RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (Full Version)

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jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 12:22:57 PM)

Too bad about Horn Island. [:(] Here's to hoping you get Milne Bay and Tagula under control quickly.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 3:39:42 PM)

Yes. I'm afraid that my opponent's victory might help him decide to counter-attack those landings also. I am moving to reinforce them as quickly as possible.

I had hoped to catch him unprepared at Horn Island, and he was, to some extent. But he rushed the navy there and saved the day. It could have gone either way. Nice work by my opponent.

I lose a brigade, but it's not the end of the world. I will now bomb his troops out of existence in the clear terrain. Keeping my footholds at Milne Bay, Tagula, and Rossel Islands are priority one.

It's been a fun couple of weeks. The kind of weeks we play this game for.



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 5:54:15 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: apbarog
I will now bomb his troops out of existence in the clear terrain.


In theory if you really do that you could then take Horn Island with paras, correct?



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 7:37:06 PM)

Yes, it's possible that a big para drop could take Horn Island after an extended bombing campaign. I could have sent paras to aid in the battle there, but I chose not to. My paras are prepped for something more important that will occur soon, hopefully.



Lowpe -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 8:25:30 PM)

Haven't checked in here in a while, but it is always fun to read both sides of an AAR.

Hididng BBs, lots of laughs![:D] Sometimes it is the only thing you can do...




apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 10:15:50 PM)

I used to be strongly opposed to disbanding ships in a size 0 port. In the "old" days, using recon you couldn't see any ships disbanded in a size 0 port. I'd house-rule myself on this. But after being told that wasn't the case anymore, I don't have a problem disbanding a badly damaged ship in any base. Idaho is badly hurt, and has zero chance of making it to safety moving 2 hexes a day from where it is. If the flotation damage doesn't get it, the many subs will, or the many Bettys/Nells in the area. Not to mention KB. I had no choice. I could have replaced the captain of BB Idaho with CINCUS and set sail and thrown it away. Instead, now it is essentially a gun platform beached on the shore waiting for the front to move on past. And that will be a long wait.

I will have a dilemma soon when the airfield at this base wants to go to a size 1. That will signal that I'm here, and it will be reconned and found. I do have troops here, it's just that they've never been seen. (As far as I know)

I do really want to get some air power into the area, but I don't want to give away Idaho's position either. Another game within the game.



BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/21/2015 10:24:33 PM)

If you don't need the airfield at that particular island yet, or are not ready to place air support there, why not stop just short of level 1 AF and start on the port? When it is time to make the island operational a level 1 port would be most helpful. It will even help BB Idaho repair the system damage a little faster, reducing the chances of runaway flooding.



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/22/2015 12:38:25 AM)

Well either a port or airfield will tip off the enemy if it is improved. But he could work on one or both up to around, say, 90% and leave it there until he is ready to make a public announcement to the Emperor. [;)]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/23/2015 6:41:33 AM)

28 Nov 42

At Horn Island, the enemy makes a probing artillery attack to see what is left of the Allied invaders. The answer is not much. There will be an attack tomorrow and the rest of the 13th Australian Brigade will be eliminated.

KB, or at least a large group of enemy carriers, is spotted at Rabaul. Hmmm, 9 hexes from Rabaul. That is still Kate range, with bombs, to Milne Bay.

Allied carriers will move next to Tagula Island and help protect transports moving to the island with an Aussie Brigade. A big reinforcement task force bound for Milne Bay will rendezvous with the carriers there, and move to Milne Bay afterwards.

The big news is that Milne Bay is captured. The enemy retreats northwest. It was interesting to see my mines appear in the replay when the enemy retreated to that hex.

Enemy mines are discovered to be at my new base, though. I am rushing minesweepers in today, and hopefully will have things cleared up by tomorrow, so that my reinforcement task force can head in. These reinforcements have the rest of most of the units that are there already. This will fill out the 2 Aussie Brigades that are there now.

More reinforcements for the region will be coming soon. I'm going to do what I can to hold what I've taken. I debated whether to move in fighters immmediately to Milne Bay. Supply is very low, and the airfield is just a level 1. I could be hit with big sweeps and/or bombings immediately. I could be naval bombarded. I decided to move in 2 fighter squadrons and hope for the best.

***********************************
Ground combat at Milne Bay (101,133)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 3324 troops, 57 guns, 61 vehicles, Assault Value = 190

Defending force 1607 troops, 12 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 28

Allied adjusted assault: 50

Japanese adjusted defense: 21

Allied assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 0)

Allied forces CAPTURE Milne Bay !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-), fatigue(-), experience(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
667 casualties reported
Squads: 8 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 21 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 2 (2 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units retreated 3

Allied ground losses:
58 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
23rd Australian Brigade
30th Australian Bde /1
2/9th Armoured Rgt /1
32nd Aus Lt AA Rgt /1
Katherine RAAF Base Force /1
A/B Hy Cst Arty
2nd US Naval Const Bn /1
2nd Port Advn Base Force /1

Defending units:
86th Naval Guard Unit
51st Const Co
4th Indpt SNLF Coy
***********************************

[image]local://upfiles/6549/C7071B043ABC412DB8DCF4E7BF174C2C.gif[/image]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/23/2015 12:43:13 PM)

Can you put your own mines at Milne Bay? That might discourage enemy bombardment at least. Granted the danger of air attack would still be present. I hope you can finish the job at Tagula as you just did at Milne Bay.



HansBolter -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/23/2015 12:56:45 PM)

Mines do very little to impede bombardments. The minefields are presumed to be focused around the harbor mouth and ships guns can hit the base from outside that perimeter.

Short of a counter surface combat TF to intercept, PT boats are one of the best mechanisms for impeding bombardments.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/24/2015 5:25:56 PM)

29 Nov 42

Submarine Barb spots a huge tanker convoy near Guam, launches torpedoes at an escorting patrol boat, and misses.

My DMS task forces sweep Milne Bay completely of mines.

Near Peleliu, sub Gunnel finds an AO with a DD, shoots at DD Hasu, and misses.

At Horn Island, the enemy attacks and eliminates a bunch of the 13th Australian Brigade. Then attrition wipes out the rest. The first battle of Horn Island is officially over.

My reinforcement landings at Tagula and Rossel Islands were not interfered with. I move my carriers slightly and continue to protect these landings. Also, my big Milne Bay reinforcement convoy leaves my carrier protection and heads to the base. I am hopeful that local CAP will protect the ships. I move a battleship group there also for protection.

It's tempting to run Idaho out of hiding and escort it south with my carriers. I may do so, after all of my reinforcements have landed.

KB was at Rabaul. It is not seen today.

There is a surface combat task force at Merauke again.

We exchanged turns early in the day today. I'm hoping for another turn before the end of the day.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/4FB8748A31684387A99D5D29404B42A0.gif[/image]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/24/2015 5:31:20 PM)

Well if it's any consolation, even if your sub captains had targeted the TK or AO ships, the torpedoes would most likely have been duds anyway. Nevertheless, a word about choice of target would be in order ... [:@] Looks like you should be able to clean out resistance at Tagula very soon. Good luck as you continue forward.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/24/2015 11:03:08 PM)

30 Nov 42

Some sub action. RO-61 fires at DMS Perry near Milne Bay, and misses. Saury fires at SC Ch 19 near Cagayan, and misses. Perch fires on RO-65 near Woodlark Island, and misses. RO-61 fires at CA Minneapolis near Milne Bay, and misses. Besides the cruiser, 2 destroyers are spotted by the enemy. A battleship is not seen in the combat report.

APD McKean finds an enemy minefield at Rossel Island.

Then something really odd happened.

3 squadrons of Zeros sweep Milne Bay, and absolutely destroy my Kittyhawks and P-40Es on CAP. The odd thing is that all of the enemy fighters arrived together. 68 A6M2s and 29 A6M3s, and they all were sweeping. I wish that I knew the secret to getting this type of coordination. I've read many threads about coordination, some recently, and what I've read says that coordination on sweeps is not possible. I could see in the replay that the fighters came from at least 2 bases: Rabaul and Buna/Lae. Here's the details:

***************
Morning Air attack on Milne Bay , at 101,133

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 108 NM, estimated altitude 23,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 35 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 68
A6M3 Zero x 29

Allied aircraft
Kittyhawk IA x 17
P-40E Warhawk x 22

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3 Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Kittyhawk IA: 7 destroyed
P-40E Warhawk: 4 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
29 x A6M2 Zero sweeping at 20000 feet *
31 x A6M2 Zero sweeping at 20000 feet
22 x A6M3 Zero sweeping at 20000 feet

CAP engaged:
No.75 Sqn RAAF with Kittyhawk IA (0 airborne, 7 on standby, 7 scrambling)
3 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters between 15000 and 21000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 21 minutes
51st FG/25th FS with P-40E Warhawk (0 airborne, 9 on standby, 10 scrambling)
3 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 20000 , scrambling fighters between 13000 and 25000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 36 minutes
*************************

I wonder if the * at the end of the line for the 29 Zeros sweeping means that the player correctly entered the secret code to make this possible. (Just kidding...)

I'm very interested to hear opinions about this. If I could have coordinated 100 fighters on sweep at Diamond Harbour, I would have cracked that defense in no time.


Now Milne Bay is very vulnerable to bombing. I may move my carriers over that way to help CAP. Not sure yet. There were no attacks on my ships unloading at Tagula, Rossel, or Milne Bay today.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/25/2015 8:06:27 PM)

1 Dec 42

I clear the mines at Rossel Island.

East of Darwin, Searaven fires 4 torpedoes at xAK Celebes Maru, which is either go or coming from Merauke. One torpedo hits but is a dud.

36 F4F-4s do a sweep of Buna. Their orders were escort, and the bombers did fly, but the fighters went on their on. This squadron was wrecked by 11 Zeros, 4 Oscars, and 13 Nicks.

At Horn Island, 16 Kittyhawks sweep against 12 Zeros, and the enemy squardron is wrecked.

About half of my Australian based B-17s bomb Port Moresby's airfield. There is no CAP, and interestingly, there is no flak either. Still show over 27000 men there though, in 7 units. Airfield damage is good.

My carrier aircraft strike Buna's airfield. 124 SBDs do only 4 airbase hits and 15 runway hits. The weather was thunderstorms unfortunately. No enemy planes are based at Buna, but Zeros, Oscars, and Nicks are flying there.

Total air losses for today are 31 F4F-4s(very bad), 3 SBDs, and 2 Kittyhawks, versus 12 Zeros, 7 Nicks, and 3 Oscars.

On Mindanao, the Japanese 4th Infantry Division attacks at Malaybalay. This division previously cleaned up Cebu. Malaybalay, however, is in the mountains, and the enemy has a tough time of it. My two medium sized Philippine units hold against a 1 to 2 attack. Forts stay at 2, and I'm still in supply. I recently, once again, moved a small unit and reliberated Butuan on the coast, gaining a little more supply and fuel. I've based a few subs in the area feeding off of this bonus fuel.

The enemy losses were 159, the Philippine losses were 110. Mindanao will be cleaned up eventually, but this may take the 4th some time.

At Tagula, the recently landed 5th Australian Brigade attacks, trying to eliminate the enemy paratroopers still hiding in the jungle. The attack is just 2 to 1, with the attackers not prepped properly for the location. It is interesting to note that the enemy is no longer out of supply. I'm sure that it is being air dropped. I don't have an airfield here or at adjacent Rossel Island yet, but I will before too long.

For today, I move my carriers south of Deboyne Island, where I decided to have badly damaged battleship Idaho make a run for home. Hoping for the best. Carriers will fly CAP, and I have ships on ASW helping out too.

Unloading continues at Milne Bay. Some ships head for home. The US 27th Infantry Division is loading at Noumea for the trip to Milne Bay. I won't feel like the base is secure until it arrives.

My badly damaged CVE passes Townsville on the way south. Sydney's repair yard is full of ships. Wasp is there, and will be for 2 months. A couple of heavy cruisers are repairing also, as well as a few other small ships and subs.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/A4125DBD5F464AEA8104A71FA8431A42.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/26/2015 2:49:34 AM)

2 Dec 42

During the night, I-35 spots a carrier task force (but doesn't see a carrier) and attacks DD Craven. 4 torpedoes miss. Then I-4 spots the same ships but doesn't get a shot off. In the same area, I-157 takes one good hit from DD Anderson. Then I-35 reattacks, and gets one torpedo hit on CLAA San Juan. Damage is moderately heavy. San Juan is split off with a destroyer and runs full speed for Australia. I-5, I-35, and I-7 then fire on small subchasers, getting no hits.

In the morning, the sweeps return to Milne Bay. This time the sweeps come in individually, and total losses are about even. Total losses for the day are 16 Zeros and 1 Oscar for 7 Hurris and 5 F4F-4s. Allied CAP once again evacuates Milne Bay. leaving lots of damaged planes on the ground.

At Rossel Island, 2 waves of Bettys attack with escort. There is no CAP. AM Cootamundra and small Dutch xAPs Van der Lign and Van Heemskerck are hit and sunk. 7 vehicles are lost. The transports were almost done unloading.

Back near Milne Bay, DD Ellet gets a good ASW hit on I-9.

I attack again on Tagula Island. Odds improve to 5-1. The enemy paras are being eliminated slowly.

BB Idaho left Deboyne Island, but only moved 1 hex and is spotted. Incredibly, Deboyne Island was reconned today for the first time! And I just left! With all of the ships in the area, the enemy may not realize that it is Idaho there. For today, I'm having my carriers follow Idaho to make sure they stay together. I hope that Idaho starts moving 2 hexes a day instead of 1, but it did just take a little more flotation damage, so the situation remains grim.

I did just unload a good amount of suppy at Milne Bay and Tagula Island. Rossel Island should become a level 1 airfield within a week.



[image]local://upfiles/6549/E35A2C6520E444F48B12F9C1BD0E3FF8.gif[/image]



BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/26/2015 3:51:51 AM)

IMO, it is not worth risking your CVs in that nest of subs to try to escort Idaho to safety. Losing Idaho would be painful, but losing a carrier would be much more so. If you have any CVEs, put them on the task. They were designed to fight subs while providing CAP.
If you decide to keep the CVs on that task, the least you should do is moving them around in a range of 1-3 hexes from Idaho so the enemy cannot concentrate subs on a single spot. You can provide ASW and LRCAP from 3 hexes.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/26/2015 4:10:24 AM)

Agreed BBfanboy. I'll be staying with Idaho for just a turn or two, just enough to get it a little more out of danger range. I do have a CVE coming up from Noumea for this task, but it'll be a few days till it gets there. 2 other damaged CVEs are repairing at Pearl Harbor. Another damaged one is going south along the Australian coast. So I don't have a lot of options.

Idaho will probably be lost, even if it isn't attacked. But I will try my best.

For each of those subs on the map, I'll bet there are 3 more that I don't see. Just about every hex has them. Most ships are headed home now. If I can just get my airfields built, I should be ok. I'll be able to do more ASW work then too. I did move one of those dirigible units to Rossel Island, and it started lighting up subs right away.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 1:09:38 AM)

3 Dec 42

Grayback fires 2 torpedoes at xAK Cheribon Maru near Kavieng. Both miss. The cargo ship is part of a big xAK task force, and includes 2 AKEs also. It is heading to Rabaul. Recent SigInt reported a new infantry division moving to the dot base next to Kavieng. I'm sure that was just a waypoint. Rabaul has lots of troops already. I fear that a counter-invasion is coming. KB had gone back to Truk and has had time to rearm and return.

Near Milne Bay, US subchasers get 3 good hits on I-121. They report "Underwater explosion, debris and oil appear on surface!" If it really was I-121, we can scratch one mine-laying sub.

At Milne Bay, 27 Zeros sweep, but find no CAP.

Near Emirau Island, Grayling is hit by a depth charge. Damage is moderate and the sub should make it home fine.

At Tagula Island, the 5th Australian Brigade attacks and gets a 116 to 1 attack versus what is left of the 1st Raiding Regiment. Enemy losses are heavy, and the rest of the enemy is wiped out by attrition.

Today, Rossel Island became a size 1 port and a size 1 airfield. Fighters are flown in for CAP. At Milne Bay, friendly fighters also return to fly CAP.

BB Idaho is doing its best to survive. It is now 3 hexes south of Milne Bay. It recently moved 1 hex in a day, then 2 hexes in a day. On both days, SYS and FLOT damage increased slightly, without any announcements of flooding. It is a race to the coast for survival now.

Allied carriers head to port and will leave Idaho behind. 2 destroyers are now with Idaho, and a subchaser group and 2 DMS groups doing ASW are trying to cut a path through the heavy enemy subs here.

I'm sending a cruiser and a few destroyers to bombard Horn Island. It isn't part of anything bigger, just trying to be a nuisance and maybe force some enemy ships to stay west of Horn to help protect it. Some B-26s will also bomb the airfield there.

Once my carriers refuel and rearm, they'll head back to the danger area to protect more incoming reinforcement task forces. I need more troops at Milne Bay and Rossel Island, and more is on the way.

My opponent is busy tomorrow so I won't be getting another turn until Thursday.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/E3362FF6E4564A6C98D5D493E62B3915.gif[/image]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 1:42:24 AM)

Good news that Tabula finally was taken. You'll need a miracle to get Idaho through all the enemy subs, even if the ship doesn't take any more flooding through natural means. The Japanese units coming into Rabaul might be for a counter invasion, or perhaps to reinforce the front line bases he already has. Or maybe both possibilities as long as he can, keeping his options open. I notice the Japanese survivors from Milne Bay appear to be moving to the NW again, though it would take them ages to get anywhere in that area.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:33:32 PM)

Area Summary

With a day or two pause in the game, I thought I'd summarize activities in a number of areas of the map.

The Aleutians

The enemy has been content to hold Attu. It has a few units, but nothing major. It definitely has search planes, and has occasionally had fighters. I had some B-24s up here and bombed Attu a couple of times, but it wasn't worth the wear and tear, and definitely not worth it against CAP. I've built up my bases well, I think. Adak is strongly held. Other bases are moderately held. Engineers are busy on all of my bases, digging in and expanding facilities.

There's no point in any offensive activities until the winter is over.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/845D749F7589450BAB7544F7817F4A8F.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:34:54 PM)

Burma

The Japanese have formed a strong line right along the India and Burma border. I feared a possible offensive when these units were moving north, but the enemy stopped and has sat in place, digging in, since then. I am quite happy with that.

I've kept a Brit infantry division in the jungle on the trail just south of Chittagong, with some armor. Another Brit division is at Chittagong. With my success at Diamond Harbour, a number of units were freed up and became my reserves.

The Japanese 1st Armored Division is in the jungle on the trail just east of Cox Bazar. Cox Bazar is strongly held, as is Akyab. When I swept and bombed Cox Bazar, a lot of fighters were encountered, but they weren't based there. Akyab shows over 70 fighters now.

So this area has been static for a long time.

I decided to pull out the 2 unrestricted Brit infantry divisions. Indian and Chinese units are taking their places. Other units are also being pulled from front-line duty, and are going into reserve and prepping for future activities.

My long term plan here is not to assault the enemy at the Burma frontier. I will be going around them. Whether this is a little hook, or a big hook, and when this may occur is still to be determined.

This area is not a priority.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/A4243706AF1D4C4EB5BA9F17DA06A4E7.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:35:53 PM)

China

This area has been completely static for many months, ever since Pakhoi and the area around Pakhoi was captured by the enemy. Absolutely quiet.

My supply situation has been stable. Chungking has had 15,000 supply consistently for months. At times I fly lots of C-47s in with supply. Then I rest the planes for extended periods.

All Chinese air units are in India training. Some have upgraded to better planes. A few Chinese squadrons are defending Calcutta and Ledo and gaining experience.

As long as China stays quiet, I am happy here.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/7D93A58118164346B5BEAB9504744361.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:36:48 PM)

The Gilberts

With my failure to take Tabiteuea, (and even land any troops to try), the Gilberts have been quiet. I will return to Tabiteuea and take it, but its at least a secondary objective. Next time I will do a carrier strike on Tarawa's port just before landing. I'm pretty sure that the cruisers and destroyers that were waiting for me at Tabiteuea were in Tarawa the day before, sitting as a regional reserve. It worked very well for the enemy. His 3 heavy cruisers and a few destroyers took out 2 of my (slow) battleships.

This area is not a priority for me.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/8BED8C87256C457F9F9DDB06902873E8.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:37:43 PM)

Northern Australia

Lately Darwin has been active, supplying ships and probably men for the actions at Horn Island and Merauke. From time to time, we played cat and mouse by Carnavon. I'd bring up a small xAKL task force to unload supply at Carnavon. It would get spotted. I'd leave, and a couple of turns later there would be destroyers up by Exmouth. This would coincide with Glen subs looking around at Perth.

This is a place that I could try to start retaking, and I'm sure that my opponent's actions show that he thought that this could be the case. But I have no immediate plans for Port Hedland and eastward. Anything I move here along the coast is just asking for an ambush. Koepang on Timor is a big enemy base, and has frequently shown activity on SigInt. Not so much lately, with commitments to New Guinea and the Solomons, but I think that an ambush was waiting for me.

Taking any of these base now would require constant resupply, and this would be interfered with. Not worth it, in my opinion.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/D01D4DA473B94778A85F62DC98B92F02.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:38:35 PM)

The Philippines

The Philippines? Why are we talking about the Philippines in December 1942? It's because the brave Philippino army still fights on Mindanao! The Japanese 4th Infantry Division recently moved into my inland mountain base and tried to take it, but failed. Casualties were about even, so if the enemy decides to accept taking moderate casualties, I'll be worn down and the base will fall. But as it is, it is a similar situation to what we did on Java, holding in the mountainous terrain.

The added fun here has been when I moved a small combat unit to Butuan and captured the unoccupied base. With that, I got a small bonus of supply and fuel. I've been able to keep a handful of subs in this area using that fuel. At Butuan, though, enemy bombers appeared and did major damage to my units in the clear terrain. So I moved them further northeast, and took that base too! It's in the jungle, so I thought I'd hole up there. The real purpose to all this guerilla warfare was that I have a base unit fragment that I'd like to evacuate. Unfortunately, I thought that any sub could load troops. I quickly learned that is not the case. Plan B is that Argonaut is in refit now, and in about a week, it will start heading this way to rescue that fragment.

Anyhow, after my small combat unit and fragment went to the northeast base, Butuan flipped back to the enemy. So I marched the combat unit back into Butuan and captured it again! It once again had a small amount of supply and fuel!

The supplies that I have captured aren't a lot, but was enough that my defenders in the mountains are still in supply, barely. This helped with holding the base, so far.

Kind of crazy, but it's been fun here, still holding on and running around capturing bases in December 1942! I can't wait to save that base unit fragment, and do so a full year after the war started!

[image]local://upfiles/6549/6E11CBFCC31545D8B5C518A69A4CF1B8.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/28/2015 10:39:29 PM)

New Guinea and the Solomons

This is where my focus has been, and will be, for awhile. The enemy has commited major assets here. Port Moresby has 2 divisions worth of men. Buna has at least one divisions worth. Rabaul has over 20 units, and many, many aircraft. KB has been here, and probably isn't far away.

I've made landings at Milne Bay, Tagula Island, and Rossel Island. I flew in troops to an already friendly Deboyne Island. I landed a small raiding party at Goodenough Island, north of Milne Bay, but I have not reinforced here, as it is a bit far north.

My strategy is to reinforce my bases and hold them. I fear a counter-invasion, supported by KB and lots of land based air.

I've done a good job shutting down Port Moresby's and Buna's airfields. Better than I thought was possible. From watching their damage levels over time, repairs here have been unusally slow. This could be due to a lack of engineers or a lack of supply. I find both hard to believe, given the number of troops I see, but my B-17s are keeping both damaged with bombings of about once a week.

Torokino, Buin, and Shortlands are a thorn in my side. My efforts from the Solomons have been ineffective. CAP over Buin has been heavy and successful. I need a fighter base closer, and that base will be Munda. Munda will put more pressure on this area. Last time I checked, there was a small combat unit there, but it hasn't become a base yet.

So my immediate priorities here are to reinforce what I've already taken. Milne Bay, Tagula, and Rossel Island must be heavily defended.

The sideshow of trying to save battleship Idaho continues. I will still have to be very lucky to save the ship.

Long term, I'm keeping open the option of continuing up the east coast of New Guinea, despite the heavy enemy commitments. From the enemy's standpoint, this is where he wants to fight me. He has many large bases, lots of troops, and a confined area. It doesn't get any better than this.

From my standpoint, I have the chance to cut off multiple enemy divisons depending on future landings. When my current bases expand big enough, Rabaul will not be a safe place to be. Port Moresby could become a POW camp.

On the other hand, the enemy is very strong here, which makes me think that a big push elsewhere makes sense. I've considered Nauru and Ocean Island, or smashing through Horn Island and going northwest from there. Maybe landing on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean. Or back to Tabieuea.

Lots of possibilities. For now, the order of the day is to hold what I've taken.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/2B70BD6C7B2043D2AA988BF1C4DB09C6.gif[/image]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/29/2015 3:18:43 AM)

I would imagine that the Japanese supply situation at Port Moresby will get worse and worse, unless he's able to completely reverse your recent gains nearby. The actions and counter-actions in this theater have been a real thrill for the spectators! [8D]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/29/2015 5:31:18 AM)

4 Dec 42

Interesting day.

First, a task force with battleship Yamato in it is sighted and fired upon by S-31 near Buna. Torpedoes miss a destroyer. Spotted with Yamato is a heavy cruiser, Chitose and Nisshin, and a bunch of destroyers. This doesn't look like a bombardment force to me. I think that it is a carrier task force with the carriers unseen.

In the morning, 12 B-26s bomb Horn Island's airfield. There is no CAP. 18 runway hits with 3 airbase and 3 supply hits are achieved.

I then attacked Nauru Island with 33 B-24s. They get 15 runway hits, 8 airbase hits, 3 supply hits, and 4 port hits. There is no CAP.

Then, to my surprise, KB has moved between Rabaul and the islands, and attacks my battleship task force south of Deboyne Island. I screwed up and left this task force there when everything else went south. I had no CAP. 30 Vals and 20 Kates are escorted by 70 Zeros. This is very bad.

And then a miracle occurs. Battleship Indiana is most targeted, and is hit with 6 bombs. None penetrate. Cruiser San Francisco is hit by 2 bombs. One does not penetrate the deck armor. The other does not penetrate the belt armor. No torpedoes hit. Amazing.

From this scary attack, Indiana has 4 SYS and 1 ENG damage. San Fransisco has just 1 SYS damage. That's it. It doesn't get much luckier than that.

Importantly, the Yamato task force is then fired upon by sub Tunny, at the location of KB. The consistency of the task force is the same as the earlier spotting by the New Guinea coast. Maybe the carriers are in other task forces.

Regardless, it's interesting to note the move eastward. Yamato could have bombarded Milne Bay from its night position.

With all of the task forces spotted at Rabaul now, I just don't know what the enemy's next move will be. KB could be just probing and ready to strike any of my shipping at my new bases. Or it could be leading the way for a counter-invasion. I vote counter-invasion, and I predict it will be at Rossel Island, with a division. Rossel Island is my least defended base, and has become a size 1 airfield and port.

I had shipping approaching Rossel and Tagula, but with KB there, I sent them to rendezvous with my carriers to the southwest. My battleship groups went there also. We'll have to see what KB does next.

Seeing 70 Zeros on escort does make me think about the wisdom of another carrier battle. I'm missing 2 carriers from what I had then. With the CVL's, the enemy probably outnumbers me, and still outclasses my pilot quality.

I think that I will not actively pursue a carrier battle, but will stay in range to protect my shipping. If KB comes further south and we fight, so be it.

In other news, I will be bombarding Horn Island with a cruiser and a few destroyers in the next turn. It's nothing substantial. Just fighting here and there to stay unpredictable. Same for the Nauru bombing. Maybe it'll cause a change in enemy defenses.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/FD3465176BAC4334820D1BE2C3BCC75F.gif[/image]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (10/29/2015 5:35:40 PM)

Very good news on the Indiana TF, that could have been really ugly and you got a huge break. Regarding possible Japanese counterinvasion plans, I wonder if they would attack Rossel instead of Milne Bay which I would guess is higher priority, plus Rossel is more vulnerable to your carriers and other assets if he goes there. Maybe it depends on how aggressive the Japanese can afford to be, and which side most desires or fears a carrier battle.

BTW I don't see nearly as many Jap subs in the Coral Sea anymore. Did they all withdraw, or better yet, get damaged and/or sunk? Seems hard to believe ...



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