Ok all you IJN fanboys - Retain or split up KB?

[Oznoyng]

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball

No one mentioned the CS units. I personally like to pair them with the slower CV's (Akagi, Kaga, Junyo, etc), where their search planes can make a difference. That keeps you from having to put any Kates on NavSearch, and also frees up an AA escort spot from a CA that can be better employed elsewhere.

I did in the response above yours. :p Chitose, Chiyoda, Nisshin, Mizuho are CS. Chitose and Chiyoda are faster (27 or 29 knots?) than Mizuho and Nisshin (22 knots?) iirc.

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball
I'd love to hear other ideas on how best to use them....I've thought about loading them with Rufe's, but against any serious air opposition that's not really worthwhile anyway. The only other units they would run with are BB's, because you don't want to slow cruisers down. Seems a waste to just park them in port like an AV.

I like CA's as the focus of my invasion TF. They can take a pounding from smaller shore guns without getting seriously hurt and draw fire from/counter-battery shore emplacements so they lessen your losses of transports(and troops). I tend to form SAG's with BB's and DD's, and invasion escorts with CA's, CL's, and DD's. I put CS Chitose and CS Chiyoda into TF's with The Big 6, place Mizuho with CVL's/CVE's, and Nisshin with a TK Convoy. In all cases, I offload F1M2 Petes from the CS and load on E7K2 or E13A1's as available. Once 1.5 is available, I expect to upgrade to Alf's rather than transfer units.

[Cmdrcain]

ORIGINAL: Oznoyng

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball

No one mentioned the CS units. I personally like to pair them with the slower CV's (Akagi, Kaga, Junyo, etc), where their search planes can make a difference. That keeps you from having to put any Kates on NavSearch, and also frees up an AA escort spot from a CA that can be better employed elsewhere.

I did in the response above yours. :p Chitose, Chiyoda, Nisshin, Mizuho are CS. Chitose and Chiyoda are faster (27 or 29 knots?) than Mizuho and Nisshin (22 knots?) iirc.

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball
I'd love to hear other ideas on how best to use them....I've thought about loading them with Rufe's, but against any serious air opposition that's not really worthwhile anyway. The only other units they would run with are BB's, because you don't want to slow cruisers down. Seems a waste to just park them in port like an AV.

I like CA's as the focus of my invasion TF. They can take a pounding from smaller shore guns without getting seriously hurt and draw fire from/counter-battery shore emplacements so they lessen your losses of transports(and troops). I tend to form SAG's with BB's and DD's, and invasion escorts with CA's, CL's, and DD's. I put CS Chitose and CS Chiyoda into TF's with The Big 6, place Mizuho with CVL's/CVE's, and Nisshin with a TK Convoy. In all cases, I offload F1M2 Petes from the CS and load on E7K2 or E13A1's as available. Once 1.5 is available, I expect to upgrade to Alf's rather than transfer units.

By loading/unloading you talking of flying/transfering planes between a base vis a vis loading planes on as when tranport them?

Must be carrier capable type and/or float planes?

[Yamato hugger]

ORIGINAL: Cmdrcain


I like how this AI cheats... it sent hornet down twards noumea (japanese own) and Suva.. So Hornet joins the "E", Yorktown, Lex, and Sara at bottom.

And due to a bug the allied AI thinks noumeas an allied port.. (cant disband ships in it without japanese ships taken by computer and sent on allied missions!) Seems its sending Ak's, ap's and stuff to noumea still.. where 3 CV and 2 CVL in a Smaller KB now (lost one of the kakus and have 2 Cv repairing)

Yup i like how Ai cheats

[:'(][:'(]

They wouldnt have come anywhere near you if they didnt have at least equal carrier numbers. If you hadnt split the KB, the AI wouldnt have come out. Its like teh AI has fog of war off. Thats what I ment about it cheating, NOT the actual combat resolution. Get a grip please.

[Oznoyng]

ORIGINAL: Cmdrcain
By loading/unloading you talking of flying/transfering planes between a base vis a vis loading planes on as when tranport them?

Must be carrier capable type and/or float planes?

CS only carry Float Planes afaik. By unloading, I mean...

At game start you have 3 CS. Two (Chitose and Mizuho?) are in a TF at Palau that is set to hit Legaspi in the northern Phillipines and one (Chiyoda?) is in the same port in Japan where CVL Zuiho and CVE Hosho start the game. I forget which base it is, but it is probably Hiroshima/Kure.

What I do first is transfer the Pete squadrons off of the CS to a base. Iirc, the one in Japan goes to Amami and eventually heads south to take up ASW duties along the convoy routes between the SRA and Japan. The ones in Palau get boxed up and forwarded to locations where I can use them for ASW.

I then take longer range FP's off bases within xfer range and transfer them onto the CS's. Make sure you cover the gap in your patrols caused by this xfer. The one in Japan is easily handled - I take a nearby unit of 27 Alf's, split it into 3 groups and xfer two of those groups onto the CS, giving me 22 total (4xE13A1, 2x9xE7K2) float planes on a CS with capacity of 24. The two at Palau are a little more difficult to handle since you either have to transfer the float planes in from islands nearby, creating holes in your patrol coverage, or send some replacements in via AK/first turn movement.

I am left with 3 CS with ~22 long range float planes that can perform scouting/ASW services for ACTF's and free up Vals/Kates to attack/rest. When Nisshin arrives in the January time frame, I use her as the flagship of a TK convoy that plies the routes from Japan to SRA and back.