111

“111” is a simple war game for two based on the mechanics used in the “303” board game. One of the players is the commander of the Pursuit Brigade - Polish fighter group defending Warsaw on September 1st., 1939, the very first day of World War II, while the other commands the attacking German Luftwaffe. Polish player has access to four P.11 fighters, outdated and slow but highly manoeuvrable. German player uses three powerful Heinkel He-111 bombers and three fast and well-armed Messerschmitt BF-110 fighter. They conduct aerial duels by using special dice. The mission of the Third Reich’s air force is to bomb Capital City. Polish Air Force mission is to shoot down the bombers using the advantage of clouds, hidden airfields and anti-aircraft artillery.

Pursuit Brigade was a special Polish fighter group, used for air cover of the Polish capital of Warsaw. It was the most successful element of the Polish Air Force in Polish campaign 1939. On September 1st the Brigade shot down 16 German planes, for a loss of 10 of its own fighters.
The Brigade was composed of five fighter escadrilles – 111, 112, 113, 114 and 123.
The name of the game “111” revokes one of these escadrilles, which pilots, after Poland’s defeat in 1939, formed the personnel of the famous 303 Fighter Squadron in 1940 during the Battle of Britain.
This makes the “111” the prequel of “303”, showing the crucial differences between aerial war over Poland in 1939 and Britain in 1940.