See you in Tokyo Bay - Apbarog(A) vs Walker(J) DBB-B Scen28

[BBfanboy]

Looks like he does not send subs to shallow water. Good place to route your ships.

[apbarog]

Yes, Walker prefers the deep water, as he should. I don't mind risk subs in the shallows if I'm chasing a damaged carrier, though.

[apbarog]

18 Apr 43

Enemy ships show up at Babar. Just 4 destroyers though. The bombardment does absolutely nothing. An Indian Coastal Artillery unit responds, but also hits nothing.

At Tabiteuea, 9 A6M5 Zeros sweep, finding 16 Buffalos. This is the first appearance of the A6M5, I think, and the last of the Buffalos, I hope. No planes are lost. Half of the Buffalos are damaged. The Buffalos fly to Ndeni to upgrade.

At Nauru, A6M2 Zeros sweep, finding a few Kittyhawks and a dozen F4F-4s. About 4 planes are lost for each side.

At Babar, 36 Nells bomb, doing 1 damage to the port. Then 20 Sallys with Oscar escorts arrive. Another single hit on the port. Then 25 Sallys with Zero escort. No port damage.

At Attu, troops are bombed with Bolingbrokes (PDU off is a wonderful thing. I much prefer it with this first try of it.) Then Bolos bombed the troops. Then B-24s hit the airfield.

At Tabiteuea, more Zeros sweep, and a couple of Buffaloes are lost.

Another deliberate attack at Attu goes well, with 1 to 1 odds, lowering the fort to 3. 430 Japanese casualties, 121 US losses. I shock attack today and hope to take the island.

Near Buna, another deliberate attack doesn't go as well. 1 to 6 odds, 347 enemy casualties, 559 US. I will hold off attacking here until I start attacking at Port Moresby, which will be in a few days.

As for the enemy carriers SW of Perth, they disappeared today. Neither endangered port sees enemy recon. Hopefully the raid is over.

[BBfanboy]

Carrier aircraft pilots tend to get fatigued after about three days of flying so it is common to withdraw temporarily to let them rest a day or so before returning.
I would wait at least three days before allowing any movement of ships in the area KB can be. I find it hard to believe he would not seek out the juicy AP targets he was hunting before in the Perth area.

[apbarog]

Still nothing spotted near Perth. I'm keeping all ships in port for now. Perth had bad weather and was safe regardless. The enemy has probably left but I will wait for awhile to run the damaged ships to Melbourne.

[apbarog]

19 Apr 43

Near Tabiteuea, AM Geelong gets a good depth charge hit on RO-63.

At Dili, PB Odatsuki Maru runs into a mine, and is probably sunk.

Near Cooktown, I-37 fires 2 torpedoes at huge xAP Poelau Telo, carrying Aussies to Darwin from Milne Bay. Torpedoes miss. So enemy subs are back in the approaches southeast of Horn Island again. I will remedy that situation.

B-17s from Merauke bomb Taberfane's airfield, causing moderate damage. There is no CAP with the airfield still damaged, at least somewhat.

Enemy troops on Attu are bombed. US forces attack, get 10 to 1 odds, and capture the island. Attrition finishes off the 43rd Naval Guard Unit, the 13th Naval Construction Battalion, and the 45th JNAF AF unit. The United States is liberated!

Up at Ternate, a US sub just dropped some mines. It spotted 2 task forces here, and both had light cruisers in them.

Today, BC Repulse, 2 CAs, and a few DDs will bombard Taberfane to keep the airfield damaged and to keep the appearance of Allied interest here. Also, 11 Fletchers are going to run into Babar at night. I'm guessing that the enemy TF north of Timor is inbound to bombard Babar. The Fletchers are set to run in at night and then run out.

The 4 US carriers, not including Lexington, have passed Horn Island and start to head south to Townsville. Hornet will definitely go to Sydney for repairs. The others will be sorted out at Townsville.

I'd like to discuss a situation that occurred today with CV Lexington. It had been damaged near Babar, automatically split off with a CLAA and headed to Darwin. It made it to Darwin, and I'd sent to Darwin the rest of its original task force. It joined up in a carrier task force, and was ordered to head east to Gove. Instead, Lexington again split off with a CLAA, and returned to Darwin, with the task force set to disband but it didn't disband. Worst of all, it was set to refuel (as all new task forces have set), and did so at Darwin, using up all 1000 of its operation points. So it won't move in the next turn either.

Now there's an enemy task force north of Timor, and if it has carriers, it can be in range of Darwin in the next turn.

I wanted Lexington to be out of danger. Did I do something wrong? If I had set Lexington's task force's mission as Escort, would that have prevented Lexington from leaving the force?

Lexington's damage is 9 SYS, 34 FLOT, and 31 ENG. Apparently bad enough for the AI to split it off.

I just wonder if there is something I can learn from this. I don't want Lexington to have to run to Gove with just a CLAA.

I did load up Darwin with lots of fighter groups, but if KB shows up, that won't save the ship.

[Speedysteve]

My guess and assumption is as you say Lex was not in an escort TF. I don't recall ever having a damaged ship split off from an escort TF. Probably the best way to do it is to have Lex in an escort TF following the CV TF to provide CAP etc....my 2p[8D]

[BBfanboy]

1000 ops points is not the whole day - that is only one phase, so you can get ½ a day's movement with Lexington. Not much but better than none.

[apbarog]

20 Apr 43

Near Merauke, sub Skipjack fires 2 torpedoes at I-164, but misses.

Just north of Timor, S-31 gets a torpedo hit on xAKL Heiwa Maru, possibly sinking it.

Near Horn Island, I-165 fires 2 torpedoes at xAK Carolinian, but misses.

Battlecruiser Repulse, cruisers Cornwall and Northampton, and 4 destroyers bombard Taberfane. Results are very poor, causing just a handful of squad disablements, and not touching the base. This is especially depressing because lots of enemy fighters moved into the base on the same day. About 50 are spotted there during the day. Could have been a nice airfield bombardment.

Lots of ASW activity all around Horn Island. I moved some ASW to Horn yesterday, and the whole area is lit up with enemy subs. No doubt they were hunting my carriers, which have already passed through, or Lexington, which is just leaving Darwin and will have to run the gauntlet. I drastically ramp up air ASW as well as more subchaser groups.

The 11 Fletchers ran into Babar, but no enemy showed. Now the Fletchers could use some repair, so I split them into 3 task forces, assign them all to ASW, and order them east toward Horn Island, moving east in 3 parallel movements. I'm sure that they'll get some sub action on the way home.

Near Portland Roads, I-6 torpedoes AM Conflict, which was escorting some xAKs. The small ship is sunk.

Near Ambon, sub Nautilus torpedoes tiny minesweeper AMc Kiri Maru #5. We continue to hunt for numbers one through four.

3 medium bomber groups and lots of B-24s bomb Port Moresby's airfield. Today an armor unit miraculously made the trip over the mountains and has opened a hexside to the east, allowing for the free flow of supply from Buna. The reduction of Port Moresby will begin soon. I have 3 task forces, each with a slow battleship, inbound to Port Moresby, ordered to bombard on successive days. When they are done, we start attacking on land.

So today Lexington should leave Darwin, well escorted, and in an Escort task force. Lots of subchasers and minesweepers are working its projected path to Gove. 2 Darwin fighter squadrons fly LR CAP over it. Lexington's squadrons have left the ship. Going the reverse direction are lots of transports carrying troops for the next offensive.

I plan on repairing my carriers, and replacing as many F4Fs with F6Fs as possible.

The Perth and Carnavon area has remained quiet. It appears that the enemy carriers are gone. I will continue to wait and see.

[apbarog]

21 Apr 43

Near Cooktown, I-180 fires 6 torpedoes at CA Canberra, but misses.

Just north of Tarawa, sub Gudgeon fires 2 torpedoes at xAK Unkai Maru #6 but misses. I'm beginning to suspect that ships are named #6 to make me think that there really are at least 5 more of them out there somewhere...

Just south of Timor, sub Sunfish fires 2 torpedoes at DD Suzukaze but misses. It's part of a task force with at least 4 cruisers and 5 destroyers, headed east. It will stop next to Babar and be unsuccessfully bombed later.

I've kept a big cruiser task force at Milne Bay as a deterrent. Today I sent them into Lae to bombard. 4 CAs, 3 CLs, and 8 DDs bombard, causing 469 casualties, hitting the airbase hard and hitting the port moderately.

Slow battleship Ramillies, CL Java, and 3 DDs bombard Port Moresby. Damage is very light, with minimal damage to the airfield and 47 casualties.

An AO task force just left Darwin, after unloading just some of its fuel. The area is getting hot again, so it was time to leave. On the way out, RO-106 fires 4 torpedoes at an AO and misses. The sub takes heavy damage from depth charges.

Near Timor, Dutch sub KIX takes heavy damage from depth charges from a cruiser task force. The sub may or may not make it to Darwin.

Babar's troops are bombed by Sallys, but no hits are achieved. Could signal a counter-invasion.

Near Babar, the cruiser task force previously mentioned is bombed by OS2U-3 Kingfishers bases at Babar. 16 planes attack, 10 bomb but miss. 5 are lost. 2 Oscars and 1 Zero are on LR CAP.

Then 16 TBF-1 Avengers attack at range 7 from Darwin. 15 aim for cruisers and drop bombs. All bombs miss. 2 Avengers are lost to 3 enemy fighters on LR CAP.

East of Darwin, I-18 torpedoes AMc Gedeh, a tiny minesweeper.

Lexington was not spotted today, in heavy weather near Gove. It will continue to Groote Eylandt and on to Normanton for minor repairs. Then on to the east coast of Australia to patch up for the long trip to Pearl Harbor.

The large number of subs spotted by Horn Island yesterday are not seen today. They may have been passing by. None of my Fletchers ran into one like I had hoped they would. I send 2 Fletcher task forces back to Gove. The most damaged ones continue to Townsville.

From the map, you can see that the Timor Sea is heating up again. Now that my carriers have left the area, and Walker knows this, it's fairly predictable. The ships near Broome are probably carriers, and possibly the ones that raided the west side of Australia. The cruiser force adjacent to Babar may bombard, or just be a forward probe to see what was going to happen.

I have 3 carriers at Townsville now making minor repairs. Saratoga (4 SYS), Yorktown (4 SYS), and Enterprise (10 SYS). Saratoga's fighters just got upgraded to F6Fs. Yorktown already had F6Fs. Enterprise will get hers in a few days. Hornet is continuing on to Sydney to repair its damage from the one torpedo hit. Hornet's damage (9 FLOT) won't take too long to fix.

I will make do with just the 3 carriers after I get some support ships to Townsville. BB North Carolina is almost fixed at Sydney. BB Washington is fixed and leaves Sydney for Townsville today. BB South Dakota is passing Noumea headed for Townsville. It is back from West Coast repairs. Having 3 more bomb sponges will help my carriers out immensely. I will have to be careful with just 3 carriers. And not run into all those enemy subs.

A side note - the 7th Infantry Division arrived by boat at Sydney today. It is prepping for Taberfane.

I wanted Babar to be the enemy's point of focus, and I think I'm getting my wish. This goal was to take the pressure off Darwin and let me reinforce and resupply Darwin, and that has been done. Over 100,000 supply there now. Troops coming into Darwin now are destined for elsewhere. An Aussie brigade from Milne Bay just landed, and is now moving south to start clearing the enemy south of Darwin.

[apbarog]

22 Apr 43

Today the story was lots of enemy subs around Gove, particularly between Gove and Darwin. This is probably an effort to finish off Lexington as it exits the area. Lexington has luckily hid in bad weather the past 2 days, and is now past Gove and near Groote Eylandt, heading for Normanton. It will do minor repairs there, and wait a little while before chancing the passage by Horn Island, where there have also been lots of subs.

Near Gove, I-169 took a depth charge hit. I-19 was attacked by a DMS. Near Koepang, sub Sunfish spots 2 destroyers but doesn't get a shot.

Northwest of Timor, sub Spearfish spots an escorted CM, but 4 torpedoes miss and Spearfish takes moderate damage. The sub will head to port for repairs.

South of Boela, sub Seadragon spots a big xAK task force, but misses with torpedoes fires at a patrol boat. These ships are southbound, destination unknown, but I'm guessing Saumlaki, judging from its path.

The enemy cruisers that started at Koepang, came east, staying south of Timor, and went adjacent to Babar, continued east. It seems to be a forward guard for the xAK task force. 6 Kingfishers at Babar attacked the ships today, finding 4 Oscars overhead. 4 planes bombed but missed, and a couple of Kingfishers were lost.

3 B-17 squadrons flew from Wesel Island and attacked the airfield at Babo, doing minor damage. No CAP was found. Babo is a size 1 airfield.

Slow battleship New Mexico, a cruiser, and 3 destroyers bombard Port Moresby. 107 casualties, and minor damage to the airbase and port. Another battleship will bombard tonight, and the US troops will deliberately attack. It will be an attritional battle, I'm afraid, but the Allied troops are now drawing supply from Oro Bay and Buna, so it's a fight that we will win.

From the map, you see only a couple of the enemy subs by Gove. Almost every hex in the red circle has a sub. Some hexes have more than one. It's fortunate that Lexington made it past this area just before all these subs arrived.

Fletchers will make a high speed run into Saumlaki, hoping to find ships arriving.

My sub to the west of Darwin has detection level today, meaning that the enemy task force, spotted a bit further west yesterday, has moved closer to Darwin. I dropped some mines along the coast today.

[BBfanboy]

Real close quarters knife fight here. Great to watch the moves and dodges! Thanks for sharing with us!

[apbarog]

23 Apr 43

6 Fletchers ran into Saumlauki at night, but found nothing. Now split into 2 task forces and placed on ASW duty and heading to repairs in eastern Australia.

AM Bowen was on the inbound route to Port Moresby, the route that my bombarding task forces have been taken. I-10 spots Bowen but misses with 4 torpedoes.

Near Gove, my Fletcher task force sank I-19.

Near Balikpapan, sub Blackfish hit patrol boat Tomitu Maru.

North of Taberfane, sub Guardfish fires spots the big xAK task force but misses a target with 2 torpedoes.

I-16 fired 6 torpedoes at CL Durban near Gove. It's part of the cruiser task force that is now going to run into Taberfane.

My big cruiser task force from Milne Bay bombarded Port Moresby. Then BB Royal Soverign and escorts did also. Damage from both was slight to minimal.

An enemy cruiser task force bombarded Babar. I believe this task force was the one that trekked all the way from Koepang, passes Babar and went east. Then went west to hit Babar. Could be another task force, who knows. Damage was slight. Port damage was repaired by daylight.

Just south of Koepang, sub Jack spots what looks like a carrier task force, without actually spotting a carrier. Jack fires 4 torpodoes at CS Chitose, getting 2 hits, but 1 is a dud.

The Durban task force gets good hits on I-18.

And DE Foxhound, patrolling on its own, pummels I-16 with depth charges, and almost certainly sank the sub. The sub fired first and missed with 2 torpedoes.

North of Darwin, RO-60 hits Dutch sub KIX with 2 torpedoes, sinking it. KIX was already badly damaged and limping toward Darwin.

The first Allied ground attack at Port Moresby occurs. The enemy gets the worst of it, despite the odds and that the forts were not dropped. 49 Allied squads were destroyed, but it turned out that almost all were part of the NG Vol Rifles Battalion, almost eliminating the unit. The divsions took very few losses. I'll rest a day and then repeat.

************************************
Ground combat at Port Moresby (98,130)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 27686 troops, 438 guns, 543 vehicles, Assault Value = 985

Defending force 20634 troops, 145 guns, 49 vehicles, Assault Value = 485

Allied adjusted assault: 876

Japanese adjusted defense: 2659

Allied assault odds: 1 to 3 (fort level 4)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), experience(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
1893 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 37 disabled
Non Combat: 23 destroyed, 39 disabled
Engineers: 26 destroyed, 9 disabled
Vehicles lost 7 (7 destroyed, 0 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
567 casualties reported
Squads: 49 destroyed, 26 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 51 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 11 (5 destroyed, 6 disabled)

Assaulting units:
NG Vol Rifles Battalion
1st Marine Division
193rd Tank Battalion
2nd USMC Tank Battalion
24th Infantry Division
2/9th Armoured Regiment
70th Coast AA Regiment
New Guinea Force
1st RAA Med Arty Regiment

Defending units:
27th Ind Engineer Regiment
1st Division
32nd Special Base Force
6th Naval Construction Battalion
18th Army
4th JNAF AF Unit /1
*******************************

The enemy ships south of Boela went to Taberfane and Dobo. There had been a full enemy division at each base. SigInt shows that Dobo has the 8th Division/B, meaning that it has been split. I believe that some or most of the enemy troops are being pulled out.

I will run 3 CAs, 2 CLs, and 3 DDs into Taberfane tonight, looking for a fight, not bombarding. Then 3 P-38 squadrons will sweep, followed (hopefully) by a bunch of B-24s hitting the airfield.

Lots of shipping destined for Darwin is now holding southeast of Gove. A bit too hot at the moment, with possible carriers south of Timor.

Lexington will arrive at Normanton today. Other carriers wait at Townsville, waiting for 3 fast battleships to arrive in a few days.

[BBfanboy]

Odd combat at PM - I wonder why his engineers were the ones that got whacked!

[apbarog]

24 Apr 43

An exciting day.

At Batjan, a dot base just south of Ternate, destroyer Usugumo found a recently laid Allied mine. Batjan in on a possible naval route south to Boela, and finally a minefield works!

Near Gove, subchasers go after I-22, but don't get it. The subs aren't seen today near Gove, but I think that weather played a part in that.

With lots of shipping at Taberfane, I chose to run a cruiser force in and see what it could get. My wise opponent moved a combat task force just to the southwest, ready to intercept anything inbound. The fight occurs at night, with low visibility due to rain. The Japanese do very well.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Taberfane at 82,118, Range 7,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Chikuma, Shell hits 3
CA Mogami, Shell hits 2
CL Noshiro
CL Sendai, Shell hits 4
DD Kiyonami
DD Tanikaze
DD Kasumi
DD Akebono
DD Uzuki, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Minazuki
DD Shiokaze

Allied Ships
CA Minneapolis, Shell hits 2
CA Quincy, Shell hits 2, on fire
CA Frobisher, Shell hits 11, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
CL Durban, Shell hits 18, and is sunk
CL Capetown, Shell hits 14, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
DD Gillespie, Shell hits 1
DD Anderson, Shell hits 3
DD Mustin, Shell hits 4, on fire

The Japanese torpedoes had a big effect. The Allies did have one of their torpedoes hit a Japanese destroyer, but it was a dud. 3 cruisers were lost.

Then, at first light, as the Allies withdrew south toward Gove, the same enemy cruiser force chased them down for another engagement. The fight was less severe, probably due to ammo depletion, but the Allies did more damage in this fight, despite having 3 fewer cruisers.

Day Time Surface Combat, near Taberfane at 81,119, Range 11,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Chikuma, Shell hits 2
CA Mogami, Shell hits 4, on fire
CL Noshiro
CL Sendai, Shell hits 1
DD Kiyonami
DD Tanikaze, Shell hits 2, on fire
DD Kasumi, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Akebono
DD Uzuki, Shell hits 2
DD Minazuki
DD Shiokaze

Allied Ships
CA Minneapolis, Shell hits 2
CA Quincy
DD Gillespie, Shell hits 1
DD Anderson, Shell hits 2
DD Mustin, Shell hits 4, on fire

The remaining Allied ships should survive. They will run at full speed to leave the area.

CA Minneapolis SYS-20, FLOT-1/0
CA Quincy SYS-17, FLOT-4/1
DD Gillespie SYS-20, FLOT-6/1
DD Anderson SYS-39, FLOT-15/8, ENG-7/4
DD Mustin SYS-37, FLOT-44/13, ENG-30/0

Off the north coast of New Guinea, sub Wahoo torpedoed an ACM.

Near Taberfane, 3 Kingfishers, flying from Babar, attacked CM Natsushima, but missed. I can expect mines at Taberfane now.

P-38s from Merauke swept Taberfane, finding Tojos and Oscars. Losses were light, a few enemy and 1 P-38.

Enemy carriers were spotted at the eastern tip of Timor. Today I'm sweeping Taberfane again, and hopefully my B-24s will fly today to hit the airfield. Lots of shipping is leaving Gove, heading south. The enemy is within range of a strike at Gove, and all of my ships must be tempting. Even the carriers are within striking range.

I'm sure that Walker is splitting the infantry divisions at Dobo, and probably at Taberfane, and probably loading them right now. The question is, where are they going? I expect a counter-invasion at Babar, but TImoeka could also be hit. With the carriers where they are, Babar is more likely right now. I can't rule out something more aggressive though, like strikes at Darwin, Wesel, Gove, or Merauke. But I still think Babar.

Lexington made it to Normanton safely, and will stay there for a week or two repairing SYS damage. It will then move past Horn Island and start the long trek to Pearl Harbor.

The 3 undamaged US carriers are still at Townsville. Soon there will be 4 fast battleships there. I'll form a 3 carrier task force with these battleships, and 2 CLAAs, and head to Gove. I'll have to be careful with just 3 carriers, but I may find an opportunity. At least I'd like to get another round of shipping into Darwin, carrying lots of stuff for the next round of invasions.

[Speedysteve]

Exciting, tense and action packed times!

[apbarog]

Hi Speedy and welcome! Yes, the game is interesting. I've used a strategy of trying to keep my opponent's interest at places of my choosing. Right now, that is Babar. Previously, when I went after southern New Guinea, it was Taberfane and Dobo. Walker reacted strongly and retook those two bases while I concentrated on Milne Bay to Lae. Now I have Babar out by itself, and I expect a counter-invasion there soon too. Babar has taken the heat off of Darwin, which I've strongly reinforced and supplied, and that will be the jumping off point for Timor. But for now, I'm a bit exposed at Babar and Timoeka, with just 3 operational fleet carriers. Note that CV Essex is due to arrive in just a couple of weeks though.

It's been fun trying the Allied side. In this game, I have the feeling that each small defeat, like Taberfane and Dobo, are very minor speed bumps to victory. When I play the Japanese, however, I feel like defeats have to be avoided, and I have the mindset that I'm going to lose absolutely every base and unit eventually. The goal is to make the most of each and make each defeat as painful as possible for the Allied player.

Very different approaches to the war and the game.

P.S. Speedy and I are in a long-running game where I am the Japanese player. We are in the fall of '43 and I'm starting to feel the weight of Speedy's Allied juggernaut!

[apbarog]

25 Apr 43

Sub Whale spots a big AO task force near Soerbaja, fires 4 torpedoes at a destroyer, and misses. The location was SE of Soerbaja, implying that fuel was or is being brought east.

A big Allied cruiser force, the one that has been guarding Milne Bay, bombards Port Moresby. Results are good, with over 400 casualties and most importantly, more troop disruption.

Did I say that I wanted Babar to be the enemy's point of focus? Well, today it was bombarded by a big battleship task force. 5 battleships! Hyuga, Ise, Yamashiro, Fuso, and Musashi are listed. Over 400 casualties, and lots of damage to the size 1 port. The worst of it is that every bit of supply is destroyed at Babar. I greatly expand flying in supply, by seaplane and by air drops. It will be difficult to get supply in by ship. Maybe with carrier support. We'll see.

I moved SBDs to Timoeka yesterday, with P-39s to fly escort. In the morning, all fly to Dobo and hit an xAK convoy. Surprisingly, there is no CAP.

Japanese Ships
xAK Nojima Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Sanuki Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Ryugi Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAK Toho Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage

Japanese ground losses:
361 casualties reported
Squads: 5 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 16 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

In the afternoon, however, the same strike package goes to Taberfane instead, and finds a strong CAP of 4 Oscars and 17 Tojos. Half of the SBDs survive long enough to drop bombs on a cruiser task force at Taberfane, but all bombs miss. Total losses are 18 P-39s and 10 SBDs. Remaining aircraft leave Timoeka to rebuild. The size 2 airfield at Timoeka will undoubtedly get enemy attention immediately.

The Allies attack at Port Moresby, making great progress:


Ground combat at Port Moresby (98,130)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 26553 troops, 433 guns, 544 vehicles, Assault Value = 924

Defending force 18972 troops, 144 guns, 43 vehicles, Assault Value = 440

Allied adjusted assault: 1105

Japanese adjusted defense: 1775

Allied assault odds: 1 to 2 (fort level 4)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), experience(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
1791 casualties reported
Squads: 10 destroyed, 59 disabled
Non Combat: 19 destroyed, 27 disabled
Engineers: 5 destroyed, 21 disabled
Guns lost 25 (2 destroyed, 23 disabled)
Units destroyed 1

Allied ground losses:
303 casualties reported
Squads: 4 destroyed, 30 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Guns lost 11 (2 destroyed, 9 disabled)
Vehicles lost 69 (2 destroyed, 67 disabled)


We'll rest for a day then attack again. Taking Port Moresby will free up the 1st Marine Division and the 24th Infantry Division, as well as 2 tank battalions, a tank regiment, and a HQ for future actions.

Looking at the map, enemy carriers moved slightly north, to a point northeast of Dili. I got SigInt today that 8 Division/B was loaded on xAKs and moving to Boela. This is the exact unit that was at Dobo, and may very well be the unit hit by my SBD strike.

[BBfanboy]

I would not call that great progress at PM. Most of the casualty difference is in the support units the IJA lost, but you lost a lot of vehicles disabled. If those are your tanks I would not attack again until almost all are repaired. They are the "hardest" part of your AV and have the best firepower contribution. You need them against his forts.

[apbarog]

I'll keep a close eye on the tanks. I do still think I'm making good progress though. The results say that the base is going to fall. I have a supply path from Buna, so that isn't a problem. I'm sending in more by small xAK soon, just to top units off. I believe that I can repeat these attacks. Maybe it won't be with just one day of rest. We'll see.

In addition, I'm just a few days from having the support parts of one of my infantry divisions at Lae make it there. Then I'll start reducing Lae also.