- BGG rating
- 8.1
Second World War at Sea: Imperial and Royal Navy
- 1–2 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2008
- BGG rank
- BGG #14,327
- BGG rating
- 7.4
Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy
2008
Rules assistance for Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2 players
- 30–240 min
- 12+
- Complexity 3.0/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy is a board game released in 2008 for 2 players, 30–240 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Michael Bennighof and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Secret Unit Deployment, and Hexagon Grid.
Expansions
- BGG rating
- 7.9
Second World War at Sea: The Tsar's Navy
- 1–2 players
- 30 min
- 2009
- BGG rating
- 8.0
Second World War at Sea: The Kaiser's Navy
- 2 players
- 30 min
- Complexity 3.5/5
- 2012
- BGG rating
- 6.8
Second World War at Sea: Gin Palace
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- 2016
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Second World War at Sea: Plan Z
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- 30 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2016
- BGG rating
- 8.1
Second Great War at Sea: The Cruel Sea
- 2 players
- 30–240 min
- 2019
- BGG rating
- 7.8
Second World War at Sea: Plan Z – Stolen Fleets
- 2 players
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2020
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About the game
Arctic Convoy is the newest boxed game in the Second World War at Sea series. It covers the Allied attempts to push convoys through the Norwegian and Barents Seas while German aircraft, submarines and surface ships try to stop them. Famous convoy operations like those of PQ12 and PQ17, British carrier raids, German-Soviet destroyer skirmishes along the Arctic coast — all of these and more are included. Like all games in the series, this one come stuffed with scenarios and variations on them. Most scenarios are very straightforward — each side knows what the other must do. The Allied player has large convoys of vital merchant shipping that must reach their destination. The German player has bases in Norway well-placed to intercept them, with submarines and aircraft that can hit them almost continuously. As in Bomb Alley, aircraft are drawn in a semi-random fashion so neither player has perfect intelligence about their numbers and location. German surface ships are few in number, but there's a lot of open sea in which they can hide and strike the convoys at vulnerable moments. And with war raging simultaneously on many other fronts, the convoy escort forces are stretched very, very thin. There are two maps, covering the Norwegian and Barents Seas from Iceland in the southwest to Novaya Zemlya in the northeast, from the Norwegian coast to the Arctic pack ice. It's one of the larger play areas in the Second World War at Sea series, and unlike Leyte Gulf's three maps, both of these are in use in almost every scenario. Players quickly get a sense of the huge and desolate oceans in which they must operate.
Categories
Designers
Publishers
- Avalanche Press Ltd.
Questions and answers
Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy supports 2 players 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 Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy is 30–240 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 Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy 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.
Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy 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.
Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy belongs to these categories: Wargame, Nautical, and World War II. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling, Secret Unit Deployment, and Hexagon Grid. 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 Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy are: Michael Bennighof. 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 Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy 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.