RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A)

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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> War in the Pacific: Admiral's Edition >> After Action Reports >> RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A)

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RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/21/2021 5:28:38 PM

pontiouspilot

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It's too bad Wasp not in the hit mix.....Lady Lex and Sara much tougher. Which Japanese CVs/CVLs are still in operation? Overall I think you can be very pleased with the result! Even if Lex and Sara get away your opponent will be down to very few active carriers for a few months.

Cheers

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 541

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/21/2021 6:31:55 PM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: pontiouspilot

It's too bad Wasp not in the hit mix.....Lady Lex and Sara much tougher. Which Japanese CVs/CVLs are still in operation? Overall I think you can be very pleased with the result! Even if Lex and Sara get away your opponent will be down to very few active carriers for a few months.

Cheers

I've only lost one of my big carriers so far. We exchanged one big carrier in an early battle. The US also lost a big carrier to a sub. Hornet and Enterprise were both previously damaged but not sunk. I hope to finish off Lexington and Saratoga. If I can manage that, the Allied plans for an offensive will be limited for awhile. I'd expect OPilot to go places where he doesn't need carriers, like to Port Moresby and New Guinea, and/or past Horn Island towards Darwin.

But first things first.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 542

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 3:41:28 AM

apbarog

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Got an email from OPilot, Commander of the Allied Forces.

"The worse nightmare has come true for the USN."

He'll be working on the turn tomorrow. We shall see how day 2 of the naval battle of Wake turns out.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 543

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 5:59:10 AM

DesertWolf101

Posts: 1445
Joined: 11/26/2016
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quote:

ORIGINAL: apbarog

Got an email from OPilot, Commander of the Allied Forces.

"The worse nightmare has come true for the USN."

He'll be working on the turn tomorrow. We shall see how day 2 of the naval battle of Wake turns out.

Well done apbarog, a nicely executed op. I agree you got a bit unlucky with the hit rates.

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 544

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 11:25:52 AM

Evoken

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Joined: 10/23/2019
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I facepalm everytime i see an Allied player doing an operation like this. I havent been keeping up with the AAR completely idk where Enterprise , Hornet and Yorktown are or British Carriers. But why do allied players do this ?

If you dont know where KB is you do not commit your most important assets to battle unless you can take on KB and not have a disaster like this. Well done Apbarog

, you should have carrier superiority for a long time now. Combined with LBA from islands , you should be able to get another victory like this in 43 or 44

(in reply to DesertWolf101)

Post #: 545

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 2:02:22 PM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Evoken

I facepalm everytime i see an Allied player doing an operation like this. I havent been keeping up with the AAR completely idk where Enterprise , Hornet and Yorktown are or British Carriers. But why do allied players do this ?

If you dont know where KB is you do not commit your most important assets to battle unless you can take on KB and not have a disaster like this. Well done Apbarog , you should have carrier superiority for a long time now. Combined with LBA from islands , you should be able to get another victory like this in 43 or 44

In our conversation, OPilot felt that he stayed too long at Wake, staying to pick up the defeated invaders. He did a superb job picking them all up in one day, but it was one day too many. If the invasion had succeeded, the fleet would have left a day sooner, and moving 10 or 12 hexes a day like they did move, they would have avoided my ambush.

He thought that he could get in and get out quickly, but I was lurking down by Tarawa. He thinks that I probably came from Truk, but no difference. I could have gotten there from Truk just as quickly.

My #1 priority in the game was to eliminate as many US carriers as possible as early as possible. My early expansion into the South Pacific was done to draw the carriers to an early battle. That mostly failed. Depending on how the next turn plays out, I may still accomplish that goal.

My #2 priority was to isolate China in a way that would starve the Chinese of supply for most of, if not all of, the war. That is a work in progress.

(in reply to Evoken)

Post #: 546

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 5:32:21 PM

Evoken

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Joined: 10/23/2019
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quote:

ORIGINAL: apbarog

quote:

ORIGINAL: Evoken

I facepalm everytime i see an Allied player doing an operation like this. I havent been keeping up with the AAR completely idk where Enterprise , Hornet and Yorktown are or British Carriers. But why do allied players do this ?

If you dont know where KB is you do not commit your most important assets to battle unless you can take on KB and not have a disaster like this. Well done Apbarog , you should have carrier superiority for a long time now. Combined with LBA from islands , you should be able to get another victory like this in 43 or 44

In our conversation, OPilot felt that he stayed too long at Wake, staying to pick up the defeated invaders. He did a superb job picking them all up in one day, but it was one day too many. If the invasion had succeeded, the fleet would have left a day sooner, and moving 10 or 12 hexes a day like they did move, they would have avoided my ambush.

He thought that he could get in and get out quickly, but I was lurking down by Tarawa. He thinks that I probably came from Truk, but no difference. I could have gotten there from Truk just as quickly.

My #1 priority in the game was to eliminate as many US carriers as possible as early as possible. My early expansion into the South Pacific was done to draw the carriers to an early battle. That mostly failed. Depending on how the next turn plays out, I may still accomplish that goal.

My #2 priority was to isolate China in a way that would starve the Chinese of supply for most of, if not all of, the war. That is a work in progress.

I still dont understand the betting Carriers for such small margin of error , its almost like a reverse midway except USN has no goals to drag KB into battle. What was his strategic goal ? One possible idea i can see is trying to get eyes towards Marshalls and Truk which you can achieve by approaching from south with so many better and numerous atolls. It would have been much safer to recon southern atolls , take it with a surprise force , put down some PBY on naval search and if KB is not spotted after a few days continue operations safely with no risk to carriers.

Another good option would be to build up Cooktown in Australia and operate your carriers under LBA cover , go for Port Moresby or Milne Bay.

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 547

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/22/2021 7:31:18 PM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Evoken

quote:

ORIGINAL: apbarog

quote:

ORIGINAL: Evoken

I facepalm everytime i see an Allied player doing an operation like this. I havent been keeping up with the AAR completely idk where Enterprise , Hornet and Yorktown are or British Carriers. But why do allied players do this ?

If you dont know where KB is you do not commit your most important assets to battle unless you can take on KB and not have a disaster like this. Well done Apbarog , you should have carrier superiority for a long time now. Combined with LBA from islands , you should be able to get another victory like this in 43 or 44

In our conversation, OPilot felt that he stayed too long at Wake, staying to pick up the defeated invaders. He did a superb job picking them all up in one day, but it was one day too many. If the invasion had succeeded, the fleet would have left a day sooner, and moving 10 or 12 hexes a day like they did move, they would have avoided my ambush.

He thought that he could get in and get out quickly, but I was lurking down by Tarawa. He thinks that I probably came from Truk, but no difference. I could have gotten there from Truk just as quickly.

My #1 priority in the game was to eliminate as many US carriers as possible as early as possible. My early expansion into the South Pacific was done to draw the carriers to an early battle. That mostly failed. Depending on how the next turn plays out, I may still accomplish that goal.

My #2 priority was to isolate China in a way that would starve the Chinese of supply for most of, if not all of, the war. That is a work in progress.

I still dont understand the betting Carriers for such small margin of error , its almost like a reverse midway except USN has no goals to drag KB into battle. What was his strategic goal ? One possible idea i can see is trying to get eyes towards Marshalls and Truk which you can achieve by approaching from south with so many better and numerous atolls. It would have been much safer to recon southern atolls , take it with a surprise force , put down some PBY on naval search and if KB is not spotted after a few days continue operations safely with no risk to carriers.

Another good option would be to build up Cooktown in Australia and operate your carriers under LBA cover , go for Port Moresby or Milne Bay.

I agree with you. The rewards weren't worth the risk. I'd been anticipating, with just a guess, that he'd land in the Tarawa/Tabiteuea area, and had KB loitering down there for over a month. That was the most logical move, I thought. KB was just close enough to intervene with his delay at Wake.

(in reply to Evoken)

Post #: 548

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/23/2021 6:58:17 AM

apbarog

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12 Nov 42

I set my battleship TF to patrol 7 hexes to the ENE of yesterday's position. I set my 2 carrier TFs to follow the battleship TF, hoping that if an enemy TF is run into, the battleships would engage. First the battleship TF ran into what looked like most of Saratoga's escorts, with Saratoga having detached with South Dakota and 4 destroyers. It began at 26,000 yards with a maximum visibility of 11,000 yards. The range was closed down to 16,000 yards where the Allied radar detected the Japanese. The range continued to close to 12,000 yards where the Allies attempted to evade combat. The range then increased until the Allied TF escaped.

Then, during the day, the Japanese battleship TF ran into CV Wasp, BB Washington, cruisers New Orleans and Atlanta, and 9 destroyers. The fight started at 26,000 yards where the Allied TF spotted the Japanese. The Allied TF then attempted to evade combat, and the range increased to 30,000 yards and the Allies escaped. Disappointing. Even worse, the Japanese battleship TF then decided to retire to Wake, where I had set the home port. The decision had to be based on fuel. The ships hadn't fired a shot yet. Since KB was set to follow the battleships they did so. This resulted in the task forces being slightly west of where I intended them to be. That difference turned out to be irrelevant for the air strikes that followed, but it did increase the distance to the enemy when considering what to do for the next turn.

In the morning, a relatively small strike, compared to yesterday, went after enemy ships closest to Midway.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Midway Island at 155,97

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 30 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 29
B5N2 Kate x 18
D3A1 Val x 45

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 17

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed
B5N2 Kate: 1 damaged
D3A1 Val: 5 damaged
D3A1 Val: 3 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-4 Wildcat: 1 destroyed

Allied Ships
CV Lexington, Bomb hits 11, on fire, heavy damage
BB North Carolina, Bomb hits 4
CA San Francisco
CA Minneapolis
CA Houston

An oddly fragmented strike followed, with 1 Kate escorted by 11 Zeros, running into 8 Wildcats. Multiple Zeros were shot down. The Kate dropped a torpedo that was scrounged up somewhere, but it missed Lexington, which now was noted to have heavy fires and heavy damage, and with no other ships spotted with it.

Another strike was sent out to a closer TF, one with already damaged South Dakota and Saratoga.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Kure Island at 152,99

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 30 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B5N2 Kate x 54
D3A1 Val x 11
D3A2 Val x 2

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 1 damaged
D3A1 Val: 2 damaged
D3A1 Val: 1 destroyed by flak
D3A2 Val: 1 damaged

Allied Ships
BB South Dakota, Bomb hits 12, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
CV Saratoga, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Henley, Bomb hits 1, on fire
DD Jarvis, Bomb hits 1
DD Russell
DD Selfridge

Carrier support unable to supply air cover..
Ammo storage explosion on CV Saratoga
Fuel storage explosion on CV Saratoga
Heavy smoke from fires obscuring CV Saratoga

Saratoga and South Dakota have to be crippled. I wouldn't be surprised if both sink or are scuttled immediately.

7 more Kates then went after Lexington but ran into 4 Wildcats. Most Kates were shot down. 2 Kates bombed but missed. 13 Vals then arrived over the same TF but ran into 2 Wildcats, and about half of the Vals were shot down. Bombs missed Lexington but a bomb did hit North Carolina.

Not all bombers flew today.

Total air losses for today were 15 Vals (10 by flak), 11 Zeros and 5 Kates. Just 2 Wildcats were shot down.

In the afternoon there were no naval strikes. In summary, in 2 days of battle:

Lexington hit by 17 bombs.
Saratoga hit by 8 bombs and 2 torpedoes.
North Carolina hit by 12 bombs.
South Dakota hit by 25 bombs and 7 torpedoes.
San Diego hit by 3 bombs.
Houston hit by 3 bombs.
Washington hit by 5 bombs.
Astoria hit by 1 bomb.
3 destroyers hit by multiple bombs.

So, I expect Saratoga and South Dakota to sink. Both ship's movement was already restricted before today's hits. Lexington made good speed yesterday, but got hammered today. I can hope that it burns up from so many bomb hits, but it's not a sure thing.

All in all, a successful operation. Now we just have to avoid the enemy subs that must be converging on the area. I'll be sending what I'll call mini-KB, which left Japan and is southbound near Marcus Island, to the South Pacific, to show carriers there. It just won't be KB, which will head to Japan. 3 big carriers have an overdue upgrade. Now is a good time for that. Some light cruisers and destroyers are due for an upgrade in December, and they are heading to Japan.

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(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 549

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/24/2021 8:18:35 PM

apbarog

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13 Nov 42

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RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/24/2021 9:09:46 PM

Nomad

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This confirms the adage that the Allies can not win the war in 1942, but they can lose it in 1942.

While your opponent has not really lost the game, he is now much further behind the curve that it becomes a possibility.

< Message edited by Nomad -- 12/24/2021 9:12:01 PM >

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 551

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/24/2021 11:41:04 PM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Nomad

This confirms the adage that the Allies can not win the war in 1942, but they can lose it in 1942.

While your opponent has not really lost the game, he is now much further behind the curve that it becomes a possibility.

He probably lost Saratoga and South Dakota, and a couple of destroyers. He may lose Lexington. So he's lost 3 or 4 of his pre-Essex big carriers. Not good, but not the end of the world. A loss like this is just a delay for the Allies. A loss like this for the Japanese means losing the war early.

I will of course try to arrange another battle like this at a place of my choosing. I don't expect that opportunity for quite awhile though. OPilot could just wait for more than a few Essex class carriers to start rolling. Combined with Hellcats, he'll do just fine, eventually.

I do like that I made some investment in late-war fighters. A goal is to actually see the Sam in action.

(in reply to Nomad)

Post #: 552

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/24/2021 11:54:19 PM

Nomad

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As I look at my post I realize that I should have used the term game instead of war in the first sentence.

In the second sentence I was referring to the possibility of you winning with an auto victory. This becomes
very possible because he is behind the curve now and he has to wait until he gets enough Essex CVs to cover
his losses and to close the gap.

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 553

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/25/2021 12:15:26 AM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Nomad

As I look at my post I realize that I should have used the term game instead of war in the first sentence.

In the second sentence I was referring to the possibility of you winning with an auto victory. This becomes
very possible because he is behind the curve now and he has to wait until he gets enough Essex CVs to cover
his losses and to close the gap.

Agreed. A better Japanese player than myself could push for auto-victory in 1943 or 1944. Really for 1944. I am just above 2 to 1 right now. I was done expanding though. A more aggressive player could push further now that carrier superiority is assured for awhile. Maybe I should think about it more. I've always played to survive as long as possible as the Japanese, and to end the war as early as possible as the Allies. For me, the victory points were just something to judge how things are going. But I don't see even a 3 to 1 auto-victory in 1944 without lots of important Allied bases being taken.

(in reply to Nomad)

Post #: 554

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/25/2021 2:08:11 AM

apbarog

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14 Nov 42

Bad weather at Midway prevented long range recon. There's a line of enemy subs to the east of Wake Island, running north to south. But I've avoided them, by not going to Wake. KB went northwest towards Japan, my battleships went southwest towards Truk. So far it's been a quiet exit from the area. Japanese subs are setting up to the southeast of Midway, and closer to Pearl Harbor.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 555

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/25/2021 11:21:45 PM

apbarog

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15 Nov 42

Little to report. Japanese forces continue to retire from the Wake area. US subs are still east of Wake, moving further east to avoid Betty ASW. Poor recon of Midway today, so no enemy task forces spotted. Still hoping that 15 bombs is enough to get Lexington to burn up, but who knows.

Unloading a big AAA unit at Buna. Grayling was spotted there, and destroyer Yayoi got some near misses on the sub.

25 or so B-17Es hit Gove, doing moderate airbase damage.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 556

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/26/2021 6:49:35 PM

apbarog

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16 Nov 42

No sign of enemy task forces around Midway Island. Japanese subs are not seeing anything to the southeast of Midway or closer to Pearl Harbor. They are out there, somewhere. Some may be going direct to the West Coast. I'm looking for a burning carrier though. Maybe I can't see it because it has already sunk. And what about South Dakota? No sightings either.

It looks like OPilot has formed a solid line running east from Kunming, in the mountains. It will be tough if not impossible to break through there. The attempt will be made. Troops are gathering at Liuchow for some rest, then they'll move between Kunming and Tuyun. Other troops will attempt another attack at Tuyun, but that will also be rough. A fresh Chinese corps with 350+ combat value is replacing a corps that has been hammered by artillery for months. My big artillery reinforcement of Tuyun with units bought out from Manchuria is on the road south of Tuyun. They will join the daily bombardment. It will be the biggest concentration of Japanese artillery that I've ever had in a single hex.

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 557

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/26/2021 7:27:20 PM

pontiouspilot

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What sort of mischief can you create in the Indian Ocean? Is Ceylon worth a poke? You would have 6 months free from USN backdoor intrusions.

(in reply to apbarog)

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RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/26/2021 8:16:25 PM

apbarog

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quote:

ORIGINAL: pontiouspilot

What sort of mischief can you create in the Indian Ocean? Is Ceylon worth a poke? You would have 6 months free from USN backdoor intrusions.

It's something to think about. I don't have many divisions available, and nothing prepped. My excess right now is a division at Saipan and another going to Guam. There's a division pinning the Dutch at Bandoeng. That is it. Nothing else in the Central or South Pacific, other than a division split between Port Moresby, Buna and Milne Bay. One division split in Burma, another in reserve at Rangoon. I'm heavily committed to China. If I did Ceylon, I'd want more than 2 divisions, to go in very strong, take the island, and leave a small occupying force. OPilot has prepared for such a thing, as he has expanded bases in India near Ceylon. There's no other reason to do that.

Just as I haven't seen an entire US Marine division yet, I don't know where the British divisions are either.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 559

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/27/2021 2:33:43 AM

apbarog

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17 Nov 42

43 B-17s hit Daly Waters. The bomber's targets have included Daly Waters often, Katherine rarely, Gove increasingly often, Port Moresby, Buna and Milne Bay occasionally. There are P-38s in Australia but they have been seen only over New Guinea, so far. A good recon of Normanton shows 24300 men, 301 guns and 468 vehicles, with a US ground unit icon. There is a small combat TF there, so PT boats, some patrol boats, and some xAPs in port. I'm sending a cruiser force from Singapore to Gove, via Soerabaja for fuel. Will try to strike Normanton if I can approach unseen.

We can call the Wake Operation over. KB is just a couple of days from Japan, and the enemy TFs have all disappeared. My subs aren't picking up anything between Midway and Pearl Harbor.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 560

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/28/2021 5:28:00 AM

apbarog

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18 Nov 42 - China

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RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/29/2021 8:38:20 PM

apbarog

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19 Nov 42

8 Japanese cruisers and 5 destroyers bombarded the 3rd Marine Raider Battalion on Tanna. 214 casualties and moderate damage to the port. No airfield there, and I'd like to keep it that way. The cruisers retire to Tulagi. And wanted them to be seen in the south.

B-24s from Ledo bombed the 35th Field AA Battalion at Lashio. No damage to the unit and one bomber downed by flak.

The 2 damaged Japanese CVLs are approaching the coast of Japan and are heading to Hiroshima for repairs. KB has been split between Yokohama and Tokyo for repairs and upgrades. I decided to use most of KB's air units for training for a bit. I don't expect to need KB in the near future. So I stripped out the veterans and loaded up with new pilots. I figure a month or two or three of training would be useful. I left a couple veterans in each air group along with the leader. In an emergency, I can reload the veterans and strip out the recruits. All of KB's dive bombers have now upgraded to the better model of the Val. Better except for less range.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 562

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 12/31/2021 2:03:24 AM

apbarog

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20 Nov 42

E Kiji hit Sunfish with a depth charge at Iwo Jima. I'm landing some ground units there and the sub was waiting. OPilot has subs at islands all over. Finback attacked unescorted xAP Tenzan Maru north of Rabaul. The ship is very fast, and it avoided many torpedoes. It didn't avoid a shell hit though, but only took 2 SYS damage.

35 B-24s and 14 Liberator IIs from Ledo bombed the Japanese 34th Division west of Kweiyang. This is the division that just cleared the east-west road there. It is rough terrain. I had 16 Oscars on LRCAP, from a base 6 hexes away. One bomber was shot down, but they caused 221 casualties and slowed the 2/3 of the division moving west into the mountains.

Possible first sign of trouble in Burma. East of Akyab, I spotted 3 Allied units in the jungle, adjacent to my Thai division that is blocking Akyab. The 3 units don't have to cross a river to get to my troops. I'm moving my reserve Japanese division up to that area from Rangoon.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 563

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/1/2022 5:11:10 AM

apbarog

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21 Nov 42

After months of US subs not spotting cargo task forces north of Ominato, Pollack finally has a success. One good hit and one dud.

Sub attack near Shikuka at 127,45

Japanese Ships
xAK Koki Maru, Torpedo hits 1
xAK Mantai Maru
PB Magan Maru

Allied Ships
SS Pollack

SS Pollack launches 4 torpedoes at xAK Koki Mar

Koki Maru is SYS 34/FLOT 45-39/ENG 14-14/FIRE 0 and will try to make it back to Shikuka. A patrol boat is ordered from Shikuka to join up.

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RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/1/2022 5:18:09 AM

apbarog

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21 Nov 42 - Continued

The enemy heavy bombers from Ledo hit the Japanese division west of Kweiyang again. Again, the Oscars there on LRCAP did poorly. 4 Oscars were lost, and no bombers were lost. 300 or so casualties on the ground. 2/3 of the division moved west into the mountains. 1/3 remains in the rough terrain where the bombing has occurred. I moved Tojos and Nicks to the area and have a big LRCAP over the rough terrain for today.

Sallys bombed newly discovered Allied forces in the jungle near Akyab. Flak was incredibly heavy. The Sallys were at 6000 feet. And 10 Hurricanes were on ranged CAP from Akyab. 12 Sallys were lost. The 2nd British Division and the 7th Indian Division were spotted. Lots of vehicles there from the mouse-over. And they are on the move south. Alarm bells are ringing.

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Post #: 565

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/1/2022 11:31:56 PM

apbarog

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22 Nov 42

A6M3 Zeros from Gove swept Horn Island, finding just Kittyhawk IAs. 14 of the Kittyhawks were shot down, for the loss of 3 Zeros. Sallys bombed and did minor base damage.

The US airpower hit Milne Bay. P-38Gs made their first appearance, along with P-38Fs. No CAP. 48 B-17s bombed and did moderate base damage.

Lexington was reported to be sunk on 13 Nov. It may or may not have. The planes didn't go down with the ship if it did.

The push on Kunming has resumed. The first attack of this round northwest of Kunming was acceptable.

Ground combat at 68,47 (near Kunming)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 19713 troops, 246 guns, 478 vehicles, Assault Value = 752

Defending force 24751 troops, 84 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 788

Japanese adjusted assault: 667

Allied adjusted defense: 487

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(-), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
483 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 48 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 12 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Vehicles lost 16 (2 destroyed, 14 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
509 casualties reported
Squads: 5 destroyed, 100 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 10 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 2 (1 destroyed, 1 disabled)

Assaulting units:
1st Tank Division
14th Tank Regiment
33rd Division
15th Army
3rd Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
21st Medium Field Artillery Battalion

Defending units:
54th Chinese Corps
90th Chinese Corps
11th Group Army

I really want Kunming. If I can clear it and have a strong defense in the mountains, I have the option of pulling multiple divisions out of China. I'm not really planning on conquering all of China. Just starving it.

Attachment (1)

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 566

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/2/2022 10:11:19 PM

apbarog

Posts: 3769
Joined: 5/23/2002
Status: offline

23 Nov 42

Another good attack northwest of Kunming.

Ground combat at 68,47 (near Kunming)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 19194 troops, 246 guns, 476 vehicles, Assault Value = 694

Defending force 24137 troops, 83 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 717

Japanese adjusted assault: 371

Allied adjusted defense: 283

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), fatigue(-), experience(-)
supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
261 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 51 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Guns lost 3 (1 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 17 (1 destroyed, 16 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
488 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 51 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled

Assaulting units:
14th Tank Regiment
1st Tank Division
33rd Division
3rd Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
15th Army
21st Medium Field Artillery Battalion

Defending units:
54th Chinese Corps
90th Chinese Corps
11th Group Army

And a successful river crossing south of Kunming. The pressure is on.

Ground combat at 68,49 (near Kunming)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 14665 troops, 156 guns, 74 vehicles, Assault Value = 493

Defending force 6370 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 229

Japanese adjusted assault: 628

Allied adjusted defense: 67

Japanese assault odds: 9 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
132 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 15 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 2 disabled

Allied ground losses:
2330 casualties reported
Squads: 68 destroyed, 35 disabled
Non Combat: 58 destroyed, 5 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Units retreated 1

Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
56th Division
14th Army
2nd Mortar Battalion
20th Ind. Mtn Gun Battalion

Defending units:
81st Chinese Corps

Attachment (1)

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 567

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/3/2022 5:55:53 PM

apbarog

Posts: 3769
Joined: 5/23/2002
Status: offline

24 Nov 42

Major Allied air effort over Magwe. OPilot sent just about everything he could.

16 Hurricane IIc's swept
25 P-40Ks swept
15 Hurricane IIb's swept
26 B-24Ds and 14 Liberator IIs bombed oil
32 B-25Cs bombed oil
16 Hurricane IIc's swept
16 Hurricane IIb's swept
16 Hurricane IIb's swept
16 Hurricane IIb's swept
16 Hurricane IIb's swept

Since taking Magwe, I'd kept a squadron of fighters there to protect it. After getting swept and overwhelmed, I upped the ante to keeping 2 squadrons there. Eventually, the sweepers came back stronger. My focus shifted to the mountains of western China. I'd send my fighters there for a bit, and occasionally move them back to Magwe to keep OPilot honest there. My occasional moves became less frequent, and with no CAP there today, OPilot got major hits on the oil. Of the 300 oil at Magwe, 158 is now damaged. It was going to happen. I've tried to delay the inevitable and enjoy the oil while I had it. I won't have any much longer. I'll throw a bunch of fighters into Magwe once in a while, but it will be all or nothing. I either catch the raid or I don't. Mostly, I won't. And I accept that.

22 P-38Gs swept Gove. No CAP. 45 B-17s bombed Gove's airfield and port. With all of the Allied air activity at Gove and Magwe, and lots of flak at Magwe, the Allies didn't lose any planes today. Not even an ops loss.

OPilot did his first recon of La Foa on New Caledonia. Showing more interest there. You look at La Foa when you are thinking of landing on New Caledonia and don't want to land directly at Noumea. I don't think a big landing will take place without carriers, but it could happen. With P-38s, air cover is possible from Norfolk Island.

Another good 1 to 1 attack northwest of Kunming, and the casualty ratio is becoming more favorable. 205 Japanese losses to 784 Chinese losses. Today however, my troops are low on supply. Next attack will take place after resupply. Many transports are flying supply to Paoshan to support these troops.

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 568

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/4/2022 10:05:43 PM

apbarog

Posts: 3769
Joined: 5/23/2002
Status: offline

25 Nov 42

US cruisers and destroyers bombarded Noumea, and got a nuclear bombardment. 4 heavy cruisers and 9 destroyers destroyed 4 Zeros and damaged many planes, caused 929 casualties with some destroyed devices, and did major damage to the airfield and minor damage to the port. I have 150 mines there but they weren't hit. I didn't see the ships coming, which is why they kept coming.
I have a cruiser group south of Gove now. It was well spotted. They will continue south to bombard Normanton. I see a cruiser and a few destroyers there, some PT boats, and some xAPs in port. Normanton has aircraft. It did have B-17s. Zeros from Gove will LRCAP, as they did today.

I paused my attack just northwest of Kunming for supply. Now the units have supply, so the attack resumes. The results were starting to swing in our favor, still at 1 to 1, but improving and with better casualty ratios.

I've mentioned my bombardments at Tuyun, bombardments which have been every day, for months. In the past couple of weeks, many artillery units from Manchuria arrived and have joined in. Here's today's example:

Ground combat at Tuyun (74,51)

Japanese Bombardment attack

Attacking force 33398 troops, 532 guns, 585 vehicles, Assault Value = 952

Defending force 65563 troops, 282 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1838

Allied ground losses:
262 casualties reported
Squads: 7 destroyed, 7 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Assaulting units:
48th Division
5th Division
Tonei Hvy Gun Regiment
11th Ind.Hvy.Art Battalion
1st Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
14th Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion
2nd Hvy.Artillery Regiment
7th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
5th Ind.Hvy.Art Battalion
3rd Medium Field Artillery Regiment
2nd Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion
3rd Mortar Battalion
17th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
30th Field AA Machinecannon Company
15th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
52nd Ind.Mtn.Gun Battalion
4th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
6th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
3rd Hvy.Artillery Regiment
8th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
16th Army
12th Ind.Hvy.Art Battalion

Defending units:
49th Chinese Corps
57th Chinese Corps
21st Chinese Corps
76th Chinese Corps
100th Chinese Corps
31st Chinese Corps
66th Chinese Corps
25th Group Army
34th Group Army
1st Artillery Regiment

OPilot has swapped in fresh Chinese corps a couple of times. I just keep pounding them. Now 4 infantry divisions and a tank division are moving north from Liuchow, ready to assault Tuyun. Months ago, they did the same, and came up just short of taking the town. I'd gotten the forts down to zero and the attack ratio came up just short of 2 to 1. Then OPilot swapped in new troops, and I had to pull back and recover. I've done so.

(in reply to apbarog)

Post #: 569

RE: Deja Vu All Over Again - apbarog(J) vs OPilot(A) - 1/5/2022 6:46:31 PM

apbarog

Posts: 3769
Joined: 5/23/2002
Status: offline

26 Nov 42

Poorer result northwest of Kunming. Worse Japanese adjusted assault value resulted in just 1 to 2 odds. 560 Japanese casualties to 354 Chinese lost. We'll wait for resupply, then continue. A fresh infantry division is one hex away at Paoshan and will replace the attacking division when it is depleted.

The rest of the action today was at Normanton.

[EDIT: 2 PT boats were sunk at Normanton in an engagement that occurred after the transports were sunk.]

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< Message edited by apbarog -- 1/5/2022 6:47:27 PM >

(in reply to pontiouspilot)

Post #: 570

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