Nothing Up My Sleeve: Magical Moose Tricks--Bullwinkle58 vs.1EyedJacks

[BBfanboy]

No wonder the School of Hard Knocks in this game is so hard to graduate from! [:(]
Agree with the need for a code change. At the very least the Beest info screenie should say "Alternate Load" next to the drop tank.
Maybe you can fire-bomb his ships with it?

[Chickenboy]

I agree, Bull. My read of the DB and the rings conforms to your conclusions too. Very confusing. I think the stringbags are one of the (many) exceptions to the game code that one just has to remember out of hand. School of hard knocks indeed.

On the bright side, it's good to know that the Vildebeest DOES come with "Engine x1". [8|]

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

No wonder the School of Hard Knocks in this game is so hard to graduate from! [:(]
Agree with the need for a code change. At the very least the Beest info screenie should say "Alternate Load" next to the drop tank.
Maybe you can fire-bomb his ships with it?

I posted the above series over Second Coffee, went away to watch "Morning Joe", noted that it's snowing like a sumbiotch, then came back, calmer, to see if my posts had generated any comments, or just yawns. Or, worse, that I was totally mistaken, which is the saddest sort of forum spanking one can get: The Righteous Indignation Cha Cha Followed By Pie In The Face.

Nice to know I wasn't imagining this state of affairs.

I wonder how many attacks I've missed out on over the years because the game let me torp + DT?

I understand that the DB screens aren't set up to say "either/or", and that I suppose we could be expected to know from the screenshot that a Beest only has one 'C' hardpoint, but I really don't know the wing and fuselage configurations of every plane in the game. I expect that when the interface has trained me, in good doggie fashion, that "yellow=good/possible, red=bad/impossible" I don't have to interpolate between the DB and screenshots and what the interface is telling me. The interface is a deal between dev and player. It shouldn't backstab you.

In effect, my Beests this turn went out looking for two BBs with machine guns. Worse, they did it at extreme ranges. I don't know if they would have been in attack range without the DTs, but at least I could have been sure they had fish.

From a code standpoint I doubt the DB has a flag which would allow a universal DT exception check to be done. Probably have to put in a whole stack of aircraft model error traps to resolve DT and weapon interferrence. But without them this is a crappy situation, which even worse can still bite you even if you do the hand-work of going to the DB and checking. Of the three data sources I showed above, only one shows the truth.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

I agree, Bull. My read of the DB and the rings conforms to your conclusions too. Very confusing. I think the stringbags are one of the (many) exceptions to the game code that one just has to remember out of hand. School of hard knocks indeed.

On the bright side, it's good to know that the Vildebeest DOES come with "Engine x1". [8|]

Yeah, an engine the Allied player never has worry about building. They just "poof" into existence. [:)]

And we wonder why newbies are confused about how to play this beast.

[Chickenboy]

ORIGINAL: Bullwinkle58
And we wonder why newbies are confused about how to play this beast.

Oh no-I've never wondered about noobs' confusion playing this beast. As a non-noob, I'm still confused by it sometimes. [&:]

[Encircled]

Anyone remember "Elite"?

Using the settings on that, after a year of AI playing I think I've just graduated from "Harmless" to "Mostly Harmless".

Some way to go before I can say I'm not a noob

[ctangus]

Thanks for stumbling across the problem with the Beests. Mine weren't flying for two turns while co-located bombers were. It probably would have taken me weeks to figure it out! [:D]

C'est la guerre. I'm rationalizing it this way - I'm convinced my armament officers spent the last 48 hours consuming the gin reserves of Singapore.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: ctangus

Thanks for stumbling across the problem with the Beests. Mine weren't flying for two turns while co-located bombers were. It probably would have taken me weeks to figure it out! [:D]

C'est la guerre. I'm rationalizing it this way - I'm convinced my armament officers spent the last 48 hours consuming the gin reserves of Singapore.

I've been thiniking about this all afternoon, on and off. Why I didn't do the update.

I may be missing something, but here's a mind-scrambler: how do we knwo which ckick is paramount? How do we know they don't prepare to fly with torps but at non-DT range, even as the player thinks they have DTs AND torps? I assumed they flew to DT range with guns only, but how do you know?

[ctangus]

ORIGINAL: Bullwinkle58

how do we knwo which ckick is paramount? How do we know they don't prepare to fly with torps but at non-DT range, even as the player thinks they have DTs AND torps? I assumed they flew to DT range with guns only, but how do you know?

Do you mean which click or which chick?

If the former - I rationalize it this way. (Note: while I'm knew to AE I am a vet of maybe 2000 WITP PBEM turns and experienced many WTF? moments.) I try to imagine myself as Nimitz or Yamamoto. I can have the best plans in the world but my subordinates (the game engine) may still screw them up. As I get to know my subordinates (the game engine) better I can limit, but not eliminate those screw ups.

Now if you were asking what chick is paramount I'd definitely say Christina Hendricks:

[BBfanboy]

I thought they did not fly? The map shows a TF about 5 hexes south of Singers, so I guess that is the one in question?
If it did not have a high enough DL the TBs might not fly - an "iffy" FOW contact isn't worth risking op losses.
If it had a good DL and they didn't fly, it could have been weather or the aircraft was overloaded with torp and DT so it stayed put.
If they flew and no attack appears in the combat report, they turned back.
You might get a clue to what happened by looking at their fatigue level. A 0 fatique level, or a decrease of previous fatigue means they stayed at the bar.
An increase of 4-6 means a normal, no DT mission with no contact. An increase of 7-9 likely means a DT ranged mission with no contact.
I got a feel for this by watching fatigue levels on my air groups every turn - standing them down when they get over ten unless something really juicy is nearby.

PS - weather in the landing hex also affects fatigue a bit, 2-3 points if it is bad. The "pucker factor effect".[:D]

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

I thought they did not fly? The map shows a TF about 5 hexes south of Singers, so I guess that is the one in question?
If it did not have a high enough DL the TBs might not fly - an "iffy" FOW contact isn't worth risking op losses.
If it had a good DL and they didn't fly, it could have been weather or the aircraft was overloaded with torp and DT so it stayed put.
If they flew and no attack appears in the combat report, they turned back.
You might get a clue to what happened by looking at their fatigue level. A 0 fatique level, or a decrease of previous fatigue means they stayed at the bar.
An increase of 4-6 means a normal, no DT mission with no contact. An increase of 7-9 likely means a DT ranged mission with no contact.
I got a feel for this by watching fatigue levels on my air groups every turn - standing them down when they get over ten unless something really juicy is nearby.

PS - weather in the landing hex also affects fatigue a bit, 2-3 points if it is bad. The "pucker factor effect".[:D]

The maps are from an interim save I made before I sent the turn back last time. I don't know what course Mike sent them home on. In the movie I thought there was a hit by Singers patrol planes on a rough course for Cam Rahn, but I don't know the range. There's a good chance they were seen by multiple units' patrols.

[Bullwinkle58]

To round out this issue, which I've asked michaelm to look at in the Tech forum, but he may not, I went through Tracker for every TB in the game, both sides. From what I can tell ONLY the early-war Beest has this DT/torp problem. The Beest IV moves the DT to an XT hardpoint and away from the Center where the torp lives. All the other Allied TBs with drop tanks are XT for the tank while the torp is Internal. The Japanese don't appear to have DTs as an option on any TB.

As such one could argue "meh" on the Beest and say newbies and oldies should "just know" to avoid dual use. OTOH, a fix to the interface would only involve one error check for one model, redding-out the torpedo when the DT is selected on the Beest.

The war is long and many things happen. But this really got under my skin yesterday. This interface glitch may have cost me a strike at two BBs low on ammo and with only one escort coming by Singers where the Beests were supremely rested and ready.

[Bullwinkle58]

December 18, 1941


Arrrgh!!!!

A low-activity day punctuated by lack of attacks more than the other way.

1) With next turn in hand I can confirm that Singers patrols got a hard fix on the BB TF withdrawing from Palembang on a NE course. This shot shows the end state, with the Beest range rings superimposed. Based on these, and without yesterday's discussion, I would have hoped they would have attacked with the drop tanks provided. I know now they did not, and may not have ever. What I don't know is if Mike waypointed them to this location, avoiding coming inside the black ring. It may not have mattered if the DT command in the code takes precedence over the torpedo order in the code. I'll never know.





2) The ASW Follies at Pearl evened out as RO-66 either was ordered or reacted into Pearl Harbor. A 3-hits attack was followed several cycles later by a mine explosion sound effect. This illustrates why it is good to watch replays twice since the first time it was near bedtime, the house was already in bed, and I had the sound off. This time the mine may have been RO-66 because immediatley afterward another attack found her (higher d/l due to oil leaking?) and scored a penetrating hit as well as two hits which read as Severe Engine Damage, plus others of a non-penetrating nature. FOWed ships sunk shows her gone. It is possible, or if not she is very hurt and may sink en route.

3) Sweeps in China used I think as probes to see if I have pulled all my air back in the region (I have, 95%.)

4) 11th Division in Malaysia, now in Strat mode and on the train platform, continues to be abused by heavy Netty strikes. It should roll south this turn, I hope.

5) Route bombing continues near Temuloh, slowing my retreat. I counter again with Blenheims on his troops, but he has CAPed them and I suffer stiff losses. About 7 planes. Not worth it.

6) Several unoccupied Chinese cities have been taken without comment as he regularizes the front. I am taking about 6-8 VP point losses per turn due to missing garisons, so I don't mind. It also forces him to garrison.

7) Manila now has no planes. One ragged P-40E unit sent to Cebu and the other to Clark. He sweeps Manila again, just to see I think. Manila's only function now is to pump out as much LI supply as possible. A couple of ships are still in the yards trying to patch enough holes to run for it (unsuccessfully I think), and the Cavite Base force remains doing their job, but everyting else is PI infantry. All subs have rebased elsewhere. My last two DDs can't load torps anymore. To date the PTs have been completely ineffectual, although I send them out nightly.

8) Rangoon continues to be methodically assaulted. Sweeps followed by something I've never seen vs. the AI: Betty and Sally attacks at 100 ft. Bettys strafing is a new one. One bomb hit, one kill and 2 damaged on the bombers. AVG is up at Mandalay again. I'm going to get at least some P-40Es installed before I send them to the meat grinder again. Those pilots are too good for the planes they've had foisted on them.

9) No opposed land attacks anywhere on the map. Mike e-mailed that he wore out a mouse on the turn I just recieved, so this may indicate that a new wave of landings is coming. From slender reeds is OPSEC breached . . .

10) Clark and Pearl forts go to 3.

Addendum: I see that my opponent has been reading of Oz invasions in NY59Giants' AAR. I have three division equivalents at Perth or on the rails headed there now. My whole logistics set-up for the left side of the map depends on Perth.

[zuluhour]

Mike e-mailed that he wore out a mouse on the turn

your time will come, in '44 I melted several keys with a cig and twice spilled Hendricks (very sticky with tonic) on the mouse pad.[:D]
I believe NYGiants is in a reluctant admiral scenario, putting him in more of a "pickle". I'm glad you decided to write the AAR Moose, I have picked up a few things and am enjoying the read.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: zuluhour

Mike e-mailed that he wore out a mouse on the turn

your time will come, in '44 I melted several keys with a cig and twice spilled Hendricks (very sticky with tonic) on the mouse pad.[:D]
I believe NYGiants is in a reluctant admiral scenario, putting him in more of a "pickle". I'm glad you decided to write the AAR Moose, I have picked up a few things and am enjoying the read.

Ah, I didn't know it was RA. I only read the last two pages. He IS in a pickle. Nice to see somebody get to play with the Emergency Rees.

I've never had anything like this kind of sub war so early versus the AI.

[Encircled]

Hope you've got your Aussie troops fortifying every possible landing site on the west coast.

Sounds like he is coming

[Bullwinkle58]

December 19, 1941

Stringbags Not To The Rescue

A low-key day overall.

1) Sub war at Pearl swings back to advantage Bad Guys. He puts a torp into USS Shaw, which should make it in from one hex out, and sinks PC Reliance. I think I'm going to pull my ASW TFs in to Pearl and try a new model. Maybe only 4-ship TFs to overcome the tiny ammo loads pre-upgrade, and flood one hex with everybody at once, see if I can win the war of odds. I also may stick to DDs with this effort. Their maneuverability ratings and increased DC if they are hit make them perhaps a better cost-benefit mix for now.

2) Argonaut drops three whole mines at Johnson, but the mine symbol works for 1 or 500. He'll have to attend to it. Argonaut gets popped for a control room fire and minor damge, but is headed back to Pearl. Nautilus also calls at Johnson and gets DCed for no damage. He has a mix of DDs and PBs there at least, but my recon says he's done offloading. I sorta believe it.

3) I sit up and go "Whaaaat!?" when a float plane detects a high-speed, 6-ship IJN TF down SW of San Diego, doing 18 knots on a SW course. Could it be the KB, swung around to snipe the Canal Zone wormhole exit? Is he looking for my carriers, now transiting that area and headed for San D.? I go to the map, plot the hex, and it's my carrier Tf itself, running at Full for home. That float plane a-vi-a-tor is getting no soup tonight.

4) He sweeps Singers twice with large Zero and Oscar groups, slashing at my helpless Buffaloes, downing seven. I have no choice but to take it, as the inevitable airfield or port raid will come soon and try to stop my fort building. For now it continues, with two more engineer units arriving by train from up-country. 11th Indian Division also tucks into Singers, safe after a long ride. They begin to unpack and adopt the title of largest AV unit in town.

5) Sweeps on Manila find open skies. Sweeps on Rangoon ditto. I'm happy he's sweeping where I have no fighters, but I don't expect the vacation to last. The Oscar sweeps on Kuantan continue for the Nth day. For training I asume.

6) Strikes on Kuala Lumpur do medium damage and supply destruction. I have been keeping this hex open only for rail purposes, but with the 11th now passed it has no further purpose. I will pull this base force south. I still have the non-infantry pieces of 9th Indian Div. at Malacca waiting to reform, but I can't wait any longer. The infantry is being severely harried in central Malaysia (40+ bombers this turn) and may not make Singers. I will send the Malaccan pieces south and hope they can reform at Singers before the doors close.

7) A two CA TF is detected SE of Singers, at 53,82, well within TB range (even WITHOUT drop tanks.) Why is it there? I have no idea. In e-mails Mike has indicated he does not fear the TBs in the early game before training kicks in. He is right, on this turn at least. Swordfish launch in three uncoordinated attacks, and hit nothing. A small follow-on Catalina attack gets one dud and no hits. The Beests take the day off.

8) B-17s return to Miri in their by now standard two package formation, and record one Oil hit. Oscars damage, but do not destroy. After looking at the device tables in Tracker, specifically Japanese AA ranges, I reduce the B-17s to 7000 feet. No harm, but no better results either.

9) Ground combat is light. Japanese mixed brigade attacks Chinese corps at 195:1 odds, and destroys 14 squads and 2 guns near Hwainan. In the previous mountain hex near Chengting he has brought in extra forces, now 4 LCUs including light AFVs, versus a corps and HQ. Japan gets 1:2 odds but gets more Chinese casualties, but the Chinese do not retreat. This hex straddles a rail line, and I am content to let him take it rather than leave. My Chinese forces are steadily working west now. I will post a screen shot soon. The leading units are one hex from Lashio.

10) Singers and Soerbaja forts go to 3.

[Bullwinkle58]

December 20, 1941

'Fish Got Game

What do you call four heavy cruisers reconning Palembang?

Targets.

1) The TBs redeem themselves. A reconaissance in force, four prime, juicy CAs and two DDs, come to call at Palembang. The only reason I can think of is to recon my preparation for his company. Their search planes ARE seen over the refinery, taking photos. At first they find a lone xAKL desperately trying to get a 30% fragment of a spare RAF air HQ across to Palembang so I can spread the TB goodness.

Day Time Surface Combat, near Muntok at 49,89, Range 25,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Mogami
CA Mikuma
CA Suzuya
CA Kumano
DD Maikaze
DD Nowaki

Allied Ships

xAKL Beatrice, Shell hits 3, and is sunk

Allied ground losses:
10 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

But every plane at Singers is loaded and on the ramp, including four Cats, and some of them fly. In two flights separated by two Cat attacks, Swordfish, strongly escorted by half my living Buffaloes to give them courage, hit the TF that should not have been where it was found.




Morning Air attack on TF, near Muntok at 49,89

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 9 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Allied aircraft
Buffalo I x 9
Swordfish I x 6

Allied aircraft losses
Swordfish I: 3 damaged

Japanese Ships
CA Mikuma, Torpedo hits 1
CA Suzuya

This result is accompanied by the "Listing, counter-flooding" message on screen.

Then:

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Muntok at 49,89

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 13 minutes

Allied aircraft
Buffalo I x 9
Swordfish I x 3

Allied aircraft losses
Swordfish I: 2 damaged

Japanese Ships
CA Mikuma, Torpedo hits 1

This attack includes the "Explosion below water line" message.

I think Mikuma is afloat for sure, but probably with engine damage, so there should be one more chance tomorrow to get the Beests in the air.

This constitutes pretty much all the good news for the Allies today. Now, for the rest of the story . . .

2) My Pearl ASW units head for the barn, this turn and next. There are duels but no results except dead reef fish. He puts a big I-boat directly into Hilo harbor where an amphib TF has just come and gone with 8th Marines to stiffen the southern flank of the Islands. How I wish I had more mines.

3) Landings begin at Christmas Island with a bombardment and a Naval Guard unit last seen at Johnson I. This tells me he is using economy of force to take these satellites not quickly, but efficiently. Christmas has only the pre-war civilian contractor CB unit, plus the just arrived 'E' unit of the port services force. I'll lose both. Forts drop to 0 from 2 in the shock attack, but Christmas holds for one day. It will fall tomorrow.

A more important question is why. Is this only a standard move to take the flank of Pearl to harass west-bound convoys for Oz? If so my plan is to not come through here. If it's more than that I'll see more landings and insertion of air power here. So far he has not touched Tarawa, Makin, Canton, or Baker.

4) Or Wake. I sneak a lone supply ship in here next turn to land about 1000 supply. Forts are at 2 plus 92%, and with a little supply the CD unit can cut up landing ships in a very historical manner. I considered pulling the fighters and the Marines, but decided to go historic, whenever he gets around to it. I could use both at Midway, but Wake might pay more than it costs if he waits for the forts to ripen. And with no idea where the KB went, and a dozen subs or more east of Kwajalein, there's no assurance they'd get to Midway anyway.

5) Landings also begin at Kuching, a DD and AMC. I'll be interested to see if he joins up more landing ships once he knows the CD posture. Looking at the landing report it's possible there are more ships than I can see, depending on whcih way the FOW wind blows. Elements of the 4th Infantry Bn., 2nd Recon Rgt, and 2nd Eng Rg. are lost in the surf. More would make sense to me if he plans to go overland to attack Sambas and Singkawang, which is mined. The defenders at Kuching bombard, but the Japanese do not attack yet.

6) An intense day in the air as I sense a shift from a focus on sweeps to one of infrastructure destruction and troop disablement: in China, in the PI, at Rangoon, and in Malaysia.

7) In China, only Chengchow stands preventing a free, open railroad link between Peiping and Wuchang. Chengchow is one of my bastion cities, with three HQs, four corps equivalents, and two engineer units fortifying. I do not plan to hold it long, but doing so has focused him on it and the railroad while other units stream through the cracks on a NW heading. Combined with the battles in the mountains to the north this week he is strongly focused on freeing the rails, and I will try to stop that as long as I can. He does probing Lily bombing in Chengchow for not much damage, but I have no AA there at all.

His other China air objective is the forces around Wuchow, which is itself now vacant. The former residents are in cross-country Move mode when bombing will let them, presently in grassland but about to transition to forest. China is turing into an interesting exercise in triage and head fakes. I'm trying to get him to pay attention in certain places and swing at fat pitches while I sneak out of the park. I hope to only lose about 30% of my Chinese force in the exit, but it may end up half or a bit more depending on how he uses armor and how long I wait to hold certain doors open. It's not every man for himself by any means, but it may be in three weeks or so.

8) Realizing late (face slap) that I need a Level 7 AF to upgrade anything, I move the AVG to Calcutta, turn off port and forts, and go all out to try to get me some airfielfd. I have enough P-40Es to upgrade two sub-units after disbanding a training rig on the EC, but I don't have a Level 7 AF in Asia. By the time Calcutta is ready Rangoon may be decided. I'm toying with sending my first chunk of Chinese to Rangoon, but I may not, and hold that yellow icon card in reserve. I have not solidified plans for the Chinese masses once they're out, except some will go to India for garrison so I can have my tanks, please.

9) Singers gets 52 Netties at 6000 ft. chewing on troops. After today's torpedo follies I expect him to try to shut down the AF tomorrow and forever. My Buffaloes do little, but every day he bangs on troops I dig. I have also moved all my existing Malaysian AA into Singers, so 6000 ft. may not work.

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M2 Nell: 6 damaged
G4M1 Betty: 2 destroyed, 5 damaged
G4M1 Betty: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied ground losses:
18 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

10) Manila recieves 92 Bettys and 39 Zeros and they find no CAP. 10,000 ft. and

Allied ground losses:
4 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 4
Airbase supply hits 4
Runway hits 20

Two Bettys are damaged.

Later, a 2 ship Zero sweep at 10,000 "slams" into Manila's empty skies. A little funny. I'll take it where I can find it.

11) Other air strikes too numerous to mention on Manila, Singers, and Rangoon. The normal erosion of December 1941 continues.

12) Georgetown, defended only by the Fort, falls to a recon unit.

13) Batavia's oilmen rest from their Miri labors. The planes are fine, but morale was in the 40s in two, and 60s in the other unit.

My carriers should make San Diego tomorrow or the next day at latest. I have sent more force to Diego Garcia from CT, and 1st Australian Corps to command Perth's defenses. Little by little the Dutch are calling their men into larger, more defensible positions, riding patrol planes not designed for the job but doing the best they can. Two smaller reinforcing LCUs have unloaded at Oosthaven and strat packed for Palembang. I will not be able to hold there if he wants it, (I didn't plan well at all between Singers and P-ville) and it looks like he does. But I hope to drag it out and damage it as much as possible. In NG, the garrisons at Lae et al have each walked about 35 miles toward PM, which is itself almost done pulling everything movable out of Rabaul. Kavieng is already a ghostown. I have managed to get about 10,000 precious Aussie supply into PM, where infrastructure building eats it up pretty fast. I may be handing him a nice port and airfield, so it's a risk, but when I do take it back I want it ready to go then.

[zuluhour]

Have you reinforced PM with any sizeable LCU? I am going to make a stand there again, line in the sand as it were, and will watch developements here as well. I have sent a tired and and understrength brigade so far but hope to achieve 300-375AV behind level 4 forts before he can muster forces to challenge me.
PS. (i'm in bigbabesA) The ABDA group is low 30's training and high 20s moral. Think pilots to reserve for them. I don't know if they hit reserves earlier their stage time to squadrons might be faster?

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: zuluhour

Have you reinforced PM with any sizeable LCU? I am going to make a stand there again, line in the sand as it were, and will watch developements here as well. I have sent a tired and and understrength brigade so far but hope to achieve 300-375AV behind level 4 forts before he can muster forces to challenge me.

I have had only two strategic discusisons with Rocky since the game was concieved, and one concerned PM. In AI games I have easily held it, easily gotten 100,000+ supplies to it, and built a major airbase by mid-1942.

He advised not doing that, and I now see why. There is no spare air for it when I'm being swept everywhere by a human player. I do not have PPs free to buy out Aussie land units. Full divisions I would send there versus the AI I have committed to keeping Perth open. As Rocky says, there are no forces pre-summer 1942 available to project power from PM (at best) and before summer if the Japanese want it they can take it. I'm pulling in satellite LCUs as best I can by air, and I've gotten about 25,000 total supply in so far, but I can't afford to buy out the remaining pieces of the infantry unit which starts there. And if I could it would be a speed bump.

It rubs me to give up PM and probably Darwin, but if I have to I will. Both can be re-taken when I have the units. There are better places to make a stand, especially if oil-denial is a core strategy. And PPs spent to take bastion city Chinese generals from 32 Land to 62 Land to me pay more dividends. I need time in China.