Devil Boats: PT Boats in the Solomons is a Solitaire, Tactical-level Wargame. You, as Commander, will lead a Squadron of 4 US Navy PT Boats on nightly Missions against Japanese Forces in the Solomon Islands during the Summer months of 1943.
Sleek, fast, and heavily-armed, US Navy PT Boats were soon given the nickname Devil Boats by Imperial Japanese Forces for their ability to suddenly show up out of nowhere, inflict heavy damage and then quickly disappear again under the cover of night. From General Douglas Mc Arthur’s evacuation from the Philippines in 1942, throughout numerous bloody South Pacific Island Naval Battles and finally upon the eventual return of US Forces to the Philippines in 1945, US Navy PT Boats played a small but important role in the South Pacific Campaign during World War II.
Devil Boats: PT Boats in the Solomons covers the months from July to September 1943, the most active months during the Campaign against Japanese Forces in the New Georgia Islands Area as US Forces advanced northward. As PT Boat Commander, you will lead up to four PT Boats on nightly Patrols from your PT Base on Rendova Island. Your primary goal is to sink as many IJN Barges as possible in an attempt to prevent them from transporting Troops and Supplies to the surrounding Islands. But that’s easier said than done, as Enemy Air Patrols and the occasional IJN Destroyer will do their best to sink you and your Squadron. And don’t think that sinking IJN Barges will be easy. They were armored and very tough, requiring hundreds or even thousands of PT Gun shell hits to sink. More often than not, they escaped into the night.
You may occasionally be assigned a Special Mission, such as picking up a downed Allied Airman, dropping off Supplies to a Coastwatcher, or even shelling an Enemy Supply dump. But beware, hidden Enemy Machine Gun nests and shore Guns may await as your Boats approach the shoreline. Other hazards you and your Squadron will likely face are bad weather with heavy seas, reef collisions and a multitude of random events.
Contents: 1 Counter Sheet of 5/8″ Unit-counters, 1 Strategic Movement Map Board, 1 PT Boat Crewmen Placement Board, 1 Combat Board, 1 Special Missions Board, 1 PT Boat Damage Log Sheet, 1 PT Boat Damage Repair Times Sheet, 1 PT Boat Squadron Status Sheet, 1 IJN Barge Status Sheet, 1 Special Missions / Destroyer Status Sheet, 3 PT Campaign Log Sheets, 1 Tables Book, 1 Rules Book, two 6-sided Dice, four 10-sided Dice and one 4-sided Dice, 1 Erasable Marker, 1 Box and 1 Lid.