Tale of the Sheep! - JocMeister (A) vs. Lowpe (J)

[bigred]

bit of history. So watch out for that river crossing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ramree_Island

Crocodile attack
A saltwater crocodile

Some British soldiers, including naturalist Bruce Stanley Wright who participated in the battle, claimed the large population of saltwater crocodiles native to Ramree Island's mangrove swamps preyed on the trapped Japanese force at night and ate many soldiers. Wright gave a description in Wildlife Sketches Near and Far (1962), quoted by Frank McLynn,

That night [of the 19 February 1945] was the most horrible that any member of the M. L. [motor launch] crews ever experienced. The scattered rifle shots in the pitch black swamp punctured by the screams of wounded men crushed in the jaws of huge reptiles, and the blurred worrying sound of spinning crocodiles made a cacophony of hell that has rarely been duplicated on earth. At dawn the vultures arrived to clean up what the crocodiles had left.... Of about one thousand Japanese soldiers that entered the swamps of Ramree, only about twenty were found alive.
— Wright[11]

If Wright's claim is true the Ramree crocodile attacks are the worst in recorded history. The British Burma Star Association seems to lend credence to the swamp attack stories but appears to draw a distinction between the 20 Japanese survivors of one attack and the 900 Japanese who were left to fend for themselves in the swamp. There is no corroboration of the event by British military reports or by interviewed Japanese soldiers and local Burmese. As Wright's account is the only known source for the mass crocodile attack and his figures have been disputed by other historians, who call the event an urban myth.[12] On Wright's reporting of the Ramree events, McLynn wrote

Most of all, there is a single zoological problem. If 'thousands of crocodiles' were involved in the massacre, as in the urban (jungle) myth, how had these ravening monsters survived before and how were they to survive later? The ecosystem of a mangrove swamp, with an exiguous mammal life, simply would not have permitted the existence of so many saurians before the coming of the Japanese (animals are not exempt from the laws of overpopulation and starvation).
— McLynn[13]

In 1965, the British official history (volume IV, The Reconquest of Burma) had only referred to "crocodile-infested mangrove swamps".[8]

[bigred]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

[font="Verdana"]Plane pools[/font]
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I have never ever had such overflowing pools! [X(] I think this will come back and haunt Jeff in the coming months. This will give me a lot of room to maneuver and play aggressively. The P40K is very competitive in a PDU OFF environment and to have 260 of them in the pools. Also worth to not is the 60 Corsairs and 70 Lightnings! [X(]

Reminder is is possible to expand the naval air sqn to 90 plans and pilots. I convert all training naval air sqn to 90 planes.

[JocMeister]

ORIGINAL: jwolf

When you move from Ramree against the neighboring Japanese stack, will that trigger a shock attack?

Yes it will. But I have Marines. It will work.

(I hope [:'(])

[JocMeister]

ORIGINAL: bigred
Reminder is is possible to expand the naval air sqn to 90 plans and pilots. I convert all training naval air sqn to 90 planes.

Thanks for the reminder. I try avoid the resizing though. I don´t like when the Japanese does that and as far as I can tell Jeff hasn´t. So I won´t either. [:)]

[JocMeister]

Short update:

Everything went very well. We now own Ramree. Turns out Jeff is blocking the river crossing. But its a lone division. The 1st Marines and 18th UK + 2 armored BDEs will brush them aside! I have 3 Indian divisions and 2 US Tank BDEs in reserve if needed.

We will prevail!

Off to celebrate my B-day tomorrow. Heading out to a resort with the wife today and no kids! Halleluja for sleep! [&o]

[Canoerebel]

This sounds like a boondoggle in the making. Jeff's division will be in 3x terrain. If he brings up reinforcements expeditiously, there's a chance he can tie up a much larger force for a long, long time. So if you don't blow through the roadblock expeditiously, you'll chew your fingernails to the quick.

Ramree Island is a level 0(0) port in most mods but can be built to a level 8 airfield. It won't hold much supply early on and takes time to build.

Bullwinkle's description of Ramree is perfect: "It's a useful place, but it's not magical."

It can be very useful and sometimes almost nearly magical, depending on the particular circumstances in a game. As with any hex in the map it can become the single most important place if both sides deem it so or if one side takes it and the other side deems it most important and reacts violently, throwing troops and ships and aircraft against it.

I took Ramree in June '42 in my game with John III. What happened next was so distasteful to him that he said he would edit the base characteristics to lower it's airfield size in his future mods. I don't know if he did that but it's a testament to what value he placed on the enemy Allied airfield there and the great naval battles that ensued.

[Canoerebel]

Happy Birthday, Jock!

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Short update:

Everything went very well. We now own Ramree. Turns out Jeff is blocking the river crossing. But its a lone division. The 1st Marines and 18th UK + 2 armored BDEs will brush them aside! I have 3 Indian divisions and 2 US Tank BDEs in reserve if needed.

We will prevail!

Off to celebrate my B-day tomorrow. Heading out to a resort with the wife today and no kids! Halleluja for sleep! [&o]

OMG!! Have fun! I know now what you're talking about. A few nights of 8 hours are like gold. [&o]

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

I took Ramree in June '42 in my game with John III. What happened next was so distasteful to him that he said he would edit the base characteristics to lower it's airfield size in his future mods. I don't know if he did that but it's a testament to what value he placed on the enemy Allied airfield there and the great naval battles that ensued.

I don't mean to laugh, really, but seriously? Changing the capabilities of a base that has been thoroughly researched in order to make the game easier for one player! [X(]

If there were any doubts what that mod is about this should enlighten us. [:D]

[BillBrown]

ORIGINAL: obvert

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

I took Ramree in June '42 in my game with John III. What happened next was so distasteful to him that he said he would edit the base characteristics to lower it's airfield size in his future mods. I don't know if he did that but it's a testament to what value he placed on the enemy Allied airfield there and the great naval battles that ensued.

I don't mean to laugh, really, but seriously? Changing the capabilities of a base that has been thoroughly researched in order to make the game easier for one player! [X(]

If there were any doubts what that mod is about this should enlighten us. [:D]

It is true, in my BTS games Ramree Island has an airbase SPS of 1. I was surprised, since I expected it to be bigger. I know to look where I am going now.

[BillBrown]

ORIGINAL: BillBrown

ORIGINAL: obvert

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

I took Ramree in June '42 in my game with John III. What happened next was so distasteful to him that he said he would edit the base characteristics to lower it's airfield size in his future mods. I don't know if he did that but it's a testament to what value he placed on the enemy Allied airfield there and the great naval battles that ensued.

I don't mean to laugh, really, but seriously? Changing the capabilities of a base that has been thoroughly researched in order to make the game easier for one player! [X(]

If there were any doubts what that mod is about this should enlighten us. [:D]

It is true, in my BTS game Ramree Island has an airbase SPS of 1. I was surprised, since I expected it to be bigger. I know to look where I am going now.

[dave sindel]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Short update:

Everything went very well. We now own Ramree. Turns out Jeff is blocking the river crossing. But its a lone division. The 1st Marines and 18th UK + 2 armored BDEs will brush them aside! I have 3 Indian divisions and 2 US Tank BDEs in reserve if needed.

We will prevail!

Off to celebrate my B-day tomorrow. Heading out to a resort with the wife today and no kids! Halleluja for sleep! [&o]

Have a good birthday and an enjoyable weekend with the wife.

[Lokasenna]

That's funny RE: Ramree.

I don't even find it all that useful.

[CaptBeefheart]

Happy Birthday, Joc. Here's something I found at my nearby craft beer store on sale (about $9 for a four-pack, which is a good deal here).

Cheers,
CC

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]June 18th -43[/font]
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A short update with quite some action.

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Burma
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We launched an emergency plan to try and relieve the 2 cut off divisions at Katha. Due to the nature of the location it will take some time to reach. But 2 divisions, 3 brigades and 2 armored brigades are currently moving towards Katha.

Jeff tried some sweeps over my bases in Burma. Allied pilots almost had a "turkey shoot" and shot down 82 enemy planes for only 12 losses. The RAF carried the day backed up by some P38s.

Over at Ramree the 18th division just unloaded under heavy CAP. They will begin the river crossing at once. 2 Armored BDEs and an Indian division will follow.

75 fresh P47s just arrived by trains to Calcutta. No doubt Jeff wont be too happy when he sees them. [:)]

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SOPAC
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Jeff tries to hit a convoy unloading at Lae. Due to the level 9 airbase at PM only 4 hexes away this didn´t work out too well for him. I had about 200 planes on CAP. Mostly Spitfires and P38s. The outcome was predictable. Parts of KB even took part in the attack.

The Japanese lose a staggering 256 planes while the allies only lose 45 and a lone LST. 2 others are hit but might survive.

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NOPAC
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Attack on Coal Harbor has commenced! Looks like Jeff pulled out most of the troops but there are still 10k troops in the base. Soon to be captured... [:)]

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]Camp Pendleton[/font]
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Not much fighting left in the Japanese. I have been shaving off 4-6k troops per attack lately. Never this much though!

Ground combat at Camp Pendleton (226,77)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 87400 troops, 1554 guns, 2675 vehicles, Assault Value = 2987

Defending force 37815 troops, 0 guns, 84 vehicles, Assault Value = 25

Allied adjusted assault: 1528

Japanese adjusted defense: 21

Allied assault odds: 72 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: disruption(-), preparation(-), fatigue(-), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
22750 casualties reported
Squads: 119 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 1575 destroyed, 128 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Vehicles lost 3 (2 destroyed, 1 disabled)
Units destroyed 10

Allied ground losses:
56 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 17 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 2 (1 destroyed, 1 disabled)

Assaulting units:
104th Infantry Division
8th Motorized Division
36th Infantry Division
13th Armoured Division
6th Armoured Division
91st Infantry Division
44th Infantry Division
4th Motorized Division
Provisional Tank Brigade
181st Field Artillery Battalion
183rd Field Artillery Battalion
188th Field Artillery Battalion
144th Field Artillery Regiment

Defending units:
48th/C Division
2nd Division
4th Division
2nd Tank Division
1st Division
14th Division
12th Division
6th Guards Division
26th Air Flotilla
57th JNAF AF Unit
5th Guards Division
48th/A Division
9th Division
1st Fleet
8th Area Army
56th JNAF AF Unit
48th/B Division

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]June 20th(?) -43[/font]
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Really tired today. Been up since 04:00. To tired to fire up the game and check the dates.

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Burma
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Jeff is playing more and more aggressively here. He is sweeping and actually bombing ground troops. We had a big tussle yesterday(?) where we got out ahead with about 2:1. With our overflowing (by allied standards) its fine but it came at a bad moment. He caught us while protecting our amphibs carrying the 18th UK to Ramree. So CAP wasn´t optimal as it was low. We still did good but the airgroups need rest after the LRCAP battle.

This forced me to commit the P47s as I refuse to postpone the Ramree reinforcements and they need aircover. I want to keep the P47s a secret so hopefully he won´t find out next turn when the LRCAP the amphibs. Put them on high LRCAP and some P38s and Hurris low.

Jeff has moved a ton of troops North so if I can break through now either at Akyab or Ramree I will probably force him to retreat into China. That would be pretty much game over for him. Worry about my 2 cut off divisions though. I need 2-3 weeks before the relief force arrives.

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SOPAC
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Seeing the KB NE of Rabaul was a nice surprise. Lets exploit that! Shifting...

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NORPAC
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Coal Harbor is ours! Troops reprepping. Now it will be small landings in Alaska for a while.


No picture. Time for bed.

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]SOPAC[/font]
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We reached 10th of July with a bang in SOPAC. My NavS is not working wonders despite good coverage but I have gotten several "main body" messages during the replay lately. This prompted me to temporarily hold the Buin reinforcements. Good call!

Last night a massive SAG led by Haruna went for Munda. Moonlight was very low though which favored the Allies and our radars.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Munda at 111,134, Range 11,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
BB Haruna, Shell hits 1
CA Aoba, Shell hits 7
CA Furutaka, Shell hits 1
CA Kako
DD Kazegumo, Shell hits 1
DD Kuroshio
DD Hatsukaze
DD Urakaze, Shell hits 1
DD Nenohi, Shell hits 1, heavy fires
DD Wakaba
DD Ariake, Shell hits 1
DD Ayanami
DD Kikuzuki
DD Shiokaze
DD Katsutade, Shell hits 1

Allied Ships
CL Cleveland
CL Denver, Shell hits 1
CL Columbia, Shell hits 1
DD Fletcher
DD Chevalier
DD Conway
DD Cony
DD DeHaven
DD Jenkins, Shell hits 2
DD LaVallette
DD Farenholt


Maximum visibility in Clear Conditions and 46% moonlight: 12,000 yards
Range closes to 23,000 yards...
CONTACT: Allies radar detects Japanese task force at 23,000 yards
Range closes to 17,000 yards...
CONTACT: Allies radar detects Japanese task force at 17,000 yards
Range closes to 11,000 yards...
CONTACT: Allies radar detects Japanese task force at 11,000 yards
Allies open fire on surprised Japanese ships at 11,000 yards

I don´t think Jeff is too happy with that considering the overwhelming force. After this battle an allied hodgepodge CA TF engages. I really feared the worst here as this was not the most potent Allied TF to say the least. We did very well though! [&o]

Night Time Surface Combat, near Munda at 111,134, Range 11,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
BB Haruna, Shell hits 1
CA Aoba, Shell hits 5, on fire
CA Furutaka
CA Kako, Shell hits 6, heavy fires
DD Kazegumo
DD Kuroshio
DD Hatsukaze, Shell hits 1
DD Urakaze
DD Nenohi, heavy fires
DD Wakaba, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Ariake, Shell hits 2, on fire
DD Ayanami
DD Kikuzuki
DD Shiokaze
DD Katsutade

Allied Ships

CA San Francisco, Shell hits 3, on fire
CA Wichita
CA Australia, Shell hits 1
CA Canberra, Shell hits 1
DD Craven, Shell hits 1
DD McCall
DD Selfridge
DD Clark
DD Kennison, Shell hits 1
DD Le Triomphant

This is followed by a ineffective Japanese bombardment that fails to close the airfield. Only 2 planes are lost on the ground.

No allied ships are lost during the battle but San Francisco need some yard time to fix 28 SYS damage. Japanese losses seem very light as well. 1 DD was picked off by LBA and 2 others very sunk in the morning by naval gunfire.

This was a victory for us though. I don´t think Jeff will come back for more. In fact an Allied SAG will pursuit stragglers tomorrow.

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]Burma[/font]
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Slow going here as we move through the Jungle. Our shock attack across from Ramree went better than expected.

Ground combat at 55,48 (near Ramree Island)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 28401 troops, 442 guns, 262 vehicles, Assault Value = 855

Defending force 18761 troops, 231 guns, 85 vehicles, Assault Value = 561

Allied adjusted assault: 313

Japanese adjusted defense: 1237

Allied assault odds: 1 to 3

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: shock(+), disruption(-), fatigue(-)

Japanese ground losses:
604 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 60 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Guns lost 17 (1 destroyed, 16 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1465 casualties reported
Squads: 9 destroyed, 116 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 18 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Guns lost 26 (1 destroyed, 25 disabled)

Assaulting units:
1st Marine Division
18th British Division

Defending units:
56th Division
18th/C Division
21st Air Defense AA Regiment
10th Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
3rd Mortar Battalion

Not too bad. We are recovering nicely while waiting for the 254th and 255th armored brigades to cross. They will arrive with 3 days in between them and shouldn´t trigger an attack when crossing.

The 300 tanks together with superior firepower should overcome the defenders. Jeff is racing more troop towards the area though. He might make it in time. Looks like atleast another division.

Jeff has played well here and somehow dug up more troops than I thought possible. I still have 2 Australian divisions isolated at Katha. The relief force are only 10 days behind now though. The 2 division and 3 Brigades should be more than enough to open a road to the cut off divisions. My strategical reserve is still sitting at Calcutta ready to exploit a breakthrough.

In the air Jeff has the upper hand for now. He simply outnumbers me and I have to prioritize defending my Amphibs over anything else. This gives me little room to maneuver and do creative things. Reinforcements are on their way though including almost 100 Corsairs and 75 more P47s. That should do it.

Jeff found out I had P47s in Burma in the most pleasant way.

Morning Air attack on Akyab , at 54,45

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 17 NM, estimated altitude 34,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-84a Frank x 26

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 24
P-38H Lightning x 12
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 37

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-84a Frank: 11 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 2 destroyed

More sweeps followed and when the dust settled 70 Japanese fighters were downed for 21 Allied. Only 4 pilots lost. I think Jeff might be more careful with his sweeping for a while.

[JocMeister]

[font="Verdana"]Elsewhere[/font]
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Stay tuned...[;)]