Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

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tiemanjw
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Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2008 2:15 am

Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

I decided to start an AAR, as the title suggests, a bit late (the title also implies that I'm learning some valuable lessons more than a little late as well). I hope you enjoy reading this AAR, and that some of you may contribute to my knowledge of the game and perhaps even kick me around a bit when I screw up (plenty of opportunity here).
A little background: I started playing the game about a year ago against the AI. After finishing that game, I looked for a PBEM opponent. I found an opponent, and we started a game last November. This opponent was not very aggressive: Singapore held out until late April (28th I think), and he had just started a second invasion of Java in July and ran into resistance. He felt the game was over at this point. I searched for another opponent to take over, as I really did not want to start back in December again and do the allied dark times again. Lowpe picked up the game, and has proven to be a worthy and much more aggressive opponent. What looked like an allied victory romp has turned into one disaster after another. Lowpe has an AAR he started when he took over. You can read it at tm.asp?m=3549450.
In an effort to catch up, in my next few posts, I'll detail the state of what I feel are the major theaters in this war. I'll start with a general overview here.

There are currently 3 theaters that are absorbing most of my time: NORPAC, Marshalls/Gilberts, and Burma. Java was also very active, but is dying down. In the north, I invaded Onnekotan-jima in August in an attempt to open another front for him to worry about. Initially it was successful, but now I'm considering this a failed invasion. I'll post more details in a follow on post, but much of the last months fighting were up here. I can't get air superiority or naval superiority to reinforce or even evacuate the island at this point. I'll leave a few forces in place to take advantage of a mistake if he makes one, but at this point I'm mentally cutting my losses.

Way back (I can't even remember when), I forced a sizable force onto Tabiteuea in the southern Gilberts (lost 2 old BBs doing it). I since spread out and built up and have size 5 airfields at Tabiteuea, Nonouti, and Tarawa. Makin Island was recently taken and just went to size 2 AF. Where the Kurils are a failure, I think the Gilberts are a success and plan to reinforce success over the next month or 2.

SOPAC has been a back water. I haven't devoted much in the way of resources here, and I don't think he has either. He owns the Solomons down to Lunga - and I have bases at Espiritu Santo, Noumea, and Port Moresby. I keep seeing hits that he is planning an attack at Noumea, but I think they are Kwantung Army formations (and Noumea seems to be a bit of a logistical stretch at this point). He could have bought them out, but my guess is he is trying to throw me off.

In the DEI I still hold Ambon, but can't really do anything with it. I also still hold Tjilatjap and Batavia on Java, but Batavia - but his forces can overrun me at will here. I recently evacuated the 6th and 7th Aussie divisions from Tjilatjap, and hope to attempt another run in the next few weeks.

China is a train wreck, and I just hope not to lose there. He is slowly pushing to Chungking. My strategy (if you can call it that), is to slow him down and wait for supplies.

Burma is controlled by him, except for Rangoon. It is here that I plan to focus on in the coming months. I've built large bases at Akyab, Cox's Bazar, Chittagong, Dimapur, Imphal and Calcutta. A recent air offensive has pushed his planes out of the Irrawaddy valley, and (for now) I have uncontested air supremacy. I've been moving US army forces into the region, and hope to start a general offensive in early December when the bulk of US combat power is in place.

The logistical war is not shaping up as I hoped. I have sent the bulk of my submarines to try to interdict his oil shipments back to the home islands. However, to date, I can't seem to find his supply routes. More on this war later.

As for the air war, I think he has to be hurting. I don't have anything to compare to, and I don't know how accurate tracker is (with FoW and all), but it seems like a lot. For what it's worth, the tracker loses I see each day seem to map up with what it looks like in the movies - and the movies seem to show my losses accurately (compared to the combat reports).



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tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

State of Kurils / NORPAC

Failure. Commence demeaning comments.

How we got here, and the costs paid by both sides could be interesting and full of lessons learned.

I would consider myself an [overly] aggressive player. Especially since early on it was paying dividends, in large part due to my original opponent not being at all aggressive. I wanted to open another front to force him to choose where to focus his efforts. I also didn't want to give him time to fortify, so I did a medium sized invasion designed to overrun Onnekotan-jima. The following forces were sent:
58th Inf Reg
108th Inf Reg
3 AA Bn (including 1 partial Canadian)
2 Field Arty Bn
1 CD Bn (partial)
4 Eng Bn
VII Ftr Command

Most of these units were bought out from CONUS. I also included 5 Fighter Squadrons and had 6 bomber squadrons ear-marked to move in (waiting at Prince Rupert). The fighter squadrons were 1 USMC, 1 USAAF, and 3 Canadian. These moved between Adak and the Kurils via Attu Island (and thus have not been trapped). USN squadrons could also be called on to provide reinforcement (especially TBFs).
The original plan was to grab a foothold, build a base, than hop to another. Modest naval forces were sent (mostly escorts and the Lexington) because it was expected that LBA would protect the transports and attack his navy. What I did not count on was his ability and willingness to bombard literally every night. For months on end. In fact, there have been 22 separate BB bombard sorties and 65 CA bombard sorties. This has kept the airfield unusable. Without air cover, I can't use the sea (and I think I've tried everything short of full up carrier battle).
Lexington was surprised by the KB (at 8 hexes range). She sustained moderate damage. I figured that the extra damage sustained by going to "full" speed was worth the risk compared to eating a full KB sized strike package, and sent orders to get out of dodge to the north. What I did not do was set the threat tolerance. So the Lex did a full speed circle and ended up a couple of hexes SOUTHeast of where she started. She still would have probably survived, but ran smack into Ise.
More recently, I sent Enterprise and Saratoga up. I had been watching the KB for over a month, and found that when he went to refuel, he was out of the area for 4 days. So after he was gone for 2, I darted in, hoping to catch the CAs doing nightly bombardments. I figured they were operating out of Paramushiro-jima. Nope. He did have a SAG there, but it was all DDs. I think I may have got 1. That was day 3 of the KB away from the area. I figured he would come in the next day from the south, so I ran north planning to strike the airfield / port at Paramushiro from long range before retiring east. I should have just ran full speed east, as the KB and my CVs get into a night surface action (both sides evaded), but 6 vs 2 is not where you want to be. I got Hiyo, and one hit on Akagi (no real fires though), but lost Enterprise and Saratoga (and a handful of cruisers). Hornet, Wasp, and Yorktown are in San Diego - and will probably stay there for some time while I rebuild my airwings, and wait for the Essex. This will at least maintain the illusion of a fleet in being that he has to account for without putting them at risk. I will be able to hunt down KB a few months earlier in '43 with those boats and pilots. In the meantime, I have offensives and Burma and the Marshall Islands that shouldn't require CV support to keep him on his toes. I may move them forward to Pearl (or the Line Islands) to be able to raid Turk if he goes to the Indian Ocean with the KB, but I doubt he will. More likely he goes to the Marshalls, where I hope to set a trap for if not the decks, at least the pilots.

So a post mortem. I think the plan to go after the Kurles was a solid strategic decision, but my actual execution was full of tactical errors. I did not fully appreciate the Japanese advantages in that area, nor the weakness of a single base. If I could go back 2 months I would:
Upsize the invasion - putting off the date until the 2nd week of October. This would give me enough time to set up, but force any large scale countermoves he did to happen in winter. Further, I would take 8 regiments. 2 each for 3 islands - probably Onnekotan, Ketoi-Jima and either Shimushiri or Shasuko. 2 more would be a floating reserve if any of those ran into trouble. I would also need to scrape up a few Marine combat engineer regiments and 3 tank Bns to support the assault. 4 CB Bns each would come ashore for construction (these were not available in such numbers in Aug, but are by Oct). This would negate his ability to close one airfield. He could bombard one constantly, but the other 2 would be able to build up... or he could bombard all 3, but not enough to keep them suppressed. When he did let up on the bombardments at Onnekotan, I was able to fly in some TBFs and score 3 hits on Ise.

All of this said (and in a vain effort to justify what I've done at some level), I tried to see what this operation has cost him. The following is a list of ships that have been out of action in some form or another:
CV Hiyo - 4 1000lb SAPs - probably sunk
BB Ise - 3 Torps and multiple large caliber rounds (HMS Warspite). 50/50 she is sunk. If not, it will be years before I see here again
BB Haruna - ate a torpedo from a DD or SS on 10/10
BB Hyuga - torpedoed on 10/3 - DD or SS (whichever didn't hat Haruna)
one of those 2 also hit a mine
Several DDs hit mines
all but 1 (I think) of his DMS were tore up by coastal guns and mines
CA Ashigara - last seen on fire after bombs
CA Nachi - heavy fires / heavy damage after half a dozen bomb hits
CA Atago - sunk after several bomb hits and running into Warspite

Not much compared to me, but I can afford to lose more. Those nightly bombardment runs also ate up a LOT of gas. He wasn't operating out of Paramushiro, so that means he was at either Etorofu or Uruppa. Uruppa is 8 hexes away. His bombardments come at night, and are out of range by morning. I tend to spot them 8+ hexes away. The manual says 240 endurance / hex when operating over cruise speed.
240 endurance / hex * 8 hexes full speed = 1920 endurance / 12hr pulse = 3840 endurance / day.
Fuso (the BB there the longest) has a bunker capacity of 5100 fuel and an endurance of 10800.
3840 endurance / day * 10800 endurance = 35.5% / day of total bunker capacity used
multiply by 5100 fuel units in his bunker, and you get 1813 fuel units / bombardment. Times 22 BB bombardments is 40k fuel used up.
For the CAs its 45.2% of their endurance * 2300 fuel in their bunker (estimated using Maya class) = 1039 fuel / CA bombardment times 65 CA bombards = 67.5k fuel used.
This doesn't include escorts, the KB, supply trains or the invasion forces he has sent. This is also fuel directly out of the home islands. Some of this would have been used for other operations, but the number of bombards seems excessive to me. I think other operations (say in the marshals) would have trouble affording this kind of fuel usage due to stress on his logistics systems to deliver it in the first place (he has only done 1 bombard in the Marshalls so far). So if we say that 107k fuel is out of the home islands, and is above and beyond what he would have spent - we have 107k fewer HI points he can generate (2 fuel points (and 20 resource) generate 2 HI points), which is 2800 fewer single engine A/C he will be able to build (18 HI/engine + 18HI for the airframe), and 107k fewer supply points he has. Perhaps this isn't a lot, but maybe some of you JFBs out there could say if this makes any sense.


MBF
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by MBF »

Consider me subscribed :-)

Keep fighting the good fight and remember its a long war and the Japanese are near their peak right now
tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

Burma - quick history and path forward

Due to the lack of aggression of my first opponent, Burma is a thorn in the Japanese side. While tanks managed to overrun the Irrawaddy Valley, I moved significant forces into Rangoon. With forts, he hasn't even scratched the surface here (nor has he really tried). Both sides have powerful forces in Rangoon, and are basically staring at each other and flinging the occasional giant wooden rabbit. In August, feeling that he was week, I launched an offensive from Akyab, but aborted it when I saw more forces in Ramree than I wanted to tangle with.
He had airbases at Magwe and Moulmein. Back in August, I leveled Moulmein - where most of his bombers were, and shot down a few more in an operation to sealift as much supply into Rangoon as possible. This was mostly a success, though I did lose a few small merchants. The result of this was that he could not effectively bomb me... but he had assembled so many fighters into Magwe that I couldn't attack effectively.
All the meanwhile, I have been moving several SOWESTPAC forces plus 2+ bought out US divisions to Akyab in preparation of a renewed ground assault. These forces should be in place in time for an early - mid December kickoff (2nd week of December scheduled right now).
The first stage is to achieve air superiority over the region. Enter Operation Livid Kitten. Originally scheduled for the first week of December, it was moved up to early November because I felt a window had opened. He swept 30 or so Tojo's at Cox's Bazar and lost all of them (to no losses of my own). Further, I had been annoyance bombing at night with B24s (rotating squadrons each night). As a result he had 3 squadrons (or partial squadrons) on night patrol totaling approx. 30 - 50 A/C. Intel consistently said he had about 140 fighters there for a while now, so with the loss of the Tojo's and the large number of fighters on night ops, I figured hit before he could rebuild. A 3 day airstrike was planned with the following forces:
20 B17s
20 B24s
50 B25s
60 Blenheim’s
20 Wellingtons
Supported by
50 Hurricanes
50 P40s
25 P38s
and a grab bag of about 60 assorted British fighters.
When the weather was predicted to clear, all planes were assigned to hit Magwe airfield on D-Day. The amazing thing... everyone flew - and roughly sequentially. The sweeps went in first, followed by wave after wave of escorted bombers. It was a beautiful sight to see. It was so successful, that the following day’s raid hit nothing - it appears he has fled. Fighters were spotted over Pegu and Moulmein in the following few days, but sweeps and bombers failed to bag any. Best I can tell, he ran to Bangkok with the survivors (estimated at about 30 fighters or so).
Ever since I have enjoyed air superiority and have been bombing airfields, supplies, and ground troops at will. Tomorrow I have a raid scheduled that will hopefully level the rest of Magwe's refinery.

So onto the ground assault. I have, I think, a rather accurate picture of his forces in Burma. The bulk of his forces are in Rangoon (Imperial Guards, 18th Div, 2 Inf Reg, a Bde and 2+ RTA Divisions vs 3 Indian Bdes, 2 Divs plus several Bns) and Magwe (can't tell for sure - appears to be mostly base forces and support troops, but I'm guessing there is an Infantry regiment or something with teeth there as well. He has a few scattered tank units: 10th and 11th tried to bust their way into China, the 12th is at Prome. The 14th is somewhere (beat up when I retook Akyab). What I don't know is his supply situation. His fighters fled to Moulmein and Pegu before heading to Bangkok. Perhaps he is yellow in supply at Magwe? I can't know. He does nothing with his forces in Rangoon or Paoshan - no bombards or anything.

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So the picture is my rough plan. The red is phase 1, and the yellow is phase 2. The objective of phase 1 is to open the door. Phase 2 is to cut off his troops from the outside world. Phase 3 (which I don't have a plan for yet), is the siege of Rangoon followed by the ultimate objective... open the Burma Road before the Monsoon. I have built up bases and stockpiled supplies at Akyab, Cox's Bazar, and Chittagong (as well as Imphal and Dimapur).

In phase 1, the 23rd Marines and 37th ID will march to outside of Ramree Island where they will sit and block his exit, as well as act as reserves. The 268th Mot Bde will move to a frontal assault position (but holding off) on Prome, currently defended by the 12th Tank regiment. While that is happening, the 3rd Carabiniers and 43rd Cav will cross the Irrawaddy south of Magwe to hit Prome from the flank. The 112th Cav will cover their rear, followed an assault on Toungoo. Once Prome is secured several hundred engineers and CBs will move down to quickly build Prome into a supply hub. Meanwhile, the 77th Chindit will take the road junction south of Toungoo and the 111th Chindit will grab the one east of Taung Gyi.
Phase 2 will see the 254th Armor, 255th Armor, 2nd British Div, and 41st US Inf Div pass through Prome enroute to Pegu.

Several things I am still trying to work out.
First, what if the forces in Rangoon try to move north? I'm guessing he has sizable field forts in Rangoon and could hold with half the forces he has there. Should I drop the Chindit's in a blocking position instead of a road junction? What about the small Recon forces I have instead? Can they get there in time?
How do I reduce his supply further? I have leveled the industry in Bangkok plus and hopefully the refinery at Magwe. But can I slow his supplies further? Does bombing ports / airfields affect how much supply they can draw?
What if he brings up forces from Java or over from somewhere else?
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tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

Marshall / Gilbert Islands

Given the failure up north, the Marshall Islands are where I hope to wear down his navy over the next few months. From a grand stragetic perspective, the Marshalls are not worth much to the allies except in that they deny them to Japanese. However by neutralizing the Japanese here, I can shorten my supply lines to some place that matters (Northern Solomon’s or Marianas).

I can't make him send his navy, but I can put my forces in the best position to win a naval engagement. The key to this is airfields to provide fighter cover and scouting. To this end, I have built up airfields at Tarawa (size 5), Nonouti (5), Makin (2) plus my main base at Tabiteuea (5). I'm also building up Arorae, which will provide a F4 bridge to Fiji.

His options for defense are 3 fold. First, he can move in land based aircraft. To this end, I have located airfields at Nauru (2?), Mili (2), Maloelap (4), Kwajalein and Roi-Namur. He has also built up Kusaie, but it is far enough away that it can only provide search and bombers (typically unescorted).
Second, he can bring in surface forces. These I fear, especially after experiencing the bombardments up north. They can also play havoc with my merchants and supply ships as they dart in and out of range of my aircraft using the cover of night. To safeguard against such measures I have implemented the following:
Mines - and more on the way. They were effective up north, and hopefully at least as much now given he is nearly out of DMSs and he is further from repair.
PT boats - never got this going in NORPAC as I never thought to send fuel.
BBs - Warspite is enroute, New Mexico will weigh anchor in about 2 days. 3 more old BBs will join in about a month. So long as I provide good fighter cover over them, I should be able to chase away bombardments.
Dispersion. I have 3 large airfields in the Gilberts. I have more in the Line Islands and Fiji, and most I my A/C can make it to Pearl and Oz if necessary.
Finally, he can bring down the KB. I don't have a complete answer to this, other than to make sure I have good air cover. If he attacks one of my airfields, so be it. I have plenty of AA guns that will make him pay. If he attacks my ships, the only thing I can do is provide air cover.
This is where my biggest opportunity may arise. I don't think I'll get lucky enough that he comes in range of my LBA; however I don't need to kill the KB (yet). However, it is those first rate pilots need to die more than the decks. I hunt those down in '43 when the Essex boats start rolling in. In the meantime, if he comes down, I can send a SAG in range of LBA and provide heavy cover. I've had success with this in the past. If he doesn't offer, than I can leap frog my way north.

To this end, my plan for the rest of '42 includes:
Operation Hydra - Air campaign to neutralize first his LBA and then his ports. Without air cover, everything on the ground is vulnerable. Without ports or a fleet train, his navy will have no staying power. To this end I have assembled 75 USAAF fighters, 50 USMC fighters and 30 4Es and 30 2Es. I can also call on another 200 fighters and 30 bombers stationed within 2 days range. I also have search, ASW, and naval strike aircraft.
With my shiny new base at Makin, I can project (normal drop tank range) P38s (25 in the Gilberts, 25 more on the way) over the Marshall Islands. This will allow sweeps to remove what few fighters he has remaining here. The heavies will do in their airfields. Jaluit is first to go. No airfield, but 10 [float?] fighters are there. All goes well on the turn I just sent, there won't be anything worth protecting there for some time. Kwajalein is next, as I want to render its port useless and destroy any fleet train operating out of there. Maloelap is next, than it is up to my recon boys to find which islands he is using after that.

For the ground assault, Mili is next. It has a size 2 airfield already (nice of him), and can be given air cover from Makin and Tarawa. From here, I'm looking at a jump to Ailinglaplap. From here there are 2 paths. I can either wait for an opening and attack Kusaie and Ponape. By that time I should have enough CVEs to cover. Or I can go north to Kwajalein and later Eniwetok.



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tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

November 11 turn:
Grayling hits Fuso! Dud of course.

Refinery at Magwe bombed. 43 more hits. Recon shows only 16 refinery ports left. Lost 2 Wellingtons and a B25 to Flak. Airbase rubble bounced there too just to be sure. Time to move to other targets.

P38s shutout Oscars at Rabaul. Go 10-0 in the field, then once crashes on landing. Pilot is wounded, but crash and salvage crews earn their pay.

Marshalls raid on Jaluit fails to deliver due to heavy clouds at target and thunderstorms at Tarawa.

First Deliberate attack at Batavia. Forts drop to 3. I don't have much here to resist. I do disable 286 squads and 91 Engineers, but at a high price. Causalities were 3100 for Japan (mostly disabled) to 2600 Allied (about 1/3 destroyed). In the end they are all dead or POWs - there is no way I can get them out.
tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

Ho-Hum
November 12, 1942. Got 2 turns in today.

Grouper takes a shot at Furutaka. Miss (probably went under her - that’s the skippers story and he's sticking to it!). 2 other subs shoot (and miss) at escorts. Finally Sawfish scores an xAK off Okinawa. All told 7 SS actions (2 were ASW attacks), 1 score. That's as good as it gets in '42.

Assorted sweeps over Burma continue to find nothing. Mandalay is flattened with no resistance. A recon plane taking pictures of Toungoo reports about 2 dozen fighters. Not sure I believe it, but I'll send about 70 twin engine bombers and more than a few fighters to find out. They won't be there tomorrow.

3 P38s fly on Kwajalein. Encounter 16 Zeroes and go 0-2. Then the rest of the group comes in and kills everything they see. The movie showed one survivor trailing smoke. Recon suggests they came from Roi-Namur. Since only the G model can reach without extended range, I'll wait until they get into place to attack again. That will be about 2-3 days including time to rest after their travels.
There was also a radio intercept DFed to Wotje. Recon will investigate.

Dozens of bombers hit a Chinese unit near Chihkiang. No damage. I'll let it go, but if he comes again tomorrow, I'll send a greeting party for day 3.

All in all, a slowish turn. I don't know what he is doing, and where he will show up next. Right now I'm just staying happy seeing no sunk ships.
tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

November 13, 1942

Feel free to leave a comment or 2. This is my first PBEM after playing the computer once through. It is also my first AAR. I'm still learning the game, and any comments on my planning would be much appreciated. I'm not wedded to any of it, so suggestions are welcome.


NORPAC
Fuso is one of the most frustrating ships he has. In my game against the computer, it was Yamakazi. I know it is still 1942... but eventually one of these dang things has to detonate. This time it was Grayling's turn. LCDR Olsen is going to have words with Admiral English when gets back. Sooner or later he will have to listen.
I see that Paramushiro Jima has a port size of 1. For a while he had a large DD TF there, but now intel suggests a lighter presence. I thought I read somewhere that size 3 or lower ports were vulnerable to submarine attack. If I send in a sub, will they shoot at the AKE (or other disbanded ships) there?


Marshalls
DD Sterett works I26 over hard east of the Gilberts. Multiple hits, at least one penetrating. Should send her home for repairs.

In interesting news, the sigint boys earned their pay today.
"Radio Call sign of Hiryu detected at 127,119"!
That is 3 hexes east/south east of Kusaie Island. PBYs didn't see anything but that is at the edge of my search range. I suppose it is possible he brushed the area from north to west (or vice versa). I think I'm in good position to receive an attack, but if he is here - I guess I'll set a trap. I’ll send a small SAG near Tarawa and LRCAP the crap out of it. Kill the pilots - the decks can wait. That is the plan right now (of course if a marine TBF or SBD gets lucky, so much the better!).
To that end, I've disbanded all the supply ships unloading in the area. PT boats will defend Tarawa, Nonouti, and Tabiteuea in case some BBs come as well. My ASW group will go 2 hexes south of Tarawa and wait. If the KB flies, he'll face 100 P40s, 40 P38s, and a few F4s stacked from 12k - 20k. 2 TBF and 1 SBD squadrons are standing by at Tarawa for a counter strike. A mixed bag of 36 F4s are set to escort them. 2 groups of old B17s are set to naval attack at 36k. They won't hit an island at that altitude, but if they go first, they can pull his fighters up and tire them out.
If he attacks on of the islands, I should be covered there too. All A/C not involved have been flown to Canton or Fiji. In addition to the fighters, there is no shortage of flak. Tarawa is worst off with a flak rating of 50, including nearly 50 90mm guns. Tabiteuea is a massive 111 rating. The only weak link is Makin. It is exposed to air attack or bombardment, but I emptied it except for 2 grounded fighters and a pair of short range recon planes. It also has 3 beat up AKs and a DMS to wounded to move.

In other news, all his aircraft have disappeared out of Roi-Namur. Does he sense danger? Is he staging them for an attack? Where did they go? I'll put Kusaie and Nauru on the list for the recon boys to hit tomorrow.


Burma
Sweeps and raids on Toungoo find nothing but empty airfields. Live fire exercises commence.
Airfields at Pegu and Moulmein still need to be hit, but the Mitchell pilots have earned a day off. Wellington's and B17s will hit troops at Meiktila. It has few AA guns and they could use the experience.
Does anyone know if any supply is used to restore a disabled device? I know you need supply to replace a lost device. Basically, I want to maximize his supply draw in Burma. So is it better to attack exposed ground units to drive up disablement, or should I attack the airfield at Magwe and other large bases from high altitude to force his AA guns to shot?

41st Infantry Div rounds the Cape of Good Hope. About 3 weeks out of Bombay. Balance of the 37th Infantry Div is about a week and a half behind. Those are the last 2 pieces for the Burma puzzle.


Other Theaters
Maya is hit south of Singapore by Perch. The Japanese Ambassador thanks the US taxpayers for cleaning off a few barnacles. 1943 is just around the corner.


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tiemanjw
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

November 14-16, 1942

Submarines attacked tankers off Miri, Lepsigi, Laoag, and Okinawa (one torpedo actually detonated!). Some were spotted near Cam Rah Bay and south of Formosa as well. I think I'm starting to sniff out his routes, so he'll probably change them again.

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Nothing materializes in the Marshalls with CV Hiryu. AD Dixie eats a fish in the south. She will probably sink, but just might make Arorae.
Something may be up here. Recon shows 36 fighters move into Nauru this last turn. Eniwetok has had radio chatter for the last 2 days. I'll turtle down in Nonouti and Tabiteuea with my fighters. There are a few transport and tanker groups unloading down there. Tarawa and Makin will have to eat it if they get attacked. Nothing there though except a few recon planes and a B17 down for maintenance. The damaged AKs will make Tarawa tomorrow, and may also be exposed.

More Deliberate attacks at Batavia. At first, he fails to reduce the forts, but hurts the defenders bad. The second nearly overruns the place. They won't last another 3 days if he is serious.

Enroute to patrol, SS Finback spots a light cruiser and 4 destroyers north of Marcus Island. Hmmm?

Swordfish fly out of Port Blair (forgot I had those there) and get slaughtered by Oscars. My guess is they flew from Car Nicobar (size 3 AF) or Trinkat (size 4 AF). It is possible they came from Victoria Point as well. The convoy they attacked has been slowly making its way north through the Straits of Malacca, then turned to Car Nicobar. I'll send a group of hurricanes down from Rangoon to crash the party. Marlets and Albacore's will come as well.


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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by BBfanboy »

You seem to know what you are doing so I have no comment on your strategies.

One comment re: port size - I believe it is only port size 0 and 1 that can be penetrated by subs. Even then,
it is iffy whether they will get a shot at a ship in port. Worth it for a big prize, but I would not risk my sub
in shallow water for a supply xAK or xAKL. Level 0 or not, mines work the same against subs!
No matter how bad a situation is, you can always make it worse. - Chris Hadfield : An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

November 17

Day starts out good and gets better.

Dutch boat O16 ordered to sit on the shipping lane west of the Philippines hits a large xAK. Trout manages a hit on a xAK leaving Shanghai. Trigger spots a tanker snaking its way through the Philippines. Misses and gets rattled by a few depth charges, but still operational. LCDR Pierce is a bit light on nav skill, and a bit high on aggression for a shallow water assignment. I'll move him out to deep water next turn (forgot this turn).

The Hurricane's I sent down to Car Nicobar run into a nest of Zeroes. The zeroes fight well despite the Brits having the altitude advantage... the hurricanes bag only a pair. That place will have to be hit harder in the coming days. P38s will start tomorrow.

A pair of PBs is lurking in the Marshall's near Maloelap. Grayback swings and misses - but why are PBs here. Is he sub hunting, or are they protecting something? At the end of the day there are 2 small TFs at Mili. He has to know that is my next target. Good airfield potential (at least for the Marshalls), and only 4 hexes from Makin's air cover. I don't want him reinforcing it, so I'll send some SBDs up.
I'm toying with an air assault on Mili. I currently have 3 USMC Para Bn at Tabiteuea. Currently they are preparing for Ailinglaplap, which as best I can tell, is undefended. However, Mili is only protected by one unit, and I'm assuming that is the Mili fortress. It has some nasty CD guns, but very little infantry backup. I have 0 experience with air assaults in this game. Is this a viable approach?

Finally, Todays Main Event
The Hudson’s running 3rd shift scouting sound the "sighted enemy carriers report - west south west of the Gilberts. He's coming.
First, 11 Zeroes, protecting 6 Val's attack an xAK unloading gas at Nonouti. They score a hit and an old F4F3 for the loss of 3 or 4 Zeroes and a Val or 2. Several groups then proceed to get slaughtered. A full baker's dozen Val’s along with a handful of Zeroes go down with no allied losses. A repeat in the afternoon sees another 10 or so Val’s go down. Finally, 15 Kates come and a few manage to drop bombs at a PG (no hits). 1 survives after the post attack phase. All told, tracker is saying the bill was 23 Vals, 16 Kates, and 15 Zeroes. More is always better, but that is approximately a decks worth of A/C. Kill the pilots... the decks can wait.
2LT Holt is the day’s hero, shooting down 5 planes and becoming a triple ace (17 kills total). 1LT Jackson keeps reminding people he has 23 kills, but keeps getting asked where he was today (no kills).

In the counter attack, only the B17s go (36000 ft) and wave at 3 dozen zeroes huffing and puffing to get up to them. The army boys claim hits on Soryu, Kaga, and 3 cruisers (just kidding, they hit nothing and only Soryu was sighted).

This doesn't feel like a full KB attack. Perhaps just a reinforced CARDIV 2 given the Hiryu report a few days earlier. Scouting says there are 50 fighters and 150 bombers there. Seems a bit low. I know that is subject to extreme FoW... but the DL is good there (spotted in the night and day phases, plus the DL boost because of his attacks).

What's more, I don't know if he is doing due diligence with his scouting. Up until recently, Jakes were spotted over the Gilberts more days than not. But I haven't seen any in a few days. Yesterday there was nothing (literally nothing) sighted. And today only a few sightings at Nonouti and Tabiteuea. Arorae sees nothing. Dixie (the AD torpedoed yesterday) sees nothing. Up in NORPAC, I set out several picket ships that rarely if ever spotted A/C. Maybe an opportunity here in the future.

Image

In NORPAC, Yamato shows back up escorting a supply run. I hear this weird muffled boom *splat*. No mine hits were in the combat report. I don't know what that sound means. After the supply run, he attacks at Onnekotan Jima. We both take moderate losses and he reduces the forts to 1. Time to step up the air evac. I have nothing there I can't afford to lose... the pools for all the equipment are high enough to replace the losses. Still, it would be nice to get as many of the US Infantry squads back as I can, so he can see them again later.


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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

You seem to know what you are doing so I have no comment on your strategies.

One comment re: port size - I believe it is only port size 0 and 1 that can be penetrated by subs. Even then,
it is iffy whether they will get a shot at a ship in port. Worth it for a big prize, but I would not risk my sub
in shallow water for a supply xAK or xAKL. Level 0 or not, mines work the same against subs!

I'll probably let it go then. I doubt he has mines there, but it isn't worth it for an AKE. Fuso ends there though, I might just nuke it.

And don't be fooled. I over analyze everything, so it may appear I know what I'm doing... But its all based on what are probably false assumptions. I'm still drinking from the firehose when it comes to this game.
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by BBfanboy »

ORIGINAL: tiemanj

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

You seem to know what you are doing so I have no comment on your strategies.

One comment re: port size - I believe it is only port size 0 and 1 that can be penetrated by subs. Even then,
it is iffy whether they will get a shot at a ship in port. Worth it for a big prize, but I would not risk my sub
in shallow water for a supply xAK or xAKL. Level 0 or not, mines work the same against subs!

I'll probably let it go then. I doubt he has mines there, but it isn't worth it for an AKE. Fuso ends there though, I might just nuke it.

And don't be fooled. I over analyze everything, so it may appear I know what I'm doing... But its all based on what are probably false assumptions. I'm still drinking from the firehose when it comes to this game.
[:D] Good analogy! The fire hose stream never stops, but you learn not to open your mouth too wide!
No matter how bad a situation is, you can always make it worse. - Chris Hadfield : An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

The 2 days I've been waiting for both happen in one. Batavia and Onnekotan Jima both fall. Batavia never had much, but a few good Aussies did get stuck there. Tjilatjap still holds out, but not for much longer. Most of the combat troops had been pulled out and just a lot (a LOT) of support troops remain behind.
As for Onnekotan Jima, I got cadres of most units out and about 20% of the combat power on submarines and PBYs. Reassembling and rebuilding the units will take a few months. I don't know if a future Kurles offensive is in the cards. I'll start putting together a plan for one, and see what defensive measures he takes. There are a lot of islands up there... if he defends and builds them up, that is just more that isn't in Burma, CENTPAC, or SOPAC. If he doesn't defend it, Hokkaido will burn.

Elsewhere, Chokai tries to run in on Tabiteuea. PT boats force her to use up a lot of ammo, but then she runs in on a TF unloading. 2 DDs suffer modest damage and a sub chaser is sunk, but the transports come out ok (one minor damage). In the day time the PT boats try to press home. 3 sunk for no hits. Somehow all 190 mines were missed.

Otherwise quite. Storms all over Burma prevent any airstrikes. Someone in Ramree is moving east which could slow down my offensive. I'll start sending some more recon in that direction. It could just be he can't supply there, or it could be he sees 100,000+ troops in Akyab and is worried about a push. I often see recon over Imphal, so I'll move a bunch of second line troops and reserves there in a mini operation fortitude. The further up the Irrawaddy valley his troops are, the better.

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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by Lecivius »

This is gonna be fun to watch. Kudos to Lowpe for stepping into this one.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

ORIGINAL: Lecivius

This is gonna be fun to watch. Kudos to Lowpe for stepping into this one.


I couldn't agree more. He is an excellent opponent so far. I'm hoping he is having as much fun with it on his end as I am on mine. I'm also hoping that after the dust settles from this he can come at me on day 1.
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

Multiple sub attacks. Trout duds off SW Korea. Greenling scores a large xAK near Legaspi. S-44 puts one into CL Tatsuta off Paramushiro Jima. Tautog lights up a big tanker near Kyushu. And in 1942! It’s one fish each... but still. One of the xAKs is in serious trouble, as is the tanker. the cruiser and the other xAK will probably be ok (unless I catch lightening in a bottle twice).
2 of these attacks happened on the routes identified in the past week. The other 2 were just luck.

Image

Rahaeng is flatted with a capital F. Wellingtons and Liberators score over 100 runway hits. Then my 50 Mitchell's come in and bounce the rubble. They did manage to find the single Dinah there and it is destroyed on the ground. Then wave after wave of B17s and Blenheim’s. I want to keep Burma useless and sap as much supply as possible before my assault. Soon I will start to concentrate on the ground units.

O21 hits a mine at Tjilatjap. This following Perch yesterday. Perch is 80 sys, 80 flood (79 major system, whatever that means). She is probably a goner unless Tjilatjap holds out longer than expected. O21 is in ok shape, and will pick up the HQ section of the 4th Aussie Cav. No minefield symbol is showing, so I'm guessing that means I still haven't "discovered" the field yet, which basically means I'm screwed here. I'll send an AM up and see if I can't get a lane through. Hopefully, it doesn't run into the cruiser / battleship bombardments.

Nothing new in the Marshalls. The carriers that were here 2 days ago headed due west for a day and have now disappeared. The could be in the Coral Sea, or could have turned north toward Truk (my guess is the latter). His fighters have disappeared from Nauru Island, and about 40 have shown up at Roi Namur. I'll do a [ariel] recon in force of his defenses there. 20 B24s and 15 B17s are staged in Tarawa for a night raid at 20,000'. In the day, 2 P38 groups staged in Makin will sweep Roi and Kwajalein. The bombers won't hit much, but if his flak is light, I'll start to drop them down. Any craters they do make will hopefully catch a few pilots landing tired in the day phase. Hopefully no BBs come down and bombard my airfields tonight (scouting doesn't see any that could make the trip and arrive in the night phase. Unloading operations resume at Tabiteuea and Nonouti. CA San Francisco and a gaggle of damaged DDs make a run for Pearl.
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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

A few turns passed. Little going on except moving forces around.
The most interesting thing, Tone showed up at Karachi all by its lonesome and sank 2 xAKs. Gutsy move sending a CA all by its lonesome. It is a bit frustrating that I can't do anything about it. But she doesn't have much on station time that far away. He heads south after 1 turn. My concern is if this is a probing attack. I have 3 large convoys that will be arriving on the map enroute to Bombay bringing troops and transport A/C for the Burma campaign. The first arrives in 6 days the last in 20. I hope there are no carriers that make this trip over the next month. In the meantime, I'll send a few CAs up to Ceylon. There is nothing in western Oz for them now.

Several more sub attacks. Nothing gets home except for S-45 gets a large xAP near Etorofu. Gets worked over by a destroyer hard afterwards. Mid 20s system and flooding.

Crappy weather throughout Burma and the Marshalls prevent most flying. My air strike on Roi Namur fails to launch the first day. It goes on day 2. Little flak, but clouds prevent all but 1 bomb from hitting. The fighters, however, do an excellent job, getting 16 Zeroes and 4 Rufes for 1 loss.


So what happens to me and my game if anything happens to this fresh arrival in Ledo?

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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by HansBolter »

You'll find quite a few Grigsby's and also quite a few pilots named after Matrix employees.
Hans

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RE: Better late than never (Lowpe (J) vs tiemanj (A))

Post by tiemanjw »

Not much going on right now. Every day the 41st ID makes it closer to India. It is now 2 days off the map. It was set to head almost straight into Bombay, but Tone lurking around found a few AMCs waiting to escort them in. I rerouted them to head to Socotra. From there, I'll either send them to Bombay or Karachi.
He fighter trapped me in Burma (Magwe) and got a few B17s. B24s made it in and out for the most part, but got a bit damaged. P40Ks swept before the bombers, which kept the bomber losses down to just mildly unacceptable, but they got chewed up in the process, losing all but 4 A/C. All but a 2 or 3 pilots made it back though, and P40ks are coming off the lines at a good rate. In all, for that turn, we lost about the same number of engines (he lost a few more A/C, but I lost some 4Es). The following turn, sweeps and B25s made good work of what stayed. The rest retreated back to Bangkok.
As for the ground campaign, I moved 40k troops (mostly support and HQ) to Imphal. 2 Chinese Divisions that I bought out a while back to rebuild in India are headed there as well. Shortly, I'll send them and some CBs down to Kalemyo to start building up the base there for supply distribution into northern Burma. The Chinese will also be able to threaten his northern flank.

I have a question... I moved most of the SOWESTPAC units to India / Burma. The HQ though was in Java back when I was moving forces to make a stand there. I evacuated several units from Java a few weeks ago, and the convoy was attacked and the ship carrying the HQ unit was lost (lesson learned... ships won't rescue forces from a unit unless they are also already carrying some of that unit). I paid the PP to have the HQ return, and it just did this past turn. The HQ though is now list as "(R)". So my questions are, first, am I somehow in violation of house rules by having what are now restricted units outside of their area? And how can I get those units unrestricted - do I have to buy them all out, or can I just buy out the HQ?
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