Lambs to the slaughter (Lowpe (J) vs Jocke; BillBrown (A)) Finished

[Lowpe]

My attempts at wiping out two divisions and one brigade continue. Bad weather socks in the twin engine bombers, but Oscars fly. Nicks are resting.

[Lowpe]

Nice. Miss a 2-1 by about 20 AV.

[Lowpe]

Midway. One tank unit is at 0 AV the Canadians at 16. Divebombers make their runs and encounter no flak. Perhaps the time is now to unleash the SNLF and armored cars?

[Lowpe]

In a holding pattern for another day.

[Lowpe]

The question for the Allies is are they willing to lose 10 bombers a day hitting the troops north of Shwebo to prevent the destruction of two more Allied units...and the answer is he almost certainly has to.

The troops were swept heavily by Jugs and Corsairs. No resistance in the air from Japan.

[Lowpe]

There are so many good targets for Allied bombers...where they are sent tells me a lot of what the Allies value.

[Lowpe]

The Myrt is in the future for Japan, but tomorrow I will allocate a r&d factory to it.

I still have two more big groups of r&d facilities to roll into new planes...from the A6M8 and the Tony lines.

I am hard pressed right now to figure out what to do with them....given this is a pdu off game. That eliminates the kamikazes. All the late war fighters except for Ki94II don't have many squadrons.

Maybe something really exotic? Or just a real bum rush into the Ki94II?

[Lowpe]

Perhaps the Ki83 twin engine fighter is worth r&d...at least 4 squadrons of Oscars upgrade to it...so that is a large improvement...unlike going for final George to Shinden for example.

Patsy might be a choice as is the Kikka. It is really tough picking end game planes in pdu off...would be a real headache without tracker.[&o]

[Lowpe]

Nov 13, 1943

Midway...despite being about 1/3rd overstacked disruption is low. Might attack again today.

[Lowpe]

On the move!

[Lowpe]

Burma

[ny59giants]

What troops do you have on the trail between Akyab and Ramree Island?

[Lowpe]

Burma western defenses, prepping for offensive action

[Lowpe]

No turn back from Jocke until Saturday morning at the latest, perhaps Friday night if we are lucky.

Then no turn Tuesday thru Friday of next week.

I suspect Midway caused a change of enthusiasm for the game as we went from flipping turns as fast as I sent them to these droughts and barely getting in one turn a day. Droughts like this are natural, and to be expected in a long term game and really no big deal.

Looking back at Midway, it is I am sure hard to understand how I could penetrate a 120 plane fighter CAP and only lose 1 Zero and 0 fighters to it (flying mostly inferior fighters to boot). I know Jocke felt like he has never won a CV engagement in playing this game (against Obvert or MrKane) and I am sure he is hideously disappointed in his CVE performance at Midway.

To the degree that Midway slowed his future plans down, I don't know. Will he have to prep fresh troops to take Midway, or can he bypass it? Do you need Midway to advance across the Aleutians and into the Kuriles or can you live without it. Or is an assault on the Marianas his goal while they are still relatively weakly held?

Japan gets a dozen regiments over the next four days or so...and they will perform wonders filling out my lines...

So, we are left wondering what will happen at Midway with another a deliberate attack...can I wipe out the Canadian Tank unit there (and what does Canadian replacement pools look like?).

And then there is the attack on the 32nd Division, 77th LRP Bde, and the Indian division isolated in the jungle NE of Shwebo...another attack there coming only 1 day after the last attack. I wonder if Jocke has cottened onto the idea that leaving a starved size 1 base in the malaria season for the jungle doomed those troops?

And if I can get two days without 4E bombing North of Shwebo, then there is the chance of crushing two more Allied divisions and lots of AA.

Finally, where is the deathstar going. Invasion or supply/reinforcements to Darwin which must have no supplies, no engineers and no flak since nothing has happened there except IJAAF bombers running milk runs.

All these questions, and more will be answered sometime in the future.

[Alfred]

Well, if one were to speculate ....[:)]
 
Your opponent is clearly attempting to work several axes simultaneously.
 
1.  Alaska/Aleutians.
 
2.  Midway/Central Pacific.
 
3.  Northern New Guinea/Solomons.
 
4.  Eastern DEI (probable as per enemy carrier units in Gulf of Carpentaria).
 
5.  Burma.
 
 
As to #1, with Seward consolidated he can move on Anchorage and island hop across the Aleutians.  This campaign is self propelled but only once both Seward and Kodiak are consolidated.  There is no need for Midway to be Allied.
 
As to #2, Midway per se is not indispensable for a CenPac campaign.  However, carrier support is indispensable.  The Midway victory, at least in the short term, has almost certainly destroyed the Allied carrier and a substantial part of the ancillary amphibious assets which had been earmarked for this campaign.  I doubt that the Allies are disposed to relocating (before they have accomplished their current tasks) from elsewhere the necessary assets to quickly revive this axis.  The focus here will probably swing to solely finishing the recapture of Hawaii.  Again, Allied possession of Midway is not absolutely essential, although it is useful to safeguard SLOC, for a CenPac drive towards the Marianas.
 
As to #3, once Rabaul is consolidated this will become an island hopping Allied campaign which can proceed without substantial Allied carrier assets.  It is not a campaign where the KB is likely to be effective as there will be too many interlocking Allied airbases.
 
As to #4, a resupply of Darwin would almost certainly be incorporated into an eastern DEI offensive anyway.  You should not assume those Allied carrier assets in the Gulf of Carpentaria are only tasked with the passive objective of escorting a supply convoy.  Assume they are ultimately aiming for Ambon/Timor with the aim of eliminating your Boela/Babo oil source and down the track your Makassar Strait oil convoys from Java/eastern Borneo.  This axis is an existential threat to you.  Although the lack of sea room here is a malus for KB operations it is also a problem for Allied carriers who face the additional problem of confronting Japanese interlocking airbases.
 
As to #5, much depends on two considerations:
 

• do the Allies really want to rescue the trapped LCUs northeast of Shwebo (and are also aware they have other Allied divisions facing potential destruction and thus potential rescue)
• do they have substantial uncommitted LCUs here or are they already committed/on board ships in the Gulf of Carpentaria/held back for a #6 axis involving a direct assault out of the western wormhole on Sumatra/Java

I point out the possibility that the Allies may not really care much about their trapped units in Burma because it may all be a sophisticated ruse to get you to commit your reserves to Burma and thus make #4 (and if there is also a #6) much easier for the Allies.
 
Based on the above, the KB needs to be positioned to confront #4 (and if #6 is also on the cards, that too) before interlocking Allied airbases become available.  This is why the KB is largely irrelevant for confronting #1, #2 (in the short term), #3 and #5.  It is why you were very wise to not allow the KB to "exploit" the Midway victory.
 
As always, passive defence will not succeed in defending against a well orchestrated Allied invasion.  What is needed to defeat an Allied sea borne invasion is control of the air and sea.  With control there is a chance of defeating them on the beaches or bringing in reinforcements/allowing counter invasion.
 
Alfred

[Lowpe]

November 14, 1943

Early morning search flight confirms the direction and heading of the Deathstar and company.

[Lowpe]

Barely miss a 2-1 again, but no Allied bombing here, but rather against the two isolated Australian units to the west. IJNAF sweep finds no cap present.

I believe the Allies have written off these three units.

[Lowpe]

Looking very good at Midway.

[Lowpe]

A significant increase in Japanese military strength will occur over the next few days!

Plus tomorrow two Sentai of Georges arrive![:)]

[Lowpe]

AA concentrations in Burma do very nice work...this is the third day of losses like this. That the AA is not suppressed or even heavily damaged yet is great.

However, the Allies have been resting their B29 force which bothers me.

Magwe is left alone, and the runway service area is almost fully repaired now.