Hmmmm... having stayed with CHS, i've just now read through your excellent AAR... sort of glad i stayed with CHS at this point... it seems there are a lot of glitches that need to be ironed out, still... [X(] [8|] [:(]
Bob, you are going to absolutely love AE. Massive number of improvements over WITP. And, even before any bugs/shortcomings were fixed, it was still way better than WITP. As of now a long list of small/medium/big things have been addressed, and of course they have more on their list (they always do).
Good to see you here, Bob! [:)]
Thanks!
i'll continue to monitor the progress of the game, and i'll start to play it at some point, hopefully when the more serious bugs are ironed out.
Attached is a map of the eastern DEI in mid-February 1943. The Allies were expanding west, having established a large lodgement on Saumlaki and much smaller (and weaker) lodgements on Taberfane and Ari. The Japanese have taken the latter two, but haven't yet moved on Saumlaki. However, SigInt revealed that part of 4th Division is on a Maru heading this way. I have about eight submarines posted at Saumlaki and I'm trying to shuffle in bombers to Darwin - on one turn, 4EB hit Ambon; the following turn, I pulled out the 4EB and inserted three SBD squadrons and one TBF squadron hoping to get a shot at some shipping.
Saumlaki is the key to the entire fight. Keep it and the Allies can use it and Darwin, plus some new bases that can be built up (there are lots of possibilities) to eventually take control of this battle - it will take months, but the attrition aspect is what i want. Lose Saumnlaki and I'm back on my heals for awhile and have to "leap forward" (a dangerous thing) to get a forward air base.
I hope Miller has concluded that this is a critical campaign and that I've committed most of my forces. He's already damaged PoW and Revenge at Darwin, hit North Carolina at Sydney, and I'll soon be sending South Dakota, Washington, and Mississippi this way. Plus I've committed most of the air groups from Saratoga and Wasp.
This is a critical campaign in its own right, but it also serves as a crucial diversion. Far to the north an amphibous invasion is gathering in the Aluetians and set to strike....
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"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
As noted in the previous post, the main action is in the eastern DEI, but the western DEI isn't going to be quiet long... Actually, that's misleading information just in case my opponent were able to catch a whiff from the first part of the post (as can sometimes happen). The title of this post is to suggest that it, like the previous post, deals with the DEI. I don't want to give Miller any reason to suspect I'm up to anything in NoPac.
He's had a sub nosing around Adak Island that's sunk a merchant ship or two. He's probably aware that I'm building these bases. But to my knowledge he isn't aware that I'm about to invade.
If he shifts the KB to NoPac I'll have to cancel this operation. If he shifts the KB and I'm not aware of the shift and think those ships are still in the DEI...well, ouch.
The Allied amphibious and support ships are somewhere off the coast near Juneau and will reach the vicinity of Kodiak/Cold Bay in less than a week. The combat ships and carriers leave Seattle tonight and catch up about the time everyone nears Kodiak.
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"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
Yes, I've trained my ASW air crews. Many are in the mid 50s now. The best ones are in a multitude of ASW Kingfishers stationed at LA and San Diego. They've been surprisingly ineffective. I've had a few reports of hits that are most likely FOW. On a scale of 1 to 10, with air patrols being useful against subs, I'd rate them a one.
Well, most of those kingfisher squadrons upgrade to SBDs and I don't think any of them get radar. Best to train up the planes that do get radar. Avengers, naval liberators and mitchells, cats, marniers. (Not that this will make a difference.) It hurts because I need them now but I have about 4 catalina units training in naval search and ASW at all times. My purpose is to have them trained for dual purpose work. Then I rotate them.
I tried something different this last turn. My air patrol spotted a snooping glen equipped sub off of Sidney. I just made up a surface TF of eight Brit and American DDs and vectored it to the hex. His sub took a shot, (what else is new) and missed and my DDs pounded the sub with three DCs hits. My best ASW attack in months. I made sure the surface TF had an rear admiral in charge. I am going to try this again. It will at least force him to move his subs.
Operation Port Royal: The leading Allied ships have reached Cold Bay and are slipping through the straits and into the Bering Sea. They will take position north of Attu Island and are positioned right to initiate the invasions come March 1. My only question: Is Miller expecting this? Factors that I'm weighing:
Factors that Suggest "Yes": Miller has been outthinking me much of the game; he had access to my AAR several months ago after we had decided to halt the game; he saw that I was interested in Paramushiro back in the summer of '42; he knows that I invaded NoPac in my game with John III, and he should be aware of the build-up in the Aleutians.
Factors that Suggest "No": He knows that I know he's aware of these things, so he may conclude I wouldn't do something that I'd already tipped my hand about; things have been quiet the entire game in NoPac - even his sub at Adak Island sank a couple of ships that had fuel and supplies - no troops; the massive battle taking place off the northwest coast of Oz - he's seen plenty of BBs already and has sighted Mississippi at Portland Roads; I hope he's figured out that the F4F groups at Darwin come from my last two American fleet carriers; all eleven Japanese BBs [or are there more?] just hit Darwin again; his carriers haven't been sighted in four days, but I think they are re-provisioning after the last action near Saumlaki. Would he split the KB from his carriers and send the flattops sprinting north at the last minute? I doubt it, but I can't be sure.
Bottom Line: D-Day is less than two weeks away. If Miller commits the KB against Darwin again it'll be too late for them to sprint to NoPac in time to contest the invasion. So here's hoping they show up again! As bait, I'm sending Mississippi and Washington north from Portland Roads to Horn Island, hoping they'll be well spotted. From there they are likely to head to Darwin unless the KB blocks their route. If the KB is still in the DEI, I believe the Kuriles invasion is assured of success.
Darwin and the Eastern DEI: The shuffling of bombers in and out of Darwin - heavy bombers some days, naval strike aircraft on others - worked. As noted previously, heavy bombers clobbered Ambon and destroyed more than 60 Japanese aircraft on the ground. Then I swapped them for SBDs and TBFs, which sortied in big groups against various surface ships - mainly DDs involved in a FT invasion of an island near Saumlaki. I think at least three Japanese DDs suffered heavy damage. The three big Japanese BB groups returned to Darwin. Once again, PT boats and a cruiser TF did heroic work. At a cost mainly of CA Portland, many Japanese ships were damaged and the resulting bombardment was fairly ineffective. A Japanese CA (Maya) was damaged and then took two TTs from Haddo. Another sub claimed a Japanese DD. Japanese troops are picking off the Dutch bases one at a time (Miller should have done this long ago), but so far no sign of the expected Saumlaki invasion.
Subwoes: I-11 picked off an AP and two AKs near Perth; combat TFs picked off RO-61 and 62 near Portland Roads; Snook got an E near Okinawa; Sculpin was sunk near Rabaul and an S-boat took heavy damage near the Admiralty Islands. Jap subs have been noteably absent from the Bombay/Karachi areas, SoPac, and the West Coast. This is a big help.
China: The Japanese tried another attack at Chengtah and lost 20,000 troops to less than 2,000 for the Allies. Two Japanese units have withdrawn across the river and I think Miller has given up. This is a good sign that things are as they should be in China, now (thank you, developers). The Japanese employed plenty of artillery and bombers, but they were outnumbered by the Chinese who were well-entrenched and in a wooded hex. No way the Japanese should have won this battle; had they done so it would've indicated things were still wacky.
SoPac: Fiji commandos took one of the "Fruity" islands to the north of Fiji.
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
So I have been lurking here for a while and I'm wondering what is the strategic goal of your 3/1 surprise?
It's clear you have him in a war of attrition around Darwin which should play in the Allies favor. What is the goal of your surprise? More attrition? or something else?
NoPac is a shortcut by which the Allies can win the war if the Japanese player isn't careful and experienced. Take the big bases at Paramushiro and on Sikhalin Island and your heavy bombers can destroy Japanese industry on Hokkaido and northern Honshu. Miller, however, is both experienced and aware that I employed this strategy to win one of my WitP games, so I don't expect him to let me get that far. What I do expect:
1. The invasions will succeed and the Allies are likely to be able to hold Paramushiro and possibly Onnekotan Jima, two bases that have big airfield potential. This puts Hokkaido within B-24 range.
2. Miller will be faced with a crisis. He has to react strongly and will have to protect Sikhalin, Hokkaido, and the southern Kuriles for the remainder of the game. He will also want to counterattack. The need for troops up here will draw off much strength from other areas. He'll need more troops up here than I'll have tied down up here.
3. The crisis in NoPac should reduce the heat a bit in the DEI. I doubt I'll continue to face the full KB and eleven BBs for some time to come. The DEI will be my main axis of advance in '43 (I could switch to NoPac if Miller didn't act quickly to defefend Sikhalin Island, but I believe he will).
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
I admire your willpower, had I planned something so big as Operation Port Royal, and I couldn't bring them back: I would go ahead no matter what to see what happens [:D] and probably get smacked by KB sprinting from DEI [:D]
2/16/43 and 2/17/43
Who's Out-thinking Who? I have no idea! The eastern DEI is a vortex and a cauldron that has both Miller's attention and my attention. I'm trying to keep Miller focused here so that he doesn't send assets to the North Pacific. Meanwhile, I have two combat TFs and three loaded troop TFs frozen in place at Portland Roads in northeastern Oz. They are frozen because I'm afraid the KB will pounce on them if I move them toward Darwin. Yet the KB has disappeared from the DEI and suddenly there are plenty of ships and planes at Rabaul. Has Miller deduced that these combat ships and transports, in conjunction with the sustained Allied bombing campaigns vs. Port Moresby and Milne Bay, suggest that I'm heading for southeastern New Guinea? Or is he that much further ahead of me that even now his carriers are steaming toward the Kuriles? I confess I don't know! If the KB isn't used in the DEI before March 1 I am going to be sweating bullets!
DEI: Miller's bombers (mainly Helens) return to Saumlaki. Still no sign of a Japanese amphibious force here, though. The Japanese did take a vacant Babo on New Guinea's far western end.
NoPac: I-169 got another TK, this one went down near Adak Island. One torpedo and glug, glug. The amphibious ships, carriers, and combat ships have made it into the Bering Sea, hopefully undetected by that sub or any other lurking subs. They'll proceed generally west to a point north of Attu Island, from where they will pounce come March 1 (just ten days away!). The force is powerful - in addition to the troops slated for Onnekotan and Paramushiro, I have a Marine regiment, Marine CD, and artillery unit slated for Ketoi Jima. There are plenty of supply ships.
Burma: I'm going to try to isolate Akyab - my 2,000 AV stack that's a hex west of Akyab will bypass the city, marching cross country to the "yellow road" hex east of Akyab. This will cut off Akyab. I am going to leave about 400 AV in the hex west of Akyab. Miller will either have to fight his way out of the pocket or evacuate by sea. Or perhaps he'll think of something else to do.
China: Miller pulled two units back from Chengtah, as noted in my previous post, but that was it. The remainder of the stack has stayed in place. That suits me - I just want a stalemate in China for a long time until the Allies have a chance to get things going at some much later date. I think Miller is gathering for a new punch at Liuchow in southeastern China, but I can move troops there relatively quickly and have begun doing so.
Subwars: Sawfish got an AK near Manila and Haddo got a big AR with two TTs near Pontianak. I-34 got an AKL near Saumlaki.
P.S. Given the carnage in the game thus far - the debacle in China, the loss of my carriers, and the extreme losses to subs, I'm just about tuckered out. I am preparing a concession speach "just in case" Miller outguesses and outplays me in NoPac. I honestly don't think he's going to do so, but the "what if" is a scary thought.
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
He's got 18 units some 2,000 AV strong, so if he tries air transport it's going to be a long, long haul. He's too strong for me to take Akyab, so I hope by maneuver I can force him to evacuate.
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
Darwin is secure - I have 800 AV there and so many aircraft there and at Katherine that it would be a great gift to me if he would venture that way; but he won't - Miller is short on transports and he's a cautious, deliberate player.
We've had a bit of a disagreement over artillery.
The Japanese stack of troops at Chengtah hasn't been able to budge the defenses despite weeks of bombing and three or four costly deliberate attacks. He has managed to lower forts from six to three and now he has resumed the use of nuclear artillery. Four straight turns of bombardment average about 1250 casualties per turn, with about 15 infantry squads destroyed and about 20 non-combat squads per turn. He's employing seven artillery units along with the organic artillery in the six infantry divisions plus several regiments.
I suggested that we impose a house rule limiting Japan and the United States two two artillery units per hex; upping the limit to three once a hex has 150,000 troops, and increasing by one for each additional 50,000 troops.
Miller declined and said he believes the casualties are justified. He said he'd prefer a cease fire. I think a cease fire favors the Japanese becuase it seriously lowers supply consumption. Therefore, we'll just continue as is.
I frankly do not understand Miller's rationale here. When he couldn't break through the original Chinese MLR at Chengchow, he brought in 17 artillery units to decimate the Chinese garrison. Since then he's employed six to eight units in numerous key hexes including Nanyang, Loyang, Changsha, Sian, and now Chengtah.
It is clear that the AE system doesn't work when there is massed, non-historic use of artillery [except, I think, against hexes that have six or more fortifications - they seem to perform reasonably]. So what pleasure can a person derive from taking advantage of that flawed system to gain a decided advantage - an unfair advantage, in my book?
Meanwhile, the Allied invasion fleet has taken position north of Attu Island. It is February 22, I haven't seen the KB or Japanese BBs in a week or longer, and I'm chewing my fingernails. No more turns will be played today and we'll probably only get one turn done tomorrow, so it may be Thursday before this plays out.
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
I've started my PBEM as Japan with the latest garrison requirements added in. I'm spending the first few weeks moving troops around to free up more powerful units. There are less units to conduct an offensive and unless i mass artillery, this will be a quite area.
From what I've seen, Michael, the Chinese can hold their own against infantry and aircraft (as long as the Chinese entrench or fight on advantageous terrin); it's just massed artillery that unhinges the model. So if you stick to relatively sane artillery use, China will in all likelihood remain a stalemate, as it should.
"Rats set fire to Mr. Cooper’s store in Fort Valley. No damage done." Columbus (Ga) Enquirer-Sun, October 2, 1880.
ORIGINAL: Canoerebel
So what pleasure can a person derive from taking advantage of that flawed system to gain a decided advantage - an unfair advantage, in my book?
I can't explain the 'pleasure' aspect of why this is happening to you as I am not privy to Miller's motives.
However, from a military perspective, I don't understand why the IJ player would want to so strain their lines for comparative little gain. Taking (and holding) resource centers in China makes a lot of sense as the IJ, provided that the cost or risk is outweighed by the benefit. There's a number of resource centers already in hand or dot hexes that are lightly defended that merit capture and exploitation by the IJ. I just don't understand why someone would try to push the Chinese back to Chungking when there is comparatively little to gain from most of these Chinese cities.
Similarly, after the rail lines to captured resource centers are in hand, is it really necessary to evict the Chinese from Changsa in order to derive benefit from holding the rest of SE China? Take what you must, hold what you have and defend in depth should be the focus as the IJ.
I think some IJ players fight, pillage and advance because they can. They've got a bunch of cool toys (24/ 30cm field artillery, anyone?) to play with and can't stand the thought of not using that stuff before the allies come and take it away.
Not only is the supply / damage issue unrealistic for an indefinitely sustained IJ offensive, Canoerebel, but so is the operational tempo. I would bet that Miller has no strategic reserve, no training units rotating from the line, no units on R&R and the like. This is as unrealistic for the IJ in 1943 as it is for any standing army today.
I can't explain the 'pleasure' aspect of why this is happening to you as I am not privy to Miller's motives.
However, from a military perspective, I don't understand why the IJ player would want to so strain their lines for comparative little gain. Taking (and holding) resource centers in China makes a lot of sense as the IJ, provided that the cost or risk is outweighed by the benefit. There's a number of resource centers already in hand or dot hexes that are lightly defended that merit capture and exploitation by the IJ. I just don't understand why someone would try to push the Chinese back to Chungking when there is comparatively little to gain from most of these Chinese cities.
Similarly, after the rail lines to captured resource centers are in hand, is it really necessary to evict the Chinese from Changsa in order to derive benefit from holding the rest of SE China? Take what you must, hold what you have and defend in depth should be the focus as the IJ.
I think some IJ players fight, pillage and advance because they can. They've got a bunch of cool toys (24/ 30cm field artillery, anyone?) to play with and can't stand the thought of not using that stuff before the allies come and take it away.
Not only is the supply / damage issue unrealistic for an indefinitely sustained IJ offensive, Canoerebel, but so is the operational tempo. I would bet that Miller has no strategic reserve, no training units rotating from the line, no units on R&R and the like. This is as unrealistic for the IJ in 1943 as it is for any standing army today.
well spoken. i second that.
apart from that, the kwantung army (or the commanders of it) would never have given their artillery away. I have not played the japanese yet, except for 1-2 turns, but i intend to leave the majority of the Kwangtung Army in Manchukuo when i start my campaign against the AI.
Bougainville, November 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9. It rained today.
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