Wild Sheep Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

[Yaab]

Just an observation about the B-29 attack on Tokyo. It is ironic that you got those raging fires when it was heavy rain in the hex.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: Yaab

Just an observation about the B-29 attack on Tokyo. It is ironic that you got those raging fires when it was heavy rain in the hex.

Right?

I don't think any of that is built in. The fires went on for three days! Only 56 B-29s but causing amazing devastation.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

Since you guys are talking HR's regarding altitude. Jocke has suggested this for our game. Any thoughts?

> 42 - 20k
> 43 - 25k
> 44 - 30k
> 45 - no limit

I think it might be fine. It's going to be better for his P40E early. You'll still have th abetter climbers for defensive CAP, and if you have radar they'll go up over sweeps and get a dive. Especially Jacks and Tojos. Your sweeping will be reduced, but you won't get dusted by 100+ P-47s from 42k either.

In 45 I would counter propose a still fixed limit or else you face a sudden transition to mega-strato sweeping by ALL Allied fighters. Why not 35k? Still allows all planes to fly up there, the Allies have better ratings in the final band (meaning Japanese fighter's maneuver advantage is reversed and the speed disadvantage thus magnified) but the Japanese have more good climbers with the Jack, Sam and Tojo if still in use.

I'm still not really there though so my thoughts might be off a bit.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: PaxMondo

I would just say that the HR change now would be too challenging for you to adapt to. Leave it at that. You know I am a BIG fan of the 84b/Shinden combination in the late war for exactly the reasons you give. Your current HR mitigates that somewhat, changing it exacerbates it. As IJ at this point you can't afford to concede something this big unless he is willing to concede something equally as big like NO SOV activation. [:D]

Do you think it will lead to Allied domination over even these later planes? I've just been thinking it would tone down P-47 sweeps to all arrive at 32k, and my fighters on defense all have good climb rates, mostly better than the Allied. Where it would hurt is offensively. No more sweeping for Mr. R. Frank.

Any other thoughts? Please respond even if you're reading both sides. I need feedback. I won't change without getting some more thoughts as I don't really have time to test right now. If you have opinions please share whatever they are.

[koniu]

Obvert, because You reach another milestone in game - Home Islands are bombed by B-29,
can You show us how Your economy is looking. Supplies, resources HI. Planes production and reserve, engines, pilot pools.

It will be very appreciate by players that like me are ~1 year behind You

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: koniu

Obvert, because You reach another milestone in game - Home Islands are bombed by B-29,
can You show us how Your economy is looking. Supplies, resources HI. Planes production and reserve, engines, pilot pools.

It will be very appreciate by players that like me are ~1 year behind You

Definitely. I plan to reinstall tracker and do some massive updating on everything when I get to 45. In the meantime I'll try in the next few days to use the in game screens to show the basics. Might be able to do some tomorrow.

Just in brief, I have plenty of HI, and I'm more worried about supply. It is apparently wrecked by fires too, so having a ton in the HI saved up might not work out so well since it all sits in the big bases which will be bombed. Then of course if you want to keep making things that get wrecked you need more supply to do some repairs.

[PaxMondo]

Supply is very susceptible to bombing. You have to be sure that you have dispersed it thoughout the HI. It will naturally pool in Tokyo and you can lose a lot in one bomb strike.

[obvert]

Most bases in the Home Islands are set to accumulate between 15-30k supplies (set at 5k-10k which of course means x3), just to share it around and make sure that factories always have some to repair. I may have to find bases I think will not be bombed and start some stores there. Places with no factories, big enough field/port to accommodate lots of supply, and no other fancy attractive things like HI/LI.

[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]INFO[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I'll start getting some information out here about the state of things nearing 45. Some areas are looking bleak, but others seem decent for a while.

Here is a screen showing the HI and OIL production still left. The reserves are steadily disappearing, and the noose is closing around the DEI. No incursions yet to raid oil transportation except by subs. I have one convoy loading now of 55k and another fuel convoy about to load of 75k. A third big TF is approaching and will bring fuel and oil back. These will literally be the last 'planned' major convoys. Not that I won't keep trying, but this is the cutoff I had aimed for and I have sneaking suspicions he will try more here soon. Northern Borneo or just naval raids across, or potentially even a bigger move somewhere else.

The HI at Tokyo was severely cut in the one 56 plane raid so far. The base now has literally double the flak from newly arrived units, plus 75 night fighters. Another 50 are in Osaka and one group each in Nagoya and Hamamatsu. I'm starting to also turn on more and more daylight fighters. My first training group arrived yesterday for fighters, and those will help.

There is plenty of HI savings as I made my goal of 3 million and should get to 3.1 million by 45. That feel good. [8D]

Now I just have to make sure I've got factories left to build things.

[PaxMondo]

Erik,

That's why I kick out key engines and ARM/VEH points like crazy. Once built and in pools, they are safe from bombing. Ha-45 and some others, you know you will use all you build, so I just build. Same with ARM/VEH, you can't have too many. If you assume the avg device is LoadCost=12, that means 12 ARM/VEH or 72 HI per device. You need a lot of ARM/VEH to fill up your losses in 45/46.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: PaxMondo

Erik,

That's why I kick out key engines and ARM/VEH points like crazy. Once built and in pools, they are safe from bombing. Ha-45 and some others, you know you will use all you build, so I just build. Same with ARM/VEH, you can't have too many. If you assume the avg device is LoadCost=12, that means 12 ARM/VEH or 72 HI per device. You need a lot of ARM/VEH to fill up your losses in 45/46.

Yep. Luckily I heard you on the ARM/VEH when I was considering shutting them down, and I didn't. There was a brief period of a few months where I had both reduced, but almost the entire war they have been working at full potential. So this is nearly as good as I could get for those. I do have a good amount of HI now. I'm not really thinking anymore that 46 is the goal. Just fighting past August 45 would be a personal victory, and anything else will be icing.

Some new thoughts on recent events will be coming out in the next few posts. I must be an optimist. [8|]

[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]13 - 14 December 1944[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] Another sub, the Springer is beaten to a pulp by DCs. Several more are listed hit from the air, and two more take a good number of direct hits and could be in trouble. I lose one E. (Two more are produced and show up in Tokyo). It's a field day here in the North China Sea, and the longer these subs stay the more vulnerable they will be. I know he still gets a lot late but it seems pretty cavalier to use them like this, but maybe it's part of a larger strategic plan. He is getting some good intel on my movements at least. he hasn't sent a mass toward the KB, which he just found. Now that would scare me.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]STRAT BOMBING:[/font] Interesting. About the same number of B-29s that hit Tokyo hit Manila on the 13th and got almost as many fires going here. The damage was almost negligible though. Not sure why.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]THAILAND: [/font] I've made a massive and crucial decision. I will leave the Bangkok troops in place to meet their fate. There are two reasons for this. One, it could take some time to reduce. It's got level 6 forts in Uban Light +2, I can supply by sea, and my air force can still protect the troops so bombing will be costly. Two, If these troops are destroyed they will simply be bought back and build in Tokyo over the next few months and could be air-lifted to places like Hokkaido, which will truly need a better garrison by then and has no more big troop units arriving. (It's in my mind stupid that so many units in the Home Islands are under different HQs, are restricted and can't even be flown to Hokkaido which is home territory. There is no way to buy out enough to defend it, so it leaves a real bind for solid defense of a critical area. A BIG oversight in the restriction of units set-up in game).

I hope to also wear down the Allied troops and tie down the 10th USAAF over there for some more time. If this also means the sea lanes stay open longer between the DEI and the North, then that is truly worth it. Sad to now be giving up TWO armies, but that is the way things go late with the Japanese.

The Southern Army HQ is here and I will try to save this by either flying out fragments or dragging it to the rail lines on the Malayan side by sea. I think this could work fairly early in fact, still keeping it in range for the battles, but giving an escape route to Singers. The entire Malayan rail system is evacuated except for small defensive units to keep the rail open. Or I may move it down to the Saigon area if that seems safer. Then on to support Formosa and Okinawa. I think the next base for it will be Taihoku.

I've done something risky which I'll detail next post.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]CHINA/INDOCHINA: [/font] most of Saigon troops and air support will move to Haiphong now and on to China. About 500 AS will be left and another 300 AV of ground troops. Cam Rahn Bay still has about 800 AV and that will also begin to shift back, especially if the Allied moves over Thailand threaten the coastal rail or if an amphib looks likely moving toward this area.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR December 13, 44
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Night Air attack on Manila , at 79,77

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 23 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-29-1 Superfort x 7

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-1 Superfort: 4 damaged

Manpower hits 10
Fires 5231

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x B-29-1 Superfort bombing from 12000 feet
City Attack: 20 x 500 lb GP Bomb
4 x B-29-1 Superfort bombing from 12000 feet
City Attack: 20 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Night Air attack on Manila , at 79,77

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 24 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-29-1 Superfort x 5

No Allied losses

Manpower hits 4
Fires 19126

Aircraft Attacking:
5 x B-29-1 Superfort bombing from 12000 feet
City Attack: 20 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Sub attack near Hengchun at 84,68

Japanese Ships
xAP Kashima Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
SC Ch 51
SC Ch 5
AK Kosei Maru
AK Naruto Maru
xAP Katori Maru
DD Hatakaze
E W-38

Allied Ships
SS Segundo, hits 4

SS Segundo launches 4 torpedoes at xAP Kashima Maru
Segundo diving deep ....
DD Hatakaze attacking submerged sub ....
E W-38 fails to find sub and abandons search
DD Hatakaze is out of ASW ammo
DD Hatakaze fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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Morning Air attack on 33rd Division, at 55,59 , near Tavoy

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.VI x 41
Liberator GR.VI x 11
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-24D Liberator x 5
B-24D1 Liberator x 8
B-24J Liberator x 100
B-25D1 Mitchell x 11
B-25G Mitchell x 4
B-25H Mitchell x 15
PB4Y-1 Liberator x 6
PBJ-1D Mitchell x 11

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator B.VI: 8 damaged
Liberator GR.VI: 2 damaged
B-24D Liberator: 1 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 2 damaged
B-24J Liberator: 11 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
125 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 32 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 27 (1 destroyed, 26 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
11 x PBJ-1D Mitchell bombing from 10000 feet
Ground Attack: 6 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Sub attack near Haha-jima at 110,76

Japanese Ships
E No.31
E No.29

Allied Ships
SS Springer, hits 9, heavy damage

SS Springer launches 2 torpedoes at E No.31
Springer diving deep ....
E No.31 fails to find sub and abandons search
E No.29 attacking submerged sub ....
E No.29 fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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Ground combat at 55,59 (near Tavoy)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 112697 troops, 1957 guns, 1190 vehicles, Assault Value = 4848

Defending force 187689 troops, 2193 guns, 2979 vehicles, Assault Value = 5488

Japanese ground losses:
349 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 32 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 2 (1 destroyed, 1 disabled)
Vehicles lost 1 (1 destroyed, 0 disabled)

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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR December 14, 44
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Sub attack near Miyako-jima at 92,68

Japanese Ships
E No.51
E No.21
E No.61

Allied Ships
SS Bonefish, hits 2

SS Bonefish launches 2 torpedoes at E No.51
Bonefish diving deep ....
E No.61 fails to find sub and abandons search
E No.51 fails to find sub, continues to search...
E No.51 attacking submerged sub ....
E No.51 fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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Sub attack near Hengchun at 81,67

Japanese Ships
E No.16, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
E No.24

Allied Ships
SS Pargo, hits 4

SS Pargo launches 2 torpedoes at E No.16
E No.24 fails to find sub, continues to search...
E No.24 attacking submerged sub ....
E No.24 fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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Sub attack near Hengchun at 81,67

Japanese Ships
E No.1
E No.24

Allied Ships
SS Pargo, hits 5

SS Pargo launches 2 torpedoes at E No.1
E No.24 attacking submerged sub ....
E No.24 fails to find sub, continues to search...
E No.24 attacking submerged sub ....
E No.24 is out of ASW ammo
Escort abandons search for sub

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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid spotted at 24 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B7A2 Grace x 32
D4Y1 Judy x 34
D4Y4 Judy x 23

Japanese aircraft losses
B7A2 Grace: 1 destroyed by flak
D4Y1 Judy: 2 damaged

Allied ground losses:
119 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 6 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 9 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 11 (1 destroyed, 10 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x D4Y4 Judy releasing from 2000'
Ground Attack: 1 x 800 kg GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid spotted at 24 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy x 12
Ki-100-I Tony x 91

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-100-I Tony: 3 damaged

Allied ground losses:
123 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 30 (1 destroyed, 29 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

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Ground combat at 55,59 (near Tavoy)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 112807 troops, 1958 guns, 1190 vehicles, Assault Value = 3916

Defending force 187641 troops, 2167 guns, 2973 vehicles, Assault Value = 5487

Japanese ground losses:
313 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 30 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/font]

Reinforcements: Um, some new things arrived. [X(]

This should shore up AA defenses. I will buy out the Manchurian ones as well if I can after about a month. My plan there is a very bare bones defense. The 3rd IJN Special Coastal Defense Battalion will be brought to either Okinawa or Formosa, I haven't yet decided.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]11th Sentai arrives at Tokyo
1st Raiding Sentai arrives at Tokyo
2nd Tpt.Chutai arrives at Tokyo
6th Tpt.Chutai arrives at Tokyo
29th Air Flotilla arrives at Takao
53rd Air Flotilla arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
97th Field AA Battalion arrives at Nagoya
98th Field AA Battalion arrives at Nagoya
95th Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
96th Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
42nd Air Defense AA Battalion arrives at Keijo
46th Air Defense AA Battalion arrives at Keijo
8th Ind. Engineer Regiment arrives at Tokyo
28th RF Gun Battalion arrives at Shanghai
90th Field AA Battalion arrives at Changchun
91st Field AA Battalion arrives at Changchun
92nd Field AA Battalion arrives at Changchun
100th Field AA Battalion arrives at Changchun
71st Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
94th Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
63rd Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
3rd IJN Special Coastal Gun Battalion arrives at Tokyo
13th Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
22nd Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
27th Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Naha
45th Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
67th Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Asahikawa
68th Ind. AA Battalion arrives at Asahikawa
901 Ku T-4 arrives at Tokyo
1022 Ku U-1 arrives at Tokyo
801 Ku T-1 arrives at Tokyo
S-303 Hikotai arrives at Tokyo
903 Ku T-1 arrives at Chiba
951 Ku T-4 arrives at Nagasaki/Sasebo
Kikusei-tai arrives at Hamamatsu
Tatebayashi- tai arrives at Singapore
23rd Tank Regiment arrives at Tokyo
58th Field AA Battalion arrives at Tokyo
I/19th Naval Guard Unit arrives at Tokyo
E No.81 arrives at Tokyo
DD Haruzuki arrives at Kobe
DD Keyaki arrives at Nagoya
E Shisaka arrives at Tokyo[/font]

Losses:

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Loss of E No.16 on Dec 14, 1944 is admitted[/font]

Ships Sunk:

[font="Trebuchet MS"]SS Scorpion is reported to have been sunk near Dinagat on Jul 25, 1944[/font]
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___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Trebuchet MS"]A few units with these 88mm guns should be very useful around the HI. [/font]
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[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]15 - 16 December 1944[/font]
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[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] All Alied subs decide to back off and retreat into the shadows. One more time though a sub moves into Bataan to maybe 'test' the mines there. No hits annoyingly.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]STRAT BOMBING: [/font] So the fires at Tokyo burned for three days and took out 388 point of HI and another 133 points of LI. They also destroyed 10 Sam factories, a bunch on Ha-35 (I think about 27 in total) and some other random small losses. That is from 56 bombers. [X(]

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]THAILAND: [/font] The 14th really highlights some of the limitations of this game. With 650 fighters in Bangkok I sent out two brigades to draw enemy strikes over them. The first day I sent no LR CAP and the units were nearly destroyed by 4E and 2E attacks. On the 14th I put up a massive LR CAP from 1 hex away. In reality the Allies would have had to fly literally over the base they originated from , and be sighted by radar long before they arrived and by eyeballs quite far ahead of the strikes on their destinations. Well, as it turned out the 'detection time' was 5 minutes!!! So only a few planes made passes before th enemy bombed, and again no fighters made contact after the bombing runs. This is even more unbelievable than the first contact not being made. All of the fighters in the base are set to CAP 1 hex 40% and LR CAP 40% with 20% rest. ALL of them should have been able to arrive the 50 miles away to get there in at least 15 minutes, and this should in real terms be a massacre.

It doesn't work that way in this game. We got 28 2E and only 3 4E on the day! [8|][:-] One hex from Bangkok. About 19 fighters went down there, but I had also loaded up a smaller force against the bombers that might hit the Burma Army and they got creamed. No problem for the P-51 to sweep away the Frank 'r' in this situation. We did get about even agains the P-38s though and then no other planes flew over there.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]THAILAND: [/font] A complete shift here. Jocke has been moving out troops from the blocking force. I decided to stop my movement into th jungles and fight it out. I have only about half the necessary supply, but great experience in these troops. My feeling is that I have about a 10% chance of success, but I decided to SHOCK on the 17th! [X(]

This will do two things. One it has a very slight chance of success. If that happens, I jump around for a few minutes and get these on their way to Bangkok. Two, if it fails it will bring on the destruction of this force. It can't escape so it needs to go down fighting. A loss will decimate the troops and kill most of the supply which should mean these won't last much longer here. A lot of his troops moved back toward Moulmein anticipating my move, so it'll be interesting to see where he sends them next if this doesn't force a breakout.

I also sent in supply TFs and will begin pulling the Southern Army HQ tomorrow from Bangkok to Mayala.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]PI:[/font] I really have a tingling sensation warning me about bombardments of these big bases with these sub incisions and the previous DD sortie into the area, and I know Manila is in range for his fast BBs. Well, I've got lots of mines now at both Bataan and Manila, min-subs at both, MTBs at both, and a small 3 ship destroyer flotilla at Manila plus another of 20 knot Es. Just speed bumps, but if they are bumps maybe it could slow something there.

I may also start playing with air placements. I have three big bases on Luzon now at Clark, Manila and Lingayen. only a level 5 at Lingayen, but enough for a one day stash and it's on the rail. That is key. I need to have my kamis turned on but with the endless stream of small craft nearby the silly targeting system doesn't really allow for that.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR December 15, 44
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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

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

Japanese aircraft
B7A2 Grace x 3
D4Y1 Judy x 36
D4Y4 Judy x 23

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 1 (1 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Vehicles lost 11 (1 destroyed, 10 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
17 x D4Y4 Judy releasing from 1000'
Ground Attack: 1 x 800 kg GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 15 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-43-IV Oscar x 49
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 16
Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy x 58

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
39 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 0 disabled
Vehicles lost 7 (1 destroyed, 6 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
23 x Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 12 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy x 29

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
19 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 6 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Vehicles lost 4 (1 destroyed, 3 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
20 x Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 37th Ind.Mixed Brigade, at 56,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 22 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.VI x 19
Liberator GR.VI x 3
B-24J Liberator x 7
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-17F Fortress x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 4
B-24J Liberator x 84
B-25D1 Mitchell x 12
B-25H Mitchell x 27
B-25J1 Mitchell x 3
B-25J11 Mitchell x 3
PB4Y-1 Liberator x 8
PBJ-1D Mitchell x 22

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator B.VI: 3 damaged
Liberator GR.VI: 1 damaged
B-24J Liberator: 1 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 damaged
B-24J Liberator: 11 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
1282 casualties reported
Squads: 6 destroyed, 132 disabled
Non Combat: 17 destroyed, 183 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 4 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
11 x PBJ-1D Mitchell bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 6 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 37th Ind.Mixed Brigade, at 56,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 10 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.VI x 3
B-24D Liberator x 5
B-24J Liberator x 6
B-25G Mitchell x 4
B-25H Mitchell x 3
PB4Y-1 Liberator x 7

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D Liberator: 1 damaged
B-24J Liberator: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
495 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 33 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 30 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Guns lost 10 (1 destroyed, 9 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
7 x PB4Y-1 Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Ground combat at Mauban (80,78)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 8312 troops, 24 guns, 430 vehicles, Assault Value = 410

Defending force 3153 troops, 23 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 79

Allied engineers reduce fortifications to 2

Allied adjusted assault: 207

Japanese adjusted defense: 73

Allied assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 2)

Allied Assault reduces fortifications to 2

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), fatigue(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
318 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 32 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 4 (1 destroyed, 3 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
13 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Assaulting units:
754th Tank Battalion
I Corps Cmbt Engineer Regiment
192nd Tank Battalion

Defending units:
8th Exped. Force

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Ground combat at 55,59 (near Tavoy)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 112855 troops, 1958 guns, 1190 vehicles, Assault Value = 3920

Defending force 187732 troops, 2140 guns, 2970 vehicles, Assault Value = 5489

Japanese ground losses:
237 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 39 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 6 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 2 disabled
Guns lost 16 (1 destroyed, 15 disabled)
Vehicles lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)

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

[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR December 15, 44
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Morning Air attack on Burma Area Army, at 55,59 , near Tavoy

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 19 NM, estimated altitude 33,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J2M3 Jack x 7
J2M5 Jack x 8
Ki-43-IV Oscar x 14
Ki-84r Frank x 14

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
J2M3 Jack: 3 destroyed
Ki-43-IV Oscar: 4 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-51D Mustang: 1 destroyed

CAP engaged:
S-302 Kokutai with J2M5 Jack (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 8 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 1 minutes
S-309 Hikotai with J2M3 Jack (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 7 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 12000
Raid is overhead
48th Sentai with Ki-84r Frank (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 14 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 38270
Raid is overhead
203rd Sentai with Ki-43-IV Oscar (14 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
14 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 8000
Raid is overhead

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Morning Air attack on Burma Area Army, at 55,59 , near Tavoy

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 48 NM, estimated altitude 34,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J2M5 Jack x 7
Ki-43-IV Oscar x 3
Ki-84r Frank x 13

Allied aircraft
P-38L Lightning x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
J2M5 Jack: 1 destroyed
Ki-43-IV Oscar: 1 destroyed
Ki-84r Frank: 5 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-38L Lightning: 4 destroyed

CAP engaged:
S-302 Kokutai with J2M5 Jack (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
7 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 31000 , scrambling fighters to 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 27 minutes
48th Sentai with Ki-84r Frank (13 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
13 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 38270
Raid is overhead
203rd Sentai with Ki-43-IV Oscar (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
3 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 8000 , scrambling fighters to 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 87 minutes

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Morning Air attack on 268th Motorised Brigade, at 57,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 15 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 16
Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy x 60

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
77 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
22 x Ki-67-Ia (T) Peggy bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 5th Garrison Unit , at 56,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J2M3 Jack x 11
J2M5 Jack x 11
N1K1-J George x 22
N1K2-J George x 6
Ki-84a Frank x 51
Ki-84r Frank x 22

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.VI x 27
Liberator GR.VI x 3
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-24D Liberator x 5
B-25D1 Mitchell x 12
B-25H Mitchell x 30
B-25J1 Mitchell x 3
B-25J11 Mitchell x 3
PBJ-1D Mitchell x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator B.VI: 9 damaged
Liberator GR.VI: 1 damaged
B-25H Mitchell: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged
PBJ-1D Mitchell: 3 destroyed

Japanese ground losses:
711 casualties reported
Squads: 33 destroyed, 53 disabled
Non Combat: 3 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 5 (4 destroyed, 1 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
10 x Liberator B.VI bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb


CAP engaged:
S-305 Hikotai with N1K1-J George (12 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(3 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
12 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Raid is overhead
S-316 Hikotai with N1K2-J George (6 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
6 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 20000
Raid is overhead
S-402 Hikotai with N1K1-J George (10 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
10 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Raid is overhead
S-315 Hikotai with J2M5 Jack (11 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
11 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Raid is overhead
S-317 Hikotai with J2M3 Jack (11 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
11 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 12000
Raid is overhead
25th Sentai with Ki-84a Frank (14 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
14 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Raid is overhead
30th Sentai with Ki-84a Frank (10 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
10 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Raid is overhead
33rd Sentai with Ki-84a Frank (14 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
14 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Raid is overhead
47th Sentai with Ki-84r Frank (13 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
13 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 38270
Raid is overhead
66th Sentai with Ki-84r Frank (9 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
9 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 38270
Raid is overhead
87th Sentai with Ki-84a Frank (13 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
13 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 31000
Raid is overhead

Banzai! - Hori D. in a N1K1-J George rams a PBJ-1D Mitchell for the Emperor

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Morning Air attack on 5th Garrison Unit , at 56,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 10 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J2M3 Jack x 14
J2M5 Jack x 14
N1K1-J George x 17
N1K2-J George x 8
Ki-84a Frank x 63
Ki-84r Frank x 28
Ki-100-I Tony x 31

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.III x 3
Liberator B.VI x 25
B-17E Fortress x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 8
B-25H Mitchell x 7
PB4Y-1 Liberator x 7

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator B.VI: 2 damaged
B-17E Fortress: 1 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 2 damaged
B-25H Mitchell: 1 destroyed

Japanese ground losses:
175 casualties reported
Squads: 11 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 1 (1 destroyed, 0 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
7 x PB4Y-1 Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 33rd Division, at 55,59 , near Tavoy

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 74 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 113

Allied aircraft losses
B-24J Liberator: 14 damaged
B-24J Liberator: 1 destroyed by flak

Japanese ground losses:
528 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 41 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 37 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x B-24J Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 37th Ind.Mixed Brigade, at 56,63 , near Bangkok

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 39 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J2M3 Jack x 23
J2M5 Jack x 23
N1K1-J George x 31
N1K2-J George x 12
Ki-84a Frank x 95
Ki-84r Frank x 46
Ki-100-I Tony x 39
Ki-102a Randy x 5

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 4
B-25J1 Mitchell x 9

Japanese aircraft losses
J2M3 Jack: 1 destroyed
N1K2-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
B-25J1 Mitchell: 5 destroyed, 1 damaged

Aircraft Attacking:
1 x B-25J1 Mitchell bombing from 6000 feet *
Ground Attack: 3 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Ground combat at Mauban (80,78)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 8276 troops, 24 guns, 430 vehicles, Assault Value = 411

Defending force 2908 troops, 22 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 55

Allied engineers reduce fortifications to 1

Allied adjusted assault: 303

Japanese adjusted defense: 69

Allied assault odds: 4 to 1 (fort level 1)

Allied forces CAPTURE Mauban !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), leaders(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
693 casualties reported
Squads: 34 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 30 destroyed, 8 disabled
Engineers: 8 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 10 (10 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units retreated 1

Allied ground losses:
69 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
I Corps Cmbt Engineer Regiment
754th Tank Battalion
192nd Tank Battalion

Defending units:
8th Exped. Force

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at Akutan Island (171,49)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 1252 troops, 13 guns, 16 vehicles, Assault Value = 79

Defending force 718 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 25

Allied engineers reduce fortifications to 0

Allied adjusted assault: 34

Japanese adjusted defense: 37

Allied assault odds: 1 to 2 (fort level 0)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), leaders(-), experience(-)
Attacker: leaders(+), fatigue(-)

Japanese ground losses:
73 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 8 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
52 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

Assaulting units:
Rocky Mountain Rger Battalion

Defending units:
53rd Nav Gd /2


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Ground combat at 55,59 (near Tavoy)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 72232 troops, 1291 guns, 908 vehicles, Assault Value = 2371

Defending force 187084 troops, 2130 guns, 2962 vehicles, Assault Value = 5433

Japanese ground losses:
74 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 12 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Vehicles lost 11 (5 destroyed, 6 disabled)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/font]

Reinforcements:

[font="Trebuchet MS"]3rd Ind.AA Gun Co arrives at Tokyo
49th Ind.Mixed Brigade arrives at Tokyo
MTB G-1017 arrives at Shimizu
E Inagi arrives at Tokyo
SS I-13 arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
ML G-434 arrives at Sapporo
87th Infantry Brigade arrives at Tokyo
37th Const Co arrives at Tokyo
47th Naval Guard Unit arrives at Tokyo
25th Special Base Force arrives at Tokyo
2nd JNAF AF Unit arrives at Tokyo[/font]

Losses:

Ships Sunk:

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Previous report of sinking of DD Abbot incorrect. Intelligence reports ship is still in service
Previous report of sinking of SS Roncador incorrect. Intelligence reports ship is still in service[/font]
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[font="Trebuchet MS"]At last one pilot broke the 11 kills barrier that has existed since 43. [:)][/font]
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[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]BURMA ARMY[/font]
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Well, the dice did not come up all sixes for this attack in the jungles of Thailand. This will spell the end of the Burma Army.

It'll be interesting to see what the Allies do now. Will they liquidate the stack or let it rot?

PS - never trust the presence or lack of a supply modifier!!! (notice below)[:D]
[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at 55,59 (near Tavoy)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 168715 troops, 2013 guns, 2438 vehicles, Assault Value = 5414

Defending force 79249 troops, 1291 guns, 968 vehicles, Assault Value = 2381

Japanese adjusted assault: 430

Allied adjusted defense: 5857

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 13

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
28212 casualties reported
Squads: 366 destroyed, 1920 disabled
Non Combat: 12 destroyed, 141 disabled
Engineers: 49 destroyed, 203 disabled
Guns lost 155 (21 destroyed, 134 disabled)
Vehicles lost 255 (81 destroyed, 174 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
664 casualties reported
Squads: 10 destroyed, 93 disabled
Non Combat: 8 destroyed, 63 disabled
Engineers: 3 destroyed, 11 disabled
Guns lost 96 (7 destroyed, 89 disabled)
Vehicles lost 68 (4 destroyed, 64 disabled)
Assaulting units:
14th Indian Division
11th (East African) Division
111th Chindit Brigade
26th Indian Division
9th Indian Division
77th Chindit Brigade
2nd New Chinese Corps
XXXIII Indian Corps
6th Mixed A/T Mtr Regiment
86th Medium Regiment
X' Force
8th Medium Regiment
28th Indian Mountain Gun Regiment
87th Medium Regiment
23rd Indian Mountain Gun Regiment
8th Belfast Heavy Regiment
24th Indian Mountain Gun Regiment
NCAC
33rd Indian Mountain Gun Regiment
6th Medium Regiment
Provisional GMC Grp

Defending units:
22nd Tank Regiment
3rd Tank Division
55th Division
33rd Division
29th Ind.Mixed Brigade
24th Ind.Mixed Brigade
2nd Tank Division
39th Division
16th Division
79th Brigade
2nd Division
2nd Guards Division
21st Division
75th Infantry Brigade
5th Division
18th Division
38th Division
1st Ind.Mixed Regiment
11th Mortar Battalion
2nd Hvy.Artillery Regiment
1st Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
2nd Area Army
3rd Medium Mortar Battalion
14th RF Gun (Pack) Battalion
5th Ind.Hvy.Art Battalion
52nd Field AA Battalion
1st Hvy.Artillery Regiment
2nd Army
17th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
2nd Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
39th Field AA Battalion
14th Mortar Battalion
40th Field AA Battalion
3rd Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
2nd Medium Mortar Battalion
43rd Const Co
68th Field AA Battalion
34th Field AA Battalion
10th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
1st Medium Field Artillery Regiment
11th RF Gun Battalion
1st Air Defense AA Regiment
25th Army
1st RF Gun Battalion
2nd RF Gun Battalion
4th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
8th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
18th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
8th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
49th AA Machinecannon Company
115th AA Regiment
69th Field AA Battalion
10th Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
21st AA Regiment
1st Art.Mortar Regiment
28th Army
38th Field AA Battalion
32nd Field AA Battalion
3rd Mortar Battalion
33rd Road Const Co
5th Mortar Battalion
20th AA Regiment
19th Army
51st Field AA Battalion
15th Army
27th Fld AA Gun Co
70th Field AA Battalion
56th Field AA Battalion
50th Field AA Battalion
8th RF Gun Battalion
10th RF Gun Battalion
Burma Area Army
7th JAAF Base Force


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[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]FIGHTER POOLS - IJN[/font]
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For all of the production I have, my pools are not so great. I've been trying to shepherd the IJN especially, only putting them in harms way when I feel I need the mass or the bomber-hitting canons of the George and Jack. Currently all of the frontline fighters are dwindling and I have plenty of A6M models. So for kami escorts I should be fine.

The Sam has filled out all but one of the KB fighter groups now, and that one should change over in days. Then I'll be able to start really working it into the LBA. So far it's only in two small LBA groups.

The George line is turned off and will only be restarted if I find I don't have the supply necessary to change them to another more advanced model. The Sam will replace them in all groups as soon as possible. I continue to make just a few A6M5b for escorts and since I have an abundance of Ha-35 engines.

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[font="Times New Roman"]FIGHTER POOLS - IJA[/font]
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Although the production numbers look pretty good (which I'll show in depth soon, but which you can spot on the side of the replacements column) the only true frontline interceptor is the Frank, so 370 a month. The Ki-83 will be the other when it begins production in a few days. I may also shell out the 30k supply for one factory of Ki-84 'b' just to try it. I have the others still producing this much to continue building airframes for escort and kami roles, but I may need them as fighters as well if production is destroyed sufficiently.

The Randy 'a' is interesting as with our current HR it can get above even the P-47, although it is so much slower it might not do so well in that capacity. I haven't had a good trial of this yet. It's too expensive to make many, and I'm leaning toward changing the HR to 32k max. It could still be good as a bomber killer, and at 373 mph it's much quicker than the Nick at 340 mph with two 20mm Ho-5 canons on centerline (plus a semi-useless 58mm canon).

The Oscars will be kamis and escorts, plus CAP support when possible in their kami groups. I will gradually phase out all other airframes from fighter groups and go with the top models, keeping just a few dedicated escort groups with 45 exp 60 skill pilots. The nice thing with my current pools is that many fighter pilots were double trained in air and low naval, so they are around 45exp, 60 air skill and 60 low naval and can support a CAP as well as strike when the call comes. I had high hopes the centerline canons would make them at least serviceable as back line fighters, but the durability is still a problem and the speed is not great. At least the Ki-100 is more durable and can stand in against bombers longer, plus has the extra 12.7mm guns on the wings.

The Tojo is no longer in production, but a few groups still have it as I did find the climb to be still useful in the layered CAP of large bases.

The Ki-94 and Karyu aren't even close to moving ahead quickly, so this will be it for a long time.

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[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]FIGHTER-BOMBER POOLS - IJA[/font]
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I don't have any for the IJN worth building, so these will be the only fighter bombers during the rest of the war. The Randy 'b' is not a bad plane, and can be used in back line defense, but I also see it as a very good kami plane with it's decent speed (360 mph) and good durability (36). The 2 x 250kg is not ideal, but hits of any kind are best, and the speed and durability get planes though. I like building these for color mostly, but I might stop the line if the engines get destroyed.

I only have a few low ground trained pilots and with Allied flak being what it is I don't see this plane being used much in a low ground attack role it was designed for. The remaining Nicks will be phased out and used for a kami group.
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[font="Times New Roman"]DIVE BOMBER POOLS[/font]
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After the Thai plains massacre the pools are very slowly recovering. I will never have enough of these planes. The Judys are doing better than the Graces, and I will now stop using either to attack ground troops as the deal is done in Thailand now.

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[obvert]

[font="Times New Roman"]TORPEDO BOMBER POOLS[/font]
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The Grace is my main naval torpedo delivery frame now, but is of course listed as a DB. It have filled out all KB groups and these are dual trained for TB and DB attacks. The B6N2a is still important as many LBA bomber groups will not upgrade to the Grace, which I only found out once I'd changed over another Jill factory. So I have to watch it on these pools. I am building a few Kates still for insurance and also for the MAD used in ASW.

The Sieran are building out the Ha-60 engines and then the line will be stopped, but I'm just about to get the massive subs that use them so they'll see some action, most likely in a heroic but futile role!
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[font="Times New Roman"]NIGHT FIGHTER POOLS[/font]
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My advice to anyone out there looking toward the endgame as Japan is to research these early and build pools long before you need them. I am still struggling to fill out the IJAAF groups as the Dinah KAI is the only viable option here. The nick is too slow against the B-29 and the Peggy is useless. Starting again I would actually dedicate 3 factories to the Randy 'c' R n D. It's that important.

For the IJN I'd also get a later version more heavily researched. The Irving is dead slow but has radar, so at least that keeps them viable. (They just downed 10-12 B-29s in the last turn during an attack on Nagoya!).[8D]

The Myrt is much faster but without radar and with lighter armament, I'd say the Irving is the best option until the Denko arrives. Mine is nearing active research, but I would again have more heavily invested. Instead of building so many A6M factious early, I'd put at least two right away into the Denko.

I'm just building the A6M5d-S for it's ease with the 1 service rating and the engine availability. Also it has a much better climb rate than the 2E NF so if he does ever change altitudes from the 9k that has been standard for B-29s in this game, that could be critical.
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