Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, Docup(A)-Koniu(J)

[Lowpe]

Hey, look at your cripple ship get away!

[JocMeister]

ORIGINAL: koniu
I am almost sure that Docup must be scared to do something. From 3 Years every time he try something He was punished by KB, it must be hard to Him to risk again. Docup is great opponent. Most of players will resign long time ago.

Yeah, but he can´t sit there forever. He needs to get in or get out. Not sure what he is waiting for?

[koniu]

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Hey, look at your cripple ship get away!

Escort TFs visible in map are: TF south of Maulmein is crippled CA Furutaka. Cruiser is undetected but capable only to move 2-3 hexes daily.
TF more south in Mergui hex are mine tenders ruining South.
Other damaged ships manage to run south and they are now in Georgtown.

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Yeah, but he can´t sit there forever. He needs to get in or get out. Not sure what he is waiting for?

I believe He is waiting for KB showing somewhere on map.
Look at allied navy numbers. He have only advantage in CVE and DDs. With some navy in Marshals, Salomon's and Darwin area his surface forces are not so big, he probably not want involve until he will be sure KB is somewhere else.

[JocMeister]

Yeah, you are probably right. But he can´t sit there forever. He needs to commit to at least one of his operations.

[koniu]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Yeah, you are probably right. But he can´t sit there forever. He needs to commit to at least one of his operations.

Actually he move in two places.


5 June 1944

Burma
Allied navy retreat. I believe it wasn't main invasion. I will keep KB in area for day or two and will back to Pacific

CA Furutaka still on surface. I give her 50% chance to survive.

I need to move SAG to Rangoon to secure waters. I have few CLs and CAs i can send.

In land Japanese troops slowly retreating toward Rangoon and Pegu. 1 Tank Div in Rangoon upgrade to Type 3 Medium Tank.

Salomon's
Infantry Brigade land in Munda.
Base will fall tomorrow i have there only few engineering vehicles and radar device i was not able to evacuate by air.
I see all surface forces in Salomons retreating south. Only small CVE TF south of Munda is giving LCAP to invasion.

Amphibious Assault at Munda (111,134)

TF 120 troops unloading over beach at Munda, 111,134

Allied ground losses:
473 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 111 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 79 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 48 (0 destroyed, 48 disabled)
Vehicles lost 74 (0 destroyed, 74 disabled)

11 troops of a NZ Inf Section 43 lost overboard during unload of 8th NZ Bde /3
10 Support troops lost in surf during unload of 8th NZ Bde /6

Marshals
Allies land in Roi-Namur. First time my boys fight against Marines. Roi-Namur was abandoned long time ago but over 2000 allied soldiers fall during landing.

Troops and ships committed to that ops suggesting that this was main op. But still two Divisions and tank brigade versus engineers and base force war to much i think. Good news is that those two ID will need some time before they will be able to land in next ops.


ASW attack near Namu at 133,116

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-3, hits 7, heavy damage

Allied Ships
DE Fleming
APA Highlands
APA Knox
APA Du Page
APA Barnstable
APA Doyen
APA Monrovia
APA Arthur Middleton
APA Crescent City
APA President Polk
AKA Arcturus
AKA Mercury
AKA Electra
AKA Almaack
AKA Centarus
LSD White Marsh
LSD Lindenwald
LSD Gunston Hall
LSD Epping Forest
DE Burden R. Hastings
-----------------------------------------------------

Amphibious Assault at Roi-Namur (132,114)

TF 160 troops unloading over beach at Roi-Namur, 132,114

Allied ground losses:
31 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 2 (0 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 6 (1 destroyed, 5 disabled)

13 troops of a USA Rifle Squad 44 lost overboard during unload of 32nd Infantry Div /1
10 Support troops lost from landing craft during unload of 1st Marine Div /4
Motorized Support lost overboard during unload of 32nd Infantry Div /5

-----------------------------------------------------
Invasion Support action off Roi-Namur (132,114)
Defensive Guns engage approaching landing force

64 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.

Allied Ships
BB Oklahoma
BB Nevada
APA Highlands
DE Burden R. Hastings

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

Allied ground losses:
29 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled



And shock attack


Ground combat at Roi-Namur (132,114)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 20626 troops, 306 guns, 463 vehicles, Assault Value = 872

Defending force 6556 troops, 47 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 67

Allied adjusted assault: 87

Japanese adjusted defense: 18

Allied assault odds: 4 to 1 (fort level 5)

Allied Assault reduces fortifications to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: disruption(-), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: shock(+), disruption(-)

Japanese ground losses:
1694 casualties reported
Squads: 42 destroyed, 11 disabled
Non Combat: 201 destroyed, 82 disabled
Engineers: 72 destroyed, 10 disabled
Guns lost 51 (37 destroyed, 14 disabled)
Units destroyed 1

Allied ground losses:
1856 casualties reported
Squads: 70 destroyed, 21 disabled
Non Combat: 23 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 39 destroyed, 9 disabled
Guns lost 17 (13 destroyed, 4 disabled)
Vehicles lost 57 (52 destroyed, 5 disabled)

Assaulting units:
1st USMC Tank Battalion
104th Combat Engineer Regiment
1st Marine Division
32nd Infantry Div /9

Defending units:
35th JNAF AF Unit
6th Base Force
45th JNAF AF Unit
7th JNAF Coy
56th JNAF AF Unit

[Lowpe]

Wow, poorly executed invasion there!

Good luck for you, and it may make the Allies even more gun shy.[:D]

[obvert]

It seems like Docup is too fond of the big dramatic move, and doesn't use small steps to inch closer before a big step is taken. You've already shown you'll punish big slow easily detectable offensives. He needs to adjust, and soon. Roi Namur in mid-44 is not a big loss for Japan.

On the other hand, you're playing very well. Not showing the KB while having it completely ready to strike just out of sight is great play on your part. Even if he gets a whiff of it he'll not know if this is mini-KB or the full KB.

Unless he now lands 10 divisions on Hokkaido, I just don't think these moves are going to be fast enough to get to the core of the Empire.

[koniu]

This is what Docup write in last email.
I think it was about Bengal Bay situation.

"I couldn't pull the trigger. I kept seeing the KB"

KB was undetected, but few Cargo TFs and Mine-tenders TFs have medium DL and i believe any bigger TF in Malaca Strait must be seen as KB by Docup.
Having KB in shadows is my best weapon right now[:D]

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: koniu

Having KB in shadows is my best weapon right now[:D]

+1

And this is why I only use for game critical operations. We know how brittle the KB really is ...

[koniu]

6 June 1944

Allies continue unloading in Roi-Namur and Munda. As expected today Roi-Namur fall.
Very nice surprise from Docup. He named one of Cleveland CL by mine home city name.

Night Naval bombardment of Roi-Namur at 132,114

Allied Ships
CL Culloden
CL Konin[:D]
CL Miami
CL Biloxi

Japanese ground losses:
188 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 8 destroyed, 29 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 6
Airbase supply hits 10
Runway hits 51
Port hits 46
Port supply hits 3
-----------------------------------------------


Ground combat at Roi-Namur (132,114)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 18137 troops, 290 guns, 404 vehicles, Assault Value = 734

Defending force 2839 troops, 15 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 5

Allied adjusted assault: 63

Japanese adjusted defense: 2

Allied assault odds: 31 to 1 (fort level 1)

Allied forces CAPTURE Roi-Namur !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: disruption(-), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: shock(+), disruption(-)

Japanese ground losses:
3491 casualties reported
Squads: 25 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 462 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 23 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 18 (18 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units destroyed 4

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

Assaulting units:
104th Combat Engineer Regiment
1st Marine Division
32nd Infantry Division
1st USMC Tank Battalion

Defending units:
45th JNAF AF Unit
35th JNAF AF Unit
6th Base Force
56th JNAF AF Unit


Bay of Bengal empty from major allied ships.
I forgot to change settings for two P1Y2 groups i have in Rangoon and they decide to go after sips in Akyab and Ramree Island
48 bombers and 42 pilots KIA. In return i sunk 3 cargo ships.

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Ramree Island at 54,48

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 156 NM, estimated altitude 32,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 46 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 19

Allied aircraft
Fulmar II x 6
Wildcat V x 14
Spitfire Vc Trop x 8
Spitfire VIII x 12
Kittyhawk IV x 14
P-38J Lightning x 8
P-40N5 Warhawk x 11
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 10
F4F-4 Wildcat x 3
FM-2 Wildcat x 1
F4U-1A Corsair x 5
F6F-3 Hellcat x 146

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 13 destroyed
------------------------------------------------

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Akyab at 54,45

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 119 NM, estimated altitude 31,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 35 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 32

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 16
Spitfire Vc Trop x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 17 destroyed, 5 damaged
P1Y2 Frances: 1 destroyed by flak

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
AO Bishopdale
AO Cimarron
DE Griswold
------------------------------------------------

Morning Air attack on TF, near Akyab at 54,46

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 13 NM, estimated altitude 33,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 15

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 4
FM-2 Wildcat x 1
F6F-3 Hellcat x 19

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 10 destroyed
------------------------------------------------


Morning Air attack on TF, near Akyab at 54,46

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 1 NM, estimated altitude 32,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 0 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 18

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 2
FM-2 Wildcat x 1
F6F-3 Hellcat x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 1 damaged

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
xAK Bucegi, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
xAK Umtali, Torpedo hits 3, and is sunk
xAK Markhor, Torpedo hits 3, and is sunk

Aircraft Attacking:
18 x P1Y2 Frances launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 18in Type 91 Torpedo


I start using new game map. It look grate.
Retreat from Burma is almost over. Most critical part for troops north of Pegu. They need to slip trough open terrain. Critical 48h for them, They will have 300 planes LCAP. I have unit with radar in that hex to help LCAP little. I hope radars are working in non base hexes.

[mind_messing]

What's your conclusions regarding coastal defence guns? Have they inflicted any serious damage in your game?

[koniu]

ORIGINAL: mind_messing

What's your conclusions regarding coastal defence guns? Have they inflicted any serious damage in your game?

I cant say nothing about Jap CD. So far Allied invasions don`t face CD batteries.

I can only say that Allied CD guns do some serious damage to my invasions in 41/42.
I lost two DDs from them, and more than few cargo ships. Plus few more DDs and Cruisers spend some time is dry dock after those invasions.

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: mind_messing

What's your conclusions regarding coastal defence guns? Have they inflicted any serious damage in your game?

The challenge is to be able to protect them from allied air strikes. If you lose air superiority over a base, they will disable many of your devices, including CD guns ... if not disabled cd guns are effective in that you can count on 1 -2 ships each turn. For the allies though, 1-2 ships per landing is NOT a high price given how many ships they have ....

[obvert]

In my game, even after a pounding from the air, the guns in the Marianas and at Saipan especially really gave the invasion fleet a pounding, but ultimately Jocke set up the forces well and the BBs took most of it. I found myself in awe of what was happening watching the replays though, and was almost neutral during those moments seeing the majesty of each side fighting tooth and nail to do their job well.

Here is the post from the Saipan invasion.
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/fb.asp?m=3384058

To really have an effect you must have at least the 12.7cm guns in numbers, but of course against BBs the bigger guns are necessary. I've not seen anything try to hit the massive batteries at Yokohama or the big guns at some of the Home Island bases. That'll be fun to watch!

[koniu]

7 June 44

Burma
New defense line is ready. I still not sure if i should defend in Pegu.
Base have forts 6 but i deeply believe that Allied tanks will do the same with me what Jap tanks do with Chinese troops.

Second question is Defense of Rangoon. Abandon it or sacrifice 1000 AV and do last stand there. x3 Terrain, fort 7. 1000AV (two ID, Tank Div. some arty and AT units). It could be expensive to capture.

Ambon
Naval battle. Docup send two 3xDD TFs, only 4 DD return
I am sending big boys to Ambon. Kongo TF should arrive in 3 days.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Ambon at 76,109, Range 8,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Atago
CA Haguro, Shell hits 1
DD Asashimo, Shell hits 1,
DD Hayashio, Shell hits 2,
DD Maikaze
DD Satsuki
DD Kikuzuki

Allied Ships
DD Meredith, Shell hits 5, and is sunk
DD Grayson, Shell hits 2, on fire
DD Hobby, Shell hits 1, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

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

Night Time Surface Combat, near Ambon at 76,109, Range 8,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CL Yura, Shell hits 1
CL Kuma
CL Tama, Shell hits 2
CL Kiso, Shell hits 1
DD Takanami
DD Naganami, Shell hits 2,
DD Tamanami
DD Okinami
DD Hamanami

Allied Ships
DD Russell
DD O'Brien, Shell hits 1
DD Morris



R&D
A7M2 Sam advance to 7/45
A7M2 Sam factory repaired. Currently i am gaining 8 point daily. I will start producing Sam in late 9/44

[Lowpe]

ORIGINAL: obvert
Here is the post from the Saipan invasion.
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/fb.asp?m=3384058

Thanks for the link, I had been meaning to go back and re-read that portion of your AAR.[&o]

A momentous page in your AAR...at the end is the invasion of Tavoy.[:(]

[koniu]

8 June 1944

Burma
Night air ride in Tavoy. I lost AMc

Night Air attack on Tavoy , at 54,60

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 29 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-25D1 Mitchell x 9

Allied aircraft losses
B-25D1 Mitchell: 5 damaged

Japanese Ships
AMc Ichiyo Maru, Shell hits 7, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage


Ambon
After last turn battles two strange looking TFs took position 11 and 9 hexes from Ambon.
I suspecting Fletcher TF (11 hexes distance) and CA TF (9 hexes). Prabably tommarow they will move toward Ambon.

[JocMeister]

Why is he wasting valuable DDs in 3 ship TFs? It should be 8 or 12! [X(]

[koniu]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Why is he wasting valuable DDs in 3 ship TFs? It should be 8 or 12! [X(]

I will not tell him that.[8D]



9 June 1944

Nothing to report

[koniu]

10 June 1944

IO
One of subs near Diego Garcia find enemy ships. I guessing those are CV and invasion ships that try to land near Rangoon few days ago. I think they are sailing toward Oz.

13 Subs is sailing toward South West Oz. Maybe i will have some luck. Another 10 is sailing toward Tasmania

Rest of map was Quiet.
Float transports are evacuating troops from Tarawa. Base is bombed daily, loses are high so or i will evacuate them or in 2 weeks they will be wiped out by bombers.

Mariana garrison is bigger every day. I have there 4000 AV already 1000 more is waiting in Japan for transport. I want to have there at lest 1000+ AV in main islands(Guam, Tinian, Saipan) 700AV+ in Rota and 500AV for other. All behind fort 6 or 7 with tanks, arty and AT support.

Burma
I need help there. To make final decisions.
On map You can see my and allied troops positions:

North of Rangoon 1500AV
Rangoon 1000AV
Pagu 1600AV
South of Pegu 700AV
Moulmein 1000AV

It look that allies decide to bypass road block north of Rangoon and move trough jungle and join with forces moving toward Pegu forces. Estimated enemy AV is 2000-3000AV in both groups. So ~6000+AV total.

My plan is to retreat troops that are north of Rangoon toward Pegu and from there behind River.

Questions
1. Should i abandon Rangoon or leave city garrison ~1000AV
2. Should i fight in Pegu or just now retreat to Jungle hex south behind river (I need hold Pegu for week until troop from Rangoon retreat)

Any advices appreciated. Few of You already play as Allies and Japan in similar situation.