1/24/42-1/26/42

1/24/42-1/26/42 (Full Version)

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Alikchi2 -> 1/24/42-1/26/42 (7/6/2005 11:14:55 AM)
Alright, I'm back! Time for a last-three-days update. 1/24/42-1/26/42 India/Burma: My Blenheims and B-17s have been cheerfully bombing 33rd Division and Rahaeng airfield against no opposition until today. Cruft put 16 Nates up to defend Rahaeng today, and my Blenheims and Buffalos got fairly beat up again. The Fortresses got through okay though, and even took down a few Nates with their wing guns.. China: Interesting action here. 22,000 Japanese have begun to attack an equal number of Chinese at Linfen, on the road to Sian and slightly north of Kaifeng. I believe he is attempting to cut off the attacking units at Kaifeng, but so far he has had no success. A Japanese deliberate attack failed today with heavy casualties. Still, there are a lot of units coming up behind - I'd better finish up at Kaifeng quick.. Linfen needs reinforcements. Kaifeng looks like it just might be finished quickly. After two days of bombarding, my Chinese deliberate attacked again today. The forts are down to 1 from an original 4. [:)] Tomorrow I shock attack. If it succeeds, I have the base; if it fails, I fall back to cover Sian and Linfen. In the south, I'm considering using the units at Changsha offensively... we'll see. It's a 3000 assault point army. I just need to pick a target, right? Malaya: Kuala Lumpur fell. :( So much for a standstill! Heavy air attacks and consistent bombardments forced my troops to retreat to Malacca, where there are absolutely zero supplies. They've all been badly beat up - down to like 50 assault points - and I expect them to fall at the first shock attack. Kuantan looks better. My Hudsons are gaining lots of experience flying in supplies to them, actually. [:)] Still, it's not enough. Roughly 150 assault points there - about equivalent to the Mixed Brigade besieging them. At Johore Bahru is the only strong force left in Malaya - Aussies, Brits, Malayans and Indians equivalent to 280 assault points, behind level 5 forts. Just today we had our first air action in a while - I had saved two AKs in Singapore harbor to pull out an RAF base force once it arrived. Today 25 Nells and 20 Zeroes from Kuching arrived in an attempt to sink them both. 27 Buffalos and 10 Hurricanes rose up to meet them - the Hurricanes flown in just the turn before from the decks of CV Formidable. The Buffys did okay; the Aussies shot down two Zeroes! Most of the others fled and the Aussies paid for it with several shot down. They're still ready to fight but the morale of my other two squads are in the toilet. A Hurricane brought down a Nell, and others were destroyed by flak, but they were still able to deliver 3 torpedoes to AK Hermion, which sunk immediately. One hit AK Palawan - roughly 20 sys and 12 float damage, should be okay. Still, he sunk a ship and hurt Singapore's air defence badly. Speaking of, I won't evacuate the fighters until it's absolutely necessary. I plan to keep them around to fly CAP over my ground troops. The Philippines: Besides Kuala Lumpur, my other bastion, Clark Field, fell today. [:(] I was heavily outnumbered - 69,000 versus 27,000 - and the troops were exhausted. Even worse, they retreated to Bataan, not Clark!! This means essentially that they are doomed, as Bataan, like Malacaa, has zero supplies. None. He'll be able to clean them out pretty quickly. Manila still looks strong, though. DEI: Well, things are moving here. Tarakan fell (of course), and his Nells and BEtties are perky and eager, as detailed in the Malaya section. Pontianak was deliberate attacked today, brought the forts down to 1.. Stuff is arriving in-theatre, though. 19th KGVO Tank Regiment, with Valentine IIIs and Humber armored cars, has completed unloading at Tjilitjap and will join the Dutch mobile reserve at Bandoeng for the defence of Java. Soerabaja's A-24 Dauntlesses are repairing quickly, and my P-39 pilots are training up. In addition, Formidable dropped off a squadron of Hurricanes at Palembang before turning back towards Columbo. Palembang's Marines started receving artillery today, as well! Things are going up. Every day Singapore stands is a day longer before he can launch his offensive against southern Sumatra and Java, so yay. The eastern DEI is much more weak and I feel that he'll take Timor early to prevent me from turning into a "fortress" a la last game (although I don't plan to do this.) SWPAC: Shortlands has been mined and my Hudsons at Rabaul have actually hit something! An APD, I believe. I think it's the first time a Hudson has actually hit a moving ship in the entire war. [:D] Go Aussies! Kavieng fell, and the Independent Company defending it is badly beat up. It will succumb to lack of supplies, sadly. SOPAC: More bombardments at Suva by the South Seas Detachment, supported by the aircraft of the Kido Butai. Yawn.. [;)] At Noumea my brigade and base force are fully ashore and establishing themselves. I have P-39s in Auckland repairing (after a long trip by boat) which will shortly fly in. PBYs will follow. Subs have taken a nasty toll in the last few days.. my tankers and transports out of Panama have been mostly unescorted - no DDs were available. So far I've lost one AK, one TK, and one AK badly damaged. CENTPAC: Minelaying operations, supply shifting.. I want this theatre to be so perfectly defended and glamourously equipped that I don't have to worry about it anymore. [;)] ====== That's it!

Alikchi2 -> 1/27/42 (7/7/2005 4:38:05 AM)
1/27/42 India/Burma: Ack. Another half-dozen Buffalos hacked out of the sky over southern Burma. I'm setting the Blenheims to attack Tavoy now.. no airfield icon anywhere near there, hopefully he doesn't have CAP. My Buffys can't do anything against Nates.. sad? China: The shock attack brings the forts down to 0 but does not take the base. I rescind my promise of yesterday - I'm sticking around. No attacks at Linfeng today though. Malaya: No action today. Looks like AK Palawan will make it out.. The Philippines: My shock attack at Cagayan achieved a 1-1, but didn't force his troops out. Back to defense! DEI: 4 B-25s launched at Menado again (I forgot to mess with the range settings on these guys) and 1 came back. Not doing that again - he has nearly two dozen Zeroes on CAP. Tainan Daitais. Pontianak fell; the resident base forces surrendered. LBA attempted to attack his cruisers (bombardment force) but scored no hits at the cost of several planes damaged. He also started landing at Manokwari (Dutch New Guinea).. not going to be difficult for him. 3 Buffaloes launched from Amboina on Naval Attack at his transports and, of course, scored no hits. Finally, Soerabaja is 91% of the way to becoming a Level 9 Port. Heavy mining operations will commence as soon as we reach it. SWPAC: No action today. SOPAC: South Seas Detachment deliberate attacks the New Zealanders at Suva! 8th NZ Brigade holds them back, inflicting heavy casualties. But how long can they last with only 1200 supplies? CENTPAC: Christmas Island is slated to become a massive airbase. A heavily escorted convoy departed for the island from San Fran today, carrying 12th Fighter Squadron (P-39s). NORTHPAC: My base forces, HQs, et al are finally unloading at Umnak and Adak Islands. P-40Bs fly CAP over Umnak while the airbase at Adak is being built. ====== [image]http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/329/8thnz3ei.gif[/image] The Kiwis at Suva. Good commander, good experience - I wonder how long they can hold?

Alikchi2 -> RE: 1/27/42 (7/8/2005 1:35:18 AM)
A pretty good day. 1/28/42 India/Burma: Hurricanes begin arriving in theatre, with a squadron of 12 setting up in Madras today. More are destined for Chandpur, Diamond Harbor, Columbo and Ledo. No real action today, though. Shuffling AKs around - I'm putting the SEAC HQ at Dacca, to facilititate supply runs to China... China: We experienced some "real action" here. My shock attack at Kaifeng worked even as he reinforced the place - 60,000 Chinese forced 50,000 Japanese southward and captured the base! But uh oh, in the road hex behind Kaifeng - on our line of supply and retreat to Homan - a Japanese division and tank regiment have appeared. I had placed a Chinese corps here to hold them off, but a deliberate attack today failed miserably. I'm going to leave a light garrison at Kaifeng and move back quickly to clear my path to Homan. From Homan, I can reinforce Linfen.. In the south, I've decided to attack Hankow. (Really this time. No foolies. [:'(]) I'm sending half of my Changsha army - that's 1500 assault points - north up the highway, while another ~600-700 assault points descend from Ichang to the north. 12 units are reported but only 7000 troops?!? I've been reconning for a long time, but that must be wrong. Plus the icon is a full, bloody red. I think I'm bringing enough troops to deal with whatever I see, though.. Malaya: No action this turn at all. AK Palawan has escaped cleanly. Next turn I'm sending my Hudsons (experience 71) to attack Kota Bharu airfield. My Hurricanes don't have the range to escort, so we'll have to rely on our Buffalos.. we'll see how it goes. The Phililppines: Nothing right now.. it looks like he's flown most of his aircraft into Clark Field. His Zeroes strafed my one remaining PT boat, getting 24 shell hits with their 7.7mms, but only brought it up to 10 SYS. It'll attack the enemy ships at Tacloban tomorrow just out of spite. [:'(] Also at Tacloban, SS Permit hasn't been able to hit said ships, and the same ships haven't hit her either yet. So I'm giving up and leaving the shallow water. DEI: No action here today. Tomorrow a port attack at Singkawang. According to recon, it looks like he disbanded a damaged AP or AK into the port - there's no CAP yet so my B-17s and Martins will have a go. SWPAC: A Hudson puts a bomb into CL Kashima, knocks out a 5 inch gun and leaves the ship burning. Pretty good for one hit. [:D] SOPAC: His Kates and Vals heavily attack both Pago Pago and Suva. BBs, CAs and CLs participate in the bombardment of both bases, as well. Return fire from CD guns is sporadic and ineffective. CENTPAC: No action. NORTHPAC: No action. ======

Alikchi2 -> 1/29/42 (7/10/2005 2:00:36 AM)
Today was an -extremely- busy day in the air! 1/29/42 India/Burma: Yep, Tavoy has no CAP, as expected. My Blenheims much prefer bombing defenceless ground troops to being shot down in droves by Nates... China: Some bad turn-ups today. First, he deliberate attacked at the Kaifeng-Honan junction and forced a Chinese corps back to Kaifeng. Now, 6 other Chinese corps (~60,000 troops) are moving forward to replace it but it's still a loss for me. Secondly, two Corps are now facing two IJA divisions at Linfen. The odds do not look good and there are no reinforcements available, and if there were they could not get there in time, I think. We'll have to hope that they hold out long and that the troops at Kaifeng clear their way to Honan quickly! Time is the big crunch here. If he breaks through fast at Linfen and makes it to Honan, he could cut off all of the troops I've been talking about. Malaya: My attack at Kota Bharu was purportedly successful, sort of. 23 Buffalos engaged 7 Oscars (I wondered why the CAP was so small) and cleared the path for 15 Hudsons, though not without taking losses. (1 Oscar for 2 Buffalos, I believe, with several other AC damaged.) The Hudsons made a few dents in the runway and blew up a Dinah. Not really worth it. I found out where all the Oscars went when suddenly 40 of them, plus 100+ Sallies and Helens, showed up for Cruft's first attack on Singapore of the war. My CAP was depleted - only 15 Buffalos and 8 Hurris - and he shot down most of it, especially the Buffalos. The Australians still managed to bring down a few Oscars, though. The actual bombing was much more successful than mine of Kota Bharu - 18 airbase hits, 65 runway hits. The base is down to 50 damage and can still fly planes but it's still a blow. Some Videbeests and Catalinas were destroyed on the ground, as well. I'll have a much higher CAP flying tomorrow.. the Hudsons are going back to supply-ferrying duty. The Philippines: Heavy bombardments from the ground and the air by Japanese Navy forces cleared the path for Tacloban to fall to an SNLF unit. My sole surviving PT boat, Q112 (already damaged by yesterday's Zero strafing) suicidally charged the bombardment force of 2 CAs, 2 CLs and 6 DDs and was sunk for its impudence. On the ground, I screwed up at Bataan - several of the units there hadn't had their movement orders reset or something and were trying to get to Manila via Clark. Cruft peremptorily kicked them back into Bataan, which still has no supplies. I think that if he moved in even one division, the troops there would fall after a couple of attacks. Manila will be much tougher but it's only a matter of time. DEI: Much action here as well! First off, Cruft recons Palembang with a navy Babs and then follows it up with a sweep of 36 Zeroes. I have 40 fighters on CAP - 6 Hawks, 14 Hurricanes and 20 Warhawks. The fight is drawn-out and intense - Warhawks, Hawks and (especially) Hurricanes fall in droves, but they exact a toll. 11 Zeroes are shot down over Palembang, along with 10 Warhawks, 3 Hawks and perhaps 6 Hurricane IIs. The Warhawks perform admirably, shooting down the greater portion of the 11. Further south, he hit Kendari with 12 Nells escorted by 32 Zeroes. The Zeroes overwhelmed and shot down the larger portion of my Buffalo CAP without loss to themsevles, but the bombers did little damage. The attack was an airfield attack, so I don't believe he's aware that I have Prince of Wales and the larger part of my naval strength in the DEI there right now. My reponse: I've moved another squadron of 8 Warhawks into Palembang, and 17 into Kendari (shuttled most of the bombers there back to Soerabaja to free up aviation support). I moved 18 extra Buffalos into Kendari, as well, so we have a fairly significant CAP. Hopefully he flies into it tomorrow and takes some losses. SWPAC: No action. EDIT: I can't believe I forgot to mention! Japanese CL Kashima - already damaged yesterday by Wirraways - was attacked full-on by the aircraft at Port Moresby. Results were "CL Kashima, Bomb hits 6, on fire, heavy damage". This includes several 500 pounders that crashed through her deck and killed the engines. Hopefully she'll sink. [:D] SOPAC: More bombarding at Suva and Pago Pago. Papaete is getting stronger and stronger - a base force began unloading today, and SDBs are starting to appear. CENTPAC: No action. NORTHPAC: No action. ====== Exciting turn! Losses on both sides. Hopefully I can keep attriting him... [image]http://img298.imageshack.us/img298/4943/aclosses6wv.gif[/image]

Gen.Hoepner -> RE: 1/29/42 (7/10/2005 11:44:09 AM)
wanna see how long those Kiwis at Suva will last...[:D]

Alikchi2 -> 1/30/42-1/31/42 (7/12/2005 2:28:38 AM)
[:D] They're still going Hoepner... but supplies are down to 200! We'll be out soon if the aerial, naval and ground bombardments continue... A two-day update today. 1/30/42-1/31/42 India/Burma: My Dutch Lodestars have arrived at Ledo and are beginning hump runs to Kunming. Yay supplies! More aircraft are on the way, and the two British CVs are convering on Columbo. China: I am having trouble getting the Japanese out of my line of retreat.. at least he hasn't attacked at Linfen for a while. I'm giving them some rest, but I would really rather not lose the whole army... Oh yes. The Ichang horde is in position.. just have to wait for the Changsha guys and then it's on to Hankow! Cruft can't be everywhere at once.. I can pin him down with my numbers, force him to curtail his offensives, and eventually take the offensive. Malaya: His first deliberate attack against Johore Bahru - 85,000 Japanese versus 15,000 assorted British and Commonwealth soldiers - went very well for him. He achieved 4-1 odds and knocked down a fort level, ouch. Hopefully my guys will grow spines, because after Johore Bahru there is only Singapore. Speaking of, he made another attack on Singers on the 30th and did quite a bit of damage - my air force is in shambles and morale is quite low. Nobody seems to want to take off. The Hurricanes, especially, are down to two working aircraft from a starting 16. Ouch... gotta take those Oscars seriously, huh? The Philippines: No change here. His army is arriving in Bataan. DEI: Hmmm... he's starting to bomb Bankha from Malaya. Maybe he's going to try paratroopers, like in our last game? Not much I can do, either way. Northern Sumatra is his whenever he wants it. Southern Sumatra, on the other hand.. well. [8D] No action anywhere near that of the 29th, but it feels like things are about to start happening. Lots of enemy ships floating around near Kuching. Finally, Soerabaja hit port size 9!! Yay! My minelayers are headed for Amboina. Nearly a dozen of them.. we'll have quite a big minefield pretty quickly. Then I'll mine Kendari, and then maybe Balikpapan. Hopefully his Nells don't torpedo them all. SWPAC: I'm proud of my Aussie aircraft at PM.. put another bomb into a Japanese transport. Excellent. SOPAC: Papaete hit port size 2, and I have many more engineers on the way. Regular bombings and bombardments at Fiji and Samoa... yawn, yawn. [;)] CENTPAC: My subs "are getting annoying", according to Cruft - I've been bagging roughly a ship a day lately, with the latest being a tanker near Kwajalein on the 31st. Good deal. [:)] No other real action here.. his I-boats are starting to pop up all over the place now (less near the West Coast though).

Alikchi2 -> 2/1/42 (7/12/2005 5:05:58 AM)
It's February! 2/1/42 India/Burma: 55th Division IJA advances another 60 miles towards Moulmein and pushes that damn stupid slow RAF base force farther north. Thank you, Japanese Imperialists! At least they're on a rail hex now. Heesh. China: He hasn't attacked in a few days and it looks like my Chinese may be able to slip past him to Honan. That would be excellent. I'll get a screenshot to illustrate the situation here ASAP.. Malaya: Regular bombardments, yawn yawn. The RAF in Malaya is really a bloody shambles - screenshot below. Supplies aren't looking too hot, either. Hopefully my forts will slow him down some.. The Philippines: No action today, but I have a screenshot of the Bataan situation. It looks miserable... My subs in the Philippines area are withdrawing to patrol zones farther south (Davao/Palau area). There aren't many targets left farther north. DEI: Speaking of subs, two Dutch "K"s got depth charged pretty badly today. KVIII (off Kuching) put a 533mm torp into AP Teia Maru before receiving two depth charges from Japanese destroyers. She's now trying to make it to Singapore, but float damage will probably sink her before then. The other, KXVII, took a depth charge hit off Palau, but should make it to Kendari (only 50 float). The biggest action in the DEI today though was in the air - port attacks were launched against both Soerabaja and Kendari. Thank god I moved Force Z out of Kendari just in time (yesterday) - else they would have been caught in port! Lucky, lucky... They're on their way to Soerabaja as we speak. As for the raids themselves: Soerabaja was attacked by 36 Zeroes and 37 Nells from Kuching and Singkawang. Only 4 Brewsters were on CAP - probably a good thing, I didn't lose any good fighters - so the Nells had clear runs. Luckily they were bombing from 12,000 feet and hit nearly nothing. One minesweeper ate a bomb - I have 12, ha ha. If he tries it again he'll find about 3 times as many Brewsters, Demons, P-39s and P-40Es waiting for him. Kendari was attacked by 34 Zeroes, 17 Nells and 41 Betties flying from Menado at the northern corner of Sulawesi. Again, CAP was negligible - my 3 Brewsters and 9 Warhawks were brushed aside by the escorting Zeroes - and this time the Japanese bombers flew at 9,000 feet. AVD Heron, AVD Arend, AK Belawan, AK Liran and PC Canopus were gifted with a bomb hit each. All the other ships in Kendari harbor (AD Black Hawk + many AKs and PCs/PGs) are making a run for Darwin harbor. With the departure of Force Z, there's no need to provide a strong CAP, so the Warhawks are moving to augment Soerabaja's air defence. SWPAC: Two bomb hits scored on PG Heijo Maru. Other than that, still no action. I expect PM to be invaded as soon as he has air support (Zeroes or the KB) in theatre. SOPAC: The South Seas Detachment is struggling. Another deliberate attack was launched on the 8th NZ Brigade today and was soundly repulsed by the Kiwis; 0-1 odds. I like! Auckland and Noumea are building up nicely, and a massive convoy with aircraft destined for India and China is about to pass Papaete (I hope he doesn't spot it). CENTPAC: SS Gar has been hiding from Japanese PCs south of Kwajalein for days now. Time to jig a bit. Speaking of Kwaj, his MSWs are clearing out Argonaut's mines nicely. I'll have to mine Enwietok or some other place next round. NORTHPAC: No action. ====== Screenshots! == [image]http://img321.imageshack.us/img321/4823/maf6ss.gif[/image] The RAF in Malaya after the recent and devastating air attacks. Singapore does not have enough engineers to repair the airbase and build the forts effectively. == == [image]http://img321.imageshack.us/img321/9693/bataan5rz.gif[/image] Allied forces in Bataan. No supplies and fatigue in the 90s for all units.. it's not looking really great. == == [image]http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/4552/as17wq.gif[/image] Japanese airstrikes today in the DEI. == ====== If anyone's interested, I can email you my turn so you can see things in more depth. PM me. [:)]

CapAndGown -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/12/2005 5:19:47 AM)
You ask me (although you didn't), he seems to be moving rather slow. Why do you suppose that is?

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/12/2005 5:35:25 AM)
I'm not sure. Hoepner's made the same observation before. I think Cruft moves relatively slowly in the SRA, but nearly every attack he makes is strong and his invasions are well protected and covered. Cruft brings up LBA support quickly and makes sure he's prepared a base through bombardments, air attacks or what have you before he hits it. Every base of value has CAP. In short, he's slow but steady and he leaves very few openings for me... Who knows, it may help him in the long run. My Dutch at Palembang and elsewhere are still stockpiling oil at full capacity. [8\|] Of course I could be wrong and I might be missing opportunities. You can ask him, though..

CapAndGown -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/12/2005 5:40:26 AM)
I am not sure the Japs get all that stockpiled oil. I know the bases I have taken haven't had all that much oil stockpiled. Course, I haven't hit the really big producers yet, except Brunei, and that one I took rather early. I guess I will see, but it seems that some or much of it is destroyed when the base is captured. It may work the same way as supply and fuel.

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/12/2005 5:58:58 AM)
I think the amount of oil destroyed when a base is captured depends on the number of engineers at the base, plus a small random factor. (See Herbieh's ARR for what bad luck can do to you..) As a result I have several base forces in Palembang. [:D]

Alikchi2 -> 2/2/42 (7/13/2005 9:37:57 AM)
Today was, thankfully, a bit quiet. 2/2/42 India/Burma: Nothing new here. China: Yes!! [:D] Cruft failed to attack for the last few days and as a result most of my Kaifeng/Honan army has slipped past his roadblock and is already in Honan. About half will stay and protect Honan while the toughest corps head east to join the battle at Linfen. Eeexxxcellent... I realize that I've left Kaifeng behind with a minor garrison (two fairly exhausted corps and an HQ) but I'd rather lose a recent gain than have my rear broken into. In the south, the Hankow armies have reached their jumping-off points and will begin moving towards the city tomorrow. Malaya: Bombardments at Johore Bahru.. Singapore airbase is repairing quite slowly. I'll turn off fort-building until we're all patched up. The Philippines: I am engaged at both Manila and Bataan now. Manila has about 500 supplies; Bataan has absolutely none. Grah. Also, Butuan was captured by an SNLF today - it was my last "safe" anchorage in the Philippines and the launching point of my PT boats in Mindanao. Now both are gone. Cagayan continues to hold out, however... the Filipinos there have learned much about the art of war after repulsing an earlier Japanese attack. DEI: LBA out of Bandoeng (my principal airbase in the DEI, other than Soerabaja) attacked a Japanese cruiser TF near Pontianak today. No hits were scored but it was good practice. My Borneo Martins (launching from Balikpapan and Samarinda) are doing rather better - a hit was scored on a PG near Brunei earlier today which caused "Severe Casualties due to Deck Explosion". Cool. I think he's already bringing oil out of Brunei and that one base east of it, so I've vectored in subs to the area. Other than that, no action here today... I kinda hope he tries a sweep of Palembang again. I have even more aircraft in the air now and the pilots have good experience. SWPAC: Another bomb hit by the Hudsons, this time on an AP. One of the Hudsons drivers has nearly 80 experience now... [8D] SOPAC: He continues to bomb Suva, yadda yadda, no interesting movements to report. I'm sure his Kates have a ridiculous level of experience now. CENTPAC: No action - Tambor almost bagged ML Yaeyama between Enwietok and Truk. I think I'll move more subs onto this route (it's a straight line on Andrew's map) in the future. Tambor is jigging a bit so Cruft doesn't have her location locked... NORTHPAC: Building, building, building.

Alikchi2 -> 2/3/42 (7/14/2005 8:09:36 AM)
2/3/42 India/Burma: Sonias, escorted by Oscars, are beginning to bomb my troops at Moulmein. I'm hitting their airbase at Moulmein tomorrow with B-17s and Blenheims. Oh, took care of my British withdrawal today. Sent off CL Caldeon and two 'P' class DDs. Dammit, Churchill, I'm low on destroyers already! Ask for Royal Sovereign or something. [:'(] China: Nothing has changed, but I'm pleased that I have managed to escape Cruft's vise. I didn't catch his bombers though - the AVG didn't launch. [:(] Ah, well. Malaya: Another deliberate attack at Johore Bahru - forts are down to three. However we're 95% of the way to level 4 so I should recover a bit. Once I hit level 2 or 1 forts I am running for Singapore... The Philippines: Bataan fell today, on his very first attack. 15,000 starving American and Filipino troops march into captivity... erk. Speaking of starving, Manila is down to zero (0) supplies as well. Ack. Well, at least Manila has good forts and stronger units.. these guys haven't been retreated yet. DEI: He has captured Weda and landed at Morotai, both bases on the small landmass to the east of Menado and north of Amboina. Nothing much there but they are stepping stones in the Amboina direction... I hope I'll be able to get my minelayers into Amboina without having them torpedoed. Regardless, I'll make the attempt. Oh, and I'm sending several of CHS' small AKs (400-450 capacity, very cool) to Teloekebetong (or something; the base and the very southern tip of Sumatra). I'm hoping that when Palembang falls I'll be able to use these small, manueverable ships to evacuate the retreating units, piece by piece, to Java. I'll leave some large APs there as well to try and evacuate larger chunks but even fragments would be nice. SWPAC: No bomb hits today. [:(] Better luck tomorrow! Aircraft (P-40Es, P-39s and B-17s) all destined for Port Moresby and Australia just left Papaete. They'll bounce off Auckland and then head straight for their respective destinations. SOPAC: Other than convoy management, nothing much. We are again down to 0 supplies at both Pago Pago and Suva. I expect the Kiwis to start faltering now. CENTPAC: Shuffled some aircraft around towards Christmas Island - I want to recon Canton Island, but it's just -barely- out of range. Hmm.. I've been thinking about sending my American CVs to raid Wake or the Marshalls. I know the KB's position has been fixed now, and it's been bombing Fiji and/or Samoa for a looong time. Maybe I can grab an opening? NORTHPAC: 42nd Fighter Squadron is packed onto an AK and pointed towards Attu Island - the base should be halfway to level 2 by the time they get there. ====== Screenshots! ====== === His new bases in the DEI, Weda and Morotai. [image]http://img309.imageshack.us/img309/1733/morotai2ef.gif[/image] === === The China situation. [image]http://img309.imageshack.us/img309/7546/china3mn.gif[/image]

Tanaka -> RE: 2/3/42 (7/14/2005 8:31:58 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Alikchi 2/3/42 India/Burma: Sonias, escorted by Oscars, are beginning to bomb my troops at Moulmein. I'm hitting their airbase at Moulmein tomorrow with B-17s and Blenheims. Oh, took care of my British withdrawal today. Sent off CL Caldeon and two 'P' class DDs. Dammit, Churchill, I'm low on destroyers already! Ask for Royal Sovereign or something. [:'(] China: Nothing has changed, but I'm pleased that I have managed to escape Cruft's vise. I didn't catch his bombers though - the AVG didn't launch. [:(] Ah, well. Malaya: Another deliberate attack at Johore Bahru - forts are down to three. However we're 95% of the way to level 4 so I should recover a bit. Once I hit level 2 or 1 forts I am running for Singapore... The Philippines: Bataan fell today, on his very first attack. 15,000 starving American and Filipino troops march into captivity... erk. Speaking of starving, Manila is down to zero (0) supplies as well. Ack. Well, at least Manila has good forts and stronger units.. these guys haven't been retreated yet. DEI: He has captured Weda and landed at Morotai, both bases on the small landmass to the east of Menado and north of Amboina. Nothing much there but they are stepping stones in the Amboina direction... I hope I'll be able to get my minelayers into Amboina without having them torpedoed. Regardless, I'll make the attempt. Oh, and I'm sending several of CHS' small AKs (400-450 capacity, very cool) to Teloekebetong (or something; the base and the very southern tip of Sumatra). I'm hoping that when Palembang falls I'll be able to use these small, manueverable ships to evacuate the retreating units, piece by piece, to Java. I'll leave some large APs there as well to try and evacuate larger chunks but even fragments would be nice. SWPAC: No bomb hits today. [:(] Better luck tomorrow! Aircraft (P-40Es, P-39s and B-17s) all destined for Port Moresby and Australia just left Papaete. They'll bounce off Auckland and then head straight for their respective destinations. SOPAC: Other than convoy management, nothing much. We are again down to 0 supplies at both Pago Pago and Suva. I expect the Kiwis to start faltering now. CENTPAC: Shuffled some aircraft around towards Christmas Island - I want to recon Canton Island, but it's just -barely- out of range. Hmm.. I've been thinking about sending my American CVs to raid Wake or the Marshalls. I know the KB's position has been fixed now, and it's been bombing Fiji and/or Samoa for a looong time. Maybe I can grab an opening? NORTHPAC: 42nd Fighter Squadron is packed onto an AK and pointed towards Attu Island - the base should be halfway to level 2 by the time they get there. Ah the temptation! Dont do it! Its a trap! [:D]

Tom Hunter -> RE: 2/3/42 (7/15/2005 6:19:43 AM)
Raid carefully it is good for your ships and pilots and it hurts the Japanese

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/3/42 (7/15/2005 7:12:31 AM)
quote: Ah the temptation! Dont do it! Its a trap! quote: Raid carefully it is good for your ships and pilots and it hurts the Japanese Thanks for your input guys [:)] I think I'll raid the Wake area - or, if my CVs aren't spotted by the time I near Wake, I'll head farther east. It'll be a while before my CVs make it all the way from the West Coast though.. and I still don't have a suitable number of DDs available. We will see. Update soon tonight -

CapAndGown -> RE: 2/3/42 (7/15/2005 7:28:11 AM)
Has Cruft set up a interlocking search network? He seems rather anal about most things. I would expect him to have a quite complete search network going by now.

Alikchi2 -> 2/4/42 (7/15/2005 7:57:23 AM)
I'm sure he has Mavises and Emilies everywhere. Luckily Wake is far enough from the Kido Butai in the South Pacific that he couldn't respond in time (as of now, at least). In any case the raid won't be launched for a long time; not enough DDs right now and way too many convoys that need ASW. Perhaps come April after the CV upgrades. Oh, right, the AAR. Herewego - 2/4/42 India/Burma: Attack on Rahaeng achieved nil; trying again tomorrow. Blah! I have plans for the RN CVs. Oh, I have plans. [:-] China: My Changsha horde reaches Hankow and automatically shock attacks after crossing the river, argh. Disruption and casualties are high. The Ichang horde will arrive tomorrow aand then we should outnumber the Japanese by nearly 3-1... If I can take Hankow (level 7 forts) then I've taken his primary airfield in central China. Of course, actually taking Hankow isn't particularly likely, especially since reinforcements are easily on hand for him (I think). Still, I can distract him. Malaya: Johore Bahru fell. [:(] Looks like my Commonwealth troops lost heart after Kuala Lumpur. We're down to about 280 assault points in Singapore and I expect the Japanese to arrive soon. Once they start attacking, the RAF starts leaving... I'm reading "Bloody Shambles" right now.. I'm surprised the RAF has held together this long. I suppose it's because I'm an amazing commander. [:'(] The Philippines: Nothing new - bombardments at Manila; still no supplies. DEI: No action this turn, other than O19 and O20 dropping off mines at Kuching. I've dispatched the remnants of the Asiatic Fleet in the DEI (2 CLs, 4 DDs) to Teloeketebong or whatever. Hopefully he won't notice it and I'll be able to send in a quick sortie towards Palembang or Singkawang if necessary. SWPAC: Only one bomb hit today, this time on a destroyer. In todays email, Cruft refers to the Rabaul beauforts as "a pain in the ass." [:D] SOPAC: Nothing new here.. CENTPAC: Again, nothing new. NORHTPAC: Still nothing, sorry! ====== Looks like Malaya and the Phillipines are about to fall.

CapAndGown -> RE: 2/4/42 (7/15/2005 8:02:00 AM)
In Re SWPAC: Why is Cruft nibbiling at your periphery? He should have taken SS Detachment and gone right for Rabaul and cleaned up the other stuff later.

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/4/42 (7/15/2005 8:30:54 AM)
I couldn't tell you for certain but I think the diversion of the SSD to Suva (Operation Neck Tie) has thrown everything in that theatre out of wack. I should have P-40Es at Moresby before he grabs Rabaul. Nibbiling away is a good way of putting it - Kavieng isn't particularly useful to him right now... I'm sure he has troops heading my way, though. He needs a strong force and he should have several SNLFs and other units free from the PI soon.

timtom -> RE: 2/4/42 (7/15/2005 12:57:17 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Alikchi I'm reading "Bloody Shambles" right now.. I'm surprised the RAF has held together this long. I suppose it's because I'm an amazing commander. [:'(] Funny, I'm chomping through "Bloody Shambles" as well at the moment... Anyway, great AAR, Tom. I head here first thing when I log on [sm=00000436.gif] quote: ORIGINAL: Alikchi I've dispatched the remnants of the Asiatic Fleet in the DEI (2 CLs, 4 DDs) to Teloeketebong or whatever. Teloeketebong is referred to as Oestaven in "Bloody Shambles". Certainly comes off the tongue a bit easier. Mebbe we could persuade AB to change it[;)]

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/4/42 (7/16/2005 1:30:29 AM)
quote: Funny, I'm chomping through "Bloody Shambles" as well at the moment... Anyway, great AAR, Tom. I head here first thing when I log on Hey, thanks! [:)] I do my best to be moderately entertaining... [:D] Bloody Shambles is very good (it's helping me with my scenario project, as well). Like it says on the inset - "A story of unpreparedness, panic, poor leadership and wishful thinking." And lucky me, I'm in charge. ;) quote: Teloeketebong is referred to as Oestaven in "Bloody Shambles". Certainly comes off the tongue a bit easier. Mebbe we could persuade AB to change it LOL, that'd be a smart move. [:D] I'm still basically guessing on the number of Es and Ts in that one... No turn yet, so here's a bonus picture. === [image]http://img326.imageshack.us/img326/1866/darkzero9ko.jpg[/image] A Zero on evening patrol east of the Japanese airbase at Menado. ===

Alikchi2 -> 2/5/42 (7/16/2005 10:58:46 AM)
Here we go. [:)] 2/5/42 India/Burma: A few Buffalos engage Oscars over Moulmein and actually down one! That's worth posting. [;)] No action otherwise. My Chinese airlift will be augmented by 8 further Dutch transports within the week. China: Kaifeng fell on his first attack - of course I didn't have enough time to build forts. :/ Darn. Well, they've retreated in the right direction and will head back to Homan. It was fun! In the center, he tried to deliberate attack me out of Hankow and failed. My other troops still haven't arrived. In the south, I want Pakhoi back! Hurry up Chinese! Malaya: No action here today, not even an air raid. I assume he's gearing up for the final push to Singapore... I did take the silence as a chance to fly out most of the remainder of the RAF in Malaya. Two Australian Buffalo squadrons are in Java (Bandoeng and Soerabaja) and the Hurricanes have flown to Palembang. British Buffalos have flown north to Rangoon to augment the defence there. The only remaining aircraft are about 15 Hudsons and one last squadron of Aussie Buffs... they'll fly out as soon as all damaged aircraft are repaired. The Philippines: No action here, either. A few enemy minesweepers tooting about and cleaning up Bataan for him... DEI: Several raids were launched today. In the first 3 Martins escorted by 4 Buffalos made an attack at Tarakan. He'd put up a CAPof 12 Zeroes since I'd last been there, and I was expecting all my Dutchmen to tumble into the ground, but a Buffalo actually shot down a Zero and the rest stayed back! Of course, the Martins didn't hit anything, but still [:'(] In Java I was less successful. A B-17 raid (launched from Bandoeng) on Singkawang's airfield met 15 Zeroes. 2/3rds of the attack force turned back and the 3 remaining aircraft scored only one runway hit. The B-17s' collective morale is terrible, so I'll give them a break. SWPAC: Another bomb hit on DD Hayate. Neck Tie is definitely draining his resources... every day my Kiwis and Marines hold out is an extra day for New Britain and the Solomons. I should have sent the brigade I have at Noumea to Rabaul, wouldn't that have been a surprise [:D] SOPAC: Convoy routing and more bombing from his CVs, yawn yawn. Papaete has 220 engineers. I expect it to grow quickly. ;) CENTPAC: Christmas Island hit port size 2.. we're building up very quickly here. [:)] NORTHPAC: No action. ====== Map time - ====== === [image]http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/772/convoys6bd.gif[/image] Convoy routing system in the Pacific - Early February, 1942. 1. Convoy sets out from the West Coast with heavy ASW escort. 2. Short range escorts break off as the convoy passes Christmas Island and Palmyra. They will refuel and then return to the West Coast. 3. A massive convoy (5-6 TFs) on the way to India, carrying American aircraft. 4. Papaete, the next convoy "pit stop". Convoy will refuel here and then proceed directly west to Auckland. 5. BBs Mississippi and Idaho on their way to Auckland, which is gearing up to be a major USN staging point. 6. Auckland. From here the convoy will disperse to its specific destination, having traversed the Pacific safely, we hope. [8D] 7. Fiji - under attack by Japanese CVs and the South Seas Detachment. 8. Samoa - under attack by Japanese CVs. One landing repulsed; more sure to follow. ===

Alikchi2 -> 2/6/42 (7/17/2005 4:03:28 AM)
2/6/42 India/Burma: More bombing of Rahaeng, no real results other than a few dents in the runway and a few Blenheims embedded in the ground nearby. Oh, I've moved a squadron of Buffalos from Rangoon to Calcutta - they -really- needed a rest. China: I have decided to "back off" on all Chinese fronts except Linfen and the North. This means the troops approaching Pakhoi and Hankow are turning about and returning to their starting points. Why? Well, I don't feel that I am accomplishing much by sending out these random attacks - there's very little chance of me taking and retaining either base - and I could really use some reinforcements in the northern theatre. Bases like Sian, Lanchow, etc. have very small garrisons compared to their Southern Chinese counterparts. Right now I'd rather have a small break to put my army together where I want it instead of launching pointless offensives. Plus, it feels kind of gamey to be attacking when Cruft is playing so historically. [:'(] Malaya: No attacks again this turn. The Philippines: Just bombardments at Manila. I expect a deliberate attack soon... DEI: Nothing but Martins bombing and missing. [;)] Their experience is going up.. hopefully by crunch time (defence of Java) they'll have become dangerous. Minelayers still haven't been spotted on the approach to Amboina... SWPAC: Nothing here this turn either; no bombings on either side. SOPAC: He re-landed the Maizuru SNLF this turn at Pago Pago (I suppose he was resting it after the last failed attack) and swept the defenders clean. Surprisingly, the odds were only 2-1, considering that I had no supplies and had been bombed for weeks.. ah well. American Samoa is now Japanese Samoa. [X(] An AP carrying a part of the 802nd EAB finally floundered at Papaete today. I knew the ship would sink if I tried to continue on to Auckland, and Papaete is getting close to level 3, so I decided to wait.. didn't work, d'oh. CENTPAC: No action. NORTHPAC: Again, no action. ====== So, a fairly quiet turn, other than the fall of Samoa. Soon I'll have destroyers available at San Francisco for convoy duty. They'll augment my mixed American-Canadian MSW/PG/PC force. Here's a look at Fiji and Samoa. === [image]http://img315.imageshack.us/img315/662/fijisamoa7og.gif[/image] Fiji (under siege by the South Seas Detachment) and Samoa (recently conquered by the Japanese). The Allied convoy route is only about half a dozen hexes south of this screenshot.

Alikchi2 -> 2/8/42 (7/20/2005 12:09:05 AM)
Nothing happened on the 7th, so let's skip right to the 8th! [8D] Also: I am lazy. 2/8/42 India/Burma: Good lord the trails on Andrew's map must be annoying Cruft. They sure have been annoying me. ;) His troops are STILL marching, I presume. My Lockheed 212s are being uncrated at Diamond Harbour right now. Once ready they'll join the Lodestars at Ledo... China: Some interesting stuff today in Chinaland. First his troops from the Kaifeng junction have arrived at Honan and try an immediate deliberate attack. 0-1 odds, fort levels not reduced from 6, heavy Japanese casualties. I like. Reinforcements are being dispatched from the Sian/Lanchow area. At Linfen my reinforcements have arrived for the most part. The numbers are back in my favor. Only an 8000 troop difference though (40,017 IJA vs 48,635 assorted Chinese)... plus he has more guns. The outcome remains to be seen. Finally, he's been bombing Wuchow from Canton intermittently for a while. Today my Chinese did exceptionally well - I-16s and I-153s avoided the Oscar escort and shot down 13 Lilies for no loss! That should slow him down a bit. I've moved a squadron of the AVG down from Honan so that a) they don't get caught on the ground, assuming my defence fails and b) they can cash in on this lucrative Lily-shooting business. Malaya: A small airfield attack on Singapore today - 19 Sallies escorted by 3 Oscars - did little damage, but now he knows I have no fighters left for CAP. I'm pulling out the remaining aircraft before he catches them on the ground. The Philippines: No action today except bombardments at Manila. DEI: I have something like a 40 fighter CAP at Palembang again. [:D] Also, I think my decision to bring Soerabaja up to level 9 port is paying off. Part of my minelayer force reached Amboina today. Amboina started the day with no mines and ended it with 1,212. [:D] However, Betties and Nells finally detected me from Menado and launched a strike, but luckily only with bombs - a few ships were hit but none are sunk. The damaged ones are heading south to Palembang while the others are heading back to Soerabaja or to Kendari (to lay mines there). SWPAC: No action here today. SOPAC: Mississippi and Idaho arrive at Auckland, and more convoy routing. No attacks anywhere in the Fiji area today, though. CENTPAC: Pennsylvania is trundling along towards the West Coast at 5 knots and 74 sys damage with a heavy escort.. hope a sub doesnt' spot her. Speaking of, I haven't seen a sub off the west coast for weeks now.. NORTHPAC: Nope, nothing. ====== === [image]http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/9691/losses0gq.gif[/image] All the Lilies went down to my uber-Chinese. Actually, mostly thanks to two lucky pilots.. one has 6 kills now and the other has 4. ===

Alikchi2 -> 2/9/42-2/10/42 (7/22/2005 2:30:44 AM)
Geez, I'm slow with these AAR updates lately.. here we go. 2/9/42-2/10/42 India/Burma: A lot of ground unit shuffling - Southeast Asia HQ is moving to Dacca to better distribute supplies where they are needed. A base force is heading that way as well. Large RAF base units and HQs are heading to Ledo to support the growing airlift operation (Lockheeds flew in and began work today). Oh yes, Resolution and Ramillies will be arriving soon, along with a nice CL and some DDs. The R-class ships will probably all sit in port, but my CVs will need those DDs if they are to go raiding... China: Another very good day in the air for China today. Moving the AVG squadron to Wuchow paid off - today 13 Lilies and 4 Oscars fell to the guns of the AVG and the Chinese with no loss to the Allies. I'm starting to intensify bombing of the unit (units? recon is crap) in the hex between Canton and Wuchow. Several bomber grounds got new leaders and new orders today. In Northern China, no action today, but my reinforcements are making their way towards Sian. Malaya: A port attack was launched on Singapore today from Borneo. A bomb hit KVIII repairing in the harbor after a depth charge attack.. KVIII is heavily damaged (84 floatation, similar sys damage). No ground attacks though. The Philippines: More bombardments at Manila. Screenshot is attached with the current situation... SWPAC: The Japanese have landed.. at Tulagi! (?!) It fell on the 10th. And yet Rabaul still stands. No bombs fall today, though. He's pulled out his ships, methinks. Darn... SOPAC: No action. CENTPAC: No action. Pleased with the state of things. NORTHPAC: No action. ====== Screenshots for today - ====== === [image]http://img350.imageshack.us/img350/1531/tulagi9or.gif[/image] The Solomons as of right now. === === [image]http://img318.imageshack.us/img318/7162/manila8kc.gif[/image] The last Allied forces in Luzon face off against 100,000 determined Japanese. === === [image]http://img312.imageshack.us/img312/8876/losses104uq.gif[/image] Aircraft losses for today.. ===

CapAndGown -> RE: 2/9/42-2/10/42 (7/22/2005 4:24:38 AM)
Your mines may not work out as you plan. As the jap player, I would go for Buna over Shortlands. (At least, that is what I did) In which case, Shortlands may fall by default, revealing your mines before a single ship is hit. How did you manage to get 300 mines there? DMs?

1275psi -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/22/2005 4:57:35 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Alikchi I think the amount of oil destroyed when a base is captured depends on the number of engineers at the base, plus a small random factor. (See Herbieh's ARR for what bad luck can do to you..) As a result I have several base forces in Palembang. [:D] AAAAAAAAARRRRGGHHHHH I feel the pain, Oh the pain! herbieh

Alikchi2 -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/22/2005 5:45:52 AM)
quote: Your mines may not work out as you plan. As the jap player, I would go for Buna over Shortlands. (At least, that is what I did) In which case, Shortlands may fall by default, revealing your mines before a single ship is hit. How did you manage to get 300 mines there? DMs? Ack. I didn't realize that Shortlands could fall by connection with Buna. Hopefully he'll go for Shortlands first.. An Australian minelayer is in Brisbane or Sydney (I can't remember which) on 12/7 in CHS. I failed to notice it until recently... [8\|] quote: AAAAAAAAARRRRGGHHHHH I feel the pain, Oh the pain! herbieh LOL [:D] Well hopefully my opponent will be feeling a bit as well. [;)] I really am enjoying your AAR.. very interesting. In all honesty the base forces are there merely to support the huge number of aircraft there (95 or so). The engineers = no oil thing is an extra bonus.

Tom Hunter -> RE: 2/1/42 (7/22/2005 6:06:05 AM)
Those old R class BBs have some of the best guns ever made, and they start with high (for the Allies) night fighting ratings. They are a lot like George Forman when he did his comeback fight in the late 80s/early 90s. Not what they used to be but still have a hell of a punch if your opponent is dumb enough to walk into it.

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