Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy

About this board game

Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy is a two-player naval wargame from 2008, with games lasting about 240 minutes. It covers Allied efforts to move convoys through the Norwegian and Barents Seas while German aircraft, submarines, and surface ships attempt to destroy them.

Players operate across two maps spanning the seas from Iceland to Novaya Zemlya, and from the Norwegian coast to the Arctic pack ice. Both maps are used in almost every scenario, creating a broad battlefield that conveys the scale and isolation of these waters.

In most scenarios, the Allied objective is clear: guide large convoys of vital merchant shipping to their destination. German forces begin with bases in Norway, supported by submarines and aircraft that can attack the convoy repeatedly. Surface ships are fewer in number, but the open sea gives them room to hide and strike when the convoy is vulnerable.

Aircraft are drawn in a semi-random fashion, meaning neither player has perfect information about their numbers or locations. Escort forces are also stretched thin by the wider war, leaving the Allied player to protect merchant shipping across a demanding operational area.

• Scenarios inspired by operations including PQ12 and PQ17
• British carrier raids and German-Soviet destroyer skirmishes
• Aircraft, submarines, surface ships, merchant shipping, and convoy escorts
• Numerous scenarios and variations to explore

With its mix of convoy protection, hidden threats, open-water interception, and uncertain air strength, Second World War at Sea: Arctic Convoy presents the vast and desolate Arctic theater through a wide range of historical situations.