Stats:
No. of players: 1
Amount of time to play: 60 min or more (depending on the chosen campaign length)
Age requirements: 12+
Set-up time: 10 min

Hornet Leader puts you in control of a squadron of fighter planes. You must fly missions to destroy targets while avoiding or eliminating enemy fighters and defenses.

Hornet Leader Description:

Hornet Leader lets you build a force of fighter planes and pilots then outfit them to complete the mission. You score points based on how well you perform over the length of the campaign. There are eight campaigns with different levels of difficulty. Each campaign has long, medium and short play options. Based on the campaign length, you can choose a certain number of pilots at different skill levels.

After you choose the campaign you want to play and the game length, you choose your target. Different targets come with different defenses and might include enemy fighter planes. The target also tells you how many fighter planes can fly the mission.

The next thing you do is outfit your fighters. Each plane can carry a certain amount of weight and different munitions weigh different amounts. Some munitions are for air-to-air combat while others are meant for air-to-ground combat.

Next you draw an event card for your approach to the target. Some events help you and others hinder your progress. You draw another event card once you are over the target. Then you place your fighters on the tactical display and see if any enemy fighters appear. At this point you have five turns to destroy the target.

If you encounter an enemy fighter you might want to dump some of your air-to-ground munitions. The more of these you have the bigger penalty you take in air-to-air combat. After this decision any pilots with the fast trait attack. The enemy’s defenses retaliate and then pilots with the slow trait attack.

When attacking you roll a ten-sided die and add or subtract your pilot’s skill rating to the roll. You can always use your ship’s guns but need a ten or better to hit. Your munitions will have a target number you’ll need to toll in order to hit. Some weapons will do extra damage the higher you roll.

When being attacked you may try to suppress the attack. This requires you to use munitions or guns and score a hit. If you do no damage is done to the attacker but their attack is canceled. If you fail to suppress an attack you can try to evade the attack. This increases your pilot’s stress by two but lets you roll the attack die twice and take the lower value.

When hit by enemies you might gain stress, be damaged and lose your weapons or be destroyed. If your pilot takes too much stress their skills will diminish and eventually they’ll become unfit to fly.

To end the turn you can move one space on the tactical grid and then move any enemy fighters. When you move you can change altitudes which can determine what enemies can attack you and what weapons you can fire.

After looping through this five times you return home to your base. This requires you to resolve an event card. Before you prepare for the next mission pilots can gain new levels and reduce their stress.

You can fly one mission per day. And the length of campaign you chose determines the number of days you play. You score points based on how many targets you destroy, how many planes you lost and the campaign length.

Quick Review of Hornet Leader:

Hornet Leader is a fun and tactical, solitaire air combat game. You need to plan your assault and outfit your fighters wisely to succeed. There is a lot of detail and meat on this game and every decision you make matters.

The components for this game are very nice. There are a ton of counters and cards and they are all well made. The rules are detailed and full of examples. You will probably need them close by your first couple of times through but you’ll understand everything you need to do.

I like the tension and importance of the decisions you make in this game. Trying to push your luck against enemy units can really turn out bad for you, but at times you may have to do it.

Planning your mission will determine your success. This may take a few flights to figure out but what munitions you put on your planes means a lot. This detail may overwhelm some but I enjoy it. You need to manage your resources specifically your munitions or you’ll have a hard time taking out the target.

Hornet Leader – Carrier Air Operations is a really fun solo game. If you like planning and managing details and resources you’ll like this game. It is very fun if you enjoy air combat and since it is solitaire you don’t need to have to gather a group to play it with. If this game sounds interesting to you, you should try it out. If you enjoy the other games in the leader series, you’ll enjoy this one too.

Score and synopsis: (Click here for an explanation of these review categories.)
Strategy 4 out of 6
Luck 5 out of 6
Player Interaction N/A
Replay Value 5 out of 6
Complexity 4 out of 6
Fun 5 out of 6
Overall 5 out of 6