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

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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/8/2017 1:21:56 AM)

August 1943
What's Where, What It's Prepped For, and Preparation

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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/8/2017 10:06:30 PM)

29 Aug 43

Sub Pickerel spots an xAK task force near Kavieng, but misses a patrol boat with 2 torpedoes.

Sub Paddle spots a tanker convoy near Cam Ranh Bay, then reattacks and fires 2 torpedoes at TK Kotai Maru. One torpedo hits but is a dud. Looking forward to the torpedo dud penalty going away in a couple of days.

Cruiser task force bombards Manado, and returns to Kendari, as usual.

Today the reinforcing Marine Division made it to Manado, so we'll do a deliberate attack. I'm hoping that it goes well, with all of the bombing and bombardment being done.

The big event is a huge strike on Soerbaja. I've committed many squadrons to sweeping, escorting, and bombing Soerbaja's airfield and port. There are ships in port, and probably a damaged battleship. Allied carriers move within range of Java. I have 4 carrier task forces. I have half of them assigned to naval strike, with a secondary port strike. The other half is just assigned naval strike, and at a different altitude than the first half. My reasoning is that a small naval strike could go out and take all of the escorts with it, leaving my port strike with no escorts.

It could be ugly regardless, depending on the order of who shows up at Soerbaja first. And if the escorts do really escort. Many heavy bombers will participate, and mediums too. It's a major effort. No invasion for me here, yet, but this should make Walker give up on using Soerbaja as a forward base. We'll see.

Carriers involved are Yorktown, Victorious, Enterprise, Wasp, Yorktown II. Lexington II, Hornet, and Essex. Also CVLs Belleau Woods and Princeton. CV Saratoga is passing Java and will join up after this operation. Included in the carrier task forces are battleships Prince of Wales and Massachusetts, 8 heavy cruisers, 7 light cruisers, 4 CLAAs, and 22 destroyers. Fast battleships North Carolina and Washington just got to Darwin, and will head toward the carriers, having recently finished upgrades at Sydney. Battleship South Dakota has also upgraded, and is at Townsville heading toward the front.

Madoien is an airbase west of Soerbaja, and is the closest big base that Walker is using, besides Soerbaja. Madoien will be swept and bombed also.

Another operation, the invasion of Torokina in the Solomons, is about to occur. All of my CVEs and 3 slow battleships are headed this way. Troop ships from Luganville are on the way. Torokina, Buin, and Shortlands all have some airfield damage, and have not been used by enemy air for awhile. Rabaul is still a big base and has plenty of planes.





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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/8/2017 10:15:30 PM)

29 Aug 43 - Solomons

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BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/8/2017 10:56:40 PM)

What are the enemy ships at Rabaul?



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/8/2017 11:00:47 PM)

Seeing just patrol boats and subchasers. There's been an occasional transport task force, taking out troops, I think.



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/9/2017 3:25:51 PM)

Is your long term plan for Soerebaja what the Allies did historically with Rabaul -- i.e. isolate, cut off, destroy facilities and use for bombing training? I'm wondering because Soerebaja also has that nice shipyard which would really be a help for the good guys.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/9/2017 5:37:58 PM)

I do plan an invasion of Java. It will come after the invasions of Balikpapan and Samarinda.

My plan for Java is to land a US division at the eastern tip. This base is lightly defended, lighter than it was a couple of months ago. The terrain is clear. I will take that base and build it. There are mountains between there and Soerbaja, so I expect Walker to reinforce the better terrain, and maybe try to kick me off of Java entirely. He has a tank division on Java, and I know that he has been reinforcing it.

I've planned for a bigger invasion, directly at Soerbaja. I'm using 2 Indian divisions and a huge Chinese corp, along with other support. If Walker weakens Soerbaja to reinforce the mountains or attack my first landing, I'll go directly to Soerbaja. If Soerbaja appears too strong, I'll reinforce my original landing.

Either way, my plan is not a swift conquest of Java. My plan is to encourage more reinforcement of Java, and an attritional battle. I'd like to take Soerbaja, yes. But tying down enemy forces is the plan. Anything taken is a bonus.

Meanwhile, the main push will be up the northeastern coast of Borneo, to Jolo and Zamboanga, then the northeastern tip of Borneo and the island chain to the east that stretches toward Manila.

As for Rabaul, I am going to bypass it and bomb it, as was historically done. My Solomons activity is of low priority, but I want to keep at least some pressure there. I think that Walker is evacuating at least some troops from Rabaul already.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/9/2017 11:28:32 PM)

30 Aug 43

The big strikes at Soerbaja did not go as planned. First, elsewhere:

Manado is bombarded by 2 cruisers. Good results.

North of Babeldaop, sub Tunny spots an xAK task force, fires 2 torpedoes at xAK Zyunyo Maru, and gets one good hit. There are troops on the ship, which will probably survive.

Sub Perch is chased by subchasers near Bataan, but survives after missing SC CHa-13 with 2 torpedoes.

Land based air fly to Madioen. F4Us and P-38Gs sweep, but find no CAP. B-17s escorted by Kittyhawks arrive, destroying 3 Lilys on the ground and doing good damage to the airfield.

Balikpapan is swept, and there is no CAP. 12 B-24s hit the airfield, and do a reported 40 hits on the airfield.

Torokina's airfield is bombed by 24 B-24s. Good results.

In the morning, there are no strikes flown over Soerbaja. Nothing flys from the carriers in the morning either.

In the afternoon, 36 Hellcats sweep Soerbaja, and find a massive CAP of 18 A6M3a Zeros, 33 A6M5 Zeros, 82 Oscars, and 36 Tojos. The Hellcats take about twice the losses of the enemy. To be expected by the first squadron in.

The next strike is 54 SBDs and 54 TBFs, escorted by 43 Hellcats. Heavy CAP still there. Heavy US losses. The port is the target. I-18, xAK Yamura Maru, and ACM Fumi Maru are sunk. Nothing else seen in port. Disappointing.

At Probolinggo, southeast of Soerbaja, 2 cargo ships are spotted. 36 SBDs and 18 TBFs are escorted by 54 Hellcats, and find a weaker ranged CAP of 16 Zeros and 1 Tojo. Losses are small for both sides. xAK Tofuku Maru and xAKL Kofuku Maru are sunk. No idea what they were doing there. No reason to be loading or unloading anything there.

East of Soerbaja, at Pamekasan, Walker has had a tiny minesweeper stationed for quite awhile. Carrier planes decided to go after it. 34 SBDs escorted by 18 Hellcats meet a ranged CAP of 4 Zeros, 15 Oscars, and 5 Tojos. About 4 planes lost for each side. 31 SBDs drop bombs but every bomb misses. What a waste.

Then another tiny AMc is spotted, this one at Soerbaja, and 18 TBFs escorted by 12 Hellcats go after it, right into the teeth of 100 enemy fighters. Heavy US losses, and 9 torpedoes miss the tiny minesweeper. Again, a huge waste.

And that's it for the airstrikes. Nothing but a big disappointment. The enemy CAP at Soerbaja was very heavy, as expected. The key was that no land based aircraft flew to Soerbaja. Planes at Denpassar, Mataram, Makassar, Watampone, Palopo, and Waingapoe all sat on the ground.

Here's what didn't fly:

Denpassar
36 F6Fs
12 F4Us
24 P40Ks
19 P38Gs
21 P38Hs
25 P47s

Mataram
36 F6Fs
25 P47s
25 P39s

Makassar
48 B24s
16 B25s

Watampone
28 B25s

Palopo
10 B17s

Waingapoe
24 B-24s

My goal was to whittle down the enemy fighters on Java. This was not accomplished. The secondary goal was hitting ships in Soerbaja's port. This was accomplished, but there were few ships there, and nothing of value. Walker will most probably not use Soerbaja for ship repairs again, so at least that was gained.

Results would have been different had those hundreds of land based aircraft flown. But that's how it goes.

So today, we try again. All land based fighters will concentrate on Soerbaja, as will all heavy bombers. Medium bombers will not be tasked. Carriers will move away from Java, to rendezvous with AOs to the east. They may get some replacement aircraft from replacement squadrons. I don't want to go all the way back to Darwin now. Loading for Balikpapan will start very soon.

At Manado, the first deliberate attack went at 1 to 2 odds and reduced the forts to 2. 1617 casualties for the enemy, 737 for the Allies. I'll rest a day and repeat.

In the Solomons, Torokina will be invaded. Shipping will just make it to the base, so unloading will be minimal today, and will require another day to complete, at least. Many CVEs will provide cover. There is a task force at Rabaul that may or may not be a surface group. I think not, but it's impossible to say from the poor recon.



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BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/9/2017 11:47:52 PM)

I would interpret that TF at Rabaul to be a Fast Transport TF. That's the only reason to have DDs and PBs together with few or no xAKs.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/11/2017 9:54:31 PM)

31 Aug 43

Sub Pogy spots a tanker convoy southwest of Formosa. No engagement.

Manado is bombarded to good effect. Troops will attack today, after resting a day.

PT boats from Denpassar move to intercept the lone AMc at Pamekasan, east of Soerbaja. They do so, but the tiny minesweeper evades combat.

With the failed carrier raid of Soerbaja yesterday, today we hope that the land based aircraft flys, and they do. CAP starts out at about 170 planes. The first squadron in is 21 P-40Ks, and they have a rough time, being so outnumbered. After that, it gets better, with P-47s showing up. Then P-38s. Then more P-47s. Each time, the CAP is weakened in number and effectiveness. Then 70 land based Hellcats get a rare combined sweep. Now all of the losses are enemy planes. The first heavy bombers to arrive have P-39 escorts, and a bunch of P-39s are lost. It might have been better to not escort. The bombers do well on their own, especially against a depleted and tired CAP. Airbase damage is moderate in the heavy rain. Could have been better. A few planes are hit on the ground. At the end of the morning, more sweepers arrive, but there's no CAP left to engage.

Over the invasion beach at Torokina in the Solomons, Bettys attack, escorted by Zeros, Oscars, and Nicks. Fortunately, there's a strong ranged CAP from the CVEs in the adjacent hex, and some land based air joins in. There's just enough protection. Lots of enemy planes are downed. 4 Bettys get through to drop torpedoes, but they target a tiny LCI. One torpedo hits, but it's a dud.

In the afternoon, just 6 Bettys attack, with just 13 Zeros as escort. No Bettys are able to drop their torpedoes. Then 24 Vals are escorted by 5 Rufes. CAP is sufficient. Just one Val drops a bomb, targeting a small LCI, and the bomb misses. That Val is promptly shot down on the way out. The Allied fighter groups here are mostly average pilots. The Sea Hurrican unit is elite, and the land based Hellcat squadron is very good. A lot of average pilots got a little better today.

Total air losses, including action over Soerbaja and Torokina are:

57 Oscars
40 Bettys
36 Zeros
28 Vals
15 Nicks
11 Tojos
3 Rufes

11 FM-1s
10 P-39s
9 P-40Ks
5 P-47s
5 P-38s
2 B-24s

The Torokina invasion didn't start until the afternoon, but the 1st Cavalry Division is completely unloaded. The HQ unit is only partially unloaded. Unfortunately, the LSTs with supply for the invasion is lagging far behind. The LSTs will get to Vangunu today, and could reinforce the landing tomorrow. I probably should have delayed the invasion a few days and waited for the supply ships. I don't want to risk the valuable APAs to unload the supply on them. No attack at Torokina until sufficient supply gets there. Enemy units at Torokina are the 18th Naval Guard Unit, 13th Field Construction Battalion, and the 7th JNAF AF Unit. The cavalry division should handle them.

A slow bombardment task force will hit Torokina tonight. PT boats will stay there. All transports will leave. Some may return tomorrow. I want to see if the task force at Rabaul that looks like a cruiser task force will come to Torokina tonight.





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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/12/2017 7:10:21 PM)

I knew that Walker wasn't going to be able to do a turn today, so I held onto the turn for an extra day, and did some additional long range planning. Always a good idea to look around and find units that really aren't needed where they are.

Troop ships for Balikpapan and Samarind are now loading at Darwin, and elsewhere. Carriers are refueling from AOs. There will be a deliberate attack at Manado, which should go well, and one on the jungle road north of Akyab, which probably won't. I did note that the enemy tank division isn't in that hex any longer. Walker has pulled a few units back and formed a river line east of Akyab.

And it is now September 1, 1943. The big day when the torpedoes start working as they should.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/13/2017 9:52:57 PM)

No turn today from Walker. Always looking for another turn, of course, and will do so tomorrow.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/15/2017 12:16:06 AM)

1 Sep 43

It was supposed to be a day to celebrate working torpedoes. Instead, it's a day of loss for the submariners. Sub Raton found a task force west of Mindanao, and fired 4 torpedoes at CS Chitose. All torpedoes missed, and it turned out that the task force had at least 2 xAKs in it, as well as a bunch of escorts. Destroyers Hatsuyuki and Hatsushima hit Raton with 2 depth charges, forcing the sub to surface, and then continue to hit the sub with guns, sinking Raton. Raton is only the 6th US sub sunk during the war: 2 S-boats and 4 fleet boats now. In comparison, the Japanese have lost 36 submarines.

Torokina, in the Solomons, is bombarded by slow battleships New Mexico and Oklahoma, and escorts. Good results. This task force spots RO-35 on the way home, but doesn't damage it significantly. Lots of enemy subs reappear today, near Torokina. Hadn't seen one in the area for quite awhile.

In the jungle near Akyab in Burma, Allied medium bombers target enemy troops, and do minor damage. Same thing for the enemy at Manado. Samarinda's airfield is bombed.

Near Diamond Harbour in India, xAKL Illinoian is moving to Calcutta from Ceylon. It is spotted by I-26, which hits it with one shell and then submerges. The small cargo ship is damaged and burning somewhat, but could make port, just 2 hexes away. I'm moving a few cargo ships into the area to help bring in supply to Cox's Bazar. Hard to pull supply overland here. I've had a battleship task force standing off to the west, waiting for the mines at Akyab to disappear so that it can bombard, but that hasn't happened yet. Walker has not been using Akyab recently to drop off supply.

Allied attack at Manado. A good result. Will rest a day then go again.

Ground combat at Manado (75,99)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 26638 troops, 439 guns, 404 vehicles, Assault Value = 797

Defending force 14478 troops, 132 guns, 16 vehicles, Assault Value = 281

Allied adjusted assault: 315

Japanese adjusted defense: 253

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

Allied Assault reduces fortifications to 1

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

Japanese ground losses:
714 casualties reported
Squads: 19 destroyed, 93 disabled
Non Combat: 11 destroyed, 32 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 22 (5 destroyed, 17 disabled)
Units destroyed 1

Allied ground losses:
839 casualties reported
Squads: 8 destroyed, 24 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled
Engineers: 12 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 6 (3 destroyed, 3 disabled)

Assaulting units:
134th Cmbt Engineer Battalion
7th Infantry Division
2nd Marine Division
754th Tank Battalion
2nd RAA Med Arty Regiment

Defending units:
20th Infantry Regiment
8th/A Division
8th/C Division
9th JAAF AF Coy
3rd Construction Battalion
14th JAAF AF Bn
12th Ship Engineer Regiment
77th JAAF AF Bn
16th Army /1

Allied attack in the jungle near Akyab in Burma. Good result. Better since the enemy withdrew the depleted tank division. Will rest a bit then go again.

Ground combat at 55,44 (near Akyab)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 25588 troops, 422 guns, 813 vehicles, Assault Value = 1030

Defending force 15165 troops, 183 guns, 188 vehicles, Assault Value = 419

Allied adjusted assault: 460

Japanese adjusted defense: 671

Allied assault odds: 1 to 2

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
402 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 30 disabled
Non Combat: 4 destroyed, 39 disabled
Engineers: 14 destroyed, 4 disabled
Vehicles lost 78 (23 destroyed, 55 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
358 casualties reported
Squads: 14 destroyed, 93 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 24 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 8 disabled
Vehicles lost 47 (8 destroyed, 39 disabled)

Assaulting units:
255th Armoured Brigade
641st Towed Tank Destroyer Battalion
45th Indian Brigade
3rd USMC Tank Battalion
46th Indian Brigade
11th Indian Division
268th Motorised Brigade
29th British Brigade
XXXIII Indian Corps
2/9th Fld RAA Regiment
85th British AT Gun Regiment

Defending units:
9th Tank Regiment
14th Division
5th Field Construction Battalion
16th AA Regiment
14th Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion
3rd Medium Field Artillery Regiment
15th Army /2

Today more troops and supply will go to Torokina, and CVEs will move to the east side of the island to cover. Balikpapan invasion convoys are on the move. US carriers continue to refuel south of Celebes.

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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/16/2017 2:35:32 AM)

2 Sep 43

Cruiser task force bombards Manado, same as most days. Enemy troops must be badly disrupted.

The rest of the HQ units, and supply, unloads at Torokina.

Near Taytay, sub Searaven spots a big tanker convoy, fires 4 torpedoes at TK Kyoie Maru, and gets 2 hits (and no duds). The ship is not reported as sunk, but sinking sounds are heard in a later phase, and with fuel burning, the ship is a goner.

South of Cam Ranh Bay, sub Lapon spots a tanker convoy, one with large tankers. The escorting E boats get a depth charge hit on the sub, and the sub is ordered to return to port. Damage is not severe. Later in the day, Lapon takes a shot at TK Nisshin Maru #2, but both torpedoes miss.

Balikpapan is swept and bombed. Samarind is bombed. Despite many bombers used, damage is only moderate, due to bombing in the light rain. There was no CAP.

Boela's troops are bombed by B-25s. As are Torokina's troops.

US troops on Boela attack. The odds were only 1 to 3, but the forts were reduced to 2. Enemy casualties were 452 with a unit destroyed. US casualties were 702. I'll rest a bit and continue. The enemy is still in supply. The Americal Division is about half disrupted. The 37th Infantry Division is about 70% disrupted. Both have plenty of supply. My options include reinforcing, which isn't advisable as nothing else is prepped, pulling out a division to rest and recover, and come back later, or just rest in place and wear the enemy down. I continue to chose to continue as is, and win, eventually.

In Burma, the Allies will attack just north of Akyab, again. Medium bombers will support. Akyab's mines just disappeared, so the BB task force will move into place to bombard. There's a risk of Bettys, although none are seen. Fighters will sweep Mandalay, where the enemy fighters are, and many heavy bombers will hit the airfield.

In the Solomons, US troops will attack at Torokina. CVEs and BBs will leave the area and head to Darwin to support future operations. In a risky move, I send 9 Fletchers from Torokina to Rabaul for a raid. Lots of ships there. And probably lots of mines. Over 150 fighters there but no bombers. A risk but an interesting one. I have a good leader in the task force.

With no turn possible from Walker tomorrow, I'm holding onto the turn for a day and continuing detailed work on operations following Balikpapan.









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BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/16/2017 6:48:03 AM)

DDs to Rabaul! I like it!
Who Dares, Wins!



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/16/2017 7:55:13 PM)

A look at the South China Sea

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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/16/2017 7:56:02 PM)

Burma Situation

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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/16/2017 8:50:51 PM)

I have a squadron of 12 Brit Liberator GR III bombers. With a normal range of 23 hexes, they can hit where most current bombers cannot. They were based in India, but they have an amazing transfer range of 89 hexes. I just flew them from Calcutta to Dobo! I'll give them a day of rest, then they will strike Babeldaop's port, where there are some support ships. There's about 30 fighters there.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/18/2017 1:32:19 AM)

3 Sep 43

My 9 Fletcher destroyers stirred up some trouble at Rabaul. The weather was thunderstorms, and with just 17% moonlight, the engagements all began at either 1000 or 2000 yards.

Round 1: DD Ayanami hit by a torpedo in the first exhange of fire
Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 1,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Chikuma
CA Furutaka
DD Shinonome, Shell hits 2
DD Isonami, Shell hits 2
DD Ayanami, Shell hits 4, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
DD Oboro, Shell hits 1

Allied Ships
DD Braine
DD Bush
DD Dyson
DD Foote, Shell hits 1
DD Fullam
DD Harrison
DD Schroeder
DD Terry, Shell hits 1
DD Thatcher, Shell hits 6


Round 2: Yes, there were mines.
TF 534 encounters mine field at Rabaul (106,125)

Allied Ships
DD Terry, Mine hits 1, on fire
DD Dyson, Mine hits 1, heavy damage
DD Thatcher, Mine hits 1


Round 3: Patrol boats sunk.
Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
PB Choko Maru #5, Shell hits 4, on fire
PB Kosin Maru #3, Shell hits 4, on fire

Allied Ships
DD Braine
DD Bush
DD Foote
DD Fullam
DD Thatcher, Shell hits 2, on fire


Round 4: What a huge task force. A shame there's just 3 Fletchers.
Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 3 destroyed
F1M2 Pete: 4 destroyed

Japanese Ships
CL Katori, Shell hits 22, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
PC Nire
PC Take
PB Ikunta Maru
PB Showa Maru #5
ACM Shofuku Maru #2
TK Nikkoku Maru
AV Kunikawa Maru
AV Kiyokawa Maru, Shell hits 15, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
AK Aratama Maru
AKE Keiyo Maru
AKE Kenyo Maru
PB Hakakisan Maru
PB Konsan Maru
PB Sansei Maru
PB Taikei Maru
xAK India Maru
xAK Ryuzan Maru
xAK Kiyoshima Maru
xAK Kotobuki Maru #5
xAK Kuraido Maru
xAK Otori Maru
xAK Sanura Maru
xAK Sakido Maru
xAK Shinkoku Maru
xAK Utide Maru
AKE Yosida Maru #1, Shell hits 7
xAKL Kaijo Maru #2
xAKL Tateyama Maru
xAKL Saiho Maru
xAKL Konsan Maru
xAP Hikawa Maru
xAP Terukuni Maru
xAP Hakone Maru
xAP Husimi Maru, Shell hits 1
xAP Suwa Maru
xAP Miike Maru
xAP Buenos Aires Maru
xAP Kongo Maru
xAP Kobe Maru
xAP Shanghai Maru
E Yaeyama
AMc Iwate Maru #4
AMc Iwate Maru #5
AMc Takunan Maru #6
AMc Kamoi Maru #9
AMc Kujirono Maru
AMc Rumonoe Maru
AMc Uruppu Maru
xAK Shinai Maru
xAK Wazan Maru

Allied Ships
DD Braine
DD Bush
DD Foote


Round 5: Enemy patrol boats do well sacrificing themselves for the rest.
Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 3,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
PC Nire, Shell hits 6, heavy fires, heavy damage
PC Take, Shell hits 10, heavy fires, heavy damage
PB Ikunta Maru
PB Showa Maru #5
ACM Shofuku Maru #2
TK Nikkoku Maru
AV Kunikawa Maru, Shell hits 7
AK Aratama Maru
AKE Keiyo Maru
AKE Kenyo Maru
PB Hakakisan Maru
PB Konsan Maru
PB Sansei Maru
PB Taikei Maru
xAK India Maru
xAK Ryuzan Maru
xAK Kiyoshima Maru
xAK Kotobuki Maru #5
xAK Kuraido Maru
xAK Otori Maru
xAK Sanura Maru
xAK Sakido Maru
xAK Shinkoku Maru
xAK Utide Maru
AKE Yosida Maru #1
xAKL Kaijo Maru #2
xAKL Tateyama Maru
xAKL Saiho Maru
xAKL Konsan Maru
xAP Hikawa Maru
xAP Terukuni Maru
xAP Hakone Maru
xAP Husimi Maru
xAP Suwa Maru
xAP Miike Maru
xAP Buenos Aires Maru, Shell hits 1
xAP Kongo Maru
xAP Kobe Maru
xAP Shanghai Maru
E Yaeyama, Shell hits 5
AMc Iwate Maru #4
AMc Iwate Maru #5
AMc Takunan Maru #6
AMc Kamoi Maru #9, Shell hits 1
AMc Kujirono Maru
AMc Rumonoe Maru
AMc Uruppu Maru
xAK Shinai Maru
xAK Wazan Maru

Allied Ships
DD Braine
DD Bush, Shell hits 1
DD Foote


Round 6: Another task force found.
Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
xAK Burma Maru, Shell hits 1
xAK Holland Maru, Shell hits 1, on fire
xAK Italy Maru, Shell hits 2, on fire
xAK Ryoyo Maru
xAK Hoeisan Maru
xAK Ryuun Maru
xAK Aki Maru, Shell hits 10, on fire, heavy damage
xAK Toyu Maru, Shell hits 1
xAK Ueizuru Maru, Shell hits 7, on fire
PB Kaito Maru, Shell hits 8, and is sunk
PB Fukkai Maru, Shell hits 13, heavy fires, heavy damage
PB Taijin Maru, Shell hits 13, and is sunk

Allied Ships
DD Braine
DD Bush
DD Foote


Round 7: I-31 sinks previously undamaged DD Harrison
Sub attack near Rabaul at 106,125

Japanese Ships
SS I-31, hits 10 (one good hit but won't sink her)

Allied Ships
DD Harrison, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage (Sunk)
DD Schroeder


Quite fun to watch. The Fletchers do well, but so do the enemy mines. DD Harrison is sunk outright by the sub torpedo. DD Dyson is gravely damaged, and is almost surely going to sink. But I will try to get her home. She's moving just one hex a day, and has damage of SYS 25/FLOT 90-69/ENG 34-29/FIRE 0. 4 days or so just to get to Torokina, if I take the base by then. Very doubtful. The 2 other damaged destroyers are DD Terry SYS 33/FLOT 35-22/ENG 2-0/FIRE 0, and DD Thatcher SYS 33/FLOT 37-13/ENG 5/FIRE 0. All destroyers, including those undamaged in the fight but somewhat damaged in the full speed run, will eventually go to Sydney for repairs.


Elsewhere, Torokina is bombarded and bombed. Near Torokina, subchasers sink I-174. The ground attack goes well, with 2 to 1 odds, lowering the forts from 4 to 3. Losses are light, with 187 enemy and 67 friendly. We attack again today.

A maximum air effort against Mandalay goes badly. The weather is severe storms. P-47s, then P-39s, then P-40s sweep, finding a CAP of about 45 Zeros and 45 Oscars. The Allies do poorly, even the Thunderbolts. Bombers come in after, taking heavy losses and doing only moderate damage to the airfield in the bad weather. Total air losses are 12 P-40s, 12 P-47s, 9 P-39s, and 12 B-24s. Enemy losses are 11 Zeros and 7 Oscars.

In the battle hex north of Akyab, a deliberate attack goes at 1 to 2 odds. 354 enemy losses to 916 friendly. Need to rest a bit. 2 units are being rotated back to Cox's Bazar, and 2 fresh infantry units leave Chittagong to reinforce. Today BB Resolution, unspotted in the Indian Ocean, will bombard Akyab.

At Manado, a US ground attack goes well, going at 1 to 1 odds and lowering the forts to 0. Heavy enemy losses at 1770, with 210 friendly. This base is about to fall. We attack again.

Invasion shipping for Balikpapan will get close to Makassar today, so the run in to the invasion beaches start tomorrow.








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BBfanboy -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/18/2017 2:38:58 AM)

I thought that raid on Rabaul might be interesting & it exceeded my expectations by a long shot.
Good move - well done! [sm=happy0065.gif]



jwolf -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/18/2017 6:09:42 PM)

That was an expensive DD raid, but the losses for Japan will hurt more. Also the raid gets the message across -- at least I would think it does -- that Rabaul is no longer a safe harbor and that is a very important objective. Well done.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/19/2017 3:33:29 AM)

Yes, it was a bit expensive. The damage done to the big cargo task forces could have been much worse, if more than 3 of the 9 destroyers would have engaged. Having 3 damaged to mines near the beginning hurt my chances. But I'm not complaining. Sank a light cruiser, even if it was just an old training one, a couple of AVs, and a couple of patrol boats.

It was worth it to me. I'll probably come out of it losing 2 destroyers. And we may not see huge cargo task forces there in the future. It certainly looked like Walker is moving stuff out of Rabaul. The whole area is of little importance to me. Just keeping some level of attention there. I'll take Torokina and Buin and then clear the skies over Rabaul. Then Rabaul is irrelevant. I may land at Kavieng and isolate it further. It matters little, in my opinion. The push is still to the South China Sea.

No turn from Walker today. There may be one tomorrow, on Thursday, or there may not be.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/21/2017 2:19:58 AM)

4 Sep 43

Mostly good news, some bad news. First the bad:

Enemy cruisers Chikuma and Furutaka with 3 destroyers come one hex south of Rabaul and catch gravely damaged destroyer Dyson limping home. Dyson doesn't get off a shot and is sunk. Just south of there, destroyers Terry and Schroeder damage I-37.

Southwest of Formosa, sub Harder finds a tanker convoy, fires 2 torpedoes at an E boat, but both miss. Sub Sawfish then spots the same convoy, and does exactly the same thing. Fired on E boat and missed.

Battleship Resolution and escorts bombarded Akyab, and did well. Resolution can't get to Calcutta to rearm, so it has to go to Madras or Ceylon. With surprise lost, I won't risk the battleship again, not without CAP. Walker could send some naval forces this way, now that he's seen that I did so.

Again in the South China Sea, sub Sawfish then spots a huge tanker convoy. Doesn't look like it was the same convoy as earlier. Sawfish fires 2 torpedoes on tanker Otoriyama Maru, and both hit. The tanker is badly damaged and is on fire, but isn't carrying fuel.

Sub Seadragon then spots the convoy that Harder and Sawfish spotted earlier. 2 torpedo hits on TK Hoyo Maru. One is a dud. This can still happen, just less frequently. This tanker will probably survive as is.

A US deliberate attack at Manado captures the base. A handful of enemy planes are destroyed, having been damaged and stranded here. 2219 enemy casualties and 152 US. The enemy is now isolated here in the jungle. I'll rest a day or two and then continue to reduce the enemy. Support units for Manado are walking in from Sidate.

More good news from the Solomons. The US 1st Cavalry Division attacks at Torokina and easily takes the base. 3 enemy units retreat south to Buin. I won't rush support units here even though they are waiting to the south on ships. Too hot right now. I'll repair the airfield first, using the engineers in the cavalry division, then fly in some fighters, then move the shipping in. Invasion troops for Buin have left Luganville and are on the way.

Lots of Allied shipping near Makassar now. Lots of carriers and escorts, subchasers, and invasion shipping for Balikpapan, Samarind, and Tanjoe-something-or-another (further up the coast, see map). Shipping will move into position today and then move to the targets tomorrow.

I've also decided to do a big sweep of Soerbaja. No bombers this time. There's about 120 fighters there, with airfield damaging showing at about 20. Lots of good fighters on the way.

And there are more indications of Mindanao being built up by Walker. And SigInt shows that the 2nd Army HQ is now on ships and on the way to Manila. Walker is making the right moves. The problem for him is that I'm not going directly to Mindanao, I'm going around. Jolo is lightly held. Other potential targets appear empty. There's just too many places that I can go. An impossible situation for defending, strictly from a ground point of view. Of course, Walker's navy and air force may have something to say about things.

My goal is still free access to the South China Sea before 1944.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/FE24ACFAD489474891FB05E49882633F.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/22/2017 10:30:03 PM)

5 Sep 43

Allied cruisers bombard Boela, doing minor damage.

Southwest of Hong Kong, sub Sawfish spots already damaged tanker Hoyo Maru, fires 2 torpedoes, but both miss.

Huge Allied fighter sweeps at Soerbaja. Heavy CAP, almost 100 Oscars and about 12 Tojos. I get a rare sweep with 3 squadrons flying together. P-38Gs, P-38Hs, and some P-47s. The enemy takes heavier losses. Total air losses for the day are 29 Oscars, 6 Zeros, and 4 Tojos. US losses are 12 F6Fs, 6 P-47s, and 4 P-38s. I send all of the fighters again today. I may send the bombers tomorrow, weather permitting.

US troops attack at Boela. Odds are 1 to 2, with forts dropping to 1. 389 enemy losses and 636 friendly. I've decided to pull out the badly disrupted 37th Infantry Division. They will go to Australia to recover. Who knows, they might go right back to Boela to finish it off.

Today 3 enemy bases will be invaded: Balikpapan, Samarinda, and Tanjoengselor (near Tarakan). I'm splitting my carriers and sending half further north for the Tanjoengselor landing. The rest support the other two landings.

I did get a good recon of Batavia today, and based on the number of vehicles seen, I'm pretty sure that the tank division that has been on Java is at Batavia.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/5401B05153C6448790E8752C5CB3E13F.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/23/2017 9:47:52 PM)

6 Sep 43

Samarinda, Balikpapan, and Tanjoengselor are invaded. Tanjoengselor is empty. The adjacent enemy base of Tarakan does have troops. I'll build my base for a bit first. All APAs have completely unloaded their troops. 3 APAs at Tanjoengselor still have supply on them, and I'll give them another day to unload that. That base is a bit far out, and the troops need the supply.

I do not use ship bombardments at Balikpapan and Samarinda, hoping to keep the facility damage to a minimum. All bases will be attacked today, with some B-25s hitting the troops. The terrain is clear, and I'm not anticipating much of a problem. Samarinda has just one unit, with just 1000 troops reported. Balikpapan has a garrison unit.

I sweep Soerbaja heavily again. Losses are 20 Oscars, 17 Zeros, and 6 Tojos, at the cost of 18 F6Fs, 7 F4Us, and 4 P-38s. Not great but not bad. My depleted squadrons will sweep again today, and lots of heavy bombers will hit the airfield. I suspect that Walker has railed out his damaged units and rotated in fresh ones.

In a first, Walker bombs Chinese units on the road just inside China, near Burma. I think it is a recon bombing, to see what is really there. I'm not leaving China with these units, as they are restricted.

Carriers will start the trip back to Darwin. Most of the units for the next round of invasions are there, and require the APAs, so there's time to refuel and rearm.

I wonder when Walker will contest an invasion. There's been no naval or air activity for quite awhile. I think he's digging in on Mindanao and Luzon, and Saipan and Guam, and Java. There's going to be a battle somewhere. I just don't know where. He's lost a few carriers, but one battleship at the most. We'll have to wait and see where he is going to fight.






[image]local://upfiles/6549/F5E1547A6E4C4A208488A35C38A97730.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/25/2017 2:18:37 AM)

7 Sep 43

More supply unloads at the 3 invasion spots of Balikpapan, Samarind, and Tanjoengselor. AKA work well for this, topping off combat units.

At Balikpapan, a small US minesweeper finds a minefield and starts sweeping.

Near the northeastern corner of Borneo, sub Steelhead spots an interesting convoy with 3 AMCs, and APD, a CL, and E, and 2 DDs. The sub fires 4 torpedoes at the large ship AMC Kinryu Maru, and one hits causing fire and heavy damage. Troops are loaded on the ship. I don't know which direction these ships are heading. My best guess is that they are bringing troops to the north coast of Borneo.

The 4th Marine Division invades Buin. They need to rest a day before attacking. Buin has a bunch of units, but is rather weak in combat strength. I have lots of reinforcements on the way: combat engineers, artillery, armor. But I may not need them. I'm holding them at Vangunu, on ships, to wait and see if they are really needed. If not, they head to Darwin to join the masses.

East of the Philippines, sub Sturgeon spots an xAK task force, fires 2 torpedoes at xAK Kiso Maru, and gets one hit. No troops on this ship.

When I took Talaud-eilanden, just south of Mindanao, I expected this island to become a focal point for Walker. But he's done nothing here, and I've unloaded combat and support troops without issue. Today he finally paid some attention here, with Tojo and Zero sweeps out of Davao. I had no CAP here. The airfield isn't built yet. I did still have an xAP task force, slowly unloading support troops here. Walker may have plotted some naval strikes at Davao, but the weather was bad at Talaud-eilanden. I have some vehicles still loaded, but the ships will leave immediately, and unload at Ternate. I'll bring the few vehicles back in on smaller, less valuable ships.

Allied fighters sweep Soerabaja, followed by heavy bombers hitting the airfields. Heavy initial CAP of Zeros, Oscars, and Tojos. A luckless Kittyhawk squadron drew the short straw and went in first, and got wrecked. After that, the better planes did better. Good damage to the airfield. I'll rest my fighters and send in the bombers again today. I didn't note the air losses for the day. I'm still in the midst of the turn, knowing that Walker can't do a turn tomorrow. I'll post the losses tomorrow when I finish the turn.

At the Allied base of Manado, troops attack to try to clear the enemy out of the jungle. 2 to 1 odds, 1580 enemy casualties, and 444 friendly losses. Got to finish them off, then the 2nd Marine Division and the 7th Infantry Division can start prepping for the next target.

At Balikpapan, the first attack goes at 1 to 1, and lowers the forts to 2. It was surprising to see that the Allies had a negative modifier for leaders. The 3rd Marine Division and the 762 Tank Battalion have excellent leaders. The only other unit is a Boat&Shore Engineer Battalion, and its leader is very poor. That must have mattered. Regardless, the enemy took over 1000 casualties, and the US troops only 146. The base will fall. I rest the engineer unit and will see if that affects the modifier.

At adjacent Samarind, the Indian 111th LRP Brigade easily routs the lone enemy unit, the 20th Port Unit. The enemy unit is destroyed without friendly loss. Support unit on ships are just to the south, and will now move in and unload. The oil facilities were partially damaged in the combat. The oil is now 80 undamaged and 20 damaged. Very little oil captured. That may be a different story when Balikpapan is captured.





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apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/25/2017 2:26:01 AM)

7 Sep 43 - Borneo

A look at the progress on Borneo.

[image]local://upfiles/6549/07ABFDDBCA0B48A4AC2DDC8064657440.gif[/image]



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/25/2017 5:36:59 AM)

I had to laugh when I saw that some enemy company-sized unit was preparing to attack Port Hedland. I'm sure that this unit had been there at one time, and got evacuated, but I kind of wish that an attack was coming. I have over 2000 combat value at Port Hedland currently, with almost all of it prepped for Soerbaja. The time will come for them soon enough. They are #2 in order for the next upcoming invasions.



apbarog -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/26/2017 11:39:32 PM)

8 Sep 43

Today was the first instance of the dreaded "synch bug". The combat replay showed the Allies taking Balikpapan, but the combat report and the turn showed that the enemy barely held and didn't retreat.

Here's what actually happened today:

YMS-281 continues to slowly sweep mines at Balikpapan.

Sub Skate fires 2 torpedoes at destroyer Tokitsukaze near Puerto Princesa. Both miss.

Dedicated subchasers find sub Harder south of Formosa, but can't hit it. Note that the Allies currently have 32 subs in the area from north of Borneo, west of the Philippines, and west of Formosa. Essentially the South China Sea, and then some.

Sub Mingo was just south of Japan heading east to west, and it hit a mine at the dot base Izu Oshima, south of Tokyo. This is a nice trick, putting mines there. I've done so when playing the Japanese side. Mingo is moderately damaged and should survive the trip back to the Aleutians.

Near the northwestern part of Mindanao, sub S-42 finds the big AMC convoy that was previously spotted north of Borneo. Then, an AMC was torpedoed and it had troops on it. Today, AMC Awata Maru is torpedoed once, and it has troops on it. I can draw the conclusion that troops are moving from Borneo, Singapore, or Sumatra, and headed to the Philippines. More confirmation of the buildup on Mindanao. Also, the enemy airbase at Surigao became size 2 today. It is on the north side of Mindanao. Big buildup going on here. It's looking more and more like Mindanao will be a place that I go around, except for Zamboanga.

Many heavy bombers hit Soerbaja, and every enemy plane had left. Significant damage is done to the airfield.

30 Tojos sweep Talaud-eilanden, again, and again find no CAP. No ships here either.

As I said, Balikpapan was not captured, but the enemy took 1680 casualties, and US troops took only 59. The base will fall today. The attackers are fatigued, but that shouldn't matter with the enemy losses and the forts being reduced to 1.

Isolated enemy troops at Manado will be attacked. And if I remembered to plot it, we'll attack at Buin today.

Allied carriers and APAs continue to return to Darwin. In a few days, we'll start loading for the next round of invasions.



Macclan5 -> RE: See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28 (1/27/2017 11:33:03 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: apbarog

8 Sep 43

...I can draw the conclusion that troops are moving from Borneo, Singapore, or Sumatra, and headed to the Philippines. More confirmation of the buildup on Mindanao. Also, the enemy airbase at Surigao became size 2 today. It is on the north side of Mindanao. Big buildup going on here. It's looking more and more like Mindanao will be a place that I go around, except for Zamboanga.

Many heavy bombers hit Soerbaja, and every enemy plane had left. Significant damage is done to the airfield.



The ABDA Offensive marches on like water on a rock ! Cheers.

Thanks for the updates.

It would appear the Japanese build up is Mindanao and Java (may have left Soerabaja but Batavia is really only a stone throw away and an equally important base).

When you say "go around" or bypass - what are your thoughts on that APB ?

1) You want access to the South China Sea.

2) Bypassing one or both above

...means... Jesselton and Brunei ?

Curious as in my limited experience with the game I have never targeted those particular bases but I am certain the could be valuable once built up...

If / when you intend future action in Luzon for example you will need supporting bases closer than Balikpapan or Kendari...

PS thanks [8D]- until you invaded Balikpapan I had never really spent time analyzing the value of that base.

At least in stock game Scenario 1 it is a very very valuable base with oil / refinery / ample supply generation... not sure about your particular game..





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