Attack Attack Attack - a Hotseat AAR

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Remington700
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RE: Japan: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

East China
With the continued clear weather additional attacks are expected. Replacement levels are low for the Chinese army so their advance should run out of gas soon. Japanese divisions continue to rebuild however this is starting to hurt as the total PPs received per turn is starting to go down.

The use of garrison mode has provided extra production points but without the ‘+2’ gun bonus it is not worth the loss in mobility. I really could use a couple of light tanks for a reaction force, but that would force the research of another advancement - they would need to be 1943 tech to help in the late game. And would be of limited use early as Japan moves west into rugged territory. However, they would nicely support a push on Chungking from the north plains. Something to think about for a future game.

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Remington700
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RE: Japan: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Malayan Peninsula
The Monsoon season starts off with a bang. Heavy rain hits the Malayan Peninsula and Borneo. This effectively grounds all Allied land-based aircraft. Taking advantage of the weather, the Combined Fleet goes all in. Splitting into two divisions, the first with five carriers and the second with three, the battle group steams across the South China Sea and sneaks to within 50 miles of the enemy CV fleet. Betting on the heavy rain to continue next turn the carriers will stick around and slug it out.

The 1st carrier division is spotted as they approach but manage to launch planes before the enemy can strike. Helldivers and TBF Avengers swarm the CV Junyo and immediately set her ablaze. The carrier is beyond repair and is later abandoned and sank. Enemy air losses are high with 5 SPs shot down in the furball and another falling to AA fire. Two Zero SPs were lost in the fight. Fifty miles away Judy dive-bombers and Jill torpedo planes get the jump on the enemy fleet targeting the CVL Belleau Wood and slamming her with multiple hits. The carrier sinks while the nearby cruiser New Orleans is heavily damaged in the action. The BB Iowa steams in to provide heavy AA fire splashing 3 SPs of Japanese planes. However, Judys and Jills swarm the battleship and eventually sink her.

The 2nd carrier division is spotted at much the same time as their sister ships. Carrier-based plans from both combatants pass each other in the air. As they arrive the rain hides both the US and Japanese carriers, so battleships are targeted. The Yamashiro is hit twice but remains under steam. The BB Arizona is hit by Judy dive-bombers, taking two hits but the damage is soon under control. Air losses were the same on both sides losing 4 planes a piece.

With land forces on the peninsula cut off from supply the 11th Destroyer flotilla slips in to resupply the 15th Army and the Malayan HQ. This round of the battle for Singapore goes to Japan. However the US 5th Fleet still has plenty of teeth so the campaign is far from over.

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Remington700
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RE: Japan: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Reports
Japan: 1 Coastal Defense.

All escorts are sent to the East China Sea. The South China Sea convoy is shut down this turn.

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John B.
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RE: Japan: June 4th 1944

Post by John B. »

I think in your next game you should play with the option where allied BBs don't have a target painted on them. :)
John Barr
Remington700
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Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Allied: June 4th 1944

Indochina
With heavy rain across the front the offensive has ground to a halt. Supply has become problematic at the head of the Mekong River for both the Indian and Chinese armies. The Indian 4th Corps crosses to the south side of the river for better supply. This leaves an opening in the line however it is unlikely the enemy will take advantage due to the expected poor weather in the coming weeks. The Chinese armies in the 3rd War Area are also affected by the weather and the 5th Army is now unsupplied. Headquarters units move south to organize the mess.

(HQs increase the range of supply by +1, which turns a “zero supply” hex into a level one. The heavy rain affects the movement range of the HQs, which in turn affects the number of extra hexes that can receive the +1 bonus. I am attempting to daisy chain them to provide supply farther to the south.)

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

China
The Red Guard Army and the Chinese 30th Army attack the Japanese 1st Brigade causing two SP damage and pushing them back 50 miles. Amazingly the two units managed to attack the enemy rather than each other. The Red Guard occupies another 50 mile stretch of the Sian Railroad as they slowly work their way east towards Kaifeng. Nationalist Chinese forces look to the advance with suspicion. But for now, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

Convoy Attacks
Convoy attacks reduced dramatically as air assets are focused on the naval battle raging off Singapore. Enemy Sub Hunter bonuses are kicking in throughout the South China Sea. The Tang is spotted and hit by depth charges causing heavy damage and forcing the boat to return to Sydney for repairs. The Pike and Mingo fail to find targets but do stay out of sight of the increased sub hunting patrols. In the East China Sea things go a little better. The Wahoo does not find a target, but the Devilfish has the good fortune to line up on a couple of freighters, sinking them both. The Skipjack sinks another and slips away before the enemy can respond. Hunting was good in the East China Sea with the destruction of 3 Merchant Marine and no damage to submarines.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Malayan Peninsula
Coast watchers provide limited intel on Japanese naval concentration, but it is enough to know the carriers of the Combined Fleet are still in the area. The enemy is not turning tail – they are here to fight. The British Division of the 5th Fleet slips farther south down the Malacca Strait. Without mine sweepers the Task Force is stalled at the mine belt closing of the passage from the strait into the South China Sea. Betty bombers and Kamikazes from Bandar Lampung target the fleet but can do no damage. Two enemy SPs were shot down during the attack.

The US 2nd and 4th Corps attack positions of the Japanese 21st Brigade. The 4th Marine Division attacks to the north hitting the enemy in the rear. The first attack is repulsed but a second assault hits the enemy hard from two directions causing them to surrender. The 4th Corps advances south of Kuala Lumpur to flank the Imperial 15th Army. The Marine unit soon has another assignment.

Inventive Marines of the 4th Division cross the Malacca Strait on makeshift rafts, identifying mines in the process. The British navy uses this intel to find a way to clear the passage. The path is now clear to the South China Sea, and the CV force led by the HMS Hermes will be able to take part in the blockade of Singapore. The downside is the Japanese 15th Army is no longer cut off from Singapore and may move to the south covering the approach to the city.

(This is a conservative play and may drag out the siege. However it does allow the blockade to continue if the US carriers must pull out for repairs and new aircraft. It will shorten their trip to one turn. (A single move to Ceylon compared to the long voyage to Sydney.) Ultimately it is starvation that will lead to the fall of Singapore - the blockade must continue at all costs)

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Singapore
With the Japanese fleet located, planes from five US carriers north of Singapore seek out the enemy flattops but come up empty. They return to find a carrier and cruiser in flames. Dive-bombers and torpedo planes from the four Japanese light carriers had pounced on the US task force. Three enemy air SPs were shot down while the US lost four. The light carrier Cowpens and the “storied” cruiser New Orleans were hit multiple times and will soon be abandoned and sunk.

A second US CV force south of Singapore launches planes that fly in behind the first attack wave. They adjust based on the failure of the lead attack and find the Japanese carriers of the 1st fleet division. Enemy CAP and flak are heavy but only three air SPs are lost while the enemy loses one. The mighty BB Musashi and the battleship Nagato are targeted with both ships taking hits but managing to stay afloat. During this attack, enemy bombers target the CV Wasp doing extensive damage but lose 3 SPs. However, the carrier stays in the fight and retains the majority of her 83% experienced air units.

Planes launched from the British fleet fly over the Singapore Strait in route to the last know location of the enemy carriers. The burning battleships act like a beacon and the UK bombers are quick to sink the monster battleship Musashi and cause greater damage to the BB Nagato. In a counter action the battle cruiser Repulse is hit but suffers little damage.

The southern US taskforce launches a second strike against the hammered Japanese carriers. Enemy CAP is ineffective allowing Helldivers to swarm the BB Ise scoring two hits amidships but let her slip away. The burning Nagato is a sitting duck and soon sunk by Avenger torpedo planes. Two friendly air SPs are shot down by enemy triple A while the rest return to their carriers unharmed. A-20 Havocs from Borneo join the fight doing little damage but manage to shoot down two enemy air SPs.

After reports from a PBY from Borneo, B-24 bombers target the untouched Japanese 2nd naval division to the west of the recent conflict. The group contains three light CVs and seven battleships. No ships are damaged but seven enemy air SPs are destroyed during the three sorties. Rather than retreat, the northern most US CV group manages to put the last of their planes into the air and take one more shot at the Japanese carriers. The damage is minimal but two more enemy SPs are shot down with no loss of US planes. This is an important accomplishment as that should reduce planes of 2nd division of the Combined Fleet to about 11 SPs thus limiting the danger in a counterattack.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Aftermath
While the battle is not yet over the enemy air losses put them at a disadvantage if they stick around for another full round of combat. With constant airstrikes targeting the 1st CV division the enemy loses 17 SPs which should leave them at most 10 or 11 SPs. The is about the same as is estimated for the 2nd CV division. Plus, the loss of their last two fleet carriers leaves the enemy with just seven CVLs.

The decision is made to remain on station with damaged vessels, “staying the course” in the battle. The blockade is the prime objective and must continue at all costs. The capture of Singapore will provide a dry dock and unlimited naval supply, eliminating the long trip to Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbor.

Ships Sunk

USA
USS Cowpens “mighty moo” CVL
USS Belleau Wood CVL
USS Iowa BB
USS New Orleans CA

Japan
CV Taiho
CV Junyo
Heavy BB Musashi (5 SPs)
BB Nagato

Estimated remaining enemy naval air units
1st CV division: 4 CVLs with 10 to11 planes
2nd CV division: 3 CVLs with 10 to 11 planes

Allied naval air units
North CV taskforce: 3 CVs and 1 CVL with 7 planes
South CV taskforce: 4 CVs and 2 CVLs with 22 planes
British CV taskforce: 2 CVs and 1 CVL with 15 planes (Hermes air at 45% experience which is functional)

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 4th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Builds
UK: No builds. Replacements remain at max.
India: No builds. Replacements remain at max.
China: No builds. Replacements reduced to 100.
USA: 1 dive-bomber (close support). 2 COMINT.

Convoys
USA: 10 OPs to India
USA: 25 OPs to UK
UK: 20 PPs to India

West Coast
B-24 strategic bombers arrive in LA to be retrofitted with new technology. (Their current tech is 1942 – they will wait a turn for 1943 tech before moving on.)

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Remington700
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Loss of Battleships

Post by Remington700 »

ORIGINAL: John B.

I think in your next game you should play with the option where allied BBs don't have a target painted on them. :)

So true.
The US has lost 11 BBs and the UK 1. While Japan doubled her BB losses in the current battle from 2 to 4. Playing the allies, I guess I should be happy the US BBs were sunk instead of the CVs. From Japan's point of view it would have been much better to have lost more BBs instead of the 11 carriers, including all of their Fleet CVs.

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Remington700
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Japan: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Japan: June 18th 1944

Indochina
Heavy rain continues inland causing a lack of mobility in the area. No attacks are expected from the enemy this turn. To the south, the defense around Saigon continues to improve. Coastal defenses are finished and occupied by the full-strength 11th Army. They are tasked with covering the approach from the north. The Mekong River is used as a natural barrier to weaken an enemy advance from the southwest. More coastal defenses will be constructed as soon as the materials can be found.

Coastal defenses are cheap (20 SPs) and provide a good defensive bonus. The downside is they take four months to create. It will be interesting to see how well they work. I plan to make more as soon as the Combined Fleet can be repaired.

East China
The weather remains clear however there is no movement of Imperial forces. They are dug-in and await the coming attack.

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Remington700
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RE: Japan: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Malayan Peninsula
Heavy rain covers both the peninsula and the South China Sea. Unable to make a final attack on the US carriers the Combined Fleet steams full speed back to Manila Bay to take on planes and repair damage. The carrier battle is over for now but the fight continues on land. Patrol boats of the 8th MTB bravely slip through the US blockade and resupplies Singapore which a light cruiser resupplying the rest of the ground units. All ground forces on the peninsula are fully restocked with food and ammo. General Adachi moves his command into Singapore while the 13th and 15th armies control the approach from the north. Effectiveness is lower at 50% but the units should be able to hold out until the return of the Combined Fleet.

The Allied intel of lost planes is way off which adds an interesting aspect to the game: Inaccurate intel. I think this is corrected for games started with the current version. In my game it keeps intel in the fog and can lead to poor decisions. For example, thinking Japan had 22 carrier-based planes in play I looked closely at moving the weakened allied CV Taskforce towards Sydney. Instead, the Japanese carriers have just 7 planes on the smaller CVL group, and the other division has none. Since all US CVs stayed in the fight, they can now use the recently opened Malacca Strait and shorten travel time by a total of two turns. This greatly mitigates Japan’s advantage of having the Port of Manila in the area.

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Remington700
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RE: Japan: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Reports
Japan: No builds. Replacements increase to 300.

The South China Sea convoys remain turned off.

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Remington700
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Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Allied: June 18th 1944

Indochina
Supply in this theater has fallen apart. Virtually all the Indian and a British corps are in basic supply. They will survive but cannot receive replacements and are limited to a 3% effectiveness recover each turn. As I have seen in Malaya, this makes offensive action very difficult.

The game does a great job of creating unexpected supply problems. I have been playing with an ETO mindset which leads to major fail. I have been thinking in terms of supplying large armies for major encounters and holding long dug in lines for defense. I need to think about small engagements with little mobility and restricted supply. Concentration of force still matters; just use the force to attack at key points and defend the supply lines. Leave the rest wide open to enemy advance. Let their infantry overextend and then cut them off from their rear area supply.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

China
The Chinese 30th and 34th armies supported by the Red Guards hit the Imperial 3rd Brigade hard. The enemy holds the line but takes a five SP loss. A second hard push destroys the brigade. The 34th Army exploits the breach and advances to the Wei River. The enemy line is broken.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

South China
To the south, the 10th, 12th and 25th armies assault positions of the 13th Brigade at the Agriculture facilities. The enemy cannot hold and retreat allowing the 10th Army to secure the crossing at the Hongshui River. (The capture of the agriculture center should reduce the Japanese production growth rate by 1% and increase the rate by 1% for China.)

Convoy Attacks
The Japanese South China convoy route has been shut down eliminating any chance of the Finback and Pike spotting targets. Both subs receive orders to move their war patrol to the East China Sea. With convoys continuing in this area the Devilfish spots a target but are caught by escorting destroyers. They dive deep but suffer minor damage which unfortunately will cause them to return to Rabaul for repairs. It is clear from reports the enemy has put all their destroyer escorts on the East China Sea convoy route, so it is dangerous to stay on station with any type of damage. (While battle reports show 8 escorts are in the area, I am not sure if it is truly 8 or much less. Chalk it up to Fog of War.)

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Java Sea
Operation Tadpole gets underway. The 1st and 3rd Marines with little escort land on the beaches to the northeast of Bandar Lampung. Rather than attacking the port they move inland to cut the oil supply from Palembang and to circle the city. An airbase loaded with A6m3 Zeros is overran removing them from the battle for Singapore. A small submarine group led by the Mingo arrives offshore to provide a small amount of supply to the Marines.

Malaya
The US 2nd, 3rd and 4th Corps plus the 4th Marine Division are resupplied by sea. The light cruisers Cleveland and De Ruter have been modified to handle heavy supply resulting in a greater recover of effectiveness by the US troops.

The British taskforce streams to Singapore and encounters enemy MTBs resupplying the enemy. The boats are immediately sunk but the damage is done. The enemy has resupplied. Five US carriers from the north taskforce steam through the Malacca Strait to Colombo for repair and replacements. The remaining ships in the 5th Fleet do their best to tighten the blockade. Too much enemy supply has been slipping through the net and the enemy ground forces have been resupplied. The siege is starting over.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Kwajalein
Operation Galvanic is launched as the 5th Marines land on Wotje meeting little resistance. This is followed by the 43rd Division landing on Tarawa. These islands are easily captured and will be used to support Operation Flintlock, the invasion of Kwajalein. The original target of Galvanic was Tarawa however the port at Wotje was an undefended target so plans changed before the attack. The enemy has pulled out of the area so the capture of Kwajalein should just be a matter of time. However, the Combined Fleet or a portion thereof could show up to cause problems.

West Coast
The 6th and 7th Marine Divisions arrive on the West Coast. The BB Missouri arrives at Treasure Island for refueling and then steams toward Kwajalein.

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Remington700
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RE: Allied: June 18th 1944

Post by Remington700 »

Builds
UK: 10 Landing ships.
India: No builds.
Canada: 2 Landing ships.
Red China: 2 Supply units.
USA: 10 Landing ships.

Convoys
USA: 10 OPs to India.
USA: 25 OPs to UK.
UK: 20 PPs to Australia.

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