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More setbacks in China. The main problem I'm now having is determining where Japan really intends to attack. The lack of recon is really hurting me. Q-Ball seems be to skillfully manufacturing fake attacks and even fake movement to force me to remove units from where he really intends to attack.
For instance, he just kicked out a single unit on the 3x hex just above Kukong perhaps forcing me to now defend on a 2x hex. I might be able to get a couple of units back into the 3x hex before he can move into the 2x hex. We'll see.
How this developed is, so it appears, Q-Ball sent south all but one unit from the hex in question and behind it, in Kukong, I would see only a couple of units. Given what I could see, I assumed he was shifting his units either to Changsha or to the new threat on my weak right flank around Kweilin. After a week I moved most of the units out of the 3x hex north to give them a better chance of getting to where they might be needed as it appear Japan was withdrawing. But after a week or so more, suddenly 6 Japanese units reappeared in the 3x hex opposed by only a single Chinese unit. No info on the map indicated that 5 units were moving into the hex. [&:] A deliberate attack then drove my single unit out of the hex.
This whole Japanese attack was well-done: it succeeded because I was induced to withdrew my units from the hex by, I'm guessing, Q-Ball's fake withdrawal from the hex and a potential move to my weak right flank.
Lacking recon I can't really tell where Japanese units are moving and I'm unable to tell what movements of Japanese units represent real threats and, so, I often under-react to some threats and over-react to other threats. It is just a matter of time before I guessed wrong, as I just did on this one important hex. I see I should have given recon as the primary training to most Chinese bomber pilots but I doubt that would really have helped much.
Such is China.
Be that as it may...
Below is my first significant offensive move in India. Japan took Vizagapatnam and seems to be unloading a steady stream of transports there. I assume this supply dump is to provide an alternative source of supply for Japanese units I expect will move eventually toward Bombay. Only a relatively small Japanese unit (Yokosuka 2nd SNLF) is defending Viz itself. I have a good Aussie Division RRing to the city located to the west of Viz (Cocanada) where they will unstrat. They will be met in that city by a USMC tank unit and an ART unit. All will then march to Vizagapatham and crush the Japanese defenders. If this works, I don't intend to stay in Viz as the city itself is not critical and it's on 1x terrain. My goal is just to take the supplies and, perhaps, fuel that must be building up in the city. This isn't an important attack on my part, but you've got to start somewhere.
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