Hairy Asian Experiences - GreyJoy (J) vs. Q-Ball (A)

[Encircled]

In a word, no

You don't need to do it

You can get DEI and Singapore pretty much for free if you do it methodically and sensibly, so why risk it?

[GreyJoy]

ORIGINAL: Encircled

In a word, no

You don't need to do it

You can get DEI and Singapore pretty much for free if you do it methodically and sensibly, so why risk it?

Cause, if the gamble works, i could get singapore by the end of 1941...which will speed a lot the whole operations in DEI-SRA, not giving the allies time to build up strong defences somehwere

[Encircled]

But you run the risk of heavy casualties in ships, men and aircraft.

I'm not a Jap player at all, but I know that early reverses can have a massive effect on the Japanese, both material and mental.

If you've got a plan that involves taking Singapore asap for it to work, and you have plenty of air cover, then its probably worth the risk.

If you haven't got air cover, then it probably isn't

[ny59giants]

Mersing - one of the two Aussie brigades start here. You are landing with a whole division. Where is your samurai spirit?? LRCAP your transports from Kota Bharu with Oscars to supplement what you LRCAP from Kaga and company. I might set their altitude at 7k as he might come in at 2k to try to get below your LRCAP if you have everybody set at 20k.

Look for Dutch bombers coming out the size 2 AF two hexes south of Medan on Sumatra. Brad mentioned doing this on a thread a while ago.

The Dutch subs can be a real "PITA" in the early days. [:D]

[Canoerebel]

You will never get Sngapore in December 1941. Even against a player who gets caught with his pants down, you won't. But against a player of Brad's caliber, not a prayer, no matter how well the Mersing Gambit goes. Best case scenario for Singapore is usually February 1942, though a botch job by the Aliles and a full commitment by Japan could change that to January, I think.

[ny59giants]

Sorry to bust your bubble Dan, but I took Singapore on Dec 31st in my oldest game as Japan playing Scenario 2. Yes, I did send 6 divisions to Malaya.

[Walloc]

ORIGINAL: GreyJoy

His subs are already giving me headhaces... 1 AV sunk near Miri and several attacks against my shippings near Luzon...how did Rader manage to counter every single of my sub attack!?

I havent read the start of u and radar's AAR so i wont comment on why in that case, but generally speaking. Luck, doing invasions/using sea routes that is predicetable works against you. Things u can do and i've seen them used with great effect even this early. Navsrc/ASW. No wont damage any subs with that start skill lvls but just spotting them is enough. A spotted sub is much less effective. Which brings to mind, how do u use u AVs?
Those are great to provide planes for spotting subs this early.

ORIGINAL: GreyJoy
His fleets are fleeing without much opposition. I have placed several subs near Manila and mined Bataan, positioning 2 flottillas of DDs right in front of Manila... all the ships managed to get out safely!
Same for HK....my DDs didn't find anyone and his ships are moving freely.... My Betties from Takao managed to score some hits but i had hoped to catch them mostly with my DDs.... it didn't happen.

Did they have react on? and were they using settings that override reacting? how was ur NAVsearch?(btw its a bad thing to react into Bataan)

Kind regards,

Rasmus

[Canoerebel]

I don't know the circumstances in your game, MIchael, but it's not going to happen against Q-Ball.

[jeffk3510]

I am with Dan on this one GJ...

I think going that route loses the game for you in Dec 41 in the long run vs 43 or so..

[JocMeister]

There is no need for you to gamble this early! You have absolute superiority. If you are going to do something do it properly or not at all (swedish saying btw)!

[princep01]

Hummmm, perhaps Kuantan as an alternative to Mersing?  It's an AF much closer to Singapore than those in the north and almost certainly will not be as well defended as Mersing.  Sounds like he is working hard to deny the Mersing Gambit, so why impale your trooper on it and give those stringbags in Singapore a nice, fat convenient shipping target well within escort range of his fighters.
 
There is not need to rush things and take unnecessary risks if you think he is gearing up to stop the Mersing thing.  Kuantan is an easy diversion, too.  No big risk, nice AF to be had and zap a few Allied defenders before they run into Singers or export themselves to Palembang.

[GreyJoy]

uhm....My Samurai spirit is tempted to risk....but, at the same time, i know Japan cannot risk too much at this early stage...
 
...I'll maximise the CAP over my ships and will try to get closer....based upon my tests it seems that i can hope to land before he can reinforce Mersing too much...
 
In two days now we could be landing.... i'd love the idea to decimate his buffaloes in a single massive air battle over my CVs....
 
Heavy recon ordered in the hexes around Mersing...i wanna have a precise idea of what i'm facing there. If tomorrow, when we'll be closer, things won't look too grimm, i'll land. If not, we'll diverto towards Kuantan and Amen.
 
In Luzon, we now have a lvl 3 AF operating at San Fernando, and two more lvl 1 Afs at Vigan and Aparri. Recon planes and fighters have already been based there, while we have intensified the air ASW duties....all the subs from Manila are now operating through those waters between Formosa and Luzon and my naval ASW is terrible as you know...
 
His ships are fleeing east, moving south from Manila and then east towards the open pacific waters...i've dispatched a couple of DD flottillas...hopefully they will catch something tomorrow....
 
all my AVs, since day 1, are scouting for ASW and naval search duties....but his subs remain a terrible threat! Considering how bad it went the PH raid it was probably better to go for Manila on dec 7....oh well, live and learn!
 
In Luzon he seems to be fortifying Manila and Clark, as usual. I'll push forward towards Clark with the reinforced division i landed at San Fernando.
 
I fear the presence of the AVG in China....moved a full zero daitai there to escort my bombers and sweep his forward AFs.
 
KB is now moving towards Wake, to support the wake invasion as planned.
 
Z Force, Boise, Houston and his CVs are nowehere to be seen...lurking in the shades...
 
 

[GreyJoy]

here's a screenshot of Luzon...


On the economic side, we started to convert a bunch of To'su xAKLs into PBs and some Toho and Ehime into carry troops.
At the same time we sent 15 Lima and 15 Akasi to Port Hartur in order to collect resources, 11 Lima to Kejio, 12 Aden to Shangai, 10 Kazu-D to Fusan and a lot of small AKLs to Hokkaido. They will suck all the resources that are stocked there and bring them back to Japan asap!

[GreyJoy]

We also started to convert some R&D factories for planes we decided not to research into 0(30) R&D factory for planes we have chosen (ie: all the Tony R&D factories converted to N1K1 and KI-44 IIa and brought them to 30). Just few of them for the moment....no need to hurry

[GreyJoy]

A small reply....
 
An early conquest of Singapore could mean that it will be possible an early trip to India.... Rader landed in India in our game on the beginning of April....
If Singa falls by the first days of 1942, Java and Sumatra should be finished by the end of Feb.... so in March we could be packing up for India... who knows[:D]

[JohnDillworth]

Port Hartur

[GreyJoy]

ORIGINAL: JohnDillworth

Port Hartur

that's not very kind of you John....[:-]

[:D][:D][:D][:D]

[GreyJoy]

In China we're slowly repositioning our armies in order to push towards Sian and Changsha. Obviously at first we have to get rid of HK...so i won't report much about China untill that operation is over (it would be boring).
 
However in China i'm not planning much, apart from conquering the Changsha area and Sian with his industries. If things will go well, then we'll see what we can do for a second chinese phase in the second half of 1942. For the moment, only historical advances.

[GreyJoy]

One small question.... does it make sense to halt musashi and accelerate 3 1944 CVs (while leaving the 1942 CVs as they are) ?

[Canoerebel]

GreyJoy,

Whoa! About China, you might have a mindset that could tempt you into a "reinforcing defeat" situation that would be very detrimental to your long-term health. Step back for a second and reconsider what one of your off-the-cuff comments could indicate.

You said that you don't have much in mind for China other than taking or handling the Changsha and Sian sectors. Both of those should be very, very difficult for Japan to take requiring a very large and long commitment of forces. (I've never lost either base in a PBEM, though perhaps that will change in my game with Panzerjaeger Hortlund). If you have the mindset that you'll just "take it easy and be satisfied with taking these bases," then when your moves are stymied you might begin feeding in reinforcements thinking "I just need a little more to take them," when in actuality that's not the case. So reconsider your plans in China with a more open mindset.