Attack Attack Attack - a Hotseat AAR

[Remington700]

Reports
Japan: No builds. Replacements increased to 300.

[Remington700]

Allied: December 5th 1943

Burma
Fairey dive-bombers pound elements of the Japanese 21st Army doing two SPs in damage. Follow-on airstrikes by Boston medium bombers (close support) further weaken the army’s effectiveness. The British 10th and 11th Corps plus the 3rd Indian Corps assault the position. SBD dive-bombers fly ground support while Hurricanes from the IAF intercept Nell bombers (close support) shooting 5 SPs out of the air. Damage to the enemy is heavy but they still hold. A second assault is launched forcing the Japanese infantry to retreat after losing another 4 SPs. The British 12th Corps exploits the breakthrough, and with support from the 3rd and Burma Corps hit elements of the 1st Army. The enemy’s position is weak and they are soon forced to retreat after taking heavy (4 SPs) loses. There is now a 100-mile breach in the line. The Waziristan Corps exploits the opening and falls on the flank of the retreating 21st Army, while the British 12th Corps hits them in the rear. It is too much; the full-strength light army is destroyed. The breakthrough is complete.

South China
Snow continues across the front and no action is taken. The idea is to preserve effectiveness to avoid the use of supply units.

China Seas
In the South China Sea the Growler sinks a Merchant Marine and successfully escapes the area before they can be located by escorting destroyers. The Wahoo is not as lucky and does not find a suitable target. A-20 Havocs out of Sarawak attack convoys sinking a Merchant Marine. In the East China Sea the Tang was not able to find a target however the Devilfish spots a merchant ship, immediately sinking her before making a successful escape. (It has been good hunting this turn – sinking three Merchant Marines without damage to a sub. All will stay on station for another turn.

[Remington700]

Borneo
The Australian 3rd Division lands to the south of Manando and prepares to capture the airfield. With the recent fall of Sorong, Operation Oboe is now complete. Air units will have the ability to stage anywhere from the tip of the New Guinea peninsula to the west side of Borneo on the South China Sea. The allies can now move in many directions making it that much harder for the enemy to defend everything at once.

With the invasion wrapped up in December it will be early next year before another operation can be launched. My original plan was to focus more on victory points capturing Kwajalein and getting something going on New Guinea. However with the openings on Borneo I took what was given. While I have not closed the gap with VPs it does open opportunities to stop the flow of oil to Japan. And has caused the heavily defended areas to pull forces back for defense in the South China Sea. Without the air unit in Tarawa, Kwajalein is much less secure. And Jayapura is looking vulnerable as an invasion route around the Birds Head would be covered by Allied forces in the Maluku Islands.

[Remington700]

New Guinea
Six airstrikes are launched from the northern coast of Australia. They will continue to wear down the defenders and hope to draw the Japanese fighters into a battle of attrition. There are two possible invasion points in New Guinea; either press southeast to Jayapura or hit Port Moresby and Milne Bay in the “bird’s tail”. With the amount of air units in North Australia we may be able to attack both areas at much the same time.

[Remington700]

Builds
UK: 1 Supply unit. 1 Oiler.
India: No Builds.
Canada: 2 Supply units.
US: 1 B-24 Strategic bomber.

Convoys
US: 15 OPs to United Kingdom.
US: 120 PPs and 10 OPs to India.

[Remington700]

Japan: December 19th 1943

Burma
Elements of the 1st Army and the Imperial Guards Division set up defensive positions on the east bank of the Salween River. General Yamashita’s HQ is set up south of the 1st Army positions with nothing between them and the enemy but a river. Four armies pull out of the dug in positions on the southern part of the line. The 12th Army anchors their left flank to the bay and will hold their position at all costs. The 41st Division makes their way to Rangoon to find it evacuated. The plan is to evacuate them by water if possible. If not, they will hold out for as long as they can.

South China
A warming trend as the snow changes to rain. The enemy is not aggressive, and the Japanese armies enjoy the gain in effectiveness.

Borneo
Borneo is lost. The enemy is reinforcing the island with heavy and medium bombers. This could cause damage to Japanese oil supply in the future. So far there has been nothing but an annoying raid that does little damage.

[Remington700]

Philippines
The defense across the theater is starting to improve. Victory Point cities are mostly defended by dug in small armies. Which is better than a division but still too weak to hold out without help. But there is still more to do. Two new CVLs join the battered Imperial Fleet in Manila. The group will be reorganized into the Combined Fleet consisting of two mobile Air divisions and a battleship division to escort the carriers. Support will be provided by light and heavy cruisers.

[Remington700]

Reports
Japan: 1 Infantry Army. Replacements lowered to 200.

Merchant Marine continues to drop but not at an alarming rate. There is still a 50 MM surplus. Oil reserves are at 83% and may grow a bit as the Combined Fleet sits in port.

The Victory Point gap continues to increase as time is on the Japanese side. Each month the difference widens and will continue to do so until three VP cities are lost.

[Remington700]

Allied: December 19th 1943

Burma
Multiple airstrikes are flown against the Japanese 41st Division in Rangoon. The strikes are contested by A6m3s from Thailand. Air losses are very high with the allies losing 16 air SPs compared to 12 SPs for the zeros. However the bombers continue to pound Rangoon softening up the enemy. Following on the heels of the bombardment the US 2nd Corps assaults the city. Their first attack is repulsed but the enemy losses 3 SPs. A second attack is launched and the enemy division is destroyed. Rangoon should fall next turn. The British Main Fleet steams offshore of Moulmein and sends an airstrike at the port. No damage is done but recon photos show the town is occupied by the 13th Army – not a division. The fleet remains in the area guarding against an enemy attempt to reinforce Rangoon at the last minute.

South China
The weather warms and the snow changes to rain. No action is taken on this front.

China Seas
In the South China Sea the Wahoo spots a light cruiser and fires off a couple of torpedoes before diving to avoid approaching destroyers. Depth Charges cause minor damage and out of supply the Wahoo will head back to Sydney for repairs and resupply. (This surprise attack was caused by accidentally leaving the sub in fleet mode. I got lucky it wasn't lost.) While on the hunt the Growler spots a Merchant Marine and sinks it before approaching destroyers can pinpoint her location. In the East China Sea both the Skipjack and the Tang come up empty. However, fortune smiles on the Devilfish as she sinks two Merchant ships. The port at Balikpapan is out of the way of enemy air units and will make a good submarine resupply base however a repair facility closer to the South China sea is a must. Singapore is looking very good right now.

Both the Devilfish and Wahoo were on their maiden voyage for seven turns, sinking a combined total of six Merchant Marine. This surpasses the record of six days held by the Skipjack and Swordfish. However, the Swordfish still has the most kills sinking 6 MMs and a Destroyer Escort before being sunk during a failed resupply attempt at New Caledonia.

[Remington700]

Borneo
The US has too many units in Borneo - supply should be affected next turn. This is by plan as both ground and air units will be traded out in preparation for the next naval operation. While the ports are secured patrols will be sent into the heart of the island to remove all Japanese control in the area.

The Australian 11th Division prepares to land on Celebes and capture Makassar. This is the last port in the area not yet under allied control.

Australia
Heavy rain returns and flight operations are grounded.

West Coast
The US 7th Corps embarks transports and ship out to Australia. The 5th Marines arrive in San Diego however their destination is unknown. They may stay in the area for special training. Scuttlebutt has it Kwajalein is next however nothing is confirmed.

[Remington700]

Advancements
US advancements have been modified. Carrier Operations just dinged ‘44 so all their tech has been spread around mainly to bump Escort Fighters to the max. 1944 Escort tech is a major jump and I want to hit that as soon as possible. I also bumped up Strategic Bombing as it is behind. It was turned off early on to get more tech in other areas. I would also like to get Long Range Subs to 1944 as that is probably as high as I will take them. This will free up an additional 6 points.

I have yet to figure out the best way to handle tech. I know there are diminishing returns. However, each level of tech requires more investment to get to the next level. Mathematically you would maximize efficiency by spreading out the points to keep the investment lower. But you will always be behind the curve fighting with obsolete tech compared to the enemy. I bounce the tech around a bit so I can speed things up with critical advancements. I also took two types of fighters which is probably not very smart. But I wanted to test the fighter bombers as I never used them in WarPlan.

[Remington700]

Builds
UK: No builds. Increased replacements to 250.
India: No builds. Increased replacements to 300.
Australia: 1 Division
Canada: 1 Landing Ship
US: No builds. Will use 100% PPs for replacements.

Convoys
US: 15 OPs to United Kingdom.
US: 100 OPs to India

[John B.]

Is Rangoon a VP city? That and Kawjalien should get the allies close to changing the balance and Singapore would be an added bonus. with the allies in Borneo and the fleet in Manila it must be tough to maintain supply to Singapore.

[Remington700]

ORIGINAL: John B.

Is Rangoon a VP city? That and Kawjalien should get the allies close to changing the balance and Singapore would be an added bonus. with the allies in Borneo and the fleet in Manila it must be tough to maintain supply to Singapore.

Yes Rangoon is a VP city, but it is not a supply source.

Due to a road rather than a rail from Ledo to Myitkyina, supply from an Indian source cannot reach Burma. Since Rangoon is not a supply source, supply must come from the east. Moulmein is the Burma supply source and without it, the Burma railroad will not be supplied.




Edited to remove an assumption that was incorrect.

[Remington700]

Japan: January 2nd 1944

Burma
The retreat continues across the Salween River. The Japanese infantry will hold the line here. The right will eventually link to the Mekong River, with the left anchored in Moulmein or 50 miles to the north. The full-strength 11th and 16th armies are in route to the area. Things are starting to look a little better however a foolish attack by Nell bombers on the British Main Fleet caused the loss of five air SPs by intercepting IAF Hurricanes. This was a waste of resources as there was nothing to be gained by the action.

South China
Snow returns to the area. Troops remain dug in and not moving to limit the loss of effectiveness.

[Remington700]

Dutch East Indies
Some shuffling around of troops. Another unit is needed in Java and Singapore. Saigon is a concern and will need greater protection once the 16th and 11th armies pass through it on their way to the Salween front.

Oil stockpile is at 81% which needs to increase. Upkeep remains in the low 20’s and supply has not been close to a problem – yet. However, the defense in the DEI is weak and oil supply could be shut down any month. Maximum capacity appears to be around 700 OPs which would last about a year and a half at normal usage.

[Remington700]

Reports
Japan: No builds this turn.

Encryption master keys are recoded and distributed.

[Remington700]

Allied: January 2nd 1944

Burma
The weather remains clear, working in the Allies favor. The enemy is forced to retreat across the Salween River where they appear to be setting up defensive positions. The Burma and 2nd Indian Corps cross the river to the far north of the line. Across the border a Chinese Long Range Penetration group following the beat-up Imperial Guards Division executes a perfect cross border raid. Catching the enemy by surprise they inflict a SP in damage. British and US corps move forward to the west bank of the rivers to prepare for a crossing.

Far south the key VP city of Rangoon is captured. This should open the Burma Road increasing supply to the line and to China. Which would double the supply currently provided by C-47s flying over the hump.

[Remington700]

South China
Snow falls as the Chinese units wait out the poor weather. With continued replacements and improved lend-lease equipment the Army is starting to grow stronger. Coupled with the Japanese reduction of force in the theater the future is looking brighter. Kunming and Chunking are secure.

Convoy Attacks
There was a total of twelve Allied attacks on enemy shipping in the major convoy lanes from the DEI to Japan. A total of five Merchant Marine were sunk, however air units only accounted for one of the kills. Submarines did the rest of the work. I was expecting more from the three air attacks. Regardless, at this rate shipping to Japan will be impacted in a few months. The Mingo and Tang took heavy damage from the attacks and will return to Sydney for repairs. I really need a level 5 port in this area.

Borneo
General Walter Short lands in Borneo to take command of allied forces in the Borneo Area. He will be organizing the defense of the island, maximizing supply and developing plans for future operations in the area. Naturally “Mac” is upset with this independent command as he wants control of the ground and air units to support operations in the Greater Australian Area. Plus, General Wavell wants the Borneo forces to fall under the command of SEAC, as do US forces in Burma.

[Remington700]

New Guinea
Airstrikes on Port Moresby are halted due to heavy rain. They will resume as the weather clears. Operation Tsunami – the invasion of Papua New Guinea (bird’s tail) is fraught with supply issues and may not be feasible in a standalone operation. Intel from the Coastwatchers indicate there are Japanese armies defending the Victory Point cities of Jayapura and Lae. Division level units hold Wewak and Port Moresby. There is no information on enemy dispositions in Milne Bay. The plan to invade New Guinea may be expanded to stretch the enemy’s defense.

West Coast
The US 8th Corps arrives in San Francisco. The 5th Marine Division remain in San Diego adding further fuel to the rumor mill. Where are these units going? (This is not a teaser – I am just not sure where to send them. I am thinking of hitting the Marshalls but am not sure of the timing and upkeep involved.

The US 7th Corps arrives from the West Coast and disembarks at Townsville.