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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent

 
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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 2:27:09 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/22/43

Singapore: No big news today. The P-38Gs sweep to no great effect; the B25Cs perform their mission, doing no harm to the enemy and losing a moderate number; and the B-24Ds from Sabang mostly don't fly (one group of three or four does so without effect). No enemy carriers were sighted, but I'm not sure any bombers got close enough to tell. John's CAP was bolstered by 50+ AM5s, so the CAP was tougher but certainly not uber. (In an email comment, John was pretty contemptuous of my decision to order a second raid. He can be funny that way.)

Battle of Sumatra: An IJN sub sank CA New Orleans just west of Sabang with two torps. She was leading a bombardment mission against Sinabang. The escorting destroyers turned around and went back home. And the SBDs that were to target the port refused to fly. So the entire Sinabang thing left a sour taste in my mouth. Temporarily there are no Allied capital ships at Sabang, though several (including BB Indiana) are inbound from Ceylon.

A big IJN fast transport TF flagged by three CAs arrived at Phuket and began unloading. The pre-landing bombardment was immense. The TF is still there, so five USN DDs from Sabang will try to interdict tonight, along with four PT boat squadrons from Langsa and a fifth from Sabang.

There is another IJN cruiser TF west of Sinabang. I'm not sure what it's doing out there, but I have all kinds of TFs inbound. I'm hoping this won't prove to be an enemy raiding force, but on the chance that it is, two USN TFs will merge (flagged by Indiana and CL Cleveland) to provide advance cover on the merchants. USN carriers are coming behind, but are a few days away.

This is a very tense situation. If I miscalculate, or if John chooses just the right course, is cruisers might get amongst a bunch of merchants doing pretty grave harm. Tension!

Burma: A quiet turn. My main stack a hex south of Magwe is still low on supply.

USN Raiders: All seven of the raiding DDs continued to retire without molestation. One DD near Iwo and one DD SW of Timor are zero on fuel and will be refueling today. If that operation goes okay, the destroyers should all be clear. (It's odd - all destroyers had similar fuel levels. Some went to zero. Others have good numbers. I had checked fuel and speed levels, so I don't know how/why the computer treated consumption differently.) The big question is whether these raids make John more attentive so that he has to spread his defenses a bit and draw down just that bit from the forces besieging Sumatra.

John: He's feeling his oats again. He's talking about being Stonewall in the valley. It's been a pretty tough week for him in the game, but he's determined to rectify things. So he'll be attending to the defensive, but also (by nature) going on the offensive to exact retribution

The Key: Meanwhile, no enemy sweeps at Sabang in three or four days. How much longer? That's the key to the campaign, in my opinion. It's in the air that this is won or lost. Each day in which the Allies maintain or grow slightly stronger is a good day. So, by that measure, this was a good day.

(in reply to BBfanboy)
Post #: 3961
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 3:48:05 PM   
Mundy


Posts: 2869
Joined: 6/26/2002
From: Neenah
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel
Raid over Singapore: If you happen to just be checking in, a raid by B-24Ds over Singapore struck paydirt, damaging more than a half-dozen enemy carriers, including Hiyo with a "heavy fires/heavy damage" report. More details on the previous page.


I've figured this is the most efficient way (if possible) of eliminating major enemy warships.

In my game vs Cannonfodder, I caught Fuso and Yamashiro at Colombo with my Liberators. Both ate over 50 bombs each and burned down to the waterline before sinking.

Amazing what non-penetrating hits can do.

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Post #: 3962
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 4:30:53 PM   
ny59giants


Posts: 9869
Joined: 1/10/2005
Status: offline 		John has fallen in love with Fast Transport TFs since this game started. In a short PBEM game as Allies, his opponent used them to great effect against him. I would say in our game he has used them close to 90% of time when invading someplace. Expect him to use them against you anyplace where he needs to get in and out quickly. As Allies, you can use some of the AMCs and APDs in this role.

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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 5:11:21 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		I think John's been a fan of fast transport TFs since WitP came out in 2005.

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Post #: 3964
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 5:30:00 PM   
Encircled


Posts: 2024
Joined: 12/30/2010
From: Northern England
Status: offline 		Its a criminal offence for a JFB not to love fast transports.

I love them!

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Post #: 3965
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 5:31:18 PM   
KenchiSulla


Posts: 2948
Joined: 10/22/2008
From: the Netherlands
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Mundy

quote:

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel
Raid over Singapore: If you happen to just be checking in, a raid by B-24Ds over Singapore struck paydirt, damaging more than a half-dozen enemy carriers, including Hiyo with a "heavy fires/heavy damage" report. More details on the previous page.


I've figured this is the most efficient way (if possible) of eliminating major enemy warships.

In my game vs Cannonfodder, I caught Fuso and Yamashiro at Colombo with my Liberators. Both ate over 50 bombs each and burned down to the waterline before sinking.

Amazing what non-penetrating hits can do.


Mundy, that was a nice lesson learned for me... No important ships in heavy bomber range when possible...

Dan, you are doing a great job....

_____________________________

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"It happened, therefore it can happen again: this is the core of what we have to say. It can happen, and it can happen everywhere.”
¯ Primo Levi, writer, holocaust survivor

(in reply to Mundy)
Post #: 3966
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 5:33:29 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		I think nearly every player loves FTs, right? I've always liked them, though I don't use them all that often. One reason is that they used to have a nasty habit of arriving at the target hex, unloading, and then sticking around and drawing land-based air attacks like Zsa Zsa Gabor drew men. They were supposed to unload at night and retire, but about 50% of the time they'd screw it up. So I'm pretty careful with them and only use them when the target is important enough to justify the risk (Well, duh. I suppose that's the way it's supposed to be.)

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Post #: 3967
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 5:59:41 PM   
KenchiSulla


Posts: 2948
Joined: 10/22/2008
From: the Netherlands
Status: offline 		The problem with FTs is that when using them you are already admitting that you are not in control of the theater...

If you think FTs your mind is set to delaying the inevitable.. Ok to use, but not a solution....

_____________________________

AKA Cannonfodder

"It happened, therefore it can happen again: this is the core of what we have to say. It can happen, and it can happen everywhere.”
¯ Primo Levi, writer, holocaust survivor

(in reply to Canoerebel)
Post #: 3968
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 6:20:51 PM   
Mundy


Posts: 2869
Joined: 6/26/2002
From: Neenah
Status: offline 		One of the few high points for me in this game.

It's hard to believe that can happen until you see if for yourself.




< Message edited by Mundy -- 1/8/2016 8:08:47 PM >

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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 8:28:24 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/23/43

Battle of Sumatra: A tough day for the Allies. John's Tojo sweeps resume and score much higher than normal kills versus F4Fs and P-40Ks. The problem seems to be that I forgot to reset my P-38Gs from Sweep mode, so instead of providing umbrella CAP, they flew another mission to Singers. Worse, all the planes in the squadron now need maintenance, meaning at least another day without their service. Tomorrow may get ugly.

Also disturbing is Sinabang's airfield went to level one. So John's loaded up the field with Zeroes. This makes ingress and egress for shipping problematic. I"ll try to suppress the field with the B24Ds, but this is going to be a challenge.

The SBDs flew one turn too late, but did rough up a host of merchant shipping disbanded in port there. And subs sank two enemy merchants and a DMS there.

PTs operating out of Langsa sank an xAK near Medan. This ship was carrying alot of troops, making me wonder if John is about to try a quick leapfrog invasion of Langsa. I have 200 AV there with another 100 on the way. The DDs and PTs will cruise from Sabang to Langsa tonight to see what's up.

Battle of Burma: Allies to attack in the hex south of Magwe tomorrow.

Ramilles: She's still giving me fits. She's over at map's edge but declines to go to Capetown. A big xAK has joined her. I've re-issued the orders and will see if the ship is thus persuaded to proceed. If not, I'll come up with a Plan B or G or W.

Elsewhere: The USN raiders continue to make good progress towards getting out of Dodge, though two of the DDs are lagging due to fuel issues. Small steps continue elsewhere. I won't mention them because they're small pieces to an immense puzzle that won't begin to take shape for a long time. But I think I'm seeing things I want to see out of John.
The Key to Victory: Things have tightened up once again. The campaign hangs in the balance. Can the Allies hold?

(in reply to Mundy)
Post #: 3970
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 8:44:18 PM   
Bullwinkle58


Posts: 11302
Joined: 2/24/2009
Status: offline 		Do you have an HR on night bombing?

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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/8/2016 8:57:03 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		I don't think we have an HR on night bombing. But I think we discussed it long ago and agreed (at the time) not to use it. I was all for that since I had 100 ships bottled up in Sabang's little harbor at the time. So I won't employ that unless John does it first. And if he does, I'll probably revisit the issue with him.

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Post #: 3972
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/9/2016 12:14:26 AM   
jwolf

 

Posts: 2493
Joined: 12/3/2013
Status: offline 		On the Ramilles: can you send it to Karachi and withdraw it from there?

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Post #: 3973
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/9/2016 3:20:11 AM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/23/43

Battle of Sumatra:Nuclear IJN bombardment of Langsa (BBs Yamato, Hiei, Haruna and more) tear up Langsa's airfield and do modest damage to the ground troops. There was pre-bombardment skirmishing with PT boats, but the USN DD TF was warded off by an IJN DD TF. The Allies lost two DDs in that skirmish. I was very worried that this was a pre-invasion bombardment. But it seems that John is now focused on Burma. SigInt shows that Imperial Guards and 14th Division are aboard transports inbound to Rangoon, and a regiment and a brigade inbound to Port Blair. This will eliminate John's weakness in Burma. I can only hope that it indicates he's not planning a coup de main vs. Sumatra.

Meanwhile, there's another IJN TF with a BB (Nagato IIRC) west of Sabang. It tangled with an APD TF inbound to Sabang, doing little damage to it. The massed Allied resupply/reinforcement convoy is not far away, escorted by a pretty stout combat TF including BB Indiana, two USN CAs, and CL Cleveland. Carriers are a few days away.

No IJAF sweeps of Sabang today, thank goodness. But the Allied OOB is beginning to show serious cracks. The P-40Ks in particular are dwindling. But the P-39G squadron is operational again. Hopefully that makes the difference I think it does.

IJ fast transport invasion of Great Nicobar, which was vacant. I had an amphibious TF with garrison troops inbound, just ten hexes away. So Sabang is increasingly isolated. I'm going to try to get the big resupply/reinforcement convoy in, but it's going to be tough and tight.

Very tense situation in Sumatra.

Battle of Burma:The big Allied stack near Magwe attacked, achieved a disappointing 1:2 ratio, but did considerably more damage. But with strong enemy reinforcements inbound now, I'm going to begin consolidating my positions. There are units hung out there in precarious places. So even this is challenging.

Ramilles: Finally, after weeks and even months of effort, Ramilles accepted orders to rebase at Capetown. Pairing her with a large merchant ship in an Escort TF did the trick. She can't withdraw from Karachi due to damage level. Nor can she repair there. So it's a relief to get her off to Capetown.

Raiders: All seven USN DDs are far from the scene of action. One or two are still struggling with fuel and working towards rendezvous with pre-positioned replenishment ships.

Singers Raid Recap: Hiyo shows up on the ships sunk list but I don't think it's legit. A quick check of the points for ships sunk shows an increase of 325 points in the past eight days. That's not enough to allow for the two CAs, the host of merchants, and Hiyo (258 points alone).

Assessment: From an operational standpoint things look awfully tough in Sumatra and Burma right now. The Allies are fighting gamely. Japan is bringing terrific force to bear. I'm not as optimistic as I was two days ago about my ability to hold this "Guadalcanal." But then I step back and consider that it's January 1943, I'm fighting hard at an advanced position (for this date) in Sumatra, and the conflict is costing John pretty dearly, especially at sea. I want to win this campaign badly. Very badly. Very, very badly. But as things now stand, the Allies are in pretty good shape no matter what happens.


< Message edited by Canoerebel -- 1/9/2016 4:25:54 AM >

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Post #: 3974
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/9/2016 5:12:47 AM   
BBfanboy


Posts: 18046
Joined: 8/4/2010
From: Winnipeg, MB
Status: offline 		The 325 VPs might come close if the Hiyo was scuttled (fewer VPs) and you add in your 58 pts per CA plus the merchies. IIRC a lot of the latter were low-point xAKLs?

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Post #: 3975
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/9/2016 7:42:23 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/25/43:

I think my last post should have been labeled 1/24/43. I think I forgot to post for the 23rd.

Battle of Sumatra: A blessedly quiet day - no IJN nuclear bombardments; now IJAF Tojo sweeps. Two IJN TFs, one featuring BB Nagato and the other probably a DD TF, have gotten behindthe big Allied TFs inbound to Sabang. I hope BB Indiana and her escorts are up to the task. And I hope that I've deduced correctly that KB is at Singers or somewhere else far away. F4s on recon did sight carriers at Singers today.

Battle of Burma: A tense battle starts for the Allies to withdraw from the hex south of Magwe. John's trying to cut off the path of egress. He thinks I didn't see this coming. I did, bombing the units moving to create an encirclement, but I expected the Allied stack to take the hex, thus gaining control of all hexsides. That would have created multiple routes of egress. This is the second time the Allies have pulled back during the Burma invasion. Yhe going is tough here too.

Ramillees: She'll exit map's edge in two or three days.

(in reply to BBfanboy)
Post #: 3976
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/9/2016 7:57:15 PM   
JeffroK


Posts: 6391
Joined: 1/26/2005
Status: offline 		Indy should clean up Nagato, its the escorts I would doubt.

Re you raiders, I am trying to play the evil empire seriously for the first time, made it to 7/42 without sinking the HI. I have found it very hard to get any ideas about the location of the Allied fleets, even had a landing on Etorofu which I didnt see till the Marines raided the sushi shop.

The japanese player is almost blind, has to put in a major effort in setting up and maintaining his search patterns (though Tracker aids him), the Allied player has a major advantage with Sigint.

There should be wide stretches of ocean available to slip through and put a scare into JIII, if he sees them.

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Post #: 3977
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 7:37:05 AM   
Skyland


Posts: 280
Joined: 2/8/2007
From: France
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel
Raiders: All seven USN DDs are far from the scene of action. One or two are still struggling with fuel and working towards rendezvous with pre-positioned replenishment ships.


My humble advice will be to use lone CL as raiders. Better range and their armor will be enough against DD or smaller ships. DD are too fragile, it is better to use them for sub hunting or escort of convoy in Sumatra area.
Good luck anyway !

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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 5:53:01 PM   
JohnDillworth


Posts: 3100
Joined: 3/19/2009
Status: offline
quote:

My humble advice will be to use lone CL as raiders. Better range and their armor will be enough against DD or smaller ships. DD are too fragile, it is better to use them for sub hunting or escort of convoy in Sumatra area.
Good luck anyway !

I've had lots of luck with dual-Fletcher TF's doing raids. for some reason the 2nd DD does not seem to increase detection. once they have good radar and working torps they are lethal. Too valuable for raiders right now though

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Post #: 3979
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 6:32:15 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/26/43

Battle of Sumatra: The wolves got in amongst the sheep! BBs Nagato and Fuso managed to find a big supply/fuel TF that the Indiana TF was shepherding. The results were ugly - I think about ten xAKs were sunk as was a small DD and a TK. Two more TKs will probably sink. It was an incredibly long replay - incredibly long. Like 20 minutes. I kept clicking the "Done" button trying to end the horrible scene - I was clicking as fast as the T-Rex dinosaur clicking the TV remote control on the Toy Story II movie, but it didn't work. I had to watch the entire grisly affair. Indiana and her sister ships were busy too, tangling with a very tenacious four-DD TF. Several Allied DDs were set afire. I think two or three of the IJN DDs suffered light to moderate damage. Several other Allied supply/troop TFs were not molested. All are now close to Sabang and hopefully will make it into port tonight. I think Fuso and Nagato are low on ammo - they've simply got to be after shooting for about 95 hours. I'd detail Indiana to chase them, but that would leave the merchants unescorted with lots of enemy ships in the general vicinity.

I think another big enemy bombardment TF is heading for Langsa - this is probably the massive Yamato-led group. The bombardments aren't a huge concern. The possibility of an invasion is. I can't offer any real opposition this turn. Indiana needs to reprovision at Sabang.

No enemy air attacks on Sabang, which is one small bright spot. Most of the enemy air is probably concentrated in Burma at the moment.

I'm going to load up Sabang with Avengers this turn. It's not ideal, because the odds are fairly high the bombers will go for the Yamato TF at Langsa, which will be covered by heavy LRCAP, instead of the enemy ships lurking west and north of Sabang. But I think it's worth one shot. Allied carrires are probably still two or three days away and unlikely to make it in time to hit the enemy.

Battle of Burma: My army stack south of Magwe is indeed in a precarious situation. It's made 17 miles towards a safer hex, but John is bombing them to slow them down. It may take five days to get them into the hex. So this army is going to take some punishment.

Ramilles: She'll leave the map tonight. I won't post about her again until she gets to Capetown. Her odyssey was weird and vexing and protracted, so getting her off the map is a small favor.

Hunting Grounds: Sumatra is a tough and tight and dangerous place to be right now. Things look increasingly dark, though not yet hopeless. It's January 26, 1943. Keep fighting!

< Message edited by Canoerebel -- 1/10/2016 7:35:17 PM >

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RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 6:43:33 PM   
Mike McCreery


Posts: 4232
Joined: 6/29/2013
Status: offline 		John isnt happy about the comparative popularity of your AAR... LOL!!!

Man, I feel you with the large convoy.... It could have been loaded troop ships so it could always be worse ;]

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Post #: 3981
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 8:35:07 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		John Dillworth once called me a "verbose SOB." :) (John also had the most hilarious AE quote of all time, I think. Something to this effect: "Somebody said I misspelled a word. I checked with GreyJoy and he said it was okay.")

I like writing an AAR, and I usually post pretty prolifically. John III is a bit more irregular due to his work and family life. I think he also tends to post much more when he's excited, the rascal.

As many of you know, John and I have a long and cordial history. Well, cordial outside the gaming environment. We've been playing since UV days. We had one long and memorable match in WitP. This match is doing a credible job of giving that one a run. So we know each other well. We also occasionally correspond or talk via telephone about real life matters.

John used to drive me absolutely nuts by telling me how a turn went before I got to watch it. That was tantamount to telling somebody five weeks ago, "Hey, Han dies." I couldn't get him to stop no matter how many times I asked, no matter how politely. But he's done a much, much better job during this game. I appreciate it, because I know it goes against the grain.

John is flamboyantly aggressive and verges sometimes into taunting. Not because he's mean spirited. The guy is simply a glorious extrovert who revels in the game. Sometimes that stings - Oh, how I remember some of his "Banzai! I sank all your carriers today!" comments of days long gone. He doesn't do that via email any more, but I still catch the occasional whiff from the titles of his AAR posts. Those are publicly visible in the forum, and I watch them closely. Last night I noticed he posted one titled "Lovely." I knew I was in for a bad movie-watching experience.

John and I are like two lawyers. We can tangle and get highly irritated in the AE courtroom But when the trial (turn) is over, we're good friends who laugh, slap each other on the back, and recount the crazy things we've done together.

John told me he's not sleeping well at night. Me neither! I haven't had a good night's sleep in about two weeks. The game consumes me, as it always has. But I'm having a blast, even in the darker moments like last turn.

John is giving me a right hard time in Sumatra and Burma right now. But to me it seems like it's an awfully good situation if the Allies are fighting forward in late '42 and '43 and the Japanese have conquered little if anything outside the norm. I'm even more pleased when I consider just how hamstrung I've been by fighter pools and by House Rules. With respect to the latter, the Allies could have given John fits by bombing Palembang, but I can't. But it's the fighter pools that are just outrageously weird. Had I a reasonable (by my reckoning) number of fighters, I could have held Sumatra and expanded and things would be considerably different. I think the fighter pools are an artifact of this mod or this scenario or something. Or perhaps all Allied players are in this position. I've learned that it's very, very hard for the Allies to fight forward in late '42 even with total surprise and a massive commitment of men and supplies. Next time I'll know to check replacement rates and pools far more closely. Also to consider House Rules more carefully. But for this match, I think the Allies have done pretty well.



< Message edited by Canoerebel -- 1/10/2016 9:35:40 PM >

(in reply to Mike McCreery)
Post #: 3982
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 8:52:19 PM   
witpqs


Posts: 26087
Joined: 10/4/2004
From: Argleton
Status: offline 		I think the fighter pools for the Allies in this mod are from Babes, which are by and large from Stock. They made them as true to history as they could. But with games mostly not going according to history and the Allied aircraft replacements always staying with history, it's a game artifact that the Allies have a hard time with various aircraft pools. Most especially fighters during the period you're discussing.

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(in reply to Canoerebel)
Post #: 3983
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 9:09:52 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		Yeah, I keep putting it poorly. The Allies are strapped by historic numbers while Japan can produce seemingly at will. So we end up with Japan losing 50% more aircraft in this game, but in effect controlling the air.

Is it PDU On that creates the problem? Or does any configuration cause it? If two players wanted a match where there wasn't such a great disparity in the air, what settings should they choose? (To make it clear: I like Japan being strong, and I want the game competitive and fun in '44 and '45. But I don't want silliness in '42 and '43 such that Japan doesn't have to watch it's back doors because most Allied invasions would be doomed do to the aircraft pools. In other words, I want the ability to strike deep if I catch an opponent napping.)


(in reply to witpqs)
Post #: 3984
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 9:40:53 PM   
ny59giants


Posts: 9869
Joined: 1/10/2005
Status: offline 		Some changes with RA from stock/DBB are a slight increase in American fighters produced. Don't know if your numbers are the same Dan. Latest version has...
F4F-4...45/month (unchanged)
F4U-1 Corsair...35/month (5 increase)
P39D...25/month (unchanged)
P40E...45/month (10 increase)
P40K...75/month (10 increase)
P38F...30/month (10 less)
P38G...40/month (20 increase)
P38H...60/month (20 increase)

So, you would have more P-38s right now. Like you asked, RA has more large warships for Japan coming out in 43 and 44 that should allow Japan to be more competitive in late 43 and beyond. That was John's idea when he first came out with these mods. Add in the small bump in daily PP from 50 to 60 and it does help. The other significant change has been JuanG's Allied Aircraft Purchase option. Right now 24 P-40K or 24 P-38G cost 240 PP. I only have one P-38 and three P-40K groups available to buy.

< Message edited by ny59giants -- 1/10/2016 10:42:15 PM >

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Post #: 3985
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/10/2016 10:43:17 PM   
Encircled


Posts: 2024
Joined: 12/30/2010
From: Northern England
Status: offline 		Wait?!? Han DIES?

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(in reply to ny59giants)
Post #: 3986
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/11/2016 3:36:53 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		1/27/43

Circadian Rhythms: John asked for a turn yesterday afternoon. Then I didn't hear from him again. Nor did he post in his AAR. That's sometimes an indication that he got called into work. But this was Sunday evening, so very unlikely. I thought there was a decent chance something bad had happened. He doesn't post nearly as frequently when he's ticked off. This time, the hunch was right, so watching the replay was much more enjoyable than yesterday, and I wasn't tempted to click the "Done" button.

Battle of Sumatra: An IJN cruiser bombardment TF targeted the Allied army stack a hex south of Langsa, lingering there all day without bombarding. CAs Furutaka and Mogami are hit multiple times and go under. Mikuma was also targeted, but unsecessfully. Lots of Avengers downed (I can afford those losses) but also lots of irreplaceable F4Fs. Even the P-38Gs suffered! I had all my TBFs and SBDs (about 100 of the former, about 45 of the latter) set at range 5, one hex short of Medan (meaning the bombardment hex was just within range). The settings were so that they wouldn't try for any shipping at Medan but might get shots at any TFs that bombarded Langsa and lingered or got divided by damage (I have lots of subs at Langsa). I also set alot of my fighter corps to range 5 and 50% CAP. That gave the strike aircraft escorts. The Beauforts, set at range seven, took a shot at Hiei at Medan and missed - a shame, because I think the big fighting a hex to the north drew in most of John's CAP, leaving nearly nothing to protect all those juicy ships at Medan).

John has an impressive concentration of subs in the hexes WNW of Sabang. I think they picked off two or three supply xAKs. But the surviving merchants and the escorting combat ships made it to Sabang safely. There's 40K suppy, a modest number of reinforcing troops, and some combat ships to protect the port.

In the past two days, though, I've lost 50 F4Fs in important engagements in Burma and today's strike missions. I can't afford this. So I'll have to make adjustments. The Allies can't afford an air war in Burma, even though it divides John's attention a bit. I'm like Lee at Chancellorsville. Each of my two-part (air) army is facing more than 2x enemy forces. Probably more like 3x or 4x. I've got to marshall what's left to defend Sumatra. Very tough going here.

The enemy combat ships that tore into the merchants yesterday are retiring EAST towards Rangoon or vicinity. Not sure why they're going that way - probably John intends to keep them closer to the front. If so, I wonder if he has carriers coming back to the theater.

I think John is devoting a fair bit of resources to Burma. He's doing so effectively and that is an important theater...but - Dang! - thank goodness. Every troop and plane and ship focused there is one less I'm facing in Sumatra. Still, he probably has plenty and more to deal with Sumatra.

I'm fighting one day at a time.

Battle of Burma: Either due to weather or fatigue, John's airforce stands down today, allowing the Allied army south of Magwe to make a good distance (about 10 miles each unit) towards extracting themselves from the jaws of the pincer movement. Importantly, the Japanese division trying to close the trap didn't succeed in taking the Allied unit guarding the friendly hex to the west. This means John can't yet set that division to close the remaining hexside. Meaning the Allied army may well be able to make it to the key "friendly hex" before that hexside can be closed. Very tense. Very exctiign.

Ramilles: Off the map at the NW corner (near Mombasa box) and it will take her 51 days to make it to Capetown! She has 51 major FLT damage. Fortunately, she's not scheduled to withdraw until December. I'll fix her up a few points and withdraw her.

Elsewhere: Small steps being taken in many places, but I'll leave it at that.

(in reply to Encircled)
Post #: 3987
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/11/2016 6:58:28 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		This and that:

Sumatra: The Allied stack (1375 AV) a hex south of Langsa faces three IJA divisions of equal strength. John will have a hard time busting through give 2x jungle terrain. Langsa, just to the rear, has about 300 AV with some forts and 2x terrain. This hex is subject to invasion that might cut off the Allied stack a hex away. Accordingly, I've set most of the units in the hex-away stack to a staggered and revolving march towards Langsa. That way there is always a division just a turn or two away from Langsa, should it be needed. If that division gets 40 miles or so towards Langsa without any proximate threat of invasion, I reset it to 0 miles. Fortunately, this doesn't have any effect on fatigue or disruption. There is one drawback - keeping units in motion eliminates their "forts." But I sleep alot better this way.

India: John is pretty amped up right now. He has reason to be, of course. He's bringing force to bear in Sumatra and Burma. He controls the skies everywhere but Sabang. And he has lots of ships, which he loves above all else. There is a 10% chance he might be looking at India, with a plan of cutting behind the Allied army to isolate it. (Hey, John invaded India in 1944 during our WitP match, so it's not beyond possibility.) I don't think such a move is likely since it would take so many ships and troops to have even the slightest hope of success. Not every Indian hex is guarded or garded well, but overall there's a good defense in depth.

9th Australian Division: This unit was bound for Sabang in the heady days following last week's strike on the KB at Singers (before that the plan was to commit it to Burma). Several days ago orders were changed to commit it to India. The division will serve as the theater reserve for a month or two. I have plans for it later, but right now it's another thing that helps me sleep better.


(in reply to Canoerebel)
Post #: 3988
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/11/2016 7:37:34 PM   
jwolf

 

Posts: 2493
Joined: 12/3/2013
Status: offline 		I've considered the kind of "revolving march" tactic you described but rejected it for exactly the reason you noted: no forts. In your case I am guessing the reasoning is that the risk of getting cut off and destroyed is worse than the risk of losing control of the hex with your big stack. But isn't there also the danger of getting attacked while your troops are in motion?

(in reply to Canoerebel)
Post #: 3989
RE: The Good The Bad & The Indifferent - 1/11/2016 7:40:45 PM   
Canoerebel


Posts: 21100
Joined: 12/14/2002
From: Northwestern Georgia, USA
Status: offline 		Yes, that's the reason behind the tactic.

The units are marching in combat mode, so I don't think there's a penalty.

(in reply to jwolf)
Post #: 3990
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