Last Stop Tokyo: Terminus vs Durrant

[Bill Durrant]

Funny really - wonder where those divisions were stashed !? ( the scale on the pic is a little fuzzy but it is 1000 yards ) ... we probably need ahouse rule about stacking on atolls for the defender and about maximum allowed attack force. I'd vote for a regiment to defend and a division to attack, and the division if successful must be withdrawn ( reduced down ) to a regiment within a week after taking the atoll.

I am told by my honourable opponent that it wasn't 4 divisions but two and I think two brigades? I was just in shock watching the debacle so didn't take it in too well.

Anyway after that mess things have been pretty quiet so I thought I'd just post the lastest points screen

[Terminus]

Two divisions, one brigade, two base forces and a coastal gun regiment.

[general billy]

Is this game finished??

[Terminus]

Nope, just slowed down to a crawl, due to real life obligations on the parts of both Bill and myself...

[Rysyonok]

I guess this gives the rest of us a chance to catch up

[Terminus]

A last thing about the little scrap at Wake: my force was in level 9 fortifications. They'd had plenty of time and supplies to turn the island into a big concrete box in the middle of the Pacific.

[Bill Durrant]

Just a quick note on progress - or lack of it.

Turns are still being done but on my part it is very quiet for a number of reasons:

Wake was such a disaster I need to regroup desperately.
This game plays very differenly to WitP - I sent a lot of my troops to the wrong places to start with.
Transports all upgrade on in January 1923 and I am still getting the sys damage under control.
Transports capacity is reduced from WitP - it takes a lot of ships to move a division.
Recon is a lot harder without planes.
We had some major sea battles early on and getting ships back into shape is taking a long time.

Hopefully I can do something constructive soon[;)]

[Terminus]

Just sent Bill the 4/30/23 turn; this is a short rundown of the state of play:

Central Pacific: The Wake garrison successfully repelled the American invasion attempt. At the moment, at least two enemy submarines are operating in the waters around the island, being chased by my Felixstowes.

Dutch East Indies: Aside from the very northwestern tip, Borneo is under my control. Celebes is currently being secured, with my forces operating out of Pinrang. All the main Dutch surface vessels are gone.

South China Sea: Basically quiet, after the hammering my ships took at Singapore. Like Bill, I've got a lot of badly damaged ships I need to put back together.

Korea: Initially, I wasn't even going to fight for the Korean peninsula, but then I realised that this wouldn't be very realistic. So I sent rather more troops than I would have preferred. They failed to make much of an impact when moving into China proper, and are now entrenched in primary defensive positions at the Sino-Korean border just north of Hungnam. We shall see if Bill's going to attack, or if he's content to remain where he is, tying up my army.

[Cruiser87]

Great stuff guys!

Now that I'm caught up, I look forward to the next installment.

[Bill Durrant]

After a very quiet period an allied CV force tracked down a Jap TF scoring hits on the BC Haruna

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 05/09/23

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 26,64


Allied aircraft
Sopwith 2F1 Camel x 6
Sopwith Cuckoo x 13
Fairey IIID x 6


No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
BC Haruna, Bomb hits 1, Torpedo hits 1
BC Kongo
CL Oi

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x Sopwith Cuckoo launching torpedoes at 200 feet
2 x Sopwith Cuckoo launching torpedoes at 200 feet
3 x Fairey IIID bombing at 2000 feet
3 x Fairey IIID bombing at 2000 feet
4 x Sopwith Cuckoo launching torpedoes at 200 feet
4 x Sopwith Cuckoo launching torpedoes at 200 feet

[Terminus]

"Gaijin need bigger torpedoes!"[:'(]

[Terminus]

The game isn't dead, and it's time for a status report.

Overall Situation:

I feel reasonably secure. Japan owns the entire Philippines, Guam and Wake, most of Borneo, a few other DEI bases, as well as a few outposts in northwestern New Guinea. Whilst the Chinese hordes have overrun Manchuria, they're now sitting still on the Korean border, being watched warily by large elements of the Imperial Army.

The Land War:

I'm quite happy with the performance of my troops. Everywhere I've landed them, they've eventually prevailed (aside from the unfortunate Canton incident). The Chinese situation is the only fly in the ointment, but we shall see what happens there.

The Naval War:

This has been a more mixed affair. Whilst the Imperial Navy has been able to carry my troops to all their objectives, I'm not completely satisfied with their performance against major enemy fleet elements, and given the large number of ships in the dockyards, I'm at a serious disadvantage. Whilst the number of large vessels sunk is nearly equal, the mixture of points values is far more skewed in Bill's favour, and he gets a lot more ships as reinforcements.

Ships Lost:

Japan: 11 BB, 1 BC, 1 CA, 8 CL (of which 4 were Commerce Raiders), 42 DD, 6 AP, 2 AK, 4 TK, 8 SS, 1 AD, 1 MSW.

Allies: 10 BB, 1 BC, 9 CL, 64 DD/TB, 3 AP, 11 AK, 2 AO, 6 SS, 14 PG, 1 AR, 4 SC, 3 MSW, 1 AE.

[Rysyonok]

I guess its time for IJN to mass-produce commerce raiders if it wants to survive the next year?

Which BBs have been lost on both sides? Dreadnoughts or old hulks?

[Terminus]

About an even mix, except that the US has only lost two pre-dreads, leaving the American battleline largely intact. I'll post a rundown after next turn...

[Bill Durrant]

As Terminus said this game is still going on but RL issues are preventing regular posts. Here is my take.

Things on the ground have not been great for me. I am still undecided on whether to push on into Korea. My troops morale is lower than (insert your own analogy)......... The disasterous attack on Wake where the US 2nd Division perished has left me nervous - as was a small force sent to Kwaijalein. I know there must be gaps somewhere but sub recon is next to useless so it is pretty much hit and miss. I have lots of US divisions arriving shortly but not enough transports for them.

My battlefleets are looking good and waiting for final minor repairs before venturing out into the ocean.

Things happen a lot slower in WPO and my intial plans were not brilliant as I was basing them on my experience of WitP. I got lucky a few times and thus the "ships lost" count.

I would say Terminus is marginally ahead at this stage but time will tell.

[Terminus]

ORIGINAL: Bill Durrant

I would say Terminus is marginally ahead at this stage but time will tell.

You wouldn't say that if you could see the state of my battleline... You'd be too busy rubbing your hands and cackling with glee...

[Terminus]

As promised, the list of destroyed battleships and -cruisers:

Japan:

Mutsu, Settsu, Hiei, Aki, Kashima, Mikasa, Hizen, Iwami, Shikishima, Asahi, Okinoshima, Suwo

Allied:

Connecticut, Monadnock, Iron Duke, Benbow, Marlborough, Agamemnon, Australia, De Ruyter, Hertog Hendrik, De Zeven Provincien, Jacob van Heemskerck

[Rysyonok]

>Mutsu, Settsu, Hiei, Aki, Kashima, Mikasa, Hizen, Iwami, Shikishima, Asahi, Okinoshima, Suwo

16", 12", 14", 12", 12", 12", 12", 12", 12", junk, junk.

> Connecticut, Monadnock, Iron Duke, Benbow, Marlborough, Agamemnon, Australia, De Ruyter, Hertog Hendrik, De Zeven Provincien, Jacob van Heemskerck

Junk, junk, 13.5", 13.5", 13.5" (Did c1911 British ships have a target painted on them or something?), 12", 12", junk, junk, junk, junk.

Ouch for IJN.

Which Japanese destroyer classes got hit the hardest?

[Terminus]

Like I said, Bill's in a fairly good position, capital ship-wise.

I'll have to get back to you with the destroyers when I run the next turn...

[Rysyonok]

ORIGINAL: Terminus
Like I said, Bill's in a fairly good position, capital ship-wise.
I'll have to get back to you with the destroyers when I run the next turn...

Thanks =)

Do understand my curiosity - this *is* the longest-running WPO AAR =)