Maserati
Posts: 33
Joined: 4/6/2004
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The AI may cheat but I can get lucky. And properly prepared, fortune favors the bold.
It's mid-November of Scenario 12 - I like it as a learning scenario since it starts with a carrier battle and slowly brings in the ground forces.
Coral Sea went well. I got Shokaku and Zuikaku in exchange for the Yorktown and a badly damaged Lexington. The IJN assault on Gili-Gili got smashed at sea, and the diversion at Buna ran into airlifted troops. That's a good start. I stooged around a bit with building up in New Guinea and getting Luganville ready to support operations in the Solomons.
In June I ran bombardment missions against Gili-Gili until I could get three regiments together to take it back. I had three night-actions against IJN units running the Gili Express, winning all three battles handily.
The AI took Lunga in June, but I waited for the Marines to do my counter invasion. Another carrier battle ensued and the Hornet + Saratoga traded strikes with Kaga and another flattop. I got lucky (that's a theme) and smothered the Kaga with 1000lb GP. All the IJN got back on me was 2x60kg and 1x250kg. The Hornet sank on the way back to Luganville, much to my consternation. That's a lucky hit in my book !
Sara had been hurt in this action, and the Wasp and the Enterprise got hurt, Wasp the more severely. That left me with Wasp and Sara at 25-30% damage and a scratched-up Enterprising wanting company before resuming offensive operations. The orphaned air groups made for a great start on the Cactus Air Force. With that many Wildcats in position I was able to get convoys through without requiring carrier support. Several Express runs lost many transports in the Slot to Cactus Air.
Meanwhile, I had been pounding Lae with mostly medium bombers from Moresby and retaking Gili-Gili. Dive bombers working from Buna turned the Rabaul-Lae run into a suicide mission, even getting hits on an incautious IJN CV. Port attacks on Lae were killing hundreds of troops a day. Since I had been marching overland to take the unoccupied Japanese "bases" with troops flown into Wau I now had an airstrip adjacent to Lae - which itself was well and truly suppressed.
I flew a division into walking distance from Lae and sent them in. Bloody diggers were wonderful, Lae fell easily. I left the heavy bombers at Moresby and moved the mediums to Lae as fast as I could build up the airbase. First with small, then larger convoys covered with LRCAP from Buna and Lae. By early September I was able to put over 100 medium bombers over Rabaul in a single strike. I also discovered the wonderful things B-17s could to to ships docked at Shortlands.
By October I had strong bases at Lunga and Lae. My first battleship had headed back to Pearl after a lopsided night action off of Cape Esperance left 3 IJN DDs sinking and my BB with two fish in her belly. Supply runs to Lunga and Lae became a lot safer as Rabaul's airtrip is pounded all month. The first P-38 squadron becomes invaluable in escorting strikes on Rabaul, but pays a high price to keep the bombers safe. I also begin strafing runs against Rabaul and air losses start to turn in my favor.
Early in November a 5 AP convoy is destroyed by dive bombers from Cactus. Enraged, the AI sends Soryu, Hiryu and Akagi to strike shipping at Lunga. Big mistake. I lose a *lot* of aircraft but cripple all three IJN flattops. And Lexington and Enterprise are at Luganville loaded for bear. They catch Hiryu and Akagi halfway to Truk, the Soryu never made it that far. This leaves the score 6 CVs and a CVL to 2 CVs. The IJN is done in the South Pacific. Except for battleships and my next two are on the way.
Meanwhile, the Marines have spent a hard month at Tassafaronga but it pays off in November. Reinforced to 20,000 men and 60 tanks the Tassafaronga base is captured and then the survivors are killed in the jungle. I own Guadalcanal. No evacuation, 17000 Imperial Army troops find their last post in the jungle.
It's now mid-November and I'm figuring to take Munda in December to wrap up the scenario in style. I might also put a small force ashore on New Britain to grab an airstrip and allow more escorts on runs to Rabaul.
Then I try one of the BIG scenarios and start thinking about PBEM.
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Things finally go my way - 
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