BL Workshop

Make an Off-Shore Battle game

By Jodie Mangor
Illustrations by David Brooks
From the June 2008 Boys' Life magazine

Charge up your power drill, sharpen that saw and make this cool custom-made Off-Shore Battle game.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

• Ruler
• Tracing paper and tape
• Power drill
• Saw
• Awl and hammer
• Anvil pruning shears
• Fine-tipped permanent marker
• Wood glue
• Screws
• 3 10-inch-by-10-inch-by-3⁄4-inch boards
• 2 small wooden door knobs
• 4 hinges
• 1 latch
• Drill bit slightly larger than game pegs
• 1 package of wooden skewers
• Enough pine scraps to make the ships
• Sandpaper
• Red paint

WHAT YOU’LL DO

The Boards:

1. With lines spaced 3⁄4-inches apart, mark out a 71⁄2-by-71⁄2-inch grid on all three game boards. The center, vertical board has a grid with holes on both sides. The side boards have a grid only.

2. Tape tracing paper over your grid and draw diagonal lines as shown. Use an awl to punch starter holes for drilling.

3. Drill 1⁄4-inch-deep holes in the center of each square.

4. Use decals or a fine-tipped permanent marker to label the vertical squares A through J and the horizontal squares 1 through 10.

5. Attach the vertical board to the base with wood glue and screws.

6. After all the grids are complete and the holes are drilled, attach the knobs and give the boards an oil finish.

7. Put it all together using the 4 hinges.

The Pegs:

1. Use the pruning shears to cut the skewers into 3⁄4-inch pegs. You’ll need at least 140 pegs.

2. Paint 40 of them red.

The Ships:

• Fashion 2 sets of 5 ships from scraps of pine.
• Drill the 1⁄4-inch-deep holes before cutting out the ships.
• Make 2 ships 3 3⁄4 inches long with 5 holes.
• Make 2 ships 3 inches long with 4 holes.
• Make 2 ships 2 1⁄4 inches long with 3 holes.
• Make 4 ships 1 1⁄2 inches long with 2 holes.
• Sand the ship bottoms smooth.

Get ship templates at www.boyslife.org/links/shiptemplates. You can also make the ships from plastic clay.

TO PLAY

Players place ships on the grids of their individual boards. One player calls out a coordinate on the grid. If it’s a hit, he goes again. A miss means it’s the other player’s turn. Red pegs are used to track hits and natural-colored pegs to track misses. Whoever sinks all their opponent’s ships first wins.

Read 24 comments about “Make an Off-Shore Battle game”

Comment page:   [3] 2 1 »

1. 24 - Anonymous says:
   July 29th, 2008 at 7:43 pm

   i hate this

2. 23 - sci says:
   July 28th, 2008 at 11:10 pm

   nice now i don’t have to buy a game for my cousin

3. 22 - Old Guy says:
   July 14th, 2008 at 1:16 pm

   Actually before “Battleship” the original name for this game was “Swiss Navy”.
   I found that in an old book of games I found in a used book store. I think this game has been around in one form or another since before ships had engines.

   I’m not quite that old so I can’t be sure.

4. 21 - shipmate555 says:
   July 7th, 2008 at 11:16 am

   That is a cool thing to do during your free time.

5. 20 - gregy6000xL says:
   July 3rd, 2008 at 9:03 am

   Enemy fleet destroyed congaulations admrial

6. 19 - 32 lol says:
   July 1st, 2008 at 11:16 pm

   lol

7. 18 - slugsbottem20000 says:
   July 1st, 2008 at 2:25 pm

   If it is not battel ship call me a scout!

8. 17 - snigger says:
   June 29th, 2008 at 5:38 pm

   BATTLESHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

9. 16 - bob says:
   June 28th, 2008 at 7:47 pm

   its just battell ship but cooler

10. 15 - Boy Scout Man says:
    June 28th, 2008 at 6:18 pm

    Battieship rock!

Comment page:   [3] 2 1 »

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