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geofflambert -> RE: Tackling AI Roaming KB (1/1/2017 1:05:30 AM)
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In PBEMs I sank the entire KB (as in all six, my opponents kept them together) four different times by July of '42. I did it three times with four CVs and once with Wasp too. Do not underestimate your aircraft (get the Devastators off and the Buffaloes if possible), your crews, officers and especially not your CVs with their excellent capacity and damage control. You still need luck, especially with the weather.
I've seen Ryujo sink a lot of ships all on her own early on. Move what you can where you can as soon as possible before the KB can return to the Home Islands and rearm. After that prepare to have a large carrier battle before attempting anything like Guadalcanal. Don't use your CVs as escorts for anything. Try to place them, when ready, where the KB will come to you. Stay behind your land based search and beyond his. He's on the offensive, he has to stick his neck out and he will. Be in the right place to chop it off. When you spot the KB close enough to close with it in one day, charge. He should not know you are there or where exactly unless he gets lucky with one of his subs. Begin somewhere between NZ and New Caledonia and then move NW cautiously. He'll come. If the AI divides the CVs up you'll have more of an advantage but less opportunity for a decisive victory. As long as you stay behind your land based search arcs you will have the advantage. In the Spring of '42, in my view, you should be using all your B-17s for search to maximize your chances of spotting him first.
Back to the Devastators, get them off any way you can. If you can replace them with fighters, by all means do. Both sides initially got the proportions wrong on fighters vis-a-vis attack planes. Fifty percent fighters on your carriers is minimum in my view.
Back to the planes. The Wildcat in my view is a very fine fighter for the Spring of '42 and you should have confidence in them, just make sure most of them are flying CAP. If you can't help but have some Buffaloes, send them as escort. The Devastators are practically worthless, put something else on in their place and use them as trainers. The Vindicators are obsolete but they'll much more likely get hits. Dive bombers are the bane of carriers.
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