Using RN CV's

[Andy Mac]

And the Barracudas in 43 are Range 5 Torpedo Carriers. Thats the longest range allied shipkiller I think so the airgroups are worth keeping high xp.

Corsairs and Barracudas make tham as good if not better than a US CVL but not as good as a CV due to airgp size.

Andy

[Feinder]

String,

Private Message sent.

-F-

[Bradley7735]

I'm in 1/44 of my game vs the AI. My avengers get about one hit per 18 bombers attacking. I swear that US torpedoes have 50% duds even after they are supposed to get good.

I had 130 avengers (TBM's) with good pilots attack some IJN BB's and they got about 6 hits. They totally SUCK!

Sinking IJN BB's is the single most difficult task in the game. I think it's easier for the USN to win a CV battle in 1/42 than it is to sink an IJN BB.

whew. I'm just blowing off some steam.

[freeboy]

two issues in my pbem game, jap cv just seem to vanish.. he will steam right up to a port in 43.. then poof.. gone.. and the BB unsinkable rule.. I think it takes like 250 torp hits to sink one.. just kidding [:D]

[Tom Hunter]

The swordfish is the most dangerous single engine plane in the allied arsenal at the start of the war. It can hurt anything unlike the dauntless that can hit anything but won't hurt heavily armored things.

I don't think you should look at the RN CVs seperately from the rest of the RN assets. Search my AAR for the battle of Akyab, the Battle of Bali and the recent attack off Timor to see what the RN can do.

When looking at CV TF fighting power in the early war things stack up like this:

KB is number 1
USA CVs
Baby KB
RN CVs

So you can slap Japanese surface TFs with the RN CVs. Also if we look at surface combat capability in the early war it looks like this:

IJN and RN are tied
USN second place

Finally remember that time is on your side more CVs are coming. The real trick with the RN is to strike when you know that KB is somewhere else and baby KB too.

Its possible to sink baby KB early in the war and if you do that (which I did) then the RN can rule the Indian Ocean. The main thing is to find ways to use them that don't throw them away.

You might check the AARs to see cases of good RN performance and see if you can get ideas from there.

[Blackwatch_it]

ORIGINAL: Tom Hunter

The swordfish is the most dangerous single engine plane in the allied arsenal at the start of the war. It can hurt anything unlike the dauntless that can hit anything but won't hurt heavily armored things.

I don't think you should look at the RN CVs seperately from the rest of the RN assets. Search my AAR for the battle of Akyab, the Battle of Bali and the recent attack off Timor to see what the RN can do.

When looking at CV TF fighting power in the early war things stack up like this:

KB is number 1
USA CVs
Baby KB
RN CVs

So you can slap Japanese surface TFs with the RN CVs. Also if we look at surface combat capability in the early war it looks like this:

IJN and RN are tied
USN second place

Finally remember that time is on your side more CVs are coming. The real trick with the RN is to strike when you know that KB is somewhere else and baby KB too.

Its possible to sink baby KB early in the war and if you do that (which I did) then the RN can rule the Indian Ocean. The main thing is to find ways to use them that don't throw them away.

You might check the AARs to see cases of good RN performance and see if you can get ideas from there.

I can confirm that Tom can use the RN CVs in a very effective way (and also that he was able to sink all of baby KB CVs very early). Anyway RN CVs are a light weapon and must be used the right way.

[Rob322]

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball

You also get the british version of wildcat in august so by september your carriers should give good enough aircover. If you won't lose hermes then you'll have 3 CV's and 1 CVL in your fleet. Enough to give aircover vs LBA.

The Fulmars on Formidable upgrade to the Corsair IV. Won't be seeing that in awhile! That's why I thought of dumping them. Can I load US Wildcats onto a UK CV?

Yes you can. In a desperate moment in 1942 in one the first games I played, I sent a UK CV group to cover OZ and did swap out her planes for Wildcats and SBD's which performed well (for being "carrier capable"). The interesting thing is I left the original air group on Munda for awhile where they eventually gained high experience levels fighting over the Solomons.

In retrospect it seems pretty gamey and I doubt I would do it again as I don't think there are any records of the USMC air units being stationed on Brit CV's.

My advice is to use them where you know the Japanese aren't, or at least aren't in any serious strength. Small raids on various targets will build pilot quality for squadrons which will eventually be flying Corsairs themselves. With American CV's with 90 planes a pop, you can sometimes afford to blunder into something and still escape to fight another day but you don't have that luxury with the British. Concentration is also the key, group as many as you can together. One on one they don't carry many planes but having 2-3 CV's together allows you to wield a credible strike force so long as you keep in mind it's limitations.

[Q-Ball]

Great feedback guys! Along with that, it seems to me the IJN should go historical, take KB into the Indian Ocean to take out the RN early on in the game. In the first couple months there isn't enough LBA to provide CAP over an RN base, and the only way to avoid destruction is to sail to Karachi. I guess then the IJN player has a decision to make, and that will take more time, but in the end it seems to me the RN can be destroyed if the IJN player makes a priority.

Is that everyone's experience so far? Is taking on the RN a good strategy? Does leave US CV's free to roam for a couple weeks

[janushm]

taking out the royal navy.......if you dont get spotted, yes.....subs, picket AK's and Patrol squadrons will make that kinda hard....and. those hurricanes, watch out for them.


i normally disembark my RN carrierplanes and use em to supplement the CAP if the KB treath is here.

in a couple of weeks in march/april i would already launch a counter offensive retaking islandson the edge of imperial territory.


anyway, in 1942 the us navy is a higher priority. keep the KB hidden andlet them come out if the americans pop up. i always feel terrible when i am unaware of the KB's location. and every US cv sunk will delay the start of the allied counter offensive.

[Tom Hunter]

Given what I have accomplished with the RN if I were playing Japanese I would look for a way to knock it out early.

The British in general are strong but brittle, if you can force a battle with them you can do damage that will take them a long time to recover. But the Indian Ocean is a large place and if your opponent sees you coming he will likely run away.

Like every other Japanese strategy it has its trade offs, you just have to decide if its worth it.

[ltfightr]

The best thing Feinder can do with the RN CV's is send them home after what happened to the American CV's [X(]

[Knavey]

Ltfighter,

I told you he wants to meet KB in the middle of the SRA for a Brit vs. KB confrontation.