Turnaround? Lowpe (J) vs Tiemanj (A) Stock

[Lowpe]

Luzon/Southern China/Formosa

Still playing games out here. Luzon to the SRA has supply.

[Lowpe]

I have been thinking about the situation here, and surprise, surprise it isn't all bad. I think I will certainly see October, and in all likelihood see Nov and then it is just a hop, skip, and jump till Dec and the goal of Jan 1, 1945.

The Allies will consolidate western Honshu, and if I can get all my troops back to eastern Honshu, should have a solid month to prepare for another Allied invasion with the possibility I could actually stop this one on the beach given my high forts on eastern Honshu...

A lot depends upon the evacuation, and also how quickly the Allies push forward. I know they like invading with minimal unit prep and perhaps this will actually benefit me this next time.

I also note that the Allies are moving troops to Osaka, and perhaps he will renew a fight there. I presently have forts 3 there in the urban heavy terrain, and fighting there does suit me.

[Lowpe]

What is left of the IJN?

I have two battleships with 30-40 system damage and some devices destroyed on each. They are in size 4 and size 5 ports with naval support out the gazoo trying to get it down. Can't go to pier side status for fear of B29s.

The CV Katsuragi and 4 destroyers is hiding in the Luzon area. One CV is totally worthless around Honshu, but she may raid somewhere...

Two CL's and 3 destroyers were raiding on the western map but have yet to find anything.

The rest of the destroyers 6-8 are in China or with the battleships or disbanded in port fixing damage at a snails pace as they are in size 3-5 ports.

[String]

So what would be your tips on how to use (or not to use) the SST's?

[Lowpe]

Finished the turn, and we are abandoning western Honshu. Sigh.

If the Allies are smart and aggressive it could go poorly...we shall see.

I did put 17 Judys' on a short range naval strike out of Moppo hoping to hit something. Escort is a measly 10 Oscars...

I did manage to get the 2nd Tank Division back to Honshu where it is rebuilding.

The 1st Tank Division is at Fusan, tomorrow I will try to get it to Shimoneski/Fukuoka.

[Lowpe]

ORIGINAL: String

So what would be your tips on how to use (or not to use) the SST's?

The first SST, the type Yu (10 of them), have a capacity of 40 and a range of 75 hexes, using 5 fuel a day. Their only gun is a 37mm AA.

Put in charge a timid naval officer. Set the task force to safe, low routing levels, cruise speed.

Never run out of fuel with these guys. They will die by either to air or enemy forces very quickly.

Don't disband them to port except where absolutely safe from strikes.

Since they are such fuel hogs, the best place to use them is in the SRA. The Central Pacific isn't so great because of their thirst. A secondary decent place is the Japanese Islands area or even the Yellow Sea if you have imbalance in Chinese supply late game. Perhaps running supply from Hokkiado to Kuriles/Marcus depending up on the game...

You can have them arrive in 43, but don't force their use. Save them for late game when you need them.

They work best running supply from bypassed SRA production centers...away from the deathstar, heavy aerial ASW search routes.

At only 40 units of capacity think about the impact those supplies will have versus the risk of running a 20+ VP gift to them.

Currently I am using them from Miri to China. They can make several runs a month, and China needs all the supplies I can get her, while the risk of blundering into the deathstar is very low currently.

[ny59giants]

Those American attack bombers can handle themselves pretty well. If they get in front of them with all those guns, your fighters are goners!

[Lowpe]

Sept 13, 1944

I have gotten in the habit of sending out one xak with a very strong ASW force, as much as 48 ASW guns, in an effort to sink more submarines.

Here I trade an xak for a submarine. I will take it.

[Lowpe]

The 14th was one day to late in arriving. However, today she manages many hits but nothing that will change the course of the invasion.

[Lowpe]

The Iboat also has a try on the Queen Elizabeth but can't penetrate the screens.

Good effort, and even better, still alive.

[Lowpe]

Getting a few licks in. Really need to sink ships or destroy troops or planes for the VP. It is all about inflicting VP damage now -- with the exception of sidelining the battleships. Their bombardments are killers.



6 good hits, 15cm and smaller, leaves the ship on fire. Allies embed one cargo ship to offload supply in two different taskforces so they can bombard every phase with battleships and cruisers and destroyers and those pesky gun landing craft. I will change that statement to say that other ships in the Amphibious TF must have unloaded quicker...it just seems like there was on ship unloading.

[Lowpe]

Can you say painful.[&:]

Relentless bombardments, followed by heavy bombing, followed by more bombardments.

The outcome, expected. The troops retreat to Kobe, and a Tank Regiment is in pursuit and makes it there too. That part isn't good.

[Lowpe]

Here is the picture.

[Lowpe]

An incredibly important turn coming up. How aggressively will the Allies pursue a breakout and in what directions.

That they didn't march on Fukuoka is a mistake, if in fact he isn't moving there. My recon at this stage of the game leaves a lot to be desired.

The tank unit in Kobe doesn't hurt, but if he moves west and stops the railroad line there it will hurt. We seem to have a general move by the eastern Allied troops into Osaka.

I am more worried about cutting off the eastern troops, I dearly want them back at Kobe but I fear for them.

I have had to move a generous amount of supply to Hiroshima and Fukuoka in case I can't extricate my troops. They can make last stands there and hopefully run down the clock...but my first choice is to get them and the supplies back to Kobe and Osaka and eastern Honshu.

[Lowpe]

Orders don't get cancelled, and some Betties fly with predictable results. My bad, again!

[Lowpe]

Ship losses for the day.

[Lowpe]

This is the success for the day.

Over the last two days I have had 5 more E's break out of the blockade at Tokyo/Yokohama and get out into the ocean! Hurrah!

Tomorrow, I am trying with 8 more.

The trick is to assign the E's to Escort task forces, and then when they encounter the Allied blockade of Fletchers, they avoid, and with the lowish moonlight, and poor weather, they are avoiding combat!

If I can get 13 Super E's into the SRA/Luzon/Mindanao areas they can get some victory points by sinking subs!

Doesn't seem like a lot to be happy about, but I am ecstatic.[:)]

You have to click on each task force, each day because they revert back to surface TF otherwise. That is the only downfall of this tactic.

[richlove]

I have gotten in the habit of sending out one xak with a very strong ASW force, as much as 48 ASW guns, in an effort to sink more submarines.

Are you sending it out as a separate Cargo TF, trailed by / following an ASW TF? Or are the escorts part of the cargo TF? This is an interesting tactic; please share more.

[Lowpe]

Here are the Allied subs sunk in the last 60 days roughly....most of the depth charge subs are sunk for sure.

If in the next two months I can sink another twenty, that is a pretty good VP haul for me.

[Lowpe]

This is my best killer group out there now. They have three subs under their belt I believe.

The Allied subs just slaver for the AS...I think I have sunk three subs in two weeks, and run supplies.

It seems the bait merchant ship needs to be big to attract attacks reliably. Loaded might help even more. Or perhaps what I have seen is a function of the aggressiveness of the Allied skippers? Perhaps both.

The 2000 unit tankers also make for great bait ships, and if the ship dies who cares, but I think the Allies see the fuel cargo burning message, and send in even more subs. Heck, I don't care -- I am swimming in fuel and oil and the little tanker is worth peanuts.

One thing I haven't done is to spend PP on the captains of the bait ships...perhaps if I did they would avoid sub attacks? Or dodge the torpedoes?

I have done this with Tonan Whalers lately too. They can eat a torpedo or two and live if empty.

Another neat thing, is that only a portion of the ASW ships show up on the combat report, so I think it is hard for the Allies to get a handle on this tactic.