Mistakes...

[Easo79]

I would say then than a consensus seems to be emerging, let's see...

In the sequence

1) The opponent fly CAP to potential target hexes
2) I fly all my bombers and escorting fighters to target hexes
3) My enemy flies bombers and escorting fighters to target hexes (if allowed). He also send up his intercepting fighters
4) I fly intercepting fighters
5) Fight air-to-air combats
6) Resolve missions
7) Return to base
8) Disorganize all surviving aircraft when they land


4) should be considered as the "default"

and

1) must be played more carefully (or not at all as a beginner, because it could expose me to a dangerous "dribbling", to use a soccer term: maybe I have seen too many Barça matches...[8|]).

[Orm]

ORIGINAL: Easo79

I would say then than a consensus seems to be emerging, let's see...

In the sequence

1) The opponent fly CAP to potential target hexes
2) I fly all my bombers and escorting fighters to target hexes
3) My enemy flies bombers and escorting fighters to target hexes (if allowed). He also send up his intercepting fighters
4) I fly intercepting fighters
5) Fight air-to-air combats
6) Resolve missions
7) Return to base
8) Disorganize all surviving aircraft when they land


4) should be considered as the "default"

and

1) must be played more carefully (or not at all as a beginner, because it could expose me to a dangerous "dribbling", to use a soccer term: maybe I have seen too many Barça matches...[8|]).

You got it.

Dribbling in the own penalty area seems a fitting comparison. Looks nice when it works but do not do it. [:)]

[Grotius]

I have a question about a possible mistake I've made in "Guadalcanal." If Japan sets up the bulk of its fleet and its MAR units in Singapore, signaling a push toward Ceylon and India, is it a mistake to set up the CW fleet in Calcutta? Probably Bombay is safer, yes? Because on turn 1, playing against myself, I promptly moved the Japanese fleet into the Bay of Bengal, and the CW fleet (with just 3 CVs bearing Swordfish) now was trapped in a cage of its own making.

Incidentally, I gather the CW is not allowed to set up in Columbo in this scenario. That's one more reason I should've set up in Bombay or somewhere further west -- to transport one or two land units to Ceylon to defend it. Or is that a bad idea too?

[composer99]

Without having the setup rules I can't see why the CW can't set up in Ceylon - although Columbo is a minor port so you can't set up the whole fleet, and the major port in Ceylon (whose name I can't spell) is only on Bay of Bengal like Calcutta, so you don't do any favours to the fleet setting it up there.

At any rate it is a bad idea for the Allies to let their carriers get caught out facing the full might of Japanese carrier & land-based air early on in Guadalcanal. Better to have a 'hit them where they ain't' strategy, or wait for stormy weather and try to sink CVs if the battle fleet can close in (3+ surprise to pick a target).

Assuming your actual question is whether or not it is a good idea to land land units in Ceylon to defend it, the answer is, unhelpfully, what do the victory conditions punish more? Losing land units (which granted I don't think you can build at discretion) or victory hexes? I suspect you're better off fighting to defend Ceylon and make the Japanese waste time in the Bay of Bengal while the US forces advance, hopefully with little resistance.

Watch out for Japanese strikes on your sealift, though, because you may want to shuttle units back from Ceylon to India down the road.

Of course none of that appears topical to your present situation where the CW fleet is trapped in the Bay of Bengal with the Japanese CV fleet bearing down on it...

[Centuur]

The setup rules for the CW are such that the fleet can't be set up in Ceylon. It's excluded for setup.

About the mistake in itself: it is indeed better to put the CW fleet as far away from the Japanese as possible, because of the victory conditions and the fact that they set up before Japan does.

The victory conditions are:

Each player gains the following victory
points at the end of the game:

(a) 5 for each friendly controlled objective hex that was enemy
controlled at the start of the game (and 0 for any others);
(b) 4 for each enemy CV destroyed;
(c) the US/CW/France player scores victory points, if at the end
of a turn there are less than 5 CP in the China Sea or South
China Sea. The Allies receive VP equal to the number of CP
less than 5 there are in each sea area each turn;
(d) 2 for each friendly controlled oil resource point that was
enemy controlled at the start of the game; and
(e) 1 for each other friendly controlled resource point that was
enemy controlled at the start of the game.

The player with the higher total subtracts their opponent’s total and
compares it to the following table to gauge the level of victory:
Decisive: 21+
Substantive: 11–20
Marginal: 6–10
Draw : 0–5

[Grotius]

Thanks for the advice. I think I'll re-try the scenario, this time setting up the CW fleet further back. Thanks!

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: Grotius

Thanks for the advice. I think I'll re-try the scenario, this time setting up the CW fleet further back. Thanks!

The real question is: what do you want the Commonwealth fleet to accomplish?

Perhaps having it sit in Calcutta for the whole game while the Japanese fleet sits in the Bay of Bengal is a good idea. That would give the US free rein in the Pacific for 5 turns.

[Joseignacio]

ORIGINAL: Centuur

The setup rules for the CW are such that the fleet can't be set up in Ceylon. It's excluded for setup.

About the mistake in itself: it is indeed better to put the CW fleet as far away from the Japanese as possible, because of the victory conditions and the fact that they set up before Japan does.

The victory conditions are:

Each player gains the following victory
points at the end of the game:

(a) 5 for each friendly controlled objective hex that was enemy
controlled at the start of the game (and 0 for any others);
(b) 4 for each enemy CV destroyed;
(c) the US/CW/France player scores victory points, if at the end
of a turn there are less than 5 CP in the China Sea or South
China Sea. The Allies receive VP equal to the number of CP
less than 5 there are in each sea area each turn;
(d) 2 for each friendly controlled oil resource point that was
enemy controlled at the start of the game; and
(e) 1 for each other friendly controlled resource point that was
enemy controlled at the start of the game.

The player with the higher total subtracts their opponent’s total and
compares it to the following table to gauge the level of victory:
Decisive: 21+
Substantive: 11–20
Marginal: 6–10
Draw : 0–5

Centuur, now I don't have a scenario booklet at hand, but we had it some months ago when we played our last Pacific Scenario WIF. We will have another (Pacific too) in one month I believe. I went through the deployment and initial conditions, mainly, the rest I went through it very fast. So:

Are these Victory Conditions that the scenario specifies or are they home rules or variants?

[composer99]

Joseignacio: Those are the official scenario victory conditions for Guadalcanal.