RE: The Fall of Nanchang

RE: The Fall of Nanchang (Full Version)

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Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 8:30:50 AM)
Well guys, thanks for comments. Some fragments saved from Singapre disaster are already there at Aden but i know those will take more than a year to rebuilt, even at 50% of their TOE. Jim's strategy is really pushing me....but Jim, a question: Aden is conered (is this a meaning word in english? i mean, it's pressed in a corner, where he simply can, if he takes the rest of India, place undreds of betties on the coast and force me to let me there forever...i cannot even master an active defence, due to the fact that if he comes with his BBs smashing the place i simply won't have another base covering it...my ships will be hammered in port as soon as they arrive and so my planes...but the idea of having the brits kicked out of the war it's quite scaring i gotta say....mmmmmm....ican end up like wollby[:D] against PzB and its hangover! And PzB did it in march 42!....mmmm...i can do something like the right "medium" perhaps: leaving the next infantry units arriving at Aden there (a ANZAC div should arrive withing 30 days) and keep the 18th at Karachi, ready to be loaded if things go bad during the landings...but without the 18th on the front, there's no way to hold any front in the south...mmmm...quite tough to decide what to do.... And what about the RN? where should i run? The ABDA command? oh god...i didn't think of changing its HQ...i'm so stupid[:@][:@][:@][:@] all those units lost for good[:@][:@] Well, every day you learn something, right[;)] Your points are all both interesting and intelligent guys. I made up my mind: I'll defend India. I have to do that because i think i can hit him, a bit at least. I will try to stop him on the shore, making his landings bloody and costy in terms of men, planes and ships. I'll leave at Aden 1 division and minor units (AAs) and nothing more. The rest will fight for the crown. The diversion could be made in the pacific imho. If he goes for India or for Oz (and i'm quite sure he will at this stage) we could try the first landing in the marshalls. I know, it's very early, but probably he doesn't have yet reinforced those places well. A lighting recon unit will be delivered at Wake is few days.With those i will be able to determine how many planes and men he has at Kwalajein....i have 3 divisions at PH...the entire USN fleet is intact....mmm...gotta think about it... And about Luzon, Local, yes, that's a good idea! I probably already found a gapin his perimeter...between Iwo Jiima and Saipan....there a little convoy should be able to sneak...hopefully....next turn i'll give the orders! Great idea, thanks! Let's see if i can give him some headhaces...

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 9:09:00 AM)
Hey, a question came up to my mind: if i'd change the HQ of Indian command and southeast Asia command...in case the brits are kicked out of the war...will the units that come in the future appear at SF (if for ex. changed to west coast command)?? That would be a solution....

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 10:14:49 AM)
The diversion in the central pacific. Here it is the scatch for the main plan.... Risky? yes, a lot...But i think i can do something good here.... What d'u think? [image]local://upfiles/4162/353EAF7DCF314F959AAAFC33739A780A.jpg[/image]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 1:46:55 PM)
1/1/1942 The new year has begun. Nothing changed much from yestarday. He keeps on bombing Singapore with 300/400 bombers every day. Something like 3500/4000 AVs are waiting at Johere Baru to walk through my poor brave boys at Singa. Well, it's just a matter of time now... one week,probably...not more. His Subs are spotted between Karachi and Bombay now...he's getting more audacious every day...need to stop this! Sent quite experienced level bombers at Karachi and Bombay with the task of sinking them, or at least force them to stay under the waves...let's hope it works. KB still lurking in Java area...

eloso -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 6:01:50 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Gen.Hoepner Hey, a question came up to my mind: if i'd change the HQ of Indian command and southeast Asia command...in case the brits are kicked out of the war...will the units that come in the future appear at SF (if for ex. changed to west coast command)?? That would be a solution.... I know this works for the West Coast command. Change it to China or SE Asia and the subordinates appear elsewhere. The HQ needs to be in SF I believe. I'm not sure about India/SE Asia command working in reverse. I haven't tried it. The India HQ unit is already attached to SE Asia but it's subordinates are attached to India Command. They might appear in some weird place like Auckland, NZ. The reason I say this is because that is the default "return to base" option for ships stationed at Indian ports under India command. Ceylon is different. It is attached to SE Asia. The "return" to base option is Aden. If I were playing the Japanese and planning on invading India, I wouldn't sail around Ceylon to grab Bombay or Karachi until it was secured. I think it would be too risky. Are there any bases in the DEI that have a base force and an airfield under your control? If so you could change the command of some B-17 groups to SE Asia and rebase them there. If not, maybe you could rebase via the northern route (HR permitting). Can B-17s reach China from Wake? That's another option. I forgot what your naval attack rules are regarding B-17 but from my experience they will hit targets at 9000 feet altitude with experience in the 70s. You could always have them fly supply missions until their experience levels rise to acceptable levels. If you can delay and hold out until May 42 you can then upgrade the UK aircraft into something more useful. I wouldn't beat yourself up over the ABDA HQ units. They should still respawn but won't appear until Soerabaja is liberated. I found out by accident myself because I conducted a withdrawal from Java when things got too bad. I like your option with the Marshall Islands. It is daring but if it pays off it could prove to be a good move. Just flying recon planes over the islands might make him hesitate with any of his plans.

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 6:05:07 PM)
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/02/42 A quiet day. I divided my survived subs in two big groups. The S- serie are moving towards India and Oz, while the other ones are operating around Truk and Rabaul. Today SS Triton, yes, always him, tried to sink an Ak south of Truk, but the torpedoes missed the target. However i'm quite happy that my subs are doing at least some attempts to hurt the japs. Nothing much to report. Oz is getting safer every day. Now the Southwest pacific HQ is at Alice Spring, along with 1 division and 1 brigade, while 2 brigades are marching towards Darwin. In Perth Area i have already 3 infantry units that are building forts. 200 planes are arriving from the U.S. Today some bad weather over Malaya delayed a bit the enemy's bombers. Only 100 of them managed to get through the clouds and hit Singapore. Nonetheless 16 of them have been shot down. In india i upgraded the first two Australian Buffalos squadrons to the Hurricanes, while 2 more british hurricanes groups are arriving at Karachi. After a fast check i can master some 200 fighters in India and some 150 bombers of different types (even if only 48 are 4Es cause i tend not to upgrade 2Es to 4Es), plus 25 land based torpedo bombers and the 45 TB aboard my 2 British CVs...i know, it's not enough, also because if he's coming he's gonna bring the KB and that means crack pilots....but who knows...a lucky hit, maybe[:'(] In China things are getting hot. We entered with 3 units at Hankow...now let's see how strong are these japanese in urban warfare[:)] Ichang is isolated and the garrison there (a regiment and a SNLF unit) will be bombed to drain their supplies for some time... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack at 65,79 Japanese Ships AK Kosho Maru PG Choan Maru #2 Allied Ships SS Triton

racndoc -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 6:06:19 PM)
General.... I like your campaign plans for the Marshalls. I would prep all the divisions for Kwajalein but take Maloelap first for the level 4 airfield. Just remember that they are all atolls, so make your first wave count....atoll combat is brutal and if your recon shows substantial forces at Kwajalein I'd be careful. You have lots of BBs for bombardment TFs and I'd make good use of them before invading Kwajalein. Just a few thoughts on your current position..... I like your China campaign. In CHS, I think that the Chinese are every bit the equal of Japan in China. I would continue with the offensive from Nanchang towards Shanghai or take Hankow and advance on Nanking. I wouldnt put much effort into taking Ichang....its almost impossible to get supply there even with all your transports and the initial IJA garrison that starts there can hold you off....if your opponent has withdrawn troops from Ichang then thats another story. I think that India is somewhat defensible if you think that he might invade there. First I would get as many AC there as possible before Singapore falls. I would stage a substantial number of 4Es there if possible. Second, I would move the SEAC Chinese Divisions to Burma....they would help you a lot more as a garrison in Calcutta than in an offensive role in China. Third, I would use subs to get as many fragments as possible out of Singapore before it falls....especially the 2 AIF brigades. I usually play as the Allies and I agree with you that you need to fortify and garrison the beaches to prevent an easy landing. I am considering invading India in my current PBEM as Japan and if I invaded my first order of business would be to secure a level 4 Betty airifeld. To counter this, as the Allies I would have a mass of 4Es available to shut down any airfield that opened. Once the Japanese are ashore in force, I would make 2 final redoubts...one at Karachi and one at Calctta/Dacca. I would put 18th UK at Karachi and in mid Feb. send 7th AIF and 7th Armored there from Aden. That would give you 1000 AV there....quadrupled by urban hex would be 4,000 AV, with level 9 forts would be over 8,000 AV...with SEAC command(or Malaya command if you withdraw a fragment from Singapore) and 3rd Indian Corps command and full prep would be......well you get the picture. I would send the 2 AIF brigade fragments from Singapore to Karachi and turn off replacements for all other ANZAC units....the 2 AIF brigades will rebuild rather quickly with 40 squads per month. Send at least 200,000 supply there now and as much oil and resource as you can....Karachi can make 200 supply per day plus 350 from HI if enough oil/resource is present. 4 of his BBs are damaged...that leaves 6 IJN BBs....you will pretty much have surface parity with him just with the Royal Navy. You will have 2 RN CVs and a CVL by then....in CHS they have good fighters(Sea Hurricanes) and are more than a match for mini-KB. He will need to commit KB to the Arabian Sea if he wants to naval bombard Karachi. If KB is committed to the Arabian Sea that will leave you with many options for your "diversions" in the Pacific....more on that later. Use the SEAC Chinese Divisions and the pre-war Burma forces and the India command units to defend Calcutta/Dacca. He will need to split his forces to attack both positions. With 1000AV at Calcutta you will be quadrupled to 4,000 AV etc. Once the end is near, the troops from Calcutta/Dacca can fall back on Burma. You have a lot of SEAC AA units...put them in Karachi and Calcutta....if he wants to bomb them from the air it will be very costly. If Karachi is about to fall, use subs to evacuate fragments to Aden. You really should have a house rule regarding the "ratraces" at Aden and Panama. If you read Andrew Brown's designer notes about the map you will see that he did not intend for combat to take place in the ratraces. I usually have a house rule that no Japanese naval or air units can enter any of the ratrace hexes. Your idea to attack the Marshalls is good for this point in the war. If your opponent does invade India it will take some time to completely overrun it. If KB is commited to the Arabian Sea to help reduce Karachi I would seriously consider using the US forces to invade the Marianas and Marcus.....there are no level 4 Betty bases in the Marianas at the start so if they are not enlarged your CVs would be at low risk. This would really catch your oppoenents attention as would an assault on Hokkaido itself. If you take the Marianas you can resupply the troops in the PI at will and strangle Japanese supply lines to the SRA. You have a lot of expendable AKs and BBs now in the USN.....use them! You have British and Auusie AKs that have a speed of 20 knots or better...use them to move ground forces and AC squadrons from Panama into the war zones as quickly as possible. One final idea, if you want you can fight the war deciding naval battle in the Bay Of Bengal under favorable conditions. Move the USNs CVs and BBs to Perth with AOs. If Japan invades India, you will have 5 USN CVs that can be put in 5 seperate TFs, each with 1-2 BBs. Using them combined with the RN CVs could gain a decisive naval victory before India is completely overrun. Hope some of this helps.

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 6:12:27 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: OSO quote: ORIGINAL: Gen.Hoepner Hey, a question came up to my mind: if i'd change the HQ of Indian command and southeast Asia command...in case the brits are kicked out of the war...will the units that come in the future appear at SF (if for ex. changed to west coast command)?? That would be a solution.... I know this works for the West Coast command. Change it to China or SE Asia and the subordinates appear elsewhere. The HQ needs to be in SF I believe. I'm not sure about India/SE Asia command working in reverse. I haven't tried it. The India HQ unit is already attached to SE Asia but it's subordinates are attached to India Command. They might appear in some weird place like Auckland, NZ. The reason I say this is because that is the default "return to base" option for ships stationed at Indian ports under India command. Ceylon is different. It is attached to SE Asia. The "return" to base option is Aden. If I were playing the Japanese and planning on invading India, I wouldn't sail around Ceylon to grab Bombay or Karachi until it was secured. I think it would be too risky. Are there any bases in the DEI that have a base force and an airfield under your control? If so you could change the command of some B-17 groups to SE Asia and rebase them there. If not, maybe you could rebase via the northern route (HR permitting). Can B-17s reach China from Wake? That's another option. I forgot what your naval attack rules are regarding B-17 but from my experience they will hit targets at 9000 feet altitude with experience in the 70s. You could always have them fly supply missions until their experience levels rise to acceptable levels. If you can delay and hold out until May 42 you can then upgrade the UK aircraft into something more useful. I wouldn't beat yourself up over the ABDA HQ units. They should still respawn but won't appear until Soerabaja is liberated. I found out by accident myself because I conducted a withdrawal from Java when things got too bad. I like your option with the Marshall Islands. It is daring but if it pays off it could prove to be a good move. Just flying recon planes over the islands might make him hesitate with any of his plans. Our HRs are that Russian airspace cannot be violated. So no 4Es transfer. Anyway the HRs say that every 4E type cannot perform attack missions below 15,000 ft...except for the B-17D (don't ask me why cause i do not know[&:]). The exp of my 4Es in India is low(in their 60s), but i plan to use them as an element of distraction more than an attacking one. Those monsters cannot (well, almost) been shot down, so they can damage a lot of zeros CAPping and that's what i want to do. The other bombers will eventually try to do the real job. Before moving bombers from Oz to India (can be done because Luzon is still in my hands) i have to understand which one he's going to chose (Oz or India)...till then i'll stay on stand by mode and see what's best. I've already started to give the proper orders for the upcoming Marshalls campaign...since tomorrow recon missions will be performed over Kwalajein...[8D]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 8:27:43 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: AdmSpruance General.... Just a few thoughts on your current position..... Hope some of this helps. Hi AdmSpruance! Thx for posting and for the suggestions...i'll try to answer... I like your campaign plans for the Marshalls. I would prep all the divisions for Kwajalein but take Maloelap first for the level 4 airfield. Just remember that they are all atolls, so make your first wave count....atoll combat is brutal and if your recon shows substantial forces at Kwajalein I'd be careful. You have lots of BBs for bombardment TFs and I'd make good use of them before invading Kwajalein. I plan to land with 3 divisions at Maloelap. Kwalajein must be reduced to pieces before any thinking of landing there (25.000 men present there!) like your China campaign. In CHS, I think that the Chinese are every bit the equal of Japan in China. I would continue with the offensive from Nanchang towards Shanghai or take Hankow and advance on Nanking. I wouldnt put much effort into taking Ichang....its almost impossible to get supply there even with all your transports and the initial IJA garrison that starts there can hold you off....if your opponent has withdrawn troops from Ichang then thats another story. At Ichang he has barely 200 AVs, against my 1300. But i need supplies and he has the terrain and forts bonus, so i'm not going to attack right now. Just bombing and draining his supplies. The idea for china is to unbalance him. His positions at Hankow will be threatened soon and at the same time the move against Shangai will force him to chose what to defend... think that India is somewhat defensible if you think that he might invade there. First I would get as many AC there as possible before Singapore falls. I would stage a substantial number of 4Es there if possible. Second, I would move the SEAC Chinese Divisions to Burma....they would help you a lot more as a garrison in Calcutta than in an offensive role in China. Third, I would use subs to get as many fragments as possible out of Singapore before it falls....especially the 2 AIF brigades. I usually play as the Allies and I agree with you that you need to fortify and garrison the beaches to prevent an easy landing. I am considering invading India in my current PBEM as Japan and if I invaded my first order of business would be to secure a level 4 Betty airifeld. To counter this, as the Allies I would have a mass of 4Es available to shut down any airfield that opened. I was thinking about this... the best strategy for Japan is to land at Rangoon, estabilish a strong AF there and cover a landing at Chandupur, along with the protection of the KB. But Chandupur is a level 1 Af, so no Betties for the moment...and Dacca is well fortified(well, not enough but...) The alternative will be Madras...but it's far away from any japanese base and he will have to count only on his KB...if KB has to deal with RN who will protect the invasion fleet???? However my chinese divisions attached to the SEAC are already marching into china...no way to call them back in time. I do not want to leave Burma completely undefended, cause i do not want to let him Rangoon so easily...it's the door for India as i said before. I'm however already transfering by air a Burma Bde and 2 more will follow on foot through the mountains...will be a long journey Once the Japanese are ashore in force, I would make 2 final redoubts...one at Karachi and one at Calctta/Dacca. I would put 18th UK at Karachi and in mid Feb. send 7th AIF and 7th Armored there from Aden. That would give you 1000 AV there....quadrupled by urban hex would be 4,000 AV, with level 9 forts would be over 8,000 AV...with SEAC command(or Malaya command if you withdraw a fragment from Singapore) and 3rd Indian Corps command and full prep would be......well you get the picture. I would send the 2 AIF brigade fragments from Singapore to Karachi and turn off replacements for all other ANZAC units....the 2 AIF brigades will rebuild rather quickly with 40 squads per month. Send at least 200,000 supply there now and as much oil and resource as you can....Karachi can make 200 supply per day plus 350 from HI if enough oil/resource is present. 4 of his BBs are damaged...that leaves 6 IJN BBs....you will pretty much have surface parity with him just with the Royal Navy. You will have 2 RN CVs and a CVL by then....in CHS they have good fighters(Sea Hurricanes) and are more than a match for mini-KB. He will need to commit KB to the Arabian Sea if he wants to naval bombard Karachi. If KB is committed to the Arabian Sea that will leave you with many options for your "diversions" in the Pacific....more on that later. Already doing that. All the fragments that i could master from Singapore are beeing trasported to Karachi, then to Aden. The supply convoys go up and down from Aden to Karachi, trying to escape his subs... I'm sure however that he will bring the whole KB...it's been in Java for too long...if his intentions were different he would have moved back to pacific by now. However i won't commit the american CVs into the Indian Ocean. I want to try to use this situation in my favour. I thought about Mariannas, but from Truk it's quite easy to send 100 Nells in normal range...that means torps and torps mean USN CVs sinking...no, it's far safer the Marshalls choice...however i still have time to decide what to do...need Wake to grow at level 4 AF first,then we'll see. Still thx![&o]

Jim D Burns -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/10/2007 9:18:14 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Gen.Hoepner Well guys, thanks for comments. Some fragments saved from Singapre disaster are already there at Aden but i know those will take more than a year to rebuilt, even at 50% of their TOE. Jim's strategy is really pushing me....but Jim, a question: Aden is conered (is this a meaning word in english? i mean, it's pressed in a corner, where he simply can, if he takes the rest of India, place undreds of betties on the coast and force me to let me there forever...i cannot even master an active defence, due to the fact that if he comes with his BBs smashing the place i simply won't have another base covering it...my ships will be hammered in port as soon as they arrive and so my planes...but the idea of having the brits kicked out of the war it's quite scaring i gotta say....mmmmmm....ican end up like wollby[:D] against PzB and its hangover! And PzB did it in march 42!....mmmm...i can do something like the right "medium" perhaps: leaving the next infantry units arriving at Aden there (a ANZAC div should arrive withing 30 days) and keep the 18th at Karachi, ready to be loaded if things go bad during the landings...but without the 18th on the front, there's no way to hold any front in the south...mmmm...quite tough to decide what to do.... And what about the RN? where should i run? It�s a long way from Bombay or Karachi to Aden. While he can keep the base smashed with BB�s early on, eventually you�ll have so many engineers and so much air power there, that it would be suicide for him to try and approach it. The key though is to hold onto it while you have so little strength there. That�s the hard part. I agree with Admiral Spruance�s advice 100%, except perhaps dividing your forces in India. If you�re going to fight, make sure you keep your forces in a position so they can fall back to your last redoubt together. Divided they are much easier to overcome then combined. And Burma is a death trap since there isn�t enough supply generated there for your units to survive. I�d say fall everyone back on Karachi (evacuating Calcutta and Dacca if necessary), at least there you have hope you�ll be able to get an occasional supply convoy through from Aden to keep your men fed. From Burma your only option is to fall back on China, and China cannot afford to feed another army. Jim

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/11/2007 10:16:26 AM)
Agree Jim. I won't let my units remain in the corner if the shores become undefendable... AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/04/42 ALLARM!!!! A Jake patrol craft spotted a ducth SC TF which was moving southwards of Cylon...too far away from his land bases...so that means a float plane aboard of a ship...is he already coming?????[&:] Singapore hasn't fallen yet, sounds strange that he comes without his main armies...he has 38 units at Johre Baru...what's the trick here??? I doubt he's sending his CVs alone without a great invasion TF...would be a useless risk...so what that means??? However, just in case, i gave the orders for the maximum allert. Every patrol craft has been put on southern bases of India. Every air unit is moved back from Burma-China to India. Having not yet my 2 british CVs combined i decided not to risk and disembarked the planes of the illustrious. I'm planning to keep a solid reserve in terms of A/Cs, so not all my bombers and fighters are in front lines at the moment. The problem is that i'm not ready,not yet, in terms of AFs and of organization. Madras, Colombo, Tricomale, Dacca and Calcutta are my main AFs at the moment. I'm building up 2 more inland AFs (Hydebaran and Bengalore) but they are quite late with the building progress. As plannes i'm keeping 2 mobile defence groups. One at Dacca with some 500 AVs and one at Hydebaran with 550. The 18th UK div arrived today and it's moving to Bombay...just in case. The RN is combing at Bombay, but i need at least 1 week to organize and regroup it....[:o] Anyway...i don't feel ready...not at all...[:@] Usual bombings at Singapore today...wonder what's he waiting for.... [image]local://upfiles/4162/2429EEF88EB540D697E3A8F98EA10FBC.jpg[/image]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/11/2007 3:03:35 PM)
1/05-06/1942 Seems that there's no KB in Indian Ocean...probably just an AV patrolling and seeing if i send TFs to Oz... 50 units are at johre Baru...the Singapore's fall is near...every day 300 bombers hit my troops and my supply depots...no way to hold for more than 2 turns when he comes... nothing else to report...oh well..his bastard subs keep on sinking my ships at Tricomalae harbour...a ML and one AK gone in 2 days...[:@][:@][:@][:@][:@][:@] My planes and my ASW TFs seem unable to stop them...[:(]

paladin333 -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/11/2007 4:35:58 PM)
Good AAR. Regarding Jake in Indian Ocean, I bet that you opponent has switch the Glens on Subs to Jakes. In my games I restrict it, not because Jakes extended range could somehow change the course of war, but it can be too confusing to think hard if it is KB or not when you see Jake sights deep in your water. Regards and good luck with India defence!

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/11/2007 8:35:55 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: paladin333 Good AAR. Regarding Jake in Indian Ocean, I bet that you opponent has switch the Glens on Subs to Jakes. In my games I restrict it, not because Jakes extended range could somehow change the course of war, but it can be too confusing to think hard if it is KB or not when you see Jake sights deep in your water. Regards and good luck with India defence! Hi Paladin, thanks for joining. No, it was not a sub with a jake float plane aboard. Those jakes attacked my little SC TF. 7 of them were involved in the attack, so i bet it's an AV. I always do the same when i play japan: patrolling the I.O. with AVs and subs with glenns in order to ambush, if needed those convoys from/to Oz/India... AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/06/42 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASW attack near Truk at 66,78 Japanese Ships PG Heijo Maru Allied Ships SS Tambor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack near Truk at 66,78 Japanese Ships AP Shintoku Maru PG Heijo Maru Allied Ships SS Tambor We tried to violate Truk harbour but it seems that my subs aren't as experienced as his! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on 6th Indian Brigade, at 22,51 (SINGAPORE) Japanese aircraft G3M Nell x 24 G4M1 Betty x 18 Ki-21-II Sally x 20 Japanese aircraft losses G3M Nell: 3 destroyed, 18 damaged G4M1 Betty: 1 destroyed, 6 damaged Ki-21-II Sally: 17 damaged Allied ground losses: 83 casualties reported Guns lost 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on 28th Indian Brigade, at 22,51 (SINGA) Japanese aircraft G3M Nell x 12 G4M1 Betty x 9 Ki-21-II Sally x 24 Japanese aircraft losses G3M Nell: 2 destroyed, 8 damaged G4M1 Betty: 2 destroyed, 5 damaged Ki-21-II Sally: 1 destroyed, 15 damaged Allied ground losses: 125 casualties reported Guns lost 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on 2nd Indian LAA Regt , at 22,51 (SINGA) Japanese aircraft G3M Nell x 41 Ki-21-II Sally x 17 Ki-49 Helen x 1 Japanese aircraft losses G3M Nell: 1 destroyed, 23 damaged Ki-21-II Sally: 12 damaged Ki-49 Helen: 1 damaged Allied ground losses: 75 casualties reported Guns lost 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on Singapore , at 22,51 Japanese aircraft G3M Nell x 75 G4M1 Betty x 42 E13A1 Jake x 1 Ki-21-II Sally x 93 Ki-49 Helen x 15 Ki-46-II Dinah x 1 Ki-15 Babs x 2 Japanese aircraft losses G3M Nell: 20 damaged G4M1 Betty: 2 destroyed, 12 damaged Ki-21-II Sally: 15 damaged Ki-49 Helen: 2 damaged Ki-46-II Dinah: 1 damaged Allied ground losses: 347 casualties reported Guns lost 7 Airbase hits 4 Airbase supply hits 2 Runway hits 124 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on TF at 11,36 Japanese aircraft E13A1 Jake x 7 Japanese aircraft losses E13A1 Jake: 1 damaged Allied Ships SC OJR-3 Aircraft Attacking: 3 x E13A1 Jake bombing at 2000 feet 4 x E13A1 Jake bombing at 2000 feet -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack near Trincomalee at 13,25 Japanese Ships SS I-164 Allied Ships AK Taiyuan, Torpedo hits 1, on fire[:@][:@][:@] However the singapore bombings are costing him a lot in terms of planes...nearly 20xDay on average!

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/12/2007 12:18:26 AM)
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/07/42 Quite unlucky today...SS grayling managed to sneak into Iwo Jiima harbour and found a big ML enemy unit. Fire 4 torpedoes but all of them didn't explode...[:@] That would have been a very good kill...oh, well, time for my subs will come! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack near Iwo Jima at 63,53 Japanese Ships ML Tsugaru Allied Ships SS Grayling Nothing more to report today...the usual 20 enemy bombers shot down over Singapore...now 54 IJA units are based at Johre Baru[X(][X(][X(][X(][X(]...really do not understand what he's waiting for....

eloso -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/12/2007 3:23:10 AM)
Maybe he's waiting for disruption or fatigue to come down a little before the final push on Singapore. It seems pointless to sacrifice so many bombers if the assault wasn't still on.

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/12/2007 9:15:57 AM)
The attack on Singa is surely on...he's just waiting to be sure that my units won't pay any resistance...so it's only a matter of time. This however means more days gained for India and Oz. In Oz, today the first aus division arrived at Daily waters....2 more weeks and darwin will be unconquerable[8D]. His subs keep on lurking in Cylon area...it's a pain!!!!!...today, despite i had in the hex of Tricomalee 2 SC TFs, he managed to place a RO class sub there and fired against one of my transports...the torp was a dude one, but that's must be stopped!! Usual Singa bombing and the usual air losses due to flak. AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/08/42 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack near Trincomalee at 13,25 (DUDE)[:D] Japanese Ships SS RO-34 Allied Ships AK Colborne Will follow some screenshots

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/12/2007 9:48:06 AM)
The china situation [image]local://upfiles/4162/863CF7E7015D45D585E04E7B268AE3F4.jpg[/image]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/12/2007 9:49:01 AM)
Operation "Retribution" [image]local://upfiles/4162/93EE69D3E26740B3B31E1117BA8F5A50.jpg[/image]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Nanchang (11/13/2007 8:19:36 AM)
Waiting for the turn to come in, i'm quite happy those jakes were not from the KB. That means he has to wait (as i thought) Singapore's falling before launching any major assault against India or Oz. That should give me at least one more week of getting things ready. As i said earlier, Northern Oz is now secure (well, depends on what he brings here, but at least not an easy target). 1000 AVs are placed between Darwin and Alice Spring and if he can take Darwin (because he can if he wants), he'snot going any further than Daily waters and the presence of such a big Aus Army will force him to leave here most of his major units that so won't be placed anywhere in the pacific. Perth isn't that safe, but would be a damn risk for him to take perth without securing Darwin cause his whole left flank will be threatened, so i don't think he's going for Perth of Western Oz. For India, now the 18th UK div is at Bombay and will soon be moved to Hydebarad in order to be in a central position, acting as a mobile strong reserve. Some planes are arriving at Aden (2 more buffalos groups and few hurricanes, along with some Blenheims IV)...never enough but at least i have some numbers...i should have, for the next 2 weeks, something like 200/250 fighters of different types and some 200 bombers. Problem is experience, which is far too low(between 50 and 60 at best). The RN has now 2 CVs, 3 CAs, 2 (well almost two) BBs, 1 BC, 9 CLs(most of them are dutch however) and some 9DDs(plus 2 British subs, 6 ducth subs, and 4 USN subs). The total AVs deployed in India are around 1500, divided in 2 equal armies (one at Dacca and the other at Hydebarad). That's all i can master right now. The next big unit arriving at Aden will arrive in 37 days...so it cannot be counted in for the moment.

Gen.Hoepner -> The Fall of Singapore (11/13/2007 1:40:16 PM)
So here it comes Japanese Shock attack at Singapore...4500 AVs against my badly shaped troops at my last stronghold in Malaya. At first assault the japs managed to get 2-1 and destroyed 2 forts...my losses are huge and i doubt we'll hold for another day...oh, well, that's was expected. It hurts but i can live with it. Problem is that this means he's gonna have a lot of troops ready within the next 5 days...[:(] At Tricomale another RO class sub managed to hit one of my vassels...despite the ASW TF present at Tricomale and all my bombers and patrol crafts on naval search...[:(][:o] AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/09/42 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub attack near Trincomalee at 13,25 Japanese Ships SS RO-34 Allied Ships AK Thedens, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage[:(][:(][:(][:(][:@] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ground combat at Singapore Japanese Shock attack Attacking force 220214 troops, 1101 guns, 401 vehicles, Assault Value = 4418[X(][&o][&o] Defending force 78832 troops, 524 guns, 4 vehicles, Assault Value = 1204 Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 4 Japanese max assault: 4398 - adjusted assault: 2303 Allied max defense: 1150 - adjusted defense: 944 Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 4) Japanese Assault reduces fortifications to 3 Japanese ground losses: 6746 casualties reported Guns lost 110 Vehicles lost 26 Allied ground losses: 9214 casualties reported[X(][X(][X(][:(] Guns lost 133 Vehicles lost 1 [image]local://upfiles/4162/836D5E1C50524E178BAA9121B5C7AE65.jpg[/image]

eloso -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/14/2007 1:43:31 AM)
I have a question about your ASW TF groups that are having trouble hitting subs around Ceylon. I always have them undocked and set to Patrol/Do Not Retire. Are you doing this? Sometimes I've noticed that the ships will auto dock between turns. I usually have pretty good results with UK and moderate results with the Indian vessels. I don't recall ever changing out leaders for these TFs but it might be something you can look at. Another thought if you can spare the assets would be to include a couple ASW vessels in your transport groups. Your AKs might still get hit but you'll have a better chance at revenge with the escorts as part of the TF.

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/14/2007 9:24:38 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: OSO I have a question about your ASW TF groups that are having trouble hitting subs around Ceylon. I always have them undocked and set to Patrol/Do Not Retire. Are you doing this? Sometimes I've noticed that the ships will auto dock between turns. I usually have pretty good results with UK and moderate results with the Indian vessels. I don't recall ever changing out leaders for these TFs but it might be something you can look at. Another thought if you can spare the assets would be to include a couple ASW vessels in your transport groups. Your AKs might still get hit but you'll have a better chance at revenge with the escorts as part of the TF. Yes, the ASW TF placed at Tricomalae is set as returning port on Colombo with "not not retire" option and undocked. Same for the one at Colombo....[&:] Plus i have something like 100 planes between Madras and Colombo on Naval Search/ ASW...they spot them but they are unable to organize a decent offensive against those damned subs.... Now i moved in some more catalinas at 3000 ft. naval search...let's see if it helps[:o] The point to include ASW vassels in my convoys in India is that i have very few ASW vassels there at the moment. I have 4 ASW indipendent groups (Colombo-Tricomale-Bombay and one who escorts the convoys between Karachi and Aden)...i cannot master anything more at the moment...[:o] Wake become port number 2...few more weeks and Wake will be able to start a little bombing and sub campaign against the Marshalls...in the meanwhile i'm finding the troops i need for the task. 2 Eng regiments, 2 US divisions, 1 Marine division, 1 NZ bde and 1 RCT US unit. These will be joined by some 4 ART units, AAs, base forces and 2 marine CD units...should be enough. The plan remains still: Tarawa and Maloeap first, while BBs and 4Es will take care of Kwalajein. I won't understimate Maloaep anyway, so i'm planning to use BBs in my invasion TFs, along with the usual bombardment TFs.... as long as his main assets remain away my 4 CVs plus the 4Es from Wake should be enough to cover the landings. We're up the the 10th of Jan 42...

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/14/2007 4:41:50 PM)
Ok guys, it seems we have a problem here. KB springs up (do not know how it could arrive so close unseen having 100 bombers on naval search) south of Cylon and smashed my transports at Tricomale and Colombo, hitting both the port and the airfield. a group of P-40 and a group of sea Hurricanes (unlanded from a brit CV) were on Cap and managed to give some headhaces to his uncoordinated strikes. However the only AS and AR ship that i have in India were badly hit and sank the same day. All my bombers and topedo bombers were on naval search so we didn't even strike back[:@]...guess this was the trap of his subs that moved my attention on them forgetting about the risk...[:(] Anyway, the problem here is another one. My opponent is disappointed because he thinks that i was aware of his comming and so that i read (or somebody for me did) his AAR because he says my port defences at Colombo couldn't be like that if i didn't know he was comming( i guess he refers to the fact that i had my ships not combined in big convoys but in small ones). I don't understand how he can think i was aware if all my best bomber assets were set on naval search and not naval attack...however this doesn't matter much. What i ask you from now on is not to post here anything you eventually read on his AAR (that, however, he's going to stop for these reasons)... Anyway, i do not like these kinds of suspects and i'm quite displeased about this. I would be tempted to tell my opponent to read this AAR, just to understand that none of you have ever said here anything about this raid, nor that any strategy about this was discussed here, but doing this i'll have to stop the whole game cause all my strategy is well written here (including all the fronts). I also told him that here we discussed a lot about an invasion of India or Oz, but nothing that could involve a raid ...and however we started to discuss at the very first day of the war...but it seems that he's still on his thinking that my defences at Cylon were well aware of his comming and there's really nothing i can do. AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 01/10/42 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASW attack near Trincomalee at 13,25 Japanese Ships SS I-164, hits 2 Allied Ships PC Aldebaren MSW Rampur MSW Romney SC Jasmine SC Auricula SC Freesia Finally some hits.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on Colombo , at 11,25 Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 26 B5N2 Kate x 54 E7K2 Alf x 2 Allied aircraft Sea Hurricane x 9 P-40E Warhawk x 19 Japanese aircraft losses A6M2 Zero: 8 destroyed B5N2 Kate: 12 destroyed, 30 damaged Allied aircraft losses Sea Hurricane: 5 destroyed P-40E Warhawk: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged Allied Ships AK Edgar Luckenbach, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage AK Coquina, Bomb hits 1, on fire Allied ground losses: 14 casualties reported Guns lost 1 Port hits 2 Port supply hits 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on TF, near Colombo at 11,25 first uncoordinated strike Japanese aircraft D3A2 Val x 28 Allied aircraft Sea Hurricane x 4 P-40E Warhawk x 18 Japanese aircraft losses D3A2 Val: 2 destroyed Allied Ships AK F.J.Luckenbach, Bomb hits 20, on fire, heavy damage -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on TF, near Colombo at 11,25 Japanese aircraft B5N2 Kate x 23 Allied aircraft Sea Hurricane x 4 P-40E Warhawk x 18 Japanese aircraft losses B5N2 Kate: 9 destroyed, 4 damaged Allied Ships AK Bonketoe, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on Trincomalee , at 13,25 another uncoordinated strike Japanese aircraft B5N2 Kate x 80 E7K2 Alf x 1 Allied aircraft P-40E Warhawk x 12 Japanese aircraft losses B5N2 Kate: 7 destroyed, 31 damaged Allied Ships AK Taiyuan, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage AK Thedens, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage AK Makassar, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage Allied ground losses: 49 casualties reported Guns lost 2 Vehicles lost 1 Port hits 7 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day Air attack on Colombo , at 11,25 Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 38 D3A2 Val x 67 B5N2 Kate x 83 E7K2 Alf x 1 Allied aircraft Sea Hurricane x 2 P-40E Warhawk x 14 Japanese aircraft losses A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed D3A2 Val: 7 destroyed, 39 damaged B5N2 Kate: 8 destroyed, 24 damaged Allied aircraft losses Sea Hurricane: 2 destroyed P-40E Warhawk: 1 destroyed, 7 damaged Buffalo I: 3 destroyed Fulmar: 2 destroyed CW-22 Falcon: 1 destroyed Swordfish: 1 destroyed Albacore: 4 destroyed If only those TB were on naval attack....[:(] Luckly the other carrier-trained Albacore group is at Dacca along with the other 2 CV fulmar groups and the whole AVG (1st, 2nd and 3rd) so my best air assets aren't ruined here at Colombo... Allied Ships AP Talma, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage AK Trieste, Bomb hits 1 AK Edgar Luckenbach, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage AK Edward Luckenbach, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage AK Coquina, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage AS Lucia, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage sinks AR Haitan, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage sinks Allied ground losses: 10 casualties reported Guns lost 1 Airbase hits 11 Airbase supply hits 4 Runway hits 38 Port hits 4 As soon as i get from Trollelite the turn file i'll be able to tell how things really are...however i cannot say i'm glad to keep on playing after all these cheating accuses

anarchyintheuk -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/14/2007 9:17:30 PM)
To be upfront trollelite and I have clashed on fanboy issues, but I'm not particularly surprised by his 'accusations'. He seems to be the type that would complain/bail if everything didn't work out his way. How many times has info ever been leaked on an aar on this forum? And he's stopping his own aar because of this nonexistent threat? How many opening strategies does Japan really have? 5 or 6. Historical, China/Russia, India, Australia and PH. You can expect or rule out China and Russia pretty quickly by looking at your opponents setup. All the other areas have their own oobs and early on their ability to reinforce each in the first couple of months is limited. Why would he think your defense of Ceylon is evidence that you had inside info. Did he expect you not to defend it? I don't know why I'm getting worked up about this. Good luck. [:)]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/15/2007 12:22:22 AM)
The KB's first raid was actually a failure. The 21th fighters group based at Colombo (average experience 56) managed to shot down 10 zeros and some more 40 between Vals and Kates (due to the uncoordinated strikes without air cover), losing only 9 planes. What's amazing is that these guys were at 30% Cap, while they scrumble nearly all of their 20 planes! More 40 japanese planes were shot down by the flak at Colombo and Tricomale. I lost 30 planes, against his 90 crack pilots...a great result indeed. Yes, true, i lost a number of ships (one of which was an AR and another important AS) but the KB has been hurt and that's what does count. Anyway, now there's another TF, spotted on Cylon's south coast which is probably a Bombardment TF heading towards Tricomale (NE). The Colombo AF is badly damaged but the Tricomale one isn't, so i moved in my Vitebsk TB and see if we can get some luck... No other TFs are spotted, so i guess this isn't an invasion (the whole japanese Army is still at Singapore) but just a raid to catch my CVs in port probably (they are at Bombay along with the whole RN)...well, not for now however. The allarm is at maximum level in India. Every a/c group is moved on the central bases , in order to be able to react properly for a further upcoming possible invasion. Not that this raid change anything for Oz. I consider the chance that this is a diversive for moving my attention to India, forgetting Oz...well,i won't do this mistake! I feel quite save however in Oz right now. A great TF with 10 air groups is moving from SF to Sydney and as soon as these a/c will arrive, Oz will be a fortress (Darwin and Perth are well fortified by now since i ordered on the very first turn the movements of some aus big infantry units).

String -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/15/2007 1:03:48 AM)
Can't you transfer 4E bombers through Australia/DEI?

Nemo121 -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/15/2007 1:10:10 AM)
If Trollelite thinks that a raid on Sri Lanka was unforseeable then he really needs to re-examine his strategic assumptions. It was one of the obvious moves for him to make. As I've said before I expect this game to be called when he suffers his first serious defeat --- which is a pity as I think he is probably a good player but he's stacking things too much in Japan's favour in terms of house rules IMO. He should win more through good play than through restrictive house rules ( and this same statement applies to an endless number of people who prefer to play as Allies too lest anyone think I'm picking favourites).

eloso -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/15/2007 1:27:48 AM)
Does your base force at Colombo have radar? If so that might explain the good results in the A2A. More discussion here has been on India, but I think it is a little more challenging to defend than Oz. Once Japan achieves a breakthrough on the continent the tempo picks up real fast. If one is not careful on defense they will be quickly surrounded and destroyed peacemeal. It has a lot of resources and HI which makes it a more attractive target. This could be a diversion but why would one want to expose the KB to a powerful base a few days sailing from a friendly port? You haven't mentioned any menace in the Solomons/Port Moresby area. If I was going for Oz, I would commit here as well as Darwin and Perth.

ctangus -> RE: The Fall of Singapore (11/15/2007 2:54:31 AM)
Looks like you had just 2 squadrons on CAP over Colombo & 1 over Trincomalee. That's only prudent at this point in the game, if you're using those ports to any degree. I can't say I fully understand what the fuss is all about. If you had advance knowledge of his moves you could have easily had at least 5x that amount of fighters on CAP. And - like you mentioned - lots of torpedo-bombers on naval attack. It does seem like your opponent had very bad die rolls with all those uncoordinated attacks. Well, good luck with the game - this has been an interesting AAR.

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