When Thunder Rolled 2023

When Thunder Rolled (WTR) is a solitaire simulation of the United States Air Force's contribution to Operation Rolling Thunder during the Vietnam War. Rolling Thunder began on 3 March 1965 and concluded on 31 October 1968. During the campaign the USAF and United States Navy bombed targets throughout North Vietnam. The area around Hanoi and Haiphong was the most dangerous area and was split between the USAF and USN. WTR simulates the USAF campaign using the F-105D as the primary bomber.

WTR gives you the opportunity to assume the role of a USAF F-105D pilot, attempting to survive 100 missions over North Vietnam. The game is based on the format originated by the Korean War simulation Able Dog.

A few things I want to say before you take a look. The first is that the counters are...well, let me say I'm not a graphics guy. They're the best I can do but they allow you to play the game. The second is that, as are other games of this genre, When Thunder Rolled is a dice-roller. If you hate this type of game, you'll hate this one, too. The third is that I have taken some shortcuts that make parts of the game somewhat abstract (air-to-air combat is an example). Lastly, if you have comments, positive and negative, please PM me. I'm happy to adapt things that will improve the game. If you love the game, I'm glad. If you hate it, I understand that, too. But I hope you'll at least try it, even if you don't want to fly a full 100 mission tour.

—description from the designer