Spanking Lowpe (NJP72 vs Lowpe (A))

[Lowpe]

Corsairs continue to do good work....here we sweep Rabaul:

Morning Air attack on Rabaul , at 106,125

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid spotted at 23 NM, estimated altitude 38,800 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2-N Rufe x 6
A6M5b Zero x 19
A6M5c Zero x 3
Ki-43-IIIa Oscar x 10

Allied aircraft
F4U-1 Corsair x 12

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2-N Rufe: 1 destroyed
A6M5b Zero: 5 destroyed
A6M5c Zero: 1 destroyed
Ki-43-IIIa Oscar: 1 destroyed

No Allied losses


CAP engaged:
802 Ku S-1 with A6M2-N Rufe (0 airborne, 4 on standby, 0 scrambling)
2 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 3000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 28 minutes
59th Sentai with Ki-43-IIIa Oscar (0 airborne, 7 on standby, 0 scrambling)
3 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 35000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 17 minutes
284 Ku S-1 Det A with A6M5c Zero (0 airborne, 2 on standby, 0 scrambling)
1 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 26 minutes
286 Ku S-1 with A6M5b Zero (0 airborne, 13 on standby, 0 scrambling)
6 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 15 minutes

[Lowpe]

This Iboat, SW of Pearl....sank a SC yesterday and damaged a Fletcher today. I had a squadron of 3 Fletchers chasing the Iboat...55 night experience, 71/85 Naval Aggression skipper...

Sub attack near Johnston Island at 171,113

Japanese Ships
SS I-6

Allied Ships
DD Aulick, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
DD Strong

SS I-6 launches 2 torpedoes at DD Aulick
I-6 diving deep ....
DD Strong attacking submerged sub ....
DD Strong fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Strong fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Strong attacking submerged sub ....
DD Strong fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

[RangerJoe]

That is one lucky I-boat with a good skipper!

[Lowpe]

Mid May, 1943

Got my first Essex.

Got my first Jugs squadron.

Got the Aden route open. UK to Aden...Aden to India.

Ceylon Invasion going well will take the shipyards in two days.

Japan starting to take some of the left behind island north of New Guinea.

Japan lost 23 airplanes to 2 Allied this day...continuing the bleed. Franks should start to show up soon...

[Lowpe]

May 15th, 1943

The superiority of Fletchers during a daytime fight:

a.jpg (225 KiB) Viewed 1522 times

[Lowpe]

Stymie the Japanese air forces at distance is still tough, but doable....used a juicy heavy cruiser to draw attacks off the Fletchers forward.

a.jpg (633.41 KiB) Viewed 1520 times

[Lowpe]

Colombo should fall shortly...will switch prep to one of the islands to the west.

a.jpg (568.44 KiB) Viewed 1519 times

[Lowpe]

Forts lowered again...not good.

a.jpg (470.62 KiB) Viewed 1518 times

Ground combat at Chungking (76,45)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 111853 troops, 1459 guns, 2605 vehicles, Assault Value = 4002

Defending force 201707 troops, 43 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 6372

Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 4

Japanese adjusted assault: 1886

Allied adjusted defense: 7643

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 4 (fort level 4)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), leaders(+), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
21140 casualties reported
Squads: 74 destroyed, 1220 disabled
Non Combat: 25 destroyed, 356 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 212 disabled
Guns lost 113 (4 destroyed, 109 disabled)
Vehicles lost 453 (75 destroyed, 378 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
6095 casualties reported
Squads: 81 destroyed, 447 disabled
Non Combat: 25 destroyed, 139 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

[Lowpe]

May 16th 1943

a.jpg (473.18 KiB) Viewed 1438 times

You get attacks like this every now and then....prep at 88, disruption and fatigue low, enemy forts not impressive and bombed and bombarded quite a bit. Still the base will fall...they simply can't stand up to the bombardments and have supply malus.

Ground combat at Kavieng (106,122)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 3917 troops, 67 guns, 35 vehicles, Assault Value = 125

Defending force 4493 troops, 14 guns, 5 vehicles, Assault Value = 116

Allied adjusted assault: 22

Japanese adjusted defense: 387

Allied assault odds: 1 to 17 (fort level 2)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), preparation(-)
experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: leaders(-)

Japanese ground losses:
38 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
174 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 18 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled

Assaulting units:
129th Infantry Regiment

Defending units:
I/19th Naval Guard Unit
40th Inf Group Bde /13
23rd Medium Field Artillery Regiment

[BBfanboy]

That supply malus might only apply to one of the units there ... but the others should not be far behind.

[Lowpe]

That supply malus might only apply to one of the units there ... but the others should not be far behind.

You are quite correct...

The pacing of the game should pick up now that all the April upgrades are done, I notice there are a ton June upgrades and conversions coming up...will probably do them piecemeal as the tempo of the game needs to pick up.

SC get radar and the type 9...much longer range but 1/3rd less effect and identical accuracy....

[Lowpe]

May 17th, 1943

Colombo taken on first attack...forts level 4.

a.jpg (432.63 KiB) Viewed 1377 times

[Lowpe]

Our narrow line advance will get us into the Moluccas shortly...but we will be very vulnerable to raids and attacks as the thrust of our assault is very narrow...But Japan lacks runways and most likely troops to defend....I will be very aggressive. Ultimately I would like to land in Mindanao in two months and be around Luzon in three.

a.jpg (569.63 KiB) Viewed 1376 times

[Lowpe]

Spotted the KB in the southern Arafur Sea along with two large merchant convoys further to the north around Boela...the death star near Horn, but I am not going into the Arafur Sea with it...kind of showing the flag...to allow our smaller ships to keep pushing up the New Guinea Coast...

[Capt. Harlock]

May 16th 1943


Allied adjusted assault: 22

Japanese adjusted defense: 387

Allied assault odds: 1 to 17 (fort level 2)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), preparation(-)
experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker: leaders(-)

Are the Keystone Kops your regimental staff?

[Lowpe]

Yep, Capt--- another attack!

May 20, 1943

Ground combat at Kavieng (106,122)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 3903 troops, 67 guns, 35 vehicles, Assault Value = 119

Defending force 4319 troops, 4 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 102

Allied adjusted assault: 22

Japanese adjusted defense: 63

Allied assault odds: 1 to 2 (fort level 2)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), preparation(-), supply(-)
Attacker: leaders(-)

Japanese ground losses:
76 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 5 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
129 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

Assaulting units:
129th Infantry Regiment

Defending units:
I/19th Naval Guard Unit
40th Inf Group Bde /13

[Lowpe]

Manage to ding a battleship retreating from Kavieng...
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Manus at 101,117

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 73 NM, estimated altitude 19,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 34 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5b Zero x 12
A6M5c Zero x 4
F1M2 Pete x 6
Ki-43-IIIa Oscar x 20

Allied aircraft
TBF-1 Avenger x 14

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
TBF-1 Avenger: 5 destroyed, 5 damaged

Japanese Ships
BB Yamato
BB Kongo
BB Mutsu, Torpedo hits 1

Aircraft Attacking:
14 x TBF-1 Avenger launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 22.4in Mk 13 Torp.

CAP engaged:
202 Ku S-1 Det B with A6M5c Zero (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 3 being recalled, 1 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 2000 , scrambling fighters to 9000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 29 minutes
24th Sentai with Ki-43-IIIa Oscar (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(3 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 20 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 17000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 6 minutes
286 Ku S-1 with A6M5b Zero (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 12 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 19000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 19000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 10 minutes
Yamato-1 with F1M2 Pete (0 airborne, 4 on standby, 1 scrambling)
1 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 2000 , scrambling fighters between 15000 and 20000.

[Lowpe]

May 24th, 1943

We get a 2-1 at Kavieng but the stubborn Japanese troopers fail to yield.

a.jpg (231.21 KiB) Viewed 1066 times

[Lowpe]

May 26, 1943

The New Guinea front....will get some experience at protecting a long think loc.

a.jpg (396.74 KiB) Viewed 974 times

[Lowpe]

May 28th, 1943

Ceylon retaken...

a.jpg (410.29 KiB) Viewed 928 times