(A) Fulkerson vs Jap AI vers 7.0

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: moore4807
Larry,
Are you thinking of upgrading to the new beta by michaelm for your new A.I. game? They are saying several nice things about it...

Yes, I did that and I'm really liking the difference. There's a new routing category called "coastal" and it causes ships to hug the coast.
pretty nifty. And there were a boat-load of changes most of which I'm not aware of what they were. I'll document the changes when I
become aware of them. So far so good.

[larryfulkerson]

EDIT: I'm using scenario # 1 the stock scenario, and I'm running it on the new Beta version 7.0 of the game engine.

The Japanese first turn strikes were done and the combat phase is over. I've noticed that there's a boat-load of failed industry to start
the game for the Allies. Mostly because of a lack of resources. Not a whole lot that can be done for those failures if they are for the
case of resources. They'll just have to sort themselves out eventually.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's a list of the ships under repair at Pearl. I could move those two BB's out of the shipyard and that would probably leave room for
all the rest of the damaged ships sitting at the pier. There are two ships that couldn't be put into the shipyard because they are still on
fire. I'm planning on moving the two BB's to the west coast somewhere, maybe Seattle. I'll need to look up who has the best repair ship
yard on the west coast and send them there. To be in the Pearl shipyard over a year isn't sustainable in the long run. I need that space
for other ships.

[larryfulkerson]

There's a ship at Davao that is still on fire from an air attack earlier yesterday and I've put it in a TF and docked it so that the fire might
go out sooner but I notice that there's 90+% of fire and yet there's no scuttle button. So I'm guessing the game engine thinks there might
be a possibility to save this ship. The Japs are going to sink it anyway sooner or later but still it would be nice to be able to scuttle it.

[larryfulkerson]

TF 18 is built around the CV Saratoga and she's sitting at the dock on the west coast but I'm going to send her and her escorts to Pearl.
The Enterprise and Lexington are trying to stay out of the way of the KB which is of course, north of Pearl. I'm hoping I can get all three
carriers together again and take them over to the Tulagi area to contest Jap invasions.

[larryfulkerson]

The Hermes is sitting pierside at location code named Trim Comb and she has 12 Stringbags on board so I'm thinking of sending her to
the Davao area to see if I can't get one of those Jap BB's

[Jorge_Stanbury]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

(1) don't disband a ship in a hex where there is no port and then start a repair because you'll cause the ship to be "stuck" there until the hex has a port. I found that out at Zamboanga when the port was 100% damaged. Had a BB there for minor repairs and didn't happen to notice that it said 0 days for a repair time and put her in repair mode and then when I tried to put it back in service I couldn't. D'oh.

Try clicking on the dot base, then click the anchor to show the port, then click of show ships under repair, then select the ship, change the ship status from pierside to readiness, then click on "accept changes"
I think this should work

[Jorge_Stanbury]

if you go with the new beta, expect AA to bite back; my Pearl Harbor cost me 20+ planes... and i was conservative (higher altitude, no strafing, etc).

[Jorge_Stanbury]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson


(2) Um.....there isn't a lot of rapid moving around when you're ships are doing ASW and there's a react range you can specify so I
usually just position some PB's and SC's and TB's around my port(s) and then leave them there. The only reason I might move them
after that is if they run out of ammo.

You should also have an AG in each ASW port; assuming it is a small port with no shipyard/ naval support

AGs will repair and rearm your SC/ PB depth charges

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson
(1) don't disband a ship in a hex where there is no port and then start a repair because you'll cause the ship to be "stuck" there until the hex has a port. I found that out at Zamboanga when the port was 100% damaged. Had a BB there for minor repairs and didn't happen to notice that it said 0 days for a repair time and put her in repair mode and then when I tried to put it back in service I couldn't. D'oh.

Try clicking on the dot base, then click the anchor to show the port, then click of show ships under repair, then select the ship, change the ship status from pierside to readiness, then click on "accept changes"
I think this should work

I'll try it. Thanks for the tip.

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury
if you go with the new beta, expect AA to bite back; my Pearl Harbor cost me 20+ planes... and i was conservative (higher altitude, no strafing, etc).

Thanks for the head's up I had forgotten how much the AAA had changed.

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson
(2) Um.....there isn't a lot of rapid moving around when you're ships are doing ASW and there's a react range you can specify so I
usually just position some PB's and SC's and TB's around my port(s) and then leave them there. The only reason I might move them
after that is if they run out of ammo.

You should also have an AG in each ASW port; assuming it is a small port with no shipyard/ naval support
AGs will repair and rearm your SC/ PB depth charges

Hey, that's a great idea. Thanks my friend.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's a list of the convoys that are headed for Pearl. They are mostly empty and are going to pick up goodies when they get there so
that they can carry it back to Oz. Some of the convoys are the lower-range variety and they are going to stop at the various islands in
the chain to unload fuel etc. I'm scrambling to get a convoy system set up for the route between Pearl and Oz. I've noticed that there
are bases in Oz that have a bigger LI than Resource Centers and will probably need a steady infusion of resources to avoid failure of the
industry.

[larryfulkerson]

In the waters south of Manila it's like the Japs turned on the kitchen lights and all the non-sub Allied ships are scattering most headed
south to Balikpapan and relative safety. Some of them might just make it. Some of them probably won't.

[larryfulkerson]

TF 397 is a CM w/ 75 mines and I've directed her to lay a minefield in the Miri port. This start-over game is intended to last longer than
the last one and I'm guessing to do that against the AI you gotta play more according to the "script" that's running. Do historical things
and nothing way out of the ordinary. I don't know if I got this CM started in time but I'd kinda like to see if and how much a minefield will
slow down the Japs. Last game I sacrificed a bunch of CL's and DD's to sinking the Jap AK's and AKL's and destroyed a bunch of LCU's
to boot. This time I'm thinking I need to do more of a Sir Robin approach. Which I understand to refer to Robin Hood and his habit of
retreating to fight another day and attacking only when the odds are favorable. Sounds good to me if it will give me a longer lasting
game.

[larryfulkerson]

I'm sending the Lexington and Enterprise out to Wake Island both to get them away from potential damage from the KB and to help out if
possible in the defense of Wake. In the interest of a longer game I suppose I should just let the Japs "have" it, just pull out everybody
and abandon it but on the other hand I'd like of like to see what kind of game changer it is to have the Allies hang onto Wake for a little
longer if possible. It's the curious kid in me.

[larryfulkerson]

I found a TF at Rangoon that was made up of 5 HDML's and a conversion was available to remove one of the 20mm AA guns and
replace it w/ one 40mm AA gun and it would only take 4 days for the conversion. So I disbanded the TF and converted all 5 of the ships
to the mega-AA versions. Maybe they will give the Jap bombers some pause in the future. I expect Rangoon to be bombed once or
twice. Maybe per day.

[larryfulkerson]

Okay.........I pulled the trigger and the attacks have started already. I did a screenshot of the combat while it was happening so you
would know about it at least as soon as I did. I caught the Kaga by herself somehow and got a torpedo into her. Now I need to recall the
carriers from going to Wake so they can dash over here and finish off the Kaga if possible. I caught a break in the early-war period, wow.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the figures according to Tracker: Australia is in trouble.

[jeffk3510]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

The Hermes is sitting pierside at location code named Trim Comb and she has 12 Stringbags on board so I'm thinking of sending her to
the Davao area to see if I can't get one of those Jap BB's

I would think twice about this.

I am not saying it won't work, but it will be better used elsewhere, away from the front IMO.

[larryfulkerson]

I went back to this mode. It's easier on my older eyes. A Jap sub got one of my AKL's

[larryfulkerson]

A different Jap sub gets an AK this time. I can't afford escorts for everybody but everybody needs one. D'oh.