John ran a simple CYS scenario with Russ and Mark taking the Germans (two Me 109's) versus the Americans (myself and John) in P-51 Mustangs.
We rolled for quality of pilot - myself and Mark were Aces, Russ was Veteran and John was Green - this affects how well you can react and engage in combat.
The game is fairly straightforward - in the scenario we chose our opening speed and height (all of us chose maximum height and speed). Then based on your speed and height you can choose your next manouvre which will then determine where you'll end up (e.g. a dive allows you to pick up speed but you lose height, a climb gains height but loses speed). Put in turns and special manouvres (split S and Immelmans for example) and you have everything you need to get into a combat position - our out of trouble.
All moves happen simultaneously, so you try to plan not only where you want to be, but where your opponent is likely to be. You then move in turn (Aces first, Greenhorns last) and then determine if a shot can be got in on an opponent. If you can, you add in all the modifiers to give a score to beat on two dice. Beat it and you can roll for damage (based on the number of guns you can bring to bear) - where 6's are misses. The final roll is then looked up on a table to see what damage (if any) is inflicted.
It was - I must admit - great fun. John had got the aircraft on radio aerials which could be raised or lowered to define altitude (a great visual effect as you can see if you need to climb or dive based on your opponents position). Of course, you can't shoot at anyone more than 1 altitude above or below you, so a lot of the game is about manouvre to get a shot it - the best position being directly behind (as there is no modifier for deflection shooting).
The battles are fast and furious as we dove and climbed to get into the opposition. We managed to turn inside the attacking Germans and quite quickly I managed to get inside point blank range of Russ' ME109. I opened up with my 6 MG's and (as he failed his save) blew him out of the sky! My first kill - but there was no time for a victory roll as Russ magically re-appeared in a Me110.
John and I swirled around the sky trying to avoid the slower 110 with its front cannon and rear MG while still getting shots in on Mark. I managed a salvo on Mark's Me109 and damaged his airframe - making his aircraft sluggish in response. As bits fell off he turned and twisted but to no avail. I managed to get on his tail and gave him a shower of lead up his backside. This resulted in a failed roll and Mark's Me109 plunged earthwards as he desperately tried to screw in his monocle and open the hood at the same time with a cry of 'Ach - Amerikana schwein!'. Another kill for me!
Russ made his serene progress around the sky and we serenely stayed out of his way. Then Mark returned in another Me109 and made a direct line for me (as I was lining up behind the slow moving Russ, who'd already had a pop at John). I found that I was at low altitude and low speed and therefore massively vulnerable. I decided to get out of Dodge and dove for the deck, leaving Mark chewing frantically on his cigarette holder and waving his gloved fist out of the cockpit.
So the Yanks won by downing two Germans (including an Ace) for no reply. Go USA!
Review
I really liked the rules. I needed John's help initially to get going but soon got the hang of it. The beauty of it is that you don't need much in the way of metal to play (just 4-5 planes did the job on the night) and the rules account for hundreds of different types of aircraft. Movement is simple and I found John's idea of having them on car aerials worked well as a visual reference.
Of course, the more planes in the sky, the more chance of getting a shot in (and getting shot at yourself) and so more action. Apparently better players can control 4-5 planes each so there's plenty of scope for action.
I'd definitely recommend the rules for anyone who's into WW2 fighter combat. There's also scope for Korean War combat as well.
In the meantime, tally ho and watch for the Hun in the sun!