Cohen vs Enrico - Yet another AAR

[AlbertN]

Jan / Feb 1943 - Naval Battles outside Marocco

Finally "Il Duce" orders his fleet to sail out, seeing that the enemy is preparing a landing and that there is only a CV escorting the invasion force (along with cruisers).

The Axis Air Armada of NAVs take off - along with a sortie of Regia Marina including its new carriers.
The Italian Task force (at the 3 box), if able to find the invasion force would be able to hopefully overwhelm it.
With 1 CVP at 4 air to air factor only as "fighter" though, the air cover at that box is a bit measly. 2 Condors, 2 Sparvieros, and 2 CVPs of 2 air to air factor (and 2 air to sea) both loaded on the 2nd CV are the air assets in the 3 box.

In the 1 Box a moltitude of Bf109 along with a Gabbiano and an Eirone NAVs. The Allies have a CP, but weather is bad.

The plan does not exactly go into port. The W.Allied must have managed to decoded the orders and were waiting for the Axis fleet. (The W.Allies rolled 1 and the Axis 5).
Seeing that if the W.Allies pick the only the Axis airplanes - Axis would scoot away after one round of combat.

Besides, meanwhile the W.Allied could not fit in airplanes on the 3 box; their Catilina went on the 2 box (the UK CVs all lacked a 4 range airplane! The Catilina made up for that to give them a +1 in search); and a Canadian Spitfire and a P38 Lightning got respectively at the 1 and 2 box just to be on the "safe" side.

The W.Allied had just 4 surprise points - they could have elected naval battle BUT with air superiority AND the fact Italy would have just got some cruisers or BBs damaged that was not in the best interest. Better to keep the 4 Surprise Points.
Not only - this way the W.Allied forces the Italian airplanes to fight - which is what concerns them the most. If the W.Allied gets their invasion fleet found otherwise - their 4 strong Fulmar would be all alone to fend off many NAVs with at least a matching fighter for it escorting them.
To be sure to safeguard the own AMPHs is better than to sink some Italian surface ship.

These two land based fighters proved to be the diamond spear of the W.Allied airforce. The Italian embarked aviation, at its first test, gave hell to the W.Allies though, fighting at +3 / -3 and then at +5 / -5 (All Italian CVPs went fighter mode) the Italians shot down 2 of the CW planes (the Canadian and 1 CVP), and suffered only a single loss.
But the pointe Italian CVP got aborted and so the other CVP shortly after.

The UK eats the AA - losing a CVP more - but gets enough through to inflict 1 X and 2 D.
Aquila is targetted, having the Italian CVP fighter on it. Aquila sinks.
CL Taranto and CV Sparviero are the next on the list but both pass the save and are aborted.

Axis elects to stay and finds with its fleet and 4 NAV at the 3 box the W.Allied.
Axis takes the risk - head on the 3 box. The Fulmar fights fiercely, aborting a Sparviero and destroying the other, before to get forced down on the carrier.
The AA is sufficient - reducing the Condors to actually inflict only 1 A result. That goes straight on the CV. The British CV fails the save and is sent away.
Now the 3 Box is without any air cover. And has only some measly cruisers screening the AMPHs.

But as no side finds the other - the combat ends there.

Axis lost CV Aquila, 2 CVPs and 1 Sparviero (with 2 pilots).
CW lost 1 FTR and 2 CVPs (1 or 2 pilots gone, don't remember).

Now the ball bounces in the Allied hands.
Will they send their 12 range FTR to help at sea, or other planes?

[AlbertN]

Jan / Feb 1943 - Indian Ocean

Meanwhile the US are busy in their own agenda (Trying to land in Pago Pago which is manned by 2 Divs of Japan), some raiders make their way into Bay of Bengal.
The IJN dispatches a retaliatory force but they fail to find the raiders.

USN submarines raid in the Marianas ends up in tragedy for the USN - their submarines limp back with severe damage to Honolulu. (2 damaged submarines)

[AlbertN]

Jan / Feb 1943 - Marocco

Screenshot of end turn - after the 2nd Allied impulse.
Raging air battles took place - and the Axis lost 4 fighters to no loss for the W.Allied. That definitely costed to the Axis the air superiority in the zone.

The last of these battles was about ground support to the attack to the eastern fringe of the front - where the German PZ and the Italian MOT unit got attacked by large US forces. The attack turned into a +4 as the Axis bombers were escorted through at a dear cost; yet the land combat roll was high enough to let the US shatter both of them, at the cost of only a MOT-Div.

The Axis positions in Marocco are slowly getting unhinged and to bring more reinforcements is turning hard and harder as the Italian TRSs are only so few (atm 3 TRS and 1 AMPH).

[AlbertN]

End of Jan / Feb 1943 - Pago Pago Invasion foiled by weather

Once again the weather favors the Japanese (or simply the US meteorolists aren't that good!) and a large invasion force headed toward Pago Pago to reclaim that lost naval base is forced to invert route.

[AlbertN]

Jan / Feb 1943 - Destroyed Pool

Italy lost 2 pilots and so Germany. (4 total)
CW lost 1 or 2 pilots.

[AlbertN]

March / April 1943 - Marocco & Spain

Played 2 impulses each of this turn.

The first one was bad weather, the Allies simply prepared once again for the invasion and the Axis adjusted their positions but rain in Marocco did not helped to establish their defences in the mountains (That disrupted the defenders for moving in).
But Axis is short of tanks in Marocco.

Italy though opens the dances first with artillery fire on the USA stack south of Tangiers, disrupting the US Artillery and their LND3 there.
The Do217 flies to bomb a 3 strong stack of USA land forces in the dry weather of the desert. The Hellcat intervenes promptly and clashes with the Italian escorts. Italians are true killers and win the air combat by sending US airplanes souvenirs to dot the sands of the desert.
A single 6-3 INF is disrupted from the bombing run.

Then the weather improved and the invasion took place.
A not extremely well organized invasion though. Marocco offers only limited airbases to an ever-growing USAAF; and to "save" on oil, the British fleet was not entirely committed. That got the landing forces peeling pratically the shore bombing needed but not having any more to sustain a push.

But let us go with order. Once the good weather hits the Spanish shores, the USAAF and the embarked airforce of the Royal Navy send in all the bombers they can.
2 Swordfish go in the small woods; having both 1 tactical factor.
The US scatters 4 bombers in different locations - including Cadis and Lisbon.

The Axis reacts at the best of their possibilities, as the air action limits hinders where their planes can be.
Over Lisbon the German He100 shots down a "Boston" Tactical bomber, before to get gunned down in return from the Fulmar coming from the carriers.
Over Cadis the Bf109 Emil - an old one - is severely outgunned by 2 US fighter squadrons and perishes pointlessly.

As the landing happen, more aerial fights take place. A modern Fw190 attempts to escort German bombers and repel the USAAF ones; gunning down a Catilina (that was send as "shield" pratically) before to get repulsed back to base.
Over the mountains of Marocco - just at the border of Algeria - another air battle takes place. The USAAF shots down the Fw190 that is upfront, but then the other italian fighter, a Macchi205 "Veltro" deals appropriately with the P38 Lightning.
A Condor is bravely intercepted by a 0 strong Swordfish - that is swiftly invited back to its home carrier. (Would have been ironic to lose a Condor, unescorted, to that 0 strong CVP!)

Axis reinforces successfully via airplanes all their defenders, actually doubling all the invasion zones (from 2 to 4 and from 3 to 6 where the Venice MIL was involved). And both Italian bombers up the mountain defenders of 8 factors!

The land combats though favor the W.Allies - relatively at least.
In Marocco they just crush the German resistance, at a +8 attack, with no consequences except Nimitz disrupted after giving support. Axis lose a 7-3 German INF and a 1-4 Italian MOT-Div.
The 3 invasion hexes are between +8 to +10; two of them are 18s which makes all the invaders flipped but they land with no losses.
The northmost invasion spot see the Italian Venice MIL being erased from the map, at the cost of a MAR-Div.

USA spends all of their remaining HQ to reorganize airplanes and artillery - probably going to use an O-Chit to flip them again the next turn.

During Axis impulse, the Germans start to scramble via rail armoured units in the sector but they've only Kesserling at avail: that's 1 SS Panzer and both the artillery and MOT in the woods reorganized.
Planes are poured in and Italians take a combined to move their TRS & AMPH at sea to load up forces from Italy.

Now the weather is excellent - even in Russia - and the W.Allied can operate in Marocco but at least they're pinned down in Spain; and they risk to suffer a severe counterattack depending on how the turn will unfold.
USA at the present is short of Air-TP to reorganize units and have only 1 TRS in UK to be used for reorganizational purposes.
With the O-Chit they can flip Clark, that in turn can flip 2 more units to disrupt itself. But the Axis should be able to consolidate their containment force.

[AlbertN]

March / April 1943

The Brits have sent raiders in the various Japanese sea zones.
Japan performs a combined, sending a task force to seize them. The naval battle ends with the Royal Navy CAs (of the 6-6 moving class) damaged (Both passed their save!) despite the neat air domination of the Japanese.

Not only, Japan opts to bomb the Indian stack including their HQ with 2 carrier air; relying on a 6+6+5 CVPs as escort. There is only a 5 strong Indian FTR.
Japan loses one of their precious CVPs, and the Indian one is just aborted.

In the while the Commonwealth is starting to clean India of Partisans, having also received the London MIL from England; and the "Queens" are proceeding into shipping in more troops from South Africa into India.

[AlbertN]

March / April 1943 - US wants Pago Pago back.

Finally graced with good weather, the US prepares to invade Pago Pago.
The Japanese defenders are a MNT-Div and a GARR-Div; a total of 5 combat power - plus the eventual notional.

The US though could take time and first land in other islands around Pago Pago to gain naval bases and whatnot - since at the present they'd be attacking with 3.5 land factors or so!

Phoenix Islands have been secured already, and Japan is evaluating if to send divisions to secure the small islands that confine with the Solomons.

Since Pago Pago is deemed too peripheric for Japan, the IJN seems happy to let the USN operate at their own leisure.

[AlbertN]

March / April 1943 - Destroyed Pool

Other minor happenings:

Germans have destroyed the Mongol CAV unit; are getting ready to storm Novosibisk now that the weather is good; and are bringing slowly some more unit at Tashkaet; though the new Spain crisis seems to divert rail-engines elsewhere.

Japan has destroyed a partisan in China with success (using a HQ as support too though).

There has not been yet strategic bombing but the RAF presence in UK is intensifying.

Desroyed pool up to date for the turn - 2 impulses each played:

[AlbertN]

Coming Production - Part 1

It is on a degree of intent I am not producting only land units and airplanes - I believe if so the W.Allied would be pretty much screwed entirely otherwise.

Also ... Germany has reached a point that their railroads are already so overly busy that more land units en mass would anyhow just sit closeby Germany.
Planes have already the same issue!

[AlbertN]

Coming Production - Longer Term

[AlbertN]

End of Mar / Apr 1943

The US with the arrival of the good weather took the island with a port by the side of Pago Pago; having now 2 ports to operate in the sea and have better chances to land in Pago Pago without having some pretty strong notional!

Over Marocco the air battles continue, with the Italians still rocking and gunning down more US airplanes as the US attacks at the eastern Marocco / Western Algeria a 5-4 INF of Italy.
On the other hand Germany suffers in the skies of France, where the RAF performs strategic bombing.
Meanwhile no bomber reaches the final destination, Germany loses 2 FTRs and 1 Pilot, gunning down only a LND3 of the RAF.



The turn ends with a roll of 2 - pain and woe as the Axis had pratically all the Allied units in Spain disrupted except one.
The W.Allies brought in their impulse some planes there and have more planes land at the end of the turn, being at sea.

With reserves, lost planes without pilots and new pilots trained Germany got to total 18 pilots to equip their new Luftwaffe squadrons!

A partisan appeared in French Indochina; a German one in Argentina as well.

[AlbertN]

May / June 1943 - Openings

Axis wins the initiative, and the W.Allied choose to not reroll - to not send into +1 the Initiative meter.
A debatable choice in my eyes!

Kesserling weights the possibilities and chances but the Axis needs are spread all over the place.
Meanwhile Tashkaet and Novosibirsk are both bombed by a single 5 tactical factor plane, Kesserling gets to fire the 3 strong artillery in the woods; and gets a "naval" Stuka and the Do217 performing a bombing run on the W.Allied beachead.

Il Duce has slightly different plans and commands the Italian Elite Ju88 to go say hello to Alexander.

The Axis gains the upper hand in the ground strikes, managing successfully to deliver all the bombers on the targets despite valiant interceptions of the superior W.Allied airforces.
Though measly results are harvested.

Kesserling issued his panzers to blitz the US Marine corps - which have nowhere to retreat. Alas Axis is short of small units to immolate for the glory.
Il Duce instead ordered Graziani to blitz Alexander.

Again, the two sides meet in the air.
Regular as a swiss clock, the Italian fighters manage to shot down their opponent - meanwhile the US Mustang blasts away the German FW190.

The land attacks end up the same, a loss for the Axis (a German MOT and an Italian MECH); to shatter Alexander and its 7-3 INF; and other german units which Kesserling hastens to reorganize. Cavallero too reorganizes the Italian Bf109 in Spain.

The "main" benefit of the "invasion" is that US is stockpiling so many units over there they struggle to ship them over as the TRS are used to invade.
Currently including new units the US has 22 units in the East Cost of the homeland / Bermuda isles (yes some planes can just rebase through the atlantic over some moves).

[AlbertN]

May / Jun 1943 - Openings

The situation - rather desperate - of the last strongholds of Stalin.
Germany lucked all 3 disrupts in Tashkaet; and by the looks the forces there are what Germany has to make do; since the railroad system is already overloaded with other necessities.
Ideally the German should be able to attack Tashkahet with roughly a 2:1 ratio, HQ support and a +5 from disrupted folks (and a -1 because of the original factory).

The troops at Novosibirsk would have finished their job already and could even start to get back to Germany so to say - the other places will just surrender once Sovietland is conquered.

A Japanese CAV-Div is to seize Ulan Bator.

[AlbertN]

Production Coming

[Centuur]

With the USSR gone, there is no way the Allies should be able to get to either Tokyo, Rome or Berlin. The trick is to build out every FTR and NAV you've got as the Axis, aid Japan with build points and resources from Germany and that's the end of it.

[AlbertN]

With Axis outproducing the W.Allied; and the impending fall of the communist nations; the game is decreeted over and we start anew.

We'll try a small twist - as per I will "play" the Soviets too ontop of the Axis - at least for the opening of the Barbarossa.
Enrico has grown in the convinction that the Soviets cannot withstand the Axis power - meanwhile I believe Soviets may; eventually bunkering in the Urals at worst for a comeback later.

Also after long debate (we spend 1 hour and half talking instead than playing, over skype!) he could try to produce stuff with USA straight away instead than factories!

[Courtenay]

ORIGINAL: Cohen

With Axis outproducing the W.Allied; and the impending fall of the communist nations; the game is decreeted over and we start anew.

We'll try a small twist - as per I will "play" the Soviets too ontop of the Axis - at least for the opening of the Barbarossa.
Enrico has grown in the convinction that the Soviets cannot withstand the Axis power - meanwhile I believe Soviets may; eventually bunkering in the Urals at worst for a comeback later.

Also after long debate (we spend 1 hour and half talking instead than playing, over skype!) he could try to produce stuff with USA straight away instead than factories!

If you think the Russians can hold, and Enrico thinks that they can't, might I suggest that Enrico should be the Axis player, and you can try and prove him wrong?

[Centuur]

ORIGINAL: Courtenay

ORIGINAL: Cohen

With Axis outproducing the W.Allied; and the impending fall of the communist nations; the game is decreeted over and we start anew.

We'll try a small twist - as per I will "play" the Soviets too ontop of the Axis - at least for the opening of the Barbarossa.
Enrico has grown in the convinction that the Soviets cannot withstand the Axis power - meanwhile I believe Soviets may; eventually bunkering in the Urals at worst for a comeback later.

Also after long debate (we spend 1 hour and half talking instead than playing, over skype!) he could try to produce stuff with USA straight away instead than factories!

If you think the Russians can hold, and Enrico thinks that they can't, might I suggest that Enrico should be the Axis player, and you can try and prove him wrong?

I think that's something you should do. Let him play the Axis.

[AlbertN]

We spoke of that, he does not enjoy the Axis.
We had a test run earlier on and he got stuck in France with Germany. (He opted to butcher the Mega-BEF with the O-Chit after he attacked Belgium without going through Netherlands).