Rookie AAR

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Leandros
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Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »


Hi, all!

I’m not sure if this place (AAR’s) is meant purely for duels between two players or if it’s acceptable for a Rookie to put in one against the Japanese AI? Some may
have picked up that I have ventured into WitP to hopefully use it as a tool, sort of filing system, in a book project I’m fiddling around with – the working title
is “Saving MacArthur”. Just now I have a non-updated version of the game just to get the feeling of it and how it works. I’m trying to keep relatively close to
the RL except for items which differs because of the revised pre-requisites I’m working from. I shall get back to that as it develops. This exercise shall be a sort
of thinking-aloud test for me and I shall appreciate any inputs which goes on how I’m using the system and the results (or lack) thereof. I’m sure the veterans
here shall easily see what I’m doing blatantly wrong - in thinking as well as in execution. Eventually, I hope to use the editor to develop the scenario I’m
striving for. I started with the basic scenario and I can only say that it (the game) is getting more and more interesting. I think I I’ve already got a better
understanding of the logistics system, as it were, even if I’ve just scratched the surface. It seems I shall be able to use it relatively well to the purpose I
hope for. But, it’s a long way to go. My book project is presently at 2-300 pages and is only approaching end of January. Here I’m only in
the beginning of January.

General:

My main object now is to test how fast US, Australian and Dutch reinforcements can be fed forward to the Philippines under a somewhat different pre-requisites
than the RL, while most of them in the beginning are used to secure what I like to call The Philippine Relief Route – through the Moluccas. To that effect
priorities are:

1. Menado
2. Zamboanga
3. Ambon

The sequence is based on time available and defense status. First, a little so-far summary. Here goes:

January 3rd 1942.

Only recently have problems developed with the supply system as it took some time before I grabbed how it worked. I have presently auto-convoyed most actual bases.
To compensate my delay in this I have initiated a lot of independent convoys. I see now that it all has to start from the supply bases, and to work from there
forward towards the front. Time is of the essence. Presently I’m just concentrating on The Philippines and the securing of the supply lines there. China, Russia,
Burma and Malaya are allowed to live their own lives. Only a couple of occasions have I “loaned” a few extra resources from the Allies. The Dutch and Aussies are
very cooperative. I’m not drawing on British resources, other than to compete a little with them about Dutch resources.

1. MacArthur is withdrawing into Bataan in an orderly fashion. His air force has survived surprisingly well but the fighters and bombers have been withdrawn
to Mindanao. I hope to return the fighters shortly.

2. Manila is emptied with a consequent loss of transports. One large convoy got away.
3. I’m trying to redispose the Visayan forces, transferring several regiments from the other islands to Mindanao. It has not been without hick-ups, I still
have a little problem with the coupling between transport resources and ground or air units to be moved.

4. Zamboanga is being reinforced. USN Canopus has set up base there for a part of the submarine force. One P-40 and one P-35 squadron is based there.

5. The Japanese have invaded Davao and Jolo. They have been chased out of Davao with a constant pressure of bombing and submarine blockade. Ground forces
also closed in on them. Presently the base is used by the PBY’s again. A strong submarine force is patrolling on the outside.

6. Jolo is being harassed by our submarines as well and there has been a couple of nightly DD bombardments and daily bombings by B-17’s flying from Cagayan
and Dutch Martins from Menado. Several Jap transports have been sunk but also DD Pope.

7. On the 27th two enemy convoys approached Menado, a CV/BB force from east and some escorted transports from west. A US/Dutch DD force drove off the
transports, later a sea battle between an Allied Cruiser/DD force and the Japanese carrier TF took place in the Eastern part of the Celebes Sea. CA Canberra,
CL Marblehead and DD Bulmer were sunk. They took with them BB Hyuga, CL Nagara and DD Ykaze. Harassed by bombers from Menado, Ambon and Cagayan the Japanese force
withdrew towards east (I hope). Only two days later some transports, I don’t know if they were new or a second convoy, popped up outside Ternate and started to
land troops without any resistance. Three Japanese transports, a PB and DE Saga has been sunk in and around Ternate.

8. Menado has been reinforced with the Australian Gull and Sparrow Force and an Aussie Ind. Coy. Menado is essential to keep the Relief Route open.

9. All available B-17E’s, and some PBY’s, have been ferried westward across the Pacific. Twelve B-17E’s are now assembled on Ambon. The B-17D’s are operating
out of Cagayan.

10. The Japanese have struck in New Guinea and The Solomons, in this sequence: Mabang, Guadalcanal, Rabaul, Kavieng only a couple of days ago. They are now
firmly established on Guadalcanal.

11. The Langley convoy has departed Brisbane with 47 A-24’s (27th BG - Light). (That’s cheating a little - OTH I lost the artillery brigade being off-loaded
by mistake in Pago Pago. I have sent transports from Brisbane to pick them up but the loading takes time). The convoy left Brisbane unescorted but I have now
arranged for a link-up with a cruiser/DD force that was ahead of it.

12. CV Enterprise has just passed through the Torres Strait – destination Ambon where it shall fly off 15 P-36’s taken onboard in Pearl. When passing the
narrowest part of New Guinea a SBD squadron flew over on the other side and bombed Madang port. All planes returned safely. Enterprise is escorted by two CA’s and five DD’s.

13. 2nd Marine Brigade, an infantry regiment and various support units, Seabees and Army, Navy and Air Force Base Forces are “somewhere in the Pacific” –
heading west. They shall be dropped off as the situation demands.

Problems:

1. Various Philippine inter-island transports have been sunk. This has delayed the reinforcement of Mindanao.
2. A transport carrying another Australian Ind.Coy was torpedoed north of Rockhampton. It sank while trying to reach port.
3. CV Yorktown experienced some sort of trouble just after departing San Diego on her way to Pearl. Due to lack of fast escort she ventured out on the journey
on her own. Big mistake. She’s still on fire and is taking in water. Has returned to San Diego now.


More to follow.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
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witpqs
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by witpqs »

Several people have done AARs vs the AI. It might be a helpful way for you to get up to speed on mechanics + game strategy.

Good luck!
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BBfanboy
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by BBfanboy »


Welcome Leandros, to the wild and wooly world of WITP-AE! Chronicling a game against the AAR is entirely OK - the best way for Newbies to get help with this enormous game's learning curve. I have made some comments below.
ORIGINAL: Leandros


Hi, all!

I’m not sure if this place (AAR’s) is meant purely for duels between two players or if it’s acceptable for a Rookie to put in one against the Japanese AI? Some may have picked up that I have ventured into WitP to hopefully use it as a tool, sort of filing system, in a book project I’m fiddling around with – the working title
is “Saving MacArthur”. Just now I have a non-updated version of the game just to get the feeling of it and how it works. I’m trying to keep relatively close to
the RL except for items which differs because of the revised pre-requisites I’m working from. I shall get back to that as it develops. This exercise shall be a sort
of thinking-aloud test for me and I shall appreciate any inputs which goes on how I’m using the system and the results (or lack) thereof. I’m sure the veterans
here shall easily see what I’m doing blatantly wrong - in thinking as well as in execution. Eventually, I hope to use the editor to develop the scenario I’m
striving for. I started with the basic scenario and I can only say that it (the game) is getting more and more interesting. I think I I’ve already got a better
understanding of the logistics system, as it were, even if I’ve just scratched the surface. It seems I shall be able to use it relatively well to the purpose I
hope for. But, it’s a long way to go. My book project is presently at 2-300 pages and is only approaching end of January. Here I’m only in
the beginning of January.

Keep in mind that the game is not entirely historic - changes were made to make it more playable for both sides. Against the AI, the game works from a random choice of 13 scripts that set their strategy, i.e. the priority of their conquests. It will react somewhat to unexpected opposition but it is not up to a human opponent's problem solving. This means you can get away with some things that would not have been successful against the real life Japanese.
Besides that, there is the hindsight factor - because we know what happened in real life during the outset of the Pacific War, we will do things differently (like not sending Force Z into waters patrolled by Japanese torpedo bombers). That said, your idea to follow historic strategies to see what happens sounds like a good approach.


General:

My main object now is to test how fast US, Australian and Dutch reinforcements can be fed forward to the Philippines under a somewhat different pre-requisites
than the RL, while most of them in the beginning are used to secure what I like to call The Philippine Relief Route – through the Moluccas. To that effect
priorities are:

1. Menado
2. Zamboanga
3. Ambon

The sequence is based on time available and defense status. First, a little so-far summary. Here goes:

January 3rd 1942.

Only recently have problems developed with the supply system as it took some time before I grabbed how it worked. I have presently auto-convoyed most actual bases.
To compensate my delay in this I have initiated a lot of independent convoys. I see now that it all has to start from the supply bases, and to work from there
forward towards the front. Time is of the essence. Presently I’m just concentrating on The Philippines and the securing of the supply lines there. China, Russia,
Burma and Malaya are allowed to live their own lives. Only a couple of occasions have I “loaned” a few extra resources from the Allies. The Dutch and Aussies are
very cooperative. I’m not drawing on British resources, other than to compete a little with them about Dutch resources.

I like your plans. Sneaking supply in is the key to everything at this stage. Fighting a war uses huge amounts of supply and your bombing campaign at Davao could not have continued long.

1. MacArthur is withdrawing into Bataan in an orderly fashion. His air force has survived surprisingly well but the fighters and bombers have been withdrawn
to Mindanao. I hope to return the fighters shortly.

2. Manila is emptied with a consequent loss of transports. One large convoy got away.
3. I’m trying to redispose the Visayan forces, transferring several regiments from the other islands to Mindanao. It has not been without hick-ups, I still
have a little problem with the coupling between transport resources and ground or air units to be moved.

The ship amphibious TF loading system IS tricky. I approach it like this: Look at the "Stacking Limit" and "Cargo Load" for each unit to be transported. Add up all the limits and then all the cargo loads. Amphibious ship loading does not use space effectively so you need at LEAST 10% more space for passengers and for cargo. For amphibious invasions later, you will also need even more cargo for supply of the landings.
After you have your figures for passenger capacity and cargo capacity needed, create the Amphibious TF and start choosing ships based on their capacities until you have just over the target amount. You need at least one AP type ship for each unit loaded. Unless you are trying to strip all the goodies from the base, choose "Do Not Load Fuel" and "Do Not Load Supply". Click on "Verify Load" and see if all units show loading 100%. If not, click "Add More Ships" or, if there are no more ships, decide which unit you will not load and use the back button to go back to the unit load screen. De-select the unit(s) you are not taking and click on "Verify Load" again. When you are happy with the load click "Accept Load".


4. Zamboanga is being reinforced. USN Canopus has set up base there for a part of the submarine force. One P-40 and one P-35 squadron is based there.

5. The Japanese have invaded Davao and Jolo. They have been chased out of Davao with a constant pressure of bombing and submarine blockade. Ground forces
also closed in on them. Presently the base is used by the PBY’s again. A strong submarine force is patrolling on the outside.

6. Jolo is being harassed by our submarines as well and there has been a couple of nightly DD bombardments and daily bombings by B-17’s flying from Cagayan
and Dutch Martins from Menado. Several Jap transports have been sunk but also DD Pope.

More and more you will find that reloading your ships with ammo is difficult because all the ports big enough are seized by the Japanese or the supply is gone. Be sure to pull back and regroup when supply and damage to your ships dictates.

7. On the 27th two enemy convoys approached Menado, a CV/BB force from east and some escorted transports from west. A US/Dutch DD force drove off the
transports, later a sea battle between an Allied Cruiser/DD force and the Japanese carrier TF took place in the Eastern part of the Celebes Sea. CA Canberra,
CL Marblehead and DD Bulmer were sunk. They took with them BB Hyuga, CL Nagara and DD Ykaze. Harassed by bombers from Menado, Ambon and Cagayan the Japanese force
withdrew towards east (I hope). Only two days later some transports, I don’t know if they were new or a second convoy, popped up outside Ternate and started to
land troops without any resistance. Three Japanese transports, a PB and DE Saga has been sunk in and around Ternate.

Claims of sunk ships by Allied intel early in the war are greatly exaggerated. Unless you put 4 or more torpedoes into BB Hyuga I doubt she is sunk. You will need to learn to copy Combat Reports to post for assessment by experienced players.

8. Menado has been reinforced with the Australian Gull and Sparrow Force and an Aussie Ind. Coy. Menado is essential to keep the Relief Route open.

Japan started the war to gain access to the oil in the Dutch East Indies, so that is ALWAYS an area targeted by the AI scripts. You might hold Manado for a while but by March the IJA will be on Sumatra, Java and Borneo. Air patrols will make sneaking ships to the Philippines virtually impossible.

9. All available B-17E’s, and some PBY’s, have been ferried westward across the Pacific. Twelve B-17E’s are now assembled on Ambon. The B-17D’s are operating
out of Cagayan.

At game start Allied pilots are at a poor state of training and throwing them into battle too soon will waste the planes and the pilots. Until they train to 70 level in one skill (like land bombing) and 60 + in defensive skill they are not going to gain much against their losses.

10. The Japanese have struck in New Guinea and The Solomons, in this sequence: Mabang, Guadalcanal, Rabaul, Kavieng only a couple of days ago. They are now
firmly established on Guadalcanal.

11. The Langley convoy has departed Brisbane with 47 A-24’s (27th BG - Light). (That’s cheating a little - OTH I lost the artillery brigade being off-loaded
by mistake in Pago Pago. I have sent transports from Brisbane to pick them up but the loading takes time). The convoy left Brisbane unescorted but I have now
arranged for a link-up with a cruiser/DD force that was ahead of it.

Where is this convoy headed? If the Solomons is the target, are you prepared to lose all those aircraft and ships? After Pearl Harbour, the Japanese Carriers (KB) usually go to Truk and react to any Allied invasions within three days sail.

12. CV Enterprise has just passed through the Torres Strait – destination Ambon where it shall fly off 15 P-36’s taken onboard in Pearl. When passing the
narrowest part of New Guinea a SBD squadron flew over on the other side and bombed Madang port. All planes returned safely. Enterprise is escorted by two CA’s and five DD’s.

Do a few raids to give the pilots experience, but most of the time it is best to keep your carrier's location unknown, so the enemy has to be cautious on moving forward.

13. 2nd Marine Brigade, an infantry regiment and various support units, Seabees and Army, Navy and Air Force Base Forces are “somewhere in the Pacific” –
heading west. They shall be dropped off as the situation demands.

Don't keep them on the ships for too long. Not only do they suffer fatigue and morale hits, IJN subs are superb at this stage against very weak Allied ASW.

Problems:

1. Various Philippine inter-island transports have been sunk. This has delayed the reinforcement of Mindanao.

This is the normal course of events in this game. Submarines can bring in a little supply, but ships are on a suicide mission.

2. A transport carrying another Australian Ind.Coy was torpedoed north of Rockhampton. It sank while trying to reach port.

Start training some of your bomber/patrol groups in Naval Search and others in ASW patrol. It will take months, but eventually you can drive the subs away from your coasts.

3. CV Yorktown experienced some sort of trouble just after departing San Diego on her way to Pearl. Due to lack of fast escort she ventured out on the journey
on her own. Big mistake. She’s still on fire and is taking in water. Has returned to San Diego now.

Check the Yorktown's ship screen over on the right side where it says "Last Damaged By", to see if it lists a cause. IJN subs sometimes lay mines in coastal hexes. Collisions also happen, especially in large TFs.


More to follow.

Fred
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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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »

Thank you, BBF – appreciate your comments!
BBfanboy wrote: Besides that, there is the hindsight factor - because we know what happened in real life during the outset of the Pacific War, we will do things differently (like not sending Force Z into waters patrolled by Japanese torpedo bombers). That said, your idea to follow historic strategies to see what happens sounds like a good approach.
I like your plans. Sneaking supply in is the key to everything at this stage. Fighting a war uses huge amounts of supply and your bombing campaign at Davao could not have continued long.
My strategy is actually based on three pre-requisites differing from the RL:

1. An aggressive US leadership based on pre-war analysis that the operations, such as the Japanese had started, had to be a major overstretch of their resources. (This analysis actually conforms to the RL). IOW, reduced fear of further attacks in Eastern Pacific and the US.

2. A revised ABDA cooperation where the Asiatic Fleet is restricted to purely supporting US needs. That is, the relief of the Philippines. This was in accord with the options of the pre-war ABDA agreement.

3. An agreement with the Dutch and Australians on a balanced support in the actual area to keep open the Philippine Relief Route (through The Moluccas) till such time as US reinforcements arrive. The reasoning being that a reinforced, and intact Philippines, with its numerous army, would be the best defense for both the DEI and Australia.
Claims of sunk ships by Allied intel early in the war are greatly exaggerated. Unless you put 4 or more torpedoes into BB Hyuga I doubt she is sunk. You will need to learn to copy Combat Reports to post for assessment by experienced players.
I had read that somewhere but forgot. Anyway, the covering force disappeared out of sight….
Japan started the war to gain access to the oil in the Dutch East Indies, so that is ALWAYS an area targeted by the AI scripts. You might hold Manado for a while but by March the IJA will be on Sumatra, Java and Borneo. Air patrols will make sneaking ships to the Philippines virtually impossible.
I hope you are wrong but we shall see. Ambon is also to be reinforced considerably. If the Relief Route is secured properly it won’t be what you call “sneaking”. If I shall manage it is another thing…
At game start Allied pilots are at a poor state of training and throwing them into battle too soon will waste the planes and the pilots. Until they train to 70 level in one skill (like land bombing) and 60 + in defensive skill they are not going to gain much against their losses.
Well, it has worked out pretty well so far. Davao has been evacuated and the Menado invasion stopped, even if they have taken Ternate and Jolo. I’m afraid I can’t afford to let them rest.
Where is this convoy headed? If the Solomons is the target, are you prepared to lose all those aircraft and ships? After Pearl Harbour, the Japanese Carriers (KB) usually go to Truk and react to any Allied invasions within three days sail.
Actually, it’s going to Ambon. From there the A-24 units shall be dispersed as need arises. That said, I’m not really planning on any immediate invasions but sending whatever I have to ports still in our hands. Well, I might try to push the Japs out of Jolo eventually. As for now I don’t know how except keep up the pressure with nightly bombardments, bombings and a submarine boycott. For now, Jolo is just a nuisance, as is Ternate.
Start training some of your bomber/patrol groups in Naval Search and others in ASW patrol. It will take months, but eventually you can drive the subs away from your coasts.
Well, I’m afraid I do not have the time. Time is of the essence! (Roosevelt’s words…).
Check the Yorktown's ship screen over on the right side where it says "Last Damaged By", to see if it lists a cause. IJN subs sometimes lay mines in coastal hexes. Collisions also happen, especially in large TFs.

Thank you!

Fred

River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
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Jorge_Stanbury
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Jorge_Stanbury »

quote:

Start training some of your bomber/patrol groups in Naval Search and others in ASW patrol. It will take months, but eventually you can drive the subs away from your coasts.
Well, I’m afraid I do not have the time. Time is of the essence! (Roosevelt’s words…).

Naval search done by poorly trained pilots will not only fail to spot submarines, but also increase the chances of "ghost fleet" sightings (those false reports of "blue")






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BBfanboy
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by BBfanboy »

My comment about needing to train pilots before pushing them forward was in response to your plans to push the B-17s in the USA forward immediately. The ones in the Philippines don't have a choice - they are already on the front line. The ones in the USA can do much more for you if they train for a while.
No matter how bad a situation is, you can always make it worse. - Chris Hadfield : An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth
jmalter
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by jmalter »

hi Leandros,

a) it's entirely appropriate that you post AARs to a thread in this forum, you'll get readers who will post their advices here, in reaction to your plans & to answer any questions you might have.

b) it's v. interesting that you're approaching your game w/ a clear strategy in mind - I gather that it's a 'what-if' idea of full support to the Phillipines.

c) you'll find out that the Allies are kinda limited at start, due to initial unpreparedness. This can be mitigated by transferring pilots to front-line airgroups, but your stuff also needs better airgroup, ship & LCU commanders (as well as command-level transfers) that cost PP. Since PP accrue at 50 per day, Allies are always extremely hard-pressed to meet their needs.

d) at-start airgroups are often understrength & newly-arriving groups usually lack a full complement of airframes, while aircraft construction & the availability of improved aircraft is hard-coded in the scenario. A full-boat commitment of Fighter replacement airframes to the PI will reduce airframes available to the 3 AVG Fighter groups, who are gonna run out of H81-A3s fairly quickly.

e) I'm all for putting up a strong resistance to the initial IJ attack, & you have every right to war-game a 'Phillipines first' strategy, but in WitP:AE, I think you'll find that a PI defense is a hard road. Your re-supply convoys will be extremely vulnerable to torpedo-armed Betty attacks, & you don't have enough fighter groups to cover them. In short, you're gonna get creamed,

But as I said, this will be interesting! best of luck to you & your learning-process.

f) when you receive & install your discs, you should upgrade to the 'latest patch', I think you should be able to do this now w/ your dl'd game thru the start-up screen. Once you've got the patch installed, I strongly recommend that you upgrade to the 'public beta', available from the 'Patch 07' sticky-thread in the Tech Support forum. This beta is quite stable, also it installs to its own discrete path, so using it won't mung at all w/ your 'from-disc' game installation.

g) also it might be as well if you edited your original post (OP) to this thread, to give the Scenario number & source of the game you're playing, also mebbe list your Preferences (such as, construction ON/OFF, replacements ON/OFF, Historical Torps, Allled Damage Control, etc.)
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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »


Thank you, I appreciate all your advice. Hope you shall continue to follow me a little while. I'm somewhat handicapped without the written manual as my laptop
does not presently cooperate very well with the game. Each time I take it down to the bottom line the text is garbled when I bring it up again. I then have to save
and restart, which I only barely manages with the garbled text. I'm really looking forward to receiving the original discs, etc.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
wdolson
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by wdolson »

The text can get corrupted in the video memory. This happens on one of my PCs.

I play in windowed mode, which works a bit better for switching in and out of the game.

The video memory resets on my machine by clicking on a hex with nothing in it, I usually pick an ocean hex with no TFs, but any empty hex will do. Then minimize and maximize again. This usually clears the problems for me.

Bill
WitP AE - Test team lead, programmer
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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »

ORIGINAL: wdolson

The text can get corrupted in the video memory. This happens on one of my PCs.

I play in windowed mode, which works a bit better for switching in and out of the game.

The video memory resets on my machine by clicking on a hex with nothing in it, I usually pick an ocean hex with no TFs, but any empty hex will do. Then minimize and maximize again. This usually clears the problems for me.

Bill
Thank you, Bill - I shall try that. I have experimented with a window but then it gets so small - don't seem to be able to find the right combination.
I shall try with another 4:3 screen I have, just need to buy a coupling.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »


January 5th 1942

1. A good day regarding US air losses – non. With a somewhat reduced activity, I must add. The Mindanao-based C-47’s flight (6 a/c) has flown twelve sorties into Bataan the last two days.

2. The P-36 unit that arrived in the area with CV Enterprise transferred to Namlea (just west of Ambon) today. Enterprise is presently hovering south of Ambon amply covered by two radar-equipped CA’s and DD’s. A small SBD raid has been flown against the port of Ternate.

3. The Dutch have concentrated a 139-type bomber force at Pontianak, north-western corner of Borneo. The other concentration is in Menado.

4. There’s a lot of Japanese naval activity heading west towards Malaya. A CV task force has been pretty stationary out there for some days, regularly bombing Tarakan. There are several Dutch subs in the area but no major luck yet. The Japanese have taken Kuala Lumpur, Malaya and Kuching, Borneo.

5. Four more Jap vessels, one of these DD Sanae, are claimed by the nightly DD bombardments of Ternate. One led by CL Boise. The Jolo garrison seems to have been left high and dry.

6. The first dedicated Bataan supply convoy is being organized in Melbourne. I hope to have a proper escort network, sea and air, ready before it reaches Mindanao – tanker, oiler and cargo ships.

Problems

1. Disaster in the Solomons. A large convoy escorted by CA Minneapolis and DD’s was intercepted by a powerful IJN Task force north of Guadalcanal with consequential heavy losses in transports (6) sunk by torpedoes and 36 and 20 cm. gun-fire. Luckily, the convoy carried mostly cargo but also a Marine ENG Bn. All lost, as were DD’s Phelps and Selfridge and the IJN DD Akebono. Minneapolis and two DD’s escaped. This convoy had probably not received, or disregarded, the information that the enemy had established a base on Guadalcanal. Smells of court martial.

2. There has been some misunderstanding regarding the Saratoga TF. At some stage, just south-west of Pearl, it turned back to San Diego without orders. May have been because they were low on fuel. At first it was decided to divert it to Pearl, arranging a meeting with a tanker in the area that was enroute SF-Brisbane. On a second thought it was decided to let it proceed to SD to pick up the P-36’s originally planned to go with Yorktown.

3. The fire onboard Yorktown (in SD) has been extinguished. I’m planning to transfer it to SF. They probably have better wharf capability there.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
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BBfanboy
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by BBfanboy »

The Solomon Islands are one of the early Japanese targets, taken to secure the path along northern New Guinea to the DEI. These landings always seem to have very strong Surface Combat TF (SCTF) support.

IIRC, that Marine Combat Engineer unit was part of a Marine Division, and the division cannot now be formed. Divisions fight better than their individual components and get additional devices (like more artillery) when they are formed. You should use PP to buy back the destroyed Marine Combat Engineer unit when you can. To do that you have to go to the destroyed units list in the Intel Report. It may take a day or so for the unit to show up.

About Saratoga - be very wary of sailing your carriers into predictable ports such as San Francisco, LA and San Diego. IJN subs will now be on patrol along the West Coast. I would send her to Pearl Harbour instead, and have an ASW TF and aircraft on patrol to clear her path there of IJN subs. Those aircraft can easily be moved by a single cargo ship in an Air Transport TF.

To keep ships from trying to RTB to refuel, you need to set a home base closer to its area of operations (so the minimum fuel requirement is less) and/or change the routing information for the TF to "Direct" and "Absolute". This is especially necessary when they are at minimum fuel and you want to rendezvous with an AO TF. Don't forget to set the AO TF routing to "Meet TF xxx". Then all you need to do is set a destination hex for your low fuel TF that is within the travel radius of the AO TF. In an emergency you can also take fuel from any other ship that has more in its bunkers than it needs to do its mission and RTB.
Caveat - subs CANNOT be refueled at sea, even from an AO or another ship or sub. Set their home port to the nearest one that has fuel, and don't forget to adjust if the Japanese take the base! [:(]

Do not move Yorktown to San Francisco because of the aforementioned subs. San Diego has a big enough shipyard to handle the carrier, just disband it, put it into "Stood Down" repair and then change "Pierside" to "Shipyard". You can even change the priority for the repair if you want to put more resources on it.

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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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

The Solomon Islands are one of the early Japanese targets, taken to secure the path along northern New Guinea to the DEI. These landings always seem to have very strong Surface Combat TF (SCTF) support.

IIRC, that Marine Combat Engineer unit was part of a Marine Division, and the division cannot now be formed. Divisions fight better than their individual components and get additional devices (like more artillery) when they are formed. You should use PP to buy back the destroyed Marine Combat Engineer unit when you can. To do that you have to go to the destroyed units list in the Intel Report. It may take a day or so for the unit to show up.

About Saratoga - be very wary of sailing your carriers into predictable ports such as San Francisco, LA and San Diego. IJN subs will now be on patrol along the West Coast. I would send her to Pearl Harbour instead, and have an ASW TF and aircraft on patrol to clear her path there of IJN subs. Those aircraft can easily be moved by a single cargo ship in an Air Transport TF.

To keep ships from trying to RTB to refuel, you need to set a home base closer to its area of operations (so the minimum fuel requirement is less) and/or change the routing information for the TF to "Direct" and "Absolute". This is especially necessary when they are at minimum fuel and you want to rendezvous with an AO TF. Don't forget to set the AO TF routing to "Meet TF xxx". Then all you need to do is set a destination hex for your low fuel TF that is within the travel radius of the AO TF. In an emergency you can also take fuel from any other ship that has more in its bunkers than it needs to do its mission and RTB.
Caveat - subs CANNOT be refueled at sea, even from an AO or another ship or sub. Set their home port to the nearest one that has fuel, and don't forget to adjust if the Japanese take the base! [:(]

Do not move Yorktown to San Francisco because of the aforementioned subs. San Diego has a big enough shipyard to handle the carrier, just disband it, put it into "Stood Down" repair and then change "Pierside" to "Shipyard". You can even change the priority for the repair if you want to put more resources on it.

Thank you for your very educational posting. I'm slowly getting to understand the system of controlling TF's, etc...

Yorktown is halfway to San Fransisco so I'll have to stay with that. Worked through the system for shipyard repairs, too....[:)]..

More to follow.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
wdolson
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by wdolson »

If you have updated to a more recent patch, you can buy back a lot of destroyed units. It will take some time for the unit to reform and the unit will be rebuilt from the pools over time, but you can get it back.

Bill
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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »

ORIGINAL: wdolson

If you have updated to a more recent patch, you can buy back a lot of destroyed units. It will take some time for the unit to reform and the unit will be rebuilt
from the pools over time, but you can get it back.

Bill
Hi, Bill - I just received the parcel with the CD and manual in the mail. I'll wait a little, to get more accustomed to the game, Before I start a new round with
the updated game. Presently, I do not mind so much how it works out as long as I'm learning the tricks.

I'm looking forward to the possibility to look into the sigint and AAR's. They fell out of the game at one stage. Quite impressive manual.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
jmalter
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by jmalter »

ORIGINAL: Leandros
January 5th 1942
3. The Dutch have concentrated a 139-type bomber force at Pontianak, north-western corner of Borneo. The other concentration is in Menado.
Doesn't Pontianak start the game as a lvl-1 airbase? I think you can only run Escort / Recon / Search / ASW / Supply missions from a size-1 airfield, manual 7.2.1.13.1. Similarly, 4-engine bombers (4EBs) take a penalty (reduction in a/c that fly) on an Attack mission if the airfield size <= 4).

Those 300kg bombs pack a wallop, but you'll find that level bombers don't do well against ships. I've had some good results from Dutch 139WH-3 bombers recently, but using the low-level attack mode after 3 months of training for LowN skill. Also they were co-located w/ trained-up Dornier float-planes on the Naval Search mission.

The low-attack mode must be trained separately than the normal bomber training, you've got to set the Training mission to Naval or land-type target, w/ an alt <5k', then prosecute the attack mission w/ alt <5k'. This is of course fairly suicidal against a target w/ any kind of flak at all, but in Naval Attack mode, it's aces against slow transports, or in Ground Attack mode, you can mung an LCU, or at least knock it out of Move mode to slow it down.

The low-attack mode isn't mentioned in the manual, but there are several Aus / USN / USA bomber types classified as Attack Bombers (AB), they begin production later in the war. Any bomber or fighter-bomber can train & attack at low-level, but will only use their extended-range ordnance load. ABs will use their full ordnance load at low level, & will also attempt to strafe during an attack 'to suppress enemy flak'. This means that they need add'l training at alt 100' to develop the 'Staf' skill! Non-ABs do not Strafe in combination w/ a low-level attack.

The 139s are slow, w/ no armor & risible defensive armament, so it's useless to send them out against surface or air-combat TFs, or against a target that's likely to have a Fighter LRCAP - the 139s will die in droves. And don't even try to give them a Fighter escort, you need to assign the fighters to the same low altitude for best co-ordination, but they'll just get killed off too. Use your NavSearch planes at rng 10/12 to make sure there are no enemy carriers in the area, then it'll be safe (maybe) to attack transport fleets at rng 2/4. If you are lucky w/ picking your timing & attack range, you can bring some hurt to the invaders. If your luck is bad, you'll lose more than a few planes & pilots!

Early-war, I generally set all USA 2EBs to Train for LowN, to build up a cadre for the future. These guys will suffer high casualties.

Note that low-level attack & strafe skill must be trained for at specific altitudes (<5k' for LowN/G, 100' for Strafe). All other attack skills (GrdB or NavB) train perfectly well at alt 5k', but for attack missions, the airgroup must be set to a defined alt, for example, DBs must be set to alt 10-15k' to use their most-effective dive-bomber mode.
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by pontiouspilot »

Sorry I picked this up a little late. I far prefer retreating the bulk of troops into Manila rather than Bataan. It has much better port for getting supplies in and unloaded in a hurry. It also starts with more supplies in the first place. My preferred route to sneak blockade runners to PI from Soerebaja. This means you need to get supplies to Soer first. You will want to take many spare AKs and get them to Capetown and Eastern USA. If you get the long pipeline from Eastern USA running very early you can hold DEI. I believe holding PI requires you to hold at least part of DEI. If you set your priorities accordingly you can get many US squadrons to DEI to be effective in late Jan or Feb '42.

Another route to sneak supplies into PI is all the way from Seattle. Frankly it works better versus human opponents than AI!! I do it in smaller expendable TFs (no more than 3 ships). Also you may as well use the large US fleet subs early on for transport '42 since in '42 they can't sink anything anyway. These you will want to run from DEI if possible.
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »


Thank you, jmalter and pontiouspilot, for good advice and inputs.

As I mentioned in my early postings my intentions aren’t really to change too much of what happens initially in the PI, but rather to keep it similar to RL.
Because of that Bataan is fine with me. My main point, to have my theories confirmed, is the feasibility of a Relief Route through the Moluccas. Not by single,
unescorted, ships as in RL but rather as a part of a military operation.

It is interesting to see how the AI opponent is acting. It is much more aggressive than the RL. When first thrown out of Davao it now has come back much stronger.
That can be a good thing, he may be using forces that originally were meant for the advance southwards. BTW, the defense of southern Mindanao in the initial
stages of the war seems to be little known by the public. I’m weaker there now than I was supposed to be as I’ve had finger trouble with transferring forces from
the other Visayan Islands. As you may know MacArthur quite early initiated such transfers to secure Mindanao. He succeeded in that till after Bataan fell.

I’ve had similar finger trouble with the artillery regiments on the Pensacola convoy, they’re still in Suva where they were accidentally off-loaded. They should
have been on Mindanao by now. OTH, I have compensated that somewhat by cheating on the assembly time of the A-24’s that arrived in Brisbane. They have still not
come into play, though, even if they are now based in Ambon. They are training….

You are all promoting more training for the various air units. There is presently not time for that, priority is to get forces on the ground so that the Relief
Route through the Moluccas shall not be broken, mainly Ambon, Menado and Zamboanga. It was a blowback that Davao was retaken by the Japanese.

I shall post more on the development shortly.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
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Leandros
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by Leandros »


January 8th 1942.

1. The Japs are coming! A BB force is outside Ternate, a three-CV Task force is entering the Celebes Sea from east, a CA Task Force has just passed between Jolo and Zamboanga, course south-east. A tanker TF is hugging the west coast of Malahera. Their carrier planes have bombed Cagayan (Del Monte) and Menado.

2. Cagayan has also been bombed by land-based bombers from north.

3. During the day 3 P-40’s were lost in defending Cagayan. The enemy has lost in all 9 Bettys, 4 Sallys, 3 Kates and 1 Zero. 3 PBY’s destroyed by bombing and strafing.

4. Should I strike back at the carriers with all I have or wait a day to let them come closer - if they get closer? Enterprise is south-west of Menado, within good striking distance of Ternate but too far from the enemy carriers. However, they can be reached by the B-17’s at Cagayan and Ambon and 139’s and Hudsons from Menado. In addition there are several own cruiser and DD TF’s in the area. Pensacola, Chester, Boise and Australia. Northampton can be exempted from the Enterprise escort group. All have some sort of DD back-up.

5. Anyway, I plan to bombard Ternate again tonight with the various cruiser forces.

6. Three S-subs are still patrolling outside Ternate. Yesterday they claimed 2 more Marus.

7. I plan to bombard Ternate again tonight with the various cruiser forces.

8. CL Perth and a DD, both damaged, are on their way back to Australia.

9. Darwin, Ambon and Menado is slowly filling up with fuel and supplies.

10. Langley is two days out of Ambon with the A-24’s of the 27th BG (light).

11. Lexington has just passed through the Torres Straits, heading north.

12. The artillery Brigade is still loading in Suva…WTF…

13. Yorktown has arrived safely in SF, Saratoga in SD. Has loaded up with the P-36’s originally planned to go with Yorktown.

14. Queen Elisabeth has arrived in SD. Planning to fill it up with Marines.

15. A P-40 group is due into Brisbane in a couple of days.

16. Hope to get a squadron of Wirraways from the Aussies.

17. An Aussie brigade, withdrawn from the Middle East, soon departs Aden for home….

18. Need to get Hornet and some CVE’s out here….(Plenty of B-25's in SD)....[;)]

19. More than 40.000 troops are on ships between the US and Australia.

Fred
River Wide, Ocean Deep - a book on Operation Sea Lion - www.fredleander.com
Saving MacArthur - a book series on how The Philippines were saved - in 1942! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07D3 ... rw_dp_labf
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RE: Rookie AAR

Post by BBfanboy »

At Davao you are seeing one of the weaknesses of the AI scripts - if they don't take something they are supposed to take, they keep sending more to the same place even when the situation is hopeless (e.g. a mid-1942 attack on the Hawaiian Islands). By all means play out your defence of Minadanao, but be aware that a Japanese commander in RL would bomb and bombard Davao into a 0 Assault Value/0 Supply state before sending in much stronger forces the next time. That is what happened in RL at Wake. This works against your intention to play the game as a simulator, but as I said before compromises were made to make the game more playable, rather than follow history religiously.

Striking carriers is a very tough proposition - the Zero is superior to the Allied Fighters available and the KB pilots are the best in the world. That said, there are enough chance elements that you might get to plant a few bombs on their decks. Weather is a big element. It can hide your strike until it comes in out of the clouds or it might hide the carriers so you never find them. The AI usually places CAP in the 10-20,000 foot range so sometimes a very low level strike (1000 or 100 feet) can sneak by the CAP and strike before they are spotted and the Zeros get down to that level. Numbers of strikes can have an effect on reducing CAP too - the fighters have to land to refuel and re-ammunition so there are fewer on CAP to stop later flights. Carrier Naval strikes cannot be directed to a particular spot so sometimes they are decoyed by convoys, especially anything with APs or AOs in it.

So it is an "iffy" proposition, and any bomb hits you might get are unlikely to be fatal to the carrier. It is guaranteed that you will lose large numbers of aircraft and their pilots, while any aircraft he loses will likely have the pilots saved since you would be fighting over his forces, not yours.

If you are thinking of committing Enterprise and Lexington to the fight, keep in mind that their initial performance will be terrible - especially the Devastators which rarely get a hit and about 80% of their torpedo hits will be duds. Better to use bombs IMO. The USN fighter pilots are good, but not enough experienced to fight crack Zero pilots with their early model Wildcats and Buffalos. The SBD2 is OK and the SBD 3 better, but unless their escort can keep the Zeros off their backs the chances of scoring a hit are small. The counter strike by the Japanese will be devastating - the Kates score with 50-80 % of their aircraft that get through your CAP. The Vals score with 40-60 % of their bombs, and Allied fire prevention/suppression is not good this early in the game.
So most experienced players will not (before late 1942) put their carriers up against the Japanese ones unless they have a 2-1 advantage in aircraft totals.

About QE/QM - they are great ships for hauling lots of troops but they can take little equipment and they need a large port to dock at (Level 7, I think). On the first point, you will need to load up a lot of slower ships with the Marines' equipment and have them follow weeks behind or, if in the same convoy, negate the Queens' speed advantage. On the second point, IJN subs typically stake out the Allies large ports waiting for victims. One thing you should be aware of - about 75% of the time a ship heading to port will end its daily movement in the hex adjacent to the port before entering next turn. This hex should be aggressively patrolled by ASW ships and aircraft. (I do not know why a ship with 3 or four hex moves left in its movement and only two hexes away will stop outside the port - simulation of slowing down in busy waters or nightfall perhaps?). I sometimes give an important TF a waypoint so that it will be within distance to make port during the morning Naval Movement Phase.
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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