Vettim89 vs Greasylake - Reversal of Fortunes

[vettim89]

Thx for the advice Alfred. Already executing your ML plan. They are all heading up to Columbo already. With Kuching's level 4 AB in enemy hands, I cannot see risking this units in the DEI anymore - just too valuable. My S-boats are already doing some damage but have had at least one hit with a "newer" boat - Shark I think. I am using the Dutch mining subs to mine Balikapapan now. The other Dutch subs are exactly where you sugggested - trying to interdict the supply line between Saigon and teh Malay peninsula. I sent most of the non-S US subs east to act as recon in the Central Pacific. The remaining newer US subs will be sent to Perth to operate out of the historical sub base there - sending 3 AS there now. Of course this is dependent on Greasylake not attemptin an OZ invasion. Unfortunately I only have 4 PBY's left in the PI so my S boats may need to move south soon. Plan to run them out of Soerobaja until it is threatened them likley move them via Perth to the East Coast of Oz to run in the Solomons. Other choice would be to move them into the Bay of Bengal to try to interdict shipping supporting Japanese operations there

[vettim89]

17 December 1941
 
Well the Sibuyan Sea (sp?) is alive with enemy TF's now.  It appears Greasylake is going to clear the central PI before resolving the Luzon issue.  Was able to intercept one TF with PT's and had one torpedo hit reported for the loss of one PT and bad damage to another.  Every time these guys engage it makes me think of John Wayn and The Were Expendable. One SNLF took the unoccupied base due east of Clark Field.   No worries as I decided to make my stand at Manilla. 
 
Intel reports 23 k troops at Kuching which seems odd as the base is already fully under Japanese control.   Perhaps my opponent anticipated a toughter fight.   No other landings today.  My LBA keeps pounding the TF's off Mersing to no avail.  A IJN SCTF bombarded there last night but is withdrawing toward Saigon.  I will send a UK SCTF with 3 CL's and 4 DD's in tonight to see if they can wreak a little havoc.  
 
Large invasion TF spotted SE of Davao heading SE - suspect the north coast fo NG is about to be under new management.   Still no SP action since Tarawa fell on day 1.   To quote Gandalf, "Its the long breath before the battle".  So we wait

[vettim89]

18 Dec 1941
 
A very slow day.   Greasylake moved against 3 bases in central PI but failed to take any one first attempt.  He also took Lingayan by land.   My CL SCTF found Mersing empty as the AmpTF had finished unloading and withdrew.  Good news is INtel Report reveal I did sink one AP in the air battles over Mersing.   I have been reading a lot of AAR's and have come to the conclusion that one of the biggest flaws in this game is that the Japanese have too much transport and I am making it my sole goal in this game to destroy as much enemy shipping as possible as early as possible.
 
Really could use some advice on how to keep alive here.  My only hope is that Greasylake is pretty inexperienced too.  Having read some of the accomplishments of some of the good Japanese players I really fear that Greasylake will consult them and overwhelm me before I can fight back.  

[Alfred]

What exactly would you like advice on?  So far you seem to be doing OK.
 
Alfred

[vettim89]

Well, having read some AAR's of very successful Japanese players who conquered India and/or Oz, I was just wondering what measures could be taken to avoid a collapse like that. The first thing I am doing is what I am not doing. I am not doing the "Charge of the Light Brigade" thing anywhere. I am only commiting forces where I think they have a chance to inflict real damge. Even the Force Z sortie had hopes of causing some serious diruption of the Malay campaign. Maybe it did because Greasylake has not yet moved south from Kota Bhura. I have stemmed the Mersing invasion for time being and am slowiy pulling units back from northern Malaya. If he had succeeded in this Coup d' Main, it would have greatly accelerated the pace of the Malay Campaign for him. While Greasylake's slow pace thus far may not serve him well in the long run, it does keep me from being able to find an area were I might achieve local superiority. I will not send my forces into the teeth of the beast just to say I am doing something.

So I sit and wait and build forts and wait some more.

[Alfred]

vettim89,
 
Allied players who lose India/Australia generally tend to do so by neglecting to garrison their rear areas and by recklessly moving garrisons to what they think will be the front (but which often turns out to be not so because the enemy refuses to attack the newly reinforced positions).
 
Things to watch out for regarding Australia.
 
1.  Unlike the stock map, on AB's map you simply cannot get sufficient supplies up to northern Australia to maintain a strong enough defence up there against a determined Japanese attack.  If attacked in strength, Broome, Derby, Wyndham, Darwin and Daly Waters cannot be held.  It is therefore pointless to build up AF at these bases - build up only fortifications, particularly at Daly Waters.
 
2.  If the enemy intends to capture Perth, they usually land at dot Exmouth.  Realistically there is little you can do to forestall this manoeuvre.  What you can do though is ensure you garrison Kalgoorlie against a paradrop which is the second leg of the enemy plan to capture Perth.
 
3.  Too many Allied players leave Whyalla and Adelaide empty of troops which is exploited by the enemy.
 
4.  Do not strip Sydney of Australia Command units before you have the enemy on the run.  Players who convert them to an unrestricted command usually regret it.
 
Alfred

[vettim89]

19 Dec 1941

All and all a good day for the Allies. Started off when I took a gamble and sent the CL SCTF north to Kota Bhura after missing the transports at Mersing. As you can see we found another TransTF and "Crunched them to Crap" with confirmed kills on an AP and an AK and heavy damage to anotehr AK. This TF is now hightailing it back to Singapore in front of a large IJN CA heavy SCTF and another SCTF behind them. If the Japanese are not moving at full speed they will not intercept. Then a Dutch sub put a TT into an AK in the South China Sea! The Dutch ruled the day!

Greasylake continues his central PI offensive with troops unloading at Jolo and Iloilo. Neither base falls this turn but it is just a matter of time. Japanese air power moves its focus to Manilla as Clark Field is now just a shattered shell of it's former self. British and Dutch airpower launches dozens of sorties today but only manages 2 bomb hits on an already damaged AP. Georgtown falls.

Did a major reorganization of my subs today splitting the large group east of the PI into two groups. One group is now based at PH and is heading south to inerdict the route between Truk and Japan. The second group is now based at Soerobaja (for now) and is heading for the South China Sea. as this seems to be where its at right now, I need a bigger presence.

[vettim89]

Current situation in South China Sea

[vettim89]

20 Dec 1941

We seem to be falling into a pattern of every other day being an active day. Not much to report. Jolo and Iloilo fell in the central PI. The units at Iloilo retreating to the dot at the south end of the Island. Too bad I left no shipping in PI else I would try to extract these units. Beginning to wonder when it will be time to pull the last air units out. I don't want to do it too soon as I want to inflict as much dage as possible. I have already withdrawn one P-40 unit and one B-17 unit so they reappear on the WC in 90 days. There is a big fat unprotected AmpTF at Jolo right now. I am moving the US 4-piper DD's up to Tarakan for a possible high speed run next turn. AT this point of the game, I have no desire to engage Greasylake's SCTF's. All I want is for shipping to die, shipping to die in large numbers, and shipping to die quickly. Did I mention I want to kill Greasylake's merchant fleet?

Aussies continue to hold Mersing with no sign of budging. Units retreating from Kuala Lampur are still probably the better part of a week off. Need Mersing to hold that long so those guys can get into Singapore. AM debating a suicide run of several small AK TF from Columbo to Singapore to raise supply levels. WHile that might be good in the short run, I don't want Grreasylake to get a big pile of supply when he finally takes the island. Opinions?

[vettim89]

As I watched the Japanese invading Mersing it made me wonder what it must have felt like to have been in one of these places in the early part of the war. Was there a feeling of impending doom or maybe confidence. So, while I'm no CUttle fish I thought I would take a stab at it.


Able Seaman Fred Barrett (RAN) was startled awake by the sound of artillery shells. This is the third day that the Japanese have been pounding the Australian Positions around Mersing. Fred tries to shake the cobwebs out of his head and orient himself. It seems like a dream. Just ten days ago he was on board HMAS Vendetta, a "Scrap Iron" destroyer escorting the Prince of Wales and Repulse toward a Japanese invasion fleet. Now, he is sleeping in a rain filled foxhole praying the next shell doesn't have his name on it.

At least there is firm ground under him now unlike the night of the battle off Kota Bhura. He still does know what happened. The ships were in battle formation heading towards the landing zone. They hadn't spotted the enemy yet but knew they were close. Suddenly night became day as the sky filled with explosions. Barret saw Repulse explode like a roman candle; he was sure she was doomed. Fred was straining his eyes on the horrizon to try to even get sight of the enemy ships when the was a blinding flash amidship and he was thrown to the deck. When he came to his senses, he was on the starboard foredeck near his postion at the forward 4" mount, but there was something terribly wrong. The deck was at an incredible angle that was steepening by the second. Having only been on the ship since September and in the Australian Navy for only six short months, Fred was having a hard time figuring out what had happened, but amidst the grinding of metal and rapidly canting deck he realized the Vendetta was bending amidships and "closing" like a giant jackknife. He began to slide towards the abyss of shearing metal, burning fuel, and exploding ammo the middle of the ship had become. Men all around were screaming and he heard the XO's voice screaming to abandon ship. He picked himself up and jumped over the starboard rail. The night was filled with screaming, explosions, and gunfire as he could hear POW trying to fight the enemy ships that no one from Vendetta or the two other sinking destroyers ever saw. The twin peaks of his ship's bow and stern arched up and quickly slipped beneath the surface in a matter of minutes. It was over in less than 30 mintues and then silence fell.

In the morning a local fisherman pulled Barret and the few crewman who escaped the nearly instant demise of HMAS Venetta, Vampire and Tenedos. Four days ago they dropped the survivors off here at Mersing. They were hoping to be able to find transport into Singapore but the Japanese showed up again the first night here and started offloading troops. As dawn comes today, the able bodied survivors of the Battle of Kota Bhura are told to make their own way to Singapore as best the can. It seems the local army commander doesn't want the navy boys in the way when the Japs decide to come for real.

[vettim89]

21 Dec 1941

Good and Bad news today. Japanese Zeroes and Nells start operating from Kuching and sink CL Dragon on their first raid to Singapore. The good new is that I noticed my Buffalos were holding up amazingly well during that attack; so, I check and one group has 67 Avg Exp with one pilot at 92 Exp. This group may need to be pulled out of there real soon. The Aussies Buffalo squadron has some nice exp in it too. Good new at Singapore is that Repulse is down to 35 Flot Damage (88 SYS). So if things can hold a little longer , I may be able to get her out yet. Her 3 kt max speed is a defintite hinderance right now.

SS KXVII torpedoed an AP. The daring boys in their plywood toys strike again! US PT's engage, torpedo and sink a AP in the Sibuyan Sea. Again dozens of sorties are flown into the South China Sea for no hits.

Finally, an AmpTF appears at Tarawa and it falls. There is a small SCTF with this TF. KB is missing and has been so for over a week. US CV's sortie south out of PH towards Canton Island hoping to maybe run afoul of a lightly defended AmpTF - and of course not run afoul of KB.

[Alfred]

Why did you disband any USAFFE air units?  Why not spend the PPs to change them to SWPac command.  That way you don't have to wait 90 days for the unit to reappear, and can transfer it to some base in the DEI which has adequate supplies to allow for aircraft replacements, and then fly them back to the Philippines - particularly useful for your PBY units which you previously said were down to only 4 aircraft.
 
Alfred

[vettim89]

I disbanded one B-17 Unit and one P-40E. My thinking was that it takes too weak units and makes one not so weak unit that can then be moved out at a later date. The reappearance is just 90 days off and will occur at the West Coast which is most likely going to be closer to where I will need the planes by then and closer to the replacement sources. I realize replacements aren't actually shipped but are instead a fuintion of supply, but the WC is where the supply is.

[vettim89]

22 December 1942

Nothing at all happened today of note on the combat report. Does that tell anyone reading about Greasylakes pace?

The three US CV's have sortied towards Canton Island. Hoping to find my some AP's or AK's unprotected.

Mersing holds. Just a few more days until the last few units from northern Malaya come south

[vettim89]

24 Dec 1941

Clark Field fell today as did Lae. I was really surprised that Greasylake had enough AV to dislodage the defenders especially considering 48th Div is still routing out remnants in northern Luzon. Bunch of mixed Brigades and a few Armor Regiments. So I've fallen back on Manilla which to my shock only has 1 fort (66% to 2). I am really surprised here as most of the places I started forts being built on 8 Dec are to level 3 or more. No damage to port or airfield right now. Didn't get an engineer count but this is not a good thing. I think Larry may be trying to eliminate the PI early to free up units for other ops. This explains why I have seen so little activity elsewhere. Was hoping to keep the PI an active theatre at least to February - this seems unlikely now.

Mersing continues to hold but Japanese naval aviation at Kuching has made the northern Java Sea and South China Sea a killing zone. Repulse watch: Flot 8, sys 88. Still have hopes of getting her out but need to hold off the Japanese for at least a few more weeks. At this pace I suspect I will lose both Manilla and Singapore in the early to mid part of January. Not what I was looking to accomplish. At the same time, Greasylake's failed Coup d' Main at Mersing may be a blessing as Japanese troops in Malaya are now separated into two forces 180 nm apart. This may buy me a week or so. Time to start fortifying the last hex before Singapore on the west coast (name escapes me)

Dutch subs scored 2 more hits this turn. US subs scored none but poor SS Pike was attacked 4 times by Japanese ASW forces - no hits. Maybe the crew picked up a snake before departing Manilla? Betty's at Davao are trying to hit ships at Balikapapan. I think it is extreme range so no torps. Have to decide if I want to scoot further south or stay and hope to pick off an odd Betty or 2.

[vettim89]

25 December 1941

Merry Christmas!

No new invasiosn this turn but some things are happening. First Bettys from Davao are now attacking my units on the eastern shore of Borneo. So I will definitely be moving them now. My British and Dutch LBA continues its neuisance raids on Japanese shipping.

Taiping falls as does Nag. Here the combat routine is not in my favor as Greasylake had put two armored units in Manilla after the fall of Clark Field. I kicked them out this turn but after the Naga combat. Ergo, all units in Naga surrender as they had no place to go evne though they really did. I am sure this will be just one of my many frustrating moments with the land combat system.

[vettim89]

26 Dec 1941

Well this is the off day in our alternating day routine. PT's attempt an intercept at Legasapi and sink a PC but are driven off before the can get into the transports. Sending them to Lingayan this turn.

LBA from Kuching poiund Saingpore and hit Repulse. System damge is at 95. I will mourn the loss of this ship. Maybe I should move the AVG into Singapore. Might suprise Greasylake a bit.

[vettim89]

27 Dec 1941

Well you knew things would happen today because it was the "on" day of our on/off pattern. Invasions occured at both Brunai and Miri today on the norht coast of Borneo. Neiter base fell on the first assault so I interpret this as small units landings. Greasylake has figured out that any unsupported landing is at risk; so, I have not seen landings supported by at least a CA based SCTF in a week.

I forgot to mention theat what I think was half of KB appeared yesterday off Rabaul and sunk CL Adelaide. Greasylake kind of talked a little smack about that in his e-mail. I was kind of like sinking a aged CL with 150 carrier based bombers is not exactly brilliant tactics - its just brute force. I think he was getting a little tired of my PT's and Dutch subs poking at him that he needed to show me he could still bring the hammer when he chose to. Hope it makes him feel better about the situation because my feeling is that this game is not about what happens in Dec 1941, but what happens after May 1942. Everyday he fails to exploit his current advantages is another day I have to prepare my defense so that I can meet him on equal footing in a few months.

Greasylake and I had am interesting discussion about our play styles. I think we are both pretty conservative players. neither us like taking chances or risking forces unnecessarliy. I hope to show him that my conservative style has a side he may not expect and that is I beleive in being opportunistic and sneaky. If he continues his present operating pattern, he is about to get a nasty surprise. We shall see.

[vettim89]

30 Dec 1941

I seemed to have lost a few days here. Very little to report good. The troops at Mersing are now trapped as I failed to guard the back door and Greasylake slipped a unit into Jahore Buta which fell this turn. Miri fell but Brunai did not - only 439 troops on the attack.

I have moved a squadron of the AVG into Singapore to hopefully bolster the defense there. Daily Bombing runs are eating up supply.

The new year is about to turn and I feel like I haven't accomplish a thing in terms of defense. Don't seem to really have any troops of a/c to play with at this time.

[vettim89]

31 December 1941

Well the first "year" of the war comes to a close. I plan to post monthly updates form this point on but am making an exception this month as I will post the update on the 7th (one full month of war). At this point my biggest frustration is my inability to kill anything. I have damaged dozens of ships but have sank just a few. My subs and LBA have done a nice job in the South China Sea but with so few "hard kills" I fear it is just useless dissipation of my strength.

No bases fell this turn. The only attack was at Brunai where Larry's attack failed - only 200 troops attacking. I only have a BF there so it will likely fall next turn but if it doesn't, he will likely have to move fresh troops in.

My TF with the moderately damaged PH ships made it to SF today. I am sending the CA's to Seattle, leaving the 3 BB's at SF, sending the Cl's to LA, and the DD's to San Diego. Still have 5 BB's and more at PH with > 65 sys damage. I will leave them there until damage falls below 50.