Marc and I are still plugging away at our first tilt, with me absorbing a severe beating as the Allies in 1942, but we've also decided to turn the tables around and start a second encounter. This time it's my turn to take the controls of the Kido Butai, with Marc playing the role of MacArthur and Ghormley (hey, I WANT Ghormley in charge of the Allies while I'm rampaging about the South Pacific, dammit!).
I'll try to keep this up as frequently as I can, although I need to learn to be a lot less verbose than last time.
Scenerio 17
Japanese Sub Doctrine OFF
Fog of War ON
Weather Effects ON
Allied Damage Control ON
Auto Sub Operations OFF
Variable Reinforcements
USN Commitment 100%
IJN Commitment 140%
May 1, 1942
Hmmm...it seems you've actually got a lot more to do as the Japanese on Turn 1 than you do as the Allies. My first step is disbanding all the existing naval task forces, pending later reorganization.
The next step is to relocate the air assets at Truk. The two Mavis squadrons are redeployed to Lae and Rabaul (the latter will be redeployed to the Shortlands in a couple of days). Two squadrons of Rufes are flown down to Kavieng, which they'll use as a rest stop on the way to their final destination at Lae. At Rabaul itself, the Nell and Betty squadrons are ordered to stand down to reduce fatigue and repair aircraft, the Zeroes of F1 Tainan Daitai are put on light CAP over the base (probably unnecessary, but you never know...), while the Claude squadron is stood down to repair aircraft--they also will be moving to Lae tomorrow.
Numerous fast transport task forces are formed at Rabaul and the Shortlands to begin picking up the ground units that have for some reason been left marooned at Buin and Buka. When I identify the individual responsible for this diversion of valuable and limited troop resources, he will be invited Onward, so sorry. Two small transport task forces will assist with this evacuation effort.
An additional fast transport task force is formed at Rabaul. It has orders to load a Naval Garrison Unit and take Buna for use as a staging area against Port Moresby. Another Naval Garrison unit will be loaded on a transport task force at Shortland Island, and ordered to take Lunga. These two bases are my first-wave targets, with Gili Gili and Tulagi tasked for follow-up invasions, probably in about a week.
Two transport task forces and a replenishment task force are also formed at Rabaul. One of the Transport TFs will run supplies to Lae, the other will steam to Truk to load supply and troop reinforcements for Rabaul itself. The replenishment task force (a tanker and two patrol craft) will begin ferrying fuel to Rabual from Truk.
The biggest task of the day is the work at Truk. No less than six submarine task forces are formed (four patrol, two minelaying). The minelayer subs are bound for Port Moresby and Luganville--I don't expect a lot from them, but a bit of disruption, or at least psychological discomfort, would be nice. My patrol subs will stake out the most likely allied sea lanes. I'm not comfortable sending them into Allied ports, given my own experiences with Allied ASW--even early in the game, it can be quite effective. Two of the subs will sit astride the sea lanes between Noumea and Luganville/Efate, the other two will attempt to interdict Allied shipping bound to and from Port Moresby.
The transports at Truk are formed into two task forces. The 1,000-capacity APs will begin lugging supplies to Shortland, while the bigger transports will haul supplies, Combined Fleet HQ, and a couple of support units to Rabaul. A second replenishment task force is ordered to load fuel destined for the base at Shortland. Finally, all of my major warships are formed into an Air Combat task force built around Shokaku, Zuikaku, and Shoho. The task force will refuel from the base at Truk, and then proceed south to Rabaul.
The first day's action is unspectacular. My Mavis squadrons are stood down for the day after transferring from their original bases, so there are no sightings of Allied shipping to report. The Allies themselves take the offensive in New Guinea--a dozen Hudsons from Port Moresby, escorted by a dozen P-39s, launch a raid on the airfield at Lae. The base takes moderate damage (Air Service 12, Runway 12). Flak from the base brings down one Hudson, and damages most of the others.
***
Well, so much for not being wordy. However, the next several days should be far less eventful.
The Second Battle of Ohio--Buckeye5 (IJN) vs. marcgto (Allies)
First blood to the IJN
As I guessed earlier, I don't need to issue a lot of orders today. The two Rufe squadrons from Kavieng are flown down to Lae, and joined there by the Claude squadron from Rabaul. I'll use these planes to fly LRCAP over the supply convoy from Rabual when it arrives in a couple of days.
There's not much else to do. A couple of small fast transport task forces are ordered to pick up the remnants of units left at Buka and Buin. The Naval Garrison Unit tasked for Buna will be dropped off tonight.
The only action of the day favors the IJN. One of the FT task forces mentioned above draws an attack from an S-Boat--with surprising results:
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 05/02/42
Weather: Partly Cloudy
Sub attack at 23,30
Japanese Ships
DD Yayoi
DD Uzuki
Allied Ships
SS S-47, Shell hits 2, on fire, heavy damage (sunk) [:D]
This is encouraging--I hate that boat (of course, when I'm playing as the Allies, it's my favorite...). Even more surprising is the fact that this was a deep-water intercept. I'm very surprised that the destroyers were able to even locate the sub, let alone kill it. Not that I'm complaining....
There's not much else to do. A couple of small fast transport task forces are ordered to pick up the remnants of units left at Buka and Buin. The Naval Garrison Unit tasked for Buna will be dropped off tonight.
The only action of the day favors the IJN. One of the FT task forces mentioned above draws an attack from an S-Boat--with surprising results:
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 05/02/42
Weather: Partly Cloudy
Sub attack at 23,30
Japanese Ships
DD Yayoi
DD Uzuki
Allied Ships
SS S-47, Shell hits 2, on fire, heavy damage (sunk) [:D]
This is encouraging--I hate that boat (of course, when I'm playing as the Allies, it's my favorite...). Even more surprising is the fact that this was a deep-water intercept. I'm very surprised that the destroyers were able to even locate the sub, let alone kill it. Not that I'm complaining....
-
Shadow of the Condor
- Posts: 393
- Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 5:11 pm
- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
RE: The Second Battle of Ohio--Buckeye5 (IJN) vs. marcgto (Allies)
Good luck to you both on your second game. Look forward to reading about it [:)]
"Shouldn't we be leading the shark back to shore, instead of him leading us out to sea?"
Day 3
It's another relatively slow day in the South Pacific. My fast transport task forces continue their work. Buka has been evacuated, and only two units remain on the ground at Buin. I fly the Mavis squadron from Rabaul down to the Shortlands--they'll begin flying naval search patterns over the low Solomons. If the U.S. carriers decide to come calling on Lunga, I want to know about it.
My troops will be going ashore at Lunga in about two days. The FT task force that dropped off the troops at Buna loads another Naval Garrison Unit at Rabaul, and is ordered to land them at Gili Gili. It doesn't appear to be occupied, so I should be able to take it before the alies reinforce.
My troops at Buna draw some allied attention today. Eight Fortresses flying from Australia make a high-level bombing pass, but casualties are minimal. The strike is insufficient to prevent my men from launching a deliberate attack and seizing the base. Buna becomes the first Allied base to fall to the Japanese. It won't be the last.
My troops will be going ashore at Lunga in about two days. The FT task force that dropped off the troops at Buna loads another Naval Garrison Unit at Rabaul, and is ordered to land them at Gili Gili. It doesn't appear to be occupied, so I should be able to take it before the alies reinforce.
My troops at Buna draw some allied attention today. Eight Fortresses flying from Australia make a high-level bombing pass, but casualties are minimal. The strike is insufficient to prevent my men from launching a deliberate attack and seizing the base. Buna becomes the first Allied base to fall to the Japanese. It won't be the last.
The Sitzkrieg continues
I'm getting a bit curious--four days in, and aside from the sub engaged and sunk by my destroyers I've not seen so much as a sniff of an Allied ship. Ultimately, this will be problematical, as I've got to kill some ships while I still retain superiority in the theater...but for now this suits me just fine. I've got enough to manage without enemy surface forces meddling.
My carriers have arrived at Rabaul, and are parked there overnight to refuel. I form two cruiser/destroyer FT task forces from the carrier escorts to run some supplies to Buna and Gili Gili. The troops bound for Gili will be dropped off tonight, but I don't want them to starve.
My transports bound for Lae are a little over a day out. The Rufes and Claudes at Lae are ordered to LRCAP the convoy tomorrow to discourage Hudsons or A-24s flying from Port Moresby. The redeployed Mavises at Shortland are put on heavy naval search. My transport with the Lunga invasion force is getting close to its destination, and I don't want any nasty surprises.
Aside from these logistical shufflings, the day passes quietly. A Mavis spots another U.S. sub about 180 miles east-northeast of Rabaul, but does not attack it. My own subs should start reaching their patrol locations within the next 3-7 days.
My carriers have arrived at Rabaul, and are parked there overnight to refuel. I form two cruiser/destroyer FT task forces from the carrier escorts to run some supplies to Buna and Gili Gili. The troops bound for Gili will be dropped off tonight, but I don't want them to starve.
My transports bound for Lae are a little over a day out. The Rufes and Claudes at Lae are ordered to LRCAP the convoy tomorrow to discourage Hudsons or A-24s flying from Port Moresby. The redeployed Mavises at Shortland are put on heavy naval search. My transport with the Lunga invasion force is getting close to its destination, and I don't want any nasty surprises.
Aside from these logistical shufflings, the day passes quietly. A Mavis spots another U.S. sub about 180 miles east-northeast of Rabaul, but does not attack it. My own subs should start reaching their patrol locations within the next 3-7 days.
Lightning Strikes
Today sees the first substantial contact between the two combatants. But more on that later...
My invasion task force reached Lunga, but didn't begin unloading. Rethinking my original plan, I redirect them to Tulagi. I'm doing this to save trips down the Solomons chain--when I take Lunga, I want to bring engineers as well as infantry, so the base can be built up. Tulagi can't be built up as much, and I just want to take it to deny it to the Allies, so one naval garrison is all I need (I'll probably evacuate them once the base is taken). A larger transport task force is formed at Shortlands, and begins loading engineers and infantry bound for Lunga.
My FT task forces headed south from Rabaul are poised to sweep into Buna and Gili Gili to drop off supplies--I shouldn't need that much there right now, but there's no point in having my troops starving while they wait for Port Moresby to be reduced. My carriers are ordered to slip a bit south of Rabaul to spy for enemy shipping. They'll stay out of range of airstrikes from Port Moresby for now.
Assault troops storm ashore at Gili Gili, which is discovered to be unoccupied. Within weeks, these same troops will be cursing my name as they suffer through summer heat, humidity, mosquitos, and malaria outbreaks, but Gili Gili's strategic position is too valuable to let it stay in Allied hands.
The Zeroes of Tainan Daitai launch a pair of sweeps over Port Moresby in an effort to thin out the base's fighter cover, with moderate success. They down a Kittyhawk and an Airacobra and damage a couple more. A single Zero is lost (ops) during the return flight.
My supply convoy bound for Lae attracts no less than four airstrikes from Port Moresby and Australia. The Claudes and Rufes put up a good showing against the first strike (A-24s and Hudsons from PM, escorted by Kittyhawks and Airacobras), downing several Allied fighters and keeping most of the bombers away from the ships. However, they are worn down by subsequent strikes, particularly B-17s flying from Australia. Three Rufes and two Claudes are downed, and the convoy takes several hits. The minesweeper Seki Maru #3 eats a 1,000-pound Dauntless bomb and blows up, and the AP Chowa Maru is badly crippled by Fortresses (98/48/24 SYS/FLT/FIRE--ouch!). Hopefully the transport will stay afloat long enough to offload its supply cargo--then I'll scuttle her. The Daifuku Maru also takes a couple of hits, but doesn't appear to be badly hurt. The wounded transports are split off into separate task forces--hopefully any follow-up strikes tomorrow will concentrate on the cripples, and leave my healthy ships alone.
The strength of the raids--particularly their fighter cover--indicates that the Port Moresby air garrison has been significantly reinforced. There must be at least one P-400 and two P-39 squadrons there, plus a squadron each of Kittyhawks, A-24s, and Hudsons. That'll be a major pain in the short run, although it does dangle before me the prospect of catching lots of planes on the ground if I can shut down the base. I doubt most of them will hang around that long, though.
My invasion task force reached Lunga, but didn't begin unloading. Rethinking my original plan, I redirect them to Tulagi. I'm doing this to save trips down the Solomons chain--when I take Lunga, I want to bring engineers as well as infantry, so the base can be built up. Tulagi can't be built up as much, and I just want to take it to deny it to the Allies, so one naval garrison is all I need (I'll probably evacuate them once the base is taken). A larger transport task force is formed at Shortlands, and begins loading engineers and infantry bound for Lunga.
My FT task forces headed south from Rabaul are poised to sweep into Buna and Gili Gili to drop off supplies--I shouldn't need that much there right now, but there's no point in having my troops starving while they wait for Port Moresby to be reduced. My carriers are ordered to slip a bit south of Rabaul to spy for enemy shipping. They'll stay out of range of airstrikes from Port Moresby for now.
Assault troops storm ashore at Gili Gili, which is discovered to be unoccupied. Within weeks, these same troops will be cursing my name as they suffer through summer heat, humidity, mosquitos, and malaria outbreaks, but Gili Gili's strategic position is too valuable to let it stay in Allied hands.
The Zeroes of Tainan Daitai launch a pair of sweeps over Port Moresby in an effort to thin out the base's fighter cover, with moderate success. They down a Kittyhawk and an Airacobra and damage a couple more. A single Zero is lost (ops) during the return flight.
My supply convoy bound for Lae attracts no less than four airstrikes from Port Moresby and Australia. The Claudes and Rufes put up a good showing against the first strike (A-24s and Hudsons from PM, escorted by Kittyhawks and Airacobras), downing several Allied fighters and keeping most of the bombers away from the ships. However, they are worn down by subsequent strikes, particularly B-17s flying from Australia. Three Rufes and two Claudes are downed, and the convoy takes several hits. The minesweeper Seki Maru #3 eats a 1,000-pound Dauntless bomb and blows up, and the AP Chowa Maru is badly crippled by Fortresses (98/48/24 SYS/FLT/FIRE--ouch!). Hopefully the transport will stay afloat long enough to offload its supply cargo--then I'll scuttle her. The Daifuku Maru also takes a couple of hits, but doesn't appear to be badly hurt. The wounded transports are split off into separate task forces--hopefully any follow-up strikes tomorrow will concentrate on the cripples, and leave my healthy ships alone.
The strength of the raids--particularly their fighter cover--indicates that the Port Moresby air garrison has been significantly reinforced. There must be at least one P-400 and two P-39 squadrons there, plus a squadron each of Kittyhawks, A-24s, and Hudsons. That'll be a major pain in the short run, although it does dangle before me the prospect of catching lots of planes on the ground if I can shut down the base. I doubt most of them will hang around that long, though.
May 6 & 7
May 6
The thunderstorms close in over the region today, which gives me a bit of a respite. My transports at Lae make use of the calm to get a good chunk of their supplies offloaded--they're spotted by scouts from Port Moresby, but the weather closes in over the base before any strikes can target them.
My carriers head back to Rabaul to rejoin the remainder of their screen, and they're ordered to sail to the southwest in search of targets of opportunity. My lone seaplane tender, with an escorting destroyer, is ordered to follow the carrier task force to provide some additional aerial reconnaissance.
Allied bombers from Australia visit Gili Gili, trying to deliver some punishment to my troops. Unopposed by flak, they drop plenty of bombs, but there's little there for them to hit, and my troops escape pretty much unscathed. If the base were built up more, raids like this would be a concern, but right now they're just blowing up coral.
To the east, my troops storm ashore at Tulagi and seize the base. The transports bound for Lunga have left Shortland Island, and should begin disembarking troops in about two days.
May 7
The weather clears up today, which doesn't turn out to be such a good thing for me.
My carriers are now parked about 150 miles north of Buna, and I get an unwelcome sighting--U.S. navy carriers sailing south of New Guinea! It looks like Lexington and Yorktown plus a substantial screen. Well, so much for not knowing where the allied ships are....
To the east, my Tulagi invasion task force continues to unload supplies (takes for bleedin' EVER to unload supplies at a level 2 port) for the troops there. My Lunga convoy should reach the base and unload troops tomorrow, so it should belong to me in two days. This convoy is carrying engineers as well as assault troops and supplies, so I should be able to start expansion of the base facilities immediately.
Allied LBA continues to make life miserable for my supply ships at Lae. Multiple strikes by Australia-based B-17s and Port Moresby-based Hudsons sink a second minesweeper, cripple the already-damaged Daifuku Maru, and score several hits on the Marsue Maru. It looks like this little convoy is going to wind up costing me 3 APs and 2 minesweepers, although I may be able to save a couple of the transports by putting them into port. I think I'll be supplying Lae with barges from now on--at least until we manage to capture Port Moresby, or until I can get some real fighters into Lae. The Claudes and Rufes are trying to fly CAP, but they're overmatched by the P-40s, and even Airacobras can hold their own against them.
At Truk, my big merchant ship convoy (the 3,000-capacity APs that started at Rabaul) are loading a base force and the HQ and AA units of the 21st Independent Mixed Brigade. I'm going to use the 21st Brigade to reinforce Rabaul in the short run, and if I can push the Allied navy away from New Guinea, they'll likely be the first wave of the assault upon Port Moresby itself.
The B-25s and B-17s from Australia hit Gili Gili for the second straight day, again to little effect. My men hear the bombers, duck into the jungle, and come out after they've left. A large SBD strike from the American carriers hits Buna, severly damaging the airfield there, which will be annoying if I ever try to build the base up, but is no big deal right now. My carrier planes launch a strong strike at Wau, hoping to deal some damage to Kanga Force, but they come up empty--it looks like Kanga has moved (Marilinan, perhaps? Or maybe retreating toward PM?).
Alright--time to deal with the enemy carriers, but I want to try to engage from long range, outside the range of the short-legged TBDs. So I order my CVs to steam southeast, to a point about 180 miles east-northeast of Port Moresby. Hopefully this will bring me into naval attack range for my Vals and Kates while staying at long range from his carriers, and any attack planes that might be flying from Port Moresby.
I have three subs patrolling the area as well (one of them has just mined PM, the other two are on patrol missions). All three are ordered to converge upon the Allied task force. It'll mean almost certain death for any of them to attack that many destroyers, but if they can put a torpedo or two into a carrier, I'll consider myself well ahead. Tomorrow should be a very exciting day if missions can fly (thunderstorms forecast, so we may not be able to find weather windows to hit one another).
The thunderstorms close in over the region today, which gives me a bit of a respite. My transports at Lae make use of the calm to get a good chunk of their supplies offloaded--they're spotted by scouts from Port Moresby, but the weather closes in over the base before any strikes can target them.
My carriers head back to Rabaul to rejoin the remainder of their screen, and they're ordered to sail to the southwest in search of targets of opportunity. My lone seaplane tender, with an escorting destroyer, is ordered to follow the carrier task force to provide some additional aerial reconnaissance.
Allied bombers from Australia visit Gili Gili, trying to deliver some punishment to my troops. Unopposed by flak, they drop plenty of bombs, but there's little there for them to hit, and my troops escape pretty much unscathed. If the base were built up more, raids like this would be a concern, but right now they're just blowing up coral.
To the east, my troops storm ashore at Tulagi and seize the base. The transports bound for Lunga have left Shortland Island, and should begin disembarking troops in about two days.
May 7
The weather clears up today, which doesn't turn out to be such a good thing for me.
My carriers are now parked about 150 miles north of Buna, and I get an unwelcome sighting--U.S. navy carriers sailing south of New Guinea! It looks like Lexington and Yorktown plus a substantial screen. Well, so much for not knowing where the allied ships are....
To the east, my Tulagi invasion task force continues to unload supplies (takes for bleedin' EVER to unload supplies at a level 2 port) for the troops there. My Lunga convoy should reach the base and unload troops tomorrow, so it should belong to me in two days. This convoy is carrying engineers as well as assault troops and supplies, so I should be able to start expansion of the base facilities immediately.
Allied LBA continues to make life miserable for my supply ships at Lae. Multiple strikes by Australia-based B-17s and Port Moresby-based Hudsons sink a second minesweeper, cripple the already-damaged Daifuku Maru, and score several hits on the Marsue Maru. It looks like this little convoy is going to wind up costing me 3 APs and 2 minesweepers, although I may be able to save a couple of the transports by putting them into port. I think I'll be supplying Lae with barges from now on--at least until we manage to capture Port Moresby, or until I can get some real fighters into Lae. The Claudes and Rufes are trying to fly CAP, but they're overmatched by the P-40s, and even Airacobras can hold their own against them.
At Truk, my big merchant ship convoy (the 3,000-capacity APs that started at Rabaul) are loading a base force and the HQ and AA units of the 21st Independent Mixed Brigade. I'm going to use the 21st Brigade to reinforce Rabaul in the short run, and if I can push the Allied navy away from New Guinea, they'll likely be the first wave of the assault upon Port Moresby itself.
The B-25s and B-17s from Australia hit Gili Gili for the second straight day, again to little effect. My men hear the bombers, duck into the jungle, and come out after they've left. A large SBD strike from the American carriers hits Buna, severly damaging the airfield there, which will be annoying if I ever try to build the base up, but is no big deal right now. My carrier planes launch a strong strike at Wau, hoping to deal some damage to Kanga Force, but they come up empty--it looks like Kanga has moved (Marilinan, perhaps? Or maybe retreating toward PM?).
Alright--time to deal with the enemy carriers, but I want to try to engage from long range, outside the range of the short-legged TBDs. So I order my CVs to steam southeast, to a point about 180 miles east-northeast of Port Moresby. Hopefully this will bring me into naval attack range for my Vals and Kates while staying at long range from his carriers, and any attack planes that might be flying from Port Moresby.
I have three subs patrolling the area as well (one of them has just mined PM, the other two are on patrol missions). All three are ordered to converge upon the Allied task force. It'll mean almost certain death for any of them to attack that many destroyers, but if they can put a torpedo or two into a carrier, I'll consider myself well ahead. Tomorrow should be a very exciting day if missions can fly (thunderstorms forecast, so we may not be able to find weather windows to hit one another).
Botched it!
It seems like "the best laid plans..." is rapidly becoming my motto. Details....
Scouting reports indicate that there's a big Allied supply convoy in Port Moresby--given the degree to which the base's air garrison has been reinforced, I suspect they're bringing stuff in, not lifting troops out. Unfortunately, the task force contains multiple minesweepers, who detect and begin clearing my sub-laid field. Luckily for me, they miss one, and one of the subchasers accompanying the task force proves the old adage that any ship can be a minesweeper--once. Needless to say, the subchaser bites the dust.
Near Lae, the crippled Chowa Maru succumbs to its wounds as well, and slips beneath the waves--not, however, before unloading all of its cargo.
The main action of the day centers on Port Moresby. As I said yesterday, I was trying to maneuver my carriers to be able to launch a strike at the U.S. from beyond TBD range. This, at least, was successful. However, I also moved beyond the range at which my Kates could launch carrying torpedoes, a slip-up which quite probably cost me a chance to deal a decisive strike to the U.S. carrier fleet. To make matters worse, the U.S. CV task force has moved into the PM base hex, and there is an obscene amount of CAP over the ships--22 F4F-3s, 18 Kittyhawks, 26 P-39s, 12 P-400s, and even 13 Wirraways!
The flyers of the Kido Butai go in anyway--28 Zeroes, 45 Vals, and 49 Kates. The Zeroes actually do a remarkable job of cutting down the opposing CAP, downing 13 assorted Allied aircraft while losing only 7. Their skill and determination allows most of the Vals and Kates to break through to attack the task force.
It hardly matters. As noted, the Kates are carrying bombs, not torpedoes, and are therefore level bombing from 5,000 feet. Kates attempting to level-bomb warships are worse than useless--all they do is provide target practice for U.S. navy gunners. 13 Kates are lost without scoring a single hit. The Vals do a little better. They put two holes in Lexington's flight deck, and manage to score single hits on the destroyers Hamman and Phelps. All in all, though, this mission is a failure. None of the three ships hit appears to be badly damaged--only the Phelps is even reported to be on fire. The only silver lining is that my carriers are too far away from Port Moresby to be hit with return strikes.
I order my task force to retire on Rabaul. My attack squadrons are badly shot up, and need to draw more planes from the pool. My Zero squadrons remain strong enough to mount a vicious CAP defense, so I don't think I need to worry about pursuit. In any event, I don't think the Allies will wish to risk further damage to Lexington--as it is, she'll probably be fine after a couple of weeks in port, but another hit or two and she could be in need of a trip back to Pearl.
The first Shortland-to-Lunga convoy has reached its destination and begun offloading troops--Lunga will be mine tomorrow. A second transport task force is forming up at Shortland to run supplies and reinforcements to Lunga--I'll be ferrying down a second Naval Garrison Unit, plus anti-aircraft and coast defense troops.
****
So the first phase of the Battle of the Coral Sea is a major fizzle. We'll see if anything further develops.
Scouting reports indicate that there's a big Allied supply convoy in Port Moresby--given the degree to which the base's air garrison has been reinforced, I suspect they're bringing stuff in, not lifting troops out. Unfortunately, the task force contains multiple minesweepers, who detect and begin clearing my sub-laid field. Luckily for me, they miss one, and one of the subchasers accompanying the task force proves the old adage that any ship can be a minesweeper--once. Needless to say, the subchaser bites the dust.
Near Lae, the crippled Chowa Maru succumbs to its wounds as well, and slips beneath the waves--not, however, before unloading all of its cargo.
The main action of the day centers on Port Moresby. As I said yesterday, I was trying to maneuver my carriers to be able to launch a strike at the U.S. from beyond TBD range. This, at least, was successful. However, I also moved beyond the range at which my Kates could launch carrying torpedoes, a slip-up which quite probably cost me a chance to deal a decisive strike to the U.S. carrier fleet. To make matters worse, the U.S. CV task force has moved into the PM base hex, and there is an obscene amount of CAP over the ships--22 F4F-3s, 18 Kittyhawks, 26 P-39s, 12 P-400s, and even 13 Wirraways!
The flyers of the Kido Butai go in anyway--28 Zeroes, 45 Vals, and 49 Kates. The Zeroes actually do a remarkable job of cutting down the opposing CAP, downing 13 assorted Allied aircraft while losing only 7. Their skill and determination allows most of the Vals and Kates to break through to attack the task force.
It hardly matters. As noted, the Kates are carrying bombs, not torpedoes, and are therefore level bombing from 5,000 feet. Kates attempting to level-bomb warships are worse than useless--all they do is provide target practice for U.S. navy gunners. 13 Kates are lost without scoring a single hit. The Vals do a little better. They put two holes in Lexington's flight deck, and manage to score single hits on the destroyers Hamman and Phelps. All in all, though, this mission is a failure. None of the three ships hit appears to be badly damaged--only the Phelps is even reported to be on fire. The only silver lining is that my carriers are too far away from Port Moresby to be hit with return strikes.
I order my task force to retire on Rabaul. My attack squadrons are badly shot up, and need to draw more planes from the pool. My Zero squadrons remain strong enough to mount a vicious CAP defense, so I don't think I need to worry about pursuit. In any event, I don't think the Allies will wish to risk further damage to Lexington--as it is, she'll probably be fine after a couple of weeks in port, but another hit or two and she could be in need of a trip back to Pearl.
The first Shortland-to-Lunga convoy has reached its destination and begun offloading troops--Lunga will be mine tomorrow. A second transport task force is forming up at Shortland to run supplies and reinforcements to Lunga--I'll be ferrying down a second Naval Garrison Unit, plus anti-aircraft and coast defense troops.
****
So the first phase of the Battle of the Coral Sea is a major fizzle. We'll see if anything further develops.
Defending the full-court press
It's becoming clear that Marc is adopting a very different strategy in re: Port Moresby than I did. I adopted the classic "evacuate New Guinea and let the Japs have the malaria pit" approach. Marc is choosing to heavily reinforce the base instead. I'm showing what must be at least an entire infantry division on the ground at PM now, and Australia appears to have been virtually emptied of aircraft--only Cooktown is still showing planes on the ground (probably those damned B-17s). Interesting....
His carriers, however, aren't sticking around to play, or trying to chase mine. They're spotted retiring toward Australia, taking a westward loop to steer around my submarine line. He just about has to do this--he can't risk further damage to Lexington, particularly if he's going to need his carriers to cover his resupply efforts at PM--which he will, eventually.
Maruauders and Hudsons from PM launch a low-level attack against a barge convoy hauling supplies into Gasmata, and sink a couple of them. That's O.K.--I've got plenty more where they came from, and the ops losses he'll take if he tries to sustain this campaign will be worth more points than he gets from sinking them.
My Nells from Rabaul finally get into the act. With the Zeroes of F1/Tainan Daitai flying cover, seven of them launch a strike on the merchant shipping at PM. Without the carrier Wildcats to supplement the no-doubt exhausted base CAP, the allied pilots are easy meat for the elite, well-rested Japanese. The Zeroes kill a P-400, 3 P-39s and 3 Kittyhawks for no losses. One Nell is downed by flak from the ships below, but the survivors put two torpedoes into the transport Manoora, which is reportedly heavily damaged.
My first-phase invasions conclude with a rapid assault on Lunga, which is discovered to be unoccupied. My troops and engineers begin digging in and expanding the airfield facilities. Additional reinforcements should begin arriving in two days.
The day ends on a bad note, as an allied sub slams a torpedo into the minelayer Tsugaru, which was on its way to Gasmata to lay a defensive field. The damage doesn't look that bad, but Tsugaru is definitely going to be out of it for a while.
My carriers still haven't quite reached Rabaul (come on, Nagumo, let's move--it's not like we've got a timetable or anything....[8|]). They'll restock planes and pilots at Rabaul, and then I'll have a choice to make. With the Allies concentrating so heavily in the West, Noumea should be wide open--a raid there could disrupt any shipping between Noumea, Efate, and Luganville. Or we can return south to attempt to disrupt Port Moresby. With rested Zero squadrons I'm not terribly fearful of land-based strikes, especially given the low experience of most of the Allied level bombers at this stage.
***
His carriers, however, aren't sticking around to play, or trying to chase mine. They're spotted retiring toward Australia, taking a westward loop to steer around my submarine line. He just about has to do this--he can't risk further damage to Lexington, particularly if he's going to need his carriers to cover his resupply efforts at PM--which he will, eventually.
Maruauders and Hudsons from PM launch a low-level attack against a barge convoy hauling supplies into Gasmata, and sink a couple of them. That's O.K.--I've got plenty more where they came from, and the ops losses he'll take if he tries to sustain this campaign will be worth more points than he gets from sinking them.
My Nells from Rabaul finally get into the act. With the Zeroes of F1/Tainan Daitai flying cover, seven of them launch a strike on the merchant shipping at PM. Without the carrier Wildcats to supplement the no-doubt exhausted base CAP, the allied pilots are easy meat for the elite, well-rested Japanese. The Zeroes kill a P-400, 3 P-39s and 3 Kittyhawks for no losses. One Nell is downed by flak from the ships below, but the survivors put two torpedoes into the transport Manoora, which is reportedly heavily damaged.
My first-phase invasions conclude with a rapid assault on Lunga, which is discovered to be unoccupied. My troops and engineers begin digging in and expanding the airfield facilities. Additional reinforcements should begin arriving in two days.
The day ends on a bad note, as an allied sub slams a torpedo into the minelayer Tsugaru, which was on its way to Gasmata to lay a defensive field. The damage doesn't look that bad, but Tsugaru is definitely going to be out of it for a while.
My carriers still haven't quite reached Rabaul (come on, Nagumo, let's move--it's not like we've got a timetable or anything....[8|]). They'll restock planes and pilots at Rabaul, and then I'll have a choice to make. With the Allies concentrating so heavily in the West, Noumea should be wide open--a raid there could disrupt any shipping between Noumea, Efate, and Luganville. Or we can return south to attempt to disrupt Port Moresby. With rested Zero squadrons I'm not terribly fearful of land-based strikes, especially given the low experience of most of the Allied level bombers at this stage.
***
May 10-11
May 10
Today isn't a great day for my shipping. In fact, it's crappy. I-29, positioned to intercept convoys outbound from Port Moresby, puts a torpedo into an allied cargo ship, but is promptly blown out of the water by the USS Walke. To make matters worse, the massive allied air concentration at PM finds my two crippled APs from the Lae supply convoy limping homeward, and hits them so many times that only splinters and the odd rice ball remain.
Alright--time for some countermeasures. First, the Nells and Betties at Rabaul are ordered to conduct their first mass airfield strike tomorrow, with PM as the target. Maybe I can nail some planes on the ground. Second, I decide to try to take advantage of the allies' seeming obsession with Port Moresby. Zuikaku is formed into a task force with a minimal escort (2 CA, 1 CL, 3 DD), and ordered to steam east to the Shortlands. She'll refuel there, then head for Noumea via a roundabout course--northeast out of the Solomon chain, then east, then south toward the Luganville/EFate/Noumea area. This is only a raid--I don't have the strength to do more than that...but if I can sneak into range I may be able to hit some of the auxiliary ships the US usually has in the area (the task force's small size is my attempt at avoiding aerial spotters...we'll see if it works.
May 11
Today is a bit better than yesterday, although not without its unpleasant surprises. My ASW groups continue to perform well. S-38 fires a torpedo spread at the CA Kinugasa, but misses, and the DD Shiratsuyu scores with a depth charge. Only one hit, but probably enough to send the sub packing for home.
My air raid on Port Moresby finds minimal CAP present--just 3 Kittyhawks. Everything else is likely resting. Escorting Zeroes flame one P-40, and the others take a quick pass at the Nells, damaging one, then bug out. My bombers press on through flak and hit the airfield, scoring moderate damage and accounting for four allied planes on the ground, with several others damaged.
But the allies have a trick up their sleeves. 21 B-17s (flying from Cooktown, I'm guessing) launch a raid on Rabaul itself. I don't have much CAP up--the only thing that can hit Rabaul at this stage is B-17s, and using Zeroes to CAP against B-17 is pretty ineffective. They hit the port fairly hard, although the base engineers get most of the damage patched up. More seriously, they score bomb hits on the Aoba, the Yubari, and the AV Kimikawa Maru, damaging all three ships badly enough to requre at least a few weeks at Truk.
Zuikaku is one hex out of Shortland--pity, I was hoping she'd make it all the way there in one day. One the bright side, I don't think she was spotted. My second troops convoy has also reached Lunga. They're combined with the ships of the first convoy (more escorts to defend against sub attacks that way...), and unloading continues.
Finally, I order the damaged ships at Rabaul to form up as a single convoy and move to Kavieng--it's only a short voyage, so their floatation damage shouldn't get much worse, and it should put them beyond B-17 range unless the allies have moved them to Port Moresby.
Today isn't a great day for my shipping. In fact, it's crappy. I-29, positioned to intercept convoys outbound from Port Moresby, puts a torpedo into an allied cargo ship, but is promptly blown out of the water by the USS Walke. To make matters worse, the massive allied air concentration at PM finds my two crippled APs from the Lae supply convoy limping homeward, and hits them so many times that only splinters and the odd rice ball remain.
Alright--time for some countermeasures. First, the Nells and Betties at Rabaul are ordered to conduct their first mass airfield strike tomorrow, with PM as the target. Maybe I can nail some planes on the ground. Second, I decide to try to take advantage of the allies' seeming obsession with Port Moresby. Zuikaku is formed into a task force with a minimal escort (2 CA, 1 CL, 3 DD), and ordered to steam east to the Shortlands. She'll refuel there, then head for Noumea via a roundabout course--northeast out of the Solomon chain, then east, then south toward the Luganville/EFate/Noumea area. This is only a raid--I don't have the strength to do more than that...but if I can sneak into range I may be able to hit some of the auxiliary ships the US usually has in the area (the task force's small size is my attempt at avoiding aerial spotters...we'll see if it works.
May 11
Today is a bit better than yesterday, although not without its unpleasant surprises. My ASW groups continue to perform well. S-38 fires a torpedo spread at the CA Kinugasa, but misses, and the DD Shiratsuyu scores with a depth charge. Only one hit, but probably enough to send the sub packing for home.
My air raid on Port Moresby finds minimal CAP present--just 3 Kittyhawks. Everything else is likely resting. Escorting Zeroes flame one P-40, and the others take a quick pass at the Nells, damaging one, then bug out. My bombers press on through flak and hit the airfield, scoring moderate damage and accounting for four allied planes on the ground, with several others damaged.
But the allies have a trick up their sleeves. 21 B-17s (flying from Cooktown, I'm guessing) launch a raid on Rabaul itself. I don't have much CAP up--the only thing that can hit Rabaul at this stage is B-17s, and using Zeroes to CAP against B-17 is pretty ineffective. They hit the port fairly hard, although the base engineers get most of the damage patched up. More seriously, they score bomb hits on the Aoba, the Yubari, and the AV Kimikawa Maru, damaging all three ships badly enough to requre at least a few weeks at Truk.
Zuikaku is one hex out of Shortland--pity, I was hoping she'd make it all the way there in one day. One the bright side, I don't think she was spotted. My second troops convoy has also reached Lunga. They're combined with the ships of the first convoy (more escorts to defend against sub attacks that way...), and unloading continues.
Finally, I order the damaged ships at Rabaul to form up as a single convoy and move to Kavieng--it's only a short voyage, so their floatation damage shouldn't get much worse, and it should put them beyond B-17 range unless the allies have moved them to Port Moresby.
May 12
Both sides continue sparring today. The Betties at Rabaul finally get the memo that I want them hunting ships, and launch a pair of strikes at the transports moored off Port Moresby. PM's air cover has been reinforced by at least one squadron of F4F-3 Wildcats, but the Zeroes escorting the Betties keep the allied fighters off the bombers, downing one Kittyhawk and two F4Fs in the process, for the loss of one Zero. Two Betties are torn apart by flak, but the rest manage to score four torpedo hits on a pair of transports (two each), sinking one.
The Fortresses return to Rabaul for a second day. I'm not flying CAP, but I have pulled my ships out of port, so there's not much for them to hit. Flak claims two B-17s, so I guess that's not a bad exchange.
A small group of Hudsons from Port Moresby launches a nuisance raid on a replenishment task force at Rabaul, but no damage is inflicted.
Zuikaku and her escorts have reached Shortland without being noticed. They refuel, and are ordered to sail to the north of the Solomons before heading east. After a one- to two-day cruise, the task force will turn south toward Noumea.
The first wave of reinforcements has unloaded on Lunga, and I order the two Naval Garrison Units to march to Tassafaronga and Taivu, respectively. They're only dot hexes, and I don't plan to build them up, but I do want to take them. Once I have them, and attempt by the allies to move troops to Guadalcanal will require at least one additional day. The Okinoshima has also completed a quick errant at Lunga, and the base is now heavily mined.
My large troop transport task force at Truk has nearly completed the loading of the 21st Independent Mixed Brigade and a base force--it should require 1-2 more days (had to abort loading briefly because of a tasking screw-up, but it's fixed now). But they won't be going to Rabaul--they'll be heading to Wewak. I want to get that base staffed and built up before I start getting IJA fighter squadrons showing up there.
The Fortresses return to Rabaul for a second day. I'm not flying CAP, but I have pulled my ships out of port, so there's not much for them to hit. Flak claims two B-17s, so I guess that's not a bad exchange.
A small group of Hudsons from Port Moresby launches a nuisance raid on a replenishment task force at Rabaul, but no damage is inflicted.
Zuikaku and her escorts have reached Shortland without being noticed. They refuel, and are ordered to sail to the north of the Solomons before heading east. After a one- to two-day cruise, the task force will turn south toward Noumea.
The first wave of reinforcements has unloaded on Lunga, and I order the two Naval Garrison Units to march to Tassafaronga and Taivu, respectively. They're only dot hexes, and I don't plan to build them up, but I do want to take them. Once I have them, and attempt by the allies to move troops to Guadalcanal will require at least one additional day. The Okinoshima has also completed a quick errant at Lunga, and the base is now heavily mined.
My large troop transport task force at Truk has nearly completed the loading of the 21st Independent Mixed Brigade and a base force--it should require 1-2 more days (had to abort loading briefly because of a tasking screw-up, but it's fixed now). But they won't be going to Rabaul--they'll be heading to Wewak. I want to get that base staffed and built up before I start getting IJA fighter squadrons showing up there.
May 13 -- Whittling away....
Today is a bit calmer than the last couple of days, but we still see some action. S-40, operating south of New Britain, picks off a couple of barges from the convoy returning from Gasmata. However, one of the barge skippers is on the ball and shoots first, slamming a couple of 25mm anti-aircraft shells into the sub and touching off an explosion! S-40 is reportedly heavily damaged in the exchange. At least my barge crews died like samurai.
For the third day, the B-17s return to Rabaul--only 12 of them today. They hit the (empty) port a few more times, but two more of them are shot down by the base gunners, and a third fails to make it back to Australia. That makes a total of 7 Fortresses downed in the last three days. I think the allies may have taken this operation past the point of diminishing returns. The first raid was a neat trick, but now his aircrews have to be extremely tired, and that's a LONG flight. Even if my AA guns don't hit anything, at least 1-2 planes are likely to be lost operationally given the distance. I know when _I_ play as the allies my squadrons almost never fly a bombing mission without at least one operational loss. In any event, if the U.S. wants to keep flying this mission, I'll cheerfully stand down my CAP and let them come. I need to take every chance I have to kill those things while their numbers are still relatively small. A 12-plane B-17 strike can't hurt Rabaul that badly---but 40 or 50....
Zuikaku and her escorts have apparently made it out of the Solomons without being detected. They're now steaming east in the open ocean, preparing to make the turn south around the Eastern Solomons. I'll stay well clear of the islands to avoid Allied coastwatchers.
I'm going to tempt fate and try to repeat the ship movement. This time, the restocked Shokaku and Shoho, with a strong screen, are ordered to Shortland. Once they've refuelded, they'll either follow the Zuikaku group, or head back west to assist the Rabaul airgroups in harassing Port Moresby's air defenses.
The ships damaged in the first B-17 raid on Rabaul have reached Kavieng. The Kimikawa Maru, which has substantial flooding damage, is put into port. Her float planes are ordered to Rabaul to fly ASW patrols--might as well get some use out of them while their mothership is patching the holes. The other ships are refueled and sent on to Truk. Hopefully the larger port and more plentiful supplies will speed up repairs. Aoba and Yubari don't look too bad--they should be ready to return to service in 3-4 weeks. Tsugaru will probably need a bit longer, but she's a smaller vessel, and should be able to repair system damage more quickly.
For the third day, the B-17s return to Rabaul--only 12 of them today. They hit the (empty) port a few more times, but two more of them are shot down by the base gunners, and a third fails to make it back to Australia. That makes a total of 7 Fortresses downed in the last three days. I think the allies may have taken this operation past the point of diminishing returns. The first raid was a neat trick, but now his aircrews have to be extremely tired, and that's a LONG flight. Even if my AA guns don't hit anything, at least 1-2 planes are likely to be lost operationally given the distance. I know when _I_ play as the allies my squadrons almost never fly a bombing mission without at least one operational loss. In any event, if the U.S. wants to keep flying this mission, I'll cheerfully stand down my CAP and let them come. I need to take every chance I have to kill those things while their numbers are still relatively small. A 12-plane B-17 strike can't hurt Rabaul that badly---but 40 or 50....
Zuikaku and her escorts have apparently made it out of the Solomons without being detected. They're now steaming east in the open ocean, preparing to make the turn south around the Eastern Solomons. I'll stay well clear of the islands to avoid Allied coastwatchers.
I'm going to tempt fate and try to repeat the ship movement. This time, the restocked Shokaku and Shoho, with a strong screen, are ordered to Shortland. Once they've refuelded, they'll either follow the Zuikaku group, or head back west to assist the Rabaul airgroups in harassing Port Moresby's air defenses.
The ships damaged in the first B-17 raid on Rabaul have reached Kavieng. The Kimikawa Maru, which has substantial flooding damage, is put into port. Her float planes are ordered to Rabaul to fly ASW patrols--might as well get some use out of them while their mothership is patching the holes. The other ships are refueled and sent on to Truk. Hopefully the larger port and more plentiful supplies will speed up repairs. Aoba and Yubari don't look too bad--they should be ready to return to service in 3-4 weeks. Tsugaru will probably need a bit longer, but she's a smaller vessel, and should be able to repair system damage more quickly.
Skulking and public demonstrations
The 14th and 15th of May don't see a whole lot of action. Allied subs claim another empty barge on the 14th, and Hudsons from Port Moresby fly a couple of low-level attack runs at a replenishment convoy at Rabaul, but manage only a few .303-caliber shell hits. The tanker they attack is hardly scratched. The B-17s have evidently had enough, as they do not fly on the 14th. Thunderstorms settle over the entire south pacific on the 15th, effectively squelching any attempt at hostilities.
My devious plans are nearing fruition. Aerial reconnaissance of Port Moresby is indicating an unbelievable number of aircraft on the ground (100 fighters, 200+ bombers, 100 auxiliaries!?!). These reports lead me to wonder if Lexington and Yorktown didn't deposit their entire airgroups at PM. (Side note--when you do aerial recon of a base, do fighter-bombers there show up as fighters, or as bombers? Or sometimes one and sometimes the other?). Perhaps the aircraft have been left behind to defend Australia while the Allied carriers and their escorts run back to Noumea for AA refits?
Zuikaku and her escorts have reached the eastern tip of the Solomons chain and are now steaming south. They still have not been spotted. If there are any allied ships at Luganville, the Zuikaku will be in position to hit them tomorrow. If the enemy ships are clustered at Noumea, it will take two days to get in range.
The Shokaku/Shoho task force is spotted by a coastwatcher as it nears Shortland Island, which is momentarily annoying, but could turn out to be a blessing in disguise. I don't think the Americans will guess I've split my carrier force, since it's plainly an insane thing to do at this early stage of the game. The sighting report was accurate, but my opponent will probably assume that that contact was all of my carriers, and that they're still at Shortland. In fact, Shokaku, Shoho, and their escorts are now steaming south-southeast into the large, empty ocean area between Austalia and New Caledonia. I should be well beyond range of land-based airstrikes (excepting the B-17s, of course). If his carriers (or other vessels) are making transit between Oz and Noumea, I could have a chance to catch them between my two carrier task forces.
Of course, I could also be setting myself up for a classic defeat in detail, but my plans don't sound nearly as clever when I lay them out that way.....
My devious plans are nearing fruition. Aerial reconnaissance of Port Moresby is indicating an unbelievable number of aircraft on the ground (100 fighters, 200+ bombers, 100 auxiliaries!?!). These reports lead me to wonder if Lexington and Yorktown didn't deposit their entire airgroups at PM. (Side note--when you do aerial recon of a base, do fighter-bombers there show up as fighters, or as bombers? Or sometimes one and sometimes the other?). Perhaps the aircraft have been left behind to defend Australia while the Allied carriers and their escorts run back to Noumea for AA refits?
Zuikaku and her escorts have reached the eastern tip of the Solomons chain and are now steaming south. They still have not been spotted. If there are any allied ships at Luganville, the Zuikaku will be in position to hit them tomorrow. If the enemy ships are clustered at Noumea, it will take two days to get in range.
The Shokaku/Shoho task force is spotted by a coastwatcher as it nears Shortland Island, which is momentarily annoying, but could turn out to be a blessing in disguise. I don't think the Americans will guess I've split my carrier force, since it's plainly an insane thing to do at this early stage of the game. The sighting report was accurate, but my opponent will probably assume that that contact was all of my carriers, and that they're still at Shortland. In fact, Shokaku, Shoho, and their escorts are now steaming south-southeast into the large, empty ocean area between Austalia and New Caledonia. I should be well beyond range of land-based airstrikes (excepting the B-17s, of course). If his carriers (or other vessels) are making transit between Oz and Noumea, I could have a chance to catch them between my two carrier task forces.
Of course, I could also be setting myself up for a classic defeat in detail, but my plans don't sound nearly as clever when I lay them out that way.....
RE: The Second Battle of Ohio--Buckeye5 (IJN) vs. marcgto (Allies)
Quick update today after a weekend out of town for me.
Not much happened today in terms of action. S-38 attacked another of the barges heading back toward Rabaul and sank it, but not before being hit 9 times by the barge's gunner. It probably didn't do much damage, but then, those barges are effectively free. Sooner or later, one of them is going to get lucky.
Rain today keeps much else from happening...it also keeps my carrier task forces, now converging on Noumea, from being spotted. All three carriers will be within strike range of Noumea tomorrow, and they're going in. My fighters are set to 50% CAP, and my bombers are all set to Naval Attack, with secondary Port Attack orders.
I'm stacking up transports and auxiliaries at Truk--now I just need the troops to move with them. A huge replenishment task force is formed up to stock Rabaul's fuel bunkers--50,000 fuel units should last a while, even with IJN ships. More tankers are on the way, and they'll be used to stock Shortland, or possibly Lunga.
Not much happened today in terms of action. S-38 attacked another of the barges heading back toward Rabaul and sank it, but not before being hit 9 times by the barge's gunner. It probably didn't do much damage, but then, those barges are effectively free. Sooner or later, one of them is going to get lucky.
Rain today keeps much else from happening...it also keeps my carrier task forces, now converging on Noumea, from being spotted. All three carriers will be within strike range of Noumea tomorrow, and they're going in. My fighters are set to 50% CAP, and my bombers are all set to Naval Attack, with secondary Port Attack orders.
I'm stacking up transports and auxiliaries at Truk--now I just need the troops to move with them. A huge replenishment task force is formed up to stock Rabaul's fuel bunkers--50,000 fuel units should last a while, even with IJN ships. More tankers are on the way, and they'll be used to stock Shortland, or possibly Lunga.
@#(%&* Meteorology!!!!
My Noumea adventure was set up perfectly--and quickly turned to crap. Zuikaku's task force snuck undetected to within less than 210 miles of Noumea, with the Shokaku/Shoho task force a couple hundred miles further out. The day dawns crisp and bright over the South Pacific, and the weather is ideal for flying....
.
.
.
.
.
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....except in the small patch of sea occupied by Zuikaku, where a localized storm keeps her planes on the deck. To make matters worse, the weather does NOT ground search aircraft from Noumea, and a patrolling PBY finally spots one of the cruisers escorting the big carrier.
So the jig is up for this little foray. I'm still going to attack--I didn't come all this way to do nothing, and the risk of counterattack is pretty minimal (see below for the reasons why). But the element of surprise has been lost, which means any ships in the Noumea neighborhood will be tucked into port, where I can't really do much damage to them. **** **** ****!!!
To the west, spotting reports indicate the presence of both SBDs and TBDs at Port Moresby--one of the SBD's drops a bomb on I-28, which was lurking near the port. At a minimum, the sub is going to be in for some extensive repairs, assuming it doesn't sink on the way home to Rabaul. This news, plus the presence of the F4Fs identified previously, confirms what I'd suspected for a while--at least one of the U.S. carriers has dropped off its entire airgroup at Port Moresby. Maybe they're going home for AA refits? Or perhaps tucked away at Brisbane?
To the north, the Aoba, Yubari, and Tsugaru reach Truk and are returned to Japan. I'm taking a bit of a risk, since there's no guarantee I'll get them back, but none of these ships was that badly banged up--Aoba will be available in 49 days, the others sooner. So they should be ready at a time when my commitment level is still high, meaning I'll likely get them returned to me.
Alright...this wasn't a very auspicious day. But I have managed to avoid doing anything really stupid yet, and the Midway carriers are all due in Japan within the next three weeks. The 2nd and 38th Divisions should be arriving at Truk at about the same time as the carriers. When they're all here, we can get serious about dealing with Port Moresby. I can be patient...for a little while....
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....except in the small patch of sea occupied by Zuikaku, where a localized storm keeps her planes on the deck. To make matters worse, the weather does NOT ground search aircraft from Noumea, and a patrolling PBY finally spots one of the cruisers escorting the big carrier.
So the jig is up for this little foray. I'm still going to attack--I didn't come all this way to do nothing, and the risk of counterattack is pretty minimal (see below for the reasons why). But the element of surprise has been lost, which means any ships in the Noumea neighborhood will be tucked into port, where I can't really do much damage to them. **** **** ****!!!
To the west, spotting reports indicate the presence of both SBDs and TBDs at Port Moresby--one of the SBD's drops a bomb on I-28, which was lurking near the port. At a minimum, the sub is going to be in for some extensive repairs, assuming it doesn't sink on the way home to Rabaul. This news, plus the presence of the F4Fs identified previously, confirms what I'd suspected for a while--at least one of the U.S. carriers has dropped off its entire airgroup at Port Moresby. Maybe they're going home for AA refits? Or perhaps tucked away at Brisbane?
To the north, the Aoba, Yubari, and Tsugaru reach Truk and are returned to Japan. I'm taking a bit of a risk, since there's no guarantee I'll get them back, but none of these ships was that badly banged up--Aoba will be available in 49 days, the others sooner. So they should be ready at a time when my commitment level is still high, meaning I'll likely get them returned to me.
Alright...this wasn't a very auspicious day. But I have managed to avoid doing anything really stupid yet, and the Midway carriers are all due in Japan within the next three weeks. The 2nd and 38th Divisions should be arriving at Truk at about the same time as the carriers. When they're all here, we can get serious about dealing with Port Moresby. I can be patient...for a little while....
RE: @#(%&* Meteorology!!!!
lol
its always the little things in war.......
its always the little things in war.......
May 19 -- A Weather Haiku
Thunderstorms today
All carrier planes grounded
My admirals weep
***
Or maybe they're cursing. Or gnashing their teeth. Or drowning puppies. I don't know. I don't care.
It rains. My #$#% carriers have rendezvoused, but their #$@#$ planes can't fly because of the @#@@#$@ weather. If you listen closely enough, the wind is carrying the sounds of the laughter from the allied soldiers, sailors and marines at Noumea.
Alright, I get the hint. The forecast for tomorrow is just as bad, so the carriers are leaving. They'll return to Rabaul via Luganville and Shortland. Maybe we can at least get some bombs dropped on the Luganville. The heavy cruisers of the screen, with destroyer support, will make a quick run into Noumea to lob a few shells at the base before following the carriers. It won't amount to much more than wasting ammo, but at least we'll be able to say we did SOMETHING.....
All carrier planes grounded
My admirals weep
***
Or maybe they're cursing. Or gnashing their teeth. Or drowning puppies. I don't know. I don't care.
It rains. My #$#% carriers have rendezvoused, but their #$@#$ planes can't fly because of the @#@@#$@ weather. If you listen closely enough, the wind is carrying the sounds of the laughter from the allied soldiers, sailors and marines at Noumea.
Alright, I get the hint. The forecast for tomorrow is just as bad, so the carriers are leaving. They'll return to Rabaul via Luganville and Shortland. Maybe we can at least get some bombs dropped on the Luganville. The heavy cruisers of the screen, with destroyer support, will make a quick run into Noumea to lob a few shells at the base before following the carriers. It won't amount to much more than wasting ammo, but at least we'll be able to say we did SOMETHING.....
That's more like it!
Finally, some production from my heretofore-underachieving sailors and aviators.
The cruisers and destroyers of my bombardment force slip through the Allied minefields at Noumea and shell the base. The base damage itself will be fixed quickly, I'm sure, but the oiler Neosho is hit repeatedly and set on fire. It's not reported as sunk, so she'll probably just need a trip to Pearl Harbor, although I'm guessing her SYS damage is very high. A handful of P-400s from Noumea counterattack my ships, but are driven off by flak, scoring only a handful of shell hits on a cruiser (all non-penetrating belt armor hits).
Much more satisfying, though, is the performance of my level bombers. A scouting Mavis spots a large transport convoy unloading at Cooktown--with no CAP! The Nells and Betties pounce on the opportunity, launching a pair of strikes. I lose four Nells and three Betties to flak or operations accidents, but the rest press home and score a reported 25 torpedo hits on enemy shipping! Three ships are confirmed sunk (a subchaser, a transport, and a small AK), and the handwriting should be on the wall for at least two more vessels. Many other transports take single or paired torpedo hits. At a minimum, they're going to need some yard time for repairs. This should put a crimp in the ability of the Allies to resupply Port Moresby, at least until AP and AK reinforcements start arriving.
The day is not without Allied counterpunches. A massive strike of more than 120 aircraft from Port Moresby pummels Lae. The two Rufes flying CAP are dispatched with contemptuous ease, and bombers and fighter-bombers strafe and bomb the base, challenged only by ground fire. The base airfield is closed (Runway damage 93!), and will likely remain so for several days. It could've been worse, though. The best planes I had at Lae were the Claude squadron, and they were rotated to Kavieng yesterday, so they're not stuck on the ground.
A half-dozen B-17s make another run at Rabaul, as well. I still don't get why they're doing this. There are plenty of easier targets for them to hit if the goal is to build their experience, and there aren't enough of them to really hurt the base. As it is, flak drops one of them and damages most of the others. That's 9 Fortresses destroyed so far, and it's only May 20. I'll take that.
My carriers are rained in again, so they're departing Luganville and heading home to Rabaul by way of Shortland. My cruiser bombardment force is headed directly for Rabaul to refuel.
The 25th Independent Mixed Brigade HQ and infantry is now deploying at Wewak. Base force troops and AA guns are about two days behind them. Barges at Kavieng are loading an AA unit to thicken Rabaul's air defenses. Fast transport runs from Lunga are bringing in the Naval Garrison Unit that I used to occupy Tulagi. My other NGU's will arrive at Tassafaronga and Taivu tomorrow, so I should have both dot hexes secured within two days.
The cruisers and destroyers of my bombardment force slip through the Allied minefields at Noumea and shell the base. The base damage itself will be fixed quickly, I'm sure, but the oiler Neosho is hit repeatedly and set on fire. It's not reported as sunk, so she'll probably just need a trip to Pearl Harbor, although I'm guessing her SYS damage is very high. A handful of P-400s from Noumea counterattack my ships, but are driven off by flak, scoring only a handful of shell hits on a cruiser (all non-penetrating belt armor hits).
Much more satisfying, though, is the performance of my level bombers. A scouting Mavis spots a large transport convoy unloading at Cooktown--with no CAP! The Nells and Betties pounce on the opportunity, launching a pair of strikes. I lose four Nells and three Betties to flak or operations accidents, but the rest press home and score a reported 25 torpedo hits on enemy shipping! Three ships are confirmed sunk (a subchaser, a transport, and a small AK), and the handwriting should be on the wall for at least two more vessels. Many other transports take single or paired torpedo hits. At a minimum, they're going to need some yard time for repairs. This should put a crimp in the ability of the Allies to resupply Port Moresby, at least until AP and AK reinforcements start arriving.
The day is not without Allied counterpunches. A massive strike of more than 120 aircraft from Port Moresby pummels Lae. The two Rufes flying CAP are dispatched with contemptuous ease, and bombers and fighter-bombers strafe and bomb the base, challenged only by ground fire. The base airfield is closed (Runway damage 93!), and will likely remain so for several days. It could've been worse, though. The best planes I had at Lae were the Claude squadron, and they were rotated to Kavieng yesterday, so they're not stuck on the ground.
A half-dozen B-17s make another run at Rabaul, as well. I still don't get why they're doing this. There are plenty of easier targets for them to hit if the goal is to build their experience, and there aren't enough of them to really hurt the base. As it is, flak drops one of them and damages most of the others. That's 9 Fortresses destroyed so far, and it's only May 20. I'll take that.
My carriers are rained in again, so they're departing Luganville and heading home to Rabaul by way of Shortland. My cruiser bombardment force is headed directly for Rabaul to refuel.
The 25th Independent Mixed Brigade HQ and infantry is now deploying at Wewak. Base force troops and AA guns are about two days behind them. Barges at Kavieng are loading an AA unit to thicken Rabaul's air defenses. Fast transport runs from Lunga are bringing in the Naval Garrison Unit that I used to occupy Tulagi. My other NGU's will arrive at Tassafaronga and Taivu tomorrow, so I should have both dot hexes secured within two days.
RE: The Second Battle of Ohio--Buckeye5 (IJN) vs. marcgto (Allies)
No action on May 21, but my plans continue moving forward. The carrier and cruiser task forces are both well on their way home to Rabaul, having accomplished next to nothing, but at least staying out of counterattack range.
My FT runs have now collected all of the troops from Tulagi--the last few squads will unload at Lunga today. My naval garrison units have reached Tassafaronga and Taivu and been given attack orders, so I should hold both of these beaches by tomorrow. Base force troops will arrive at Wewak today and begin unloading, bringing some much-needed aviation support troops to the base.
At this point, I'm just marking time and waiting for reinforcements to arrive. I have many transports at Truk awaiting the arrival of the last elements of the 65th Brigade. These units will be going to Lunga to replace the Naval Garrision troops there, who will be sent to Shortland for R & R and then used for other operations.
A replenishment task force with more than 80,000 tons of fuel will depart Truk for Rabaul tomorrow. That should be enough to sustain operations for quite a while.
The carrier Hiryu and a destroyer squadron have been released, and will arrive at Truk in 10 days. Four additional fleet carriers, two CVLs, and three seaplane cruisers will arrive at Japan within the next three weeks, as will several battleships and a multitude of smaller vessels. Once I've got them, I should be ready to mount a serious push for Port Moresby. Coordination will be a bit of a problem--the base is very heavily defended, with lots of engineers, so closing the airfield will have to be priority #1. I'll have to coordinate strikes from land-based and carrier air squadrons with quick runs by bombardment task forces--hopefully built around battleships, as I'm not sure cruisers have enough punch to get the job done.
Until then, my plan is to rest my ships and planes, build up my airgroups, and hopefully repair some incidental system damage (given the tempo of operations so far, it's been creeping up uncomfortably high on several of my vessels, so the rest and repair time will be welcome).
My FT runs have now collected all of the troops from Tulagi--the last few squads will unload at Lunga today. My naval garrison units have reached Tassafaronga and Taivu and been given attack orders, so I should hold both of these beaches by tomorrow. Base force troops will arrive at Wewak today and begin unloading, bringing some much-needed aviation support troops to the base.
At this point, I'm just marking time and waiting for reinforcements to arrive. I have many transports at Truk awaiting the arrival of the last elements of the 65th Brigade. These units will be going to Lunga to replace the Naval Garrision troops there, who will be sent to Shortland for R & R and then used for other operations.
A replenishment task force with more than 80,000 tons of fuel will depart Truk for Rabaul tomorrow. That should be enough to sustain operations for quite a while.
The carrier Hiryu and a destroyer squadron have been released, and will arrive at Truk in 10 days. Four additional fleet carriers, two CVLs, and three seaplane cruisers will arrive at Japan within the next three weeks, as will several battleships and a multitude of smaller vessels. Once I've got them, I should be ready to mount a serious push for Port Moresby. Coordination will be a bit of a problem--the base is very heavily defended, with lots of engineers, so closing the airfield will have to be priority #1. I'll have to coordinate strikes from land-based and carrier air squadrons with quick runs by bombardment task forces--hopefully built around battleships, as I'm not sure cruisers have enough punch to get the job done.
Until then, my plan is to rest my ships and planes, build up my airgroups, and hopefully repair some incidental system damage (given the tempo of operations so far, it's been creeping up uncomfortably high on several of my vessels, so the rest and repair time will be welcome).
Twiddling thumbs...
Very little to report today (May 21). A lone minesweeper sailing home to Truk from Shortland dodges a torpedo spread from the Greenling--that was fortunate, as a single hit would've killed the little ship.
In the Solomons, Tassafaronga and Taivu are occupied by IJN troops, so all of Lunga is now at least nominally in Japanese hands. The Naval Garrision Units are immediately ordered to march back to Lunga to prepare for evacuation.
My carriers and cruisers continue on the long, slow voyage back to Rabaul...they should arrive in 3 and 2 days, respectively. No hostile activity (apart from subs) has been sighted anywhere north of New Guinea.
In the Solomons, Tassafaronga and Taivu are occupied by IJN troops, so all of Lunga is now at least nominally in Japanese hands. The Naval Garrision Units are immediately ordered to march back to Lunga to prepare for evacuation.
My carriers and cruisers continue on the long, slow voyage back to Rabaul...they should arrive in 3 and 2 days, respectively. No hostile activity (apart from subs) has been sighted anywhere north of New Guinea.