A Competitive GW (Solo) Scenario by the Numbers.

[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Cape St. Vincent.

(1) German U-boat & Italian Sub searches is the official start to the Axis worldwide "Operation Drumbeat".
(2) And it starts off poorly with the U-boats & Subs unable to find the allied CPs.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Bay of Biscay. Naval Search. Round 1 (1/2).

(1) Next opportunity for Worldwide Operation Drumbeat occurs in the Bay of Biscay.
(2) It turns in a messy naval air to air battle than the allies come out on top.
(3) However; German U-boats & Italian subs remain and look for the Italian naval air & fighter coverage to assist in their search for allied convoys.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Bay of Biscay. Naval Search. Round 1 (2/2).

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Bay of Biscay. Naval Search. Round 2 (1/2).

(1) German U-boats & Italian subs finally find allied CPs and wreak extreme havoc on them.
(2) 6 USN/RN CPs are sunk, 3 aborted for the cost of 1 U-boat flotilla sunk & 1 damaged.
(3) That's 1.2 million gross metric tons of allied shipping sunk & 0.6 metric tons aborted.
(4) This indeed is, or starts?, the second happy time for German U-boats.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Bay of Biscay. Naval Search. Round 2 (2/2).

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Atlantic Theater.

Bay of Biscay. Naval Search. Round 3.

(1) With no allied CPs left in the Bay of Biscay, Ge U-boats & It subs do not COMMIT & instead decide to save their powder for when/if allies replenish the lost/aborted CPs in BoB.
(2) Both searches miss, which is just fine with the axis.
(3) There is a 20% chance of the turn ending without the allies getting an opportunity to mitigate these losses.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Pacific Theater.

China Sea. Naval Search. Round 1 (1/2).

(1) On the other side of the world IJN I-boats fulfill Japan's promise and honor to Worldwide Operation Drumbeat & search for allied supply CP in the China Sea.
(2) This search is more about interdicting USN/RN supply to China than disrupting convoy lines.
(3) Regardless, this is a desperate search which turns out badly for the I-boats searching.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Pacific Theater.

China Sea. Naval Search. Round 1 (2/2).

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. CBI.

Arabian Sea. Naval Search. Round (1/2).

(1) This last search of Worldwide Operation Drumbeat is a desperate, most likely suicide, search.
(2) And indeed it turn out sucididal.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. CBI.

Arabian Sea. Naval Search. Round (2/2).

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Western Front.

(1) Both Italy & Japan took a combine.
(2) Only move by Italy was a rail of Cavellero HQ-I from Genoa, Italyt to Toulouse, France.
(3) This rail put 2 Italian & 1 German MIL corps in supply.
(4) Euro axis do need a reliable supply source for the Wehrmacht mech army stationed in Marsellies.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Pacific Theater.

(1) Japan's only move (land/rail) of their combine was the move AT div from Sabelo to Fukuoka.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Western Front.

Luftwaffe & Italian Air Force Rebase.

(1) Luftwaffe FW-190 6-range FTR wing reassigned/rebased from Med (Leghorn) to Brest to replace the naval support fighter wing lost in the highly successful naval battle of the Bay of Biscay.
(2) Italian Re 2002 FTR wing rebases from Naples to E1-Milan to provide reactive air defense coverage of Turin (2 factories), Mil (3 factories) & Trieste (1 factory) or 6 factories total.
(3) Italian CR 42 FTR wing rebases from Salerno to SE1-Rome to provide reactive air defense coverage of Rome (2 factories) & Naples (1 factory) or 3 factories total.
(4) However, these rebases leave the 1 factory in Taranto uncovered.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Axis #8. Axis Command.

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End of Turn Check.

(1) Axis wanted the turn to end, especially given the devastation to allied Atlantic CP lines without the opportunity of the RN/USN to mitigate.
(2) However, that was not to be with an EOT D10 = 5, with the allies breathing a BIG sigh of relief.

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Allied #11. Allied Command.

(3) Ok weather for the allies; especially for Formosa and Southern China (i.e., North Monsoon).
(4) However; US & CW land actions in these areas will be constrained by the need for RN/USN naval moves to replace/mitigate CP losses & aborts in the Bay of Biscay.
(5) USN & RN Atlantic naval command will have their work cut out for them to not only replace losses but consideration of the minimizing exposure of convoy lines through the Bay of Biscay.

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Available Western Allied CPs.

(6) USN & RN CPs organized, in port & available to replace/mitigate Bay of Biscay CP losses.
(7) It likely that both the US & CW will be taking combines.
(8) CW may even be taking a naval.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Allied #11. Impulse #147. Allied Command.

Actions.
(1) CW does indeed take a naval in order to mitigate RN/USN losses/aborts in the Bay of Biscay.
(2) USA, France take a combine & USSR & China a land.
(3) Part of the Western Allied mitigation is to stop shipment (for production initially or to be saved) of all North & South American Oil to the UK.
(4) Instead these oil are routed to Canada to be stockpiled.
(5) US to CW (2 BPs) lend lease takes priority over resource shipment.
(6) Accounting for that the CW pre mitigation has 15 of 22 factories & 3 food in flames production for a total of 27 BPs.
(7) This gives the UK 81.8% production; however that must be measured against the 115.2% achievable with 3 (max) food in flames & not against 100% as is everyone else.
(8) The CW has 9 oil stockpiled in the UK, so barring the near impossible; CW & Western Allied production including all lend lease will be at 100% this turn.
(9) The issue is how few UK stockpiled oil can the CW get away using for all that.
(10) A overriding and inflexible factor is that the Western Allies will NOT send replacement CPs into, or attempt to go through, the Bay of Biscay or Cape St. Vincent and risk more devastating U-boat & Sub attacks.
(11) Also, the Western Allies will move to mitigate the risk in Cape St. Vincent in case the turn continues (50%) and the axis U-boats & subs in CSV get another shot.
(12) 50% last impulse of turn.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Allied #11. Pacific Theater.

Port Strike. Canton, China.

(1) Worth the shot with the hard constraint that NO CAG in the China Sea with TAC factor(s) can be used.
(2) These CAGs are needed for the US assault to take the objective Taihoku, Formosa.
(3) Primary target of the USN port strike is the IJN TRS Gp.
(4) The port strike was a bust & almost was a disaster costing the USN a CAG.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Allied #11. Allied Command.

Mitigated CP Lines & Production.

(1) 4 CW, 2 US CPs -> Faeroes Gap (16 total) (US NM 1/3).
(2) 2 CW, 1 US CP -> North Atlantic (15 total) (US NM 2/3).
(3) 3 US CP. Singora -> The Marianas (4 total), 2 US CP will RTB at EOT & next turn complete the route need to ship the Formosa RP to US factory.
(4) The CP totals in the Faeroes Gap & North Atlantic violates one of my goals (not golden rule) and that is to keep the number of CPs in any sea area under sub threat at 10 or less.
(5) However; not wanting to send CPs into, or through, a sea area (i.e., Bay of Biscay & Cape St. Vincent) that allows, or could allow, axis subs to search was a hard constraint (i.e., direct order for the Admiralty).
(6) The mitigated CP lines will require only 1 saved UK oil for full production.
(7) Lend lease routes also verified.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Allied #11. Atlantic Theater.

(1) Fruits of no naval moves into, or intercept trying to move through, Cape St. Vincent or Bay of Biscay.
(2) No possibility of sub combat in either.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 21. Jan/Feb 1943. Allied #11. Med Theater.

RAF Strategic Bombing. Taranto, Italy.
(1) Another fine display of strategic bombing accuracy by USAAF/RAF strategic bomber command this turn.
(2) RAF Harrow ATR wing RTB to Olbia and next turn after oiling (reorg) will be able to rebase (18-hexes = 2 x 9-hex range) through unfriendly air space to the UK airborne base at Portsmouth.

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