- BGG rank
- BGG #13,731
- BGG rating
- 8.4
8th Air Force
- 1 player
- 120–240 min
- Complexity 2.0/5
- 2020
- BGG rank
- BGG #15,614
- BGG rating
- 8.1
20th Air Force
2020
Rules assistance for 20th Air Force
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1 player
- 120–150 min
- 10+
- Complexity 3.0/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for 20th Air Force
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
20th Air Force is a board game released in 2020 for 1 player, 120–150 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Robert Phaneuf and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Variable Set-up, and Simulation.
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About the game
A Solitaire Game of the Strategic Bombing Campaign against Japan: 1944-1945 On April 18, 1942, Jimmy Doolittle led a squadron of carrier-based B25 Mitchells on a daring surprise raid on Tokyo. The raid, conducted as revenge for the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor four months earlier, caused little damage but was a harbinger of the destruction from the air that was destined to befall the islands of Japan… By 1944, US forces had seized island bases in the Marianas close enough to Japan to employ the new long range B29 Superfortresses in a high-stakes strategic bombing campaign against Japanese industries and cities. So began the short (late 1944 until August 1945) but incredibly destructive life of the United States Army Air Force’s (USAAF’s) 20th Air Force. Your objective as you take command of the 20th Air Force in September 1944 is nothing short of reducing Japan’s cities, large and small, to smoldering rubble! To do it you’ve got the powerful and sophisticated B29, in ever increasing numbers and with flight crews improving in combat and navigation skills, and a research effort you direct to develop more and more sophisticated weapons. While initially you must focus on clearing the sky of Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF) fighters and blasting Japanese war industries with high explosive bombs, eventually you will develop incendiary bombs which rapidly reduce Japan’s combustible wooden and paper cities to ashes, and their dispersed war industries to ruins. Simultaneously, demolish her ports and kamikaze bases, and mine her waters. In the meantime, research marches on, perhaps you will obtain the ultimate weapon, the Atomic Bomb? Hopefully you will, because you are in a race against time – if Japan can hold out long enough the US will have to launch “Operation Olympic”, the costly planned invasion of Japan, and your strategic bombing campaign will have failed.
Questions and answers
20th Air Force supports 1 player according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for 20th Air Force is 120–150 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists 20th Air Force for ages 10 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
20th Air Force has a complexity rating of 3.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
20th Air Force belongs to these categories: Wargame, World War II, and Aviation / Flight. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Variable Set-up, and Simulation. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of 20th Air Force are: Robert Phaneuf. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists 20th Air Force as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.