Nik's GuadMod - Alikchi v. Terminus

[Saso]

I had grouped all three CVs and two CLAAs into the task force, along with some other vessels.

Uhmm...in this mod perhaps is a good options (good flak), I said this because in my game (stock) hasn't been a smart move group together all CVs, all three hit and bad-coordinate attacks, instead my opponent has split up his CVs with better effect.

Ah, compliments again [:)]

[Alikchi2]

ORIGINAL: Saso

I had grouped all three CVs and two CLAAs into the task force, along with some other vessels.

Uhmm...in this mod perhaps is a good options (good flak), I said this because in my game (stock) hasn't been a smart move group together all CVs, all three hit and bad-coordinate attacks, instead my opponent has split up his CVs with better effect.

Ah, compliments again [:)]

In NikMod it seems better to group the AA capable ships together, because the flak is so much more powerful. It shot down 15 Vals when they struck my task force. [X(] Although you are right, my attacks were badly coordinated. I was just lucky that they were balanced strikes or his Zeroes could have slaughtered the bombers. And Terminus was very unlucky!

In any case, here's today's turn. This is a short post, and probably the last for today, as I am about to drive south and visit Significant Other.

Three major actions on the 28th and 29th. First, Long Island was nearly torpedoed in the early morning.



Secondly, my A-20s and P-39s hit the Japanese troops in the Owen Stanleys again, and were again countered by Zeroes. The P-39s are basically useless, but they are soaking up fire intended for the A-20s.

Finally, the Japanese launched two major Betty strikes from Rabaul against the shipping still unloading at Lunga, sinking or heavily damaging 4 large transports and forcing the rest to quickly dump their cargo and retreat. On the plus side, this attention to the ships rather htan the airfield has allowed me to repair and evacuate further fragments of Wasp and Enterprise's airgroups, and fly in more Marine fighters. I expect a CAP of at least 12 Wildcats tomorrow to meet Terminus' strikes , if he does launch any.



The carriers are safe, and BB Washington arrived today. All seems to be going smoothly. [:)] Hornet arrives soon!

One final worry is the lack of repair yards. BB North Carolina has been sitting in Brisbane for about a week now with apparently no effect - her system damage is sitting at 36. I am not pleased. If it really takes this long, I might have to postpone offensive operations indefinitely for lack of CV cover.

[String]

They do take that long. Basically, any heavily damaged large ship is a writeoff.

[Capt. Harlock]

BB North Carolina has been sitting in Brisbane for about a week now with apparently no effect - her system damage is sitting at 36. I am not pleased. If it really takes this long, I might have to postpone offensive operations indefinitely for lack of CV cover.

Not good! Historically, the American CV flight decks could be repaired fairly quickly (e.g. Yorktown from Coral Sea to Midway). This led to the argument about whether armored or unarmored flight decks were better -- the British CV's could shrug off Kamikazes more easily, but they took longer to repair when damaged, and had a tendency to capsize when torpedoed.

[Alikchi2]

Not good! Historically, the American CV flight decks could be repaired fairly quickly (e.g. Yorktown from Coral Sea to Midway). This led to the argument about whether armored or unarmored flight decks were better -- the British CV's could shrug off Kamikazes more easily, but they took longer to repair when damaged, and had a tendency to capsize when torpedoed.

This is very true! I rather wish I had a British carrier here, under the circumstances. Wasp only had a single bomb hit, as I mentioned, though she has no armour. I also wish I had a CVL like Ryujo (which I've always been fond of).. the Japanese light carriers are handy little things.

ORIGINAL: String

They do take that long. Basically, any heavily damaged large ship is a writeoff.

Well dammit. [:'(] I still have Hornet and Saratoga to Terminus' Shokaku and Ryujo. I would imagine that he doesn't want to risk his remaining CV force as it is. (He doesn't get anything else, does he?)

Here is a "4 day" report. It's been a fairly successful period for the Japanese, though I still have the initiative.

Terminus has sent a few of his subs to the Australian coast, one right off Brisbane. On the 30th of August, I sent out a six-ship ASW TF, including the destroyer Warramunga, to drive off the I-boat, as I have a task force of cripples incoming from Noumea. Unfortunately, Warramunga blundered right into I-7's sights and was sunk with two torpedoes. [:(] The ASW TF withdrew, but we'll have another go next turn.



In New Guinea, the land troops continue fighting on the ground (I bombard, he defends) while continuing to bleed fighters to his LRCAP. The P-39s lose six of their number to only a couple of damaged Zeroes, but again, they take bullets meant for the A-20s, and I really want to kick the Japanese out of the mountains. Hopefully they will gain experience and eventually cease to be fodder.



On a positive note, I have an RAAF squadron of Spitfires sitting at Cairns waiting for its aircraft to fully repair before transferring to Port Moresby.. that should be a more even match. [8D]

The final piece of action over this period was the appearance of a massive bombardment force off Milne Bay. He seems to have realized I can't very well defend myself if he comes in at night like this. [:(] Yamato, Mutsu, 3 heavy cruisers, Yubari, and 8 destroyers swept in, sunk four (I think) AKs (unloading supplies for the garrison), hit the airfield and port rather badly, and had vanished by morning. This is starting to get annoying, but I can't think of anything I can do. I don't have the surface forces to counter right now.



So, some minor setbacks for Y.T. Hopefully next turn goes better. [:)]

[Alikchi2]

Here is the combat report for this turn, in its entirety:

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/03/42


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at 54,91

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 1884 troops, 17 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 58

Defending force 2516 troops, 10 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 40


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/04/42


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ASW attack at 65,95

Japanese Ships
APD APD-36
APD APD-35

Allied Ships
SS S-37

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Day Air attack on TF, near Russell Islands at 66,96


Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 10
SBD Dauntless x 3


No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
DD Yugumo

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x SBD Dauntless bombing at 2000 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Russell Islands at 66,96

Japanese Ships
ML Takashima
ML Ishizaki
DD Oyashio
DD Yugumo

Allied Ships
SS S-41


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at 54,91

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 1906 troops, 17 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 60

Defending force 2522 troops, 12 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 41


Japanese ground losses:
21 casualties reported

Not much to say, as you can see! Two things of note: Firstly, the SBDs are attacking from Lunga, which should make him at least nervous about going in that area. Secondly, Hornet, Saratoga, Long Island, and Washington all left Noumea this turn and are heading to deliver more SBDs to Lunga within a few days. [:)]

[Alikchi2]

Another quick turn. My SBDs put two 500lb bombs in an APD northwest of Guadalcanal, and Spitfires start flying over New Guinea. Long Island's SBDs fly off to Henderson Field, and the whole carrier force will sprint in next turn, hoping to catch some Japanese vessels while staying out of Betty range.

Oh, and Enterprise and Wasp have been "withdrawn to Pearl Harbour for repairs" - I dunno if that will speed things up or not, but I might as well.

[String]

He should get Hiyo, Junyo, Zuiho and a couple of CVE's

[Alikchi2]

ORIGINAL: String

He should get Hiyo, Junyo, Zuiho and a couple of CVE's

Hmm.. well, Hiyo and Junyo are underrated - as soon as I can ascertain they've entered the theatre I'll drop CV operations until I have superiority again.

[Alikchi2]

A fairly good turn.

The Aussie Spits show up in New Guinea and unfortunately are unprepared for the Zero - three go down to no losses. The Tainan Daitais probably have a nice set of kills by now. Still, I am holding the Yokoyama Tai's assault value steady in the low 40s, while mine continues to grow - hitting 60 now. Bombardments continue.

Also, the Cactus Air force put bombs into APDs near Munda. [:)] The Japanese APDs are busily unloading the Ichiki Detachment at Tassafaronga. Combined with the probably-resupplied remnants of the original Lunga garrison, I may be in for a long fight in the jungle. (The Marines have arrived at Tassafaronga and will begin bombarding tomorrow.)

The carriers are returning to Noumea. They did not spot any targets for their bombers, but did manage to drive right over several subs. I can't afford any more damage to the CV force - back we go.

[Capt. Harlock]

ORIGINAL: Alikchi



Terminus has sent a few of his subs to the Australian coast, one right off Brisbane. On the 30th of August, I sent out a six-ship ASW TF, including the destroyer Warramunga, to drive off the I-boat, as I have a task force of cripples incoming from Noumea. Unfortunately, Warramunga blundered right into I-7's sights and was sunk with two torpedoes. [:(] The ASW TF withdrew, but we'll have another go next turn.

So what eventually happened here? Did I-7 move to a safer area, or did she attack your TF?

The final piece of action over this period was the appearance of a massive bombardment force off Milne Bay. He seems to have realized I can't very well defend myself if he comes in at night like this. [:(] Yamato, Mutsu, 3 heavy cruisers, Yubari, and 8 destroyers swept in, sunk four (I think) AKs (unloading supplies for the garrison), hit the airfield and port rather badly, and had vanished by morning. This is starting to get annoying, but I can't think of anything I can do. I don't have the surface forces to counter right now.

I think your best bet is to lay mines at the most valuable bases. If you get desperate -- how many PT boats can you scrape together?

[Alikchi2]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock
So what eventually happened here? Did I-7 move to a safer area, or did she attack your TF?

She slipped away to the northeast - a Fortress spotted her.. probably heading back towards Truk or Rabaul. The Japanese subs are starting to make me nervous.. Hornet's TF ran right into one today. I felt a little stung after losing the destroyer, though, and let her slip away. [:(]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

I think your best bet is to lay mines at the most valuable bases. If you get desperate -- how many PT boats can you scrape together?

Both good thoughts! I should start mining Gili Gili. I really need to get some aviation support units there, too, otherwise I won't be able to CAP the minelayers without the carriers. As for the PTs, I'm not sure, but I bet I could assemble an annoyingly sized force. Gili Gili is a bit isolated for PTs though - they'd probably get strafed. Still, as you say, if I get desperate...

[Alikchi2]

Not much to say, and I'm heavily distracted - so here's a combat report. [:)] In 3 days I will launch a deliberate attack at Tassafaronga. Sailfish will be fine. Terminus is very aggressive with his ASW assets, kudos to him, he's forced several subs to withdraw. On the other hand, I haven't lost one yet.

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/09/42

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack at 62,80

Japanese Ships
DD Akikaze
DD Samidare
DD Harusame
DD Hayashio

Allied Ships
SS Albacore

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack at 61,89

Japanese Ships
DD Suzukaze
DD Kawakaze
DD Murasame
DD Shiratsuyu
DD Akizuki

Allied Ships
SS Sailfish, hits 3

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on Ichiki Det/I Ech. Battalion, at 66,97


Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 3
SBD Dauntless x 3


No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
23 casualties reported

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x SBD Dauntless bombing at 2000 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on Yokoyama Tai , at 54,91

Japanese aircraft
A6M3 Zero x 10

Allied aircraft
Spitfire Vb x 3
A-20B Boston x 8

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
Spitfire Vb: 1 destroyed
A-20B Boston: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
15 casualties reported
Guns lost 1

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x A-20B Boston bombing at 5000 feet

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Tassafaronga

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 5072 troops, 9 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 118

Defending force 11821 troops, 111 guns, 14 vehicles, Assault Value = 281

Japanese max assault: 186 - adjusted assault: 26

Allied max defense: 241 - adjusted defense: 211

Japanese assault odds: 0 to 1


Japanese ground losses:
792 casualties reported
Guns lost 6

Allied ground losses:
6 casualties reported


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at 54,91

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 1982 troops, 13 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 64

Defending force 2585 troops, 12 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 45



Allied ground losses:
2 casualties reported


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Tassafaronga

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 11811 troops, 111 guns, 14 vehicles, Assault Value = 280

Defending force 5466 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 51


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/10/42


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack at 61,89

Japanese Ships
PC PC-105
PC PC-112
PC PC-106
PC PC-104
PC PC-102

Allied Ships
SS Sailfish

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on Ichiki Det/I Ech. Battalion, at 66,97


Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 3
SBD Dauntless x 3


No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x SBD Dauntless bombing at 2000 feet

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at 54,91

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 1998 troops, 14 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 64

Defending force 2623 troops, 15 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 45



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Tassafaronga

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 11839 troops, 110 guns, 13 vehicles, Assault Value = 280

Defending force 5504 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 52

[Alikchi2]

Alright, after some icky relationship problems, I'm back in action. You guys haven't missed anything - Terminus and I didn't exchange turns for the past 2 or 3 days - so I'll just jump right in, skipping 4 days of boring quiet and taking you to the 15th and 16th of September, 1942.

First: [X(]



Second: [X(][X(]



Third: [X(][X(][X(]



The 35th FG (P-39) has been essentially knocked out of action. Morale is in the mid thirties and most of their aircraft are wrecks. I am flying the survivors to Australia and replacing them with a fresh P-40 FG. Tomorrow I will begin to send an aviation regiment to Port Moresby as the aviation support there has been nearly destroyed.

A similarly desperate mission is on its way to Lunga - low-capacity AKs loaded with about 10,000 tons of supplies total, escorted by Saratoga and Hornet. If I don't get another good run in, my planes will stop flying and I won't be able to take Tassafaronga.

Other than that, a PG got torpedoed by two separate I-boats off of Brisbane today. [:(] Methinks I will stop sending out ASW forces, they don't seem to be much more than targets for their prey.

[Capt. Harlock]

The 35th FG (P-39) has been essentially knocked out of action. Morale is in the mid thirties and most of their aircraft are wrecks. I am flying the survivors to Australia and replacing them with a fresh P-40 FG.

A sound move. P-39's shine when on ground attack or intercepting unescorted bombers, but they're second-class against Japanese fighters. (I sometimes try to send a squadron to the Burma-India theater, where they can fight Claudes and the lower-grade Oscars.)

[Alikchi2]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

The 35th FG (P-39) has been essentially knocked out of action. Morale is in the mid thirties and most of their aircraft are wrecks. I am flying the survivors to Australia and replacing them with a fresh P-40 FG.

A sound move. P-39's shine when on ground attack or intercepting unescorted bombers, but they're second-class against Japanese fighters. (I sometimes try to send a squadron to the Burma-India theater, where they can fight Claudes and the lower-grade Oscars.)

Ah, I could transfer them out, I certainly would! I think they will be of some use in the future, when the air superiority situation is more balanced. P-39s in my experience are, as you said, good for rear-area base defence (against Betties) and they can perform well as part of a "blended" CAP (P-40s at 11,000 feet, P-39s at 17,000, for instance).

I'll have a new post soon covering about a week's worth of turns. [:)]

[Alikchi2]

Here we go. September 17th through 22nd - that's six days.

On the 17th and 18th, literally nothing happened except for ground combat (the Marines bombarding at Tassafaronga). Everything was rained in.

On the 19th, things started heating up a bit. PM-based Spitfires and P-40s (in their first combat action) escorted an A-20 strike on Lae, a Zero base. No damage was done, as the Lae Zeroes were already in the air, sweeping the skies over Port Moresby and taking down a few aircraft, though being damaged themselves.



On this same day, the previously mentioned supply convoy set out for Lunga, covered by Hornet and Saratoga. ETA was the 23rd. Several fast transport forces were formed over the next few days as well, hoping to slip in with supplies while the major force attracted Betty attention. The twentieth was relatively quiet, if I remember correctly (damn me for not saving the reports).

Another A-20 attack went in on Lae on the morning of the 21st, again doing no appreciable damage, as the Zeroes were already over PM. The Zeroes had the best of it, as usual, though the P-40s still managed to do better than the previous P-39s. Over at Guadalcanal, SBDs from Henderson Field focused all their energies on the Japanese at Tassafaronga, in preparation for the Marine assault surely imminent.

Gili Gili was destroyed as a useful airbase on the 22nd. Haruna, Kongo, three heavy cruisers and an escort force showed up offshore (missing my minefield) and laid waste to the RAAF base there.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naval bombardment of Gili Gili, at 56,94


Allied aircraft
no flights


Allied aircraft losses
Kittyhawk I: 8 destroyed

Japanese Ships
DD Yudachi
DD Murasame
DD Shiratsuyu
DD Akizuki
CL Jintsu
CA Kumano
CA Suzuya
CA Maya
BB Haruna
BB Kongo


Allied ground losses:
1242 casualties reported
Guns lost 3
Vehicles lost 4

Airbase hits 16
Airbase supply hits 16
Runway hits 95
Port supply hits 4

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Immediately I begin flying out the survivors to Charter Towers. I'll come back in force later, but in the meantime I need to prepare the place for a now-expected invasion.

A converted destroyer running supplies to Tulagi, APD Colhoun, was torpedoed by I-1 between Luganville and Guadalcanal on this day. She was scuttled, but not before delivering her load to Tulagi, which is about to complete a fortification level. The waters between Noumea and the Solomons are infested with subs - he knows that my forces there need supplies.

As seen above, the forces at PM actually did rather well today. The Spitfires scored their first Zero kill, and the P-40s brought down a couple as well. The Bostons managed to destroy a Zero on the ground at Lae, but have been called off for now.

This sets the stage for the next turn, which I shall write about in a few minutes.

[Alikchi2]

This is an important turn - good in some ways, bad in others.

On the morning of the 23rd, the Zeroes at Lae begin their usual sweep over Port Moresby. This time, however, the Allied pilots surprise and best the Japanese. 4 Zeroes are shot down, and an equal number damaged, for no losses among the allies! [8D] They must be getting tired..



At Guadalcanal, the Cactus Air Force and the CV-based SBDs launch major attacks against the Japanese at Tassafaronga, dealing out a fair number of casualties. However this is a distraction from the major action involving the carriers:



As you can see, the Betties began rolling in almost immediately. At first, the Allied CAP was quite large and effective, although there were a few leakers. Destroyer Fletcher was torpedoed, and CLAA Atlanta took two small bombs in this action, but the major impact was on the CAP. Although only one Wildcat was shot down, the Zeroes managed to damage more than a dozen aircraft, thinning the CAP for future strikes.

The next attack was a small one (5 Zeroes, 3 Betties) that nevertheless managed to land two 60kg bombs on BB Washington, acting as a carrier escort. This made me very nervous, and my fears were borne out by the third strike:




The Betties were cut up pretty bad, and several turned back due to low morale, but this last pair managed to slip through and get a torpedo hit on Hornet. Damage is thankfully low (see below), but it's still enough for me to force a withdrawal. Now that she's been damaged, Hornet will attract Betties like flies.



To cap off a fairly unsatisfactory day, the Marines managed only a 1-1 attack at Tassafaronga on the first day, and lost their steam by the second, driving up their fatigue and disruption again. The Raiders are moving to reinforce, and in the meantime we'll lapse into another week or so of bombardments.

So, my reactions. The carrier force will withdraw immediately, while the transport force hopefully finishes unloading during the night and escapes from Betty range by morning. His morale should be extremely low, anyways, and as you can see below, I've done quite a bit of damage to his Rabaul-based forces again.



As for New Guinea, there is hopeful news here. Firstly, the P-40s seem FAR more effective than the P-39s. Secondly, I have been saving up political points since the beginning of the game, and within a week or two I should be shipping the 7th Australian Division across to Port Moresby. [:D] From there I can attack across the mountains to Buna or - dare I say it - Lae?

Hopefully Hornet is out of action for not more than two weeks. I get the feeling that I will need the CVs to respond to Gili Gili being threatened. My constant support of Lunga has whittled my CV force down to nearly nothing.

Still! He took some blows today, too. Attrition works in my favor. [:)]

[Alikchi2]

A much less cluttered turn. New Guinea was quiet. In the Solomons, his Betties damaged two AKs and an APD.. all three are going to shelter in Tulagi in hopes of saving at least one.

Everything else is safe. Hornet appears to be just fine, and nearly home to Noumea:



That's all for today! More soon. [:)]

[Alikchi2]

Another quiet day. Hornet made it to Noumea, and she now has no flooding and only 8 system damage, thank goodness! The CVs will sit out for a while to receive their 10/42 upgrades, and then we're back in action. [8D]

In the air over Port Moresby, his Zeroes did a nice slaughter on my Warhawks and Spitfires, but I still have numbers and morale. The Warhawk group has 16 kills now!

Next turn, the 7th Australian Division will be available. Transport has been sent up to Townsville from Brisbane to effect the transfer to New Guinea.