End of an Era ALLIED ONLY AAR: Anthropoid (Allies) vs rekm41 (IJN)

[Anthropoid]

This thread will be for my AAR as the allies playing stock scenario 15 aginst rekm41 playing Japan.

RON please stay out of this thread!

Having never played a PBEM with WiTP, it is going to be interesting to see how badly I can screw this one up! I know Ron has played in at least one other PBEM as Japan and in that one his opponent took heavy CV losses in early 1942 and conceded the game.

I think the main challenges for me are going to be as follows:

1) Having played only as allies against Japan AI (granted on Very Hard) I'm afraid I probably have a very bad instinct about just how quickly and aggressively a capable Japanese player can move on the offensive. As such, I'm going to be questioning just about every decision that I might make based on my experience against the AI.

2) I never really _learned_ the game in full. Sure, I've played it off and on for years, and at various times made detailed inquiries into the rules to understand how something works for certain. I like to play by instinct though, so I have not committed to technical engineering diagram memory the way some of these guys seem to. I can only hope that my instincts are based on accurate and complete memories, but I really have to wonder because, for example, a couple weeks ago, I learned (maybe for the first time, but maybe I just forgot it) that sending OIL to Oz is helpful to the industry there! Yes, that is exactly how incompetent and uneven a player I just might be [:D]

3) Japanese industry is a major fog bank to me. I vaguely understand that he has to get various things (Manpower, Oil, Resources) from various bases around the map shipped back to various other places where there are various industries in order to keep his war machine going. *sigh* well I'm a pretty good learner, so maybe by spending enough time reading up threads on here, I'll be able to figure out enough to counter him sufficiently.

4) I'm afraid the general themes of my strategies against the AI are going to have zero hope of workign against a human, so I'm feeling a bit like "what should I try!?"

5) I have barely paid attention to China at all in any of my previous games, and just left operations there on auto.

I think my one strenght here is that I'm pretty good at attention to detail, and being creative with how I arrange the forces. Maybe that will save my ass.

My main operational plans until about summer 1943 will be to:
I. Present pitfalls and obstacles where they are least convenient to him, but in general pull back to more concentrated defensive positions. This will depend on a reactive, not a proactive strategy. With all the Jap bonuses at the beginning and the inadequate allied forces, this to me seems the safest general approach. Here, I intend if given the chance, to pull back everything not nailed down to a few key holdouts: Bataan; Singapore; Akyab and the string of towns north of there; Batavia; Darwin; Port Morseby; Noumea; Pearl. Getting large quantities of supply to these places in the early weeks will be tried, though many AKs may wind up in Davey Jones locker. Subs will be used creatively, TF will be organized in a semi-unpredictable fashion. Ruses may be attempted.

II. As for air warfare, my intent is to stay the hell out of his way except in the few places where it will take him a bit longer to get there India, Darwin, PM, Noumea, Pearl.

If anybody has any suggestions or comments, particularly suggested AARs or how to threads I might want to read

[Anthropoid]

I'm curious,

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=1559145
 

ORIGINAL:  bradfordkay
Chez is invading Darwin with 6+ divisions. I have the Aus 3d Inf Div, plus a couple of brigades there (as well as what few troops that have survived the PI/NEI campaigns). I withdrew everything from Broome, Derby and Wyndham as I agree that those bases are traps.

 
Does this apply to stock too?

[n01487477]

Can apply to any mod, I like Feinders comments, as the Allies you need to find the sweet spot between overcommitment and laying back too much.  Running away is all fine and dandy, but I wouldn't get into the mindset of just falling back until mid-43, there are actions that will cripple the Japanese advance and a good player, such as my opponent can be on the march to victory mid-42, with the right tactics. Even earlier you can harass and disrupt plenty and remember the Japanese can't afford too many defeats or sizeable losses, the Allies have time and loads and loads of stuff to bring to the front.

Stock, can't comment on it too much as it is in the far recesses of my brain, but I'm sure there were many reasons I moved onto other mods [:D]

Have a good war.