- BGG rating
- 6.7
Airborne Commander: SNAFU
- 1 player
- 30 min
- 2018
- BGG rank
- BGG #7,052
- BGG rating
- 7.0
Airborne Commander
2015
Rules assistance for Airborne Commander
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1 player
- 30 min
- 12+
- Complexity 1.9/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Airborne Commander
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Airborne Commander is a board game released in 2015 for 1 player, 30 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Aaron Lauster and its main mechanics are Events, Solo / Solitaire Game, and Deck, Bag, and Pool Building.
Expansions
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About the game
Airborne Commander is a solitaire WW2 paratrooper deck building game depicting the 101st Airborne Division's actions in support of the D-Day landings. Beginning with a starting deck of just a few men, a couple non-coms and a lieutenant, face off against the German deck while trying desperately to recruit more cards from the drop zone in order to build up your force for assaults against objectives. Points are earned for defeating enemy cards and taking objectives, but combat can result in lost cards and the dilution of the deck with disorganized cards providing a tense "deck survival" experience. Combat includes small arms fire, suppression fire, bazookas, gammon grenades, anti-tank guns, indirect artillery support and air strikes. German cards represent the actual forces and terrain present including personnel from Ost battalions and static divisions, armored cars, STUGs, blockhouses, Rommel's asparagus and flooded fields. The objective cards represent the actual causeways, locks, artillery positions, headquarters and other locations that were assigned and have features unique to each. Assign your airborne cards to one of three areas: The Battleground, Support Area, or the Reserve. Weigh the cost of buying time with your troopers against suffering reverses in order to get more and better equipped men. Do you take the mortar from the drop zone for its firepower or a high ranking officer for his additional actions? Only the airborne commander can decide. Airborne Commander First Printing includes two full color decks each in its own tuck box. The card illustrations include 40 original paintings of men in action, equipment and locations. Airborne Commander Second Printing includes two full color decks and rules in the box. The card illustrations include 44 original paintings of men in action, equipment and locations, including the 4 stretch goal cards from the Kickstarter campaign.
Categories
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- StrataMax Games
Questions and answers
Airborne Commander 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 Airborne Commander is 30 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 Airborne Commander for ages 12 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.
Airborne Commander has a complexity rating of 1.9 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light 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.
Airborne Commander belongs to these categories: Card Game, Wargame, and World War II. Its main mechanics are Events, Solo / Solitaire Game, and Deck, Bag, and Pool Building. 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 Airborne Commander are: Aaron Lauster. 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 Airborne Commander 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.