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Canoerebel -> RE: Notes from a Small Island (12/21/2017 3:05:36 PM)
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Three or four turns back, I thought it 90% likely the Allies were going to lose Death Star and a significant amount of the Herd, putting Sikhalin Island in serious jeopardy.
Against orders, my carriers reacted (part of the game). This left them badly out of position. They took serious damage that somehow ended up spread around rather than being decisive. But the cripples could only make three or four hexes per day, were in the shadow or Japanese airfields, were surrounded by hostiles, were threatened by enemy combat TFs getting in and creating havoc, and I didn't think it likely that I could re-assemble the carriers and the CVEs into one fighting force. It was like I had wandered into a box canyon, taken serious losses, and the way out was blocked.
Some of you have experienced this before: going deep into enemy territory, getting chewed on a bit, and then finding the extraction impossible. Bedeviled by enemy combat TFs and the carriers homing in for the kill, a bad situation devolves over the next two or three or four days until utter defeat with massive losses ensues. You try everything possible, finally scattering your ships to the wind in hopes that a small percentage might escape.
That's what I thought was going to happen. I was nearly certain it was going to happen.
In the end (to this point), I lost one ship - CVL Cowpens. It turned into some Houdini-like escape. Why? Probably the number of strike aircraft lost left Erik unable to press. And possibly his combat TFs weren't close enough to attack and he feared heavy losses without his carriers in close escort. Whatever the reasons, I'll glad.
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