A couple of people liked the random convoy escort table I used in my recent convoy scenario for Torpedoes & Tides. So I thought I'd expand it for use with solo games. It assumes that the player knows what's in their attacking force, knows which blinds are the transports (because they are set up in a particular way) but wants to be kept in the dark about what's escorting them. It does mean that the convoy escorts may send out their own blinds without knowing what they are, and if you're using decision rolls they may reveal things not knowing what they are either. Basically I'm saying that it's flawed, but it does create some fun hidden information. And we all love hidden information. I'd use the same card-draw system as before but instead of assigning ships to the cards, I simply assign a size. So make a deck of all of the cards from one suit*. Each time you try to spot a blind, or if one is revealed, draw a card to determine the size:
Ace - 7 = Small
8 - Q = Medium
K = Large
If the blind is revealed for any reason then roll a D6 to see what it is:
SMALL
1-2 - Kriegsfischkutter (KFK)
3-5 - Raumboot (R-boat)
6 - Disgruntled S-boat
MEDIUM
1-3 - Small Verpostenboot
4-5 Medium Verpostenboot (On a second roll of 5+ it has an 88mm gun)
6 - Sibelfahre (On a second roll of 5+ it's the 88mm gun version)
LARGE
1-4 - Minensuchboot 1935 Klasse
5-6 - Raubvogel (Flottentorpedoboot)
OK, this is just for the Germans, basically covers the North Sea/Channel and is obviously geared to my collection of ships. But I'm assuming you're all bright enough to spot the core mechanism and gear your own tables to other nationalities and theatres of war.
I'd love to see your own tables and to hear any thought you may have on similar mechanisms.
* You could go wild and just draw from a deck, but it will increase the chance of large escorts. Up to you.
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