The Hive - Cruft PBEM (Japan, Scen 2 Beta + Stacking Limits)

[Captain Cruft]

It varies widely, but Exp, Def and LowG are always > 50.

[Miller]

Wasting your time using those Oscars in that role, even with 250kg bombs. Maybe worthwhile against Chinese troops in clear terrain, otherwise pointless. In my game I have seen 300 plane Helen strikes do virtually nothing to large Brit/Aus troop stacks in Burma.

[Captain Cruft]

We shall see

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Captain Cruft

We shall see

I am watching for just this reason. It is an intriguing proposition here ....

[Captain Cruft]

Burma

I think he is by-passing Mandalay and going for Magwe, both to deny me the oil and because it is a ready-built size 5 airbase. This supposition is based on the movement of the LCU stack which I bombed the other day.

Magwe is 6 hexes from Rangoon, Pegu and Chiang Mai and is a clear hex. This makes it an ideal target for the Swarm. So if and when he gets there I will deploy the Oscars up front in those 3 bases and have Tojos and a few Nicks behind at Moulmein and the other Thai airfields to provide CAP and Sweep support.

The 33rd Division at Mandalay is now down to 40% or so due to disablements caused by the incessant bombing. However, as he has now apparently committed himself on the ground I am happy to retreat the unit back to Rangoon where it may be able to recover in time to help defend the city when the time comes.

So, the question is: can the Swarm stop the Brits in their tracks and render an invasion of Burma impossible? Only time will tell ...

[Captain Cruft]

China

The IJAAF's Sally Corps (some 140 legacy "heavy" level bombers) is bombing Changsha on a daily basis. Recon reports that the airfield is now at 100% damage, and interestingly there were absolutely no flak puffs to be seen today. This suggests to me that the place has a supply problem, so I am doing an exploratory Bombardment Attack next turn to see what it says the AV is. I now have > 4,000 there, maybe a Deliberate Attack might even be appropriate soon.

To be honest I would be more than glad if he were to run away here as he has done just about everywhere else. Changsha is quite clearly untenable over anything but the short-term given the IJAAF air power in the vicinity and the Chinese lack of supply.

[Captain Cruft]

New Guinea

No new landings. He seems to now be concentrating on building up the bases on the Kavieng -> Manus -> Wewak -> Hollandia line. I will try and disturb this a bit using subs and SCTFs like the one mentioned above formed around CL Agano.

A notable event this turn was the first recon flight over Truk. The DL didn't rise much so I presume this was a PBY or B17 or other non-recon plane. Regardless, this suggests that I may soon have to face the 4E menace over Truk, albeit much later than I had presumed.

Our massed A6M3s and flak are ready ...

[Captain Cruft]

Fighter production

I am about 90% convinced on deciding to can all George and Frank production. These planes just don't float my boat. It seems to me that they would never have been produced under non-desperate conditions, being too complicated and unreliable etc.

Can I defend the Hive using just Zeros, Oscars and Tojos? With a few Nicks thrown in?

Am I mad? [X(]

Please note: I have not actually done this yet. It's just a thought ...

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Captain Cruft

Fighter production

I am about 90% convinced on deciding to can all George and Frank production. These planes just don't float my boat. It seems to me that they would never have been produced under non-desperate conditions, being too complicated and unreliable etc.

Can I defend the Hive using just Zeros, Oscars and Tojos? With a few Nicks thrown in?

Am I mad? [X(]

Please note: I have not actually done this yet. It's just a thought ...

I don't think you can, BUT I am all about watching how this plays out. So, I say CAN'EM all. Just go with OSCAR!!!

[Saros]

Uh yeah don't do that, especially the Frank. Zekes are too slow/fragile and the others are chronically underarmed.
Service rating 3 isn't too bad it just means you need to operate them from bigger bases with plenty of airsupport and you can;t cut as many corners as you do with the earlier planes. Service rating 4 however is basically unusable.

[Captain Cruft]

Well I have definitely decided not to produce the George. The rest I need to think about more. I just don't like the idea of Japan trying to compete with the US or Brits on a technological level in the air. This was a complete impossibility in real life and just because the game allows you to do it doesn't mean that you have to.

This is my current musing ...

IJA:-

Tony NO
Frank MAYBE
Ki-83 YES
Ki-94 NO
Ki-93 NO
Ki-201 NO
Me163 thingy NO

IJN:-

George NO
Jack MAYBE
Sam MAYBE. Perhaps just for CV units or something.
Shinden should be NO, but they are cool Perhaps just a few dedicated to Festung defence.
Me163 thingy NO

One thing to be aware of with all this is that I have precisely no expectation of ever being able to stop 4E bombers from doing their stuff. It seems to me a lot of players waste an awful lot of time and effort trying to solve this when it's essentially an insoluble problem.

[FDRLincoln]

I agree with not producing the rockets and jets. You can't build them in sufficient numbers or quickly enough to make much of a difference. I have cancelled them in my own game as I see them as a waste of resources.
 
However, I think you have to produce the Frank. There will be missions that you need extra firepower for...intercepting 4E bombers, etc.. Even beehives and ant colonies have workers with different skill sets. Some Frank units with elite pilots would prove very useful to the hive at some point.

[Captain Cruft]

Yes I think we must do the Frank. I won't accelerate it though.

[Captain Cruft]

I've played today's turn now. Not much happening except Oscars and Nicks beating up the British and Chinese air forces quite successfully via Sweep. The Brit LCU stack definitely looks to be heading towards Magwe.

Now to the revised air plans ...

Fighters

IJA:-

Oscar YES
Tojo YES
Tony NO
Frank YES
Nick YES
Ki-83 YES
Ki-94 NO
Ki-93 NO
Ki-201 NO
Me163 thingy NO

IJN:-

Zero YES
George NO
Jack NO
Sam YES
Shinden YES
Me163 thingy NO

The IJN will attempt to standardise on the Sam, and to this end I have allocated lots of R&D to it. A small number of Shindens will also be produced, but these will only be used in the Home Islands to protect important targets. In the meantime, whatever is the current model of the Zero will take the burden.

The IJA will in simple terms use Oscars for bombing, Tojos for air defence and Franks for offensive Sweeps. Though there will inevitably be some overlap. The Ki-83 will also be produced in smaller numbers, but what exactly I will use it for is as yet undecided. Possibly as per the Shinden, but then it does have a good range ...

Night Fighters

For the IJA I will just produce whatever is available in moderate numbers until such time as the Ki-102c Randy becomes available. This plane is on paper far and away the best night fighter in the arsenal, but it and its radar don't arrive until 1945. For the IJN the Denko is superficially attractive but it has a service rating of 4 and doesn't arrive by default until 1946. So I won't bother with it. Instead I will produce a reasonable number of the Zero night fighter variant, which might prove useful deployed on the carriers, if I have any.

[FDRLincoln]

Just wondering, but why the Sam over the George? Is it because of the CV deployment issue?

[Captain Cruft]

No logical reason. I just don't like the George.

I don't play this game to optimise every single little thing.

[btbw]

Rethink.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: Captain Cruft

No logical reason. I just don't like the George.

I don't play this game to optimise every single little thing.

So you'll go with inferior aircraft for two years between the time the George/Jack are available and when the Sam shows up? Any other reasons? Just curious. Is this to be more 'historically accurate,' or do you just feel as you stated above that Japan shouldn't be able to compete with the Allies?

If that's true why not play PDU off?

[Captain Cruft]

I can't abide PDU Off. It would be OK if the game engine simulated a lot more real industrial and logistical constrictions to go with it but it doesn't.

It's simple. The George is ugly and nose-heavy therefore I don't want it.

Historically accurate is not that important to me, however I do feel a need to introduce some impediments to my god-like control. Otherwise you just get stuck into relentless game engine optimisation, which to me would be boring not to mention too stressful.

[Captain Cruft]

ORIGINAL: btbw

And IJN navy AG can be expanded from default numbers to cap of CV.

Nothing on this earth would get me to do that. It's a game exploit of the first magnitude.