Secret Japanese Technology discovered!

[Dean Robb]

"The War Department announced today that the US Army, while fighting in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific Operations Area, has recently discovered a new, secret Japanese technological marvel.

Elements of the 25th and 27th Divisions, under the command of MGEN Rupertus, were closely engaged with an enemy force, identified as the 5th Sasebo, on the tropical island of Shortland. The enemy was steadily losing ground and was quickly running out of island upon which to retreat. Just as it seemed that the all hope for the Japanese was lost and surrender or death was their only option, several hundred eyewitnesses report that the entire enemy force walked across the water to the neighboring island of Bouganville!

While seemingly fantastic and impossible to believe, no less a personage than General Rupertus himself reported witnessing this modern-day miracle. While the War Dept admits that it's unsure how this feat was accomplished, a spokesman assured us that the matter was under intense study."


Actually, there is a path detailed in the editor between the two islands in v3 but it doesn't show as a yellow line on the map for reasons unknown. You can imagine my surprise when I saw the message that they had retreated off the island...

[BillBrown]

that path displays on my system!! i too was surprised when i first saw that and the other path in the solomons.

[Howling H R Bryars]

Woah!
Thanks for the heads up, fellows.
That complicates attack and defense both!

[Jeremy Pritchard]

This was intentional. THese islands were close enough that forces could transfer between them with only limited transport, and would not have required massive shipping to move from one island to another (but just local small craft that are not represented).

[Howling H R Bryars]

Oh, I'm not saying I mind. But I'm in a PBEM game right now and not knowing might have burned me but good!

[Dean Robb]

Right then...intentional. A heads-up in the readme might have been nice, however.

An interesting design decision, too, since one can infer reasonably that if the force is retreating it's hard-pressed and those fishing boats would be easy to damage with ground fire.

[Jeremy Pritchard]

I could have delayed the game for another month and create that updated change list. I will keep that in mind for the next release

You could inferr anything. However, since it was done historically, and historically hard pressed, and with very little casualties (since it was smartly done at night!) I would assume that it could be done in the game as well.

Also, since game turns are one week, you could also state that these forces transferred over a long period of time, under great care of moving only at night, so this would also mitigate the change of their attempt at being intercepted.

[Dean Robb]

Like I said - design decision And on the updated list matter - it doesn't help anyone for a developer to make a bunch of changes and keep them secret. This leads to all kinds of "WTH"? posts...

I don't agree that it's realistic for a regiment/division to be moved between islands, without chance of intercept or disruption, by fishing boats/rowboats/canoes - men and equipment - because in "real life" I'd park a DD off the coast and sink those boats. And I'm pretty sure most fishing boats would have trouble loading and carrying artillery pieces.

But that's why there's an editor. I don't like your paths? I make them go away. I think there should be a path from Kwieyang to Zhanjiang for Stilwell and Co. to be useful? I make a path. I think that troops could march up the New Guinea coast as they did in real life? I make the paths. Thank you, Rich, for the editor (and the previous versions, for those of us who remember the PacWar List days...).