Beneath the Med: Regia Marina at Sea 1940-1943

About this board game

Beneath the Med: Regia Marina at Sea 1940-1943 is a solitaire tactical-level game for one player, with an average playing time of 180 minutes. You command an Italian submarine during World War II, beginning in 1940 and attempting to survive until the armistice in September 1943.

Choose from ten accurately profiled Italian submarine classes, each reflecting its historical period of service, armaments, crew composition, damage capacity, and other details. Your objectives include sinking Allied shipping and capital ships, but survival is difficult under heavy Allied air cover and with the problematic fire-control systems of Italian boats.

Patrol assignments shift as the war progresses and range from the Eastern, Central, and Western Mediterranean to the Atlantic, Brazilian Coast, Caribbean, Singapore, Spanish Coast, and West African Coast. The campaign includes encounters with individual ships, escorted vessels, convoys, enemy submarines, and aircraft, with both daytime and nighttime engagements.

• 480 uniquely identified historical shipping targets, including freighters, tankers, American ships, and 20 capital ships
• Special missions for commando delivery, supply delivery to Japan, human torpedo attacks, and minelaying
• Detailed damage covering flooding, hull, torpedo doors, crew injuries, engines, batteries, hydrophones, weapons, radio, and more
• Crew advancement, commander promotion, Italian decorations, and situational German awards

Patrol decisions include evasive maneuvers, aborting a patrol, passing Gibraltar, handling torpedo duds, and reassignment to a newer submarine. Random historical events and variable escort quality add further uncertainty to each mission.

Fans of The Hunters series will find a familiar, nail-biting game system in Beneath the Med, alongside multiplayer and tournament rule options. Its submarine patrol map, combat mat, display mats, player aids, counters, dice, and patrol log support a highly replayable campaign experience.