Bob Flemin's MWIF AARse II The Sequel

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Weather and Initiative

The Axis keep the initiative but the weather is lousy - Blizzard in the Arctic, Snow in the North Temperate, Rain in the North Monsoon and the rest, Storm.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 1

The Japanese declare war on the USA!! [X(] Where's Rafe McCaulay? I think WWII has just started!!!

Well, by that I mean they put their ships to see for the declaration on the next impulse.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 4

With the weather as is, the Allied turn will be equally as brief.

The one exception is in North Africa where the CW are trying to separate Mussolini from his Roman Empire.

The RAF take a gamble with their newly arrived Wellington bomber and throw both this and a Blenheim into the mix. The Italians have a bomber automatically cleared through and have a C200 on hand to try and dish out some punishment to the British bomber crews...

Round 1

7 (DA) The Wellington is aborted...
18! (DX PX) The Italian fighter is shot down and the pilot killed

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 4

After that bit of good fortune, things turn a tad sour - Balbo HQ support succeeds, but Wavell's fails, meaning the odds are 1:1 (no modifier) and the Italians choose the Assault table....

....a result of 4 means the CW lose a unit and are all disorganised.

[Centuur]

Any good US player should now sail the US CV's out of Pearl Harbor so that they don't become the target of the Japanese port attack...

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Centuur

Any good US player should now sail the US CV's out of Pearl Harbor so that they don't become the target of the Japanese port attack...

warspite1

...whoops too late....[:(]

[Centuur]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: Centuur

Any good US player should now sail the US CV's out of Pearl Harbor so that they don't become the target of the Japanese port attack...

warspite1

...whoops too late....[:(]

You were probably on the golf course on that particular sunday... [:@]

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

Tora! Tora! Tora!

The Japanese have four surprise points

But first, the US have 7 damage points - they shoot down a Kate and reduce the bombs of a second...

I may have mucked up there - the background is pink so may be that was the Japanese choice.... whoops.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

The Japanese use their 4 points to increase the combat level.

Well that looked like a lot of fuss about nothing. The US lost one cruiser and a damaged carrier + a half dis-organised carrier and a disorganised cruiser..

That measly effort took pretty much the whole Japanese naval air arm...

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

Back to the Eastern Front and German attention centres largely on the north, although the hex southeast of Kursk gets their attention too. The Soviet air force is hopelessly outclassed and so stays on the ground.

On the southern shores of the Gulf of Finland the Luftwaffe is successful in disorganising one unit

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

At Pskov, two of the three defenders were successfully attacked.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

In Smolensk there was one success

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

..and the same south of Kursk

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

There are five attacks this turn - four in the Soviet Union and one in the Philippines.

Southeast of Leningrad Admiral Lutjens fleet provides shore bombardment for Army Group North.

At Pskov, Guderian tries to provide HQ Support, as does Rommel at Smolensk. Rokossovsky adds his support in defence of the hex south of Kursk. Also at Smolensk, a Stuka tries to alter the odds, but no where else is this possible for either side.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

The first attack is in the Philippines where I seem to have made a mistake with naval gunfire support... essentially the Japanese haven't got any and so the attack is a, not hugely impressive, 3:1 +1 on the Assault table...

...fortunately its a 9 and the Japanese forces are ashore east of Manilla..

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

Next up its the battle along the southern shores of the Gulf of Finland. This is only a 2:1 +1, although the Germans have the choice of table and choose the Blitzkrieg CRT...

..its a 2 (3) and another heavy duty unit - this time the DAK Panzer Corps - is lost to the Wehrmacht..

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

And so to Pskov. With the exit from the Baltic blocked once more, this hex becomes absolutely vital to Germany's hopes of making progress toward Leningrad. The odds are 3:1 +2 on the Assault table...

...itsa 6(8) and the defenders lose two units and are shattered - better.

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

And so to Smolensk. This is a 4:1 +1 on the Assault table. Again this is a vital hex. It not only opens up the path to Moscow, but it puts pressure on the Soviet troops threatening to out-flank the Germans in the Ukraine...

...its a 5(6). The attackers are disorganised but the city is taken at least as the surviving defender is shattered.

[Centuur]

Question: Why do you destroy the more expensive INF and shatter the Moscov MIL? If you empty the USSR MIL pool, you should take cheaper MIL losses if you can, since they are cheap and arrive in the following reinforcement impulse immediately. Sure, the MIL is better, but since it is shattered anyhow and will reappear in Moscow next reinforcement phase, it was better to shatter the INF and let that return in the city you choose...

[warspite1]

Mar/Apr 1943
Impulse: 7

And so to the final battle of the impulse. The battle for Belgorod. This is a 5:1 +1 on the Blitzkrieg table...

...its a 2(3)... oh dear, what is going on with the dice??? The attackers are disorganised but at least the defenders lose a unit and must retreat.