Quisling! An AFB does Japan (No PanzerKat)

[John B.]

This turn I'm set up for potentially three attacks on Scott's roaming armor in China. The one on the right may not happen, it depends on whether or not I cross the river in one turn in move mode. Or, Scott may just run away.

BTW, my West Coast raiding force is not close enough to the HI to fly most of its planes home. This is very helpful in case Scott sinks the ships at least he won't get points for the planes.

[RangerJoe]

ORIGINAL: John B.

. . . any day I don't get punched in the face is a good day.

There are worse things than getting punched in the face:

[GetAssista]

ORIGINAL: John B.
More good news on the sub front!

You sure know how to handle your subs in the anti CV role [:)]
How many torp hits on CVs that would make for the whole game, over 20 already?

[John B.]

@ RangerJoe, that is true, very true!

@ GetAssista, I don't know to tell you the truth. But, they do seem to be my best anti-carrier arm.

[John B.]

December 6th is in the record books. My flak over Nagasaki seems to have done an ok job this time with reports of 12 B-24s short down. He did sink the Mushashi which was inevitable and some auxiliary forces. I had slight edge in air to air combat and in China I pushed around two of this armored units.

[John B.]

That sinking feeling (pun intended) when you realize you only have a little while before you meet your maker. Amazingly one of the Es survived the aeriel onslaught long enough to scuttle. I feel sorry for the pixel sailors that have 1,000 miles to any dry land, but they are joyful to have save the Emperor a VP.

[John B.]

Pretty slow day. The most amazing news is that my carrier raiders made it back from the US in one piece! For some reason Scott did not hunt them down. So, it's time for them to go rest for a bit and then go raiding again!

[John B.]

Scott bombed the Shanghai airfield with unescorted heavies and lost several to my CAP. I'll take that trade for the Helens that he blew up. Also, my AA boys over Nagasaki got in a few more licks on his bombers there which do not seem to have done as well this turn as in strat raids in the past.

[John B.]

Another day and more strat bombing of Nagasaki. I continue to place my CAP over Fukokua and Hiroshima with some over other major cities in case Scott tries a surprise deep raid. More strat warfare hits and more heavy bombers lost to AA. I'm on the losing end of that equation, but it is letting me build up my fighter arm for what that's worth.

[John B.]

The key battle right now is in China where my divisions have continued to hold off Scott despite day after day of savage air bombardment. I (and this is a mistake) have no AA in the hex so Scott has 200 or so dive bombers hit it every turn. It has held on now in the face of that and daily shock attacks from the allied forces.

[John B.]

The 104th was the division that was originally in the hex and it was able to get to level 2 entrenchments. The other three divisions were from teh south, and were pounded from the air for several turns in the rough terrain hex (no cover) as they retreated north. I've moved one of those divisions out (it's in the rough terrian hex immediately to the east) and hope to be able to get it some rest if it can clear out.

[John B.]

As you can see, the 104th is a very good unit. Disrupted, but very high morale and experience.

[John B.]

But it has been shock attack after shock attack. Sometimes Scott takes more losses and sometimes less but I would think that at some point his troops would become too fatigued and he'd have to stop for a few turns. That point has not yet happened.

[RangerJoe]

He maybe only shocking with a few units, especially the armour, and rotating them.

If his dive bombers are not escorted, can you strongly CAP that hex and/or put some fighters on LRCAP from where they are coming from?

[John B.]

I've thought about the LRCAP but he sweeps over the hex every turn with a number of fighter groups and I don't have the fighters to spare (plus LRCAP won't stay in the hex very long). Scott also uses some of his various B-29 groups to go airfield hunting in China so I have to keep rotating units. I think my boys just grin and bear it.

[John B.]

Another day and more death in the Pacific. Pretty quiet turn in the air. Scott dumped a large number of bombs on the airfields at Kagoashima which I had just evacuated so I count that as a victory (every bomb that is not a start bomb is win).

[John B.]

Scott did another shock attack in China and it appears that Ranger Joe is correct. this time he shock attacked with his armor. But, my boys still held.

[John B.]

And, I saw convoys running near guam so some Betty and Frances Kamikazes went in and found a couple of juicy targets. Now each of the LSI(L)s took two Kamikaze hits (the plane plus two 250 kg bombs and 40 60 kg bombs) so I really hope they go down especially given how soft skinned they are. But, despite reports of heavy damage and fires, there were no sinking sounds or loss reports. I'll just have to hope that in the next turn if they're still there another wave of Kamis can get to them.

[John B.]

On December 10th I caught one of Scott's annoying dive bomber flights over China and fewer planes made it home. I also had a good flak turn over my two armored divisions next to Kienshen. I"m not going to assault with them anymore as he now has four armored units in the city. But, I do have a number of AA units there and, as long as he's willing to bomb me I'm willing to pretend like I'm crossing the river.

No Kamikazes flew but I did get some MTBs into an AK convoy off of Tangeshima (sp?) and sank three of them for the loss of four MTBs.

Any turn with no disasters and no strat bombing is a win for the Empire of Japan!

[John B.]

One thing that I'm diong in china is sending my own AKs, that are not ever going to do anything else, to pick up the 1,000-2,000 fuel that is in each port (and each river port) and deliver it to Shanghai. Shanghai has 165 heavy industry that needs fuel to run so I might as well get some use out of all that fuel that will otherwise just sit around. I'm doing the same on a smaller scale from Port Arthur to Kiejo.