Did You Know I Used to Drive a Rollercoaster?: Apbarog(A) vs OPilot(J)

[apbarog]

8 Sep 43

The enemy fighters at Batavia finally join combat. 37 Tojos swept over the 637th Tank Destroyer Battalion on the north Java coast. 10 Corsairs were on LRCAP. The Tojos had their way, downing 8 F4Us and losing just one Tojo. The Tojos cleared the way for 27 Lilys and 30 Oscars. The Lilys caused light damage to the tank unit. Allied fighters swept the same hex, finding no enemy fighters, and US bombers hit the enemy unit there, the 58th Infantry Regiment. 395 Japanese casualties from a big Liberator strike. But it wasn't enough.

Ground combat at 51,101 (near Tjilatjap)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 3479 troops, 26 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 106

Defending force 474 troops, 3 guns, 82 vehicles, Assault Value = 45

Japanese adjusted assault: 18

Allied adjusted defense: 8

Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1

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

Japanese ground losses:
49 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
34 casualties reported
Squads: 3 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 5 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Vehicles lost 32 (12 destroyed, 20 disabled)
Units retreated 1

Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
58th Infantry Regiment

Defending units:
637th Tank Destroyer Battalion

At Soerakarta, the Allied attack comes off at 5 to 1 and causes twice as many Japanese casualties as Allied. The enemy division is now cut off due to the successful attack at Djokjakarta.

Ground combat at Djokjakarta (52,103)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 24760 troops, 376 guns, 429 vehicles, Assault Value = 801

Defending force 13210 troops, 143 guns, 115 vehicles, Assault Value = 382

Allied adjusted assault: 447

Japanese adjusted defense: 25

Allied assault odds: 17 to 1 (fort level 0)

Allied forces CAPTURE Djokjakarta !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), op mode(-), preparation(-), fatigue(-)
experience(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
3688 casualties reported
Squads: 64 destroyed, 20 disabled
Non Combat: 170 destroyed, 19 disabled
Engineers: 25 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 52 (52 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Vehicles lost 103 (103 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units retreated 4

Allied ground losses:
132 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 21 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 5 disabled

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
18th Cmbt Engineer Regiment
33rd Infantry Division
1st (Spec) Cavalry Division
762nd Tank Battalion
198th Field Artillery Battalion
145th Field Artillery Battalion

Defending units:
12th Division
1st Tank Regiment
4th Tank Regiment
2nd Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion

And paras dropped on Cheribon.

Ground combat at Cheribon (51,100)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 498 troops, 8 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 19

Defending force 42 troops, 0 guns, 19 vehicles, Assault Value = 3

Allied adjusted assault: 8

Japanese adjusted defense: 1

Allied assault odds: 8 to 1 (fort level 0)

Allied forces CAPTURE Cheribon !!!

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

Japanese ground losses:
Vehicles lost 17 (17 destroyed, 0 disabled)

Assaulting units:
1st Aus Para Bn /1

Defending units:
1st Ind.Tank Co

Enemy subs are now prowling northwest of Darwin, but they are too late. The big carriers have been at Port Hedland, waiting for the Sumatra operation.

[RangerJoe]

That Japanese division should not be able to move out, it should be trapped and die there.

[apbarog]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

That Japanese division should not be able to move out, it should be trapped and die there.

You may be right RangerJoe. But I did see that the enemy still controlled the hexside to go to the west. We'll find out soon enough. That division is doomed either way.

[RangerJoe]

But you have undisputed control of the hex that it is trying to move to. That should prevent the movement. When it has enough movement points and you still control the other hex, its movement should fail.

[apbarog]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

But you have undisputed control of the hex that it is trying to move to. That should prevent the movement. When it has enough movement points and you still control the other hex, its movement should fail.

I do control the destination hex, but I see red for the hex side for movement to the hex.

[RangerJoe]

That red is for the hex that the Japanese unit is in. You control the other hex and have a unit there. The Japanese should not be able to move to the other hex.

[GetAssista]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

That red is for the hex that the Japanese unit is in. You control the other hex and have a unit there. The Japanese should not be able to move to the other hex.

It does not work this way, there is no such thing as hex control. Only hex sides control (oh, and enemy presence in the hex checking for for the retreat possibility).
Movement will happen. It is just that there is nowhere to go after.

[RangerJoe]

When I stated control the hex, I meant that you control all of the hexsides of that hex.

[apbarog]

For the hex of Djokjakarta, RangerJoe is correct. The Allies have control of all of the hexsides for units trying to leave Djokjakarta. (The inner hexsides around the Djokjakarta hex). But at adjacent Soerakarta, there's a red hexside for any units leaving Soerakarta and moving to Djokjakarta. Therefore, the Japanese unit can move from Soerakarta to Djokjakarta.

[apbarog]

9 Sep 43

YMS-242 started to clear the mines at Kendari. Destroyers Worden and Hull were assigned to ASW duties between Koepang and Kendari. They had been clearing the way for the slow battleships. They found RO-102 on the approach to Kendari, and hit the sub with 3 depth charges. "Debris floats to surface in area of attack!", and audio says that the sub did sink. This sub is believed to be the one that got a torpedo hit on one of the slow US battleships about a week ago.

Two squadrons of P-38Hs swept Batavia, and it didn't go well. 42 Tojos and 36 Oscars were on CAP. The Lightnings were flying from Soerabaja, at extended range. Total losses were 17 Lightnings, and 9 Oscars and 4 Tojos for the enemy.

A couple of enemy destroyers appeared at Vella Lavella in the Solomons. This is adjacent to the US base at Munda. 10 Hudsons flew low level attacks against the destroyers in both the morning and the afternoon, but got no hits bombing from 1000 feet. There was severe storms. The Solomons have been quiet for many months, and the SBDs that I'd had here were pulled out long ago. Two SBD squadrons are moved to Munda with some P-40s for escort. I expect the destroyers to be gone though. They were probably picking up a ground unit at Vella Lavella, which is just a dot base.

Heavy bombers hit Balikpapan, targeting the port, airfield and ground units. An ACM was sunk and moderate damage was done to the facilities. There was no CAP. I could bomb all the oil there, but I'd rather just capture it. This invasion is just a couple of weeks away.

Another Allied attack at Soerakarta causes 551 enemy casualties. If the enemy 57th Division doesn't move west to Djokjakarta today, it will be stuck at Soerakarta. A US armor unit is about to close the hex side by moving from Djokjakarta to Soerakarta.

Cleanup continues at Kendari. 1155 enemy casualties. Allied troops will rest a day, except for the artillery, which will continue bombarding.

The rest of the 1st Australian Para Battalion dropped on Cheribon, reinforcing the paras already there. The shock attack kicked the enemy's 1st Ind. Tank Co out of the hex.

Task forces are now being planned at Colombo and Trincomlee. The invasion of Sumatra will come from here.

[RangerJoe]

I thought that you could not directly move a unit from an enemy occupied hex to another enemy occupied hex. My mistake. [:@]

[apbarog]

10 Sep 43

Skipjack arrived on the coast of Korea, with a mission to drop mines at Moppo. AMc Ayukawa Maru was spotted and sunk with a torpedo. The mines were then dropped. There will be another minesweeper along very soon, I think.

South of Hong Kong, Amberjack spotted a big cargo convoy. This is just in the deep water south of China. A torpedo sank xAKL Kokuei Maru.

12 B-24s from Kolaka hit the port on the island base Talaud-eilanden, south of Mindanao. AG Kosho Maru was hit by 3 bombs and sunk. The base had been built up some, so I sent some bombers. I noted that Davao has 29,000 men, so it is defended.

The enemy division at Soerakarta is now truly isolated, with all hex sides under Allied control. I will continue attacking with the 3+ divisions there. Losses were more even today: 663 enemy versus 482 Allied, but it will just get worse for the enemy, particularly after they run out of supply.

Cleanup at Kendari continues. One of the two US divisions is moving back to Kolaka and not participating in the cleanup. Kendari is overstacked and there are a bunch of base support and engineers on the way from Kolaka.

[apbarog]

11 Sep 43

As predicted, an enemy minesweeper started sweeping mines at Moppo, one day after the mines were dropped.

The somewhat isolated enemy infantry regiment attempted to clear their hex. A US artillery unit arrived but was in movement mode. The US troops held.

Ground combat at 51,101 (near Tjilatjap)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 3277 troops, 26 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 91

Defending force 588 troops, 20 guns, 87 vehicles, Assault Value = 40

Japanese adjusted assault: 19

Allied adjusted defense: 17

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: op mode(-), fatigue(-), experience(-)
Attacker: shock(+), leaders(+), leaders(-), disruption(-)

Japanese ground losses:
174 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 32 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 6 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Vehicles lost 14 (1 destroyed, 13 disabled)

Assaulting units:
58th Infantry Regiment

Defending units:
637th Tank Destroyer Battalion
249th Field Artillery Battalion

The isolated enemy division at Soerakarta continued to be reduced. Just a matter of time. Then 3 US divisions will head towards Batavia.

[apbarog]

11 Sep 43

[apbarog]

12 Sep 43

Enemy transport sub SST Yu-7 hit a mine at Namlea and sank. It was headed to Ambon. Blackfish spotted a big tanker convoy in the shallow water near Swatow, China. OPilot is continuing to use the Chinese coast for the big convoys. It's dangerous to move subs there, but it has to be done, from time to time. OPilot is also using minesweepers along the coast. Anyhow, Blackfish missed an E-boat with two torpedoes.

I pose this question: Can the Japanese pull oil out of Hong Kong, oil that traveled from Singapore? There's no rail line, and the road system in China is poor and long, so I think not. I do wonder about northern Vietnam also. He's built a big port near the Chinese border. It IS on a rail line from Thailand. I wonder about this because I continue to see big tanker convoys east of Hong Kong, but none going to Singapore.

At Kendari, YMS-242 was sweeping mines. It hit one today and sank.

The trapped enemy division at Soerakarta is collapsing. Over 1000 casualties today. Same for the enemy troops at Kendari. 783 casualties.

The US tank destroyers counter-attacked the enemy infantry regiment near Tjilatjap. Bad odds. Good result.

Ground combat at 51,101 (near Tjilatjap)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 552 troops, 20 guns, 86 vehicles, Assault Value = 35

Defending force 2958 troops, 26 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 59

Allied adjusted assault: 6

Japanese adjusted defense: 22

Allied assault odds: 1 to 3

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

Japanese ground losses:
104 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Vehicles lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)

Assaulting units:
637th Tank Destroyer Battalion
249th Field Artillery Battalion

Defending units:
58th Infantry Regiment

[CaptBeefheart]

ORIGINAL: apbarog

I pose this question: Can the Japanese pull oil out of Hong Kong, oil that traveled from Singapore? There's no rail line, and the road system in China is poor and long, so I think not. I do wonder about northern Vietnam also. He's built a big port near the Chinese border. It IS on a rail line from Thailand. I wonder about this because I continue to see big tanker convoys east of Hong Kong, but none going to Singapore.

It's been a while, but if you feel like using the search function, I recall seeing a thread where JFBs admitted they've moved oil from Singapore to Fusan (and presumably to points in between) through a "magic pipeline." So, it wouldn't surprise me if that's happening.

Cheers,
CB

[GetAssista]

ORIGINAL: apbarog
I pose this question: Can the Japanese pull oil out of Hong Kong, oil that traveled from Singapore? There's no rail line, and the road system in China is poor and long, so I think not. I do wonder about northern Vietnam also. He's built a big port near the Chinese border. It IS on a rail line from Thailand. I wonder about this because I continue to see big tanker convoys east of Hong Kong, but none going to Singapore.

HK->Fusan is relatively easy if you keep TKs loading in Fusan at all times. Longer pulling is fine too, like from Camran Bay, especially if you build up ports strategically along the way with Shanghai > HK > Haiphong > CRB to facilitate natural flow. Pulling from Singapore itself is troublesome though. I tested it somewhat in my AI games and resorted to Singers->CRB transport and them magic highway. Fusan was not enough for all the traffic though with its 8 size port, so I used Shanghai a lot for TK transports.

[apbarog]

13 Sep 43

Grayback has been on patrol in the Kuriles, near Paramushiro-jima. Until today, it hadn't spotted a ship. It fired four torpedoes at tanker Hirota Maru. Two hit. The ship is burning and is full of fuel, and is believed to be sunk.

Blackfish spotted a cargo task force near Wenchow, China. An xAKL was sunk.

OPilot moved Zeros into Lae and swept Port Moresby. The Allied CAP was weak, partly due to the Kittyhawks having just upgraded from the III model to the IV. 39 Zeros went up against 4 Kittyhawk IVs and 18 F4F-4 Wildcats. It was easy work for the experienced Zeros. 11 Wildcats and 4 Kittyhawks were downed. No Zeros were lost. Port Moresby is then reinforced with better planes.

Reduction of the enemy at Soerakarta continued. 578 enemy casualties.

I pulled the trigger on both the Balikpapan/Samarinda invasion and the Sumatra invasion. Loading for the first begins at Darwin. Loading for the second begins at Trincomlee and Colombo.

[apbarog]

14 Sep 43

Sub Steelhead fired four torpedoes at RO-101 in the shallow water south of Bandjermasin. One hit but it was a dud. That was the first dud since the torpedo dud penalty went away at the beginning of the month. For this month, that's just one dud in fifteen torpedo hits.

Heavies and mediums bombed enemy troops on Java. Part of an Australian brigade was flown from Mataram to Cheribon, reinforcing the para unit there. There's an enemy division showing movement to there from the north. Other units will Strat move in today and tomorrow. Mostly engineers though.

Soerakarta continued to be cleared. Another 844 enemy casualties, and the enemy is now out of supply. Similar results at Kendari: 1159 casualties and no supply. At Kendari, the US division that is attacking is becoming more and more fatigued. Over 70 now. But the attacks are working and the time for rest will be after the battle.

Just south of Cheribon, on Java, the enemy infantry is forced out, aided by a tremendous amount of bomber support. Clear terrain. I always think back to the pounding from bombers that my Chinese troops have taken in clear terrain. Still doesn't feel completely right but it does feel completely fair.

Loaded shipping for Balikpapan starts to leave Darwin. Loading continues at Colombo and Trincomlee. Had to shuffle some extra xAPs from Colombo to Trincomlee, so loading will take an extra day or two.

Tracker says that Unryo did sink near Balikpapan, but Zuikaku did not.

[apbarog]

15 Sep 43

Enemy minesweepers are poking around Namlea now. Dutch sub KXIII chose not to fire at them. PT boats from Timor are on the way.

More reduction of the enemy at Soerakarta. 386 casualties, with 68 combat squads destroyed. This should end soon, freeing up three US divisions for the push to Batavia.

Another attack at Kendari causes 921 enemy casualties and all but 6 of the enemy units are wiped out by attrition. Allied units will continue to attack. The US division is over 80 fatigue now, but will continue attacking.

This was a big turn of planning for what comes after Balikpapan/Samarinda, Java and the area of Sumatra around Palembang. I've decided not to go for Singapore. Instead, there will be an advance to the north, with landings on eastern Borneo, taking Tarakan, and landings to the east on the islands including Jolo and east including Zamboanga. I will bypass Mindanao, except for Zamboanga. When the divisions on Java are freed up, the next step will be a landing on Luzon. This should happen before the end of 1943.

Shipping is ordered all over the place, in order to pick up units for the new landings. The staging base will be Makassar. I've been fairly conservative with my landings, waiting for very good preparation levels. I am going to start landing with less preparation, wanting to increase the pace of the landings and increase the stress to the enemy.