Wild Sheep Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (Full Version)

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obvert -> Wild Sheep Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/16/2011 7:23:56 PM)

obvert vs JocMeister

This is an unusual beginning, as our mutual opponent, Dan Nichols, has fallen ill and is at this time unable to continue the respective games. We've decided to begin this, and I hope Dan will return to playing shape at some point soon and resume that game as well.

Scenario 1

This will be a new challenge for me. I was playing Scen 2, and had gotten quite used to the OOB and what it might mean for my strategic considerations. This will be very different and will make me really focus on the economy and the best use of the slimmer resources available.

Settings and HRs

FOW ON
advanced Weather OFF
Allied damage control ON
PDU ON
historical first turn OFF
Dec 7 surprise ON
reliable USN torps OFF
realistic R&D ON
no unit withdrawels OFF

combat reports ON
auto sub ops OFF
TF move radius ON
plane move radius ON
facilities expand OFF
auto upgrade ships and airgroups OFF
auto air and ground replacements OFF

turn cycle 1 TURN

No Allied 4E naval bombing below 10,000ft (except for NAVY 4Es)
No Night bombing at less than 50% moonlight
Max sweep and CAP are at second best manouver band.
PPs to be paid to change a restricted unit to an unrestricted command before marching accross a border.
Thai units can move into the Burma and Malaya
no Strategic bombing in China by either side for the entire war.
No Allied Air or naval units in Russia are allowed, even if Russia is activated.
Allies can only give orders to existing TFs on turn 1. Force Z may be re-directed.

We also added that Chineseunits can be given orders on the first turn.
One CV portstrike on turn 1
No invasions or paradrops on hexes that doesn´t contain a dot or base.





obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/16/2011 7:30:46 PM)

As part of this AAR I'm planning to continue the idea of following units through the war. As I made some blunders early in that one, one of them involving the loss of the I-25 on Dec 9th, I'll begin again with the same ones as during the last game. I plan to update something about them about once a week game time.

Units to watch throughout the War

In addition to giving information about strategic planning and tactical engagements, throughout the course of this AAR I will attempt to follow certain units of different types through their various deployments and actions. Some of the units I have chosen have some kind of significance to my experience, and I will try to explain some of that below.

I may choose some others later as well, as I see how this goes.

DD Shiranui

This ship has special significance to me because it is largely the reason I am playing the game at all. At the invitation of my girlfriend, who lived in Dorking, Surrey at the time, I went into a small modeling shop, Dorking Models.

http://www.dorkingmodels.com/

I was immediately charmed by the throwback look of the shop, with piles of kits balanced on every counter, and many finished display models sitting and hanging everywhere. I had made a bunch of 1/700 series waterline kits of WW2 ships as a kid, and this brought me right back into the passion I felt then about the war. My girlfriend encouraged me to find a kit and buy it. I scanned the stack of ships and saw shoved at the top of a pile the Shiranui.

I had been reading a book about Japan, ‘1,000 Autumns of Jacob De Zoet’ by David Mitchell, (a great read) which features a Mt. Shiranui. I had been intrigued by the name, and looked up the meaning. Shiranui apparently is a Japanese name for the elusive flames that appear in swamps we call will-o-the-wisp.

From Wikipedia

A will-o'-the-wisp /ˌwɪl ə ðə ˈwɪsp/ or ignis fatuus ( /ˌɪɡnɨs ˈfætʃuːəs/; Medieval Latin: "foolish fire"), also called a "will-o'-wisp", "jack-o'-lantern" (or "jack-o'-the-lantern"), "hinkypunk", "ghost-light", "spook-light", "fairy light", "friar's lantern", "hobby lantern", "corpse candle", "orb", or simply "wisp", is a ghostly light or lights sometimes seen at night or twilight over bogs, swamps, and marshes. It resembles a flickering lamp and is sometimes said to recede if approached. Much traditional, non-scientific belief surrounds the phenomenon, giving rise to the wide variety of names.

Without getting too deep, this seemed interesting to me as a metaphor of my memory of childhood, and the vague flickering of images as I recalled afternoons riding my bike down to the model shop, evenings bent over a pile of disarranged plastic sitting in front of the TV watching Hogan’s Heroes, and the moment many years later when I blew the entire fleet apart using an air riffle and a few packs of leftover firecrackers.

In ITRW Shiranui lasted until late 1944, when she was sunk by aircraft shortly after the Battle of Leyte Gulf. She went down near Iliolo.

Her captain is CDR Akazawa, Shizuo.


xAK Oregon Maru

(Possible conversion to AKV or AKE)

This ship will be followed simply because I was born in Portland, OR. I lived there until age 28, when I moved to Seattle, WA.

Hopefully the game version will not meet the same early fate as its WW2 namesake.

On November 17th, 1942, U. S. submarine Salmon (SS-182), attacks a Japanese convoy off the west coast of Luzon and sinks repair ship Oregon Maru, 65 miles northwest of Manila, 14°16´N, 119°44´E.

http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?138888

The ship will be captained by CPT Nasu, U.


I-25

This ship also has something to do with OR. I will not be recreating this scenario, however. Too bad about the backstop, and ironic considering that the Japanese also play and revere baseball.

From Wikipedia

Bombardment of Fort Stevens

In what became the only attack on a mainland American military installation during World War II, the Japanese submarine I-25, under the command of Tagami Meiji, surfaced near the mouth of the Columbia River, Oregon on the night of June 21 and June 22, 1942, and fired shells toward Fort Stevens. The only damage officially recorded was to a baseball field's backstop. Probably the most significant damage was a shell that damaged some large phone cables. The Fort Stevens gunners were refused permission to return fire, since it would have helped the Japanese locate their target more accurately. American aircraft on training flights spotted the submarine, which was subsequently attacked by a US bomber, but escaped.

Lookout Air Raids

Main article: Lookout Air Raids

The Lookout Air Raids occurred on September 9, 1942. The first and only aerial bombing of mainland America by a foreign power occurred when an attempt to start a forest fire was made by a Japanese Yokosuka E14Y1 "Glen" seaplane dropping two 80 kg (180 lb) incendiary bombs over Mount Emily, near Brookings, Oregon. The seaplane, piloted by Nobuo Fujita, had been launched from the Japanese submarine aircraft carrier I-25. No significant damage was officially reported following the attack, nor after a repeat attempt on September 29.

Glens don’t seem to have the same payload capabilities in AE, unfortunately.

A really interesting development had to do with the pilot of the Glen.

Twenty years later, the floatplane's pilot, Nobuo Fujita, was invited back to Brookings, and served as Grand Marshal for the local Azalea Festival.[1] At the festival, Fujita presented his family's 400-year old samurai sword to the city as a symbol of regret. Fujita made a number of visits to Brookings until the end of the century, serving as an "informal ambassador of peace and friendship".[2] Fujita died in 1997, the same year Brookings made him an honorary citizen.

I tried to find this pilot in the replacement pool, but he wasn’t there. If I locate him on another sub I’ll put him onto I-25, assuming he doesn’t suck.

Also, I couldn’t find the listed captain, Tagami Meiji, either. Not that important at all, just thought it might be fun to have them on there.

The current captain of I-25 is CDR Sagara, K.


AMC Hokoku Maru

(The word hōkoku, when written 報国, means "devotion to the country".)

I am a photographer and teacher of photography and film. While looking at AMCs I was surprised to learn that Hokoku was also the name of a pre-war Japanese camera type, a 4.5 x 6 inch folder camera.

http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Hokoku

I am fascinated by the idea of these merchant raiders during WW2, and find the multiple roles they played throughout the war to be worthy of documenting.

Captain Koh, A.


Tainan Ku S-1

I will follow the Tainan fighter group. I chose this group because it produced so many of Japan’s early aces, including Saboro Sakai. Since the developers have been so studious and included Sakai and other aces in the group, I’ll try to keep them active and alive and report on their exploits.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tainan_Air_Group

The group’s current leader is LT Shingo, H.


14th Tank Regiment

I want to follow at least one land unit, but I couldn’t decide how to pick one of significance. I chose the 14th Tank Regiment simply because my birthday fell on the 14th of October.

The group’s leader is LTC Aizawa, Takhuji.


Nagato Maru

One of my favorite feats of WW2 is the Doolittle Raid on Japan. Until reading more recently, I had no idea so many IJN boats were out there as patrol ‘picket’ boats protecting the approaches to the Home Islands.

The Nagato Maru was one of the unfortunate ones to be damaged by air attack and subsequently sunk by USS Nashville.

Halsey-Doolittle Raid: TF 16 (Vice Admiral William F. Halsey Jr.), formed around carriers Enterprise (CV-6) and Hornet (CV-8), approaches to within 650 miles of Japan. Discovery by Japanese guardboat No.23 Nitto Maru compels Vice Admiral Halsey to order Hornet to launch 16 USAAF B-25s (Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle) earlier than planned.

SBDs (VB 3, VB 6) and F4Fs (VF 6) from Enterprise, meanwhile, attack Japanese guardboats ("picket" boats) encountered near TF 16, damaging armed merchant cruiser Awata Maru and guardboats Chokyu Maru, No.1 Iwate Maru, No.2 Asami Maru, Kaijin Maru, No.3 Chinyo Maru, Eikichi Maru, Kowa Maru, and No.26 Nanshin Maru. Guardboats No.23 Nitto Maru and Nagato Maru, also damaged by SBDs and F4Fs from Enterprise, are sunk by gunfire of light cruiser Nashville (CL-43) (see 19 April).

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/USN-Chron/USN-Chron-1942.html

The Ansyu-C Cargo Class Nagato Maru can and will be converted to a PB.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/16/2011 9:32:01 PM)

I'm looking forward to this one too, obvert, especially how you manage the Japanese economy in scenario 1.

Nobuo Fujita can't be too bad. He survived the war as a Glen pilot.



PaxMondo -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 1:19:50 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Mike Solli

I'm looking forward to this one too, obvert, especially how you manage the Japanese economy in scenario 1.

+1

Banzai!!



Erkki -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 1:23:44 PM)

I'll be following. [;)]



JocMeister -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 3:49:26 PM)

As Erik wrote this game came toghether by some sad events. I really hope Dan will recover as soon as possible!

Luckely Erik and I seem to share the same philosophy on what we want from the game. Erik summed it up perfectly with this sentence "I guess I would say I like things to be historically plausible, but I do play the game, not simulate the war."

I´m feeling almost like a coward asking for Scenario 1. But this will be my first PBEM and I am bound to make mistakes, so I was afraid playing Scenario 2 would make it to hard. Hopefully Scenario 1 will make it more or less even up to the end. Any game would quickly become boring for both parties if it was to onesided I think.

I´m intrigued by the prospect of playing a human and I´m really looking forward to this game. Playing the AI you always knew what to expect, its opening moves and objectives. This feels more like playing chess blindfolded! When I was thinking of a general goal for myself the only one I came up with was: "Don´t loose the war!" Hopefully I can manage that! [:)]

With that I wish you the best of luck!



Erkki -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 4:10:26 PM)

Too many Eriks on this forum. [sm=00000030.gif]



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 5:32:23 PM)

quote:

I'm looking forward to this one too, obvert, especially how you manage the Japanese economy in scenario 1.

Nobuo Fujita can't be too bad. He survived the war as a Glen pilot.


Thanks Mike. I just got Tracker running, so I might stand a chance to keep the factories churning now. I'll try to do a post tomorrow about some new ideas and strategies.




obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 5:37:41 PM)

quote:

As Erik wrote this game came toghether by some sad events. I really hope Dan will recover as soon as possible!

Luckely Erik and I seem to share the same philosophy on what we want from the game. Erik summed it up perfectly with this sentence "I guess I would say I like things to be historically plausible, but I do play the game, not simulate the war."

I´m feeling almost like a coward asking for Scenario 1. But this will be my first PBEM and I am bound to make mistakes, so I was afraid playing Scenario 2 would make it to hard. Hopefully Scenario 1 will make it more or less even up to the end. Any game would quickly become boring for both parties if it was to onesided I think.

I´m intrigued by the prospect of playing a human and I´m really looking forward to this game. Playing the AI you always knew what to expect, its opening moves and objectives. This feels more like playing chess blindfolded! When I was thinking of a general goal for myself the only one I came up with was: "Don´t loose the war!" Hopefully I can manage that!

With that I wish you the best of luck!


Thanks for the kind words Jocke. It does get more exciting in a PBEM when you suddenly realize you can no longer predict the next counter your opponent will throw at you. Don't feel bad for Scen 1, as I should feel like a coward for wanting all the toys that Scen 2 has to offer. I think you'll be fine with your general goal, I just hope to push you to the end!

A vitual handshake!



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/17/2011 6:44:54 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: obvert

quote:

I'm looking forward to this one too, obvert, especially how you manage the Japanese economy in scenario 1.

Nobuo Fujita can't be too bad. He survived the war as a Glen pilot.


Thanks Mike. I just got Tracker running, so I might stand a chance to keep the factories churning now. I'll try to do a post tomorrow about some new ideas and strategies.




The one thing that has kept me out of economic hot water was to go slow. It's a long game and you don't have to do everything at once. I kept close track of supply in Honshu and made sure it was constantly on the increase. I went so far as to allocate supply monthly for production increase and stuck to it. It made me prioritize production and most importantly, go slow.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 1:36:50 PM)

Strategy - What is possible in Scen 1?

After looking through the scenario for a while, I noticed some critical differences that could change my strategic outlook for this game compared to Scen 2.

First, the levels of all critical components to run Japanese industry are lower. This means special emphasis must be placed on tracking the economy and use of supply, resources and fuel. Getting a hold of the SRA early is that much more important.

Secondly, air frame production wil be more limited, plus I believe there are not as many training groups. (Is this correct?). Saturation seems the key to early success, but also to future defense. I think this will hurt more later in the war.

Thirdly, fewer ground units. This will potentially alter my plans the most. Or shall I say make them less viable.

Strategy

Is it possible in Scen 1 to take China out of the war? This was a primary goal in Scen 2, but now with fewer units, I am doubting this approach. Does anyone have experience with this or know of a good example in an AAR where Japan at least caused some serious problems in China using Scen 1?

Tactics - Dec 7

Based on my experience during the opening week of my game with Dan Nichols, I am altering the process a bit for the first invasions. I think Jocke is well aware both of the early successes (Sinkaweng turn 1) and the blunders (Ambon invasion) from my last attempt.

This time I am unloading ALL Babeldaob amphib TFs and I'm going to reload with better TF composition and move in a few days. Instead a Fast Transport will load an SNLF to take Ternate, the Batan Island force will go turn 1 to Sorong, (and depart quickly after the unload), and more small Fast Transport TFs will take small bases in this area of the Eastern DEI to set up air patrols right away. I want to see what's coming before I send a force to Ambon. This will still be the next phase, but more prepared and better supported. Guam I will be taken by another Guard unit from Babeldaob, but not first turn.

This time we will go for Kuching in case Force Z or a few cruisers are sitting on Sinkaweng based no the first move last game. We will bring enough to then swing around supported by air at Kuching to try for Singkaweng, still during week 1. The Miri invasion force will go forth and will be supported by the Ryujo TF that is coming from Babeldaob and hunting for ships on the way through the Celebes and Sulu Sea. We want to update to Zeros and re-size right away after this.

Wake and Tarawa will unload and then reload with better TF composition, using both units for Wake once we're sure the US CVs have cleared out. The Makin force will go to Tarawa. The Guam force will go for Rabaul.

If you see any major concerns or issues with these ideas let me know, please. I'm still very new to this and trying to tweak it to work best and keep up the momentum after the first week.





PaxMondo -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 1:51:57 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: obvert

Strategy - What is possible in Scen 1?

After looking through the scenario for a while, I noticed some critical differences that could change my strategic outlook for this game compared to Scen 2.

First, the levels of all critical components to run Japanese industry are lower. This means special emphasis must be placed on tracking the economy and use of supply, resources and fuel. Getting a hold of the SRA early is that much more important.

Secondly, air frame production wil be more limited, plus I believe there are not as many training groups. (Is this correct?). Saturation seems the key to early success, but also to future defense. I think this will hurt more later in the war.

Thirdly, fewer ground units. This will potentially alter my plans the most. Or shall I say make them less viable.


Largely concur with your assessment.

As both Mike and I have stated previously; the economy management in Scen 1 is more challenging. Haphazard expansion will crash the economy in early '42. You need to get your convoys up and running in short order. And as you note, you cannot wildly expand your air production.

On the flip side, I note that many IJ players expand far more than they ever end up using. Look at your previous games critically to see where your usage and your pools don't align (pools increased rapidly and you ended up turning off production).

I haven't done a detailed analysis between Scen 1 & 2 for air groups and LCU's.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 2:13:45 PM)

I agree with Pax. I want to stress that you must be very critical of your air expansion. For every airframe you will need 1-4 engines as well. Of the three items you discussed in your strategy section, I think the third is the most telling initially. There is definitely a shortage of infantry to do all you want to do. The problem I run into is that if the Allied garrison is not destroyed, you need to leave a garrison in place so the Allied remnants don't move back into the base. That ends up eating up all the small units in short order.

I agree with Pax's comments on moving stuff back to Japan. Figure out where you want to move the stuff and get the shipping in place early so you can move it as soon as the base is taken and the enemy threat in the area is neutralized. I recommend not moving oil or fuel from China/Manchuoko/Korea (C/M/K). It is going to be needed there. You can move the resources starting on 7 Dec though. You have a nice surplus and Honshu will need it (as you very well know).

I can't comment on the differences between the scenarios because I opened scenario 2 once for only a few minutes. The only experience I have is from reading AARs.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 3:33:01 PM)

Thanks guys. Yes. Be careful.

My initial air production is as follows. Is this too much? I have not finished turn 1 so I could go back and re-do this.

56 (35) - A6M2 zero

0 (40) - B5N2 kate

12 (28) - D3A1 val

27 (13) - E13A1 jake

9 (1) - E14Y1 glen

22 (0)- G3M2 nell

25 (0)- G4M1 Betty

6 (6) - H6K4 mavis

0 (17) - Ki-21-Ic sally

23 (27) - Ki-21-IIa sally

33 (27) - Ki-43-Ic oscar

11 (10) - Ki-46-II dinah

34 (0) - Ki-48-Ib lily

2 (14) - Ki-56 thalia

0 (12) - L3Y2 tina

The Lily factory will most likely become Oscars after a month or so, and the Ki-21-Ic will go until the engines run out.

R n D is expanded up to around 800. Is this okay or have I gone too far?












Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 3:53:54 PM)

Here's my take on it:

A6M2 - I usually bump it to 100. My next game I'm planning on increasing to ~120. That's mainly to replace the Claudes as fast as possible.

Kate, Val and Jake - ok

Glen - Someone had a great idea with the Glen. It uses the Hitachi Amakaze engine. Nothing else worthwhile uses it (in my opinion) and the other aircraft that do use that engine don't come out until 1944-5. So, if you want to build any of them, you have plenty of time to produce more engines. Anyway, I used to build the Glen off and on as needed (~10 in the pool). Now, I'm going to build the Glen factory to ~12 and produce until the engines are gone and then convert both factories. That should be enough Glens for the war.

Betty & Nell - ok for now. You'll need more later.

Mavis - Ok. I recommend converting this to something else when the Emily comes out and focus only on the Emily.

Ki-21-Ic - I use the Ha-5 engine on the Ki-57-I and use this as my primary transport until the Ki-57-II comes out. To me it seems like a waste of resources to build up this Sally factory for a short time.

Ki-27-IIa - Should be ok. You need to decide what you are going to build concerning the Sally, Helen and Lily.

Oscar - You will need more. I'm going to build ~128. I'll increase the Oscar factory by 32 and convert the Sonia and large Nate making them each 32. In about a month's time, I'll have 128 so I can replace all the Nate units with Oscars by the end of Jan or so.

Dinah - ok

Lily - See the Sally discussion above.

Thalia - Why this transport? My thought is to use the Ki-57-I and upgrade it for free to the Ki-57-II and convert the Thalia to the Tina.

Tina - ok

Just my thoughts.....




SqzMyLemon -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:14:30 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Mike Solli

Thalia - Why this transport? My thought is to use the Ki-57-I and upgrade it for free to the Ki-57-II and convert the Thalia to the Tina.


I know the Thalia's load is less than the Topsy, but I like the one hex further range of the Thalia. I don't know how many times I've come up a hex short when trying to transport units/supplies. For that reason alone I like the Thalia over the Topsy. I never thought of still producing the Tina though, I switched over it's factory early on.

I agree with Mike, more Oscar production. It will be your main fighter for 3/4 of 1942. If you are anticipating a lot of combat, you'll need to produce them in decent numbers to replace losses and upgrade Nate units quickly.

I just love the flexibility that PDU on allows a Japanese player, you can really customize your air force to meet your needs and suit your style of play.

Good luck. JFB's are always willing to offer advice and we all need to stick together, if for nothing else the morale boost needed at times. [:D]



PaxMondo -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:31:53 PM)

Agree with all of Mike's thoughts.

Dinah ... I don't produce that many. It's an expensive plane (2E) and I don't lose that many. Not a big deal, but it's another 10K supply you're committing. These are the little things that I feel you need to watch in Scen 1.

Don't forget to start the IJN Babs .... you don't have a factory for it to start and you will need a few (6?) replacements along the way.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:37:50 PM)

Welcome SqzMyLemon. I had the same thought after last game needing to move the one Thalia unit around to get that extra hex a few times. I usually do build the Topsy and completely forgot about the free upgrade, Mike. Hmm. I'll have to consider this. I could just eat the loss and convert to Topsy-II when it arrives as it is a small factory.

This is exactly the kind of thing I need to consider. Thanks guys. I was trying to be conservative. My instinct is to have the A6Ms at 110-120, but I was afraid to jump too soon. Glad this is a good ballpark.

For Oscars I would normally shoot for above 100 right off the bat but I thought I might want a few more Lily this game for ASW and the small groups in China to start off. So get a month out of it and then change it over to Oscars to get them around 100-110.

With the Sally-Ic it seemed useful to have more and use up those engines if I was committing to the Thalia. I thought it might save me from over-producing the Sally-IIA before the Helen comes and I move over to that.

I thought of keeping Tina on until the Mavis-L can be made so that large long-range group can stay in action and also to supplement the units with Mavis-L should I lose some of them early. I kept some Tinas on last game but still struggled to keep that group full producing 6/month.



Erkki -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:46:55 PM)

For example you can use Ki-56s to invade Port Blair with paratroopers - but Ki-57's range is a hex short(from Bangkok). [;)]



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:48:22 PM)

quote:

Agree with all of Mike's thoughts.

Dinah ... I don't produce that many. It's an expensive plane (2E) and I don't lose that many. Not a big deal, but it's another 10K supply you're committing. These are the little things that I feel you need to watch in Scen 1.

Don't forget to start the IJN Babs .... you don't have a factory for it to start and you will need a few (6?) replacements along the way.

_____________________________

Pax


Hmmm, again. I know the Dinah costs more, and there are a lot of almost as good Babs hanging around. I just thought that if I put it on this level and left it this would pretty much work throughout. The Topsy-II and later Nick KAIc use this engine, so I could turn it off if need be, but yes, that would still lose the initial build costs.

For the IJN Babs I've never built these. Should I? I'm out of factory slots, so I'd have to lose either speed building up Zeros, Sally IIa and Oscars (2 factories each), or change out something else. Maybe I could build some after building up the Tina pools for a few months.




obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:50:32 PM)

quote:

For example you can use Ki-56s to invade Port Blair with paratroopers - but Ki-57's range is a hex short(from Bangkok).


That was the critical decision for me! And it worked out well. Plan on it again this game, unless he does something big there which I wouldn't expect.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:52:49 PM)

Here's something else to consider. I'll post my thoughts on airframe factory conversions:

F1M2 to H6K2-L (6) - Still pondering this one. You don't need many, but they do die from op losses....

Ki-27b (large factory) to Ki-32-Ic - discussed above

Ki-27b (small factory) to B5N1 - Nice plane. Many people prefer this to the B5N2. My thought is to build the factory to 12-15 and build them until the engines are gone (99 Nakajima Hikari). Only the Susie and Jean use that engine.

Ki-36 to the A6M2.

Ki-51 to the Ki-43-Ic.

Ki-56 to the L3Y2.


Also, the Hitachi Early (40) and Nakajima Kotobuki (25) engine factories are available for conversion.

There are 254 Nakajima Kotobuki engines in the pool. They are used only for the Claude, Dave and Nate. Some people build some Nates with them. I write these engines off. No more Nates for me. There are plenty for the training Sentai. One argument is that the Nates will be needed for replacements for the initial frontline Nate Sentai. I disagree. Build up the Oscar factories quickly (~128 within a month) and upgrade the Nates as you can. Use those Nates for replacements. If you use the Nates wisely, you shouldn't lose too many.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 4:55:07 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Erkki

For example you can use Ki-56s to invade Port Blair with paratroopers - but Ki-57's range is a hex short(from Bangkok). [;)]



I use the Tina -or- fly them from Victoria Pt.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 5:01:52 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: obvert

Hmmm, again. I know the Dinah costs more, and there are a lot of almost as good Babs hanging around. I just thought that if I put it on this level and left it this would pretty much work throughout. The Topsy-II and later Nick KAIc use this engine, so I could turn it off if need be, but yes, that would still lose the initial build costs.

For the IJN Babs I've never built these. Should I? I'm out of factory slots, so I'd have to lose either speed building up Zeros, Sally IIa and Oscars (2 factories each), or change out something else. Maybe I could build some after building up the Tina pools for a few months.




Pax is right about the Dinah II. They are expensive and the Dinah I and Babs can function quite well in the recon role.

I would have only 1 Sally IIa factory, freeing one up.

I also forgot to mention the C5M2. My thought is to build out the B5N1s as quickly as I can and convert this factory to the C5M2. That is a concern of mine though. You only have a handful in the pool (7 I believe plus a couple reserve in one of the chutai). There are only 3 chutai of them but you don't get the Irving until November, 42. You will need some. I may increase the B5N1 to ~20-24 to build them out in ~5 months. Tough decision.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 5:02:02 PM)

I'll have to go back through all of this and see what to do.

How critical is the supply issue in Scen 1? I usually just feel that I can send supply out in bulk early on to get things rolling everywhere. I really pump some into China usually to try to heal everything and be able to build forts and airfields up there.

Do I have to limit this?



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 5:05:04 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: obvert

For the IJN Babs I've never built these. Should I? I'm out of factory slots, so I'd have to lose either speed building up Zeros, Sally IIa and Oscars (2 factories each), or change out something else. Maybe I could build some after building up the Tina pools for a few months.



Keep in mind that you begin the war with a 27 plane Tina daitai (starts with 25 aircraft) so you start out in the hole. You won't lose many but it's your longest ranged transport so it's nice to have it available for those long range missions.



Mike Solli -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 5:16:12 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: obvert

I'll have to go back through all of this and see what to do.

How critical is the supply issue in Scen 1? I usually just feel that I can send supply out in bulk early on to get things rolling everywhere. I really pump some into China usually to try to heal everything and be able to build forts and airfields up there.

Do I have to limit this?


I track supply daily. If you're conservative with your expansion, you shouldn't have a problem. Honshu produces 567k supply a month. I figure that no more than ~300k can be used for "stuff" a month. I'll allocate that 300k to various things to include, expansion, DEI oil center repairs, supplying the offensives, etc. I usually don't send any supply to China for the first few months at least. That's not my priority. First and foremost, the SRA needs to be liberated. China does what it can with what it has. I will push ~200k west at first opportunity. You'll need 150k minimum (over a 5 month period) to repair the Miri oil fields. So, Miri gets 30k of the 300k every month for the first 5 months. About 150k of the initial 200k push goes to Malaya. I have a plan to conquer Singapore by late January (ok, it's wishful thinking) but it will need additional supply.

Ok, so 300k is allocated for Dec 41 and 200k gets pushed west. That leaves 100k for all expansion for Dec 41. You take it from there. I actually keep record of my expenditures so I don't go overboard. I'll list what I want to do and prioritize it. When I run out of allocated supply, I'm done for the month. That's also why I usually expand just enough for that month. Why waste supply on expansion that is going to just sit until the next month to execute. After Dec 41, I usually reduce what I allocate for expansion to ~50k. I'd rather err on the side of caution. I've seen too many Japanese players implode their economy by Spring of 42.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/18/2011 6:12:47 PM)

Right. That is very good info. Tracker will help this time, although I think I did do well with the convoy system and use of resources and supply during the last game. I was building HI steadily at over 3,000 a month with armaments still on, (and I had a goal to switch off at 40,000 in the pool). My supply was growing in the Home Islands, even with the China dumps. I did push a bunch into Malaya as well, but hadn't started work on Miri yet. Now I know that will be more of a priority here in Scen 1.

I push a lot of supply into Babeldaob and throw all ships and units for use after a base is conquered so it's all read to go. A bunch of construction units go there on their way elsewhere and build it up quick as well.

In Japan I'll only build ports for convoy use. There is enough of everything else until later.

I'm really looking forward to this now. I think it will be a fun challenge after getting my feet wet with the easier system.



PaxMondo -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/19/2011 10:41:34 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Mike Solli

I track supply daily. ... I'd rather err on the side of caution. I've seen too many Japanese players implode their economy by Spring of 42.

+1

Particularly in Scen 1. Over expansion of your a/c factories will cause delays in your empire expansion during your Amphib bonus phase ... you can't afford that.



obvert -> RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A) (11/20/2011 6:56:16 PM)

Philippine Islands

During the recent suspended game with Dan the focus was a quick and massive allocation of force to Malaya to take Singapore. We went in with around 3,900 AV and it looked to be about to crack through in late January. Palembang was also taken fairly early, and the PI were left battling in a stalemate at Clark with the hope of coming back for that part later.

To change things up, throw a little curveball, I was wondering about using the two divisions starting in Japan and the one in Singapore on Luzon. This might give 2,650 AV for Luzon. The question is, could we take it quickly with that much, by mid-to-late December, and get those units into the battle for Singapore by mid-January, hoping to take it just after the middle of February? Is this wishful thinking? Would it require the 38th from Hong Kong as well, which I'd hoped to use for Palembang in mid-December?

I don't want to get stuck in the PI with all of those troops until the end of Feb, but it seems if we brought enough we could take it out quickly before forts were built, then have extra units to use all over the DEI, including on Malaya. It's a big risk, but it could have a great pay-off if it works.

Then again, the PI are really not tenable for the Allies no matter what we do, so we could again attempt to contain with what is originally allocated and push all other units into Malaya and Palembang.

Any thoughts?



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