It's been quite a while since the last update, but the pace of the game has slowed somewhat. Still, we're half-way through 1943.
North Pacific
The Allies mount a few night raids on Paramushiro-jima with Navy B-26's. They don't do any damage, but the IJA AA Regiment stationed on the island damages a few. Flak, combined with the distance to target means the Allies abandon their attacks after a few nights.
It's effectively the first raid on the Home Islands from land-based aircraft, which is something to worry about.
Central Pacific
Quiet.
The draw-down from the Marshalls and Gilberts is almost complete. Ponape and Kusaie Islands both have decent garrisons, and I've even managed to send a unit all the way back to Yap to start building up troops there as well.
Guam airbase is built up to level 7, and work will continue till it's maxed out at a size 8 airbase. Construction of forts has stopped at level 7, but will resume once the work on the airbase is complete.
Work on Tinian has stopped: it's currently hosts a 1(1) port and a 5(4) airbase, with level 7 forts securing the island and a crack 97 EXP division with 460 AV serving as a garrison. The only thing Tinian needs now is some extra CD guns (only 20 8cm and 8 12cm guns defending the island) and aviation support. Another 200 or so AV wouldn't hurt either, and I've started running shuttles of minelaying TF's to build up the minefields around the base.
The engineers on Tinian are moving to Sapian, which is being built up to a 5(5) airbase with level 7 forts. The defences of Rota are complete, with the base sitting at 1(0) port and a 4(3) airfield with level 6 forts.
Work continues on Pagan, though the rest of the northern islands are being left undeveloped - there's no sense wasting supply developing small airbases when there are four larger ones within an 8 hex radius. They'll be garrisoned by token units, however. If I get the time, I may develop Anatahan into a 3(2) airbase, just to provide a solid fighter base between the northern and southern islands.
South-West Pacific
The evacuation of the Guadalcanal complex goes off without a hitch. The 26th Air Flotilla is flown out by aircraft, and the KB covers the withdrawal of the bulk of aviation support from the island.
Once the KB withdraws, the Allies send a monster surface combat force containing three heavy crusiers and two light crusiers to see what they can snap up, but they somehow avoid both the IJN cover force and the transports and no combat occurs.
Over New Guinea, the only action is a big sweep of Port Moresby by two big IJN fighter groups. They find a bunch of Hurricanes flying CAP over the base and proceed to slaughter them. This was a good feeling, as both of these groups had been badly mauled over Buna, and it was good to show Lokasenna that my air strength in the region has fully recovered.
DEI
The Allies re-occupy Darwin, destroying the fragment SNLF garrison. Gove has also became a size 2 airbase, so no doubt the Allies will be creeping closer to the DEI from this direction shortly.
Thankfully, I'm well positioned to block any advances through the Arafura Sea.
An interesting point of information was the I-38, patrolling off Portland, Austrailia, which spotted a CV and destroyers heading west. I've more subs en-route to see what is developing here.
China-Burma-India
Urumchi is still in Japanese hands, and there's rescue coming in the form of a tank regiment! It's only 750 miles away now!
Burma has remained quiet. The Chinese stack that made a tentative move into Burma has mirrored the movements of my troops and started to withdraw - no doubt we're both finding it impossible to keep troops supplied under combat conditions.
There's 100 ships and 37 units sitting idle in Colombo, which has me worried. I've been preparing for an Allied move from Sri Lanka to Sumatra or Burma, but I'm just not ready yet - the Andamans urgently need garrison troops to act as a speedbump.
Engineers are also ear-marked for Thailand to build up airbases linked by railroad for later in the war.
Question to the Gallery
On the topic of "later in the war", I'm clueless as to what to do once Burma falls. My first thought is to split my forces - half go to defend Malaya along the Georgetown-Patani axis, while the other half run for Northern Indochina, leaving token garrisons in Bangkok and Saigon.
From looking at the map, I don't really see how Thailand and Southern Indochina can be defended - any attempt to hold a frontline will just get cut off by Allied armoured stacks racing down the excellent road network.
I think the best bet to hold even some of Indochina would be to try to defend the jungle between Vinh and Hanoi. Thoughts?
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Japanese service troops being withdrawn from Guadalcanal. Conducted in full view of the Allies but without any successful interference, it enabled a large number of Japanese units to be redeployed further north.[/center]
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