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All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [World War II] >> War In The Pacific - Struggle Against Japan 1941 - 1945 >> After Action Reports >> Truth or Dare?...

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Truth or Dare?... - 5/6/2006 6:02:01 AM

ADavidB

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December 27, 1941 -

Treespider is quite tenacious and does not let adversity slow him down. His damaged APDs off of Sumatra were pounded again by British and Dutch bombers, and two APDs finally sank. But he sent another fast TF to Jambi, and this time the only thing that saved me was that he forgot to set his troops to "unload". My LBA missed the cruiser and destroyers in that TF, but they did bomb a Japanese PC that was sailing along on its own nearby.

A Dutch sub also got in some practice off of Mersing where it put torpedoes into an AP and an AK. The escorts damaged the sub a bit. Mersing still got bombarded. The combat unit that landed there isn't too big, so it only did a bombardment this turn. At the same time it appears that Treespider intends to cut my forces in half in Malaya by sending an LCU to Malacca. I'm just going to let things go for now and see how long my troops can hold out. The troops at Alor Star, for example, withstood another Deliberate attack this turn.

Treespider also surprised me by landing troops at Sorong instead of Amboina. He sent bombers to hit the airport at Amboina but they didn't do much damage, so the Dutch planes attacked the troopships. Unfortunately, there were no hits. What was interesting about this attack was that the Dutch planes were met by some Claudes. On first thought, this seemed like an opportunity for a carrier raid, but afterwards while I was examining the map in detail a TF appeared north of Amboina that Intelligence stated contained at least 4 CVs!!! Is Intelligence all buggered up again, or has Treespider sent a large part of the KB into the DEI? Just in case, I ordered my front line forces back a ways until I can figure out what the truth really is in this case.

China continued to be a mess, but there were no new attacks and no additional threats. In Burma my troops continue to retreat in good order. And in India my initial troop movements are just about set. The situation isn't good, but it beats a "kick in the pants".

Dave Baranyi

< Message edited by ADavidB -- 5/7/2006 4:57:18 AM >

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 61

APD Graveyard... - 5/7/2006 4:57:49 AM

ADavidB

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December 28, 1941 -

This was a relatively quiet turn, by the standards of this game. More Japanese troops landed at Mersing and Rabaul, Amboina received another naval bombardment, lots of Japanese subs showed up off of the coast of California and Hawaii, and some Japanese troops unloaded at Memtok. But I bet that last one was a case of Treespider unloading troops from a badly damaged APD.

Speaking of those Japanese APDs, a couple of my subs got shots at them, but missed. Then the Dutch LBA got a chance and didn't miss, hitting two more APDs hard, resulting in one of them sinking. There was overall a fair amount of air action this turn, particularly in Malaya and the DEI. For some reason air action has died out a lot in the Philippines.

A large, heavily escorted attack by LBA from Kuching hit Palembang, hurting the CAP but not doing a lot of damage. Then another unescorted flight of Nells from Kuching went to Soerabaja and got hit hard themselves by the Dutch. In China, my bombers are flying fairly regularly and without much opposition. Treespider may just be focusing upon the land effort.

Speaking of land effort in China, Treespider is trying more maneuvers in an attempt to isolate some of my bases. The latest target appears to be Ichang, although more Japanese land units have shown up near Yenen recently. I'm equally busy moving Chinese combat units around to counter the Japanese moves. In land attacks, the Japanese finally tool Alor Star. Japanese troops also captured Sorong. That big Japanese CV TF is still hanging around just above Sorong, so I'm not sending anything into that area.

The odd sighting of the day was a reported Japanese "CA" at Rennell Island in the Eastern Solomons. I don't know how my forces were supposed to have spotted it because it appears to be out of range of all of my naval search planes. It's probably just a Japanese sub, but in case it isn't, I'm sending a force towards Rennell just in case the sighting is really a Japanese TF that is trying to establish a forward base.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 62

RE: APD Graveyard... - 5/8/2006 3:10:01 AM

ADavidB

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December 29, 1941 -

Things have settled down into a pattern - Treespider advances, my forces snipe at his advancing forces, his forces capture their objective. So while my forces continue to be a nuisance, they aren't changing the overall flow of the Game. And that is to be expected at this stage. In fact, this is the stage of the early Game where the Allied player has the best opportunities for effective nuisance attacks because the Japanese player has still to get his major reinforcements and also has a lot of targets on which to spread the attacks. It's later on in 1942 when the Japanese player can afford to apply devastatingly concentrated forces on a few targets.

So there was a lot of give-and-take in this turn. S-36 torpedoed an AK off of Camranh Bay but was depth charged in return and heavily damaged. My ASW hit I-173 off of Pearl. A previously damaged Japanese AP sank at Rabaul. In a case of the Hunted catching the Hunter, I-19 torpedoed a US ASW DD off of LA. And finally, KXI torpedoed another of the damaged APDs from the aborted invasion of Sumatra.

Amboina and Brunei received naval bombardments again, but troops only landed at Brunei. That Japanese CV TF is still sitting just north of Sarong, which keeps me at a distance. I still haven't found out what the Japanese TF is that is sitting at Rennell Island, but I'm getting closer to finding out.

For some reason, Treespider has been leaving the Philippines pretty much alone recently. My troops are using the respite to build up defenses at Bataan, Clark and Manila. There haven't been a lot of recent air strikes either, so supply at those three bases is holding out fairly well. Malaya, on the other hand, has been getting a fair amount of attention, with plenty of air raids and artillery bombardments at Mersing.

China is getting by far the bulk of Treespider's attention at this time. He is bringing lots of troops up to Wuchow and tried a Deliberate attack this turn that was fairly effective. I may not be able to hold Wuchow; it takes too long to bring troops in from the North and my Southern troops are all committed. Treespider has eased off the pressure on Changsha, but he still has too many troops there for me to pull any of my own out, and he is still trying to outflank me. And there are a number of troops getting in position to attack Ichang and Yenen too. China will obviously take way too much of my attention for some time to come.

And finally, the 26 Japanese survivors of a damaged APD who landed at Muntok captured it this turn. If I get the chance I'll let my bombers practice on them a bit.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 63

Going In Smooth... - 5/8/2006 4:29:10 AM

ADavidB

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December 30, 1941 -

Treespider commented that "things are going smoothly", despite his mishap with the APDs. Yeah, smooth, sort of "Bend over" smooth for the Allies�

But some small things are going okay for the Allies. Sub I-7 sank in the north Pacific from previous ASW attacks. A Japanese AK sank off of French Indo China. And another APD sank off of Borneo.

But, for the most part things went better for the Japanese. Dutch sub KXII was whacked hard at Mersing while trying to sneak up on a transport. Amboina and Brunei received more naval bombardments. An escorted air attack from Kuching blasted past the Dutch air defenses at Soerabaja and bombed the port, damaging several Dutch warships. Land-based Vals even attacked some Dutch PTs with shellfire.

In the land war, troops finally landed at Amboina. A shock attack at Brunei easily dislodged the defenders. A deliberate attack at Mersing failed, but did reduce the fortifications. Sieges started at Kuala Lumpur and Manila. In China, Changsha received an artillery bombardment and another deliberate attack at Wuchow did much worse than the previous one. But a large number of Japanese troops have now started to besiege Ichang. That is yet another location where it takes forever to send reinforcements. The situation in China could collapse very quickly.

In addition, lots of Japanese troops are moving into Burma. I think that I can get back to my planned defensive lines in time, but it could become touch-and-go since the Japanese troops can also use the rail line to accelerate their advance, even though they haven't yet captured any bases on the rail line.

(Here's a really good part for someone to make better in WitP II.)

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 64

RE: Going In Smooth... - 5/8/2006 10:10:07 PM

ny59giants

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I don't know if this is possible for you now, but I have used a single AK to transport resources from Palembang to Singapore. They convert to supplies there and thus you don't have to try to run supplies in from India. I think it has helped one of my PBEM games build up the supply there to over 30k and growing

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 65

RE: Going In Smooth... - 5/9/2006 12:25:10 AM

ADavidB

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quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

I don't know if this is possible for you now, but I have used a single AK to transport resources from Palembang to Singapore. They convert to supplies there and thus you don't have to try to run supplies in from India. I think it has helped one of my PBEM games build up the supply there to over 30k and growing

Thanks for the suggestion, but I've got plenty of supplies in Singapore. I haven't been losing planes there, and rebuilding air groups is one of the biggest users of supply.

Right now my major priority is to get supplies and fuel to my intermediate staging bases. That is what will allow me to counter future Japanese advances. Malaya, the Philippines and the DEI are only places for me to slow down the Japanese, not to make a real stand.

Thanks again -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ny59giants)

Post #: 66

New Year's Eve 1941 Celebrations... - 5/9/2006 5:52:21 AM

ADavidB

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December 31, 1941 -

New Year's Eve 1941 was relatively quiet in the Pacific. Another damaged Japanese APD sank in Kuching Harbor, bringing the total from Treespider's misadventure to five. And KXIV got past the escorts to put a torpedo into the side of a TK at the same base. At the same time the Japanese subs were conspicuous by their absence.

Generally rainy weather throughout the Far East minimized air missions for both sides. The biggest air raid was on Kendari, and it didn't accomplish a lot. All of the US fighter units are now safely beyond the Philippines and will eventually get opportunities to rebuild strength.

The most action was in the Land War, and much of that was maneuvering by both sides. The Japanese took an empty Rangoon while my forces retreated further into the jungles. I've started the pullout from Mandalay now too. As soon as Treespider takes Mandalay I'll start to bomb it. Amboina was also captured this turn.

Several Japanese land attacks didn't fare very well. A deliberate attack at Ichang failed miserably. It looks as if Ichang is the new main Japanese target in China. Troops are being pulled back from Changsha. One of my units drove that small Japanese unit away from the north of Changsha, so the base is fairly safe right now.

The Japanese only did an artillery bombardment at Wuchow this turn, and I've moved some of my troops in between the Japanese in Wuchow and the remaining Japanese troops to the South. I'm curious to see what this does to the supply situation of the Japanese troops in Wuchow.

In Malaya, a small Japanese unit tried another deliberate attack at Mersing that was fairly futile. I'm not sure why Treespider isn't trying to bring more troops forward if he wants to avoid a stalemate in Malaya. Oh well, I'll take this respite quite happily.

I am next going to post a series of screen captures of the situation on January 1, 1942.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 67

Jan 1, 1942 Intelligence Screen - 5/9/2006 6:03:56 AM

ADavidB

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All things considered, this isn't as bad as it could be...

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Post #: 68

RE: Jan 1, 1942 China - 5/9/2006 6:04:50 AM

ADavidB

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Here's the situation in China...

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Post #: 69

RE: Jan 1, 1942 Burma - 5/9/2006 6:05:54 AM

ADavidB

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Here's the situation in Burma...

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Post #: 70

RE: Jan 1, 1942 Malaya - 5/9/2006 6:06:45 AM

ADavidB

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Here's the situation in Malaya...

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Post #: 71

RE: Jan 1, 1942 Philippines - 5/9/2006 6:07:38 AM

ADavidB

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Here's the situation in the Philippines...

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Post #: 72

RE: Jan 1, 1942 DEI - 5/9/2006 6:08:39 AM

ADavidB

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Here's the situation in the DEI. The rest of the map isn't interesting enough to bother with right now.

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Post #: 73

RE: Jan 1, 1942 DEI - 5/10/2006 7:17:04 AM

ny59giants

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What are you doing with the Chinese divisions assigned to SEAC?? Do you keep them in Yunan or send them on to India where there is plentiful supply to build up to full strength??

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Post #: 74

RE: Jan 1, 1942 DEI - 5/10/2006 1:03:09 PM

ADavidB

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quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

What are you doing with the Chinese divisions assigned to SEAC?? Do you keep them in Yunan or send them on to India where there is plentiful supply to build up to full strength??

On Day 1 I start them on the way to Lashio and Myitkyina. I time my British withdrawal from the south to allow them the time necessary to get into place. Along with the retreating Brit troops they can hold against most anything a Japanese player is silly enough to send again them, particularly since I can bomb attackers from multiple air bases.

Keeping the Burma Road open is critical to my effort in China, and also if good Japanese troops are being wasted in the Jungle, they aren't bothering me elsewhere.

Cheers -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ny59giants)

Post #: 75

RE: Jan 1, 1942 DEI - 5/10/2006 2:15:02 PM

ny59giants

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quote:

quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

What are you doing with the Chinese divisions assigned to SEAC?? Do you keep them in Yunan or send them on to India where there is plentiful supply to build up to full strength??

On Day 1 I start them on the way to Lashio and Myitkyina. I time my British withdrawal from the south to allow them the time necessary to get into place. Along with the retreating Brit troops they can hold against most anything a Japanese player is silly enough to send again them, particularly since I can bomb attackers from multiple air bases.

Keeping the Burma Road open is critical to my effort in China, and also if good Japanese troops are being wasted in the Jungle, they aren't bothering me elsewhere.

Cheers -

Dave Baranyi

I agree with the need to move those troops away from China as India is more important to save than China proper. I wish the standard game was a little more like Nik Mod when it comes to China as it is relatively easy to conquer China as it now stands. Thus, troops can be transferred to other theaters by late 42 or 43 when the Allies are counter-attacking. I have one game of each now and it is a different picture from one game to the other.
I had one Chinese division move it's first 60 miles in just 2 1/2 weeks.

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 76

RE: Jan 1, 1942 DEI - 5/11/2006 5:37:53 AM

ADavidB

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quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

quote:

quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

What are you doing with the Chinese divisions assigned to SEAC?? Do you keep them in Yunan or send them on to India where there is plentiful supply to build up to full strength??

On Day 1 I start them on the way to Lashio and Myitkyina. I time my British withdrawal from the south to allow them the time necessary to get into place. Along with the retreating Brit troops they can hold against most anything a Japanese player is silly enough to send again them, particularly since I can bomb attackers from multiple air bases.

Keeping the Burma Road open is critical to my effort in China, and also if good Japanese troops are being wasted in the Jungle, they aren't bothering me elsewhere.

Cheers -

Dave Baranyi

I agree with the need to move those troops away from China as India is more important to save than China proper. I wish the standard game was a little more like Nik Mod when it comes to China as it is relatively easy to conquer China as it now stands. Thus, troops can be transferred to other theaters by late 42 or 43 when the Allies are counter-attacking. I have one game of each now and it is a different picture from one game to the other.
I had one Chinese division move it's first 60 miles in just 2 1/2 weeks.

I'm trying to figure out how to save both - and keeping the Burma Road open is a big part of that. Fighting in China wouldn't be so bad if the movement rules were a little more realistic in two ways:

1 - Don't let units use Rail bonuses until they have captured bases at both ends of a rail line, and even then make them use engineers to repair the rail lines at both end bases

2 - "Improve" roads and trails after tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of troops have marched over them. Marching armies aways improve the routes that they use. Once a Division has "trail blazed" a route, future units should never have to face a "1 mile a day" penalty again.

Oh well, maybe WitP II will do something about this...

Thanks for the comments -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ny59giants)

Post #: 77

Quiet is Good... - 5/11/2006 5:40:10 AM

ADavidB

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January 1, 1942 -

New Year's Day didn't bring anything "new" to the war. There were a number of small actions and both sides continued to replenish, rebuild and manoeuvre their forces. Japanese subs continue to interfere with Allied plans in the Eastern and South Pacific; more by simply spotting and identifying US TFs than by actual attacks.

Night action saw a small Japanese SC TF consisting of a CL and 3 DDs sail into Pontianak and sink one of the Dutch PT boats on patrol. Afterwards I found out that a very poor naval commander was in charge of the Dutch PT TF and so I replaced him in anticipation of the next meeting of forces. Overall, it wasn't a good night for Allied navies as S-36 sank from damage while trying to get to safety, and Japanese ASW chased KVIII out of Amboina.

The air war went better for the Allies. An unescorted flight of Sonias in China was ambushed by part of the AVG and some Chinese fighters while attempting to bomb a Chinese land unit that is blocking an assault route:

Day Air attack on 40th Chinese Corps, at 46, 35

Japanese aircraft
Ki-51 Sonia x 9

Allied aircraft
P-40B Tomahawk x 9
I-16c x 3

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-51 Sonia: 8 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
I-16c: 1 damaged

Aircraft Attacking:
1 x Ki-51 Sonia bombing at 2000 feet

Chinese bombers also successfully attacked Japanese ground troops at several locations, and some Dutch bombers hit a Japanese AP near Brunei. Japanese bombers also did some tit-for-tat bombing in China, and sent a fairly strong raid against Kendari. It appears that Kendari will be the next major Japanese target in the DEI.

The land war saw things get tighter in China. Yenen, Ichang and Wuchow continue to be threatened, and use of the "w" key allowed me to see that Japanese troops are apparently approaching Yenen from the north as well as from the south. Japanese forces drove out the Chinese unit that I moved south of Wuchow, re-establishing direct contact with the Japanese units which are besieging Wuchow. Wuchow and Ichang received artillery bombardments, while Changsha continued to be left pretty much alone for now.

In Malaya, Japanese forces captured Taiping in a deliberate attack. Unfortunately, the retreating troops moved to Georgetown instead of south and are now trapped. I will pull out pieces via submarine and rebuild them in India. (And yes, in a "non-historic" game, I consider this "fair play".) Mersing only received an artillery bombardment.

Otherwise, things are quiet in the Philippines, Solomons and South Pacific. "Quiet is Good" and I'll use the breathing space to continue to organize my forces.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 78

Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 6:45:36 AM

ADavidB

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January 2, 1942 -

Treespider was back with a turn after an extended game-free time in "Real Life". Looking at the situation I'm faced with in this game makes me realize how much I learned from Treespider that I've already applied against Yank.

The situation is very tough in the Far East for the Allies in this game, and time isn't on my side.

Air and Ground battles defined this turn. Treespider sent some Zeros in at long range to Hengchow to challenge my Tomahawks. The contest was a draw, but I've pulled by that AVG piece because I expect a bigger sweep of Zeros over the air of Hengchow next turn. Anyway, Treespider is using his bombers in other locations, particularly in Malaya and Sumatra.

Which reminds me; I got one "funny" report during the Combat Replay - a "red line" from Malaya to Palembang appeared while I was getting a report of a big air attack on Kendari. The combat report afterwards also said Kendari, but there wasn't any sign of damage there. I hope that this was just a fluke and not an early sign of something more serious.

And the "serious" action this turn was on the ground:

- A deliberate attack on Manila was tried by a limited number of Japanese troops and it failed badly. I still hold Clark Field and Bataan, so I've got a bit of a breather there.

- Ichang received an artillery attack from a very large quantity of Japanese troops, and more enemy troops are on the way. I've also got troops on the way but it's doubtful that they will get there in time.

- A deliberate attack at Wuchow was repulsed readily. I'm hoping that I get a few more days to get more troops into position.

- In Malaya a deliberate attack on Mersing failed, but not by much.

- And in Mindanao, a shock attack on Cotabato came out of now where, and fortunately failed. But I don't know where those troops came from, although I suspect that they may have been parachuted into the attack.

It's going to be tough to keep the two games separated in my mind as they progress�

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 79

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 7:59:08 AM

Jim D Burns

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quote:

ORIGINAL: ADavidB
I still hold Clark Field and Bataan, so I've got a bit of a breather there.

Remember the second he steps on Clark Field with a unit now, you'll be unable to get any more troops into Manila due to the ZOC rules. Now is the time to consolidate your forces if you are going to, otherwise the ZOC rules will divide your troops and make holding out for a long time a lot more difficult. Get everyone into Manila ASAP, there or Bataan, before he splits your forces for good.

Jim

_____________________________

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Post #: 80

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 8:58:28 AM

jolly_pillager

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Agree 100%

In my game with Alfrake he managed to do this to me and it cost me heavily.

As an aside you can station long range bombers in Wuchow and Nanning (I used IL-4's and Blenheims) and fly supply into Manila to help out with the defense.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Jim D Burns

quote:

ORIGINAL: ADavidB
I still hold Clark Field and Bataan, so I've got a bit of a breather there.

Remember the second he steps on Clark Field with a unit now, you'll be unable to get any more troops into Manila due to the ZOC rules. Now is the time to consolidate your forces if you are going to, otherwise the ZOC rules will divide your troops and make holding out for a long time a lot more difficult. Get everyone into Manila ASAP, there or Bataan, before he splits your forces for good.

Jim

(in reply to Jim D Burns)

Post #: 81

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 10:43:04 AM

ny59giants

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In one of my 2 PBEM's that are about where you are, I got all my troops into Manila before he attacked Clark and sucked all the supplies into it. Plus, forts are being built up with a huge amount of Assault Value there.

It will be tough to take and require a large force to lay siege to.

(in reply to jolly_pillager)

Post #: 82

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 1:54:19 PM

ADavidB

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Jim D Burns

quote:

ORIGINAL: ADavidB
I still hold Clark Field and Bataan, so I've got a bit of a breather there.

Remember the second he steps on Clark Field with a unit now, you'll be unable to get any more troops into Manila due to the ZOC rules. Now is the time to consolidate your forces if you are going to, otherwise the ZOC rules will divide your troops and make holding out for a long time a lot more difficult. Get everyone into Manila ASAP, there or Bataan, before he splits your forces for good.

Jim

I've been really surprised that he hasn't tried that sooner. He even let some of my other zoc-trapped units further afield get free. I suspect that he is keeping his units back in order to get their preparation levels up before he attacks. Obviously, my guys aren't going anywhere soon.

I prefer to put troops into Manila over Bataan, because there are no inherent defensive advantages in Bataan in this game design, primarily thanks to the 60 mile hexes.

We'll see what he does and when.

Thanks -

Dave

(in reply to Jim D Burns)

Post #: 83

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 1:57:33 PM

ADavidB

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quote:

Agree 100%

In my game with Alfrake he managed to do this to me and it cost me heavily.

As an aside you can station long range bombers in Wuchow and Nanning (I used IL-4's and Blenheims) and fly supply into Manila to help out with the defense.

I'm usually too busy using my long range bombers to attack besieging Japanese land units elsewhere to have them free to fly supplies, but that is an interesting idea. On the other hand, since Treespider is attacking everywhere at once in China, he is also forcing me to use supplies there like crazy too, so I don't really have much to spare. But I'll keep the idea in the back of my mind, in case an opportunity arises.

Thanks -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to jolly_pillager)

Post #: 84

RE: Back into the fray... - 5/14/2006 2:01:04 PM

ADavidB

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quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

In one of my 2 PBEM's that are about where you are, I got all my troops into Manila before he attacked Clark and sucked all the supplies into it. Plus, forts are being built up with a huge amount of Assault Value there.
It will be tough to take and require a large force to lay siege to.

I've tried three approaches in various matches:

- Move everyone into Bataan
- Move everyone into Manila
- Move everyone out of Bataan and split them between Clark and Manila

I've usually hung on the longest with the last approach because it makes my opponent split his forces. Right now the Japanese forces at Manila are more along the line of nuisance troops; I expect the main attack to be at Clark. We'll see how it goes.

Thanks -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ny59giants)

Post #: 85

Blitzkrieg in Burma... - 5/14/2006 4:53:30 PM

ADavidB

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January 3, 1942 -

The Far East remains a cauldron of activity while the Eastern and Central Pacific sleep quietly. For example, no Japanese subs have been spotted in the Eastern and Central Pacific regions for several days, although a Glen sighting indicates that at least one sub is still around. Japanese subs are showing up in the Solomons and Eastern New Guinea, and as well, for the first time a Japanese sub showed up at Brisbane. (We'll get an opportunity to see if Australian ASW is any better than US ASW.)

On the other hand, there is action in all fronts in the DEI, PI, Malaya, Burma and China. Treespider is sending out multiple large air raids on Manila, the remaining Allied-controlled Malayan bases and the DEI. The Japanese air raids continue to be aimed primarily at Allied air bases, even though I obviously don't have much in the way of air power at the front-line bases. I presume that Treespider is doing this in order to make the defensive forces use up supplies repairing damage, and also, in the case of Manila, make the Allied engineers spend time repairing airfield damage rather than building up fortifications. (There's a good change to recommend to the Upgrade Committee - allow a player to "toggle off" repairs to bases selectively.)

Zeros came back to Hengchow again, but I was surprised as it remained a single squadron. Oh well, I'll let that third of the AVG that I pulled back rest up for a bit as long as Treespider doesn't send bombers back in to hit Hengchow. Treespider has also been sending repeated Zero sweeps and also strong bomber raids at Palembang and Kendari. Sure, he obviously intends to invade Kendari soon, but he is sure doing an overkill with the air power. But hey, at least those Japanese planes aren't attacking somewhere else that I'm more concerned with defending.

I started my bombing campaign in Burma this turn:

Day Air attack on Rangoon, at 29, 34

Allied aircraft
Hudson I x 7
P-40B Tomahawk x 12

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 1

That must be truly instilling "paralyzing fear" into Treespider's heart�

That is why I have so little time for the constant whining of the Japanese fanboys - one can play this game in a historic manner if one chooses. But if a Japanese player insists on playing ahistorically, then what should an Allied player do? (Okay, that's enough "soapbox rhetoric" for now.

)

In other air action, Dutch bombers and escorts got by some Zeros at Brunei and hit two Japanese APs with bombs. These nuisance raids do count in the long run; for example, a Japanese TK and PG sank this turn from old damage.

There was a lot of significant Land Combat action. Japanese troops tried a shock attack on Ichang which was defeated, but the fortification level was reduced by one to three, and there are an awful lot of Japanese troops there. I don't believe that I will be able to hold on to Ichang until reinforcements arrive. Wuchow only suffered an artillery attack which accomplished nothing. Treespider appears to be pulling back some of his troops from there; maybe to redeploy them or maybe just to rest and prepare them. Things continued quiet at Changsha and Yenen, although more Japanese troops are creeping up on Yenen and maybe Homan too.

For whatever reason, Treespider tried yet another shock attack at Mersing, which failed quite miserable. But Malacca was taken in a single shock attack, so my troops at Mersing will likely be trapped there soon. I've got troops trapped at Georgetown too and they had to endure an artillery attack this turn.

In Burma Treespider has an incredible quantity of combat troops moving forward. His troops took Pagan against no opposition this turn, so that will provide yet another target for my LBA next turn. For some reason Treespider hasn't brought any base support units up yet, so he doesn't have any aircraft in Southern Burma. That allows me to continue to use my air power at will.

I believe that I have the situation in Burma well in hand, with all my troops either pulled back on well on their way to their planned positions. From the quantity of Japanese troops on the move, it appears that Treespider will attempt to cut the Burma Road on the ground. That's cool by me - I believe that I can stop him and I much prefer to see his troops suffering in the malarial jungle than on board ships sailing to India.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 86

RE: Blitzkrieg in Burma... - 5/14/2006 5:24:30 PM

ny59giants

Posts: 9869
Joined: 1/10/2005
Status: offline

I had two Indian Bde get cut off at Georgetown and used my subs to transport the 6th Bde to the northern most port on Sumatra before it got captured. Hopefully, I can run in a single AK to take them back to India.
Like I said before, we are at the same spot in our games, and I "just" noticed that amount of supplies at Toboali (over 20k) as I was looking for a place to base my Dutch PT boats.

It might be worth your effort to send a single AK there to take the supplies to either Singapore or Soerabaja (since the game mechanics often don't go after a single ship TF).

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 87

RE: Blitzkrieg in Burma... - 5/14/2006 7:52:10 PM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

I had two Indian Bde get cut off at Georgetown and used my subs to transport the 6th Bde to the northern most port on Sumatra before it got captured. Hopefully, I can run in a single AK to take them back to India.
Like I said before, we are at the same spot in our games, and I "just" noticed that amount of supplies at Toboali (over 20k) as I was looking for a place to base my Dutch PT boats. It might be worth your effort to send a single AK there to take the supplies to either Singapore or Soerabaja (since the game mechanics often don't go after a single ship TF).

Tobali is a very nice little "present" for the Japanese player. It produces tons of supplies - supposedly to "simulate" the presence of tin mines.

While single ship TFs tend to avoid the notice of the AI, they don't any decent pbem player, so I'm not bothering to send anything to Tobali.

Thanks -

Dave

(in reply to ny59giants)

Post #: 88

Bombers in the Air... - 5/15/2006 1:13:41 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
Status: offline

January 4, 1942 -

Treespider sent another CL/DD TF off hunting for Dutch PT boats again, and his TF found a couple at Palembang. As expected, the Japanese TF took care of one of the PT boats but the other got away unscathed. Unexpectedly, the Japanese TF didn't do anything else; I expected it to do a bombardment. But this loss was more than balanced off by the sinking in port of two more Japanese APDs. I think that Treespider has lost 9 of them now.

It turns out that I was right and Treespider was paradropping troops into Cotabato, because a Topsy was shot down by flak there this turn. Other Japanese troops also landed via transport ship. But there still aren't many in place and once again the end-of-turn shock attack that is required for paradrops failed despite there only being a week base force in the base. I'm going to try a couple of small surprises in the region this turn, just to remind Treespider that he isn't "playing by himself".

The usual aerial bombardments took place, with Japanese forces bombing Manila and various locations in Southern Malaya. Zeros also went out on sweeps, but in small numbers and mainly to bases where I don't have any CAP flying at this time. Allied bombers got more practice in Burma:

Day Air attack on Rangoon, at 29, 34

Allied aircraft
Hudson I x 7
P-40B Tomahawk x 12

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 1

And:

Day Air attack on Pagan, at 31, 31

Allied aircraft
B-17C Fortress x 16

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 1
Runway hits 22

There are still no Japanese aircraft in Burma, so this was an easy case of "practice makes perfect".

Things were relatively quiet in China, other than a Japanese unit driving a Chinese HQ off the road south of Wuchow. I had forgotten to move the HQ out of the way and move and infantry unit in instead. There was also an artillery bombardment at Ichang. I'm still bombing the Japanese troops at Ichang regularly, so their bombardments aren't having a great effect at this time. The other land attacks were in Malaya, where Mersing and Georgetown were bombarded, and a shock attack at Kuala Lumpur that failed, but did a lot of damage anyway.

In naval news, a Japanese sub showed up off of Los Angeles again and several Japanese subs showed up in the South Pacific, so I'll give my ASW forces more practice next turn.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 89

Combat Replay oddity... - 5/16/2006 12:34:27 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
Status: offline

January 5, 1942 -

The Combat Replay once again gave that odd, mismatched report of a "Day Attack on Kendari" while showing the attack occurring at Palembang. The Combat Report gave the correct location for Kendari, and an earlier attack on Kendari this turn was correct in both the Replay and the Report. There was also an attack on Palembang that gave the correct Replay and Report. I'll just keep this in the back of my memory and see if it happens again somewhere else.

But then, Treespider is attacking so many places that it is hard to keep track. Japanese planes blasted the remaining Allied bases in Malaya, Palembang, Manila and various Chinese targets. My Chinese bombers did get off a couple of nice little attacks, but the scale of effect is totally different.

In naval action, Treespider once again sent a 1 CL/4 DD TF to hit the Dutch PT boats at Pontianak. Again, one PT boat was sunk. This time one of the PT boats did get a shot off, but didn't hit a Japanese DD. And region-wide rainy weather prevented any of my LBA from trying their luck on the retiring Japanese TF. Treespider also restarted his activities in the Solomons with a landing at Shortlands. He has plenty of subs in the region too, so I'm guessing that he will be sending troops to Lunga soon.

The main action this turn was on the Land. Japanese troops tried a deliberate attack at Manila that was easily repulsed. I'm really curious as to why Treespider is treating Manila/Clark/Bataan so casually. I wonder if he is planning to use the usual Philippine invasion troops somewhere else?

China is turning into a real mess as Treespider continues to break up units into pieces in so that he can cut off my bases while still maintaining concerted attacks. He is simply taking advantage of the Movement rules. I guess I know what to expect if he invades India.

Even though Treespider has pulled back a number of units from Changsha, he attempted a shock attack this turn, and was whacked hard for it. A deliberate attack at Ichang was also repulsed handily, but now with the road north cut off, and the Supply rules ignoring the 120 miles (two hexes wide) of open, unimpeded countryside that sits outside of the Japanese zoc, the ability of my troops at Ichang to resist will decrease rapidly. I still have plenty of troops on their way, but with the Movement rules they won't even get close for weeks yet.

And finally in China, Wuchow received a minor artillery attack. I'm bring more troops down and trying to also spread out units in the Southern countryside to avoid getting more units cut off by a few squads. I hate to waste my time doing this sort of thing, but that's what the Game allows, so I have to be prepared to counter it.

In Malaya a shock attack at Mersing failed but reduced the fortifications. I don't expect those troops there to stand much longer. Kuala Lumpur was easily captured by the Japanese in a shock attack, and Georgetown received another artillery bombardment. And in the Philippines, Cotabato finally fell to a shock attack - something that probably should have happened a turn or two ago.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 90

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