Bob Flemin's MWIF AARse II The Sequel

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

Weather is Fine everywhere except the North Temperate where we appear to have a 100% chance of precipitation. The Axis decide its time to try and get at those CW convoys once more and fly Fliegerkorps X to the Western Mediterranean Sea. Italian aircraft are held back in reserve at this stage - they may be needed in the Eastern Med and/or the Italian Coast. Meanwhile, a lone Italian sub sails to the Eastern Med to see if he can get lucky.

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

The Italians are asked if they want to initiate combat in the Eastern Med. Yes would be the answer. The sub calls in air support from units based in Sicily and the CW respond with a South African Hurricane and a Sunderland - both based in Egypt.

The Italians roll a 7 and the CW a 6 - no fighting this impulse...

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

In the Western Mediterranean the Italians also try and initiate combat. They decline to bring in reinforcements at this stage, but the Royal Air Force bring in a Beaufighter to try and take on the Luftwaffe. A Sunderland is also brought in to assist the search (and so minimise surprise).

The Axis roll a 5 and the CW a 1 - both are successful. Not sure why the Axis 5 was successful though??

The Sunderland looks somewhat out-numbered [X(] but at least the convoys are safe - for now....

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

The Allies have 9 Surprise Points to the Italians 4 and, not liking the look of those Me-110's, they use 4 points to avoid combat.

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

Back to Asia now and the Japanese attempts to finish off the last of the Chinese resistance in southern China.

Umezu seeks to give HQ Support for this 3:1 (no modifier) attack on the Assault table. There are no aircraft that can affect the odds.

But first, the Germans have a 5:1 (no modifier) attack against a French Partisan in Bordeaux. The result is a 10 and the heroic French resistance unit is no more....

Rats.. I just realised I didn't actually place Umezu on the Chinese stack so no throw for HQ support was made... Concentration would be good [8|]

So - how will the Nakatomi dice work this time? - a nice high number would do nicely...

.... its another 10! The Chinese 17th Infantry Army and 20th (Res) Garrison are destroyed for no loss.

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 9

The turn continues. The Soviets will need to continue sorting out their defence while the Royal Navy will need to decide on how to respond in the Mediterranean. As for China.....[X(]

[Cad908]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

In the Western Mediterranean the Italians also try and initiate combat. They decline to bring in reinforcements at this stage, but the Royal Air Force bring in a Beaufighter to try and take on the Luftwaffe. A Sunderland is also brought in to assist the search (and so minimise surprise).

The Axis roll a 5 and the CW a 1 - both are successful. Not sure why the Axis 5 was successful though??

The Sunderland looks somewhat out-numbered [X(] but at least the convoys are safe - for now....

As to the search results.

You must have between 11 and 20 Allied CONV in the sea area.

11.5.5 Searching

Subtract 1 from your search roll for every 10 enemy convoy points (or part) in the sea area. This modifier does not apply to interception attempts, port attacks or during storm or blizzard. This modifier does apply after the first round of an interception combat.

So the Axis roll or 5 is reduced to 3. The Axis units in the 2 Box are also included because:

8.2.4 Naval search numbers

Add 1 to the sea-box section’s search number if both:
• the weather in the sea area is fine, rain or snow; and
• the section contains one of your side’s NAVs or carrier planes

So the German NAV's in the 2 Box increases it to the 3 Box, this applies to ALL the units in the Box not just the NAV's.

-Rob

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Cad908

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 7

In the Western Mediterranean the Italians also try and initiate combat. They decline to bring in reinforcements at this stage, but the Royal Air Force bring in a Beaufighter to try and take on the Luftwaffe. A Sunderland is also brought in to assist the search (and so minimise surprise).

The Axis roll a 5 and the CW a 1 - both are successful. Not sure why the Axis 5 was successful though??

The Sunderland looks somewhat out-numbered [X(] but at least the convoys are safe - for now....

As to the search results.

You must have between 11 and 20 Allied CONV in the sea area.

11.5.5 Searching

Subtract 1 from your search roll for every 10 enemy convoy points (or part) in the sea area. This modifier does not apply to interception attempts, port attacks or during storm or blizzard. This modifier does apply after the first round of an interception combat.

So the Axis roll or 5 is reduced to 3. The Axis units in the 2 Box are also included because:

8.2.4 Naval search numbers

Add 1 to the sea-box section’s search number if both:
• the weather in the sea area is fine, rain or snow; and
• the section contains one of your side’s NAVs or carrier planes

So the German NAV's in the 2 Box increases it to the 3 Box, this applies to ALL the units in the Box not just the NAV's.

-Rob

warspite1

Brilliant thank-you. Yes there were 12 convoy points. Another reason that the transporting player should keep only the number of CP's he needs in the sea area!

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 9

CW are in a bit of a quandary here. They have go no more air assets to better the situation in the Western or Eastern Med zones. They do not want to put purely naval assets in the zones as this will just give the Axis another opportunity to initiate combat. An attack in the Italian coast by the Mediterranean Fleet - even bolstered by two KGV's - will be out of the question given that the RM now has four Littorios in its OB.

Sit and wait is the order from the Admiralty...

HMS Illustrious - with Gladiator - and another KGV are ordered to Gibraltar as a precaution.

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 9

The CW are asked if they want to initiate combat in the two contested sea zones. NO! is the reply!

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 9

The CW conduct a strategic bombing raid on Essen and cause 2 production points to be lost. Good shooting lads!

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Impulse: 9

I have a light blue Swordfish on Ark Royal, which is a waste. So in the rebase phase I remove it and place in Gibraltar. Let's see if that works next go.

The turn ends on a 1.

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
End of Turn

The US choose to relocate the fleet to Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor? Sounds like a good name for a film...

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Production

Germany:
Field Artillery
2 x Submarine
Motorised
Mechanised
2 x Pilot
Fighter
Land Air
Carrier Air

Italy:
Battleship
Anti-Tank

Japan:
3 x Pilot
3 x Carrier Air
Militia
2x Lt Cruiser

[warspite1]

Nov/Dec 1941
Production

China:
Infantry
Garrison

CW:
4 x Pilot
3 x Carrier Air
1 x Nav Air
Motorised

USA:
Infantry
Bunker Hill
Cleveland
Armour
2 x Pilot
2 x Carrier Air

USSR:
Garrison
Motorised
Field Artillery
Pilot
Fighter

[warspite1]

Jan/Feb 1942
Reinforcement

Germany:
Ju-88
Me-109
Scharnhorst
Armour
Anti-tank
Motorised

Italy:
Conti di Cavour
Submarine
Infantry

Japan:
Militia
Marine Division
Chitose
Choyoda
AMPH

[warspite1]

The Japanese are asked if they want to swap the battleship Shinano for an aircraft carrier. There are two choices, an historical and an ahistorical version.

The historical version:

• Engine(s) output: 150,000 hp
• Top Speed: 27 knots
• Main armament: 16 x 5-inch (127mm), 145 x 25mm AA guns
• Aircraft: 47 (see below)
• Displacement (full load): 71,890 tons
• Thickest armour: 8.1-inch (belt)

This counter gives the Japanese player the historic option of building the third Yamato-class battleship as an aircraft carrier. World In Flames (WIF) actually allows the Japanese player three alternatives. The first option is to complete Shinano as a battleship as originally intended (see Counter 4371). The second option allows her construction as a more powerful aircraft carrier than was actually the case, and as befits the size of the vessel (see Counter 4339). The third option is represented by this counter and allows the completion of Shinano to her historic specification.

In her aircraft carrier guise, Shinano's role was that of a support ship for the Imperial Japanese Navy's fleet carriers. As such she was built to provide spare aircraft, aviation fuel and maintenance facilities to the frontline carrier fleet. For this role, the forward part of her hangar was given over to workshops and she could carry an impressive 158,000 Imperial Gallons of fuel. There was room for twenty-three "spare" aircraft in addition to forty-seven of her own.

A single hangar was served by two lifts and on deck she had fifteen arrester wires to assist the landing of aircraft. As per standard practice, no catapult was fitted to assist take-off. Compared to previous Japanese carrier designs, She featured a very large island structure.

Armour protection was greatly increased in Shinano compared to pre-war Japanese carriers and she was fitted with a 3-inch armoured flight deck between her two lifts. Although her belt armour was retained, at 8.1-inches, it was half the thickness envisaged in her battleship design. Her magazines and machinery spaces were covered by armour plate 7.5-inch thick. A major weakness, and one that proved her un-doing, was the anti-torpedo defence.

Shinano featured a strong anti-aircraft (AA) defence with eight twin 5-inch dual-purpose guns supported by no less than one hundred and forty-five 25mm guns and a further twelve, multi-barrelled rocket launchers for close-range defence.

Despite her size, she was capable of 27 knots as she retained the powerful machinery that she would have had as a battleship.

Shinano was commissioned in November 1944 and her life was to be one of the shortest among the fighting ships of World War II; lasting a mere 10 days in commission. On her way for final completion at the Kure Naval Yard, she was spotted and attacked by the American submarine USS Archerfish, which sank the carrier with four torpedoes.


However, the Japanese choose the latter!

[warspite1]

Jan/Feb 1942
Reinforcement

China:
Infantry

CW:
Beaufighter
Swordfish
Curacoa
3 x AMPH
Infantry

USA:
New Jersey
Infantry

USSR:
2 x Land Air
Motorised
Armour
Mechanised

[warspite1]

Jan/Feb 1942
Initiative and Weather

The Axis win the initiative despite a re-roll at their request. The only comfort is that the weather is Snow and Storm (except for North Monsoon and South Temperate which are Fine). The Impulse Advance is 3.

[Orm]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Nov/Dec 1941
End of Turn

The US choose to relocate the fleet to Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor? Sounds like a good name for a film...

A film named Pearl Harbor must be great. With such a historical background, and events, a movie about it can't go wrong.

----

US relocating the fleet to Pearl Harbor could be taken as a sign for Japan that it might be time to DOW USA soon.