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All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [World War II] >> War In The Pacific - Struggle Against Japan 1941 - 1945 >> After Action Reports >> RE: Surface Sub Attacks...

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RE: Surface Sub Attacks... - 5/30/2006 4:22:00 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
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quote:

ORIGINAL: BrucePowers

In my game against the AI, I have several task forces of DDs searching for subs around PH. I think I damaged one. They are at least gaining experience.

I think that we need to drop some boosters on them...

(Nice photo of the Shuttle.)

Thanks -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to BrucePowers)

Post #: 31

RE: Surface Sub Attacks... - 5/30/2006 5:44:25 AM

BrucePowers

Posts: 12094
Joined: 7/3/2004
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OV-103 Discovery rollout for July launch. Return to flight. Yes!!!

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 32

Unintentional status report... - 6/1/2006 4:51:55 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
Status: offline

December 26, 1941 -

Yank forgot to send the Combat Replay along with the Turn this time, and before I noticed that it was missing, Yank had overwritten everything in his Save folder thanks to playing a turn against the AI. So this is a Status Report based upon my observations of the December 27 turn rather than being a report of action the previous turn.

Checking all the areas of the map, the West Coast remains clear of subs and my TFs are sailing along unhindered in that region. There are still a half dozen Japanese subs sitting to the northeast of the Hawaiian Islands in the shipping lanes. I refuelled the ASW ships that went out last turn and disbanded them, and then I created more ASW TFs out of ships that had sat in port last turn. None of the ships from the previous turn's ASW action had any damage, which is good news because it means that none were surprisedut the enemy subs. But I doubt that they hit any of the Japanese subs badly either.

Yank has a lot of naval action occurring in the Celebes Sea. There is one transport TF that appears to be heading to Tarakan, and another that is likely heading for Morotai, but may be heading for Menando instead. I've decided to challenge these invasions and have moved up a number of the Dutch air units that I've been resting for the past game-week or so. I also have the US PTs headed for Morotai and a small Dutch surface combat TF heading for Menando. I have LR CAP in the region to cover the Menando-bound TF. The weather is generally stormy, so my air units may not find anything even if they do take off, but I've got them spread across four different bases so maybe I'll get lucky.

Right now all of my CVs are sitting in port, getting their system damage reduced and replenishing air units. There are no good targets of opportunity around right now, and I want to get the flattops into as good a shape as possible before I send them out again. So this means that Yank will have one less type of counterattack to worry about for a while, but it can't be helped.

Most everything else is either as expected or unusually quiet. In Luzon, for example, I still hold Legaspi, Naga, Manila, Bataan and San Marcelino without any Japanese contesting my presence. There are five Japanese units at Clark Field, but they aren't close to capturing it yet. There are also three small Japanese units in Lamon Bay, but I trapped them in place with a Philippine Army Division. So they can't cut southern Luzon off from Manila. In Mindanao I still hold Cagayan and Dajangas, but with tired and weak troops, so they will fall whenever Yank bothers to go after them. And the Japanese troops that landed at Cebu still haven't captured it.

In another surprise, the Japanese troops that moved into Miri last turn haven't captured it either. Considering that the base force there was kicked out of Brunei, I can't imagine that it will stand up to much of an attack. But for now I'm still enjoying the opportunity to refuel subs from the ample fuel supplies that are there.

The situation is also static in Malaya. The Brits still hold Alor Star and Kuantan, despite Kuantan being heavily damaged from naval and aerial bombardments. To the north, Victoria Point was finally captured unopposed and there is now a Japanese unit at Tavoy. It also appears that Yank has sent some troops to Rahaeng. I'm sending some bombers over on recon in order to verify this. Rahaeng is dangerous because troops from there can cut off troops in the Rangoon area due to the rail bonus.

In China Yenen, Ichang and Changsha remain the Chinese bases facing the most serious Japanese threats. I believe that I can win the "reinforcements war" at Changsha, but I am certain that I can't at Ichang, and am starting to get a bit worried about Yenen. My one hope with the Ichang situation is that I might be able to cut the Japanese supply lines if Yank doesn't capture the base too quickly. However, Yank is apparently sending more and better air units against the Chinese bases from the look of the damage levels of some of my Chinese fighter units.

But all-in-all, I'm reasonably satisfied about the current situation. Yank's initial multi-pronged lunge has slowed, I've been able to move a lot of Allied forces into good positions, and I haven't taken too many losses. For example, right now the Allies have only lost 31 ships, against 14 for the Japanese. The two biggest Allied losses were a US CA and an Anzac CL, and both were lost in surface action, so they were able to draw blood in return. The biggest Japanese loss has been a CL, but I'm still happy to be able to cause problems for the Japanese anywhere and in any manner.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to BrucePowers)

Post #: 33

Deadly Dutchmen... - 6/3/2006 12:15:58 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
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December 27, 1941 -

Dutch forces showed some "muscle" at the beginning of this turn. Granted, the euphoria didn't extend beyond the later part of the turn, but it was still fun while it lasted. First off, I sent four Dutch PT boats to Kuching to see if Yank had left his transports there unguarded. Well, I lucked out, because the "Dutch Blasters" first ran into an unescorted transport TF and put a torpedo into an AP full of Japanese troops.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Kuching at 28, 56

Japanese Ships
AP Batavia Maru
AP La Plata Maru
AP Kagi Maru
AP Kaifuku Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire

Allied Ships
PT TM-4
PT TM-5
PT TM-6
PT TM-7

Japanese ground losses:
78 casualties reported

The Dutch PTs then ran into a Japanese PT, with whom they exchanged fire but there were no hits on either side. The same Dutch PTs then ran into two Japanese MSWs and this time neither side got any shots off. So the "Dutch Blasters" are on their way back to base, safe and sound, and also successful.

But that didn't end the excitement. Right afterwards Dutch sub KVIII found the same TF and put a torpedo into a second AP:

Sub attack at 28, 55

Japanese Ships
AP Batavia Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS KVIII

But the fun wasn't over yet, because later in the day some Brit torpedo bombers got a chance at the MSWs that were still hanging around Kuching:

Day Air attack on TF, near Kuching at 28, 56

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 8

Allied aircraft
Brewster 339D x 11
Vildebeest IV x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Brewster 339D: 6 destroyed

Japanese Ships
MSW Choun Maru #7
MSW Choun Maru #6, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage

That MSW later sank. There was a lot of other LBA action in all the primary Fronts, with Japanese air causing some damage to a number of Allied bases, and Allied air attempting unsuccessful attacks on other Japanese naval targets. One of the more interesting Japanese LBA attacks was from Davao against Menado where the Japanese got a bit of a surprise:

Day Air attack on Menado, at 39, 67

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 8
G4M1 Betty x 15

Allied aircraft
P-40E Warhawk x 7

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed

You can bet that Yank wasn't expecting to find Warhawks there. I also surprised the unescorted Nells that have been flying to Singapore on a daily basis by bringing some Brit CAP back again:

Day Air attack on Singapore, at 23, 50

Japanese aircraft
G3M Nell x 53

Allied aircraft
Buffalo I x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M Nell: 6 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Buffalo I: 3 damaged

Allied ground losses:
52 casualties reported
Guns lost 1

Airbase hits 3
Runway hits 21

Unfortunately, there weren't enough Brits to make a big difference, but this will cause Yank to rethink his tactics. He will also have to reconsider things in the air over China:

Day Air attack on 4th New Chinese Corps, at 47, 36

Japanese aircraft
Ki-51 Sonia x 9

Allied aircraft
I-16c x 9

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-51 Sonia: 2 destroyed, 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
I-16c: 1 damaged

Between my hit-and-run air tactics and the universally bad weather Yank will have to stay flexible in order to maintain an LBA campaign on the outer Fronts.

The Japanese also sent a naval bombardment TF in to hit Tarakan. The TF surprisingly enough came in during the daytime; that may have been because it stopped during the night to chase another Dutch sub. Then Japanese troops started to land; once again during the daytime. I couldn't figure why my LBA wasn't going after the invasion TFs until the following happened:

Day Air attack on Balikpapan, at 31, 64

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 112
D3A Val x 126
B5N Kate x 93

Allied aircraft
Brewster 339D x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
D3A Val: 2 destroyed, 13 damaged
B5N Kate: 10 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Brewster 339D: 4 destroyed
Martin 139: 3 destroyed

Allied ground losses:
32 casualties reported

Airbase hits 13
Airbase supply hits 11
Runway hits 115

Oops! I now know that at least part of the KB is sitting in the Celebes Sea. I'm also guessing that IJN Zeros are likely flying LR CAP over the invasion of Tarakan, and that's why none of my bombers attempted to attack the TFs there.

The presence of the KB may very well provide the flexibility that Yank needs for him to recover the momentum in the DEI. Obviously, I am pulling my ships out of the region at full speed. And while I'm leaving my Dutch air units in various locations that have the potential for launching ambushes, it is equally obvious that the Dutch planes won't fly against the KB and wouldn't have a chance if they did. I wonder if Yank will use the KB to systematically crush the Dutch air bases in the DEI?

In the land war, things remained relatively stable in China, with Japanese troops doing artillery barrages at Ichang, Changsha, Homan and Yenen. Japanese troops captured Tavoy against no opposition, and kicked the Commonwealth troops out of Kuantan. However, a Japanese shock attack at Clark Field failed. I suspect that was just more troops coming into the hex.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 34

The KB "Krunch" - 6/4/2006 2:48:32 AM

ADavidB

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December 28, 1941 -

Despite lousy weather most everywhere there was a fair amount of action this turn. The invasion of Tarakan continued, with Dutch T IVs putting a torpedo into one of the Japanese APs while trying and missing some of the ships in the associated bombardment TF. The Japanese carrier TF moved closed to Balikpapan and hammered the air base there with a lot of planes:

Day Air attack on Balikpapan, at 31, 64

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 20
B5N Kate x 137

Allied aircraft
Brewster 339D x 2

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N Kate: 6 destroyed, 30 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Brewster 339D: 1 destroyed

Allied ground losses:
45 casualties reported
Guns lost 1

Airbase hits 7
Airbase supply hits 6
Runway hits 70

The only good thing was the number of Kates that were hit in the attack. For some reason they were attacking at 100 feet. I don't care how much Yank hammers Balikpapan because I only have a couple of damaged planes there, and if he invades soon he will have to repair all the damage anyway. And fortunately, because Yank has an overwhelming air advantage with his carrier TF, my LBA planes aren't wasting themselves against the Naval CAP and are attacking other "softer" targets instead.

Yank sent unescorted 50 Nells against Singapore again, and once again the handful of Brit Buffalos there drove off half of the bombers and shot down one. But there just aren't enough of the Brits to do the entire job. Bettys and Zeros also flew against Menado again, and again were stopped by the Warhawks. There were also a number of air raids in China from both sides.

In the naval war the USN ASW ships started to find the range this turn as they attacked three different subs off of Hawaii, missing one, damaging another slightly and damaging a third sub a lot. As long as Yank keeps the subs off of Hawaii I will keep the "naval circus" sailing in and out after them.

In land action, there were Japanese artillery attacks on Ichang, Changsha, Homan and Yenen again. The only other land attack was the unopposed capture of Taytay.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 35

Japan Grabs Three More... - 6/5/2006 2:18:25 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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December 29, 1941 -

Lae was occupied automatically this turn, which is an indication of the effect of Yank's early expansion into PNG, New Britain and the Solomons. It will be very costly later on to recover that area. Yank also continues to send daily bombing raids from Rabaul to PM. The raids aren't accomplishing much as far as damage goes, but they are a good way to give easy experience to his pilots and to keep my troops at PM repairing damage instead of building fortifications.

The real action this turn was still in the central DEI. Troops continued to land at Tarakan and the base received another naval bombardment. So when it was time for the Japanese to try a shock attack it worked perfectly. It also helped that Yank brought in an entire division for the invasion. He definitely wasn't taking any chances.

During the turn the Japanese carriers remained on station off of Balikpapan, but they didn't launch any attacks this turn. Yank probably had them "resting" on naval attack. There was rain everywhere again, so none of my bombers flew in the region either.

The biggest air attack occurred at Singapore which was once again hit by a ton of Nells. My Brit Buffalos are essentially finished and they couldn't do anything to stop the attack, I don't have anything else in the region that I can spare for Singapore, so it looks as if Yank will get to bomb it until he gets bored. Surprisingly enough, Yanks doesn't appear to be doing anything else in Malaya at this time.

The only notable news for the Allies this turn was that Dutch sub KVIII attacked a Japanese AP on the surface off of Kuching and sank the ship with four torpedoes and a shell hit. KVIII now has to go home to reload ammunition. That's a happening that occurs far too rarely for my subs.

In other land combat news, Changsha, Ichang, Homan and Yenen all received their "daily allotment" of artillery bombardments. These attacks aren't doing much, so I'm not bothering to reply. And Miri fell to a shock attack, finally getting rid of that Brit base force that retreated there from Brunei.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 36

Nells vs PTs... - 6/6/2006 6:00:59 AM

ADavidB

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December 30, 1941 -

Once again there was fairly lousy weather everywhere this turn. This didn't stop a lot of Japanese air attacks, but it did seem to minimize their effectiveness. And at the same time the Japanese air units built up a fair number of operational losses. Among some of the Allied bases that were hit were Singapore which got another Nell attack, Balikpapan which was swept by Zeros, Clark Field which got a fair number of mixed bombers, and Alor Star.

The oddest attack was at Singkawang where some Nells from Kuching came in at 100 feet to strafe the Dutch PT boats that are sitting there. The Nells got a few hits while the Dutch didn't get any hits back. I've never seen anyone use Nells for strafing before. If Yank tries it again I'll drop some fighters in to "discourage" him.

For the moment, however, I'm keeping my fighters on watch for the Japanese CV TF that is slowly cruising south of Borneo. This was the second day in a row that the planes from this CV didn't attack anything. I'm sending a bunch of Dutch subs into the area to see if I get lucky.

In other combat news, Japanese troops started to land at Sarmi. There was also a big Japanese shock attack at Clark Field that failed and didn't even reduce the fortifications any. And there were the usual artillery attacks on the various Chinese bases that are under siege.

Japanese troops are also starting to move towards Burma. I am sending some bombers after them, but if my experience is any guide, there will be few if any successful air attacks on the advancing Japanese troops. So this time, in contrast to my game against Treespider, I will attempt to engage and slow down the advancing Japanese in order to give my Chinese troops enough time to reach the Burma Road bases.

In addition, Japanese troops are attempting to cut my forces into two halves in Malaya. I'm seriously considering letting Yank split his forces rather than try a "mad dash" of my troops down the west coast of Malaya for a final stand in Singapore.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 37

Danger? Or False Alarm? - 6/8/2006 7:07:58 PM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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December 31, 1941 -

The weather was wet most everywhere again, and although it didn't stop the Japanese from sending out large numbers of air attacks, the great majority of those attacks didn't accomplish much. The one air attack that did do a lot of damage was another attack by Japanese Carrier planes on the already heavily damaged airfields at Balikpapan. The only good thing that came out of all this was that once again the Kates on the CVs suffered a number of lost and damaged planes on a mission that was , in reality, totally unnecessary.

The Japanese AC TF is now sitting between Borneo and Sumatra. My Brit biplanes at Soerabaja foolishly attempted an attack on the TF and were appropriately sent flaming into the sea by a relatively small-sized Japanese CAP. I wasn't expecting those Swordfish to fly against the carriers; otherwise I would have had them on "Search" instead of "Naval Attack". It appears that the AC TF will continue to make the "Grand Tour" of the DEI, so I'm moving more ships and forces out of its way.

But under the "When the Cat's Away�" rule, in the absence of the Japanese carriers my Dutch torpedo planes did get to attack the Japanese ships at Tarakan. The T IVa pilots have yet to hit any of the combat ships that they keep on going after, but they did put a torpedo into a loaded AP, which is always a useful occurrence.

In the other interesting bit of Air/Naval combat, the Nells from Kuching went after the Dutch PTs in north western Borneo again. In the attack on Pontianak one of the Nells was shot down and none of the PTs were damaged. In the attack on Singkawang one of the PTs was hit by cannon fire and a bomb and was sunk, while none of the Nells were damaged. I'm sending the PTs from Pontianak to Singkawang to refuel and re-arm their machine guns, and just for fun I've moved a Dutch fighter squadron into Singkawang to see if they can "catch" any Nells that might come back.

In the other main Air battle news, Singapore was hit again, but this time the 50 or so Nells were escorted by Zeros, so it was "game over" for the Brit CAP. I've pulled the Brits out again because the morale of the survivors is much too low for them to be able to successfully combat even unescorted bombers.

In other naval news, a Japanese AP at Kuantan hit a sub-laid mine and was set on fire with casualties to the troops on board. Once again, it's nice to be able to interfere with the Japanese amphibious plans. And off of Rabaul SS Pike had a clear shot at a Japanese tanker but missed.

In the land war, Japanese troops captured Sarmi unopposed. Another shock attack at Clark Field failed as more troops arrived. And a shock attack at Cebu failed, although the fortifications were lowered to "0", which means that Cebu won't last much longer. As usual, Changsha, Ichang, Homan and Yenen were hit with artillery bombardments.

It looks as if Yank is getting ready to make a move into Burma. Japanese planes flew recon missions over Rangoon and the Japanese troops that were sitting outside of Tavoy have disappeared. I expect Moulmein to be attacked imminently. I am still busy building defenses throughout Burma and also bringing supplies to the British bases on the Bay of Bengal while I still have full control of the air. It makes a huge difference to have 20K+ of supplies in Akyab.

And in some final news, SIGINT reported a radio interception from 97,69. This is about halfway in-between Midway and Johnston Islands. Now, I do have my submarine picket line in place to the west of that location, and I do have patrol planes in place at both of those islands, so it is most likely that the radio intercept was from one of the Japanese subs that has recently left the Hawaiian Islands region. But just in case the other part of the KB slipped through while on a "fishing trip", I've put my forces in the region on Full Alert and moved my undamaged ships out of the Hawaiian Islands.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 38

The KB in the DEI... - 6/11/2006 5:11:21 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 1, 1942 -

Yank is not fooling around in the DEI - that Japanese AC TF contains Soryu, Akagi, and Kaga at a minimum. I know this the "hard way" because my Dutch bombers tried to attack the TF as it sailed past Soerabaja. Yank only had 24 Zeros on CAP but they were enough to prevent any hits, although a few bombers did get through and missed with their bombs. Yank also has various Japanese BBs in TFs around the region too, as my Dutch torpedo planes found out in an equally hard manner. (The flak over the Japanese SC TFs is nothing to laugh at.) Oh well, at least I can breath a bit easier in the Central and Eastern Pacific.

Speaking of the Eastern Pacific, one of my ASW TFs attacked I-18 a few hexes to the southeast of Hilo, and scared it a bit but didn't get any hits. Wouldn't you know it, but later on I-18 put a torpedo into an AK in a transport TF that was on its way to Palmyra. Fortunately the ship is still steaming along, so I've redirected it to Kona to drop off its load.

Getting back to the Far East, the Nells from Kuching went back to Pontianak and attacked the PTs twice. This time I had some Brewsters there, but with the post-v1.50 changes to tactical bombers, the Nells ate the Brewsters for lunch and then still attacked the PTs. The only damage in either attack was to the CAP - go figure. There were other Nell attacks too on Singapore and Clark Field. Yank sure likes those planes.

In ground action, Japanese troops started to land at Puerto Princesa and there were the usual artillery attacks on the various Chinese bases and Clark Field. Japanese troops have moved into Tavoy so I'm going to try to bomb them. With the ever-present bad weather in Burma/India, the odds are that my planes won't fly, but it can't hurt to try. And finally, Yank tried a shock attack at Cebu that failed.

BTW - I'm sending a dozen subs after the Japanese carriers that are making the "Grand Tour" of the DEI - I wonder if any of them will get lucky?

And finally, below are the stats as of January 1. I'm quite pleased with the low number of ships lost. The only two capital ships - a CA and a CL - were lost in combat too, so I don't mind that at all. Now I have to bring the air combat losses around and things will be in good shape.

Dave Baranyi

Attachment (1)

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 39

Attack of the Biplanes... - 6/13/2006 12:04:53 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 2, 1942 -

There was a lot of action this turn as Yank pushed almost everywhere in the Far East. My forces valiantly tried to counterattack but were unsuccessful. The closest they came was in a joint Dutch/British attack on the Japanese carriers off of Soerabaja:

Day Air attack on TF at 24, 64

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 24

Allied aircraft
Hawk 75A x 9
CW-21B Demon x 3
Brewster 339D x 7
Vildebeest IV x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hawk 75A: 4 destroyed, 1 damaged
CW-21B Demon: 1 destroyed
Brewster 339D: 4 destroyed
Vildebeest IV: 2 destroyed

Japanese Ships
CV Kaga

Aircraft Attacking:
2 x Vildebeest IV launching torpedoes at 200 feet

So two Brit torpedo bombers did get to drop their "fish", but missed. Other attacks by the Dutch torpedo bombers on Japanese ships off of Tarakan also failed. The Dutch level bombers remain on the ready to attack out of Batavia, but their chances look slim too. It now appears that job of trying to stop the Japanese in the Java Sea will have to be left to the ever increasing number of Dutch and British subs that are trying to make contact with the Japanese carriers.

There was one other case of Allied air power failing; the Kuching Nells came in to attack the PT boats Pontianak again. They blasted past the Brewsters on CAP and sank one Dutch PT boat with gunfire. I've not changed the leader of the Brewsters to the best British fighter squadron leader available, and lowered the altitude of the Brewsters. I'm determined that those Nells will be punished for their audacity!

While the Japanese continued with their wide-spread and reasonably successful aerial attacks, the main Japanese effort this turn was focussed on the ground war, where Japanese efforts were even more aggressive but not as fortunate. Some of the results were:

- A deliberate attack at Changsha was repelled strongly, although the fortifications were reduced by 1
- Another shock attack on the two Chinese LCUs that are sitting south of Wuchow was thrown back with big losses to the Japanese.
- A deliberate attack on Yenen by a large Japanese force was repulsed handily
- A shock attack at Clark Field was stopped cleanly

There were also Japanese artillery attacks at Homan and Ichang. Troops also continued to land at Puerto Princesa.

In the naval war, US ASW forces continued to chase Japanese subs off of the Hawaiian Islands, but without any hits. A Japanese sub also appeared off of the West Coast for the first time. With a number of the main Japanese carriers in the DEI I am moving a lot of transports between the West Coast and the Hawaiian Islands, so I will have to be diligent in my sub-hunting in order to avoid having the subs interfere with my plans.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 40

Hammer of the KB... - 6/13/2006 7:09:04 PM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 3, 1942 -

The KB is back into "Hammer of God" mode in the DEI as Soerabaja received two attacks. First came an unescorted attack by Kates on the Port, which allowed the Dutch Air Defenders to interfere a bit with the attack:

Day Air attack on Soerabaja, at 22, 65

Japanese aircraft
B5N Kate x 125

Allied aircraft
Hawk 75A x 3
CW-21B Demon x 2
Brewster 339D x 3

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N Kate: 16 destroyed, 56 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Hawk 75A: 2 damaged

Allied Ships
AS Zuiderkruis, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

Allied ground losses:
119 casualties reported
Guns lost 3

Port hits 3
Port fuel hits 1
Port supply hits 5

The attack was at 100 feet for some reason, and that allowed the flak to take much more of a toll than usual. An escorted attack by Vals came in next, so the "good times" for the Dutch fighter pilots ended:

Day Air attack on Soerabaja, at 22, 65

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 34
D3A Val x 125

Allied aircraft
Hawk 75A x 3
CW-21B Demon x 2
Brewster 339D x 3

Japanese aircraft losses
D3A Val: 6 destroyed, 14 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Hawk 75A: 3 destroyed
CW-21B Demon: 2 destroyed
Brewster 339D: 3 destroyed

Allied Ships
AS Zuiderkruis, Bomb hits 5, on fire, heavy damage

Allied ground losses:
30 casualties reported
Guns lost 1

Port hits 13
Port fuel hits 2

This time the Vals came in at the normal 2000 foot altitude and their losses to flak were much less. In the end the Zuiderkruis was wasted and I scuttled her immediately afterwards. The KB is still offshore of Java and I am still chasing it with subs. I wonder if Yank is considering a very early invasion of Java?

Japanese forces were active elsewhere in the region too. Those battleships that my Dutch torpedo bombers missed over the past couple of turns came in to hammer Menado overnight, after which troops started to land. I pulled my air units out and sent some subs to the base in case they get lucky. There are also a couple of TFs heading in the direction of Balikpapan, which was hammered by LBA again, so I expect an invasion there within a turn or two also. Once again I am sending subs to try to intercept.

San Marcelino was captured in something of a surprise attack to me. I haven't been paying attention to the Philippines and Yank "snuck" a division in without me noticing. However, a deliberate attack at Dadjangas and a shock attack at Cebu both failed. As usual, Clark Field was hit with an artillery bombardment.

In Burma, Moulmein was captured against no opposition. I had brought my troops back to the crossroads to the north. As is usual in any Burma campaign, the bombers that I had set in Rangoon to hit the troops in Moulmein (1 hex away) didn't fly. So I'm trying again this turn, except I've set the target to be the airfield so that if the planes fly, they will damage some supply.

There was nothing out of the ordinary elsewhere. PM was bombed again. Changsha, Ichang, Homan and the troops south of Wuchow received artillery attacks in China. A sub torpedoed an empty AK off of Hilo.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 41

Time out... - 6/15/2006 5:48:43 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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Yank has some serious real life problems to deal with, so our game will be on hold for a while.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 42

Back in play... - 6/17/2006 2:37:57 PM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 4, 1942 -

Yank's RL situation turned out better than first thought, so he was able to get back to out game last night. Now the problem is that it is taking me three times as long to do a turn as usual because I no longer remember what I was doing nor why.

In any event, this was a fairly quiet turn. The KB continued along with its "Royal Tour" of the DEI but didn't attack anything, and my remaining LBA wisely stayed far away. The Dutch LBA did try to attack some Japanese ships off the Celebes, but weren't successful. The Dutch, like the British, are pretty much worn out at this point.

There were also lots of clouds and rain most everywhere, but that didn't stop the Japanese air attacks which flew out regards to hit targets all around the Far East. Japanese troops continued to land at Menado, and an invasion started at Sag Sag which was preceded by a bombardment attack by a couple of Japanese DDs. That is quite realistic from a historical point of view, but utterly useless from a Game p.o.v. unless Yank is simply attempting to give the crews of the two ships some practice.

In the ground war, the Japanese troops at Dadjangas attempted another shock attack that failed. Yank has too few troops there; he will need to march more in to join those that are already there. There were also Japanese artillery attacks at Ichang, Changsha, Homan and Clark Field.

My Chinese bombers found the Japanese troops that are trying to sneak up on Lanchow via the northern route while the troops are still a couple of hexes away. I will now give my Chinese bombers some nice practice on that Japanese division while it fights against the terrain and the long supply line back to the Japanese bases.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 43

Bozo Brewsters... - 6/18/2006 6:37:45 PM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 5, 1942 -

This was a relatively quiet turn with little out-of-the-ordinary happening. US DDs chased some Japanese subs off of the Hawaiian Islands, more troops landed at Balikpapan and Sag Sag, Japanese bombers hit Clark Field and Manila, Japanese troops staged artillery attacks at Ichang, Changsha and Homan, and the KB sailed slowly away from Java and Sumatra.

There are a lot of Japanese TFs at Kuching, so I suspect that the KB will sail there to refuel, and that the next major Japanese invasion will sail from there too. The only question remains - where will they go? Yank is not even bothering with air attacks on the Allied bases in Malaya, let along Java and Sumatra. China has quieted down a lot. He has tons of troops at Clark Field, but is not doing much elsewhere in the Philippines. I wonder if he will try to sail an invasion fleet to India?

The Kuching Nells flew against my Dutch PTs at Pontianak once again this turn. The Brewsters that I have there just won't intercept the Nells. Despite this, the experience and morale of the Brewster pilots keep on increasing! I sure can't figure this one out. But then, shore artillery attacks on incoming TFs are equally unpredictable. For example, this turn Balikpapan was bombarded twice, and two TFs unloaded troops, but the shore guns only fired on the final TF, twice hitting an MSW that was on escort duty.

In the PNG/Bismarck area, the Australian Hudsons at PM attacked some of the escort ships at Sag Sag, hitting CS Chitose hard. I guess that Yank will send the Bettys back to hit PM again next turn.

In the ground war, a Japanese shock attack captured Cagayan. But another shock attack at Clark Field failed, despite the presence of a number of Japanese armored units. And Sag Sag was captured without opposition. Yank landed a base force along with the combat troops so he will be building that base up in the near future.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 44

A Few Slight Stumbles for the Japanese... - 6/20/2006 12:33:51 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 6, 1942 -

The Japanese offensive appears to be temporarily suffering from being a bit too spread out as a number of simultaneous Japanese attacks failed simultaneously this turn. It isn't hard for a Japanese player to recover from this, but it does give me a bit more breathing space, which is fine from my perspective. Some of the things that didn't go quite right for the Japanese included:

- A shock attack on Balikpapan that failed but reduced fortifications to zero
- A shock attack at Menado that failed, although the fortification level was reduced to 1.
- A deliberate attack on Changsha that was repulsed, with fairly heavy casualties on both sides
- A deliberate attack on Ichang that was repulsed with very heavy Japanese casualties
- A shock attack on Yenen that was repulsed with even heavier Japanese casualties

There was also an unsuccessful "automatic" shock attack by a big Japanese Division that moved north of Moulmein. I'm using this as a signal to pull back the unit that I had blocking that crossing, and I am pulling back the two remaining units out of Rangoon too. This time, unlike my game against Treespider, I am going to stand at Pagan and Mandalay for a while in order to try to buy enough time for my Chinese troops that are under SEAC control to reach the Burma Road bases.

The only other land combat efforts were Japanese artillery attacks on Homan and Clark Field. I'm going to try to drive those three Japanese units out of Homan next turn. We'll see how well I do.

In the air war Japanese bombers came back to Singapore, this time accompanied by escorts, so my Brit fighters were wiped out. I'm "throwing in the towel" and moving those last remaining Brit fighters to India. The Dutch now get the job of trying to defend the air over the DEI and Malaya.

In a surprise move, a number of Japanese bombers hit Medan this turn. I wonder if Medan will be the next Japanese invasion target? Unfortunately, it's one of the few Allied bases in the region that I haven't mined, and my mine-layer subs are on their way back to port for reloads. So for now I'll move a number of normal subs along the route to Medan just in case an invasion fleet does come along.

There are still a number of Japanese TFs within the range of Dutch LBA, and with the KB gone, a number of Dutch bombers did fly, but for the most part they were unsuccessful, with the exception of an attack on a Japanese MSW that scored several hits. The MSW is still afloat, but a Japanese AP and I-19 sank at sea from older damage.

Yank will be out of town and away from the Game for the rest of the week, so things will go quiet here again until next weekend.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 45

Back for a Bit... - 6/28/2006 12:44:53 AM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 7, 1942 -

Yank is back after first being away on "business business", then being busy with "personal business". But I'll be away on "family business" this coming weekend so we will barely be able to get reacquainted with this Match before we will be taking a break again.

One thing that the breaks from this Match have done is to allow me to reconsider some of my strategy and tactics. Sure, Yank isn't doing the exact same things as Treespider, but the Japanese opening strategy has enough common objectives, even with a non-historical start, that there are tactical changes that I can make to see what difference my decision brings.

So, for example, I set up my Chinese strategy to prevent Yank from outmanoeuvring me early on, and so far it is working quite nicely. None of my bases in China are threatened with being cut off yet, and I even kicked the Japanese besiegers out of Homan this turn, doing it two months earlier than in my game against Treespider. I still have to contend with Yank's alternate tactics in China, such as his current Northern attack, but so far I have avoided giving him any "freebies".

Similarly, in Burma I've set up defenses at Mandalay and Palang to buy me the time to protect the Burma Road bases with Chinese SEAC troops. When I tried this against Treespider I tried to use the Brit troops from Burma to hold Lashio and Myitkyina against the Japanese until the Chinese could arrive. The Brit troops failed and so I lost both bases. Now I'm going to try to use the river and base defense of Mandalay to hold for the time I need to get the Chinese in place. I'm fighting against the rail line as much as against the Japanese forces, so I need to be careful to keep my defenders from being knocked into the jungle.

And in another example, I decided in this game to not allow Yank to grab Baker Island with a simple Fast Transport attack as Treespider has just done, so I am sending a Marine Defense Unit to Baker and will try to find a "spare" base force for the island too. This won't stop a serious Division-strong assault, but it will stop a "hit-and-run" landing, which mines alone won't stop.

Likewise, I'm starting to think about doing something in the Eastern Solomons. My big problem there is a lack of fuel and supplies in the region to support my naval forces. But I feel that I ought to move some ships into the region, just in case I can catch an unprotected transport TF on the move. After all, much of the KB is off in the Far East.

I may also do the "historical" thing and move some Australian troops to Timor. I'd like to be able to hang onto Lautem for a longer time than I did against Treespider. But I had better keep some ships and transport planes nearby to do a rush evacuation if the entire Japanese might comes steaming that way (again, as happened historically).

So this game has the potential of becoming something quite different from the match against Treespider in the short run, particularly if Yank decides to start to "emulate" Treespider's pathway to success. On the other hand, it does put me into the position of potentially making the classical error of "preparing for the last war" if Yank continues to do things differently.

Okay, now to an update; Yank's forces continued to do reasonably well with his strategy this turn. Balikpapan, Rangoon and Puerto Princesa were captured by assault. Ichang, Changsha, Yenen, and Clark Field received artillery attacks, as did Homan before the Chinese drove the Japanese troops away from that base. A shock attack at Alor Star failed but did reduce the fortification, and a shock attack at Menado was repulsed. A large Nell attack on Singapore kept the airfields there securely closed.

Allied Air was busy in the DEI. A number of unsuccessful attacks were flown against "hard" targets (Japanese cruisers), but Dutch bombers did hit a Japanese AP at Balikpapan. The most effective Allied weapon this turn was the submarine, with KXV hitting an AP off of Malaya and sinking it, KVIII hitting another AP at Balikpapan, and Pickerel hitting yet another AP a little ways away.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 46

Away again for a Bit... - 6/30/2006 12:06:25 AM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 8, 1942 -

This will be the last report for another week or so. I'm going off for a long weekend, then by the time I am back Yank will be off on another business trip, followed by some vacation time of his own. This Match may take longer than the actual War.

There were a lot of small actions this turn but nothing major:

- US ASW unsuccessfully chased a Japanese sub off of the Hawaiian Islands
- Lots of Nells kept the airfields at Singapore well closed
- For some reason Japanese bombers hit Medan
- Samarinda and Manila received Zero sweeps even though I haven't put any fighters there in quite some time
- Lots of Dutch bombers attacked Japanese TFs in the DEI without any success
- Sub KX put two torpedoes into an AP off of Samarinda

In the ground war, Ichang, Changsha, Yenen and Clark Field all received artillery bombardments. Japanese troops attempted a shock attack at Alor Star but were repulsed decisively. Yank now has a Japanese LCU at Malacca, but I've moved several Commonwealth LCUs into the base including the Aussie units, so I may be able to tie-down that attack for a while.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 47

Back Again...(What was I planning?) - 7/10/2006 8:46:22 PM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 9, 1942 -

Wow! It's been so long since I received a turn from Yank that I've pretty much forgotten whatever strategy I was planning before. So as I was going over the map my reaction was almost universally, "Why in the World did I put that unit there?"

The sub campaigns continued actively on both sides. I-175 put a torpedo into an AK that was on its way to Johnston Island with some supplies, which caused the AK to reverse course and start to head back to Pearl Harbor, while the escort took off for Johnston at full speed. (Court-martial time again, I suspect.

) Fortunately, there was another empty transport TF on its way to Pearl nearby into which I was able to transfer the damaged AK. I'm also sending that wayward escort back to Pearl along the route of the transport TF, just in case it can find I-175. There are other Japanese subs in the neighbourhood so I've sent out more ASW TFs from Pearl in the hopes of discouraging the raiding.

Allied sub efforts weren't as successful, as S-38 was chased out of Kuching by aggressive Japanese ASW, and KXV missed a clear shot on an unescorted AK just off of the east coast of Malaya. However, two Japanese APs that had been damaged in earlier attacks sank while trying to get back to base from Borneo, so things sort of evened out.

Dutch LBA continued its "heroic" attacks on Japanese ships in the DEI. Japanese troops started to land at Toboali and some Martins from Batavia put a couple of bombs into one of the APs of the invasion TF. However, the "prize" for LBA attacks on ships this turn has to go to some Bettys that flew all the way from Davao to attack the Dutch PT boats at Pontianak:

Day Air attack on TF, near Pontianak at 25, 58

Japanese aircraft
G4M1 Betty x 15

Allied aircraft
Hawk 75A x 3

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
PT TM-14
PT TM-4
PT TM-13, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x G4M1 Betty attacking at 100 feet
4 x G4M1 Betty attacking at 100 feet
4 x G4M1 Betty attacking at 100 feet
4 x G4M1 Betty attacking at 100 feet

The Bettys flew right by the Hawks without a shot being fired. That PT sank later on. (This is a good example of why I don't risk "good" ships in the DEI - I can't protect them from LBA with CAP.)

In any event, I'm sending the remaining PTs from Pontianak as well as the PTs at Sumatra against the invasion TF at Toboali next turn. I hope that they can get a few shots in before the transports flee. (I don't believe that there is an escort TF along with the invasion.)

There were a number of other Japanese air attacks, particularly in Malaya, but other than the usual 40+ Nell attack on Singapore that continues to keep the airfield there totally closed, there wasn't a lot of damage. I sent some bombers to hit the air field at Rangoon just to use up some of the supplies there and hopefully thus slow down the next advance by the Japanese combat troops. Yank hasn't moved any air support units into Rangoon yet, so I've got a free hand for now.

In the ground war, Yank did artillery bombardments in China and at Clark Field. His forces attempted a shock attack at Alor Star that wasn't successful, but the fortification levels were reduced from 2 to 0. Japanese troops also tried a shock attack at Malacca, but were hammered:

Ground combat at Malacca

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 19622 troops, 182 guns, 12 vehicles, Assault Value = 376

Defending force 13808 troops, 147 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 333

Japanese max assault: 686 - adjusted assault: 116

Allied max defense: 327 - adjusted defense: 557

Japanese assault odds: 0 to 1 (fort level 3)

Japanese ground losses:
1202 casualties reported
Guns lost 44
Vehicles lost 10

Allied ground losses:
33 casualties reported
Guns lost 1

I had moved the four best ground units in Malaya to Malacca in order to stop the Japanese assault and so far things are working out as planned.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 48

A Bit of a Replay Bug... - 7/11/2006 11:59:17 PM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 10, 1942 -

It appears that we've run into a little bit of a "replay" bug with this turn. The Combat Replay and the associated Combat Report showed my troops at Alor Star withstanding another shock attack, but when I looked at the map for the turn my troops were now at Georgetown with a "telltale" increase in fatigue and disruptions.

I've read suggestions that air attacks on PT boats are sometimes associated with erroneous ground combat reports. (That still sounds like "voodoo" to me.) Sure enough, this turn Nells whacked the Dutch PTs that I had hunting for the ships that dropped off the Japanese troops in Toboali last turn. I'm astounded at how well Yank's LBA is polishing off my PT boat; what this means is that I can't keep any surface combat ships safely in the DEI. BTW - my PT boats didn't find that invasion TF so all the trouble and loss were for nought. The only slight measure of revenge I got this turn was a mine hit on an AP that was entering Hong Kong. I guess that Yank forgot to sweep out the remaining mines.

In other action, there were plenty of Japanese bombardment attacks in China, and Clark Field withstood another shock attack. (I think�

) My ASW forces missed the Japanese subs that are hanging around the Hawaiian Islands but at least my TFs didn't get attacked this turn.

I'm still scratching my head in bewilderment at the placement that I am finding of many of my units. I must not have been paying much attention to this match when I was playing it last month; some units have ended up in very odd places. This is almost like taking over someone else's game.

But the important part is that the Japanese forces are still tied up in the Philippines and Malaya, and other than Borneo, the DEI is still under my nominal control. Yank has also not yet moved from Rangoon, so my Burma Road strategy may well work this time.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 49

Sub Action... - 7/12/2006 7:44:14 PM

ADavidB

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From: Toronto, Canada
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January 11, 1942 -

Sub warfare picked up a lot this turn. US ASW DDs went after I-17 that was sitting to the west of Hawaii and missed it on their first try. But later on I-17 came back to put a torpedo into one of those DDs, severely damaging it. On the eastern side of Hawaii more US DDs found I-6 and hit it with several depth charges, damaging it to some unknown extent. Meanwhile, Japanese ASW ships chased S-38 away from Kuching Harbor.

There were also a number of LBA strikes on naval targets. Nells attacked the Dutch PTs at Pontianak, and according to the combat replay damaged several severely. But when I checked the TF the next turn the ships had minimal damage, so I guess that this is some sort of minor replay bug again. The Australians at Port Moresby also got into the act. Despite an early Japanese air attack from Rabaul on the air field at PM, Aussie Hudsons got off Finschafen and hit an AK in one TF and two APs in another.

There were a lot of other air attacks on land targets. Singapore received its usual attack from 40+ Nells. Medan received another attack, as did Clark Field. A number of Zero sweeps were flown, but against targets such as Manila where I am not bothering to place any CAP. There also were a number of tit-for-tat attacks in China. Since Yank continues to use his Chinese fighters instead of bringing in good Zero units the air battles in China continue to be close to a stalemate.

In ground combat, the Japanese used artillery attacks on the various Chinese bases. There was another shock attack at Clark Field, but I suspect that the Japanese troops are too fatigued and disrupted because this attack did very little. My troops attempted an artillery bombardment against the besiegers of Malacca, but with little success.

The weather is terrible as usual in the Indo-Burmese Theater, and I've lost track of the Japanese units at Rangoon, so I'm going to try to fly some recon flights over it this coming turn because Recon flights usually fly, even if no other missions will fly.

In the Eastern Pacific I'm working diligently to try to recover from my incomprehensible moves earlier in the game. Fortunately, other than submarines, there aren't any Japanese incursions in the region to interfere with my scrambling. I've also sent out a two CV TF to cover the landing of troops at Baker Island. I'll have one CV provide LR CAP over the landing and the other to provide CAP over the two CVs. Tarawa is still a Level 1 airbase so I don't have any concerns about it, and Kwajalein is too far away for Zeros to escort bombers to hit my ships at Baker, so I ought to be okay. Never-the-less, I am still a bit concerned because I've yet to see any CAP intercept an incoming LBA attack on naval targets in this game or in the game against Treespider.

BTW - I am going to give Yank the "heads-up" about what Treespider and I are doing about China in that match. Yank appears to want to try "War in China" for a while too, and I hate to discourage him, but I also don't want the game to be goofed up by movement/ZOC problems. Right now Yank is getting a lesson in the problems with long distance supply as he has an LCU in the far northeast that is getting daily aerial bombardments while it attempts to move on my bases. It's a long, long way from home. Tophat tried the same thing in his match against me and he finally gave up on it.

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 50

Game Over - 7/13/2006 5:55:48 AM

ADavidB

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Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
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Yank suggested that we might want to call an end to this match and try over once another revision or so has been released. I agreed, and so we'll wait and see how things evolve in the development of the Game. (For the meanwhile, my match with Treespider will be a guinea pig for both Yank and I.

)

Thanks to everyone who followed this AAR!!!

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 51

RE: Game Over - 7/13/2006 5:44:52 PM

anarchyintheuk

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Joined: 5/5/2004
From: Dallas
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Had fun reading it. Hope you start the next one soon.

(in reply to ADavidB)

Post #: 52

RE: Game Over - 7/13/2006 7:50:14 PM

ADavidB

Posts: 2464
Joined: 9/17/2001
From: Toronto, Canada
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: anarchyintheuk

Had fun reading it. Hope you start the next one soon.

I'm glad that you enjoyed it. We aren't likely to start another match before Fall because of having plenty of personal business on both sides of the connection. (RL does have to take the lead over GL some times...

)

Thanks again -

Dave Baranyi

(in reply to anarchyintheuk)

Post #: 53

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