the North Approach Area is at Range 2 from Agon 201, and will be replaced by a counter drawn from the Bogey cup. Luckily for Agon 201, the counter drawn is an F-104G which is not within Attack Range of Agon 201, but it is still placed on the Tactical Display.

Bogey and Bandit Movement

Bogeys and Objective counters do not Move from the Area in which they are placed. For Bandits, their movement is resolved as follows:

In Threat Warning Conditions White and Yellow, Bandits do not Move from the Area in which they are placed.
In Threat Warning Condition Red, Bandits Move and close Range to engage your Aircraft, as normal.

Mission Results

If all the Air Objectives are not Identified, Escorted, or Destroyed as stipulated in the Mission Orders on the Ops Track within the five Turns in the Over-Target Phase, then the Mission has failed, just as if a Target was not Destroyed.

Aircraft and GCI Crews on the Mission are awarded XP, but the Loyalty, Infra and Intel tracks are not adjusted. The Ops Track is adjusted as described below.

The Persistent Target Damage Optional Rule is not used in Interceptor Campaigns.

Adjusting the Ops Track

In an Interceptor Mission, adjust the Ops Track in the Adjust Loyalty, Intel and Infra Campaign Tracks step in the Daily Summary Phase. The track adjustments are cumulative.

During the Over-Target Phase, if at least one Bogey was targeted with a Weapons counter, move the Ops Track two steps to the right.
In any Phase of the Interceptor Mission, if an Aircraft was Damaged while trying to perform an Identify or Escort action, move the Ops Track at most one step to the right.
In any Phase of the Interceptor Mission, if an Aircraft was Damaged as the result of a Bandit Interfere action, move the Ops Track one step to the left.

Interceptor Mission Sequence of Play

The modified sequence of play for Interceptor Missions has been summarized here:

Daily Operations Phase

Draw Zampolit Card
Draw Target Cards
Select Primary and Secondary Targets

Pre-Flight Phase

Determine and Place Sites
Assign Pilots and GCI Crews
Arm Aircraft and Acquire Squadron Assets

Target-Bound Phase

Draw Target-Bound Event Card
- All Threat Conditions: Discard and redraw Events with Site, Target Traits and AtG Event Attack effects
- Threat Conditions White and Yellow: Discard and redraw Events with AtA Event Attack effects
Place Aircraft and Choose Altitude
- Place Aircraft counters in up to two adjacent Stand-Off Areas on one side of the Tactical Display
Draw Bandits and Place Bandits/Bogeys
- Draw all required Bandit counters and place unrevealed in Bogey cup
- Draw same number of Bogey counters and place on Tactical Display facing Aircraft
Intel Air Defense Adjustment
Draw Over-Target Event card

All Threat Conditions: Discard and redraw Events with Site, Target Traits and AtG Event Attack effects
Threat Conditions White and Yellow: Discard and redraw Events with AtA Event Attack effects

Use Extended Range Weapons

Select Intercept Tactic:
- Stern Conversion
- Beam Entry
- Pincer Intercept
- High Aspect Intercept
Attack Bogeys with Extended Range Weapons

Place Turn Counter in "1" Box

Over-Target Phase

Fast Aircraft Attack

Complete Intercept Actions based on Mission: Identify / Escort / Attack

Sites and Bandits Attack

Threat Condition White: Bogeys will not Attack
Threat Condition Yellow: Bogeys will attempt to Interfere against Aircraft in Range; Aircraft may attempt to Decoy or Evade.
Threat Condition Red: Bogeys will Attack Aircraft

Slow Aircraft Attack

Complete Intercept Actions based on Mission: Identify / Escort / Attack

Aircraft Move and Adjust Altitude
Bogeys/Bandits Move

Threat Condition White and Yellow: Bogeys do not Move
Threat Condition Red: Bogeys Move and close Range

Advance Turn Counter

Home-Bound Phase

Draw Home-Bound Event card
Resolve Combat Search and Rescue

Mission Debriefing Phase

Record Mission Outcome, Victory Points, Loyalty, Intel, Infra, Ops and Special Option Points
Add Mission Stress to Pilots
Record Pilot Experience and Stress

Daily Summary Phase

Apply Pilot Stress Recovery (all Pilots)
Adjust Loyalty, Intel, Infra and Ops Tracks
Calculate Total Victory Points
Promote Pilots and GCI Crews
Replace Pilots (including CO and Zampolit)

The Interceptor Sequence of Play Flowchart on page 88 of the printed rulebook is a diagram and is not transcribed. Its steps are the ones listed above.

Appendix A. Aircraft and Ordnance

The Soviet Air Force (VVS) during the Cold War was comprised of three main branches: Long Range Aviation (DA), which focused on long-range bombers; Frontal Aviation (FA), which focused on battlefield air defense, close air support and interdiction, and operated literally over the front lines, as their name suggested; and Military Transport Aviation (VTA), the service which controlled and provided logistical airlift capability. A fourth branch, the Soviet Air Defence Forces (PVO), was a separate and distinct service which focused on the defensive missions of air defense and interceptor aircraft (and merged into the Air Force in 1997.)

Frontal Aviation had three main functions: adding depth to the battlefield by striking targets beyond the range of conventional field units; increasing the ops-tempo of the battle by delivering ordnance from the air as both direct and indirect fire; and enhancing warfighting agility through rapid response in a fluid tactical environment. For this reason, close-air support aircraft such as the Su-25 "Frogfoot" and MiG-25BM "Foxbat-F" were included as Squadron Assets rather than aircraft directly under the player's command, as their mission profiles are different from the ones performed by the VVS and PVO.

Tactical Aircraft

MiG-21 (NATO: "Fishbed-C/F/J/N")

Built and delivered in larger numbers than just about any other post-war tactical jet aircraft, the MiG-21 "Fishbed" design was conceived as a basic day fighter, drawing on lessons learnt from early jet combat in the Korean War. The result was a stable, robust airframe with uncomplicated controls, sporting a delta-wing capable of reaching Mach 2, and eliciting one of the longest production runs in modern history with over 11,000 units built in over a dozen variants. Although often considered inferior to the opponents it faced, nonetheless the MiG-21 has seen extensive combat in the Vietnamese, Middle Eastern and African theaters, and often has more than held its own. With technological and avionics upgrades, it still remains in service with over a dozen air forces in the 21st century.

MiG-23 (NATO: "Flogger-B/G/H")

The MiG-23 "Flogger-B/G/H" was the culmination of the Soviet experimentation with variable-sweep wing design in tactical aircraft when the prototype first flew in 1967. With its Sapfir RP-23 look-down/shoot-down radar (NATO: High Lark) and Vympel R-23 (NATO: AA-7 Apex) beyond-visual-range (BVR) missiles, it was the foremost third-generation fighter fielded by the USSR and its allies. With over 5,000 units delivered, it is the most prolific variable-sweep wing combat aircraft in history.

MiG-27 (NATO: "Flogger-J")

Utilizing the same airframe as the MiG-23, the MiG-27 "Flogger-J" was intended as a dedicated attack aircraft, with its distinctive flattened duck-like nose and raised cockpit, compared to its fighter-variant predecessor. This model was widely deployed throughout the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies, with permanent Soviet squadrons established in East Germany, Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. The aircraft saw limited action in Soviet service in the late 1980s against Afghan Mujahideen forces, and was eventually superseded in the ground-attack role by Su-24 and Su-25 aircraft by the end of the 20th century.

MiG-29 9.12 (NATO: "Fulcrum-A")

The MiG-29 "Fulcrum" was designed in the late 1970s, entering service in the mid-80s as the nemesis of emerging NATO fighters such as the F-15 and F-16. As the first Soviet fourth-generation fighter incorporating a blended-wing body (BWB) design, it was also designed to be rugged and easily fielded in rough conditions. While the early model was oriented toward air-to-air combat, the aircraft has been rapidly adapted for multi-role use in several variants including air-to-ground capability. The MiG-29 emerged as one of the bestsellers of its generation, entering service with over two dozen nations (including seven post-Soviet republics) in addition to its home country, although many of the first-generation models have been retired at the end of their service lives.

MiG-29 9.13 (NATO: "Fulcrum-C")

The improved MiG-29 "Fulcrum-C" was introduced with improved fuel, ordnance and avionics capacity, which enhanced its combat capability over its original design. Updates to the aircraft included a "glass cockpit" with color multi-function displays (MFDs) and streamlined maintenance procedures, resulting in 40% cost savings to operate. The new generation of Fulcrums have all but superseded the initial run of Fulcrum-As in the Russian Air Force, and the evolution of this aircraft continues with the emergent MiG-35 "Fulcrum-F" design.

Su-17 (NATO: "Fitter-J")

The Su-17 "Fitter-J" (along with its derivative models Su-20 and Su-22) fighter-bomber was the first variable-sweep wing aircraft to enter service in the Soviet Air Force. With its base airframe adapted from the Su-7, the Su-17's first flight was in August 1966, although the production model did not enter service until three years later. Over a dozen variants of the Fitter were produced for local and export markets, incorporating avionics and design improvements, with its operational career still ongoing well into the 21st century.

Su-24 (NATO: "Fencer")

The Su-24 "Fencer" is a two-seat, long-range tactical bomber with variable-geometry wings, designed to deliver low-level bomb and missile strikes against enemy targets in terrain-following, all-weather conditions, day or night. It was originally misidentified as a fighter (hence its NATO code name "Fencer", the initial "F" designating a fighter) with the distinctive configuration - at least, for a tactical aircraft - of having the pilot and navigator sitting side-by-side, similar to the American F-111. As a bomb truck, it proved to be highly capable, with a total of 1,200 bombers manufactured for the Soviet Air Force and other nations.

Su-27 (NATO: "Flanker")

As a close contemporary of the Fulcrum, the Su-27 "Flanker" was also developed in the 1970s by a different company, and features a similar blended-wing body (BWB) design. Shrouded in mystery when it was first reported, the Flanker was soon featured at a number of high-profile airshows and quickly earned a reputation as the one of the best-in-class of its generation, in no small part due to its outstanding maneuverability. The model used by Frontal Aviation focused on air superiority with a secondary strike role (whereas the PVO versions lacked the strike capability). The Flanker airframe has since been further refined into no less than four evolutionary branches: the Su-30 "Flanker-E" deep interdictor, Su-33 "Flanker-D" navalized variant, Su-34 "Fullback" advanced fighter-bomber and Su-35 "Flanker-F" air superiority fighter.

Yak-28PP (NATO: "Brewer-E")

The Yak-28 series emerged from earlier Yak-26 and Yak-27 designs, with a broad assortment of derivative variants reflected in no less than six different NATO codenames, including "Brewer", "Firebar", "Flashlight", "Mangrove" and "Maestro". As the first Soviet radio-electronic combat (REC) aircraft, the Yak-28PP was unarmed, and instead carried an extensive electronic warfare (EW) suite in its bomb bay, with both automatic and crew-controlled jamming systems to protect the strike force it was embedded with.

Special Rules: The Yak-28PP has several REC attacks that can each be used once per turn during the Over-Target Phase or when reacting to a Special Event Card. The stress cost for each REC attack is immediately applied to the Yak-28PP crew. The Yak-28PP does not use Weight Points.

Yak-38 (NATO: "Forger")

The Yak-38 was the prime VTOL strike fighter which entered service with Soviet Naval Aviation in 1976, notably also being the first carrier-based fixed-wing aircraft which served exclusively aboard the Kiev-class "aviation cruisers". The production model Yak-38 was derived from the Yak-36 "Freehand" land-based VTOL research prototype, incorporating vectored-thrust turbojets at the bottom of the fuselage, but also adding two lift jets in a vertical configuration forward of the wing. While it had obvious service limitations, the Yak-38 was nonetheless capable of mounting air-to-air as well as air-to-surface weapons, in addition to a belly-mounted gun pod.

Tu-126 (NATO: "Moss")

The Tu-126 "Moss" was notable as the first airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, built on the airframe of Tupolev's ubiquitous Tu-114 passenger airliner, which has also provided for the "Bear" family of military aircraft. Although originally intended as a stopgap measure (until a purpose-designed AEW aircraft like the A-50 could be brought into service), the Tu-126 fulfilled its role in various theaters including the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971 and over the vast expanses of the Soviet Union's arctic coastline.

Special Rules: The Tu-126 is an AEW Aircraft. The Tu-126 cannot carry any Weapon counters and does not have an internal Cannon. When you add a Tu-126 to a mission, it does not count against the number of Aircraft you can send on the mission.

Some Tu-126 cards list a die roll to ignore a Special Event. If you draw a Special Event card that you would like to ignore and there is a Tu-126 participating in the mission, roll a die. If you roll the specified number or higher, ignore the Event.

Tu-126s have the ability to expend their Situational Awareness counters for the other Aircraft in your mission even if the Tu-126 is not the Flight Leader. Some Tu-126 cards will also give the other Aircraft a bonus on their Air-to-Air die rolls.

Beriev A-50 (NATO: "Mainstay")

As a follow-on AEW&C aircraft and learning from the experience of the Tu-126, the Beriev A-50 was built on the proven Il-76 transport airframe (with more than a passing resemblance to the American C-141), and first entered service in 1984. Target data is provided from the Liana radar embedded in a 9m (30 ft) rotodome sitting above the fuselage, extending out to a detection range of 650 km (air) / 300 km (ground), which provides data to an inflight crew of 15 who can direct multiple aircraft to attack aerial and ground targets.

Special Rules: The A-50 is an AEW Aircraft. The A-50 cannot carry any Weapon counters and does not have an internal Cannon. When you add an A-50 to a mission, it does not count against the number of Aircraft you can send on the mission.

Some A-50 cards list a die roll to ignore a Special Event. If you draw a Special Event card that you would like to ignore and there is an A-50 participating in the mission, roll a die. If you roll the specified number or higher, ignore the Event.

A-50s have the ability to expend their Situational Awareness counters for the other Aircraft in your mission even if the A-50 is not the Flight Leader. Some A-50 cards will also give the other Aircraft a bonus on their Air-to-Air and Air-to-Ground die rolls.

MiG-25R/P/PD/BM (NATO: "Foxbat-B/E/F")

Backed by an extensive research program, the inception of the MiG-25 family started way back in the early 1950s as an interceptor to match the threat of the B-70 Mach 3 bomber. When the B-70 was canceled, the MiG-25 program continued, in part due to its prestige as a record-setting design but also of its potential as a high-speed, high-altitude interceptor in its own right - and by the same token, an uninterceptable reconnaissance platform. The MiG-25BM "Foxbat-F" was a variant developed for Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD), carrying the Kh-58 (NATO: AS-11 Kilter) anti-radiation missile. Unlike the other Soviet aircraft which were also armed with the Kh-58, the MiG-25BM carried all of its sensitive radar detection equipment internally, freeing the four external weapon stations for missiles or unguided bombs.

Support Aircraft

Su-7 (NATO: "Fitter-A")

The Su-7 started out as an ambitious project by Sukhoi to create a swept-wing, supersonic-capable fighter, and indeed, the initial prototype set a Soviet speed record in April 1958 of just over Mach 2. However, with the MiG-21 gaining widespread preference in the fighter role, the Su-7 was quickly repurposed as the new ground-attack model for Soviet Frontal Aviation in the 1960s, receiving incremental upgrades in several variants, culminating in the Su-17 model. Despite its avionics and capacity limitations, over 3,000 units were built in total, of which more than half were exported to over a dozen air forces.

Mi-8PP / Mi-17PP (NATO: "Hip-K / Hip-H")

The Mi-8 was the general-purpose utility helicopter of the Warsaw Pact nations from the mid-1960s, with numerous versions found in civil and military service. It was not a stretch to find this airframe pressed into service as an airborne radio-electronic combat platform, with over thirty variants reported, including the Mi-8PP communications jammer variant with its visually distinctive X-shaped antennae along the fuselage. The Mi-17 was the given designation for export models of the Mi-8, including the Mi-17PP radio-electronic warfare variant. The Mi-8/-17 remains one of the most prolific helicopters in service, still in active production well over sixty years since its first flight.

Tu-16 (NATO: "Badger") / Xian H-6

The Tu-16 was one of the earliest jet bombers developed in the Soviet Union, with its first flight in April 1952, and entering operational service just two years later. Although initially designed to drop high-altitude, free-fall munitions, the aircraft was quickly adapted to a stand-off attack role with air-to-surface missiles, as well as other reconnaissance and radio-electronic warfare configurations. Such was its utility that this aircraft remains in service over seventy years since its inception, in a license-produced version by the Chinese as a conventional bomber with the H-6 model, as well as in a maritime strike version, the H-6D.

Tu-22 (NATO: "Blinder")

Entering service almost a decade after the Tu-16 as an early attempt at a supersonic bomber, the Tu-22 faced more hostility on the political front than any enemy aircraft, with Soviet nuclear doctrine leaning toward ballistic missiles rather than long-ranged bombers. Facing other operational deficiencies, the Tu-22 airframe was promptly diversified into other roles as a means of self-preservation, including aerial reconnaissance, radio-electronic warfare, maritime patrol and stand-off missile platform. As the latter, it was capable of mounting a Kh-22 anti-shipping missile, and served in both air forces of Long Range Aviation and Naval Aviation.

Tu-22M (NATO: "Backfire")

The first inkling of a new Tupolev bomber on the scene - one with variable-sweep geometry wings - was initially observed from satellite photos in 1969. The incorporation of the swing wing technology was reflective of the vogue which informed the Su-17 and MiG-23 projects, which happened to be in parallel development. Notwithstanding the deceptive designation referencing its predecessor, the Tu-22M was eventually revealed to be more than just a "minor upgrade", with superior range, speed and bomb load, and a reach of targets anywhere in Europe, the North Atlantic and the North Pacific.

Tu-160 (NATO: "Blackjack")

As the latest successor of the Soviet lineage of heavy bombers, there is not much which is subtle about the Tu-160: it is a supersonic, variable-sweep wing strategic bomber which is the largest, fastest and heaviest Mach 2-capable combat aircraft in the world. Incorporating a blended-wing design and fly-by-wire technology, the Tu-160 has been sporadically produced and upgraded over the years since its inception in the 1980s, reflecting the volatile climate following the fall of the Iron Curtain, yet remains in active service in small numbers.

Harbin H-5

As the product of the immediate postwar period, the Il-28 (NATO: Beagle) was a relatively simple machine, carrying a pilot and a gunner in a fighter-style cockpit, and a navigator in the glazed canopy nose. It mounted forward-firing guns as well as a tail turret, and incorporated a bomb bay within the fuselage. As with many Soviet designs of the time, it was adopted by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) as the H-5, initially as Soviet-supplied aircraft, and later manufactured locally by the Harbin aircraft company.

Air-to-Air Missiles

R-3S (NATO: "AA-2a/b Atoll") / PL-2/-5

When the Soviets got their hands on an unexploded AIM-9 Sidewinder in 1958 from the Chinese, they reverse-engineered their prize and created their own version as a direct copy, K-13 (R-3), right down to the exact 5-inch diameter. By 1960, the first models had been rushed into service, eventually becoming the most prolific Soviet air-to-air missile in both IR and radar-guided versions, and still remaining in service well into the 21st century. The Chinese-made PL-2 missile was, in turn, a copy of the Soviet K-13, and over the years it has been incrementally improved through several models, including the PL-5.

R-13M (NATO: "AA-2c/d Advanced Atoll")

The upgraded variant of the R-3, the R-13 (NATO: AA-2c/d Advanced Atoll) was created in the late 1960s, with an improved proximity fuze, increased range and maneuverability. It also carried a more sensitive seeker head providing a wider-angle tail aspect, although it still fell short somewhat of an all-aspect capability.

R-40 (NATO: "AA-6 Acrid")

The R-40 remains the largest air-to-air missile to enter service in history, developed in the early 1960s for use specifically on the MiG-25 Foxbat, which was the world's fastest interceptor in its time. A large warhead was required in order to ensure a kill at high speeds in thin air, and oversized control fins were added to provide enough control and maneuverability at high altitudes. As with most Soviet AAMs, it was created in both semi-active radar homing and infra-red homing versions, and has been in service with a multitude of air forces. In the 1991 Gulf War, this missile was famously used by an Iraqi MiG-25 to down a USN F/A-18 Hornet.

R-23/-24 (NATO: "AA-7 Apex")

One of the most ubiquitous medium-range AAMs in Soviet service, the R-23 and its updated variant, the R-24, has been closely compared with the NATO AIM-7 Sparrow in terms of capability and use. Unlike the latter, the R-23/24 has been created in semi-active radar homing and infra-red versions, with the improved variant having a bigger warhead, improved radar fuze, and increased resistance to jamming.

R-60 (NATO: "AA-8 Aphid")

The R-60 is a nimble, short-ranged infra-red AAM which, unusually for Soviet missiles, did not have a radar homing variant, mainly due to its reduced dimensions. It entered service in the mid-1970s and has proven to be a capable "dogfighting" weapon with a minimum range of 300m and launchable by aircraft maneuvering up to 9g. Curiously enough, it has also proven to be compatible with both Soviet and NATO-made fighters. It was superseded in the 1980s by the R-73 (NATO: AA-11 Archer), although it still remains in widespread service with almost two dozen nations.

R-33 (NATO: "AA-9 Amos")

In the same way that the R-40 was developed in tandem with the MiG-25, the R-33 was also created as the primary weapon for the MiG-31 platform (itself a modernized version of the MiG-25) and designed to attack high-speed, high-altitude strategic targets like the SR-71 Blackbird and B-1 Lancer. The initial prototype was produced as early as 1968, although it would spend the entirety of the following decade in research and development before it was approved for service in 1981.

R-27R/T/P (NATO: "AA-10 Alamo A/B/E") / R-27ER/ET/EP (NATO: "AA-10 Alamo C/D/F")

The popular and highly capable R-27 family of medium-ranged air-to-air missiles was developed as a successor to the R-23/24 in the 1970s as a medium- to long-ranged weapon for the next generation of Soviet fighters. Following the Soviet practice of reusing a proven design, the R-27 has been produced in infra-red, semi-active radar homing and passive radar homing versions, with standard and extended range models for each guidance type.

R-73 (NATO: "AA-11 Archer")

Drawing on the lessons learnt from the combat experience of the R-60, the R-73 was a generational improvement in missile design, with a wide-angle off-boresight capability as well as all-aspect infra-red homing. Notably, it can be targeted by a pilot using a helmet-mounted sight (HMS), which allows targets to be designated within the pilot's line-of-sight. Like its predecessor the R-27, the R-73 has proven to be quite popular and remains in service with over two dozen air forces in the world.

PL-8

Following the success of the Israeli-made Python-3 missile in the Lebanese conflicts in the early 1980s, the Chinese PLAAF quietly licensed a locally produced version, giving it the PiLi-8 (PL-8) designation. This technology transfer greatly boosted Chinese missile capabilities over the next decade, originally supplied by Israel as fully-operational imports, and later constructed with all locally-built components.

Air-to-Surface Missiles

Kh-66, Kh-23 (NATO: "AS-7 Kerry")

The Kh-23 and its predecessor, the Kh-66, was a precision-guidance ordnance compact enough to be carried by a single-seat strike aircraft, and its intended targets were vehicles and small boats. Following the usual Soviet economy of design, the missile's airframe was adapted from the K-8 (NATO: AA-3 Anab) air-to-air missile, with the initial Kh-66 model using a rudimentary beam-riding missile guidance, requiring the launch aircraft to maintain heading towards the target to keep lock. The Kh-66 went into production in 1968 for the MiG-21. This was soon followed by the Kh-23 in 1973, with improved line-of-sight radio-command guidance and as its designation suggests, intended for use on the MiG-23.

Kh-25 (NATO: "AS-10 Karen") / Kh-25MP (NATO: "AS-12 Kegler")

The Kh-25 was the successor to the later-development models of the Kh-66/23 family, incorporating research experience gained from developing the previous systems. Additional research and testing occupied most of the 1970s, with multiple variants including the Kh-25MP (anti-radar), Kh-25ML (laser-guided) and Kh-25MR (radio-guided) models gradually entering service throughout the same decade.

Kh-28 (NATO: "AS-9 Kyle")

The Kh-28 was the first Soviet purpose-built tactical anti-radiation missile, entering service the same year (1973) as the Kh-23. The missile was developed as a complimentary weapon for the Yak-28PP electronic warfare aircraft, with inertial guidance and a passive anti-radar seeker head, although significant developmental delays meant that the aircraft had ceased production by the time the weapon was ready. The weapon was instead adapted for use on other front-line strike aircraft such as the Su-24 "Fencer-A" and Su-17M "Fitter-C".

Kh-59 (NATO: "AS-13 Kingbolt")

Developed in the 1970s as an improvement of the Kh-25, the Kh-59 entered service at the top of the decade in 1980. It was intended for use with front-line strike aircraft such as the Su-24M and late-model MiG-27s. When used together with the APK-9E Tekon data link pod, it allows sensor imagery to be transmitted to the launch aircraft as well as for the weapon's operator to visually identify the target, in order to send steering commands to lock the missile onto the target.

Kh-58, Kh-58U (NATO: "AS-11 Kilter")

The Kh-58 was created in tandem with the development of the Su-24M "Fencer-D" upgrade as a primary anti-radiation weapon, and both were deployed into operational service in 1982. Since then, the missile has been developed into several variants, including a version with extended range and lock-on-after-launch capability. There have also been a number of export versions, and remains in active service for use on fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft.

Kh-29 (NATO: "AS-14 Kedge")

The Kh-29 also entered operational service in 1980, as a medium-sized guided munition capable of attacking infrastructural and industrial targets such as buildings, bridges, hardened shelters and even naval vessels up to the size of a destroyer. In true Soviet fashion of reusing a proven design, the K-29's airframe is broadly similar to the R-60 (NATO: AA-8 Aphid), with a laser guidance seeker adapted from the Kh-25 and television guidance from the Kh-59.

Air-to-Ground Weapons

FAB-100/-250/-500/-1500 Iron Bombs

The Soviet nomenclature for a general purpose (GP) bomb is derived from its designation, fugasnaya aviatsionnaya bomba (FAB), followed by its weight in kilograms, and visually characterized by circular ringed airfoils. The FAB series is roughly analogous with the NATO Mark 80 family of GP bombs. These weapons have been built in various weights, including 100kg (220lb), 250 kg (550lb), 500kg (1,100lb), 1,500kg (3,300lb) and 3,000kg (6,600lb).

KAB-500L/-500L-KE/-500-Kr/-1500L Guided Bombs

The Soviet family of precision-guided munitions, korrektiruyeskaya aviatsionnaya bomba (KAB), was first developed in the 1970s, based on experiences with similar American munitions from wars in the Middle East and Vietnam. The KAB-500L and KAB-1500L in this respect are comparable to the NATO Paveway series of laser-guided bombs, along with other variants such as the KAB-500L-KE laser-guided cluster bomb and KAB-500-Kr TV-guided bomb.

ODAB-500P Fuel Air Explosive

The ODAB-500P Fuel Air Explosive (FAE) bomb was brought into service toward the end of the 1970s, designed to incapacitate soft-skinned targets such as personnel and minefields, and destroy industrial facilities. The FAE uses oxygen from the surrounding air to create a high-temperature, high-pressure detonation which produces one of the most powerful conventional explosions, short of a nuclear detonation.

BetAB-500 Hard Target Penetrator

The BetAB-500 Hard Target Penetrator is a concrete-piercing bomb designed to penetrate and destroy reinforced concrete structures such as aircraft and storage shelters, runways and aprons, roads and even warships, with a penetrative effect of up to 1m of concrete and 3m of soil.

ZB-500 Napalm Bomb

The ZB 500 is an incendiary free-fall bomb which contains an explosive material comprising toluene, kerosene and polystyrene known as Ognesmes, similar to napalm. It was first developed in the 1970s, and was originally classified as a chemical weapon because of the nature of its component ingredients.

RN-28/-40 and KB-1 Tactical Nuclear Bombs

The RN-28 and RN-40 free-fall nuclear bombs were the standard tactical devices deployed with Soviet forces through the 1970s and 1980s. They could be set with variable yields (1 -10kT for R-28, or 5-30kT for RN-40) and could be launched by most of the front-line strike aircraft in the Soviet arsenal. The Chinese forces also had a similar air-launched tactical bomb, known as the Kuangbiao-1 (KB-1).

Special Rule: The RN-28/-40 and KB-1 may only be used in a Campaign if it is included on the Weapons list, and when the Ops Track has reached the Tactical Nuclear Authorization space. This reflects the state of the campaign reaching a tipping point where the Party Secretariat has authorized the use of desperate measures to swing the conflict back into its favor. The rules for resolving a Tactical Nuclear Weapon attack are covered on page 58.

RBK-250/-500 Cluster Bombs

The RBK (razovaya bombovaya kasseta) series of cluster bombs has been in service since the early 1970s, designed to disperse a payload of fragmentary submunitions over a wide area. The weapons could be used to target soft objectives such as personnel and vehicles, as well as adapted with other types of submunitions such as airfield cratering, anti-armor and incendiary warheads.

UB-16/-32 Rocket Pods

The UB-16-57 and UB-32-57 Rocket Pods were developed in the 1960s as aircraft-mounted rocket weapons, with a variety of warheads including high-explosive, high-explosive anti-tank, fragmentary, flechettes, chaff and smoke. In Fulcrum Leader, the different types of Rockets are treated as a generic munition type.

Cannon

Over the decades, a number of different autocannons were employed in Soviet and Chinese aircraft, including the 23mm Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 and Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23, as well as in the larger 30mm calibre by Nudelman-Rikhter (NR-30) and Gryazev-Shipunov (GSh-30-1, GSh-30-2 and GSh-6-30). In Fulcrum Leader, the different types of autocannons are treated as a generic Cannon weapon. When an Aircraft is Damaged, its Cannon becomes inoperable.

Note: There are no Gun Pod counters in Fulcrum Leader.

ECM Pod

The Soviet air forces employed various models of ECM pods, including the SPS-141/142/143 series of defensive jammers, the Konteiner 1 escort jammer pod, and the L-166S1 IR jammer. They share a common purpose of defending the Aircraft from enemy radar detection and radar-guided attacks. In Fulcrum Leader, the different types of ECM Pods are treated as a generic jammer type.

ECM Pods are carried using the Aircraft's Weight Points, but not expended like other Weapons. They remain with the Aircraft throughout the Mission and are always in effect, unless the Aircraft is Damaged. ECM Pods remain in effect even when the Pilot is Unfit.

Special Rules: Each time the Aircraft is Attacked by a Site or Bandit or when reacting to a Special Event Attack when Weapon counters can be expended to reduce the number of Attacks, roll a die for the ECM Pod before Suppressing or Evading. The Attack is negated on a roll of 6 or higher. A Pilot whose Aircraft is equipped with Internal ECM or an ECM Pod still suffers 1 Stress when Evading. If the Aircraft becomes Damaged, the ECM Pod counter is removed from the Aircraft.

Each Aircraft can only carry 1 ECM Pod. An Aircraft with Internal ECM which also carries an ECM Pod uses the better effect of the two when making a Decoy roll.

Example: Sable 501 is an Su-27 which has Internal ECM with a value of 8. It also carries an ECM Pod, which has an ECM value of 6. When attempting to Decoy an Attack with ECM, it uses its ECM Pod (6) and makes one Decoy roll to check if it succeeds.

Note: Section 17 (Credits, including the Designers' Note and the list of expansions) and Appendix B (Selected Bibliography) of the printed rulebook are not transcribed. They contain attribution and reference lists rather than rules.