RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony)

RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (Full Version)

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Alfred -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 2:48:03 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: aoffen This is a B-17 unit in Townsville. Last turn it was ordered to hit Buna. Reset itself to nil target and hit Lae instead. [image]local://upfiles/6730/5D94525C01294C928F1337B8DA7BF016.jpg[/image] This screenshot clearly shows target is left up to commander discretion. When you click the target button, you do use the left click and then left click on Buna? A right click negates the selection. Also if you change the selected mission or from day to night operation, the target resets to commander discretion. Reduce your maximum range to 15. That will ensure the unit does not veer off to hit Lae. Alfred

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 2:53:23 AM)
quote: This screenshot clearly shows target is let up to commander discretion Thats my point. Last turn I did set it to Buna, and then came back and double checked it had Buna. It was fine. When I get the turn back, Buna is gone from the target selection and it has reset to commanders discretion. I don't understand why it won't hold Buna as a target.

Alfred -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 3:12:24 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: aoffen quote: ORIGINAL: Alfred Remind me why exactly you must fight at Suva.[8\|] Concrete analysis please, not just generalisations along the lines of, "to keep the sealanes to Australia open". If you really think up to 4 Japanese divisions are heading to Suva, your 5 regts there are not going to hold. Alfred So far I have done nothing but run and he is punishing my Sir Robin strategy by aggressively pursuing, getting way ahead of the historical advance time line and taking few casualties. At some point I have to fight. I have to start hurting him and inflicting losses. Is Suva the right place or do that? Do I pull back to Pago Pago and fight him there? Do I just cede the board and run till mid 42 then try and counter from wherever I end up? The only way I can hold is by hitting him at sea. You are correct in saying 5 regiments (even dug in to level 4) will not hold 3 or 4 well supplied divisions. The question is, can my coastal artillery, mines, land based air, CV's and surface naval forces influence the outcome enough to allow the land units to hold. I don't mind losses, as long as they are matched losses. Attrition is fine. I just don't want to lose the lot for no corresponding pain on his side. So is this the time and place to put up a fight? Regards Andrew I am most definitely not advocating a Sir Robin. Merely that concrete analysis rather than wishful thinking is required. You are going to be very disappointed if you are pinning your hopes on the ancillary assets significantly degrading the combat strength of 4 Japanese divisions landing within the Japanese amphibious bonus period. Combined with the KB led blockade, the best you will do is to buy time. This is where the concrete analysis comes in: how much time, what can the Allies do elsewhere during the siege, how can the Allies prolong the cost and length of time to Japan of the siege etc. Hence identify which assets are needed to prolong the siege. If they can be assembled, then it may be worthwhile to fight for Suva. If they can't be assembled, then you need to reassess the wisdom. Don't forget the logistics. Just as important as your Suva supply stockpile are your nearby fuel and supply depots. Will you be able to maintain air and naval operations from nearby bases against the besiegers. Do you have nearby the built up infrastructure for plane upgrades or ship repairs, or would you lose valuable time in moving units back and forth? You might think you have sizeable ground, air and naval forces currently present at Suva but the real test is whether they are essentially one shot wonders or do they have staying power. Alfred

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 4:02:14 AM)
When does the early amphib bonus run out? The cold hard facts are not that pretty. If I had another 2 or 3 months it would be a different story, but I have only just started building Pago Pago and have a force on the way to the islands a few hexes south of Suva to construct a supporting air base. That all takes time of course and at the moment air support infrastructure outside Suva is pretty weak (so is his of couse). I do have Auckland built up, it is only 20 hexes away and I have plenty of fuel down there now. So that means a I have good naval base, but air bases are problematic. Its not great but not terrible either. If I don't fight at Suva it means I have to get everyone out. Where do I go then? I am leaning towards Suva being as good a place as anywhere to stick a stake in the ground. Regards Andrew

Alfred -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 4:59:08 AM)
No, you don't have to get everyone out of Suva. It is your mindset which I am trying to get you to reexamine and thence formulate an appropriate operational and strategical plan tailored to the available logistical and combat capabilities. 1. The amphibious landing bonus lasts until the end of April 1942. 2. To hold Suva, you must also hold Nadi. Hence your major problem with your ancillary forces (coastal defence units etc) is that you must cover two locations whereas the enemy only has to land at one location and with the landing bonus, he can structure his complete unload to only take 24 hours. 3. Fiji doesn't have to be abandoned. It is a question of whether you can realistically assemble the forces to contest a long term siege or whether it can be used as a speed bump to allow you freedom of operations elsewhere. In both instances, it requires an assessment of the minimum assets required to achieve either outcome. 4. Auckland will not suffice as a naval base. It is further away from Fiji than is new Caledonia, which presumably will be captured by Japan before it moves on Fiji. Also if you have Auckland as your only significant naval base, it will be too obvious and easy for the KB to intercept any withdrawing Allied ships. You will also need a secondary, nearby naval base. Pago Pago is an obvious candidate, but there are also candidates in the Tongan and Cook islands. Clearly the infrastructure will be lacking, so the question is whether you can deploy the necessary tenders to support repairs, rearming and PT creation. 5. 100 fighters on Suva indicate the presence of 4 squadrons. To increase their staying power you need to consider the following: (a) can they use drop tanks and therefore can they be regularly rotated back to a well stocked air base to take on replacements, thereby reducing the pressure on the consumption of supplies at besieged Suva (b) do they have pilots with the requisite experience, air skill and defence skill to bloody the KB pilots, and do you have the national pilot pool depth Better to have deployed fewer units but with superior staying power, than more one shot units. Assuming that these 4 squadrons meet the grade, then you should base your operational planning on having only 3 (and in reality probably only 2) squadrons available for operations. 6. Suva is not absolutely indispensable to be held by the Allies. For a start if you believe the enemy is pursuing a south pacific thrust to cut the SLOCs to Australia, you are making a faulty assessment. To cut the SLOCs to Australia, Japan must control all three channels (a) Cape Town to WA/SA, (b) Port Stanley to TAS/VIC, and (c) USA/Panama to NSW. That is an awful lot of terrain to cover with valuable assets far away from the real economic interests of Japan. 7. Rather than rushing to build up your Fiji defences, consider building up nearby to deny Japan the benefit of holding Fiji. All the potential nearby sites have the benefit of being single hex islands. Trade space for time in the south pacific. Alfred

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 5:18:00 AM)
Alfred, Thanks for the input. Appreciate the time you put into that response. I have to run and won't be doing another turn until tomorrow so you have given me something to stew on overnight. Really need to consider how to spread out my defensive forces into more mutually supporting positions rather than just throw everyone into Suva. Any thoughts on the bomber problem? Regards Andrew

Itdepends -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/19/2011 3:48:11 PM)
RE the bomber groups resetting target- are you going for a ground attack in a hex that has no ground units in it? That might cause it to reset it's target (because it can't find anything to hit). My opponent took Suva early on- before I could reinforce- but Vau Vau to the SE makes a lovey, easily defended one hex airbase- and I sweated bricks landing a division plus numerous support crews there while KB sat next to Suva supporting his landings.

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/20/2011 5:01:59 AM)
ordered ground attack. everything seemed to be correct. just don't get it. rgds Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/22/2011 3:34:32 AM)
Feb 26 - 28 At Sea. KB continues its relentless march east, passing south of Pago Pago. I must have 7 or 8 TF's now moving north and east to get away. Mini KB has alo turned up just west of Fiji, so the entire Japanese carrier force is deployed in the theatre now and so far I have only lost a single AK. On the 28th KB turned north west passing up the west side side of Pago Pago. Heading home? If I can survive this incursion with no serious losses I will be very pleased with the outcome. The only downside is the delay in my reinforcement convoys and my Catalina squadrons are suffering. The constant tracking of the carriers has cost me 7 or 8 aircraft. In the air. On the 27th a big fighter sweep came in over Calcutta. He sent 33 Oscars and 17 Zeroes at 35 & 36,000 ft. I had 2 Hurricane squadrons on CAP up at max altitude and 1 AVG Squadron now with P-400 Aircobras down at 10,000 feet and we shot down between 7 and 15 fighters for no loss. Makes up for my raids on Mandalay where I lost a dozen bombers. Next time I fear he will come with more strength. Big Japanese raids hit Medan on Sumatra and Koepang on Timor and large numbers of zeroes are sweeping all over Java. We in turn hit Port Moresby port pretty hard and send some B-17D's to hit Noumea. Unfortunately the B-17E's cant get there. On the ground. The Japanese take Noumea and continue mopping up Sumatra. They also land on Koepang. In China the attack on Sian continues. We stopped their central thrust but they have been successful on both flanks now. Our forces are going to have to pull back to a tighter ring around the city or risk being pocketed. Picture below. I just realised that I could release the 4 Hawaiin Dept regiments in Pearl Harbour at a fraction of the PP cost by switching them to Pacific Fleet. That has allowed me to free up enough troops to really make a go of the Suva defense. Have resolved to fight there but taking advice am also setting up a series of supporting bases. Pago Pago will be reinforced with a regiment and support units, the Kandavu Islands 2 hexes south of Suva will become a fighter base and will also start building up Vava'u 12 hexes south east of Suva. Savaii will also have to get attention. Its a race against time now but if I get set, I can have the equivalent of 3 division in Fiji with a number of supporting air bases holding 8 trained fighter squadrons and a couple of dive bomber groups. Should be enough. Regards Andrew [image]local://upfiles/6730/EE9AE2C064994F61BF7A2B30FF0FB9E8.jpg[/image]

witpqs -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/22/2011 3:50:41 AM)
They could a) take Fiji and then realize that Hawaii is weak, or b) see the strength on Fiji and realize that Hawaii is weak and go directly there.

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/22/2011 3:55:25 AM)
Good thought, but I have the Americal Div in Hawaii now training and will have another 2 independent infantry regiments there over the next month as I buy them out from the US restricted HQ. By the time they can organise that I think/hope I can react. All the sigint points to Fiji. Have attack planning reports now from multiple units for both Suva and Nadi. Will keep building forts in hawaii though

Alfred -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/22/2011 8:53:53 AM)
aoffen, You sound supremely confident that Fiji will be the target.[:)] In that case, I'll just jog your memory with the following comments. 1. Look at your PT pools. They are probably not big at the moment but they can be made "bigger". You can disband PTs into the PT pool. There is a time delay between disbandment and reappearing in the pool, available for creating a PT TF. Because of the delay, you may have to seriously consider disbanding now any PTs currently operating in the DEI so that they will be available in time for operations in Fijian waters. 2. Look to cull trained pilots from those theatres you are not expecting to see combat in the short term, and place them into the air units who will meet the enemy invasion of Fiji. Pilot transfer delay is less than that for PTs, so you have some time to do this, but don't leave it too late. 3. Before the invasion occurs, ensure your Fijian stationed airforce is overfilled with pilots and each squadron includes the maximum 4 spare airframes. I find that these two factors when combined with operating from airfields with at least 1 aviation support per airframe (don't forget to include the spares in the 1 Av Sup = 1 airframe calculation), considerably increases the staying power of my air units and goes a long way to mitigating the bad effects of "Service Rating". One other thing about Fiji which I should have noted in my previous posts. Not only do the Japanese have two bases to choose for their landing, they can also land on a non base hex, thereby avoiding your CD guns. During the amphibious landing bonus period, you should very much bear that thought in mind. Particularly after your experience with paradrops on Luzon.[;)] Alfred

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/22/2011 9:19:03 AM)
Alfred Thanks for the thoughtful input again. Re Fiji as the target - its a good question about how confident I should be. I have had a steady stream of sigint showing 2 divisional level units planning for Suva and an armoured regiment planning for Nadi. Those units are all ex the Luzon battle and I have also got sigint showing a number of them on transports enroute to Rabaul. Based on that we have 2+ divisions are planning for Fiji and he may have up to 4 available if he wants to go big. That intel plus the invasions of Noumea and Efate and KB's obsession with the theatre all add up to a pretty strong picture of their intentions. I guess the answer is I am pretty confident they are coming this way. I haven't thought much about the what if I am wrong scenario and he goes for Australia or New Zealand. I guess in that case I will still have Fiji ready as a base for offensive operations. If he goes to Hawaii I will have a problem but I think I will get wind of that. Do you think I am barking up the wrong tree here and should remain more balanced rather than committing? Great advice re the PT's, pilots and airframes. Thanks. Did not know that was possible with PT's and will send as many there as I can. The Suva fighter squadrons are up in the high 60's now and have some 70 level pilots transferring in. Cheers and thanks again. All input gratefully received. Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/29/2011 7:35:28 AM)
March 1 to March 5 Apologies, Its been a while since the last update. At Sea. KB headed up the west side of Pago Pago and linked up with another couple of Japanese TF's north of Fiji. Here it loitered for 3 or 4 days. I presume this was a refuelling stop and it looks like they intend to effectively blockade Fiji until their landing forces arrive. Any remaining doubt that Fiji was the target is gone baby gone. They have had KB in theatre now for 3 weeks so this is a big commitment for them. So far all my reinforcement TF's have stayed out of harms way but if he stays hovering over Fiji I can't get the planned reinforcements in and a major rethink is going to be required. On March 4th I sent 3 smaller TF's to Savaii and Pago Pago to unload support troops but on the 5th KB dashed east again. Luckily it looks like weather stopped them launching, so again no losses, but he has effectively closed down all my ops in the area. I have a lot of TF's now hanging back waiting at sea. I may not even be able to get my Fiji convoys redirected into Pago Pago at this point. Moving my carriers to threaten his convoys and try to draw off KB is a possibility but mini KB is west of Fiji too. Tough situation they are putting me in. Elsewhere we have some success. A Dutch subs bags an AK in the DEI and we have an unexpected victory at Noumea harbour. I sent the USS Concord (a CL) with 3 DD's to bombard Noumea airfield after they had swept north of New Caledonia hoping to pick up a convoy. They ran slap bang into supply convoy unloading in Noumea. The result was outstanding Night Time Surface Combat, near Noumea at 115,160, Range 11,000 Yards Japanese Ships DD Asanagi, Shell hits 3 DD Yunagi DMS W-15, Shell hits 11, and is sunk AMC Kongo Maru, Shell hits 48, and is sunk xAK Izan Maru, Shell hits 13, heavy fires, heavy damage xAK Nisso Maru, Shell hits 6, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk xAK Gyoko Maru, Shell hits 10, on fire xAK Ryoka Maru, Shell hits 7, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk xAK Teiryu Maru, Shell hits 15, heavy fires, heavy damage Allied Ships CL Concord DD Benham DD Ellet, Shell hits 1, on fire DD Dunlap, Shell hits 2, on fire This was the same TF that sank the Japanese landing force at Koumac and wiped out an SNLF in the process. Medals of Honour are being recommended. In the Air. We continue to hit Port Moresby and Noumea with our B-17's. Fighter resistance at Noumea is pretty tough and we lose a couple of D models there. At Akyab we hit there again with B-17's and Blenheims. The Blenheims take a battering and I think we need to pull them out of the action. They need close fighter escort or they just take too many losses. They hit targets in Java and Sumatra with big raids over multiple days and also lay into Buna with 50+ bombers for several days in a row. On the ground. In the DEI they keep up the pressure. Medan falls on Sumatra and Koepang on Timor. After a couple of days of constant air assault Buna finally cracks and the troops there surrender. Casualties are heavy. Allied ground losses: 3037 casualties reported Squads: 99 destroyed, 0 disabled Non Combat: 353 destroyed, 0 disabled Engineers: 1 destroyed, 0 disabled Guns lost 44 (44 destroyed, 0 disabled) Units destroyed 4 Assaulting units: 61st Naval Guard Unit Defending units: Lark Battalion Port Moresby Brigade 15th RAAF Base Force Rabaul Det. Base Force In China he captures Ankang west of Sian just before I can get reinforcements there. The next days a fresh corps marches in and while he holds the city, we contest the hex. The eastern flank of Sian gets pushed back another hex too. Seroiuus reinforcements are headed that way now. This has probably evolved into the main threat. The main Sian defence forces in front of the city are also pulling back so we will effectively have a ring around the city. The Chinese assault from Ichang is slowly getting in to position. We will have a dozen corps on his flank soon and hope to at least threaten Nanyang. Sigint is showing more troops headed for Rabaul and some TF's between Rabaul and Fiji already. I just don't know where his invasion force is and what the timetable for his attack is. If KB keeps up the blockade I won't be able to make the stand I had planned and in fact will struggle to get troops into Pago Pago even. In 3 months I will come close to carrier parity with Lexington repaired, Hornet in theatre and the Illustrious also over this side, giving me 6 CV's. For the moment I have no way to contest the battlefield. Frustrating. Regards Andrew

CaptBeefheart -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/29/2011 10:01:53 AM)
Andrew: Excellent work. I just caught up about the last two pages of this fine AAR. First off, the para fragment dropped on Bataan seems gamey to me; but hey, what goes around comes around. You'll be getting plenty of para units in future. Secondly, I would also advise getting your pilot skills up to 70 (with 50 exp) if possible, especially for the fighters. Not sure if the defense skill matters much. Has anyone done a test? Thirdly, I don't escort my heavies at all--it just wastes Allied fighters and I've had B-17/24/29 aces. The 4Es do especially well against Oscars. If his fighters are knocking down too many heavies then switch them to night. I also try to keep my 2Es out of fighter contact whenever possible (usually using range restrictions) or else fly them at night. I read their previous AAR and these guys are quite aggressive and quite good. Could they be trying to get NZ and an auto victory? Perhaps others could chime in as to whether that would suffice. Best of luck. Cheers, CC

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/29/2011 12:41:12 PM)
I hadn't even considered auto victory. Better do a bit of quick research to find out what they need. You are right. They are super aggressive and very good. Bit of an exercise in tossing myself to the lions. Regards Andrew

CaptBeefheart -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (3/30/2011 6:46:39 AM)
I would think auto victory is their objective (I'm not reading their AAR--I just know how aggressive they are from their last AAR). I'm at work, but as I recall they'd need 4X VPs to win in 1943. So, you might want to look at scenarios where they'd have a chance of pulling it. They are certainly telegraphing New Zealand at the moment, but perhaps Oz is the true objective. Or, this may be a feint prior to hitting the subcontinent. Anyway, figure it out and you'll have a good shot at a proper counter punch. Cheers, CC

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/1/2011 2:11:38 AM)
March 6 and 7 Enough already March 6 At sea KB continues surging east and the weather clears so the airstrikes start. From north of Pago Pago they hit one of the fleeing TF's that had been unloading. We lose an AP with had the 4th Marine Defense Bat on board. Luckily the rest had disembarked at Savaii so these troops are effectively replaceable as the unit will survive. Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Pukapuka at 155,159 Weather in hex: Light cloud Raid spotted at 25 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 9 minutes Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 27 B5N2 Kate x 25 Japanese aircraft losses B5N2 Kate: 1 damaged B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak Allied Ships DD Kilty DD Schley xAP Matsonia, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage DD Cassin Allied ground losses: 43 casualties reported Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 3 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled Guns lost 3 (1 destroyed, 2 disabled) Elsewhere we lose an AKL to a sub and a DD escort in a Tanker TF near Christmas island. Our sub attacks are of course unsuccessful. In the air, the pattern of the last few turns continue. They hit Chittagong and numerous targets in DEI. We hit Port Moresby with B-17's. PM is basically trashed with 100 airfield damage and 80 port. The B-17's are fun!! No ground attacks this turn as the maneuvering into the new positions around Sian in China continues. More good sigint this turn. 8th Tank Regiment is loaded on xAK Daisin Maru moving to Rabaul. 2/16th Army is planning for an attack on Nadi. There are 100+ ships in Rabaul harbour!! If only I could do something about it. Mar 7th At sea, KB continues even further east, now well to the east of Pago Pago. Multiple airstrikes come in, this time putting hits on the CA Chester and nailing 2 more AP's and a DD. More land units go down with the ship although again only unit fragments. Still the loss of the big AP's hurts. Morning Air attack on TF, near Manihiki at 162,159 Weather in hex: Moderate rain Raid detected at 147 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 55 minutes Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 27 B5N2 Kate x 9 Japanese aircraft losses B5N2 Kate: 1 damaged B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak Allied Ships CA Chester, Torpedo hits 1 AP Barnett --------------------------------------------- Morning Air attack on TF, near Manihiki at 162,159 Weather in hex: Moderate rain Raid spotted at 33 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 12 minutes Japanese aircraft D3A1 Val x 13 Japanese aircraft losses D3A1 Val: 2 damaged D3A1 Val: 1 destroyed by flak Allied Ships CA Chester, Bomb hits 7, on fire --------------------------------------------- Morning Air attack on TF, near Manihiki at 162,159 Weather in hex: Moderate rain Raid detected at 25 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 9 minutes Japanese aircraft D3A1 Val x 9 Japanese aircraft losses D3A1 Val: 1 damaged Allied Ships CA Chester, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage --------------------------------------------- Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Manihiki at 162,159 Weather in hex: Severe storms Raid detected at 143 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 61 minutes Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 36 B5N2 Kate x 92 Japanese aircraft losses B5N2 Kate: 24 damaged B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak Allied Ships AP Henderson, Torpedo hits 3, and is sunk AP Barnett, Torpedo hits 5, and is sunk DD Ralph Talbot, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk Allied ground losses: 982 casualties reported Squads: 2 destroyed, 0 disabled Non Combat: 77 destroyed, 68 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled Guns lost 12 (8 destroyed, 4 disabled) Vehicles lost 10 (5 destroyed, 5 disabled) The Chester surprisingly survives, for the moment. I am now fleeing south and east. I almost hope KB continues the pursuit. Takes them out of position and may open a chance for my CV's further north to go and pick on some small fry. The usual stuff in the air in the DEI etc. On the ground there is more mopping up in Burma and China but nothing notable. He puts a force ashore on the island 2 hexes south of Suva. Trying to set up an airbase to project land based fighters over Suva I presume. Will be an interesting air battle. The sustained presence of KB east of Fiji has thrown my plans to turn Fiji into a fortress into disarray. At this stage I may not even be able to to reinforce Pago Pago. I need to think this through a bit more carefully, but fall back plan A is to throw everyone destined for Fiji into Pago Pago and Savaii and use Fiji as a delay point to allow the main build up there. Main threat to this plan is KB of course. I have also started planning a couple of raids. Wake is a good target. Need to start hitting where he isn't. I am also hoping to get a chance with my carriers if he commits KB so far east, it will be out of position for 3 or 4 days at least, giving me a clear shot at his rear areas before fleeing north. I am annoyed about Fiji. Had high hopes for a fair fight here, but the bastards refuse to co-operate. Regards Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/2/2011 2:20:13 PM)
March 8 - 10 The good the bad and the ugly March 8th A relatively quiet turn. At sea his TF's close in on Fiji. Recon reveals transports - looks like his invasion TF is already here. I am surprised it got here this quickly, was hoping it was still enroute and my CV's might be able to duck in and catch them. I have to admit he has caught me on the hop and the Fiji defense plan is in tatters. Best I can hope for now is a Fiji road bump and a robust defence of Pago Pago. KB turns back toward Fiji at least so my reinforcement TF's can resume the cat and mouse game. I have to decide how much to pump into Pago Pago. On the sub front, a Brirtish SS sinks an AK south of Rangoon and we lose yet another tanker near Christmas Island. In the air, the usual raids. Darwin however starts to get some attention. His bases in Timor are active now. On the ground its more mopping up. Koumac falls at the end of New Caledonia. March 9th. What a disaster. I had some NZAF Vincents in Nadi which I put on naval attack hoping they might catch a transport. They sortie against mini KB and drag all the P-39's in as escorts. Its a turkey shoot as mini KB's CAP cuts my escorts to shreds. I lose 30 fighters and the morale of my squadrons is shot. I feel gutted. So much work to set up and all shot in one turn. KB disappears and it looks like my CV TF's are sighted. I am only 15 or 20 hexes away from him to the northwest so I suspect he is now in hot pursuit. Looks like I have missed the main game and his transport TF's are safe. I am going to have to run west and north and maybe try to get a hit in on Rabaul and/or Truk. The good thing is I have dragged KB away from Pago Pago and I can at least get my reinforcements in there. My carrier CV's are fully fuelled so can run all the way up to the Aleutians if they have to. Its a dangerous game - if he catches me it will be an unfair fight but its a big ocean. Meanwhile the British CV TF with HMS Indomitable and the BB HMS Prince of Wales has refueled and repaired in Auckland and is ready to sortie. I might run them up from the south towards Noumea and see if I can't scare him a bit when he sees more CV's appearing. In the air, Sian takes a pasting and I lose some Chinese fighters. They are even worse than my P-39's. This turn and last turn in India he hits Ledo instead of Chittagong. My engineers get the Chittagong runway back up so I send in 3 squadrons of Hurricanes to try and ambush him next time he comes calling. Darwin is hit heavily again. I hit Akyab and Port Moresby but lose a B-17D at Akyab again. On the ground, he crosses the river to the east of Sian and moves into the hex next door. I had been steadily reinforcing the hex and 4 more corps arrive as he crosses. The result is very nice as my guys manage to nail his cross river assault. Ground combat at 84,41 (near Sian) Japanese Shock attack Attacking force 11347 troops, 76 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 400 Defending force 35286 troops, 331 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1222 Japanese adjusted assault: 48 Allied adjusted defense: 544 Japanese assault odds: 1 to 11 Combat modifiers Defender: op mode(-), experience(-) Attacker: shock(+), disruption(-) Japanese ground losses: 3992 casualties reported Squads: 5 destroyed, 231 disabled Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 193 disabled Engineers: 1 destroyed, 21 disabled Allied ground losses: 396 casualties reported Squads: 1 destroyed, 37 disabled Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 29 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled Assaulting units: 6th Ind.Mixed Brigade 59th Infantry Brigade Defending units: 27th Chinese Corps 80th Chinese Corps 95th Chinese Corps 43rd Chinese Corps 61st Chinese Corps 9th Chinese Corps 33rd Chinese Corps 96th Chinese Corps In the Chinese far north though he returns the compliment. This avenue of assault is becoming annoying. Ground combat at 87,32 (near Ningsia) Japanese Deliberate attack Attacking force 10660 troops, 84 guns, 50 vehicles, Assault Value = 408 Defending force 4169 troops, 45 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 147 Japanese adjusted assault: 219 Allied adjusted defense: 78 Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1 Combat modifiers Defender: experience(-), supply(-) Attacker: Japanese ground losses: 110 casualties reported Squads: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled Units pursuing 1 Allied ground losses: 1869 casualties reported Squads: 100 destroyed, 47 disabled Non Combat: 48 destroyed, 34 disabled Engineers: 2 destroyed, 3 disabled Units retreated 2 Defeated Allied Units Retreating! Assaulting units: 1st Cavalry Brigade 15th Tank Regiment 2nd Ind.Mixed Brigade 11th Indpt Infantry Regiment Defending units: 17th Chinese Corps 81st Chinese Corps March 10th Some payback this turn. Firstly at sea, all is quiet as his invasion force maneuvers into position. He sends a minesweeper into Suva which unfortunately discovers the minefield I just laid there under his nose (very cleverly I thought). The coastal batteries smash it up with 6 hits though so some small recompense. One of my weaker ASW TF's up on the Canadian south coast loses a minesweeper to a sub attack. In the air we get a win. The Hurricanes at Chittagong are immediately into action as he raids with only light fighter escort. Morning Air attack on Chittagong , at 55,41 Weather in hex: Light rain Raid detected at 107 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 42 minutes Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 8 G3M2 Nell x 40 G4M1 Betty x 18 Allied aircraft Hurricane IIb Trop x 45 Japanese aircraft losses A6M2 Zero: 3 destroyed G3M2 Nell: 9 destroyed, 2 damaged G3M2 Nell: 1 destroyed by flak G4M1 Betty: 8 destroyed Allied aircraft losses Hurricane IIb Trop: 1 destroyed Airbase hits 1 Airbase supply hits 1 Runway hits 26 Port hits 2 Looks like we nailed at least 20, so some revenge for the Fiji aircobra disaster the previous turn. On the ground, we counterattack east if Sian to try and take advantage of his defeat the previous day and kick his butt. Ground combat at 84,41 (near Sian) Allied Deliberate attack Attacking force 29296 troops, 278 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1180 Defending force 8169 troops, 76 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 151 Allied adjusted assault: 344 Japanese adjusted defense: 12 Allied assault odds: 28 to 1 Combat modifiers Defender: disruption(-), fatigue(-), experience(-) Attacker: Japanese ground losses: 3102 casualties reported Squads: 180 destroyed, 0 disabled Non Combat: 83 destroyed, 31 disabled Engineers: 5 destroyed, 3 disabled Guns lost 10 (5 destroyed, 5 disabled) Units retreated 2 Allied ground losses: 469 casualties reported Squads: 0 destroyed, 42 disabled Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 21 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled Defeated Japanese Units Retreating! On the main road into Sian he surprisingly trys a big attack as well, with very poor results for him. These heavy casualties (330 destroyed combat squads. 180 destroyed non combat) may slow him down some and take some pressure off Sian. Ground combat at 84,42 (near Sian) Japanese Deliberate attack Attacking force 40685 troops, 370 guns, 178 vehicles, Assault Value = 1469 Defending force 103092 troops, 574 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 3201 Japanese adjusted assault: 627 Allied adjusted defense: 4963 Japanese assault odds: 1 to 7 Combat modifiers Defender: terrain(+), experience(-) Attacker: Japanese ground losses: 8095 casualties reported Squads: 152 destroyed, 452 disabled Non Combat: 74 destroyed, 490 disabled Engineers: 3 destroyed, 39 disabled Allied ground losses: 1795 casualties reported Squads: 5 destroyed, 87 disabled Non Combat: 5 destroyed, 119 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 18 disabled Over the 3 days we get more good sigint. 52nd Division is planning for an attack on Suva. 3/53rd Division is planning for an attack on Nadi. 13th Division is planning for an attack on Sian. As if we didn't know already!! Thats it - an eventful 3 days. I really need to keep my carriers away from KB. I don't think he will do a high speed run as it will drain his fuel reserves so as long as I keep moving I hope I can keep my distance and lead KB on a chase north that will allow my reinforcements into Pago Pago. This game is keeping me up at night. The tension is immense. Regards Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/5/2011 7:49:59 AM)
March 11 - 13 WTF? March 11 At sea off Fiji we have a win, with a torp into the Ryujo actually going off. Not sure how much damage it caused but everything helps. Looks like KB has stopped pursuing my CV's so they can cover the invasion. Thats bad news as it puts the convoys unloading at Pago pago at risk when they return. Gives us a chance to conduct a strike though. Rabaul is packed full of fighters so we will hit Truk instead. 2 turns away from launch. In the air nothing out of the ordinary - a rain of japanese bombs. On the ground he storms ashore at Nadi and I am actually shocked by the strength he has brought. My bombardment attack reveals.. Defending units: 2nd Tank Rgt /1 38th Div /5 4th Tank Rgt /2 21st Ind. Engr Rgt /1 3rd Ind. Engr Rgt /1 19th Div /3 16th Recon Rgt /1 4th Div /4 19th Ind. Engr Rgt /1 21st Div /5 7th Tank Rgt /2 2nd Formosa Inf. Rgt /1 16th Army /1 14th Army /1 That will be 4 infantry divisions, 3 tank regiments, an extra inf regiment and 3 engineer regiments. Basically 6 divisions worth of combat power when he lands fully. I am probably lucky he got here so fast an stopped me pouring more troops in to the island. They would have been swept away by a force this size. He also lands a small force at Broome. Looks like northern Australia is now a target. March 12 At sea, a sub I had sent in to recon Truk hits a mine. Its at 65 float damage so I am not sure it will make it home. I nail an IJN sub at Pago Pago with 7 hits. I think its dead. My CV's close on Truk and the Indomitable TF closes on Noumea from the southwest. A light cruiser force also sorties from Sydney to try and bombard Noumea under cover of the British carrier. They are all unspotted so haven't had the effect of worrying him yet unfortunately. In the air he has gradually cranked up the air attacks in China. Upto 30 bombers at a time are hitting my ground troops. We try another fighter trap at Chittagong, moving 90 fighters across this time. He will be ready so I don't expect a repeat of the last success but if we take 1 for 1 losses. that would be OK. On the ground, the Nadi position is swept away in a blitzkrieg attack. Ground combat at Nadi (131,160) Japanese Shock attack Attacking force 55377 troops, 499 guns, 429 vehicles, Assault Value = 1962 Defending force 7269 troops, 148 guns, 86 vehicles, Assault Value = 196 Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 0 Japanese adjusted assault: 1076 Allied adjusted defense: 97 Japanese assault odds: 11 to 1 (fort level 0) Japanese forces CAPTURE Nadi !!! Combat modifiers Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), preparation(-) experience(-) Attacker: shock(+) Japanese ground losses: 1178 casualties reported Squads: 1 destroyed, 33 disabled Non Combat: 18 destroyed, 98 disabled Engineers: 9 destroyed, 39 disabled Vehicles lost 36 (1 destroyed, 35 disabled) Allied ground losses: 4023 casualties reported Squads: 55 destroyed, 78 disabled Non Combat: 120 destroyed, 174 disabled Engineers: 85 destroyed, 25 disabled Guns lost 67 (67 destroyed, 0 disabled) Vehicles lost 83 (68 destroyed, 15 disabled) Units retreated 6 Suva will be a tougher nut but its only a matter of time. He is just too strong. I can't get anyone out either as he has mini KB and big KB effectively blockading the islands. Fiji has turned into a trap. I really need to think about Pago Pago now as well. I have 2+ divisions available but the risks of getting them ashore and the chances of them surviving in the face of this force are not good. I may be better sending them to New Zealand or Australia to prevent an invasion there. Broome also falls. March 13th The CV strike on Truk goes in with good results.Not many fighters so my casualties are moderate. Afternoon Air attack on Truk , at 112,108 Weather in hex: Overcast Raid spotted at 98 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 38 minutes Japanese aircraft A6M2 Zero x 37 Allied aircraft F4F-3A Wildcat x 19 F4F-3 Wildcat x 38 SBD-2 Dauntless x 15 SBD-3 Dauntless x 60 TBD-1 Devastator x 27 No Japanese losses Allied aircraft losses F4F-3A Wildcat: 3 destroyed F4F-3 Wildcat: 3 destroyed SBD-2 Dauntless: 1 damaged SBD-3 Dauntless: 6 damaged TBD-1 Devastator: 2 damaged TBD-1 Devastator: 1 destroyed by flak Japanese Ships xAK Yamaura Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires AMc Toyotsu Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage AG Kanaiyama Maru, Bomb hits 2, and is sunk xAK Johore Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires AMC Aikoku Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage xAK England Maru, Bomb hits 5, heavy fires, heavy damage xAK Erie Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage ARD Dublon ARD, Bomb hits 3, and is sunk ACM Kaito Maru, Bomb hits 2, and is sunk xAK Yamabiko Maru xAKL Tientsin Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage xAKL Tenposan Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage xAKL Taiyu Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage ACM Heijo Maru, Bomb hits 1, and is sunk xAK Zenyo Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire Will go at Truk again tomorrow. Maybe a mistake but KB is not following so I will only lose planes not ships. The Brits also get into the action over near Noumea Morning Air attack on TF, near Noumea at 115,160 Weather in hex: Light rain Raid spotted at 110 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet. Estimated time to target is 65 minutes Japanese aircraft no flights Allied aircraft Albacore I x 18 Fulmar II x 11 Sea Hurricane Ib x 9 Japanese aircraft losses No Japanese losses Allied aircraft losses Albacore I: 9 damaged Japanese Ships CL Yura CA Aoba CA Kinugasa, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk Unfortunately he hits back with land based Kates from Noumea and the famous USS Concord takes a torp. She is still able to make 24 knots though and will survive. He was obviously ready for the bombardment force and with the damage to the Concord I have called off the attack and both forces withdraw. A small fleet of minesweepers fleeing Suva is caught by KB and wiped out also. 3 AM's and an AV go down. Elsewhere one of his subs hits a mine at Pago Pago. That maybe 2 subs have sunk in 2 days. In the air, my fighter ambush at Chittagong gets mixed results. He only sends fighters on a sweep and we claim 9 for the loss of 12. Not really acceptable so everyone bugs out back to Calcutta. Darwin gets plastered. I am not sure if he is raiding northern Australia or he wants to invade Australia after Fiji. On the ground I am resting the Nadi refugees. It will take him a few days to get to Suva. Over in China the flanking forces from Ichang are getting into position. He is moving troops up from the south so I will have to make sure my flankers don't get flanked. If he comes in with a lot it opens up other attacks else where as he must be stripping the line to project this much power at Sian. Rethinking my revised Pago Pago defense in view of the power he has brought to this battlefield. Plan C? Regards Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/6/2011 4:47:17 AM)
March 14 One step forward two steps back At sea my second attack on Truk proves to be very ill advised. He moved more zeroes in and managed to shoot great holes in my attacking waves with no commensurate success for me. I end up losing over 40 aircraft and sinking a minesweeper. Not good - I should have known better and left while I could. Around Fiji - Pago Pago he strikes two of my smaller TF's unloading at Savaii and Vava'u. Both were supposed to have left overnight but for some reason did not and pay the price. I lose the CA Indianapolis, a DD and 3 good merchant ships. This all leaves me feeling very frustrated as I should have avoided all three of these set backs. He also lands a force at Port Headland over in Australia. Broome and Port Headland now captured so the isolation of Darwin is under way. On the ground he continues his assault in the far north of China. He has deployed considerable strength up there now and I think I have to react. His force up there consists of the following Assaulting units: 2nd Ind.Mixed Brigade 1st Cavalry Brigade 15th Tank Regiment 11th Indpt Infantry Regiment Almost a full division of combat power. My main issue now is what to do at Pago Pago. I could try and throw 2+ divisions into holding the place but I am worried the combination of KB and the 6 diivsion Fiji invasion force there will just overwhelm them and my losses will cripple me. I am at the moment putting in two supported regiments (which I figure I can afford to lose) and moving the rest to NZ and Oz to back stop the position. Until I can contest the ocean (still 2 months away at a minimum) I just can't meet him head on and survive. It really feels like a Japanese juggernaught. Regards Andrew

Itdepends -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/6/2011 1:48:41 PM)
What are your fort and supply levels like in Pago Pago? Do you think you can unload without having the GI's sunk prior to unloading (that would hurt much more than the losses you'd incur during an invasion- when at least you'd put some hurt on him).

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/6/2011 2:55:28 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Itdepends What are your fort and supply levels like in Pago Pago? Do you think you can unload without having the GI's sunk prior to unloading (that would hurt much more than the losses you'd incur during an invasion- when at least you'd put some hurt on him). Pretty poor. Pago Pago hasn't been built up much yet. Forts are at 2, airfield is at 3, supplies are about 3000. Port is also only 2 so unloading is slow. The only thing I have in my favour is almost 100 fighters at the field so I have good air cover to get the guys unloaded and so far he has avoided striking them. I need to get those aircraft out at some stage as the place will almost inevitably fall. Its really all about delay I think.

Itdepends -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/7/2011 1:15:00 PM)
Not worth losing 1 or 2 divisions over if you think you'll be rumbled in the unloading IMO. Unless those 2 divs are right there- ready to unload now and you've got his attention elsewhwere. 100 fighters won't stand up to much if he has both carrier forces in the area- especially if he has any BB's nearby to pound your airfield into dust.

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/9/2011 8:21:06 AM)
March 15-16 Is it June yet? March 15 At sea. KB heads east threatening Pago Pago but continues looking for unprotected targets. They catch a TF leaving Savaii and punish it heavily sinking 2 DD's and another AP. The remaining TF's should be either at Pago Pago under air cover or out of harms way now. My subs are swarming around Suva, getting some attacks but mostly failed detonations. The Hornet arrives in New York and immediately sails for the Panama Canal. In 3 months I will have Lexington repaired and the Hornet and Wasp in theatre (6 USN CV's) with the 2 RN CV's, that gives me rough parity and the game changes. In the air. Darwin, Chittagong and Batavia all receive big raids (40+ aircraft) On the ground. The Japanese finally land in Java at Kalidjati, 2 hexes down from Batavia. Thought they had forgotten the place. In Oz, Port Headland falls and the Broome invasion force moves towards Derby. In China, The Japanese attack my cav corps at Ankang. They can only get 1-2 odds so the position holds. They also attack my troops that have reached the road 3 hexes southeast of Angkang but are again repulsed at 1-2. My forces (4 corps) arrive in the clear hex south east of there and find only 1 IJA unit. It maybe a division though so will bombard before attacking. Japanese land forces arrive in Suva. Damn that was fast. March 16 At sea. KB and mini KB head back towards Fiji, so no losses this turn - they pound Vava'u though with the full KB air component. He loses another sub to mines at Pago Pago. Thats 2 now. Over at Rabaul, some torpedoes finally go off and we claim a PB. The 2 hits on an AK both failed to detonate :(. In the air. Darwin cops it yet again. He must be planning on attacking, although I have had no sigint. I am moving base forces out and have sent troops to Alice Springs. Darwin is very isolated though. If I can catch his troops on ships it would be nice. He now has LBA at Nandi and Betties start to operate. On the ground. Kalidjati in Java falls. The IJA bombard Suva and a depressing OB is revealed again - he hasn't got any weaker. My forces are hunkering and preparing for the storm. I have set up Fortress Bandoeng in Java. Will be interested to see how long they can hold in the mountains with 4 forts and plenty of supply. In China they attack at Angkang again, this time getting 2-1 which is concerning. We still hold though. Our bombardment reveals the unit in the clear hex southeast of Angkang (hex 84,46 to be specific) is an infantry regiment. 4 Corps in clear terrain should be enough to handle that, shock attack orders are given for next turn. Thought it was worth recapping naval losses over the last 10 days. Most of this has taken place in the Fiji AO. I have lost sunk 1 CA, 4 DD's, 1 SS, 2 TK, 8 AK/AP's 4 AM's. As far as I can make out, the Japanese have lost sunk 1 CA, 1 DMS, 1 or 2 SS, 6 Merchants ships, 1 ARD, 2 ACM's, they have also had a CVL damaged and another sub damaged (prob 2 sunk 1 damaged in total). Losses are in favour of the IJN but at least we have started the attrition process. Regards Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/9/2011 8:32:48 AM)
A picture of the situation around Sian. [image]local://upfiles/6730/A7BDB8E6669B42838905AF98533F17D9.jpg[/image]

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/12/2011 4:24:19 AM)
March 17 - 18 March 17 At sea both sides have some success with subs. I sink a TB off Fiji and a TK off Balikpapan. Both kills were made by Dutch subs. The IJN claimed an unescorted AK which was an auto convoy out of San Francisco. In the DEI a small group of PT boats have a go at his landing force without any success. I also have now positioned a secret British stealth cruiser TF between DEI and the north coast of west Australia. They deployed out of Colombo and are trying to catch something on the way to or from the Broome area. I also get a report that I-5 is sunk by 30cal machine gun fire over off the US West Coast. Might be a kill from my ASW patrol that sunk on the way home. My CV's hammer Wake on the way back to PH. Not much damage but gives the guys some experience I guess. Time to get back to PH for R&R - rest, repair, re-arm and prepare for revenge. In the air this turn Port Blair cops a 50+ raid. I have a feeling he is preparing for an assault, so I am thinking through my options for interfering. Darwin and Bandoeng also receive big raids and there is a fair bit of activity in China with smaller raids hitting multiple Chinese units trying to increase disruption I guess. On the ground, he assaults Suva. We do surprisingly well. He gets 1-1 reduces the fort from 4 to 3 but takes 3300 casualties with 50 squads killed. I lose a lot of engineers but not many combat troops. We might be able to hang on for a bit longer than I expected. Ground combat at Suva (132,160) Japanese Deliberate attack Attacking force 63682 troops, 555 guns, 423 vehicles, Assault Value = 2362 Defending force 21970 troops, 374 guns, 345 vehicles, Assault Value = 428 Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 3 Japanese adjusted assault: 1402 Allied adjusted defense: 1101 Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1 (fort level 3) Japanese Assault reduces fortifications to 3 Combat modifiers Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), experience(-) Attacker: Japanese ground losses: 3310 casualties reported Squads: 11 destroyed, 149 disabled Non Combat: 27 destroyed, 88 disabled Engineers: 11 destroyed, 62 disabled Vehicles lost 51 (4 destroyed, 47 disabled) Allied ground losses: 1714 casualties reported Squads: 2 destroyed, 49 disabled Non Combat: 57 destroyed, 183 disabled Engineers: 34 destroyed, 14 disabled Vehicles lost 47 (3 destroyed, 44 disabled) Assaulting units: 48th Engineer Regiment 4th Division 4th Tank Regiment 19th Division 2nd Tank Regiment 16th Engineer Regiment 38th Division 16th Recon Regiment 48th Recon Regiment 21st Division 47th Infantry Regiment 2nd Formosa Inf. Regiment 19th Ind. Engineer Regiment 1st Formosa Inf. Regiment 7th Tank Regiment 14th Army 16th Army Defending units: 2nd USMC Engineer Regiment 8th Marine Regiment 2nd Marine Regiment 57th Coastal Artillery Regiment 8th NZ Brigade 111th USN Base Force 101st USN Base Force 119th USAAF Base Force 1st RNZAF Base Force 47th Construction Regiment 206th Coast AA Regiment 3rd Marine Defense Battalion 205th Coast AA Regiment 110th USA Base Force 804th Engineer Aviation Battalion Nandi Base Force In China we shock attack the brigade in hex 84,46 and achieve 4-1. Its a good result with 120 Japanese squads killed. Ground combat at 84,46 (near Nanyang) Allied Shock attack Attacking force 35723 troops, 192 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1281 Defending force 5856 troops, 38 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 211 Allied adjusted assault: 1074 Japanese adjusted defense: 223 Allied assault odds: 4 to 1 Combat modifiers Defender: leaders(+) Attacker: shock(+), disruption(-) Japanese ground losses: 1766 casualties reported Squads: 67 destroyed, 93 disabled Non Combat: 55 destroyed, 73 disabled Engineers: 2 destroyed, 5 disabled Guns lost 3 (2 destroyed, 1 disabled) Units retreated 1 Allied ground losses: 706 casualties reported Squads: 2 destroyed, 49 disabled Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 41 disabled Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled Defeated Japanese Units Retreating! Assaulting units: 53rd Chinese Corps 45th Chinese Corps 2nd Chinese Corps 94th Chinese Corps 20th Group Army Defending units: 57th Infantry Brigade He attacks me at Angkang again and gets 1-1. I am still holding and reinforcements are now on the way. Elsewhere he does some more mopping up in Sumatra. March 18 At Sea. Not much action. KB has returned to Fiji. My CV's have linked up with the BB's out of PH and are headed home. Only concern is some troops convoys rediretced away from Pago Pago to Auckland are detected. By whom I am not sure but I have to send them further south. In the air, some action over Suva. He bombs, I try and strafe (and fail) and we each lose a couple of planes. Most of my fighters are now back at Pago Pago. Pt Blair gets nailed again. Something is brewing. The usual at Darwin and Bandoeng. On the ground the action is in China. He makes 3 attacks. Angkang where he gets 1-1 and not much happens. Hex 83,45 on the road south east of Angkang where he gets 1-2 but I lose more than him. Hex 84,47 where I perhaps foolishly advanced a single corps into a clear hex. Its gets nailed and retreats across the river with heavy losses - 100 squads killed. Thats it. I just want the turns to roll by now. Have survived over 3 moths of this now, only a couple more months to go. Regards Andrew

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/22/2011 6:22:33 AM)
March 19 to March 31 Sorry for the prolonged silence. Have been away for the past week and a bit and pretty busy since I got back, so this will be a catch up summary. At sea, most of the action has been down around the Fiji area. Initially KB ran back to Fiji to cover the invasion force. Once Suva fell (see below) he sent his carriers sortying into the south Pacific chasing my convoys. I had redirected several big convoys destined for Fiji and Pago Pago down to run along the far south map edge to New Zealand. Thought I was pretty safe down there, but when mini KB turned up it was like lifting the lid on a rat colony. My convoys scattered an ran in all directions and to make matters worse KB also turned up a few days later. Luckily I had HMS Warspite escorting one of the the big troop convoys and she absorbed most of the damage in the first wave. I scattered and, as is the way of my dear opponent, they were relentless in their pursuit. We played cat and mouse for a week along the southern map edge. The wash up was Warspite badly damaged (limped in to Auckland), 2 big troop ships sunk with the infantry components of 2 infantry regiments and 1 AK with a P-40 squadron on board. As painful as this was, I was lucky to get away with just these losses as prolonged stormy weather prevented a bigger disaster limiting a number of his raids. The equipment components of 4 US infantry regiments made it to NZ and the infantry components of 2 of them are still afloat and should be able to get there now as his carriers have finally pulled back. During all of this carry on down south I had a couple of small successes. I ran HMS Indomitable with the PoW through their position north of Noumea and caught a big replen convoy near Guadalcanal. Sank at least 2 and maybe 3 oilers but didn't pursue as I was worried he would move land based air in if I hung around. That TF is on the way to join the rest of my CV's in Pearl Harbour. Hornet is also on the way so after a few weeks of repair rest and refit I will have 5 CV's (4 US and 1 Brit). In another 2 months Lexington will be repaired and Wasp will arrive to give me the full component. I also managed to nail a small supply convoy near Broome in WA. A heavy cruiser TF based out of Colombo caught and sank 3 AKL's and 2 PB's - unfortunately empty. On the ground all is quiet in Burna and India. He has taken the foot off in that area and is focussing on the big invasion of Fiji, nuisance raids in northern Australia and a strong drive on Sian in China. The Fiji invasion ended up being irresistible with 8 IJA division equivalents deployed. Suva resisted for over a week and replelled two attacks before finally succumbing to the third assault on March 23rd. We lost heavily. The only good news is he took 6~8,000 casualties himself in the assaults and I was able to get sections of a couple of key units to Auckland where they are now rebuilding (2nd Mar Reg, 8th Mar Reg, 2nd Mar Cbt Eng). It will take a few months but I have a good reserve and flow of USMC squads so will be able to rebuild both units in a few months. The 8th NZ Bde is gone for good I think, but the other engineer forces I can rebuild over time too. Ground combat at Suva (132,160) Japanese Shock attack Attacking force 70648 troops, 929 guns, 641 vehicles, Assault Value = 2326 Defending force 19099 troops, 395 guns, 331 vehicles, Assault Value = 347 Japanese adjusted assault: 3211 Allied adjusted defense: 421 Japanese assault odds: 7 to 1 (fort level 2) Japanese forces CAPTURE Suva !!! Combat modifiers Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-), experience(-) Attacker: shock(+) Japanese ground losses: 2857 casualties reported Squads: 40 destroyed, 177 disabled Non Combat: 38 destroyed, 96 disabled Engineers: 2 destroyed, 22 disabled Guns lost 6 (5 destroyed, 1 disabled) Vehicles lost 96 (39 destroyed, 57 disabled) Units destroyed 1 Allied ground losses: 22373 casualties reported Squads: 401 destroyed, 0 disabled Non Combat: 1717 destroyed, 0 disabled Engineers: 104 destroyed, 0 disabled Guns lost 501 (501 destroyed, 0 disabled) Vehicles lost 308 (308 destroyed, 0 disabled) Units destroyed 15 Assaulting units: 16th Recon Regiment 2nd Formosa Inf. Regiment 38th Division 4th Tank Regiment 47th Infantry Regiment 4th Division 21st Division 16th Engineer Regiment 2nd Tank Regiment 1st Formosa Inf. Regiment 19th Division 20th Infantry Regiment 19th Ind. Engineer Regiment 48th Recon Regiment 9th Infantry Regiment 7th Tank Regiment 15th Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion 16th Army 3rd Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion 14th Army 2nd Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion 8th Medium Field Artillery Regiment 20th Ind. Mtn Gun Battalion 1st Medium Field Artillery Regiment 48th Field Artillery Regiment 2nd Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion 1st Hvy.Artillery Regiment 9th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion 2nd Mortar Battalion 10th Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment 2nd Field Artillery Regiment Defending units: 8th Marine Regiment 57th Coastal Artillery Regiment 2nd Marine Regiment 8th NZ Brigade 101st USN Base Force 111th USN Base Force 47th Construction Regiment 205th Coast AA Regiment 804th Engineer Aviation Battalion 110th USA Base Force 1st RNZAF Base Force 119th USAAF Base Force 206th Coast AA Regiment 3rd Marine Defense Battalion Nandi Base Force Pago Pago is still mine. I have 2 infantry regiments there with numerous additional support forces and 100 aircraft, almost 400 AV in total. They are digging in nicely now and will be a tough nut to crack, but I am leaving the option open to pull some of the troops out. Losing 2 more regiments would really hurt. He has finally invaded Java. I am holed up in Bandoeng and Sorebaja and he only seems to have 2 divisions, so its going to be a tough fight for him I think. In China, the slow motion ballet around Sian continues but this is largely bogged down now. He has an armoured car unit over my supply lines which I am in the process of chasing down and is threatening Lanchow in the north which I am finally reacting too. I think I can stop him there. As we kick off April its a mixed bag from our side. On the positive side naval losses have been acceptable and my carrier force is intact and building. My fighter units are filling out and approaching 70 air skill in many P-40 units so I am ready to start committing them more aggressively. On the negative he has kicked me pretty hard around Fiji and inflicted heavy US and USMC infantry losses. It will take me time to recover from this. He has also staked out a lot of territory in the South Pacific and finding a spot to deploy my short ranged land based fighters is going to be tough. Northern Australia seems to be one possibility if only because its closer to his bases. Burma is another although getting the forces there takes forever. Coming in from the Pacific side is also open but I am not sure I have enough amphib capability for that yet. Another month of absorbing the blows then we need to start thinking of counter attack. Regards Andrew

CaptBeefheart -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/22/2011 6:48:43 AM)
The good news is once you get the new patch you'll be able to rebuild all of those units (if you have the necessary devices in the pool, anyway). Also, he must be fairly weak elsewhere (such as you mention on Java). As Monty Python say: Always look at the bright side of life... Cheers, CC

aoffen -> RE: Aussies v Aussies - Being clubbed like a baby seal (No Jrcar or Tony) (4/24/2011 3:24:30 PM)
April 1-4 We got through 4 turns in the last 2 days so the game is outpacing my ability to blog. At sea. April 1-3 saw some sub action. I am generating plenty of hits but few detonations so am largely ineffective until the torp reliability issue improves which is a way off yet. I hit I-24 off Perth 4 times and may have crippled it. I-4 hit a mine at Chittagong and was reported sunk the next turn so is probably gone. Slowly whittling these beasts away. On April 4th he invaded Pt Blair off the coast of Burma. I have been expecting this and for the last week had a light cruiser force poised to the west of the island unspotted and waiting for him to attack. On April 3rd my subs detected a TF headed towards Pt Blair so I ordered them in and caught him red handed. Unfortunately for me he had a heavy cruiser in the covering force Night Time Surface Combat, near Port Blair at 46,58, Range 5,000 Yards Japanese Ships CA Mogami CL Sendai, Shell hits 3 DD Oyashio DD Akatsuki DD Usugumo, Shell hits 1 DD Shirayuki DD Hatsuyuki DD Yugiri Allied Ships CL Durban CL Dauntless CL Ceres CL Marblehead CL Caledon, Shell hits 1 CL Colombo, Shell hits 3, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage DD Decoy, Shell hits 2, on fire DD Express DD Fortune, Shell hits 2, on fire Colombo sank and the rest withdrew to the north. Heavier units are inbound but now he knows I am contesting, land based air will be a problem. To add insult to injury the following happened off Calcutta the same turn ASW attack near Diamond Harbour at 50,39 Japanese Ships SS I-154 Allied Ships CL Capetown, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage AMC Pansy xAKL Sarpen xAKL Elout xAKL Tatung xAKL Ipoh xAKL Oklahoman PG Lawrence The Capetown also sank so 2 CL's lost in one turn. Over on the Fiji front, KB or part thereof still lurks around Auckland but is still inhibited by storms. On of my troop convoys made it to Wellington and had discharged all the heavy equipment for 4 regiments. Just need the troops now. I know his carriers are in the south so I am refitting a lot of units at Pearl while I can. Many DD's, CA's and CV's undergoing their April upgrades with radars and better ASW. Should all help. In the air. On the Burma front we have reoccupied Chittagong air base and beat up a Japanese fighter sweep claiming 11 Oscars for the loss of 3. We also sent a strong fighter and bomber attack in on Cox's Bazar covering an infantry battalion that is conducting a recon there. Looks like he is pretty weak and is only holding it with a small force which we plaster and kill a few more Oscars but lose some Blenheims as well. In Fiji heavy Japanese air raids on Vava'u force us to evacuate the remnants of the fighter squadron we have there. Doesn't look good for the garrison if he decides to attack. On the ground. In the DEI he assaults and captures Batavia. Our main force is at Bandoeng and so far he is content to just invest it and bombard. Its dug in to level 4 in the mountains so hopefully can hang on for a bit. Tilatjap also falls. In China he has withdrawn a large part of his force that attacked up the dirt road west of Sian and has moved them back to confront my flanking force. I have got myself in a difficult position here as I am surrounded on 5 sides by red hexsides and have enemy troops in the only hex with a green hexside. I am moving tropps to remedy this sitiation but it takes 12~14 days to move 1 hex. Meantime he is bombarding me and reducing my supplies. If I cant open up another hexside I will be surrounded in the hex and potentially surrender. A picture is below to explain the dilema.This is my inexperience at play here and I can only hope a unit from the hex to the SW can get into the empty hex to the north quickly enough to save the day. In Burma, my recon battalion assaults and recaptures Cox's Bazar against limited opposition. In Australia, 7th Div has unloaded at Perth and the CMF divisions are filling out and increasing in troop quaility. If I can get the US troops into NZ my rear position will be stronger now. Quiet period at the moment as I try to recover from the Fiji campaign and avert problems in China. I am getting the sense they are close to declaring their opening campaign over but this may be wishful thinking. My mind is starting to turn to counter attack. I am still a few months away, but want to get a position set up where I can use land based air to grind him down and attrit his air forces. Regards Andrew [image]local://upfiles/6730/C3B118248FDD4B3BAF430E8CADC0EC1A.jpg[/image]

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