Taking Atolls

[patrickl]

With stacking limitation, how do you guys handle defending atolls after taking them? Leave one division on the atoll and put up with the supply burning problem? Thanks

[Lokasenna]

Nope.

I'd let Japan re-invade if they wished against whatever garrison I did leave. Amphibious invasions are not Japan's strength and, combined with their relatively poor LCU TOE's, they would not really be deploying their resources efficiently unless there is a deeper goal in mind (depleting pools of X/Y/Z, harvesting LCU VPs at a positive rate, etc.). Assuming we are talking about at least late 1943 here. Amphibious invasions are supply-intense and often require heavy air cover, both of which Japan is not great at supplying at that stage in the game.

[wdolson]

There are only a few atolls in game that can't organize a multi-island air defense. At the point the Allies are capable of taking back atolls, they have very potent anti-shipping capabilities both carrier-borne and land based. If the Japanese were going to pull off a successful invasion of an atoll with mutual air defense cover, they need to bring out their carriers and take some time to suppress air power on all the surrounding islands, which gives the Allies plenty of time to gather together a carrier force.

The Allies may not be able to completely stop the invasion, but the Japanese should be so weakened that it would probably shorten the war.

Any Japanese opponent trying to go on offense after early 1943 is either suicidal or is up against a very weak Allied player/AI.

Bill

[JeffroK]

Try and squeeze in a RCT, Defence Bn and part of an Aviation Base force, you can slightly overstack but make sure you had lots of supply.

Plus support it from nearby bases.

[GetAssista]

ORIGINAL: patrickl
With stacking limitation, how do you guys handle defending atolls after taking them? Leave one division on the atoll and put up with the supply burning problem? Thanks

Is it a question about Japan or Allies, cause the answer would be very different?
Other guys already noted that Allies do not need to seriously defend atolls they take in 43+ as Japan lacks capabilities or even a desire to counterinvade. Put RCT + airbase + engineers and forget about it.
As Japan, you have to think about defending, but you cannot afford burning supply. So you squeeze in a NavGuard, some arty and tanks, and build forts like crazy hoping that the place would be a decent speed bump when Allies come knocking.

[Lokasenna]

I often don't even leave a regiment.

If my opponent were to retake, say, Makin in August 1943 (or later more likely) and kill a couple of USAAF base forces or whatever I put there... well, go for it. Such an operation would leave me with great openings elsewhere because he's going to have to invest in air cover for the invasion - just a single squadron of Dauntlesses would have a field day, even if they didn't stop the invasion completely. Don't even need to have a second island with an airfield, really. Unless I'm overstacked or the airfield was not built up very far, I'm not terribly concerned by bombardment runs by negligible IJN forces. If the bombardment TFs are non-negligible, again - that means a door or window has opened elsewhere.

[HansBolter]

ORIGINAL: Lokasenna

I often don't even leave a regiment.

If my opponent were to retake, say, Makin in August 1943 (or later more likely) and kill a couple of USAAF base forces or whatever I put there... well, go for it. Such an operation would leave me with great openings elsewhere because he's going to have to invest in air cover for the invasion - just a single squadron of Dauntlesses would have a field day, even if they didn't stop the invasion completely. Don't even need to have a second island with an airfield, really. Unless I'm overstacked or the airfield was not built up very far, I'm not terribly concerned by bombardment runs by negligible IJN forces. If the bombardment TFs are non-negligible, again - that means a door or window has opened elsewhere.

I do pretty much the same. I might leave a regiment on the main base atoll of an island group, but the others get cleared of occupants as I need to martial the seebees ad special seebees and port maintenance base forces and Marine defense battalions to move them forward to the next group of atolls.

I'm Jan '45 now and I have almost completely denuded the Marshall and Gilberts over the past two months getting all those units back to Pearl and prepping for points in the PI.

[patrickl]

Thanks guys for your input. Much appreciated.[:)]