Guad Mod - AE Scenario 4 - AAR - No Nik

[jwilkerson]

20-21-22-23 November 1942

Solomons
The calm continues - sorta. Allied Cruiser/DD force bombards Shortlands, Beaufighters based at Lunga join the attacks on Shortlands.

Papua
Newly arrived Lily's from Wewak try their hand at night bombing PM losing three of their number to no opposition.

Truk
Supply and fuel convoy's are loaded, now started to load the troops convoy's. We have a lot of little useless xAKL but not very many decent troop transports. The movement of troops to Tass will take a while, even if the Allies do not interfere.
Air units which have been trained up and now headed back aboard their carriers.

[jwilkerson]

24-25-26-27 November 1942

2 Regiments of the 38ID are loaded, supply convoy's loaded, AOs loaded, next turn we will form the fleet and head out with the purpose of landing first supplies and then troops aboard Guadalcanal, at Tass. Roughly 10 regimental sized convoy's will be required to land the entire 17th Army over the course of December.

[SuluSea]

ORIGINAL: jwilkerson

24-25-26-27 November 1942

2 Regiments of the 38ID are loaded, supply convoy's loaded, AOs loaded, next turn we will form the fleet and head out with the purpose of landing first supplies and then troops aboard Guadalcanal, at Tass. Roughly 10 regimental sized convoy's will be required to land the entire 17th Army over the course of December.

Get your popcorn ready.

[Graycompany]

ORIGINAL: jwilkerson

20-21-22-23 November 1942


Truk
Supply and fuel convoy's are loaded, now started to load the troops convoy's. We have a lot of little useless xAKL but not very many decent troop transports. The movement of troops to Tass will take a while, even if the Allies do not interfere.
Air units which have been trained up and now headed back aboard their carriers.

Can you take Air Groups off CV's now, with no problems?

[jwilkerson]

ORIGINAL: Graycompany
Can you take Air Groups off CV's now, with no problems?

I can now (and always have!)

[jwilkerson]

28-29 November 1942

Papua
APDs continue runs to Finschhaven. Lily's at Wewak are recovering from their exertions and training up a bit.

New Britain
Gasmata level-1 is 98% so will finish this turn. We also have a aviation base force arriving at Gasmata this turn.

Solomons
Unloading a tanker carrying fuel at Shortlands. Just completed a 6 ship APD run to Rekata Bay this will beef up the supply their prior to our activities, then we can fly the Jakes based there.

Truk
The fleet mounted up and headed out, everything is massing at Ponape. Submarines continue to cycle in and out as they take supply to Tass.

Planning
We have 2 regiments aboard separate Amphib convoys at Ponanpe also three supply convoys and the AOs with 48K fuel.

We will send the carriers over to Ponape, they should arrive end of turn, then we will head South next turn. We will try to send in a small supply convoy first, then the two troop convoys, then a larger supply convoy. Somewhere in here we expect the USN Carriers to intervene. We will turn up the Mavis and Emily to perform long range search and about 1/3 of the Betty's as well - as we do not expect Nik to come within escorted Betty range - so we might as well use the Betty's on long range search to support the fleet.

[jwilkerson]

30 November - 01 December 1942

New Britain
Gasmasta Level 01 is done - BF unloading

Solomons
B-24s hit Shortlands at night - B-17s hit Tass during the day.

Ponape
Fleet topped off and headed SSW, will end next turn 6 hexes NNW of Ontong Java.

Fleet, composition:

Air Groups:
AG01: Unyo, 1 CS, 2 DD
AG02: Shokaku, 1 BB, 4 CA, 4 DD
AG03: Zuikaku, 1 BB, 2 CA, 2 CL, 4 DD
AG04: Hiyo, 1 BB, 2 CA, 1 CL, 4 DD
AG05: Junyo, 1 BB, 2 CA, 1 CL, 4 DD
AG06: Zuiho, 1 CS, 1 CA, 1 CL, 4 DD
AG07: Ryujo, 1 CA, 1 CL, 4 DD

Surface Groups:
SG11: 2 BB, 2 CA, 2 CL, 9 DD
SG12: 1 CS, 2 CL, 3 DD

Transport Groups:
TG21: 2 AP, 4 Escorts, RCT of 38ID
TG22: 2 AMC, 4 Escorts, RCT of 38ID

Cargo Groups:
CG31: 4 AK, 2 Escorts
CG32: 4 AK, 2 Escorts
CG33, 6 AK, 2 Escorts

Replenishment Group:
RG41: 6 AO, 4 Escorts

[Chris21wen]

ORIGINAL: jwilkerson

Units in Milne Bay reported making their last transmission. Good news is that all the fragments of those units which we had evacuated to Rabaul have now switched to the parent. This is good because it shows this part of the code is working!!! [:)] So we switched the four SNLFs and the regiment to "supplies on" and set them to plan for LUNGA.

Could you explain this please.

[Dili]

Seems a very low quantity of troops.

[jwilkerson]

ORIGINAL: Chris H

ORIGINAL: jwilkerson

Units in Milne Bay reported making their last transmission. Good news is that all the fragments of those units which we had evacuated to Rabaul have now switched to the parent. This is good because it shows this part of the code is working!!! [:)] So we switched the four SNLFs and the regiment to "supplies on" and set them to plan for LUNGA.

Could you explain this please.

A long time ago (in game play terms) I landed some units at Milne Bay. The Allied defense was too strong for me to take the base. I evacuated some elements of my units. This resulted in some unit fragments in Rabaul, whereas the parents of the units were still at Milne Bay. After the Allies finished killing off the elements of the units that remained at Milne Bay - the code switched the parent nodes of the units to the fragments that were at Rabaul. The strength and composition of the units at Rabaul did not change - just whether they were a fragment or a parent. This is the way things are supposed to work - though they have not always worked this way in stock or AE - so I was commenting that the code was working!

[jwilkerson]

02-03 December 1942

Solomons
Multitudinous 4EB hit Shortlands and Tass this turn. Some Beaufighters from Lunga came up and attacked the Ashigara which is covering our tanker which is unloading at Short.

New Britain
The aviation BF finished unloading at Gasmata (with the listening devices) note there is no port at Gasmata, but the combination of using an Amphibious TF type as well as prior placement of 30 naval support (flown in long ago by Mavis/Emily from Truk) enabled the BF to 100% unload in under two days.

Fleet
Our fleet will wander down to Ontong Java this turn, the Amphibs and oilers will trail behind. Since Nik seems to know we're comming and when - I would expect his carriers to be near by. We are turning on a Betty unit at Rabaul with 100% search as well as the Mavis and Emily and about 60% of the Jakes (10 hex range) aboard the fleet). If something is out there we should get a whiff of it at least. Our strike planes are at 15,000 feet 6/7 hex range, the Zeros aboard the fleet are at 70%, 7 hex range, 15,000 feet.

[Dili]

Btw how is handled ship airplanes sector search? I suppose direction of the fleet is the reference or not?

[jwilkerson]

Yes the track in the screen shot is the plotted path of the fleet.

As to the air search sectors, whew with about 50 different airgroups on search the answer would be long. Briefly, the short legged float planes, Petes and Daves are on 360d ASW 1000 feet, 100% .... a few are stood down to relieve those that get tired. The Jakes are roughly set to search 60d to 300d at 10 hexes, 21,000 feet 100% but again several are stood down in reserve. The Maxis and Emily (at Kavieng and Buka respectively) are seaching 90d to 240d at max range, as are the Betty's at Rabaul.

Lastly the Alf's are set to recon, max range, 21,000 feet, they will be increasing the DL in Lunga in case we decide to attack that base. The Babs at Shortlands have been targeted to recon Lunga for the last couple of weeks, so the DL is already built up a bit.

[Dili]

Sorry i mean the the fleet search planes only, including the non-floatplanes like Val's and Kate's. For example do you put more planes to search in front of fleet giving say the 180º half circle in plotted path instead of equal 360º all around?

[Q-Ball]

ORIGINAL: jwilkerson

Some Beaufighters from Lunga came up and attacked the Ashigara which is covering our tanker which is unloading at Short.

Great AAR if I haven't said before! Just curious, why is Ashigara covering the tanker during the daytime? Are you concerned about an Allied night surface run? Not sure how large that surface force is, if it's a single CA I would be concerned that those Aussie cruisers would pummel it if they did attempt a night raid. I would also be concerned about Dauntlesses out of Lunga, if I am not mistaken they are in range of Shortlands, and a couple 1000lbers would really hurt. Unless there is a difference in AE I am missing?

I am having trouble adjusting the ranges on these new maps, is Shortlands within range of a night run from Lunga by a fast CA/DD force? (which I think in AE is 9 hexes, right? In WITP the magic number was 6)

[Sardaukar]

ORIGINAL: Dili

Sorry i mean the the fleet search planes only, including the non-floatplanes like Val's and Kate's. For example do you put more planes to search in front of fleet giving say the 180º half circle in plotted path instead of equal 360º all around?

I have suspicion, that degrees in search arcs do not depend on TF direction, but are absolute. That means 0 is north, 180 is south, no matter what direction TF is travelling. But I bet jwilkerson can shed more light to it. [8D]

[jwilkerson]

ORIGINAL: Dili

Sorry i mean the the fleet search planes only, including the non-floatplanes like Val's and Kate's. For example do you put more planes to search in front of fleet giving say the 180º half circle in plotted path instead of equal 360º all around?

Not using Vals and Kates for search - only Jakes. The Petes and Daves are doing ASW and the Alf's are doing recon. Petes and Daves are 360d ... Jakes are 60d to 300d ... Alf's are on recon mission so no arc.

[jwilkerson]

ORIGINAL: Sardaukar
I have suspicion, that degrees in search arcs do not depend on TF direction, but are absolute. That means 0 is north, 180 is south, no matter what direction TF is travelling. But I bet jwilkerson can shed more light to it. [8D]

Correct. Search sectors are map relative.

[jwilkerson]

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball
why is Ashigara covering the tanker during the daytime?

Ashigara is covering the tanker in the night time and the day time.

Why? To protect the tanker. And BTW it worked - 13 Beaufighter attacked - they picked the Ashigara as their target and missed.

There are always risks - the commander must weigh the risks and benefits and take his chances. In real life I think I would cover a tanker delivering to a forward base. In the game it might be silly because I have far more tankers sitting at Truk than I can use due to the darth of fuel. But I continuously screw up and order my forces to do things like I think I would IRL - this is no exception.
[:D]

[Dili]

Correct. Search sectors are map relative.

no good! [:)]

Thanks Joe.