Matthew versus Thomas

[matt.buttsworth]

Manila has fallen but all the capital ships are safe.
In China the AVG is being decimated by the zeroes but their insane commander refuses to order a withdrawal. Die fighting is his order!

[matt.buttsworth]

the first attack on carriers!
The KB appears near Palmyra and attacks minesweepers at the port. They are heavily damaged but the marine diverbombers get through and land a 500 lb bomb on a carrier.
Now the KB will have to be more careful.
In China the AVG continues to be decimated. It will have to be withdrawn soon. Nothing can withstand the zeroes.

[matt.buttsworth]

25th of December
The carrier Saragota has unloaded all its planes at Pearl.
These will be used to defend the base and attack the Japanese fleet.
Planes from Johnson island have been sent to Palmyra to increase the air presence there.
Planes from Pearl have been sent to Johnson Island to attack the retreating Japanese carriers.
The only trouble will be if the Japanese launch an attack on Pearl itself as many fighters have been sent to Johnson island and Palmyra.
The RCT has landed at Midway so that is now safe. Four squadrons are on their way to the island.
The RCT enroute to Canton island has been diverted south to avoid the fighting at Pearl. However Japanese transports are near Canton island so it may be too late.
Battleships entroute to Johnson island have been sent further north to avoid the fighting and then East to the safety of Pearl.
Carriers in the south pacific are very nearly safe in the slot.
Yorktown is halfway to San Francisco.
In this game, the best CHS scenario I have played, the KB is vulnerable. But that means so too are the Allied carriers and Pearl.
All submarines in the area have been sent South to head off the Japanese carriers.
Elsewhere the AVG fights on in China and the buffaloes at Rangoon are decimated. Warhawks and hudsons are sent to Imphal to continue the airwar.
Will the Japanese seize Canton island. That will cut off Fiji and the Pacific islands but against a player of Thomas's skill I cannot stop him.
Hopefully I will be able to hurt a carrier but I think he will flee.
If he does not then a real airwar will ensue.
Gripping.

[matt.buttsworth]

Game update and Strategy meeting

The KB continues to attack Palmyra but withdraws far enough that the dive bombers cannot reach it so no more hits are registered. Palmyra must be held at all costs.
The second half of the KB does not attack Pearl or Johnson island so it is not yet known where it is.
Canton island falls with little fighting - there are no combat units on the island - but that means the searoute to australia is not cut off and fiji, noumea and the eastern pacific are doomed.
The airplanes enroute to Pearl will arrive in 3-4 turns and then Pearl and the line islands will be impregnable. Planes enroute to midway will unload in three more turns.
The strategy is now based on four fortresses.
Line islands and Pearl. Defend at all costs. Boost airpower to make it impregnable.
Regroup carriers at Pearl and eventually go on offensive attacking Canton island or Wake island.
Australia defend with strong ground units. Abandon New Zealand and Tasmania withdrawing all their brigades to Australia to fight the Japanese when they land in the North.
India. Use dutch air bases to fortify every Indian city. As soon as Singapore falls the Malayan army can be rebuilt to become a fighting force.
Send AIF from Aden to defend India.
Get cadre units from Ceylon as it is doubted that can be held.
As soon as the British airforce upgrades in June India too can be held for an overland offensive into Burma.
Hold Burma until jungle units of Burmese army can be withdrawn.
China. Fight hard in a ground war.
Thomas has won major battles so far, but not a single battle ship or carrier has been lost and all major ground units are intact.
Eventually the tide will turn!
Comment welcome.

[matt.buttsworth]

The battle of Palmyra continues.
The KB stays out of range and bombs Palmyra.
The allied fighters fight and die.
Losses in favour of KB
Little else happening.
A convoy near Timor is bombed by allied bombers and savaged.
Brigades from southern Australia are nearing Darwin but the divisions still have a long way to go.
Seaplanes cannot reach Bali so all the DEI is now isolated unless they can be picked up by submarine which does not always work.
Alaska has now been stripped of troops with the RCT at anchorage being sent to Pearl.
As soon as another RCT arrives it will be sent to Anchorage.
All carriers are now safe.
As soon as the carriers arrive at San Francisco they will regroup and head to Pearl.
Whether they are committed in the battle for Palmyra depends heavily on if the KB can be seen to be exhausted. If it is not exhausted they will remain under Pearl air cover.
Air units are now being rotated out of Palmyra to be rebuilt at Pearl.
Planes from San Francisco are now 3 to 4 turns from Pearl. As soon as they land they will be thrown into the battle for Palmyra.
Airplanes on the way to Midway are now two turns from Midway and it is hoped they will see action as soon as possible.
How long will the KB fight for Palmyra or is it another siege as at Canton that will continue until Japanese land forces arrive to fight for the island?

[matt.buttsworth]

the battle goes on.
Palmyra is attacked and new fighters are sent in but many of the fighter squadrons are decimated.
Soon aircover will have to be reduced until the squadrons rebuild themselves.
Next turn planes will land at midway completing the aircover of the line islands.
as soon as they are flying they will be used in the battle for Pearl.
Yorktown has nearly reached SF.
In sumatra attempts to withdraw cadres of DEI troops and base forces continue but Javanese air support units will not load on submarines.
It is now a question of who can be saved as Sumatra is already under Japanese attack.
The withdrawal from New Zealand will begin soon.
The decision to transfer the 24th division from Pearl to Midway has been postponed until the battle for Palmyra is over and that could be a long one. Instead ships will be sent to Panama to pick up the Americal division to be sent to Midway.
It is longer but safer.
The anchorage rct is now being sent to the Hawaiin islands which will all be garisonned and converted into an air fortress.
As transport ships reach SF the amount of supplies being sent to the Hawaiin and line islands will be dramatically increased.

[matt.buttsworth]

1st January 1942
Johore Bahru falls to a single shock assault. Overwhelming force of 7 divisions.
Balikapan falls to 4 naval units.
Fighting in China.
The siege of Palmyra continues but the KB is moving slowly west.
More planes should now be in Midway and in Pearl.
The fighting is deadly but despite the Japanese advances with no battle ships lost, no major ground units lost, good withdrawal of cadres from Malaya, CVs intact, it is believed the allies will soon be able to hold their own.
A key factor will be how quickly will Java fall and will the Japanese then attack Australia or India.
Australia has many strong units to fight.
India is still weak and more ground units and air units are desperately needed.

[matt.buttsworth]

The allied defences take shape in the Pacific but in Burma patratroops land in the rear cutting the road to Rangoon.
Two brigades are sent to deal with the menace but it is doubtful the Japanese will be thrown out.
How many troops will they send there when they have not yet captured Singapore and Manila.
More brigades are needed to garison cities.

[anarchyintheuk]

IMHO it's better to defend NZ and SE Australia than N and SE Australia. Perth, et al cannot be effectively defended until late 42 at the earliest. Once those 7 divs from Singapore and the divs from the Phillipines have recovered, they can combine and effectively take any one place that the IJN/IJA player wants. I'm paranoid, but I'd keep 2+ divs at any place I consider vital and 3 divs in PH just in case. Forward deploying/defending in Australia and Burma is a mistake, at least until you know where the bulk of those divs are committed.

Enjoying the aar.

[matt.buttsworth]

the Japanese expand the area they control in mid burma.
Rangoon and Malmein must be abandoned. A terrible error.
Next turn the retreat to aykab and regrouping in India begins.
Very annoying because it will take a long time to get the units to Aykab but there is no other path out.
Singapore will fall soon.
Then will Thomas conquer Java or go for India.
Numerous squadrons are arriving soon dramatically increasing air power in India. This may tip the balance although nothing can resist the KB.
The KB is thought to be enroute Westwards to attack India. It is not needed in Java.
This may give an opportunity to raid or seize Canton Island. But the US has so few forces at the moment that defending the line islands is the best that can be accomplished at the moment.
Opinions welcome.

[matt.buttsworth]

January 8th

Singapore will fall soon. Followed by PH while Java has already been invaded with a division landing at Kagen.
5 brigades are cut off in Rangoon by paratroops to the south and are now fleeing to Aykab. They will link up with the Aykab brigade which will move south to ensure Japanese paratroops landed nearby do not cut of their retreat.
Indian brigades covering port cities will now move south to cover aykab and the city to the north.
The closest city to Dhaka will be based by survivors of the Malayan campaign.
Many brigades transferred out of Malaya did not make it too India. I do not know why. Instead units from dutch and philippines forces will now be submarined in.
Air units from Java including vital dive bombers will land in India soon vastly increasing air defence.
New air units will also soon arrive in Aden making air defence of India mainland much stronger.

M

[matt.buttsworth]

January 9th
The isolated brigades in Burma are trying to march to Aykab. It will take a long time. Hopefully the battle for India is not over before they arrive.
The build up in Eastern Pacific continues. An attack on Canton may be launched. The fleet of damaged battleships is sent to San Francisco.
Java and the Philippines will not last long.
Where will Thomas strike? India? or Northern Australia? Or try and overwhelm the Hawaiian islands.
My bet is on India.
Planes are now being sent from Aden to India. The airforce will soon grow stronger.

Matthew

[matt.buttsworth]

January 10th
The Japanese capture Mandalay after the Burmese have fled. More resistance is expected at Mykitna.
The British carriers arrive to begin the formation of a British carrier fleet.
It will only be used if the KB is nowhere near.
The US carrier fleet is still scattered but will soon reunite.
Improvements of air defences for the line islands and troop transport continues.
They will soon be extremely difficult to take.
At Aykab the fleeing burmese and indian units march unexpectedly quickly.
Soon they will be safe which is a surprise as long as the Japanese do not land at Aykab before the reach it.
The British battle fleet is beign shifted so that it can oppose a landing at Aykab.
British fighters are enroute from Aykab and will increase airdefence.
Dutch and british divebombers from Java will soon land at India greatly increasing close to coast air defence.
More land units are still awaited with the AIF 6th division being the first division to eventually arrive at Aden.
Transport of cadres of Philippine divisions to India will soon begin.

M

[Feinder]

You should mine the crap out of Akyab.  It's a coastal airfield.  If he tries to take it, your mines will be useful.  If he doesn't try to take it, he'll certainly try to deny you the use of the airfield by shelling it.  Again, mines are useful.
 
While I would consider using a surface force to engage an invasion at Akayab, be advised that they're going to need a lot of top-cover (and be doubley cautious if Akyab is ruined, and can't fly CAP).  So bring him to battle, but be very mindful of the AFTER-effects of the battle.  If you win the surface battle, but your ships are too shot up to make it back to DH by morning, they'll be bait for Bettys and Nells.  You don't want to win the night battle, and then lose everything the next morning.
 
Good luck.
-F-

[matt.buttsworth]

the Japanese raid Johnson Island.
For once they are given a bloody nose despite the presence of a cl.
the US battle fleet is sent there to give them a real surprise.
In Burma two brigades are now within one square of Aykab.
others are moving more quickly then expected.
so perhaps it was not the terrible disaster I thought it owuld be.
those brigades are despeartely needed in India.

M

[matt.buttsworth]

no big battles
the retreat from burma continues at a slow rate.
An attempt to retake Mandalay may be made.
ships are rounding the southern tip of singapore.
What is thomas planning?

[matt.buttsworth]

18th January

Malang falls, Kuala falls. Fighters sent to Karachi. It is a significant increase in strength.

The main problem is what to do next. The Americal division and an RCT will be sent to Palmyra as soon as they arrive.
If the Japanese strike India (probable) with the KB and massed infantry divisions the plan is to begin an immediate attack on Canton to rebuild the Pacific chain and reestablish contact with Fiji.
But this will only be done once the KBs location is known. Otherwise the US carriers are too weak.
The plan. Get troops in position and transports, send a bombardment force, and then if the base is lightly defended send in the carrier fleet and transports and the main battle fleet to pound it into submission.
It is believed that Thomas has allocated very few troops to the Pacific area so if that is correct a rapid expansion of bases controlled is possible.
In India the slow withdrawal of the Burmese divisions continues.
The AIF divisions will be sent to Madras as soon as they arrive.
That is where the invasion is expected.
The Burmese jungle brigades will soon emerge from the Jungle.
As soon as they do they will attack Mandalay as it is lightly defended.

[matt.buttsworth]

January 19th
Little happens but 6 fighter squadrons are now enroute to Karachi.
The Japanese raid Palmyra with two pgs.
6 destroyers are dispatched to Palmyra to give them a surprise if they return.
The allies are now producing numerous ships per turn.
Transport capacity is really increasing.
Fuel has run out at Perth and Aukland which makes it more difficult.
a tanker fleet has been sent from sydney to Perth to top up fuel supplies.
In Java Jogjakarta is attacked. It will not last long.

Where will Thomas strike?

[ny59giants]

I am at 5/1/42 in CHS scenario 158c. Some things to look at. There are two RCAF BF (100 aviation support each) that are "not" static in the western part of Canada. [:D] They cost only 100PP to change commands. The 2 Canadian Blen IV's convert to Beauforts, which you get starting in 1/42. Those torpedo carry planes are your only LBA not over in India/Burma,

Look to move the two BF's in Tasmania to Sydney to fill out their TO&E (except the infantry). I moved them to Portland Roads to built that dot base up (its only 6 hexes from PM and has an AF7 potential). I moved the BF next to Panama City to the Line Islands.

Read Feinder's AAR about using your subs for evacs. I would stress getting out BF and Aviation Support units as the Allies are short of them at game start.

I hope you survive the buzz saw. [:D][:D]

[matt.buttsworth]

thanks a lot.
at the momebnt the game is quiet but the assault on India will start soon. Thomas is a hyper aggressive player and is only resting his units after the battle for Singapore.
At the moment I am enjoying the rest and preparing for operation counterpunch

22/1