Nomonhan Redux: Seydlitz (Japan) vs. MBatch729 (Allies)

[seydlitz_slith]

He has also pushed a force across the border in northern China. Luckily I had taken action in late February to move some forces north to create a reserve. These will now see actions against the Soviets.

[seydlitz_slith]

In Malaya, I am held up from attacking Singapore because I have nearly exhausted my supplies. I have supplies coming from Japan, but in the meantime I sent a quick convoy from Saigon to Mersing to get some beans and bullets to the troops. Sad to say, he surprised me with bomber flights out of Singapore that sank 3 of the 4 AKs unloading supplies.

[seydlitz_slith]

Turn 95 11 March, 1942

The KB continues to ply the Pacific about 15 hexes north of Midway. We will be refueling in two turns and then I will continue an open ocean sweep eastward as far as fuel allows. Instead of attacking Pearl, I now plan to stay out of air search range and lay in ambush for one of the convoys running out of the west coast. Intel has been picking up significant radio traffic at LAX so there may be a shipping concentration there. I have a sub based Glen scheduled to fly recon there next turn.

In Malaya, my opponent has moved hurricane trops down to Singapore. He split them between cap over Singapore and as fighter escorts for Vildebeeste missions. Luckily I had a very expierienced Oscar unit on duty covering both options and set to a higher altitude. My Oscars shot down more hurricanes than they lost and I also bagged several torpedo bombers as a bonus. I also had both a zero and an oscar unit flying cap over my amphib TF landing air support and HQ units at Singkawang. He had a unit of Hudsons fly unescorted into this trap and all were shot down or aborted before they even saw my ships. In a few turns I will have this base ready to go and will begin moving air assets down from Korea and Japan to start projecting power in the Palembang/Java area.

My opponent has become active in Russia with his air force again, but it shouldn't take much to beat them ack into submission. During our fights this turn, I could tell that the quality of his pilots were hurting badly. Definitely not the same pilots that I was fighting in December and January.

[seydlitz_slith]

Probably the best news of the turn came at Voroshilov on the Russian front. I attempted one last shock attack after resting all of my units. Amazingly, I had enough for 2:1 odds and captured the hex. His surviving units retreated to Vladivostok, which I have been bombing every day for the past 3 months.

He had significant casualties in terms of squads destroyed.

Ground combat at Voroshilov (112,45)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 98411 troops, 966 guns, 438 vehicles, Assault Value = 2902

Defending force 52297 troops, 1492 guns, 196 vehicles, Assault Value = 1379

Japanese adjusted assault: 2284

Allied adjusted defense: 1001

Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 0)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Voroshilov !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), leaders(+), disruption(-), preparation(-)
fatigue(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
6439 casualties reported
Squads: 70 destroyed, 229 disabled
Non Combat: 90 destroyed, 174 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 28 disabled
Guns lost 4 (0 destroyed, 4 disabled)
Vehicles lost 45 (2 destroyed, 43 disabled)
Allied ground losses:
15299 casualties reported
Squads: 681 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 982 destroyed, 60 disabled
Engineers: 362 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 776 (767 destroyed, 9 disabled)
Vehicles lost 197 (178 destroyed, 19 disabled)
Units retreated 29
Units destroyed 1


Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
74th Infantry Regiment
27th Electric Engineer Regiment
10th Tank Regiment
11th Division
9th Garrison Unit
12th Division
24th Division
9th Division
11th Tank Regiment
5th Infantry Regiment
2nd Manchukuo Distr Division
25th Division
1st Manchukuo Division
7th Ind. Engineer Regiment
4th RF Gun Battalion
5th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
9th Ind. Engineer Regiment
22nd Ind. Engineer Regiment
5th Army
7th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
22nd Medium Field Artillery Regiment
4th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
3rd Army
Kwantung Army
2nd Hvy.Artillery Regiment
12th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
20th Medium Field Artillery Regiment

Defending units:
8th Cavalry Division
76th Tank Brigade
22nd Rifle Division
105th Rifle Division
40th Rifle Division
247th Rifle Brigade
190th Rifle Division
98th Rifle Division
126th Rifle Division
39th Rifle Division
59th Rifle Division
4th Ussurii Tank Brigade
46th Engr-Sapper Brigade
33rd VVS Base Force
1192nd BM Howitzer Regiment
372nd Hvy Howitzer Regiment
25th Army
1138th Cannon Regiment
50th Cannon Regiment
1125th Cannon Regiment
100th OM Howitzer Battalion
273rd Cannon Regiment
78th/186th PVO AA Battalion
165th Hvy Howitzer Regiment
9th Air Army
83rd VVS Base Force
1124th Cannon Regiment
1139th Cannon Regiment
199th BM Howitzer Regiment
93rd VVS Base Force

[seydlitz_slith]

Along with the good news at Voroshilov, we also pushed him back across the border at Tolun.

Ground combat at Tolun (98,36)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 25730 troops, 189 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 739

Defending force 6840 troops, 40 guns, 205 vehicles, Assault Value = 150

Japanese adjusted assault: 518

Allied adjusted defense: 85

Japanese assault odds: 6 to 1 (fort level 0)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Tolun !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
885 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 52 disabled
Non Combat: 3 destroyed, 37 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 1 (1 destroyed, 0 disabled)


Allied ground losses:
1699 casualties reported
Squads: 27 destroyed, 51 disabled
Non Combat: 126 destroyed, 17 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 28 (24 destroyed, 4 disabled)
Vehicles lost 199 (162 destroyed, 37 disabled)
Units retreated 2


Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
62nd Infantry Brigade
56th Infantry Brigade
3rd Ind.Mixed Brigade
17th Ind.Mixed Brigade
59th Infantry Brigade
13th Army
1st Army
4th Mortar Battalion

Defending units:
5th Mongolian Cavalry Division
8th Mongolian Cavalry Division

[ComradeP]

Congratulations on capturing Voroshilov!

What are your plans for the next few turns? Are you going to try to use the bit of momentum your forces near Vladivostok have to try and capture the hex now that at least a large portion of the defenders should be depleted, disrupted or both, or do your forces need a rest again?

How costly was the loss of the artillery units that evaporated?

[veji1]

and also since you have captured Vorosilov, you don't have to take the time to destroy the fort and you can go through it and trace your supply from it to go straight for Vladivostock right ?

[seydlitz_slith]

ORIGINAL: ComradeP

Congratulations on capturing Voroshilov!

What are your plans for the next few turns? Are you going to try to use the bit of momentum your forces near Vladivostok have to try and capture the hex now that at least a large portion of the defenders should be depleted, disrupted or both, or do your forces need a rest again?

How costly was the loss of the artillery units that evaporated?

My forces in the Voroshilov hex will remain there for a few turns. Most have disruption and fatgiue in the 80-90 range. I am flipping most into reserve to bring the disruption down quickly. Also, I need to leave them as a blocking force as he have significant forces (11 combat units) in the hex east of Voroshilov that could cut me off if I leave the hex.

My plan is to hold for a few turns while continuing to bomb him and then continue after the southern army forces break through the border fort to the west. It has enough artillery with it to get the job done. My losses in artillery were enough to render them essentially ineffective during bombardments at the end.Out of all of the artillery in the korean and kwangtung armies, I have only 5 units left. This stack of units is almost spent.

If I can get Vladivostok, I will start rolling northward along the rail lines killing his forces as I go. At some point, however, I need to pull the southern boys out to take Palembang and Java.

[seydlitz_slith]

ORIGINAL: veji1

and also since you have captured Vorosilov, you don't have to take the time to destroy the fort and you can go through it and trace your supply from it to go straight for Vladivostock right ?

Voroshilove didn't have a fort. The hex west of it does. I must kill that fort in order to trace supply through the hex.

[bklooste]

Guns lost 776 (767 destroyed, 9 disabled)
Vehicles lost 197 (178 destroyed, 19 disabled)

That sounds like some of the east front battles .. half his arty gone must be nice..

[Ron Saueracker]

Great AAR...bring on some more![:)]

[seydlitz_slith]

Just an update guys since I haven't been on the AAR for over a week. My wife took ill suddenly a week ago and has been in the hospital until late this past weekend. She is out, but still ill, so I am very limited in my time. I am still trying to work during the day and tend to her in the evening. Since we moved to the town that we are in about a year and a half ago for my job, we don't have any family up here so it is mostly me taking care of her right now. I sent the first turn in a week to my opponent Monday night and it just came back to me tonight. I will try to do it Wednesday, but he has informed me that he is taking his family to Disneyworld from the 15th to the 25th so we will continue to have a very slow period in the game.

****rest assured that the game will continue.*****
I've been married for 20 years, and dealing with my wife's illness is part of the "in sickness and in health." We are BOTH dedicated longtime wargamers, but when it comes to our health, we will both do what we need to do to take care of each other. The games just have to wait. That said I am glad that I was able to bring her home from the hospital because sleeping on a cot in the hospital room really sucked, especially when all I could look forward to was going to work, then rinse and repeat. The onset of her illness was very sudden last Tuesday and took me straight from work to the emergency room. Pretty scary, especially for my wife. Some of my forum friends know, but others do not. I relocated to this town 450 miles from our family for a Job in early fall of 2008. I brought my wife and kid up for start of school and bought a house. On the same week that we started to move in to the new house (our dream house btw), she was diagnosed with cancer. Since then it has been surgery, treatment, complications, hope that she is getting better, then unexpected complications, etc. I am resolved to see us through this and to be the strength that she needs, even if it disrupts my hobby activities. During thanksgiving and then christmas I took her home to see our families since it is tough to be away from your relatives for so long and be in poor health.

So, rest assured that the game is going to continue even though it is interrupted by real life right now. I know that most of the readers of this AAR understand and I appreciate that.

Seydlitz

[Jones944]

Family >>>>>> War Games

Stay strong for her and know that we are all thinking about you and your wife and are hoping/praying for the best.

[offenseman]

All the best to you, your family, and wife.  As Jones944 said, you will be in the thoughts of many of us. 

[Esslingen_slith]

Dear Seydlitz,

RL priority!

My best wishes for the health of your wife ... take your time....

[LoBaron]

seydlitz, good luck to you and your family and I wish your wife the strenght to fight and beat the cancer.
 
You know we will be here waiting when you are able to return. [:)]
 
 
 

[comte]

Seydlitz I would like to wish you and your family all the best.

[Galahad78]

All the best for you and your family Seydlitz! [:)]

[cantona2]

All the best for the missus Seydlitz

[gladiatt]

Hang on....we know what it is.