John, thanks for the comments and kind words! [8D]
Ships confirmed lost as of 1/27/1942
The Japanese have also lost the following:
1 APD
4 MSW
4 PG
2 PC
18 AP (10 of these are 10+ VP)
14 AK
And to be fair:
The Allies have also lost the following:
1 AGP
42 AK
1 AO
3 AP
1 AR – Dewey Dry Dock, which almost escaped the PI [:D]
1 AS
1 AVD
2 ML
10 MSW
4 PC
8 PG
22 PT
3 SC
5 TK
You have done quite well. Shipping losses are not THAT different! For this early in the war, I would expect 5-6 to amount of Allied shipping losses.
Where is Prince of Wales and Repulse?
One of my favorite tactics that I like to use (when I am on the DARK side) is to move a couple of older US BB over to NW Aust and use them to hit the Japanese. Last thing the Japanese expect is for a couple of US BB around Timor. Figure I will lose them anyway and might as well get some serious use out of them.
Member: Treaty, Reluctant Admiral and Between the Storms Mod Team.
PoW and Repluse are on their way back to Colombo from Java. They were in the area, hoping for another crack at a weak enemy TF, until the fall of Singapore. Well, it looks like that will be any day now.
My first 2 Brit CV's are on their way to Perth from Colombo. If I spot enemy TF's in the DEI without strong air cover, I may try to hit them. Otherwise, I will move these guys over to Brisbane or Townsville to be in position to cause trouble in the Coral Sea.
I do have 3 older US BBs and a few destroyers on their way from Panama to Suva, which is being built up as my strong point along the US/Oz sea lanes. Other than Colorado, the rest of the older BB's are repairing in SF, and Nevada is trying to repair her 20 System damage at Pearl.
I am so pissed with myself! [:@]
I started to post a quick update here, and it turned into one of my typical long winded posts. I thought to myself a couple of times that I should really do the typing in the work doc where I keep my AAR posts, and then copy it over into the forum. I didn't. I took too long with the update. I went to post it and got logged out of the forum, losing about 2 hours of typing and planning. [8|]
Now, you'll never know what happens! [:'(]
OK, I ended that last post in that manner for the benefit of anyone who might get an email from subscribing to this AAR. [:'(][:D]
I can't spend all of that time again, but the quick and dirty of the Struggle for Humanity is that Mynok and I have both had erratic, busy schedules over the last several weeks. Since my last post, of the 1/27 turn, we have only played 6 turns. I just sent the 2/3/42 turn late last night. There has been plenty of skirmishing, but no major battles or fighting. The only real significant event was the fall of Singapore on 2/1/42. Even that was inevitable. Manila still holds with quite low supply.
I previously typed and lost lots of info about my plans and moves in each region, but in reality not much has actually happened.
Once Mynok and I get our schedules synched up better and get turns moving regularly again, my AAR updates will continue to be very sporadic. I'll be more motivated to keep this up to date once we are on a roll with our turns again. Sorry, and thanks for continuing to tune in! [:)]
I started to post a quick update here, and it turned into one of my typical long winded posts. I thought to myself a couple of times that I should really do the typing in the work doc where I keep my AAR posts, and then copy it over into the forum. I didn't.
It is sooo convenient just to keep typing once you've started, innit?[;)]
Well, at least you've done a better job than Mynok of keeping your loyal readers -- okay, your indifferent audience -- informed. How many troops did you lose at Singers, and how much industry and resources have the Martians got now?
Civil war? What does that mean? Is there any foreign war? Isn't every war fought between men, between brothers?
Hi Capt. I'll have to look up the details of losses at Singapore and post it here. Not quite sure what you are asking for regarding Mynok's industry and resources. If you are talking about captured resources and industry, I can come up with some rough totals. The keys so far are all 600 resource points being damaged at Kuala Lumpur, and none of the resources or oil being damaged at Palembang. Mynok also captured the oil facilities at Brunei completely intact. I've so far damaged 262 of 1200 oil production points at Palembang with my 4E's from Java. [8D]
My wife works on Saturday, and I have nothing planned so far, so I'll get more posted by then, if not sooner, hopefully including a replica of my massive summary that I lost. [:D]
I've checked the combat report for 2/1, and when Singapore fell, I lost: 76948 casualties reported and: Guns lost 117. Mynok bombarded that turn at Singapore with 4 BB's and 3 CA's. I didn't notice until I went back to look this up, but he took a bit of damage from my coastal guns:
Naval bombardment of Singapore, at 22,51 - Coastal Guns Fire Back!
99 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.
Japanese Ships
CA Kumano, Shell hits 7, on fire, heavy damage
CA Mikuma, Shell hits 14, on fire
CA Mogami, Shell hits 5, on fire
BB Hyuga
BB Ise, Shell hits 16, on fire
BB Mutsu
BB Nagato
Allied ground losses:
6045 casualties reported
Guns lost 133
Vehicles lost 5
Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 10
Port hits 5
Port fuel hits 1
Port supply hits 1
He pounded my troops, but they were already about to surrender. This damage to his ships was a price he didn't have to pay.
As of 2/3, Manila is still holding out with 1006 AV, but only 4874 supply. I'll pull my last fragment out by sub on 2/4. After that, my next PP expenditures will be for a few DEI airgroups and LCU's, and then a LOT of planes currently assigned to the West Coast.
Naval bombardment of Singapore, at 22,51 - Coastal Guns Fire Back!
99 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.
Japanese Ships
CA Kumano, Shell hits 7, on fire, heavy damage
CA Mikuma, Shell hits 14, on fire
CA Mogami, Shell hits 5, on fire
BB Hyuga
BB Ise, Shell hits 16, on fire
BB Mutsu
BB Nagato
Good show, lads!
And thanks for the Resource/Oil information above. That's what I was thinking of -- and it unfortunately looks like Mynok has enough to keep the Martian war machine humming for quite some time.
Civil war? What does that mean? Is there any foreign war? Isn't every war fought between men, between brothers?
You're right, Capt. I really have not prevented Mynok from grabbing enough oil/resources to fuel his economy. I've done a decent bit of damage to the oil at Palembang with my 4E's, but after he pounded my airfield at Batavia, my numbers were significantly reduced. As of the 2/8 turn, Palembang's oil is 271 damaged out of 1200. He's started repairing, as one or two points have recovered the last couple of turns. My bombers are at Soerabaja, resting, recovering morale, and repairing damage. I withdrew a total of 5 B-17E squadrons that were assigned to CentPac and SWPac. The planes helped fill out almost 5 full squadrons of B-17's to carry on the fight for a bit longer in the DEI before relocating to India. I also still have 2 squadrons of LB-30's (20 total planes) here. Once these guys are all combat ready again, I may try to slip them over to Balikpapan to pound the oil facilities at Miri and Brunei.
Throughout the rest of the Pacific Theater, there has been very little combat. Bombardments continue at Manila and Nanchang. Mynok has moved another division into Nanchang, but I still almost am able to match him in troops and guns there. I'm sure his troops are more capable than mine, but my guys are staying well supplied from Changsha, their experience is slowly growing up to 60 from being bombarded, and their field fortification level is up to 4. I have 2 corps moving into the fray from Changsha to gain some experience, and eventually plan to rotate units that reach 60 exp out, back to Changsha. I don't want to pull anyone out until Mynok pulls troops out of this dogpile. To be honest, I'll be extremely happy to tie down so many of his troops in one place for as long as I can.
There have been several good fighter battles over Rangoon lately. My Hurricanes and P-40E's have come out slightly ahead of Mynok's Oscars and Zeros. He has troops advancing along the roads and trails of Burma toward Moulmein. It appears to be one Division, with some support units. I'm not going to fight for Moulmein, but will make him force me out of Rangoon, since AB's map does not trap troops there in a dead end.
Port Moresby is slowly being loaded up with planes. The Martian forces at Lae are going to be visited by a couple of B-25 squadrons tomorrow, and then they will swap out to Townsville for several squadrons of A-24 Dauntless DB's. I spotted a couple of enemy transports moving in the direction of Lae. [;)]
Not a comprehensive update, I know.....but it's a start. [8D]
Hi there folks! [:)]
Mynok and I have continued our game at a very slow pace, dealing with very busy times at my work through the fall, and major computer surgery and reconstruction for Mynok. The last couple of weeks have seen more regular turns, and we both hope to continue 3-4 turns/week.
I'm going to try to bring you all up to date on the current game situation for a couple of reasons. First, several people have asked how the game is going, and if I'll resume this AAR. Second, I really miss the clarity of my situation that I get from writing regular updates. I sent the 3/22/42 turn to Mynok a couple of days ago, so we should have results soon. Meanwhile, I'm working on a big old post with an update from around 2/1 through 3/21.
Stand by. [8D]
[font="times new roman"]2/1/1942[/b] - 3/21/1942[/b][/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I’m going to try to summarize things for the last 50 turns by region. OK, I have my coffee, and I’m ready to get started. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]West Coast/Panama[/font] [font="times new roman"]Not much in the way of action in this region. CVE Long Island arrives at Panama in about 2 weeks, so I’m collecting the 4DD’s and CLAA that arrive at Panama before her to form an escort to Pearl Harbor. After that, it will be about 2 months before more combat ships arrive at Panama, centered around BB North Carolina and CV Wasp. All LCU’s currently here are assigned to West Coast, as well as the 1 RCT arriving in 40 days, so they won’t be going anywhere until I can pay to transfer them. Each of the 4 RCT’s currently here cost around 600 PP. Long term, I’d like to get these guys moved out to Palmyra, Canton, Pago Pago, and maybe Johnston I, but it will be a while. I’m only shipping supplies out of Panama to keep Suva stocked for a while. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]My first big convoys of empty AK’s and TK’s from Oz have arrived in the US. They are spread among the WC ports to repair a few points of sys damage and then load up on supplies/fuel/oil and several squadrons of fighters to ship to Oz. My BB’s damaged at Pearl Harbor are repairing nicely at a rate of 2-4 points/day spread over the 7 ships. I’ve learned that ships in a TF that is Docked will also draw “shipyard repair points” from the bases, so I’m keeping most of the slightly damaged ships in TF’s that are Undocked, to channel as many repair points to the BB’s as possible. Most of the time, anyway. Resource and Oil industry repairs are continuing nicely. I’ve moved enough LCU’s to Sacramento to bump it’s supply requirement over the limit so Resources will repair there. I’ve also marched WC Command HQ to Boise to draw 20k supplies there, and it’s Resources are repairing. Spokane is the only base where I can’t keep enough supplies to get the Resources to repair. It will have to wait for Boise to finish. If I had it to do over, I would not have sent the Canada Command HQ marching off to Alaska, I would have marched it to Spokane. No big deal. The United States base has been pegged out at 999,999 supply and fuel forever. Now that I have a bunch of ships getting ready to load supplies and fuel in all the ports, I should draw some of it away from the US base. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]North Pacific[/font] [font="times new roman"]The first Canadian units are arriving at Anchorage, with the rest of them making good progress past the 120 mile mountain trail portion of the “Alaskan Highway.” I’m still keeping a PBY squadron and an AVD at Amchitka Island for early warning of any Martian invasion into this region. The bulk of the NoPac assigned units are safely dug in on Midway I., with just a RCT and BF at Dutch Harbor and Kodiak Island. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]Central Pacific[/font] [font="times new roman"]All 5 CV’s are currently at Pearl Harbor. There are enough escorts to fill out 5 TF’s with at least 3000 AAA points each. Lex and Sara have already upgraded once, but the other 3 CV’s and a LOT of the escorts are scheduled to upgrade in April. All CVW’s are filled out with F4F-4’s. BB Nevada sits in port, trying to knock off more of her 12 sys damage points, but she’s combat ready if needed. Shorter range planes are unloading from ships at Pearl, where they can repair and island hop to Suva much quicker than riding on ships. I have several small AK’s at Suva to ship any that need it onward to Oz. I’ve also recently realized that all my modern fighters can fly to Midway by way of Johnston Island. I have 3 PBY and 2 OS2U squadrons flying Naval search from the Hawaiian islands. Good thing, too, because there have been several enemy subs operating in the area. I have had very few ships attacked, but many were being spotted by Glens to the East of Pearl. Between the search AC, and 3 good ASW TF’s, I’ve slowly been sweeping the shipping lanes and managed to kill 2 subs in the last week of game time. There’s still at least 1 more Glen carrying sub in the same area that I’m stalking. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I’m mining Midway, Johnston, Palmyra, and Canton from Pearl with a DM TF and my one ML. Supply and fuel are building at Pearl, currently 371k and 240k, but I want to get them both maxed out at 1M with regular convoys from the US. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Construction at Midway has maxed out. AF 4, Port 4, Forts 9. I’m strong on the ground here with 830 AS. The forces include NoPac Command HQ, 25 Div, 4 and 279th RCT’s, 6 USMC Def Bn, 2 AA Rgts, 2 BF’s, and 71st Aviation Rgt. 802 EAB is still here, but finished with expansion work, so they will soon be on their way to follow 804 EAB to Johnston. A strong SCTF is based here, including BB’s Colorado and Warspite, as well as 3 CA, 3 CL, and 3 DD’s. There are also a dozen PT’s guarding the port. I have an AD, AE, and AS to provide reload support for all ship types except ML’s, and there is an AR in the port. 71k supplies and 54k fuel are here, with another 40k supply arriving in several days. All of the LCU’s here are drawing replacements to slowly fill out and upgrade obsolete AA weapons, etc. 5 Level Bomber squadrons, 5 Fighter squadrons, 2 SBD squadrons, and 2 PBY squadrons are stationed here. I can fly in more as needed in 1 or 2 days from Pearl. I have excess support squads here, and I’m short on Johnston, so the PBY squadrons are taking turns ferrying some of NoPac HQ squads to Johnston. There are enough to fully support both bases. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Johnston has 1 RCT, 1 USMC Def Bn, 1 AA Rgt, 1 FA Rgt, and 2 BF’s for defense. 804 EAB finishes unloading tomorrow, and will be followed by 802 EAB from Midway. I also have some of NoPac HQ here. AS is currently 249. AF is maxed at 4, Forts are 5.41 and building, and the Port is still only 1 with a max of 4. The 2 EAB’s should make short work of maxing the forts and building out the Port. I would like another RCT here. Only 1 PBY squadron is stationed here right now. 17k supply and 27k fuel. I will soon have more supply on the way from Pearl so the troops can continue to draw replacements.[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Palmyra has 1RCT, 1 USMC Def Bn, 1 AA Rgt, and 2 BF’s. AS is 270. AF is maxed at 4, Port is at 3 (max 5), and the Forts are at 3.67 and building. The 2 EAB’s will come here after Johnston construction is finished. 1 PBY squadron is based here. 15k supplies and 37k fuel. I’m short on support squads by over 130 here. Canton is in the same boat. I’ll need to get some HQ support to these 2 islands when I can. More supply will come here, too. Just like Johnston (and Canton) I want to get another RCT here. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Canton has an AS of 204, made up of 1 RCT, 1 USMC Def Bn, 1 FA Rgt, 1 AA Rgt, and 1 BF. Currently about 120 short on support squads, and I want another RCT here. Port is 2, AF is 3, with max of 5 for both. Forts get maxed first, currently at 3.43. 1 PBY squadron here. 13k supply and 27k fuel, with 17k fuel currently unloading. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I have 3 groups of Mk 14 carrying subs operating out of Pearl to lay mines at several enemy bases in the Marshalls. New arriving subs join in as they reach Pearl. I’m not going to try very hard to get them into combat with 80% dud torps. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]South Pacific[/font] [font="times new roman"]Suva is my strong point here. 40th Inf Div and 2nd USMC Div are based here, along with 8th NZ Bde. Also here are 101 NZ BF, 1 Marine Air Wing, 34 CBT Engr Rgt, Fiji Def Force, 1 USMC Def Bn, 1 AA Rgt, and 808 EAB. Current AS is 939. 1st SeaBees and 641st TD Bn and on the way here. I’m short of support here, but 7th US AF HQ arrives in a few days to cover that. Currently 76k supply and 68k fuel here with plenty more of both on the way. 1 NZ and 1 US PBY squadrons are operating on Naval Search here. AF is 5, max 6, Port is 3, max 5, but forts come first now, currently at 6.63. The SeaBees and EAB should make quick work of that, and then march over to Nandi which can be expanded to AF 6, Port 4. 3 New Mexico class BB’s are in port here, while their DD escorts perform some ASW work. I’ve had a few ships hit by subs in this area, and killed a few subs, too. I’ve had a few enemy sub sightings on a line from Suva to Lunga, their most likely line of approach to the Suva operating area, so I’ve moved an AVD, PBY squadron, and 6 DD ASW TF to Luganville to try to jump one or two of them. All these guys can bug out quick, if needed. I have about 6-8 S-boat subs based at Suva, but operating between Truk and Rabaul. They may end up changing their base to Townsville. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Pago Pago is also defended, with 323 AS made up of 1 RCT, Samoan Marine Bn, 1 CBT Engr Rgt, 1 USMC Def Bn, 2 AA Rgt’s, and 2 BF’s. I’m currently about 100 short on support squads here. (A common theme [8|]) Both AF and Port are size 3 with max of 5 each. Forts are 2.44. 12k supply and 19k fuel here. 1 PBY squadron operating. I have a 6 DD ASW TF operating between here and Suva, and another 6 DMS ASW TF based here. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Noumea is going to remain mostly undefended until I have many more forces available in a few months. Currently the small French unit and 1 US BF are here. 1 PBY squadron is on Search here. The Port is still 2, max 7, and the AF is at 4.95, max 7. As soon as the AF hits 5, all construction focuses on Forts. Until I have more forces to defend the place, I can air evac a cadre of the BF to Suva or Auckland, should Mynok’s Martians come ashore here. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Solomon’s are mostly red now. Mynok has some seaplane recon at Tulagi, and has captured Lunga. No other action here yet. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]New Zealand[/font] [font="times new roman"]All ANZAC assigned LCU’s remain here, including 6 total Bde’s. (2 on the South Island) 14th NZ Bde (deployable New Zealand Command) was rushed up to hold Port Moresby. 27th Inf Div is enroute from the US to Auckland. I’m slowly shipping in supply to both Islands from Melbourne and Adelaide, as well as a bit of oil and resources for the HI at Auckland. 3 Hudson squadrons are at Auckland, training. I’ll need some Naval Search here in the not too distant future. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]New Guinea[/font]
[font="times new roman"]I decided early to try to hold Port Moresby. I’ve rushed almost all of the deployable Aus and NZ troops there. Some US troops have arrived as well. Currently present:[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]14 NZ Bde, Lark, Sparrow, Gull Bn’s, NGVR Bn, Papaun Inf Bn, 23 Bde AIF, 30 Aus Bde, 2/1-4 Ind Coy’s, 11 US AF HQ, 2 RAN BF’s, 111th Aviation Rgt, 42nd GS Engr Rgt, 2 FA Bn’s, 1 FA Rgt, 2 AA Rgt’s. AS is 435. A lot of units, but many small ones.[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Currently building Forts up from 5.07. AF is at 5, max 8, and Port is still only 1, max 5. Just over 12k mines are filling the waters around the base. A big transport TF is about 7-8 days out, carrying the following reinforcements: [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Americal Div, 102nd RCT, 754th Tk Bn, 811 and 812 EAB’s, 198 and 70 AA Rgt’s, and 43 GS Engr Rgt. I’ve been worried that Mynok would attack PM before these guys arrived, but it looks like I’m in pretty good shape now. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]99k supplies and 30k fuel at the base, with another 8k currently unloading. I’ve been pushing supplies into PM since the start of the game. I have a large stockpile building at Townsville that I am using to continue feeding supplies into PM. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]The AF is literally packed with planes. We have no HR for stacking, so I’m only paying the game’s built in penalty for overstacking an AF. 5 A-24 Dauntless squadrons, 11 2E LB squadrons, mostly B-25C’s, 1 LB-30 squadron, 2 F-4 Lightning recon squadrons, 2 P-39D Airacobra squadrons, 2 USMC fighter squadrons (F2A-3 and F4F-3), 1 Kittyhawk I squadron, 1 P-38F squadron, 1 P-40B squadron, 2 Wirraway squadrons (fodder), and an RAAF Catalina squadron. There are some reinforcement squadrons training and resting in Oz that I’ll detail there, and some of these guys will rotate back to Oz as needed for R&R. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Mynok has taken Kavieng, Rabaul, Finschhafen, Wau, Salamaua, and Lae. I managed to hit a supply convoy of 3 or 4 AK’s running into Lae several days ago, hitting them all, and sinking 1 or 2 with my A-24’s. He then started running barges into Lae from Rabaul. I hit one of these convoys pretty good with my P-39’s, but he moved about 48 Zeros into Lae to fly CAP. He has also made a few small attempts to hit the AF and port at PM from Rabaul with Bettys and a few Zeros. My CAP has kept him from causing any serious trouble so far. His Zeros at Lae were making things too difficult for me, so I unleashed the LB’s at PM at the Lae AF. My first day’s attack saw about 2 or 3 to 1 losses to my escorts, and good damage to my LB’s as well, from his Zero CAP. The Zero Bonus is only +2 in March, but it’s still a bonus. I bagged about 8-10 of his Zeros that day, and did manage to do about 20% damage to the AF at Lae. Despite my losses, I went back the next day, limiting my escort to the Wirraway fodder, and the 2 USMC fighter squadrons. I also sent the LB-30’s and put all the LB’s at 3000 feet to attack. He was able to get fewer Zeros into the air on the second day, and did some damage to my boys, but the bombers got through and put a big hurt on the AF. On the day, he lost 49 A6M2 Zeros, 14 in the air, and 35 on the ground. [8D] If even half of those also lost the pilots, it will be a great early victory for the Allies. The Lae AF is reported at 41% damage, and there is only 1 Aux aircraft listed at the base. Now that my troops will arrive at PM before Mynok can get there with any real force, I hope I pissed him off with this raid. I want him to come at me here. Let’s both spend lots of troops, planes and ships here. [/font][:)]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I have 12 S-boats operating in the area, mostly between Truk and Rabaul, and a Sub Minelaying TF of 6-8 Mk 14 boats laying eggs at Truk and reloading at Townsville, where my Brit MLE is located. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Australia[/font] [font="times new roman"]Townsville is being set up as my NE hub base. The port there is at 6.77, with a max of 7. AF is at 5, and will grow to 8 after the port is maxed out. ANZAC Command HQ is located here, and drawing a surplus of supplies. I’m also shipping a bunch of supplies and fuel up from Brisbane and Sydney. 2nd Aus Div anchors the defense here. I’ve stationed my MLE here, and have most of the ML’s from India and DEI operating from here, seeding all the bases along the Oz coast north of T’ville, as well as PM. There are also AD’s and an AS here to reload torps for DD’s and subs. I have 2 asw TF’s made of DD’s, and 1 asw TF made of good MSW’s, operating from here. There have been one or 2 enemy subs spotted in the Coral Sea so far, and I know I’ve sunk one. There are several PC’s and PG’s here as a speed bump to any enemy ships. I’ve moved several small capacity AK’s and a small TK here to shuttle supplies and some fuel into PM. It’s close, and they unload quickly and get out of harm’s way. 2 squadrons of P-40E’s and one of Kittyhawks are training here, ready to reinforce PM. Their exp is still low, in the 50’s. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I’m building the AF’s at Cairns and Cooktown as large as I can make them, before building any forts or port expansion. I am also shipping the newly arrived Independent Coy from Sydney to the dot base at Portland Roads. This potential base can be built to Port 4 and AF 7, and it’s only 6 hexes from Port Moresby. Two EAB’s from the US are about a week from Oz, and will come here to crank the AF expansion. This could be a key AF base to provide LRCAP to shipping into PM in the future. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Townsville, Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne are all getting their ports built to maximum before expanding the AF’s. I want all the small scale ship repair capability I can get here. Brisbane has received the first massive shipment of fuel from the US. There is currently 412k fuel here, along with 22k supply. SWPAC Command HQ is here, along with 1st Aus Div, and a few other units, including a US Aviation Rgt. A SCTF built around CA’s Louisville, Pensacola, Australia, and Canberra, along with 6 CL’s and 4 DD’s, is based at Brisbane. 3 squadrons of P-39D’s are slowly being uncrated and repaired here. I also have a P-36A Mohawk squadron and a T.IVa torpedo squadron. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]The industry in SE Oz can really burn some oil. I have over 470k oil at Sydney. Along with the oil at the various HI bases in the area, it’s enough to run the industry for about a year. Most came from the DEI, while 130k has just arrived from the US. Sydney currently has 90k supplies and 81k fuel. There are many ground units at Sydney, including several fragments evacuated from the PI. 1st Marine AA Bn has already become the parent unit and is filling out. 4th USMC Rgt, 192 US Tank Bn and 194 US Tank Bn all have fragments here. The core of the defense is 4th Aus Div and 31st Aus Bde. 2nd Aus Cav Div is also here filling out, but prepping for Cairns. 3 Armoured Rgts and 3rd Aus Army Tank Bn are all here, but only around 20% of TOE. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Melbourne’s port is maxed out at 10, and the AF is 75% of the way to it’s max of 9. All troops, except the 2 static units have been redeployed elsewhere in Oz. This base is just an industrial town. Several ships, including 4 SS’s are repairing here. 24 Hudson LB’s are training here. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]A RAAF BF is building up the AF at Alice Springs, and is almost to lvl 4. Max is 7. An evacuated and rebuilding 3rd NEIF BF is building the strip at Daly Waters. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Perth has 2 Aus Bde’s and the 6th Aus Cav Bde present, as well as the 1st Aus Cav Div on the way here. AF and Port are both size 5, with max of 8, but all construction work is building the forts up from their current 7.60 level. A Hudson, a Kittyhawk, and a Wirraway squadron guard the skies. Brit CV’s Indomitable and Formidable are in port here, along with 1 CA, 1 CL, and 7 DD’s. I’d like to be able to ambush a Martian troop convoy in the DEI from here at some point. The base also holds 3 AR’s, 2 AS’s, and an AVD. The small amount of HI/Oil/Resources here are self-sufficient, but I have a TK of fuel shuttling from Melbourne to here. An AVD is parked in the Exmouth dot base hex in NW Oz, supporting a squadron of Empires who are keeping an eye on things in this corner of Oz. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Darwin will be defended in case of an invasion of Northern Oz. The Forts are almost maxed at 8.45. Once they finish up, I’ll further expand the AF from 5 to 8, and the Port from 3 to 6. I have almost 7900 mines here. The troops here have an AS of 454, mainly the 3rd Aus Div. Many fragments from the PI and DEI are here, waiting to become the parent unit. Several already have, and are starting to draw replacements, ABDA HQ, 7th NEIAF BF, 1 NEIAF Aviation, 803 EAB, and 86th US FA Bn. Many of the remaining fragments are BF’s that I will send off to other parts of Oz when they start growing a bit, and are not in danger of starving to death along the road. I’ve shipped in the 222 RAF Aviation unit and 95th HAA Rgt from SEAC. As I look at this list, I think I need another combat unit here. Need to make a note to march someone up here. Maybe another division to defend Darwin, and a Bde to hold Katherine from any Martian troops that could come overland from the small bases to the West. I’ve shipped in a bunch of supply (190k) and fuel that was sucked out of the DEI (59k). I have an AS in port, and intend to base the Dutch subs here, once Java is completely lost. (Won’t be long) There is an eclectic group of planes here, including a bunch of evacuated Dutch squadrons. 4 fighter squadrons (1 Brewster 339D, 1 Hurri, and 2 Wirraways), and a 3 plane CW-21B Demon fighter squadron waiting until it’s allowed to upgrade on June 1, guard against air attacks. 4 Hudson squadrons (40 planes total), half of a Martin 139 squadron, and half of a T.IVa torpedo squadron are on hand for Naval Attack missions. All new Hudsons produced are going to fill out these squadrons. 1 Do 24K-2, 1 PB2Y Coronado, and 1 OS2U-3 Kingfisher squadron are on hand for Search. All told, the aircraft here don’t pack much punch, or bite for the fighters, but they can keep away most attacks that are not large scale. Now that Kittyhawks have started production, the fighters will slowly get upgraded, and the torpedo carrying Beauforts are not too far away, allowing me to upgrade the Hudsons to something more threatening. I don’t plan to keep many surface combat ships here for quite a while. It’s just too exposed to attack from multiple directions, and it’s a long way to run to the nearest friendly port. [/font]
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[font="times new roman"]DEI[/font] [font="times new roman"]The story here is almost over for a year or two, except for sub operations. Mynok has taken all of Java rather easily, except Soerabaja, which is infested with 15 Martian units. I didn’t make it too difficult for him, since I chose not to reinforce Java with any troops. He landed at Merak and marched on Batavia, then started rolling my troops along the island. He then made a second landing at Kragen and cut all the retreating troops off from the forces at Soerabaja. The pocket at Tjilitjap was eliminated first, and he’s now rolled into Soerabaja. It won’t be long here, and my last hope is to damage a bunch of the resource and oil production. I do have an AS of 400 here behind lvl 7 forts, and there are 147 engineers and 12 engineer vehicles hoping damage some industry. A large AP convoy has just made it’s way to Kragen, with 4-6 CV’s providing cover 4 hexes behind it. I have about a dozen subs stalking everything here, roughly half US Mk14 subs and the other half Dutch and Brits. I’ve had a couple of CV’s in periscope sights, but haven’t done any damage yet. A squadron of PBY Catalinas and one of Do 24k’s are still operating at Bandjermasin and Makassar, providing some targets for my subs. They are both already reassigned to SWPAC and will evacuate to Darwin as needed. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Here’s what I know from mouse intel about Resource and Oil production status throughout the DEI:[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Sorong 10 res[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Boela 60 res (still mine)[/font] [font="times new roman"]Amboina 50 oil 20 res[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Kendari 300 res and 200 more damaged[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Tarakan 400 res and 100 oil[/font] [font="times new roman"]Balikpapan 390 res (10 more damaged) and 375 oil (25 damaged)[/font] [font="times new roman"]Brunei 10 res and 300 oil[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Miri 10 res and 25 oil (75 more damaged from bombing)[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Soerabaja 500 res, 100 oil, 25 shipyard (still mine) 6600 oil and 17k res already produced and waiting to be captured[/font] [font="times new roman"]Batavia 435 res (65 more damaged at capture)[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Toboali 360 res (90 more damaged)[/font] [font="times new roman"]Palembang 600 res and 950 oil (250 more damaged by bombing)[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Bankha 10 res and 50 oil[/font] [font="times new roman"]Medan 10 res and 50 oil[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Malaya[/font] [font="times new roman"]Singapore fell on 2/1/42. I still had plenty of supply there, but just not enough combat strength to hold out. I did manage to evacuate all my aircraft. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Here is what I know about industry in Malaya:[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Alor Star 35(15) res[/font] [font="times new roman"]Kuala Lumpur 1(599) res[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Mersing 80 res[/font]
[font="times new roman"]Johore Bahru 10 res[/font] [font="times new roman"]Singapore 10 res, 25 shipyard, 115(35) HI[/font]
[font="times new roman"]All damage was done at capture, including every single resource point at KL. [:D][/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Burma[/font] [font="times new roman"]I pulled most of the troops out of Burma early in the war, leaving the 1st and 2nd Burma Rifle Bdes, 2nd and 3rd ISF BF’s (rebuilding from fragments evacuated from Malaya), and the 221 RAF HQ to man Rangoon. Mynok marched overland and pushed me out of Rangoon rather easily around 3/1/42. My troops retreated along the railroad toward Magwe. I ordered them to march to Meiktila and then on to Mandalay. The 2nd Burma Rifle Bde move way faster than the rest, and made it to Meiktila while the others are still on the trail to Magwe. Mynok has sent 5 small units, probably armor, along the railroad and caught me at Meiktila. The 2nd BRB is ordered to bug out to Mandalay, and then march to Imphal, and is 45 miles along the rail line, so they will probably make it out of Meiktila before being attacked. I think I’ll order them to stay at Mandalay until attacked, forcing Mynok to attack across the river there. The rest of the Rangoon defenders will take the long trail from Magwe to Imphal. I don’t want to march them up the coast trail to Akyab and Cox Bazzar as Mynok can easily drop off a force by ship to cut them off. All of the Chinese units assigned to Southeast Asia are still sitting at Tsuyung, slowly filling out from the replacement pool. I think they will be more useful as a flanking attack after Mynok’s troops engage my India defenders than as a speed bump in Burma right now. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I’ve bombed the Resources at Moulmein and damaged 90 of 100 there, but no other industry has been damaged yet. Rangoon was captured intact. I have a bunch of 4EB’s in India waiting for good weather to open up on Rangoon. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]India[/font] [font="times new roman"]I’m cranking supply, fuel, and oil to the Calcutta area from Aden. I also have the last 2 TK’s of oil from the DEI arriving within a week. The Calcutta area has enough oil to last more than 50 days, and Aden is starting to produce more as it’s oil production repairs. This has so far resulted in 200k supply at Calcutta, 100k at Dacca, and 30k at Dimapur, where I’ve marched India Command HQ. Most of the Indian troops start off at 20% or less of their TOE. I’m trying to manage the replacements to get the 14th Ind Div filled out first at Calcutta. I’ve recently turned on replacements to several other units, as a surplus has built up in my pools. It can be frustrating to need 200 squads in a Div, have 500 in the pool, and see 1 or 2 drawn by the Div from the pool each day. Lots of BF’s are now starting to fill out at Calcutta and Dacca as well. I have at least a brigade prepped for each base along the east coast of India, and a larger garrison already stationed at Madras. Now that Mynok has taken Rangoon, it’s probably time to move these troops to their assigned defensive positions, filled out or not. Most of the evacuated units from Malaya are at Dacca, slowly drawing replacements. 7th Div AIF and a couple of RAF Aviation Rgts are at Calcutta and Dacca. 2nd British Div is enroute to Calcutta, and 6th Div AIF is departing Aden for Colombo. You may recall or not, the 18th UK Div was lost to the “Variable Reinforcements bug”, and are gone from the game. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]At sea, I’m going to run supply and oil convoys into Calcutta from Aden as long as I can. Ceylon is pretty well supplied, too, but will also continue to get supplies and fuel. The Eastern Fleet SCTF is based at Colombo, including PoW, Ramillies, Resolution, Repulse, CA’s Cornwall and Exeter, and numerous escorts. I have an asw TF of SC’s and MSW’s working from Colombo to Trincomalee and back. I’ve sent 2 BB’s back to England so far, but have not sent any DD’s. Everything I’ve read says it’s really worth the 600 PP cost to keep the 2 DD’s on the board. I’ll pay another 600 PP on 4/1. Several good sized convoys of AK’s and AP’s have hauled supplies to Calcutta, Java, or Darwin, and then continued on via Perth to the South Pacific and the US. I still have a butt load of shipping available in this theater. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]I have a few squadrons of planes on Ceylon, including a Catalina squadron for Naval search and a torpedo squadron. The bulk of my airforce in the region is at Calcutta, Dacca, and Chittagong. 7 full squadrons of Hurricane IIb’s and the 1st AVG squadron of P-40E’s are at Dacca. This is also where my 4EB’s are based. 63 B-17’s and 10 LB-30’s are waiting for good weather to start pounding Rangoon’s resources and oil. I also have 7 squadrons of Blenheim IV’s at Chittagong, where they are in range of Rangoon and Moulmein’s industry. I’ve moved 4 transport squadrons to Ledo, where they can start flying supplies to Tsuyung or Chengtu in good weather. The Chinese AF is still training at Bombay and Madras. Slow going. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]China[/font] [font="times new roman"]So far, things are much better for me in China than I expected. My gambit to occupy Nanchang and hold the door open to pull out all the units in SE China has worked beautifully. I’m still sitting at Nanchang with 8 HQ units and 20 infantry units, facing 20 Martian units. My AS is up to 4143, and grows by 10-15 points/turn. My field fortifications are at lvl 5 and building, and my supplies are overall around 110% of needed. This stalemate has been fantastic to get a lot of experience for my green troops. Several infantry units have experience in the 70’s. Changsha still has good supply, so I’m going to keep these guys here, gaining experience and tying down 20 enemy units as long as I can. Overall, my supply situation in Southern China is good. Northern China is not as good, but a couple of bases have finished building forts up to 9, and the supply level at my bases here is slowly growing toward the needed levels. I have Lysander recon squadrons at Sian and Changsha, to keep an eye on the troops at Nanchang. Mynok has been doing some training at Honan, bombing my troops there, so I’ve moved the 2nd & 3rd AVG squadrons into the theater. They moved to Sian, where the AF has shown as occupied for along time by the Lysanders, and they will fly LRCAP over Honan, hoping to bag some Sonias. I’ve turned on replacements for most of the BF’s in the areas where supply is not critical, and they are rather quickly drawing Chinese Inf squads to fill out to 40. I’m not going to allow replacements for any other units in China until my Fort construction is finished everywhere, and the supply levels in the North have a chance to grow. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]PI[/font]
[font="times new roman"]A long time ago, Mynok got quite a bloody nose attacking Manila. I said it would be a long time before he tried it again, and I was right. It’s been nothing but bombing and bombardments here for more than a month. I’ve been completely out of supply at Manila for a week or two, now, but my troops still have an AS of 1130. This peaked at 1241 on 3/4/42, as their experience climbed from the bombardments. The rest of the PI have been captured by Mynok, except 2 dot bases and the mountain base of Cagayan, where I have AS of 200, but am starting to run short of supply. This area was written off long ago, so I’m glad to hold anything for as long as I can. At some point, I may briefly transfer a PBY squadron into Cagayan to get a good look at the shipping in the region. That should irritate Mynok into moving on this base, huh? [:D][/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]That covers the current situation in each region, in the order I usually work them during the turn. What else are you guys interested in? I’ll grab a screenshot of the Intelligence panel, with the scores on it. Let me know what else you all want to see, and I’ll try to oblige. [/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Major Mike, I can email you the spreadsheet that I used to track my replacement pools, [:'(] but I’ve abandoned it in favor of WitP Tracker. That tool is fantastic, and I highly recommend it, even for Allied players. [&o][/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font] [font="times new roman"]Enough for now. I’m not even going to spell check this post. [:D] Still waiting for the 3/22 combat replay from Mynok. [/font]
[font="times new roman"]Samoan Marine Bn? [:D] Never knew there was such an animal. [:'(][/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Mynok hasn't taken Pt. Moresby? Ouch for him. I made that mistake in my first 2 PBEMs. Never again. That was the chink in my armor.[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]Ground replacements are interesting for the Allies. That's the one thing that's easier for the Japanese. As long as I have surplus armament and vehicle points, I don't worry about ground unit replacements. The AI produces what I need. I only have to worry about how many units have replacements on. After a year or so, that's not even a concern.[/font]
[font="times new roman"][/font]
[font="times new roman"]I still haven't installed WitPTracker. Gotta do it this weekend. [:D][/font]
Now that my troops will arrive at PM before Mynok can get there with any real force, I hope I pissed him off with this raid. I want him to come at me here. Let’s both spend lots of troops, planes and ships here.
Not a bad position for late March '42. PM does indeed look like fun -- have you got any P-40 squadrons handy for air superiority when the Zero bonus ends?
Civil war? What does that mean? Is there any foreign war? Isn't every war fought between men, between brothers?
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