
- BGG rating
- 7.7
Hornet Leader II: Carrier Air Group
- 1 player
- 120 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
- 2005

2005
Rules assistance for Hornet Leader II
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 1 player

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Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Hornet Leader II is a board game released in 2005 for 1 player, 60 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Dan Verssen and its main mechanics are Area Movement, Dice Rolling, and Simulation.
From the publisher's website: Hornet Leader II is based on the original award-winning design published by GMT Games back in 1991. Like the original game, Hornet Leader II is designed from the ground up as a solitaire game. The game places you in command of the pilots and aircraft of a modern day squadron of U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet Strike fighters. When you play the game, you will plan and carry-out missions in one of three built-in campaign settings: Libya, North Korea, or Iraq. Each campaign takes place in a different era, so your weapon options change with each campaign. A major part of the game is mission planning. You get to decide how your Hornets are to be armed, and which pilots are best for the mission based on their Air-to-Air and Air-to-Ground skills. Missions are quickly resolved with the priority placed on speed and realism. Hornet Leader II has retained all the key decision-making aspects of the original game, while greatly streamlining the game mechanics. While performing each mission, you get to decide how your pilots engage the enemy Bandits, SAMs, and AAA Sites. This makes for some tough choices, the more suppression munitions, you haul to the target, the safer your pilots will be, but the less likely you are to destroy the target. Available in two formats: - Virtual Tabletop Game using the Vassal Engine - PDF files to download and print. (http://www.dvg.com/.sc/ms/dd/Vassal%5E2FPDF%20Games/3/Hornet%20Leader%20II) Hornet Leader II was a nominee in the Charles S. Roberts awards for Best Modern Era Boardgame (Charles S. Roberts Awards) for 2005. Other Leader series games by Dan Verssen
Hornet Leader II 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 Hornet Leader II is 60 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 Hornet Leader II 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.
Hornet Leader II has a complexity rating of 2.1 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-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.
Hornet Leader II belongs to these categories: Card Game, Wargame, and Print & Play. Its main mechanics are Area Movement, Dice Rolling, 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 Hornet Leader II are: Dan Verssen. 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 Hornet Leader II 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.