Off to a flying start!
over 1 year ago
– Wed, Feb 01, 2023 at 06:14:39 AM
Off to a flying start!
Workin' 9 to 5, what a way to make a livin'
Work in progress
We hope you had a great holiday season and New Year. January 2023 has been a very busy yet creative time for us. We have been pushing onward with design work on both core games and expansions, including writing out the rulebook, refining card and counter designs, finalizing components, and first-run beta testing on game mechanics.
Into the Fulcrum
Continuing with our survey of in-game aircraft, we turn our attention to some of the stars of Fulcrum Leader.
MiG-29 Fulcrum-C (two-tone lizard camo)
MiG-29 Fulcrum
Entering service originally as an air-to-air combat fighter, the MiG-29 (NATO: Fulcrum) was a direct replacement for the MiG-23 (NATO: Flogger-B/G/K) in the frontal avaition forces, featuring an innovative blended-wing-body (BWB) design. This limited role was quickly expanded into multi-mission capability in later models, with an enhanced capability to carry both air and ground munitions. The various models of the MiG-29 have enjoyed great popularity as an export aircraft to over two dozen nations, and remains in service almost four decades on.
Su-17 Fitter (tactical camo)
Su-17Fitter
The Su-17 (NATO: Fitter-C) fighter-bomber (and its descendants, the Su-20/22) was the first Soviet variable-geometry wing to enter operational service. Its then-modern configuration proved to be successful, with improved take-off and landing as well as superior handling and extended combat endurance. Its longevity speaks to the success of its design, serving for four decades with over two dozen nations. On 19 August 1981, a pair of Libyan Su-22 (Fitter-H) variants were infamously involved in the Gulf of Sidra incident, attacking and then being shot down by a pair of F-14 Tomcats.
Chengdu J-7
Chengdu J-7
The inclusion of the PLAAF Chengdu J-7 (NATO: Fishcan) from the Far East Expansion is a prime example of how Soviet-allied nations benefited from technology exchanges - in this instance, an aircraft based on the MiG-21 (NATO: Fishbed). Even so, documentation and parts kits provided by the Soviet company were incomplete, and Chinese engineers set about reverse-engineering the aircraft. This eventually resulted in the home-grown J-7 model, which was affordable enough to be exported to over a dozen nations (some of them in down-rated variants) in its own right, where it continues in service to this day.
Shoutout to the team!
Finally, a project like this can only be the result of the collaboration and efforts of many skilled and exceptional people coming together.
If the games are successful, it is largely thanks to them - from the subject-matter experts who quietly provide advice and background support, to the artists and visual designers whose work you can see and touch, to the testers who "test pilot" the work-in-progress, and telling us what works and what doesn't.
We gratefully acknowledge the following:
Chris DiNote
Vladimir Dudas
Rafa Mendoza
Ben Rawlins
Mitch Reed
Captain Vlk
Philip Wohlrab
James L. Young
Doug, Phil and Ben, Co-Designers
Newest DVG Kickstarter is Making a Heroic Stand!
over 1 year ago
– Sat, Jan 07, 2023 at 11:19:58 AM
Our newest Kickstarter is entering its final days and it needs your help to make a heroic stand and receive the funding it needs to make it to the printer! This is a great new solitaire series, easy to learn, fast playing, with a small footprint. You can also easily play them co-op with friends or people you'd like to introduce to the hobby. Please take a look and help us bring this great new series to life!
Closing out the year
over 1 year ago
– Sat, Dec 24, 2022 at 10:47:27 PM
Closing out the year
First, some bookkeeping
We're about a fortnight into the BackerKit pledge manager with 93% responses completed thus far! To those who have filled out your orders, thank you very much!
If you are still waiting, please complete your survey. It isn't as hard as it sounds - check the previous updates for details on how it's done. If you have any questions or didn't receive your survey, you can contact DVG here, or else drop a line to [email protected].
Eagle and Co
To round things off, we thought we'd give you a look at the aircraft in the game starting with Eagle Leader. All this eye-popping artwork has been lovingly and amazingly created by Ben Rawlings.
The F-15 Eagle
F-15 Eagle
The headline aircraft for Eagle Leader, the F-15 captures the essence of 4th Generation fighters. While the Leader series has traditionally been focused on multirole aircraft, the F-15C is strictly air-to-air. The later F-15E is a multirole strike fighter, but the original F-15 was made with the motto "not a pound for air-to-ground." In Eagle Leader, that's represented by a higher percentage of air target missions than Hornet Leader.
The EF-111 Raven, also known as the Sparkvark
EF-111 Raven
The EF-111 Raven takes advantage of the new "stress for effect" rules, to give some more fidelity to the electronic warfare mission. The EF-111 has three stress for effect missions - Enhance, Deny, and Spoof.
Enhance is the typical DVG mission of making all aircraft in the same sector harder to hit.
Deny jams a specific radar SAM type on the board, making all of them unable to fire.
Spoof interrupts an enemy site attack, and redirects it to the EF-111 at a substantial penalty, representing a weapon hitting a fake target, but the low possibility of the missile finding the EF-111!
Phil really wanted to put this aircraft in the game because of how important it was to USAF planning in the 1980s, and to put a new mechanic in the Leader series to represent a crucial part of 4th Generation jet warfare.
The A-7D Corsair II
The A-7D Corsair II
The Eagle team wanted to make sure the Air National Guard was included in the fight. In real life, the Guard provides a lot of necessary support to the Air Force. In the 1980s, the A-7D was a Guard-exclusive aircraft. While the Air Force got the most out of the A-7D over Vietnam in the early 1970s, and the US Navy continued to use the A-7 until the 1990s, the Guard's A-7D experience was firmly cemented in the 1980s. A-7Ds saw combat in Panama, in Operation Just Cause - the Ohio Air National Guard's 166th TFS and South Dakota's 175th TFS. The A-7 isn't as capable as the F-15E or F-16C, but it is still useful as a bomb or missile truck.
I keep my distance, but you still catch my eye...
And on that note...
The final days of 2022 are upon us, and with that comes the festivity of holidays and celebrations with friends and family. We would like to wish one and all Seasons' Greetings and Happy Holidays!
Whether you're merrymaking or reflective, festive or sober, may your days be merry and bright and filled with great tidings!
Best Wishes to all!
Phil, Ben and Doug, Co-Designers
Pledges back on track
over 1 year ago
– Thu, Dec 08, 2022 at 05:23:24 AM
Pledges back on track
Don't mess with the mogwai.
Thank you for your patience while the issues on BackerKit were sorted out. There was a problem in the shipping configuration which hadn't occured in previous BackerKits, which has now been fixed so that it won't happen again. Hopefully, the gremlins are gone from the system.
The pledges should be showing the correct shipping amounts, as well as reflecting the correct items in the All-In pledge.
If you have not completed your checkout on BackerKit, you can go ahead and do that now.
If you have already completed your checkout on BackerKit, your pledge should reflect the correct shipping as well as the correct items in the All-In pledge, so there is no need to do anything further.
As always, please do not hesitate to comtact [email protected] if you have any issues with the pledge manager.
Doug, Ben and Phil, Co-Designers
Gremlins in the system
over 1 year ago
– Sat, Dec 03, 2022 at 09:24:11 AM
Gremlins in the system
Someone forgot the rules and fed him after midnight…
Firstly, we are sorry for the ongoing issues with the BackerKit surveys. Please accept our apologies for the glitches, which have left many of you confused and annoyed.
We know that the pledge manager has calculated the shipping costs incorrectly, which is being investigated. Also, some of the pledge bundles were missing Eagle Leader Expansion #3, which has since been corrected.
The costing issue has already been raised with BackerKit support, who are looking into the problem. For the moment, we ask you to be patient while BackerKit finishes their problem-solving, and we will advise once it's resolved so that you can complete your BackerKit orders with the correct shipping costs.
Thank you for continuing to support us, and for your patience while these pesky gremlins are located and eliminated, so that we can get the ordering process back on track.
