Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (Full Version)

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vinnie71 -> Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 10:23:23 AM)

July 42

The brave Philippino Army is still holding out in Manila under the constant bombardment of Japanese Army under the command of the omni-present MacArthur. No food, no bullets, no spares. The closest friendly land is Timor. Only submarine convoys can reach Manila with miserly tonnages.

So I was thinking of running a convoy from Darwin to Manila under heavy carrier protection - I'm in the process of moving 3 carriers in the area to support a landing in Ambion so they will be available in the area. Also I was thinking of having only 1 squadron of dive bombers on each carrier, the rest being reserved for fighters (mostly Marine squadrons). The KB has been badly battered, with individual ships either sunk or heavily damaged.

one thing I noticed is that the Japanese seem to have limited air cover in the area, at least until one hits the Philippines proper. I also have a number of Lightnings operating out of Lautern/Dili so they should also provide limited protection as well. Hopefully I will also soon have a number of heavy bombers coming in the area as well, which I intend to use to blast enemy airfields in the area

The composition of my convoy (s) will be made up of several fast AKs and AMCs with DEs in escort and possibly even a battleship or two (courtesy of the British). Hopefully they'll transport about 100,000 tons of supply.

So in essence, do you think its worth it or not? will I suffer a lot of damage for nothing? Are there any other approach routes? Frankly, is it doable?

Thanks in advance for your suggestions!



topeverest -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 12:09:03 PM)

Offworlder,

If you are playing PBEM, my personal view is it is a very bad idea. 42 is about getting through without too many major assetson the ground and sea. You take the balance of the game in your hands to sail so far into the heart of the empire. Your convoy would be pummeled by land and sea based bombers long before you got there -and all the way back. And that assumes the Japanese dont divert a BB task force and CV task forces to stop you, which is almost 100% chance. Mac and the PI have served their purpose,and it was valuable that they lasted this long.

Rather, if you can muster the forces to do that resupply and are determined to strike, why not try to pick off an exposed empire asset?



wdolson -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 12:26:29 PM)

Against a human opponent, it would probably be suicide.  Against the AI, it might work.  Though it is risky and the payoff is questionable.

If you have the troops to land a large force along with the supplies, that could turn Luzon back into American hands, which would then become an unsinkable aircraft carrier lying along the most critical trade route to Japan.  Again risky if it's so deep into enemy territory.  It could also turn into a killing ground for some of your divisions you could have used somewhere else.

Bill



JohnDillworth -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 2:03:02 PM)

In stock I manged to do this by running single AK's at full speed. single ship TF's were hard to spot. I would run then for about 10 days in a row and maybe 1/2 of them would get in. It cost most of the AK's but it was worth it. Grabbing Ambon this early would be quite a thorn in the Japanese side but I can see the temptation of holding the Philippines.



vinnie71 -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 2:16:09 PM)

Sorry didn't say it in the begining. I'm playing against the Ai.

Unfortunately I don't have extra troops to commit there as the bulk of my American troops are tied down in a new offensive in the Solomons (3 Divisions+). At hand I only got 1 division and additional smaller units of Americans that will assault Ambion. There is also the Australian I Corps available but it has to defend Timor and hold them ready while the rest of the Australian forces will be required to chase down the remainder of a Japanese invasion of Australia and remove their forces from Horn Island and Port Moresby.

Thus far I have played a very conservative game, safeguarding those units etc which I considered vital (like carriers, the two Indian divisions in Malaya, dutch squadrons, infantry regiments and armour units, tankers) and exposed myself as little as possible. What I'm surprised is that the Philippinos are still resisting even without supplies. The AI has made the mistake of sending 1 division + smaller infantry units + a lot of artillery, and therefore can't really take Manila that easily. Which is why I would like to prolong its agony [:)] and keep open that front as long as possible.



Chickenboy -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/26/2010 2:23:03 PM)

In WiTP Vanila, this was a common technique of mine for holding Luzon indefinitely. I would lose >50% of these ships, but enough would make it in to keep the garrison alive for *just* a little longer. With practice, I was able to hold Luzon permanently, making a wonderful springboard into an earlier counteroffensive than historical.

Since supply is one of the main reasons this garrison falters, it stands to reason that more supply will help them hold out longer. I doubt this will work for long in WiTP:AE, but it's worth a shot.

Use one ship xAKLs at maximum speed, particularly in patches of poor weather. Try a variety of routes-North of Borneo, South from Mindanao or even sailing around the North of Luzon (maybe the computer has moved all Netties away?). After you've lost a few ships, you'll be able to ferret out which routes met the greatest success. Try those until that gate gets closed.

Good luck! Keep those bullets and beans flowing to the Battlin' Bastards of Bastogn.....wait, that's different. Well, good luck anyways.



sanch -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/27/2010 3:07:20 AM)

In one stock game, I also used DC-3's from China - they could just about make it to Iba/Bataan. Along with every S-boat sub, I was actually able to increase supply, and more importantly, the assault value of the troops.

And then, late in 42, after watching the numbers from their bombardments, I did a shock attack, and blew them right out of Clark. I figured that even if I lost the shock attack, there would be fewer mouths to feed, thus a better supply situation.



castor troy -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/27/2010 7:22:47 AM)

Against the AI I wouldn´t do it. Not because you would perhaps lose a carrier but because you´re probably going to screw up the AI when it can´t take the Philipinese.



Q-Ball -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/27/2010 1:44:00 PM)

Exactly. The only AI game I ever played, I kept the Phillipines alive through single-AKs. Eventually, fully supplied, I got Beauforts there, and they sank 100s of ships transiting the Taiwan Strait. The AI just can't deal with PI not being lost, so you'll end up with a IJN Turkey Shoot that will get pretty boring.




vinnie71 -> RE: Pushing a convoy to the Philippines (4/27/2010 1:49:14 PM)

Problem is that when the AI Jap attacked Clark Field, a big chunk of supplies went there (for no discernable reason) and just fell to the Japanese. Therefore, I can only rely on what is produced in Manila only, which is not much, with the bulk of the Philippino forces having 0 supplies. Which is why the convoy is so essential.

@ castor troy: how will the AI be effected?



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