The Good The Bad & The Indifferent

[Mike McCreery]

So much of it depends on the Japanese defense it is hard to identify a winning strategy every time.

[crsutton]

ORIGINAL: BillBrown

I like Raboul because he can spread out in all directions and clear up his sea lanes.

I think any level seven port is key. Marcus, Rabaul, Truk (6-?) I prefer Marcus but Dan has not taken much in NG and the Solomons to back it up. I you are going up NG or through the Central Pacific then sooner or later you will really need to take Manila. Late game play really demands a major advanced ship yard. Manila, Hong Kong or Singapore. One of them must be taken.

[BillBrown]

You typed Marcus, but I think you mean Manus(sp?)

[Canoerebel]

Hey, gents, just checking in during vacation. Here in North Myrtle Beach, SC, its raining, but me and the kids are heading down to the beach to ride the waves. In between, I ponder ways to vex John III. So far, I haven't dreamed about him, thankfully.

One of you guys seems to be inside my head. I won't mention who, right now, so that I don't give things away.

Big Tent has been "locked in" for about a month now, with lots of troops prepping. Thus far I haven't seen worrisome SigInt or base-building activity, so it should be good to go. But nearly every place you guys have mentioned (plus a few others) were considered before I made the selection.

You gents enjoy a nice Monday evening.

[alaviner]

Enjoy N Myrtle. Its one of my old stomping grounds

[Cap Mandrake]

Big Tent: The sudden fall of Wake should allow Big Tent to proceed on its original schedule. It will take the carriers a good ten days to return to Pearl, where Enterprise, Hornet and South Dakota will likewise be ready in ten days. The last inbound troop TF is 42 hexes from Pearl - probably six or eight days. So embarkation date might well be in two weeks.

Hmmm..this is fun.[:)]

Assuming the US Navy/Army have not yet instituted random operation naming, what could "Big Tent" mean?

1) The author has secretly wanted to join the circus and bring his contortionist act to the world but his parents wanted him to be Atticus Finch

2) FDR is secretly going to use the military to take out his GOP rivals

3) The name refers to the scope of the operation, perhaps implying multiple targets collected under one geographic area

4) It is someplace with elephants

Now, FDR did try to pack the Supreme Court and incarcerate thousands of US citizens in internment camps but option 2 seems over the big top

For option 1 you would think we would have seen at least some pictures along the way or some mention of "limbering up".

For option 4..where are the nearest elephants? Thailand? Why would you start at Pearl Harbor.

That leaves option 3.......

[Cap Mandrake]

Also, the capture of Wake is said to be "useful" ....removal of a land based air threat...removal of recon...staging of land based planes to move on to captured airfields during Big Tent?

Well, you don't need Wake to go after the Kuriles..unless the whole thing is a huge diversion. What is the next "Big Tent" of real estate? The Marinaras!

Of course, that could just be what we are supposed to deduce. [:)] The comment about "no recent building or recon" suggests a more ambitious plan with poorly guarded targets. This might mean the smaller islands of the Marinaras, Rota, Pagan, Anathan..or...

[BBfanboy]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

Big Tent: The sudden fall of Wake should allow Big Tent to proceed on its original schedule. It will take the carriers a good ten days to return to Pearl, where Enterprise, Hornet and South Dakota will likewise be ready in ten days. The last inbound troop TF is 42 hexes from Pearl - probably six or eight days. So embarkation date might well be in two weeks.

Hmmm..this is fun.[:)]

Assuming the US Navy/Army have not yet instituted random operation naming, what could "Big Tent" mean?

1) The author has secretly wanted to join the circus and bring his contortionist act to the world but his parents wanted him to be Atticus Finch

2) FDR is secretly going to use the military to take out his GOP rivals

3) The name refers to the scope of the operation, perhaps implying multiple targets collected under one geographic area

4) It is someplace with elephants

Now, FDR did try to pack the Supreme Court and incarcerate thousands of US citizens in internment camps but option 2 seems over the big top

For option 1 you would think we would have seen at least some pictures along the way or some mention of "limbering up".

For option 4..where are the nearest elephants? Thailand? Why would you start at Pearl Harbor.

That leaves option 3.......

Or maybe it just means a guy wearing loose pants at a "clothing optional" beach ....

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy
Or maybe it just means a guy wearing loose pants at a "clothing optional" beach ....

I know that guy. One time I was running along the bluff at Black's Beach in La Jolla and there is a UCSD maint. dude in his UCSD uniform sitting in a lawn chair with a big telescope checked out from the Astronomy Department.

[Cap Mandrake]

We should handicap it:

Morning Rine, Hirohito Handicap:

Marinaras: 8:5

Bonin Isrands: 3:1

Kurires: 4:1

Truk Ragoon: 5:1

Rabaurh: 20:1

Phirripines: 50:1

[BBfanboy]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

We should handicap it:

Morning Rine, Hirohito Handicap:

Marinaras: 8:5

Bonin Isrands: 3:1

Kurires: 4:1

Truk Ragoon: 5:1

Rabaurh: 20:1

Phirripines: 50:1

Truk + Pelelieu & Babeldaob: 14:3

[poodlebrain]

Observing CR's play, it appears to me that he favors strategies that lead him nearer the Japanese Home Islands over strategies that isolate Japanese forces via flanking maneuvers. So if I were setting odds on the target for Big Tent I would make the Marianas the favorite. I really went out on a limb there, didn't I?

As atonement for my reluctance to expose my posterior by making a bold prediction, I'll offer my concept of operation, Poodlebrain's Big Tent Proposal. Capturing the entire island chain in a single swoop is not a realistic possibility with the forces available. So I propose to do so in stages. The first stage would involve a main invasion of Tinian with a supporting invasion of Pagan. Stage 2 of the operation would be to secure the lines of communication and develop Tinian and Pagan into bases capable of supporting the stage 3 invasion of Guam and Saipan. I would expect the entire operation to take as much as six months to complete.

While Big Tent is being conducted I would be making thrusts at economic targets elsewhere that would require the Japanese to commit the IJN, and the KB in particular, for the Japanese to have a favorable chance of repulsing. Lots of fun to be had with the Allied navies in 1944, and much of the forces lost on Sumatra will have been replaced and needing something to do.

[poodlebrain]

Truk + Pelelieu & Babeldaob: 14:3

Truk is a tough nut to crack. I was going to propose going after one or more of the bases on the northwest coast of New Guinea, as an alternative to Truk, in combination with Pelelieu and Babeldaob. But I gave it less likelihood given my observation that CR prefers more direct approaches toward Japan, and the lines of communication would be long and exposed.

[Lokasenna]

ORIGINAL: poodlebrain

Observing CR's play, it appears to me that he favors strategies that lead him nearer the Japanese Home Islands over strategies that isolate Japanese forces via flanking maneuvers. So if I were setting odds on the target for Big Tent I would make the Marianas the favorite. I really went out on a limb there, didn't I?

As atonement for my reluctance to expose my posterior by making a bold prediction, I'll offer my concept of operation, Poodlebrain's Big Tent Proposal. Capturing the entire island chain in a single swoop is not a realistic possibility with the forces available. So I propose to do so in stages. The first stage would involve a main invasion of Tinian with a supporting invasion of Pagan. Stage 2 of the operation would be to secure the lines of communication and develop Tinian and Pagan into bases capable of supporting the stage 3 invasion of Guam and Saipan. I would expect the entire operation to take as much as six months to complete.

While Big Tent is being conducted I would be making thrusts at economic targets elsewhere that would require the Japanese to commit the IJN, and the KB in particular, for the Japanese to have a favorable chance of repulsing. Lots of fun to be had with the Allied navies in 1944, and much of the forces lost on Sumatra will have been replaced and needing something to do.

I'd say Bonins because they may be easier. They'd also trigger kamikazes, right?

What about the Kuriles? You don't necessarily need all of the Aleutians to snag the Kuriles (can't remember if CR has them or not).

[Cap Mandrake]

It's only October 43 so in terms of long range fighters we have:

P-38 G/H

P-51A and P-47D2 just starting to arrive.

Iwo Jima is 15 hexes from Yokahama. How much good does Iwo do the Allies in October 43?

On the other hand Etorofu, Toyahara, Shikuka, Uruppu Jima you can really start to pour it on.

[Cap Mandrake]

You take Shikuka for the airfield (clear hex) and snatch some of the Kuriles and start building. You bring 10+ AKE/AE, AO's and a ton of surface combatants to protect the nascent bases. The carriers hang out in the Sea of Okhotsk or the Northern Pacific and you load a few CVE's with P-38's and P-47's so they can fly off to any AF you capture.

It's nice to have a level 5 AF at Shemya but not absolutely necessary

[poodlebrain]

There are drawbacks to the Kuriles as an objective that give me pause. The first is the proximity to major Japanese bases. The IJN can recycle for combat so much faster than the USN. The effects of winter on base development and operations. The numbers of quality fighters are still low for establishing air superiority since defending against Kamikazes will also be a necessity.

[JohnDillworth]

IWO is of limited use even later in the game. It's annoying, but just not big enough to base a significant number if heavy bombers. Also, not much of a port. The other options would provide better strategic support

[crsutton]

Hmmmmm.... I am starting to get a feel for Dan. He likes to drive deep and grab something big where he can develop multiple supporting bases. Knowing the weakness of KB at this stage, (refitting and repairing) I am betting that he packs up everything he owns in his old suitcase and heads for the PI. That ole boy likes drama. I know he will try something new and big. [;)] We are not dealing with a "girly man" here. So, I will take the 50 to 1 bet......

[Insano]

Put me down for Ulithi / Yap and the base west of Truk in the middle of nowhere - can't remember the name right now.