A Competitive GW (Solo) Scenario by the Numbers.

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. MWIF.

(1) MWIF game play note ...
(2) I've encountered the "Dreaded Unit Move Bug - Let's All Groan" (DUMB-LAG)!!!
(3) So my workaround is (which I used this impulse movement phase) is to switch to version 3.2 at rail movement and then back to version 8.1.0.1 (debug) at land combat declaration (LCD).
(4) I will note that I did experience DUMB-LAG with 8.1.0.1 with a couple of LCDs and land combat resolutions (LCRs); specifically involving HQs in LCD or LCR advance after combat.
(5) While I didn't time them I estimate these lags were 30 to 60 seconds each.
(6) Also, I estimate I encountered maybe a half dozen or so (6+) of them from LCD to LCR.
(7) While frustrating, it was not a severe as the maddening several dozens of DUMB-LAG that I would have encountered if I stuck with 8.1.0.1 (debug) instead of using 3.2 during land movement (LM).
(8) Please note that 8.1.0.1 (debug) is one version less that the last version 8.1.0.1 (beta) release.
(9) However; 8.1.0.1 (debug) was the last version released to us beta testers and includes debug features not included in 8.1.0.1 (beta) released to the general public.
(10) So, I'm sticking with 8.1.0.1 (debug) except for those phases I need to retrograde to 3.2 to avoid DUMB-LAG from driving me absolutely insane!
(11) FYI - switching between 8.1.0.1 (debug) (or any version 4.0+) & 3.2 scrambles trade agreements.
(12) So I handle that by extracting & saving the trade agreement records in 8.1.0.1 (debug), saving them & then copying them back over in my game file when I switch back from 3.2 to 8.1.0.1 (debug).

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Axis Command.

German Reorg (HQ).

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01-AX-Eastern-Reorg-4.png (336.82 KiB) Viewed 134 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Axis Command.

German Reorg (HQ). Summary.
(1) Germany plans to use an O-chit next axis impulse to reorg all their HQs, so they use the remaining HQs to reorg whatever land & air units they can.
(2) 1 HQ in West reorgs a railed Italian inf corps in Denmark.
(3) 2 of 3 organized German HQs on the Eastern Front reorg 1 land (arty div) & 3 air (1 fighter, 2 bomber) units.
(4) Rommel no to position to reorg any other flipped units.
(5) The 4 organized German HQs with a total of 15 reorg points are able to reorg 2 land, 1 fighter, 2 bombers for a total of 11 reorg points & leave 4 points on the table.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Eastern Front.

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01-AX-Eastern-Map.png (2.17 MiB) Viewed 131 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Western Front.

(1) To the dismay of the Western Allies, Germany & Italy reinforce land & air forces in France, Belgium & Netherlands to include strengthen Coastal Defenses.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Med Theater.

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01-AX-Med-Map.png (2.18 MiB) Viewed 127 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Axis #1. Asian/Pacific Theaters.

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01-AX-JPN-Map-2.png (2.15 MiB) Viewed 126 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Allied Command. Actions.

(1) Allies play 3 O-chits this impulse!
(2) US, CW super combines & German land w/Zhukov double.
(3) In the West, the start of the liberation of France is at had with full scaled allied amphibious and airborne invasion/liberation of Brittany.
(4) In the East, full scale Soviet counter attack west/southwest of Moscow front.
(5) The allies have no illusions that this could be be a bloody, risky impulse but have to odds to start turning the war against Germany.
(6) However; as has been true about war/combat throughout history success is not guarateened.
(7) But waiting out of fear and for hopefully better odds/opportunities is a sure fire receipt for defeat.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Allied Command. Naval Air.

Western Front.
(1) Fighter escorts & naval search sent out as precursors to invasion TF[3], reinforcement TF[0] in the North Sea to guard against the Italian air threat.

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02-AL-Western-Naval-Air-Map.png (1.87 MiB) Viewed 109 times

Pacific.
(2) Fighter escorts to China Sea[3] & naval search to China Sea[4] to cover massive USN/RN TF[3] & TF[4] soon to form/sail out into the China Sea.

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02-AL-Pacific-Naval-Air-Map.png (1.95 MiB) Viewed 109 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Allied Command.

CP Lines, Production, Manual Trade Agreements Updates/Verification.
(1) This is a very important allied impulse diverting USN/RN/FR Atlantic naval assets to the invasion of France.
(2) However; this does NOT alleviate the need to address "lower" priority but still important needs.
(3) Specifically, Western Allied convoy lines & production with an eye to minimizing idle non-oil RPs.
(4) In this specific case the Western Allies were able to achieve full production with only 1 idle RP (CW Malaya RP).
(5) 3 USN CPs were moved; 2 Hawaii -> China & South China Sea. 1 PHI -> Bismarck Sea.
(6) These moves ensure necessary CP lines to ship the Pacific/Asian RP at Formosa, Hainan & Philippines to US controlled factories.
(7) And to ship the Chinese RP [90,138] to Shanghai, allowing the manually to be sent French Hanoi RP to Kunming.

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02-AL-Production-CW.png (271.61 KiB) Viewed 107 times

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Allied Command.

Axis U-boat & Sub Threat.
(1) The next order of lesser important; but still important business is addressing the axis U-boat & sub threats to Atlantic & Pacific convoys.

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Atlantic.
(2) Given that Brest is one of the amphibious invasion targets for the Western Allies; the 2 threat of the 2 German U-boat flotillas in Brest was discounted.
(3) By the way, if the Western Allied invasion against Brest fails, the Western Allies have more significant concerns that the threat posed by these 2 flotillas.
(4) This leaves the only threat to allied Atlantic convoys is in the North Atlantic.
(5) USN, RN & Fr navies fell that they adequately addressed this threat.

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Pacific.
(6) In the Pacific, the lone IJN sub Gp represents a threat to several sea areas.
(7) The USN address to some extent most of those sea areas under threat.
(8) If the IJN sub Gp goes after a lightly or undefended sea area, so be it.

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02-AL-Pacific-Ships-Boats.png (45.24 KiB) Viewed 95 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Atlantic.

Euro Axis Naval Intercepts.

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02-AL-Atlantic-North-Atlantic-Int-2.png (181.8 KiB) Viewed 95 times

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02-AL-Atlantic-North-Sea-Int-4.png (192.7 KiB) Viewed 95 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Western Front.

Bay of Biscay & North Sea. Invasion, Reinforcement & Support Task Forces.

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific.

China Sea & Sea of Japan. USN, RN & Fr Navy Task Forces.

02-AL-Pacific-Ch-S-Ch-Seas.png (2.32 MiB) Viewed 95 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific Theater.

China Sea. (1/2).
(1) Is it just me or do other folks experience the wild variation of air-to-air combat even at superior odds?
(2) The Western allies had four rounds of air-to-air combat with +4 vs my IJN -4.
(3) In the 4 rounds, the IJN rolled 19, 17, 10, 17, shot down an USN F4F-4 CAG (killed PIL) and aborted 2 USN CAGs!
(4) With overwhelming odds the Western Allies only managed to abort the IJN's lone fighter CAG & bomber with rolls of 12, 9, 11 & 9.
(5) On the bright side for the Western Allies, I guess, if the odds had been even the IJN would have eaten their lunch.
(6) So I guess the Western Allies should, at least, be grateful for that!

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02-AL-Pacific-China-Sea-NC-1d.png (223.53 KiB) Viewed 16 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific Theater.

China Sea. (2/2).
(1) USN & RN managed to sink IJN's supply CP, CV Kaga w/CAG & abort the other IJN CAs & BB, clearing the sea area.
(2) IJA forces in China are now again out of supply just in time for the Western Allied push to clear and gain control of the Chinese coast.
(3) Once this is finished (Maybe this turn?), any remaining IJA forces in China will be forever isolated & out of supply.

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02-AL-Pacific-China-OOS.png (2.32 MiB) Viewed 16 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Non-Phasing Naval Searches.

North Atlantic.
(1) Both sides elect not to search in the North Atlantic.
(2) Italian Sub Gp commanders decide against a desperate search in hopes of hitting the magical low (It)/high (West) search split.
(3) They decide it's better part of valor to pass on search and wait to fight (i.e., search) another day under much more favorable odds.

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02-AL-Atlantic-North-Atlantic-NS-NC.png (187.79 KiB) Viewed 12 times

North Sea.
(4) Both sides also elect not to search in the North Sea.
(5) The Western Allies do NOT wish to tempt fate in an unlikely (but possible) unfavorable search split and risk losing or having aborted a key part of their invasion force in the North Sea.
(6) Like their sub compatriots in the North Atlantic, Italian Air Gp commanders in the North Sea also decide not to attempt a desperate search in hopes of an unlikely favorable search split.

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02-AL-Western-North-Sea-NS-NC.png (190.32 KiB) Viewed 12 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific to Atlantic/Western Front BB Transfer.

Cape St. Vincent.
(1) 5 USN, 1 RN & 1 Fr BB is currently making their way from the Pacific to Atlantic/Western Front naval command.
(2) The primary purpose of these transfers is to beef up Western Allied shore bombardment capability.
(3) These 7 BBs will add 18 shore bombardment factors to the BBs & CAs already there.
(4) Additionally, when not needed for shore bombardment, these BBs can help with convoy escort [0].

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[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific/Asian Theater.

USN Strategic Bombing Raids (x2).

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02-AL-Pacific-STRAT-2-Canton..png (368.88 KiB) Viewed 9 times

[rkr1958]

Turn 23. May/June 1943. Allied #2. Pacific/Asian Theater.

USN Ground Strike x 2.
(1) USN manages to flip 1 of the 2 armies they were after (OOS elite IJA 1st inf army in Canton; but missed the KOR (vol) MIL army in Port Arthur).
(2) All IJA land units in Canton (inf army, mot div) are flipped.
(3) To keep them flipped the USN & RN will have to keep Japan from reestablishing supply through the China Sea to Canton.
(4) Japan has 1 CP, 3 BB & 1 CV (no CAG) organized, all of which are in port.

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